_______ ______. .________ __________ ________/ __/ _/ __|_______/____|____ \/ /_______/ / __/_. / / / \ / /\ \/ \ /__________| /__________/ / /____/____/_________/ / /________| <-/-rS!-------\________/--------------------\________/-----+ ___________/_______________ ________ | _/ / / \ _ \ ________|____ \ | The Console / /\ / / / / /_/ / / / | Scene Charts! /______/\ /\________/____\ / /__________/ | \_/ \__/__________|<-------------+ Gameboy Advance Console World Charts for September 1 - September 30, 2001 Issue Number 4, Released October 2nd, 2001 Staff: ennay & Featuring Guest Commentary by: jus / VENOM .- Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------. Hello once again everyone, and welcome to another edition of Console World. There are some slight changes for this month, Dropcom who has been commenting for the last 3 issues has decided that real life is more important than the charts! (Yeah I thought it was a lame excuse as well) September marks a month of two tragedies. First there was the terriorist attacks on the World Trade Centers and the other is the official end to the console group Capital. I have a feeling Counter Strike played some role in the demise of the group (WTF are you guys playing shitty PC games for anyways?) On another note, two groups have started some controversy by releasing some of their games with intros / trainers already attached. This caused quite a stir among the web monkies who do nothing to contribute to the scene but whine on some web message board. Instead of crying and bitching about incorrect CRC's, why don't you guys try to do something productive (like releasing some fucking games?) It's the suppliers & groups who decide what they want to do with their release, and if that's not good enough go rent/buy the game and dump it for yourself. And a quick note to the people who are using the patches & tools that remove and/ore disable the intros. Your precious CRC still won't be correct. I normally don't like using profanity but these rom collecting & renaming CHIMPS think so highly of themselves its sickening. To the real sceners, thanks for understanding. :) On a final note, we have jus / VENOM as the guest commentator for this month. I'm sure you guys will find his comments quite refreshing and entertaining. Thanks again jus, and I apologize for nagging you to get your comments done. Enough jibber jabber, let the charts BEGIN! - ennay RULES & POINTS -------------- -1 Point - DUPE: Released a game, but only after another group already beat you? -1 point then. DUPE TRAINER: A Late Trainer with the same or less options. BROKEN: If you release a game/trainer/crack that doesn't work, -1 time! +0 Points - BETA: Beta releases are cool to check out, but they are not the real deal. No points are given or taken for these. TERRITORY DUPE: If a game is released in Europe first and contains English, then a following USA release is considered a territory dupe. If a game is released in the USA first, and it releases later in Europe with no additional languages, it is also considered a territory dupe. Games that have additional game features/levels/etc. added are void from territory dupe rules. Only Roms that contain differences when file compared fit into the territory dupe category, if a Rom is the exact same in 2 territories, it fits into the -1 dupe category. Territory dupes receive 0 points. FIX: A non-protection related fix for a released game gets 0 points. +1 Point - TRAINER: Any selectable trainer including a menu receives 1 point. MULTI: A European Multi Language release of a previously available US title. FOREIGN: A German/French/Spanish/Etc. release of a previously available English title. TOOL: A tool for the PC that is useful for Gameboy Advance purposes gets 1 point. EEPROM FIX: A fix for games containing EEPROM saves, to allow the game to run without EEPROM saving on the current GBA copiers. These get 1 point for now, they will get 0 once flash-carts featuring EEPROM saving become more mainstream. +2 Points - AVERAGE JAPANESE: An average Japanese game. Most RPGS, Mahjong titles, Slot games, Sims, Adventures, etc. will be put into this category. These receive 2 points. FOREIGN WORLD FIRST: If a German/French/Spanish/Etc. game is out before the English version, it gets 2 points. CRACK: A crack for a protected/non-working game gets you 2 points. +3 Points - ENGLISH WORLD FIRST: The first release of a game in English. This is generally the first release of the game available, either in Europe or the USA. These receive 3 points. QUALITY JAPANESE: A quality Japanese title that is either highly awaited or playable will receive 3 points. Generally games from major companies due out for release later in English will fit into this category. Most action games, fighting games, etc. will also fall under this category. TRANSLATION: Translating a non-English game to English = 3 points. The points reflect the major amount of work this requires! +4 Points - MAJOR: Usually the best/most-anticipated game of the month. .