Does this Sega saga never end? Just when you thought it was safe to relax, Sega has canceled their planned merger with Sammy. In theory this leaves the floor open for a proposed merger with Namco, but considering how insane this story has been to date, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Microsoft, EA or some other company (Bandai? Capcom?) came crawling out of the woodwork to announce a merger. I'm convinced that Namco is a better fit for Sega, and I say that both as a fanboi and an observer of the industry. Besides, with a Namco merger, a new Fighters Megamix with characters from Soul Calibur and Virtua Fighter suddenly becomes possible, and who wouldn't love that?

	Dead or Alive Online Announced Well that didn't take long...GameSpot reports that the latest issue of the Japanese magazine Famitsu has information on Dead or Alive Online, which is apparently the new DoA game that's being announced next week at E3. There's good news and bad news: the good news, is that it's online. Yay! The bad news, is that it's actually a remake of the first two games, and not a totally new game. The first game is said to have "the graphics quality of the Saturn version," while the second game has been enhanced for Xbox. We'll see what this means next week.
	Kingdom Hearts, FFVII-2 Sequel News Also on GameSpot is a report from the Japanese magazine Dorimaga, that quotes Tetsuya Nomura on the chances of sequels to Final Fantasy VII and Kingdom Hearts. He says that while a KH sequel is likely, it isn't 100% official yet, and as for a FFVII-2, it would require a great deal more effort than FFX-2, as FFVII is significantly older, and would require creating entirely new assets.
	Other Console Sequels Over at PS2.IGN they have more information from that same magazine, and specifically there's info on the chances of sequels to NiGHTS (not likely), ZOE (no plans at the moment), Crazy Taxi (nope), DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball (possible) and Shenmue, of which they say that if the third game is made, it would include the rest of the story, and not just the next chapter. Note that if in there, which would seem to suggest that the game is not in development, which is contrary to a report that came up last night. There's also a note that a new Street Fighter is in the works, to commemorate the series' 15th anniversary.
	EA Sports to Charge for Online Access? An article up at CNN/Money has quotes from EA representatives who say they are toying with the idea of charging for online gameplay in their uber-popular EA Sports titles. While this would most likely cause outrage among gamers no matter what, I think it's particularly cruel of EA to charge for a game that's going to be made obsolete in a year anyway. A better idea IMHO would be to create Madden Online and dispense entirely with the annual update thing and instead charge a monthly fee. But then again, I don't play these games, so what do I know?
	New Sega Games Revealed GameSpot has posted the first blurry (no doubt scanned) screenshots from three of Sega's games that will be revealed next week: Kunoichi, Dororo and yes, finally Altered Beast, which is looking pretty cool even with these obscured shots. Over at IGN they have a full hands-on preview of Sega's new Vectorman, but sadly it's for subscribers only.
	EQ: OA Expansion Announced Sony Online Entertainment today announced EverQuest Online Adventures: Frontiers, an expansion pack for their PS2 MMORPG. Details and screenshots are up at PS2.IGN.
	GameCube Demo Disc for Sale? According to some retailers, Nintendo's upcoming GameCube demo disc (which also features GBA demos) will be sold for $9.99 in addition to being available with new systems. It's a shame this isn't free...that one Nintendo released last Christmas was a real dud.
	Crimson Tears Announced Capcom has announced Crimson Tears, an upcoming cel-shaded action title from Dream Factory, the development studio best known for their great fighting game Tobol (or the less great Kakuto Chojin). Details of the game are up at GameSpot, where they also mention that it features randomly generated dungeons.
	Ikaruga Q&A Gamers.com has posted a Q&A with Masahito Maekawa, the president of Treasure, the developer of Ikaruga and other fine (if extremely difficult) shmups. It's a brief interview, but he comments on a few things, including the connection between Ikaruga and Radiant Silvergun (there isn't one), and the chances of a GameCube port of Sin and Punishment.
	F-Zero Game Modes Revealed IGN has posted a bunch of gameplay details from F-Zero GX, including specifics on the various playable gameplay modes, and word that it takes up 22 blocks of memory card space (so if you own a Memory Card 59, expect to delete those Resident Evil files if you intend to play it).
	Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution Q&A Computer and Video Games has conducted a Q&A with Taku Kihara of Sega AM2, talking about Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution. The questions all deal pretty much strictly with VF4, although he does aptly dodge a question about the status of Virtua Fighter 5.
	Crouching Tiger, Unlimited SaGa Two brief previews of upcoming PS2 games can be found at GameSpot tonight. There are separate previews of Square's Unlimited SaGa and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the upcoming action game that's based on the recent movie of the same name.
	Free Radical's New Game According to Computer and Video Games, Free Radical (the developers of the TimeSplitters games) is working on a new shooter called Second Sight which will be published by Activision. No other information is provided.
	Misc. Media Scandinavian gaming site GameReactor has posted what I believe are the first screenshots from Maximo vs. The Army of Zin. Also, Gamers.com has posted new shots from True Fantasy Live Online and CvG has new shots and footage from Brute Force.