NGC Magazine Issue 79

April 2003
Release Date: 19 Mar 2003
Pages: 116
Editor: Jes Bickham

Introduction

Hitman 2 hit the cover as we got to April as the team got their first play of Interactive’s assassin game. There was great anticipation that Gamecube would get the best version of the game, and it looked fantastic from the preview build they got to play. Conflict Desert Storm was the only decent preview, with a lot of anticipation around the way the war game played with AI teammates, which was a concept very much in its infancy at this stage.

In the news, Kittsy reported on a meet and greet with Miyamoto in London as he discussed a wide range of topics including Mario Kart and even a sequel to Wind Waker. There was also the first look at Pikmin 2 and Kirby’s Air Ride. The team also got their hands on the GBA SP, which hadn’t even launched in Japan at that point. They also asked the question if Mobile gaming was a threat to the GBA - as the N-Gage had recently been launched.

Metroid Prime was finally launched in the UK this month, and Al Bickham gave it a point higher than the US release at 97%, with praise for almost every aspect - the only issue being that it had quite a bit of backtracking. Once again it was time for the annual EA Sports games, with NFL 2K3 scoring 86% and NBA 2K3 scoring 85%, showing that EA’s games were evolving pretty well. Winning Eleven 6: Final Evolution (AKA ISS/Pro Evo) scored 93% from Japan, showing itself as a very good Football game on Gamecube. It was also a good month for GBA, with Monkey Ball JR scoring 87% and Bubble Bobble Old and New Scoring 90%.

The second half of Resident Evil Zero was tipped this month, and once again another 10 pages were devoted to finishing the game. At the back of the mag there were a couple of features from Japan: Japanese Dream Super News looked at everything happening in Japan, direct from their Japanese correspondent - similar to Made in Japan from the N64 days. Q&A spoke to Nob Ogasawara, who was the translator for the Pokemon games and previously worked on N-Force and Sega Force magazines.

Articles

Previews

Conflict Desert Storm
Anticipation Rating: 5
Mace Griffin Bounty Hunter
Anticipation Rating: 3
X-Men Wolverines Revenge
Anticipation Rating: 3
I, Gladiator
Anticipation Rating: 3
XGRA
Anticipation Rating: 4
1080 Avalanche
Urban Freestyle
Burnout 2

Special Investigation

Hitman 2: Silent Assasin

Reviews

Metroid Prime
Author: Al Bickham
Country: Uk
Score: 97
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon
Author: Al Bickham
Country: Uk
Score: 66
Evolution skateboarding
Author: Tom Mayo
Country: Uk
Score: 78
Evolution Snowboarding
Author: Geraint Evans
Country: Uk
Score: 23
The Sims
Author: Geraint Evans
Country: Uk
Score: 81
Defender
Author: Rich Owen
Country: Uk
Score: 50
Dr Mutto
Author: Rich Owen
Country: Uk
Score: 70
Summoner A Godess Reborn
Author: Geraint Evans
Country: Uk
Score: 68
Blood Rayne
Author: Tom Mayo
Country: Uk
Score: 65
Sonic Mega Collection
Author: Geraint Evans
Country: Uk
Score: 70
Vexx
Author: Jes Bickham
Country: Uk
Score: 66
NBA 2k3
Author: Tim Weaver
Country: Uk
Score: 85
NFL 2k3
Author: Tim Weaver
Country: Uk
Score: 86
Super Monkey Ball Jr
Country: Uk
Score: 87
Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
Country: Uk
Score: 79
Contra Advance the Alien Wars EX
Country: Uk
Score: 65
Bubble Bobble Old & New
Country: Uk
Score: 90
Treasure Planet
Country: Uk
Score: 81
Mega Man & Bass
Country: Uk
Score: 55
Winning Eleven 6: Final Evolution
Author: Martin Kitts
Country: Jap
Score: 93

How To

Fill the Undead with Lead in Resident Evil Zero

Features

Japanese Dream Super News
Q&A Inside the head of NOB

Staff

Jes Bickham Editor
Martin Kitts Reviews Editor
Dan Geary Production Editor
Justin Webb Art Editor
Paul Edwards Deputy Art Editor
Geraint Evans News Editor