If you've loved that 1987 classic of arcade proportions, then Rainbow Islands Evolution from developer Taito and Digital Whip could be your next ticket back to Rainbow Island goodness. And then some. Despite mild reviews on the Japanese version, publisher Ignition Entertainment seem to be ever persistent in reeling in fans back to the fold. To that end, they've released the heroic duo's character art, plus a couple of hints of the backstory.

North American gamers are in for a classic-filled fun this coming Q1 of 2008 after Marvelous and Ignition Entertainment reached an agreement to bring upcoming DS titles Bubble Bobble Revolution and New Zealand Revolution Story as well as PSP game Rainbow Islands Revolution to North America.

The said DS video games are actually remakes of the original with upgraded graphics and a few level additions. Rainbow Islands Revolution for the PSP, furthermore, is a new entry in the Bubble Bobble franchise. Marvelous owns the rights to these titles and the North American versions will be published by Ignition.

"These games have such classic arcade appeal you will be looking for the slot to put your quarter. They are iconic classics that every DS and PSP system owner must have and we are honored to partner with Marvelous to bring them to North America," commented Ignition USA President Ajay Chadha.

 

Ignition Entertainment puts a new twist in the term "old school." In a recent announcement, the long time publisher of interactive software has teamed up with Marvelous Interactive in a long-term partnership which aims to bring many of its Japanese cult classic arcade games to locals here in North America.

Ignition is aiming to bring back some of the old time favorites a lot of newer gamers have yet to experience. Many old timers (you can include me in that list, sad to say) will remember gaming classics like Bubble Bobble, New Zealand Story and Rainbow Islands when they first came out on their respective consoles providing them with lots of arcade action for hours on end.

Soon, you'll be able to catch all of them in their newest incarnations for the next gen handhelds. Everyone can expect to see Bubble Bobble Double Shot and New Zealand Story Revolution on the Nintendo DS, while you can catch Rainbow Islands Evolution on the Sony PlayStation Portable.

All three games will be an exact port in terms of story content and gameplay, however you'll be blown away with some of the new upgrades all three games will be coming out with when they finally hit video game shelves. In any case, it's nice to know that Ignition is still willing to reintroduce games which would otherwise have fallen into the cracks of gaming obscurity. Hopefully, we'll all be seeing these titles soon enough on handhelds everywhere.

  

Game developer Helius - who tipped us off - and the rest of the Geardome site crew just released their game for the PSP, titled Ozone. To be more specific, it was actually previously released as a PC game, but has now been ported into the PSP via homebrew development! (Kind of like No Gravity.)

Ozone will put players behind the controls of a gas molecule as they race against time to collect blue gems before they shrink into nothing. Each stage carries multiple features, such as power-ups, traps, and enemies.

For some background, Ozone for the PSP used to be labelled as Hydrium - which is actually the name for the Windows (freeware) version of the game. Just so you know, Hyrium is not to be confused with Hg: Hydrium by Sony Computer Entertainment, which is the Japanese name for Ignition Entertainment's Mercury (2005). Hydrium (according to Geodome) is the winner of the Best Design category for the ArtFutura 2005 awards.

Ozone's gameplay controls and instructions should be available in the file readme - make sure to go through that for further details. The dev team's site is also available via source link, in case you want to drop by to say thanks.

Also, a big shout out to Neil, who also gave us a heads up! Thanks, Neil!

Download: Ozone for the PSP

UK-based video game developer Rebellion Developments, famous for the PlayStation 2 game Sniper Elite, has announced that they have just acquired Awesome Studios, more commonly known as Ignition Entertainment's development studio in Banbury in Oxfordshire. In line with this announcement, Rebellion CEO and Creative Director Jason Kingsley had this to say:

This acquisition takes the Rebellion headcount to 280 full time members of staff. We're fully booked with work until later in the year so these additional highly talented staff will be a valuable addition to the team.

In case people are wondering, Rebellion made several stints into the PlayStation Portable, with their most well-known game being Miami Vice: The Game (2006), which, alongside their Rogue Trooper (2006) PC title, helped push them for a "Developer of the Year" award at last year's TIGA event in the UK. In a strange bit of irony, they were also behind the notoriously mediocre Judge Dredd: Dredd vs. Death for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, and PC. Gamers will best remember Awesome Developments for their development of the PSP game Mercury, along with Pool Paradise for the PS2.

