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The Week Ending November 15, 1999

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Donkey Kong Expansion
Arguably the biggest console game release for the holidays, especially considering Perfect Dark's delay, is Nintendo's long-awaited Donkey Kong 64. Arriving November 22^nd, I'm excited to play the follow-up to the smash-hit SNES series, but at the same time I am incredibly frustrated with Nintendo. As you may remember, Nintendo released the expansion pack to upgrade the resolution of the N64 graphics about a year ago. I think I can safely say that any hardcore gamer who bought a game like LucasArts' Rogue Squadron also bought an expansion pack. Well, a year later, Nintendo now plans to only sell Donkey Kong 64 bundled with the expansion pack. Mind you the final retail price is only going to be $59, but I think it's the wrong decision to only offer DK64 with an expansion pack, forcing hard-core gamers to buy a piece of hardware they likely already have. I certainly can understand the need to only have one product SKU for retailers, but why not offer a non-expansion pack version over the web for $10 less? Customer service wise, it would be the smart move for Nintendo to make. The way it stands, there are going to be a lot of wasted expansion packs out there!
Duke's Back

Duke's in Vegas this time around and Siegfried is sure starting to look a lot like our favorite PC gaming hero.

Ok, so you're in the shoes of a PC game developer that has a mega-hit 3D action game. What do you do to capitalize on its success? Well, if you're CORE with Tomb Raider, you release sequel after sequel and practically bury the franchise while you're at it. But if you are 3D Realms with Duke Nukem, you feel a keen sense of needing to trump your own efforts and never settle for second-best. Although Duke Nukem has been enjoying massive success on the console format, he's been noticeably absent from the PC since Duke Nukem 3D arrived over three years ago. Well, last week the Internet was abuzz with the first screenshots released from the Unreal-engine powered Duke Nukem Forever, set to arrive in the new millennium. First off, it was refreshing to see a group of screenshots that actually showed a game that's well into development, as opposed to the usual first batch of screenshots from a game where all you get are desolate environmental shots with nifty fog (Can we all say Rune?). My favorite shot of the batch is this one, which shows a segment of Las Vegas Blvd., with the Mirage and Treasure Island hotel in the background, albeit carefully renamed for both legal and comic purposes. Can you imagine playing multiplayer and rushing between hotels in such a realistic environment? I'm there, but the real question is, are we going to find Siegfried and Roy inside of the Mirage?
Your Comments?
Agree or disagree? I'd love to hear your opinions.
Next Week:
Next Monday evening I'll unveil the Big 8 Games for the holiday season! Stay tuned to see if your favorite game makes the list. Have a suggestion? E-mail me: editor@gameslice.com Remember that games must be scheduled to ship between November 15^th and December 31^st and can't be any of the ones mentioned in our fall list, even if their release date has slipped.
Thanks for reading! That's the Gist of It.

Geoff Keighley
Editor-in-Chief
GameSlice