- Charts for the Month of September 2001 ---------------------------------. ___/\____/\_________ /\ ________ \__ ___/ __/\__ /__/ \__\ _ /poyZ __ _/ / | __/ / / _/ \_ _/ _/_ __ \\_\\ _____| _____/_____\__/\__/__\ \ //_// .----\/----|/----------------------\ /------ Cezar ------------------------ Date Game Name / Company \/ Info Pts N o t e s --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 12 Tang Tang +6 Trainer USA/IPS +1 Sept 23 Morita Shogi Advance - Hudson JPN/32 +2 -- Total Points - 03 Comments: ennay: Cezar steals the thunder from Perversion and brings you the last(?) of the missing dumps from before. Tang Tang enters the hall of fame by becoming the game which has been trained by the most groups. (Eurasia & Rapid Fire before that) If you read the nfo, seems like Cezar released this to bash RPF (and just like RPF did before) Anyhow, Is this game really THAT great? jus: Another trainer for Tang Tang and an old Jap shogi game. Anyone else bored of this shit yet? MTX!____.--._)\____ .-. ____/(___:.___ .--/ _ | | \___ \/ _ \/ ___/___]/ _ \--. | / __| l | _/ \___ \ / \ | `-\____ \_____|_\_ \__|__/ ____/___\ |__/-' .------\(---------\(-----)/---------`-'----- Eurasia ----------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 05 Love Hina Advance - Marvelous Ent. JPN/64 +2 Men in Black The Series - Crave EUR/32 +3 Men In Black The Series +4 Trainer EUR/IPS +1 Sept 06 Medarot Navi - Kuwagata Version - Imag. JPN/64 +2 Medarot Navi - Kabuto Version - Imag. JPN/64 +2 Our Breeding Series: My Beetle - MTO Inc JPN/32 +2 Sept 07 Atlantis - The Lost Empire (+7) - THQ USA/32 +3 +1 BONUS Sept 08 Jurassic Park 3 - Park Builder - Konami EUR/32 +2 GROUP 1ST Sept 11 Robot Ponkotto 2 Ring Version - Hudson JPN/32 +2 Robot Ponkotto 2 Cross Version - Hudson JPN/32 +2 Mario Kart Super Circuit +6 Trainer USA/IPS +1 Sept 13 Gensou Suikoden Card Stories - Konami JPN/32 +2 Sept 14 Super Robot Taisen A - Banpresto JPN/64 +2 Sept 16 Klonoa - Empire of Dreams +4 Trainer USA/IPS +1 Sept 20 Field of Nine Digital Edition - Konami JPN/64 +2 Wario Land 4 +6 Trainer JPN/IPS +1 SpiderMan Mysterio's Menace +5 Trainer USA/IPS +1 Sept 26 Z.O.E 2173 Testament - Konami JPN/64 +2 Sept 27 XMen Reign of Apocalypse +6 Trainer USA/IPS +1 Spet 28 Nobunaga no Yabou - Koei JPN/64 +2 -- Total Points - 36 Comments: ennay: Holy GBA Roms Batman! Eurasia shows once again (do these guys need prove themselves now?) that they ARE the dominiting force for the Japanese titles. Eurasia's release of Atlantis with +7 trainer along with JP3 Park Builder is something that is bound to be a pain for the rom collecting chimps and purists out there. If you haven't, you can read the intro for my opinion on this situation. jus: Eurasia created a bit of controversy this month by holding back a couple pres to train them before the competition could get their hands on 'em. As it turns out, it's not really a big deal as there was no competition for Eurasia this month on the trainer scene anyways, with Capital sadly closing its doors and Quartex failing to live up to expectations. On a lighter note, Eurasia managed to bring a few English games along with their usual flood of unplayable Jap crap. Men in Black really stands out for bringing a new low to GBA. Possibly the worst piece of shit released for the system yet. None of the other games, English or Jap, really stood out this month, but MFM really showed what he's capable of and came out with several quality trainers. Highlights for me were the Wario Land and X-Men trainers. Also worth mentioning is the in-game menu on the Mario Kart trainer. Overall a good month of releases for Eurasia, and hopefully next month we'll see some playable stuff. Rotox: ___ __ ____ ____ ._______ ____ ____ / ' \_/__ \ _ \| ____ \/ . \_/__ \ _/ \/ \ \___// \ \_ / . \_|--<_ \___/ \____||___/______\__\____\__|___/____/_____\ .-------------------------------------------- Menace ----------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 07 Tetris Worlds - THQ USA/32 +3 -- Total Points - 03 Comments: ennay: After being silent in August, Menace quietly emerges with Tetris 2 weeks ahead of retail. Nice to see these GBC legends contributing something to the GBA scene once again. jus: After an absence from the charts last month, Menace proves that they can still grab a game when they want to. Nice job on this 2 week pre. Unfortunately the game itself pretty much blows (not MNC's fault).. thanks but no thanks THQ, I'll stick with Tetris DX on my GBC. ._ - M O D E 7 - ______ _________ | /\__ ____________ __\ | _ ____\__ / / \/ _/ _ \ .