Okay, to start things off - and head off potential hostile comments and lawsuits, this story is not about bricked handhelds! (Damn, the challenges of making snappy titles...) Okay, now that's out of the way, Mercury Meltdown arrives in stores today! The successor to Archer Maclean's Mercury sends players through more wild and insane puzzles featuring the blob of that temperature-sensing, hated-by-Greenpeace element of the periodic table.

This sequel's got more color, as opposed to Archer's more industrial look. It also tweaks certain elements from the first game, such as time limits, to make the game accessible to the beginner, but still a brain-busting challenge in spite of it all. Your standard blob of mercury now features four distinct states: normal, rock-solid, molasses-slow cold, and Sonic-burning hot forms that changes the way players must navigate all those mazes.

If you're in the mood for puzzles to burn your PSP time with, or if you enjoyed Archer Maclean's Mercury, then Mercury Meltdown is the perfect buy. And we reiterate again: this isn't about bricking PSPs. Brain-busting challenges may brick your brain, though.

Buy: [Mercury Meltdown]

As an update to our earlier articles on Metal Slug 6, Ignition Entertainment has just released the logo and five new screenshots of the sixth installment to add to the Metal Slug Anthology.

Metal Slug 6 will have single-player, two-player, and co-op mode. What sets it apart from the earlier Metal Slugs though is that instead of having the previous games' Martians breaking the alliance and the Rebels assisting the player in turn, the player can now team up with BOTH the Rebels and Martians.

Metal Slug 6 will also have new pseudo-vehicular Slugs and will feature a new weapon, the Zangetsu Sword which is a sonic blade that emits lethal energy waves that will neutralize enemy firepower. The game will also feature a new Weapon Stock System wherein two gun powerups can be carried simultaneously, making weapon-switching a lot easier.

Metal Slug 6 will complete the said anthology that Ignition Entertainment will release to showcase the game franchise that's been around for ten years. The Metal Slug Anthology will also be available for the Wii and will be released for both the PSP and the next-gen console on November.

SNK Playmore is the developer for both the PSP and Wii version of the Metal Slug Anthology and handles the publishing duties for the Wii version as well. Ignition Entertainment is the publisher for the PSP version. But enough with the developer/publisher hoolabaloo, here are the new Metal Slug 6 screens to feast your eyes on. Enjoy!

    

Metal Slug 6 is now part of the Metal Slug Anthology for the PSP! That's official, straight from Ignition Entertainment. Fans of this arcade game will now see Metal Slug 6 complete the compilation. This offers players the chance to experience the much-admired franchise that's been around for 10 years.

Metal Slug Anthology comes with key features such as all the Arcade Perfect conversions from Metal Slug 1 to Metal Slug 6, double player cooperative play via wireless multiplayer, a full support for both widescreen and original screen format, unlockable items and bonus galleries containing classic poster and character art as well as other Metal Slug goodies.

In the Metal Slug Anthology with Metal Slug 6, the ‘Ikari Warriors’ (Ralf Jones and Clark Still) are now out with the team to help Marco, Tarma, Eri and Fio in their battle with the elusive General Morden.

Metal Slug Anthology comes to the PSP in winter 2006.

For anyone who has not played the Japanese demo of the puzzle game Mercury Meltdown but is still interested in it, we have some new screens in store for you folks. Developed and published by Ignition Entertainment, the sequel to one of the PSP's best puzzlers is out in Europe by September  28, but U.S. gamers won't be able to see it in store shelves until a month later.

Despite the all-new art style, Mercury Meltdown's gameplay still consists of guiding a liquid blob to the end of a maze, avoiding traps, door switches, spikes, moving floors and other hazardous elements in over 160 levels. With this simplicity in gameplay and high potential for addictiveness, this title will hopefully be making it as one of the best puzzle games for the PSP this year.

  

More screenshots after the Jump!

SNK Playmore and Ignition Entertainment gives us some more screenshots for their 10th Anniversary offering of the run and gun Metal Slug series. This compilation has Metal Slug, Metal Slug 2, Metal Slug X, Metal Slug 3, Metal Slug 4 and Metal Slug 5 in it. European fans of the game are lucky to get their hands earlier on this valuable collection this coming Autumn compared to Q4 of 2006 for US players. Meantime, here are the new screens from the anthology.