Attention, unusually, there is arcade on TV tonight! As part of its "Week of the Video Game" programme, Belgian TV channel La Deux will broadcast a report on Brussels arcade "eLive/Arena". It will be tonight at 11:35 pm CET. You can have a glimpse of the place by watching Ken Bogard's video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbe6wGDggFQ. So be sure to tune in tonight!

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The 2012 edition of EAG International, the largest European trade show dedicated to Amusement will be held in London next week. Like every year, it is the opportunity to discover the latest arcade video games and redemption machines. The big manufacturers are once again at the rendez-vous; At Sega Amusements, one will find among other Let's Go Island 3D, Operation G.H.O.S.T. (Ghost Squad sequel), Virtua Tennis 4 (4 player cabinet), the Mini Rider 3D simulator and Bejeweled (arcade version of the famous puzzle game) and Ice Age Ice Breaker (from ICE) redemptions. At Bandai Namco Games, the highlight of the show will be Deadstorm Pirates 3D Theatre, there will be a new Pac-Man product and the American game ReRave, the rest of the line up is kept secret, but we can be quite sure that the latest Raw Thrills games will be showcased (including Dirty Drivin'). Electrocoin will offer special show price on all products including Taito's Real Puncher (Sonic Blast Heroes), Konami's DanceDanceRevolution X2 and truck racing game Power Truck. There is no doubt that there will be many other surprises. EAG is also known for its great seminars with speakers such as Michael Getlan (on redemption and how to manage difficult customers), Frank Seninsky (design and develop a gaming area in 10 points, and successfully set up self-redemption for street operators) and Leslie Macleod-Miller (on changes in future legislation). EAG International will be held at ExCeL London on 24, 25 and 26 January. To visit the show (professionals only), you can register on the website or at the show entrance on the day of the event. Like every year, we will publish a full picture report of the show.

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As announced on December 16, Square Enix has unveiled its new game today: Gunslinger Stratos. This is an "Online Multiplayer Game Fight Double Action Gun." Players use a "double gun device", a controller that can be separated into two guns or combined into one. Many weapons will be available in the game as a flamethrower, barrier shield to protect allies, ... The weapons can be purchased via a points system and saved on a NESiCA card. The game supports online game and up to eight players that can play 4vs4. Solo missions and co-op missions will be also available. The cabinet features a 60" plasma screen and runs in 60 FPS. Gunslinger Stratos is developed by Square Enix and Byking (Gundam Extreme VS.). It is produced by Nobuki Kadoya (Lord of Vermillion) from Square Enix and directed by Shinichiro Obata, founder of Byking and former designer from Capcom who worked on Street Fighter and Vampire Savior. We also find character designers Mari Shimazaki (Bayonetta, Okami), Shigeto Koyama (Heroman) and Arco Wada (Fate/Extra) behind the graphics. Gen Urobuchi (Madoka Magica, Fate/Zero) worked on the "world concept" of the game that takes place in real environments such as Shibuya.

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Project-Firestorm is a team of German developers who create Dreamcast games in their spare time. Their next title is the Time Hunter shoot'em up. The subject today is one of their other projects: the Arcade Game Box. The Arcade Game Box is a universal case for storing all arcade games in cartridge format. On the form, it looks like a Neo-Geo Snapcase, only a little bigger. Inside the box is a removable sponge inlay with a hole carved in the shape and dimensions of the cartridge. For now, there are formats for MVS, PGM and Atomiswave games. But Project-Firestorm released images of boxes welcoming Naomi and ST-V cartridges, Naomi GD-ROMs and even a Type X hard disk fitted in its metal cover. The outer side features the space for an A3-sized cover. The first Arcade Game Boxes should be available by mid-March, it will cost € 9.95 a unit. This is an excellent initiative that will delight collectors and organized people.

