The Neo-Geo is reborn on every console on the market. 

If the impending releases of Neo Geo Coliseum and King of Fighters XI wasn't enough to get your SNK fill, the home of fighting excellence has announced a flood of titles coming to the US shores in the near future.

"We're pleased to once again be bringing fans more of the quality fighting and great arcade games they've come to expect from us," said Ben Herman, president of SNK PLAYMORE USA CORPORATION, "and with the addition of a number of downloadable console titles, SNK aficionados will have even more options available to them."

No kidding.  Here's the big list:

THE KING OF FIGHTERS COLLECTION: THE OROCHI SAGA (Wii, PlayStation 2, PSP)
METAL SLUG 7 (Nintendo DS)
SNK ARCADE CLASSICS Volume 1 (PlayStation 2, PSP)
SAMURAI SHODOWN ANTHOLOGY (Wii, PlayStation 2)
METAL SLUG 3 (Xbox LIVE Arcade)
SAMURAI SHODOWN 2(Xbox LIVE Arcade)
FATAL FURY (Wii Virtual Console)
WORLD HEROES (Wii Virtual Console)
MAGICIAN LORD (Wii Virtual Console)

In addition to these console titles, they've reaffirmed a selection of arcade newcomers:

THE KING OF FIGHTERS XII
KING OF FIGHTERS: MAXIMUM IMPACT REGULATION "A" 2
SAMURAI SHOWDOWN SEN (JAPANESE TITLE)

Filling XBLA's need for cel-shaded zany strategy.

Hothead Games has just announced On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness will make its debut on Xbox Live Arcade in early 2008, making it the first episodic game series to hit Microsoft's downloadable game marketplace.  Those without XBLA, can still enjoy this colorfully bizarre game series in XP, Vista, Mac OS X, and even Linux.

"We're very excited to be bringing our game series to Xbox LIVE Arcade," said Vlad Ceraldi, Hothead's President. "We love Xbox LIVE Arcade's ability to deliver great content directly to gamers. Digital distribution lets indie game developers innovate and experiment with new gameplay concepts."

This comes hot on the heels of the launch of www.rainslick.com, the official site for the game, launched in conjunction with the Penny Arcade Expo. With game trailers and the online press kit, the new site is the best place for the latest info on Penny Arcade Adventures right up until launch.

We can just let the ruined beauty speak for itself.

Fall 2008 is so far away. 

Now you can enjoy over 15 years of SNK classic 2D fisticuff action.

For the slim price of $14.99, you can own a volume of fighting game history.  The great rival franchise to the Street Fighter series is coming to the PS2 in the form of Fatal Fury: Battle Archives Vol. 1. It comes packed with Fatal Fury, Fatal Fury 2, Fatal Fury Special, and Fatal Fury 3: Road to the Final Victory, and all the tweaks featured in the Art of Fighting Collection, all for one low price.

On the technical side, Fatal Fury was the first fighting series to feature a two-plane system, letting characters dodge incoming attacks in a way that's now taken for granted in 3D fighters.  More important to fans is this franchise marked the first appearances of unforgettable characters, such at the cruel Geese, the sexy ninja Mai, her reluctant love interest Andy, and the Hungry Wolf himself, Terry Bogard.

"With the release of FATAL FURY: BATTLEARCHIVES Vol. 1 for the PlayStation 2 system, a brand-new generation of gamers will be introduced to one of SNK PLAYMORE's earliest fighting classics," said Ben Herman, president of SNK PLAYMORE USA CORPORATION, "and gamers who loved FATAL FURY 15 years ago will relish the chance to revisit the golden age of 2D fighters."

This series became the foundation of the SNK fighting empire for a reason.  Great characters and solid action that still shine as a king before the King of Fighters.

I already managed to get Microsoft's HD-DVD add-on for the Xbox 360 over an offer I couldn't refuse, and have been enjoying Batman Begins, King Kong, and especially Planet Earth all in their high definition glory with a sharpness and clarity that makes DVD seem like some old VHS copy taped off of UHF.

Not everyone has been convinced it's worth the additional expense, however, which is why Toshiba has temped new buyers by lowering the prices of their standalone players.  Now Microsoft has fallen in line, reducing the price of the add-on to $179.  If that wasn't enough, buy the add-on within the next month, and you'll get your (somewhat limited) pick of five free HD-DVD movies, which just happens to include the greatest movie of all time, Casablanca, in an absolutely stunning transfer that's worth the price of the drive alone.

To drive the spear of temptation right through your heart,  Microsoft are also working hard to promote the upcoming HD-DVD releases of the 300 and Heroes Season 1 with exclusive content on the Xbox Live Marketplace.  300 in HD will be showing up in their on demand service come August 14th, while soon XBL subscribers will be able to download the pilot episode of Heroes for free.

"With the price reduction to $179, the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player continues to be the most affordable way to enjoy high definition," said Jeff Bell, corporate vice president of Global Marketing, Interactive Entertainment Business, Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft. "From the beginning, we set out to offer Xbox 360 owners an unrivaled high-definition experience, with a choice of optical discs on the HD DVD format and digital downloads through Xbox LIVE Marketplace - both of which have a selection of the best content Hollywood has to offer. Today's announcements around '300' and 'Heroes: Season 1' are great examples of how we believe HD content can be offered to consumers."

This is the perfect time to jump in on this offer, since in only a few days the second and third greatest movies of all time, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, will be hitting store shelves, with all the high definition gore and gunplay exclusive to HD-DVD.