Tony Hawk goes to Nintendo
Date: Tuesday, 2nd November 1999
PSX version available now

The Playstation version of Tony Hawk's Skateboarding (Pro Skater in the US) was one the of the best games of the year and just about the only game that deserves to sit at the extreme games high table alongside 1080 Snowboarding. As most X-Games nuts chose to buy an N64 rather than a PSX purely because of Nintendo's masterful snowboarding title, it always seemed a shame that these gamers didn't have the opportunity to enjoy Tony Hawk. The good news then is that Activision have announced that the game will be making an appearance on not one, but two Nintendo consoles. The Nintendo 64 version of the game will feature all the game modes of the original, including the almost religious two-player Graffiti mode, although as the game will be limited in size by the N64's cartridge format, sonically the game is likely to be somewhat paired down. Conversion duties will be handled by Edge of Reality who previously worked on Monster Truck Madness. Portable gamers shouldn't feel left out either, a Gameboy Color Tony Hawk game is also in the works courtesy of Natsume.

Dreamcast Dual Shock
Date: Monday, 1st November 1999
Total Control: available now

Meet Total Control. This rather unassuming little box could actually be a bit of a life saver for all of you who are struggling with the decidedly uncomfortable Dreamcast joypad. Plug the little fellow into your Dreamcast controller port and you can now use your old Playstation controller. If you have a game that supports the puru-puru pack or vibration pack, your Dual Shock will even recognise this and start rumbling away nicely. And, better still, you can now use your old PSX steering wheel, saving you a fortune on the official Dreamcast version. Of course, PSX joypads don't have a little place to plug in your VMS, so if you want to save a game, you will need to plug a 'proper' Sega pad into a spare controller port on the front of your Dreamcast.

More X-Box news
Date: Friday, 29th October 1999
X-Box: Expected next year

Rumours are continuing to fly regarding Microsoft's X-Box - and Microsoft themselves are still busy refusing to comment on the as-yet unannounced device. The Wall Street Journal believes that Microsoft are planning to splash out billions of dollars on the design, development and marketing of the console, and various 'well placed sources' are currently arguing over whether the X-Box will be fitted with a Athlon CPU and nVidia GeForce powered graphics.

IGNpocket report convincing sounding rumours that - as well as a set-top console - Microsoft are also planning a portable companion to the X-Box. The handheld device will integrate with the main X-Box unit, but is also thought to be compatible with DirectX and be able to be used as a fully-fledged PDA.

Exclusive artists impression of the portable X-Box

SegaGT
Date: Friday, 29th October 1999
DC: Due out next year

You know those annoying kids at school who always tried to peek over your shoulder and copy your work, no matter how hard you tried to cover it all up with your left arm? Frustrating, wasn't it? Especially when they ended up with a better grade. Spare a though then for Poliphony Digital - developers of the Gran Turismo games on PSX and PS2. Sega have been deftly taking notes from the games and have just announced SegaGT, their very own Gran Turismo beater. Well, imitation is the greatest form of flattery.

SegaGT - The information available so far...

Grandia
Date: Thursday, 28th October 1999
PSX: US Version now in stock

The prospect of the English language version Game Arts' Grandia seems to have caused as much feverish excitment as Final Fantasy VIII. Now all you RPG fans can stop banging our doors down and return to your darkened rooms, clutching your US version of Grandia in your sweaty hands. With at least 80 hours of gameplay, a fantasic storyline and a superb collection of characters, many RPG heads claim this rivals anything that Squaresoft have created. And, quite frankly, I'm not going to argue with them.

Pokemon!.. They're Everywhere!
Date: Thursday, 28th October 1999
Pokemon Yellow: US Version now in stock

Admit it. As much as you covet them all, Pikachu is still your favourite Pokemon. Compatible with the GameBoy Printer and enhanced for GameBoy Color (unlike the US versions of Pokemon Red and Blue), Pokemon Special Pikachu Edition (or Pokemon Yellow to the Poke-hardcore out there) is based on the original title but includes new link-cable games and a new distribution of pocket monsters.

More Driver
Date: Monday, 25th October 1999
Expected 2000

Driver was one of the most entertaining Playstation games of the year, and the good news for fans of the title is that at least two followup games are in the offing. According to the website of veteran games magazine Computer and Video Games, we can expect to see the Playstation version of Driver 2 in May 2000 with the PC version following a couple of months later. But even the even better news is that work has already started on a third Driver, this time for PlayStation2. No release date was forthcoming, but expect to see something just after Christmas next year.

Pokemon Hunt
Date: Thursday, 21st October 1999
Loads of Pokemon goodies in stock now

Lycos has announced that last weeks most frequently searched for word using it's massive search engine was not sex, MP3 or peanut butter. It was Pokemon. So in celebration of that fact (and in no way as a feeble excuse to get a few more hits), we've composed our own Pokemon chant. I think you'll guess the words, so feel free to join in whenever you're ready.