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Here's January 1st, 2012! A new year that we wish you full of joy. Because of the tsunami tragedy in March, many Japanese release were delayed but in the end, many quality games have emerged such as the highly anticipated Initial D Arcade Stage 6 AA and many BEMANI titles (BEMANI (GuitarFreaks & Drummania V8/XG2, pop'n music 20, Hello! pop'n music, DanceDanceRevolution X3, Reflec Beat limelight, beatmania IIDX 19, jubeat knit APPEND). Fighting game fans were pampered with the release of Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition Ver.2012, Dragon Ball Battle Royale, Aquapazza, Chaos Code, Persona 4, etc... Most of these titles are released in Japan only, but European players got new games too, such as Dead Heat, Pac-Man Battle Royale, Big Buck World, Fast & Furious Super Cars, Super Bikes 2, GRID, Let's Go Island, Sega Golden Gun and Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Arcade to name a few. Taito policy is to be welcomed since they released BlazBlue Continuum Shift II and Darius Burst Another Chronicle in our area and other titles will follow in 2012! 2011 was marked by the closure of the famous Funland in London but fortunately also the opening of several arcades in the West. In Belgium, Brussels is the city where most thing happened with the creation of a temple of profighting: the eLive/Arena. For our part, the success of Arcade Belgium stand at Made in Asia 3 show in Brussels shows that there is an audience for real arcade games. We will of course take part to Made In Asia 4! Also note our return on Liège funfair with the Terminator Salvation tournament which brought a little warmth in the heart of winter, an experience to repeat!

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While Winning Eleven 2012 (Pro Evolution Soccer 2012) pleases home console players since last September, Konami releases the arcade version today: Winning Eleven Arcade Championship 2012. The cabinet features a a 32" wide screen that provides a larger view of the field and the opponents that allows a more strategic game. Winning Eleven Arcade Championship 2012 uses Konami's e-Amusement and Paseli services. Players can compete throughout Japan and national score rankings can be found on the e-Amusement Gate platform. A conversion kit is available and there's also a PS3 control panel kit to attract home console version fans.

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Namco Bandai released Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4 today. This fourth episode introduces new races, new cars (including Nissan Skyline coupé, Subaru Legacy B4 and Mazda Savanna RX-7). Other cars and other races will be added via net updates and nation wide championships will be organized through the Internet. Background musics have also been renewed but are always composed by Koshiro Yuzo (Streets of Rage, Shenmue,...). The cabinet features a 6-speed H shaped shifter, a 32" LCD monitor and a 4.1 surround sound system. An external terminal is available to players so they can tune their car quietly. Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4 uses Bana Passport but players can transfer data from their Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3DX Plus card.

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Initial D - Arcade Stage 6 AA Version 2.0 next update will be released tomorrow. This update adds a new race: Sadamine. This race is located in Saitama prefecture and was the scene of two races that ensured Project D supremacy over the region. Thanks to the always brilliant strategy developped by Ryosuke, Takumi indeed defeated Nobuhiko and Keisuke won against Kyoko. In addition, during this season, two events will take place: the first, from December 23 to 25, is a secret event that will be revealed just before the dates and the second, from December 29 to January 2, is an online battle on Irohazaka course.

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December 17, 2010 was the day Darius returned to Japanese game centers. 13 years after the last episode, Darius Burst Another Chronicle features 4 player gameplay on 2 LCD screens assembled to offer a widescreen format (which earned him a record at the Guinness World Records for its 32:9 aspect ratio). At the time, our friend at Arcade Heroes called for players to express their interest to Taito in order to convince them to release the game internationally. This action has been successful because Taito announced in February 2011 that an international version of Darius Burst Another Chronicle was in the works. This version appeared first at Electrocoin open day in June. The international cabinet is different from the Japanese version by the fact that it is more "open" and that the game is in English. This machine was then tested in several locations including London's Casino and Game Grid Arcade in West Valley City (Utah). Arcade Heroes and Taito tell us that Darius Burst Another Chronicle is now available worldwide! For those who don't know Darius Burst AC, it is a futuristic horizontal shoot'em up with many powerups and branching levels where players encounter many large bosses. The large number of levels and great deal of alternative paths offer a good replay value. This game is very popular (players love it!) so we encourage operators wanting to offer something different than the usual racing and light gun games to contact your distributor or Taito directly to order or to get more information.

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Konami has not only released Steel Chronicle yesterday, there was also pop'n music 20 Fantasia! The twentieth episode of the series comes under the sign of the party with a fantasy theme that recalls a little pop'n music 10. Some changes have been made, performance grading system found in other BEMANI games is introduced: there are nine grades represented by letters: F→D→C→B→A→S→SS→SSS→P. The old modes "Challenge" and "Super Challenge" were combined under the name "Normal" mode and the "Enjoy" mode is now called "Easy". A new type of pop-kuns appears: the "highlight" pop-kun that are shining, once the player touches one, is he does no mistakes after, he receives bonus points. This is the first time in the series that the tracklist is so provided. An upgrade kit of pop'n music 20 Fantasia will be available from December 14.

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