|___\_ \/ // // \ / \ / // | |/ _____/____/ . ____|\/|___\______/\_______\_______/-rtx! _| Mode 7 ----------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 01 F14 Tomcat - Majesco Sales USA/32 +3 Advance Wars - Nintendo USA/32 +4 G O T M! Sept 13 ESPN X Games Skateboarding - Konami USA/32 +3 Sept 14 Rocket Power Dream Scheme - THQ USA/32 +3 Sept 15 Klonoa - Empire of Dreams - Namco USA/32 +3 GROUP 1ST Sept 19 SpiderMan Mysterio's Menace - Activision USA/64 +3 Caesars Palace Advance - Majesco USA/64 +3 Sept 20 Backtrack - Telegames USA/32 +3 Sept 25 Power Rangers Time Force - THQ USA/64 +3 Sept 26 Lady Sia - TDK USA/64 +3 OVERDUMP High Heat Baseball 2002 - 3DO USA/32 +3 MX 2K2 Ricky Carmichael - THQ USA/32 +3 Final Fight One - Capcom USA/32 +0 TERR. DUPE Lego Bionicle - Lego Media USA/64 +3 Lego Island II - Lego Media USA/64 +3 -- Total Points - 43 Comments: ennay: September is clearly a strong month for Mode 7. Plenty of USA titles and most notibly the release of Advance Wars over a week before retail. I've talked to most people and everyone unanimously agrees that this should be the GAME OF THE MONTH. Klonoa was another special game for Mode 7 because it's their first release that has an intro attached to it. Final Fight One gets 0 points because the Paracox version was confirmed to be a European final. Lady Sia was an overdump but that can be fixed with the various tools that are out there. I wonder how long it will take the lamers to release a 'proper' version of this one. jus: What else is there to say, Mode 7 once again dominates the USA scene, with a steady stream of originals all month and a burst of activity near the end. The only blemish on their record this month is the release of FFO. The Paracox release was the final Euro version, which makes Mode 7's release a dupe. Advance Wars is definately game of the month for me, if not game of the year. Nintendo did it again, and lots of people were waiting for it. Klonoa and Lady Sia are also worth mentioning, and be sure to check out the kick ass Mode 7 intro first featured on their release of Klonoa. Hopefully this trend will continue we will see more groups begin to use intros. ()()==================D~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ pARAcOX - wE sUXX cOX .----------------------------------------------- Paracox ------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 05 WWF : Road to Wrestlemania - THQ ???/32 +0 BETA ESPN Final Round Golf - Konami EUR/64 +0 TERR. DUPE Sept 19 Caesars Palace Advance - Majesco ???/32 +0 BETA Sept 21 FILA Decathlon - THQ ???/32 +0 BETA Sept 29 Moto GP - THQ ???/32 +0 BETA -- Total Points - 00 Comments: ennay: Plenty of ??? (Unknown territory) and 0's for this group. I have a feeling these guys don't care either. Their NFO files are always entertaining, and I personally enjoy checking out games that are in WIP stages. jus: The infamous cox suxxers continue to bring betas this month. Will these guys ever stop? Releasing betas that is, not suxxing cox. Moto GP seemed like a nice moto racing game, and very playable for the five minutes I tried it. _____ / \ / ¡ \ -====- / |/\ \ \ \_ \ / \______ / .------ -=======\/==-- -Q -------------------------------------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s .--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 18 Jurassic Park 3 Park Builder - Konami USA/32 +0 -- Total Points - 00 Comments: ennay: I wonder if the next territory dupe will be released by -R? jus: More lame territory dupes. Yawn. -P becomes -Q. ___ ___ ________________________:___ / _ \/ | \/ _ \ _ \_. ._/ __ \ | / / |_ \ | \ | \_/ _/ | |/ \__/ \ \___ \/____/ |__/\ \RD| |\________|___) <----\__/-----' \__) `--:---------:----->-- Quartex --------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s .--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 12 NFL Blitz 2002 - Midway USA/32 +3 -- Total Points - 03 Comments: ennay: Looks like a new group has joined the scene, but noticibly Perversion has left. (Is there a direct correlation between the two?) Its releases that count, so Quartex gets 3 for this month. jus: The Pervs are back under a new name. Quartex manages to grab one English game for September. I expected more from these guys... I guess we'll have to wait and see what they can do next month. Where are the trainers Abra? :) Rotox: _______ _______.___________ __ .____\_ \____\_ \ _ / _ |. |. / // | //. |___/ .| |:. || \ \_ _____/|| _/ .::| `-- l_____|\_____/____|-rtx!l_____| ------'-- Rapid Fire ------------------- Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s .