SNK in the UK off to a cracking start...

[dataDave]

Just in time for xmas then, perhaps.

[Plisken]

It's sad though really, they had full page advertisements for it in the January editions of the official Xbox and PS2 magazines, a playable demo out, yet the full game just keeps on slipping. They've probably wasted all the profit from the Metal Slug 3 release on this pointless advertising.

It reminds me when King Of Fighters '95 was on issue 5's cover of the Sega Saturn Magazine, then was reviewed in Issue 20.

On a side note, Ignition's site had been updated with the PS2/Xbox port of Sam Sho V, and the PS2 port of KOF 02/03. Where's the Xbox version??? The US are getting it, and i'll be damned if we i can't partake in some Live KOF

[dataDave]

Yeah, all these delays remind me of back when all we had were ports that kept slipping and slipping and slipping...

Remember SFAlpha 1? What made it worse was we had to rely upon magazines and word from behind the counter in order to find out our dates.

It's rubbish when organisation goes out the window.

[E. Randy Dupre]

SFA nothing! Remember the PAL version of X-Men: COTA on Saturn?

[Kubrick]

Or PAL Alpha3 on Dreamcast. That's another game that was reviewed about a year before it was actually released.

[nekroxide]

At least they got released, unlike the soap opera that was PAL Saturn X-Men v Street Fighter

[Plisken]

Ignition's site updated with Xbox KOFMI + 02/03, and an April 15th date for SVC.

https://www.ignitionent.com

[Siri]

some new news: KoF02/03 (for both the PS2 and *X-Box* releases) has been given a release date - the 1st of April, according to both play and simplygames.

I've put myself down for pre-order just now, but when will it come? at least my card doesn't get charged until delivery.

[nightstalker100]

perhaps whats worrying is that simplygames say that theres no online feature for kof2002/2003. this cant be right. can anyone confirm it

[E. Randy Dupre]

That's got to be the final confirmation that 00/01's been flushed down the toilet, no? Nobody casual'll buy it when it's sat on the shelves right next to the later games, unless they can shove it out for a tenner or so. It's a shame, but it's also a decision that they should - and could? - probably have made a bit earlier.

[Spatial]

I wouldn't trust simplygames when it comes to dates. Based on past experience they make them up ( like they did with KOF 00/01 for the Xbox)

[Siri]

after having a look here are some additional things to take note about (more importantly, the second point):

- KoF00/01 XB is still penned for the 24th March. (don't forget that it could just be a reprint - members who posted in page 6 mention that the game was actually out christmas time)
- KoF02/03 XB in america is penned for (according to VG+) the 15th of June.

I might be wrong here, but I'm going to assume that the current release date is wrong for the X-Box - like previous release dates by ignition, it normally turns out that it's the PS2 release that comes out then, while the XB version is miles off.

I'm going to also *assume* that they're not going to can the 02/03 live play - I've only ever seen boxart with the live tag on it, as well live code is pretty much ready to be implemented after SVC. I can't confirm it, though - It's not even out in JPN or US regions, after all.

EDIT: and as spatial says, it could (or probably is) another case of BS dates.

[Plisken]

http://www.ignitionent.com/products.htm

There we have it folks - KOF 00/01 has been removed from the product list for Xbox.

However, it looks as if they are releasing KOF 02/03 and MS4/5 as single games each now - wtf? that's not going to do them any favours is it? if they are ?19.99 each, that'd be ?40 for the 2, nearly $80 at the current rate..wheras the US release will be no more than $50 for both, which is ?25...

Hmm.

[E. Randy Dupre]

Spatial> You're placing the blame on the wrong people there. Ignition plainly haven't been updating retail outlets about release dates. I don't have any trouble believing that SimplyGames put that date up in good faith, based on the tiny amount of info that they'd been given.

The double pack of 02/03 was originally listed on most sites at ?29.99 RRP. Serperating the two out, though, still stinks - it wouldn't be so bad if they hadn't been advertising is as a double pack for the last, what, half a year? So obviously an attempt to try and regain some of the money they've wasted on the 00/01 conversion, and to pull themselves back into shape for their year's sales targets. Ignition deserve to do badly from this move, and I think they will - even SNK fans are going to think twice about buying the less impressive episodes of series, now that they have a choice about it.

I know Maclean waxes lyrical about the glory days of the bedroom programmer, but it's increasingly looking like that extends to having his company revisit the dodgy and inept publishing practices that were also common at the time...

[Spatial]

Spatial> You're placing the blame on the wrong people there. Ignition plainly haven't been updating retail outlets about release dates. I don't have any trouble believing that SimplyGames put that date up in good faith, based on the tiny amount of info that they'd been given.

True, but at one stage they did the sensible thing and put TBC up for KOF. Then they took it down and put up another speculated date ( this was after three or four times of doing that and it was obvious Ignition were just messing around).

What I meant by my original post (badly done I know) was don't trust the dates retailers give if its anything to do with Ignition. It just happened to be Simply Games that was mentioned by the previous poster in this case.

It wasn't a swipe at Simply Games directly even though I am in a bit of a rip with them about other issues (not entirely unrelated but not relevant to the thread)