Pokemon, Pokemon, Pokemon,
Pokemon, MP3, Pokemon, Pokemon,
Britney Spears naked, Pokemon, Pokemon.
Pikachu.

Don't forget that we've got loads of Pokemon goodies on sale for all you avid Pocket Monster fanciers. So if you are after any of the games, toys, trading cards or whatever, pay us a visit. We're drowning in the stuff.

Almost there...
Date: Wednesday, 20th October 1999

First, an adavnce warning. This site may not be accessible for half a day sometime next week. But, without having to put any nasty Mandelson-style spin on things, this is actually A Very Good Thing. How can this be? Well, all going well, we'll be spending out time unpinging the elastic bands that are holding together this site and sparking up the new fandabiedozie Computer Exchange internet experience. Once we've got that working, if you need us, we'll be down the pub.

The CEX UK Dreamcast Top 5
Date: Tuesday, 19th October 1999
Dreamcast: UK/PAL version in stock now

Now the UK Dreamcast is out, we thought you'd like to know what our knowledgable and discerning custies are choosing to purchase with their machines. So, pop-pickers, current best sellers on UK/PAL are as follows;

1. Sonic Adventure
2. Power Stone
3. Ready 2 Rumble
4. Sega Rally 2
5. TrickStyle

Ready 2 Rumble and TrickStyle are both doing very well - probably because you haven't all played both of these to death on Japanese import. Virtua Fighter 3tb didn't quite make the top 5 - hardcore beat 'em up fans seem to be waiting for the UK version of the amazing Soul Calibur.

ToeJam and Earl 3
Date: Monday, 18th October 1999
Dreamcast: No release date known

Regular visitors to the CEX site will probably have noticed that we have a particular soft spot in our heart for the two laid back surfer dude aliens from the Planet Funkotron who starred in the MegaDrive based ToeJam and Earl games. We've known for a long time that ToeJam and Earl Productions, the people behind the series, have been planning a new game but have had difficulties finding a publisher and settling on a format for the title. According to a report on Game Spot, it is now looking very likely that the two aliens will stay loyal to the Sega brand with TJ and E 3 appearing on the Dreamcast. The report also confirms that the game will be in 3D and introduce two new characters. Latisha is a fellow alien from Funkotron and Neon is their new pet robot dog.

Fight! Fight!
Date: Wednesday, 13th October 1999

Ooh dear. Its hard trying to feel sympathy for Bill Gates, richest man in the world and Satan's favourite little helper, but we can't help wondering what the poor fellow has let himself in for. Watch BBC2 at 8pm on Sunday to see the Microsoft billionaire getting a grilling from the BBC's favourite rottweiller, Jeremy Paxman. Paxman is, of course, famous for humiliating various politicians with his confrontational interview style. The BBC are also asking viewers to submit questions for the interview by emailling here. Please also include your name and town - and show no mercy...

Final Fantasy Anthology
Date: Tuesday, 12th October 1999
PSX: US Import version in stock now

The huge success of Final Fantasy VII a couple of years back saw many RPG newbies experience the joys of a Squaresoft RPG for the first time. Now those of you who have wanted to play some of Square's older Final Fantasy games can do so without having to (a) buy a Nintendo Super Famicom or (b) learn Japanese. Final Fantasy Anthology includes Final Fantasy V (the first time this has been officially translated and released in the West) and Final Fantasy VI which was, confusingly, originally called Final Fantasy III in the US and Europe.

Evil Dead to rise again
Date: Monday, 11th October 1999

Blood red seems to be the videogames colour in vogue this season, with yet more horror games crawling out of the woods. THQ are the latest company to join the fray, snapping up the rights to the Evil Dead films. The first title to be released under the agreement will be Evil Dead: Ashes 2 Ashes for Playstation and PC. The game will be coded by Heavy Iron Studios, a company that includes many refugees from Squaresoft USA.

Those of you with long memories will know that this isn't actually the first gaming outing for the Evil Dead series. Palace Software caused an early bout of games related tabloid rage when it released the original Evil Dead game on the Spectrum back in the 80s.

Coloured Dreamcast Joypads
Date: Friday, 8th October 1999

Coloured joypads are one of those things that sound really pointless, but are in fact indispensable. Having a big mess of joypads and leads in front of your console can be a real downer - especially when your vision is a bit blurry after stumblimg back from the pub. This is something Nintendo understood well. N64 joypads come in a range of colours, meaning that you and your mates can collapse through the door, fall on the floor, grab their own coloured joypads and start playing - without having to untangle loads of cable just to find out which pad is plugged into port 1. The good news for post-pub multigamers everywhere is that Sega have now seen the light and will soon be selling Dreamcast joypads in a variety of colours. Now, if only they design a version that resists beer spillage...