--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 08 Kuru Kuru Kururin +2 Trainer EUR/IPS +1 -- Total Points - 01 Comments: ennay: After 3 months of the release, Rapid Fire brings you a trainer for this highly addictive puzzler. I think most people have already beaten the game by the time this trainer was released. Nice job anyways! jus: Webpage Willy and the crew dominating something, I'm just not sure what. Keep it up guys! _\____ /\_/\____/\_____/\_____ /\__/_ \ |/ / ___/ \ / _ \_ \/ _/ poyZ __ _\ / / __/\ \_ _/ / | \/ |__ __ \\_\\_\ __/_______\ /_\ _____|__||_ |_//_// <--- --\/----------\/---\/----------\|------- Venom ------------------------ Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s .--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sept 25 Rugrats Castle Capters - THQ USA/32 +3 Sept 26 X-Men Reign of Apocalypse - Activision USA/32 -1 BROKEN X-Men Reign of Apocalypse - Activision USA/64 +3 Dexter's Lab Deesaster Strikes - BAM! USA/32 +3 -- Total Points - 08 Comments: ennay: Well respected GBC group makes their first entry onto GBA. It will be nice to see some competition going on in the USA side of things. The release of XMen was 32mbit too small, but they've quickly fixed that error. Xmen itself is a great side scrolling beat-em-up with well done animation and graphics. Welcome aboard guys! jus: Venom finally break out onto the GBA scene, in a big way with three USA originals near the end of the month. X-Men was first dumped as 32Mbit, but was quickly fixed and a proper 64Mbit version released. As far as the games go, Rugrats is a surprisingly nice little platformer with great graphics. The other 2 are just average games. Some competition for Mode 7? Only time will tell, and next month should be interesting. .- Group Totals & Summary -------------------------------------------------. Rank Group Points 1. Mode7 43 2. Eurasia 36 3. Venom 08 4.a Cezar 03 4.b Menace 03 4.c Quartex 03 5. Rapid Fire 01 6.a -Q 00 6.b Paracox 00 - Mode 7 is the number 1 group for the first time since the charts began! - Newcomers to the GBA Scene: Venom & Quartex - Menace re-emerges after a month of silence in August. - Rom collecting chimps & intro haters unite (Like anyone gives a shit!) All Time Rankings & Points Points Previous All This +/- Total = Time Rank Group Month Points Points 1. Eurasia 36 + 97 = 133 2. Mode7 43 + 39 = 82 3. Captial 00 + 32 = 32 4. Rapid Fire 01 + 19 = 20 5.a Cezar 03 + 05 = 08 5.b Independent 00 + 08 = 08 5.c The Corporation 00 + 08 = 08 5.d Venom 08 + 00 = 08 6. Menace 03 + 03 = 06 7. Perversion 00 + 05 = 05 8.a Total Crap 00 + 04 = 04 8.b Lightforce 00 + 04 = 04 9. Inferno 00 + 04 = 04 10.a Paracox 00 + 03 = 03 10.b Quartex 03 + 00 = 03 11. Nintendo Backup Crew 00 + 02 = 02 12.a Absence 00 + 01 = 01 12.b Anthrox 00 + 01 = 01 12.c Gameboy Lamers 00 + 01 = 01 12.d Most Ugly Gameboy Sceners 00 + 01 = 01 12.e Subport 00 + 01 = 01 13. -Q 00 + 00 = 00 14. -P 00 - 01 = -1 15. Milkmen 00 - 01 = -1 16. Lost 00 - 02 = -2 BTW, it wasn't fun doing this section. .- Conclusion -------------------------------------------------------------. Even though September was one of the busiest months for the GBA scene, we've seen fewer groups participating this time around. Venom & Quartex will bring some competition to the scene. This chart is already 2 days overdue so I'll just stop now. Once again, thanks jus for your comments, and I hope to be able to find another good guest for the next month. - ennay On a sad note we saw Capital shut down this month. CPL single handedly dominated the GBC trainer scene, releasing well over 100 quality trainers and cracks. Tox, WK, and the rest of Capital; good luck with whatever you guys decide to do next. - jus .- Greetings & What We're Playing Currently -------------------------------. ennay - Currently Playing: - ICO / PS2 - All owners of a PlayStation 2 must play this game ASAP! It's got stunning graphics and great gameplay. PS2 will ROCK this Holiday Season! The "I promise I'll comment on the chart, I change my mind" Award goes to: ** DRUM ROLL ** Rotox / ex-Capital (IRC Logs as follows) ** DRUM ROLL ** [19:42] do you want to comment in sept cw? [19:44] yup [19:44] heh ok Don't try to deny this one Rotox! So guys feel free to packet this guy especially when he's playing some CS. jus - Currently Playing: - Advance Wars / GBA - If you haven't played this game yet, get your head out of your ass and flash it already. - Toki Tori / GBC - Good graphics, good gameplay. All around a real nice puzzler from Capcom... - Barbie Pet Rescue / GBC - Thanks QUARTEX!!!!!! Greets to : That tubby bitch CROSSFADE, and LORDEE my black man servant. Oh.. and everyone else that contributes to the GBA scene. .--------------------------------------------------------------------------.