Well, I knew there was going to be a catch when I won that uber-SegaCD auction for 10 games for a fraction of their actual worth (including Snatcher, which by itself is worth up to $100). The package arrived over the weekend, and I was shocked to discover that I had just purchased a stack of crudely burned CD-R copies of those games. Needless to say, I'm not pleased. Something like this isn't even covered by that murky gray area that falls under emulation and fan-to-fan trading...this was the deliberate sale of pirated software, and I was duped into it. Fortunately I didn't spend a whole lot on these, and I'll be seeing that money back before I know it's gone thanks to auction insurance. I've also filed a formal complaint with the piracy hawks at the ESA, who take this sort of thing very seriously and will no doubt be out for blood. Undaunted, I leapt back into the eBay fray and picked up an even larger cache of Sega CD games, this time from a much more reputable source. And yes, this includes Hideo Kojima's Snatcher, considered by many to be the best game released for the platform (which I've yet to play, so I'm really looking forward to finally giving it a whirl).

	The Final Fantasy VII Rumors Continue Could a remake of Final Fantasy VII actually be revealed later this week at the Tokyo Game Show? The latest rumors seem a little more plausible than the last few we've heard...some tidbits you can find over at Gamers.com show what appears to be a TGS giveaway bag that features Final Fantasy X-2 on one side, and what looks like FFVII on the other. Of course, that could be a coincidence, as it comes from the company that produces most of Square's FF merchandise, but Gamers.com is also pointing out that the link to FFVII has vanished from Square's FF Archives page (that page is still online, however).
	Square's Other Projects In other Square rumor mongering, The Magic Box is reporting that SquareEnix (I keep forgetting to refer to the company as that) has confirmed to a Japanese magazine that they have three teams working on unannounced games, two of which will be revealed soon, and neither of which will be Final Fantasy XII. That game will be revealed at a separate press conference in the fall.
	Ninja Gaiden Still on for December Ninja fans can breathe a sigh of relief, as IGN has confirmed that Ninja Gaiden is still on track for a December release. Of course, let's not forget that this is the same company who said Ninja Gaiden was going to be a PS2 launch title, so don't take this as being 100% final.
	Team Ninja Interview Speaking of all things Ninja, Computer and Video Games has a new interview with the delightfully pompous Tomonobu Itagaki, who talks about his upcoming religious experience er, game Ninja Gaiden. Among other things, he confirms that not only will the original Ninja Gaiden be included as a bonus, but its two sequels will be thrown in for good measure. He also talks about how those games haven't aged particularly well and yes, even his views on (cough) eroticism.
	PSP Precursor? Probably not, but an image of a prototype handheld video player that showed up today on Gizmodo from Sony may offer a glimpse at the design sense of their upcoming PSP handheld system. If nothing else, it is a cool looking device.
	Major Announcement from Rez Creator As noted in this story at Gamers.com, the program guide for a Japanese television show about gaming culture promises a major announcement is imminent from Tetsuya Mizuguchi, the creator of such zany titles as Rez and Space Channel 5. Considering that it would take something absolutely insane to shock us game-design wise (this is after all the man who created the "trance vibrator"), my guess is that he's announcing that he's leaving Sega, following the merging of his studio UGA into the decidedly more conventional Sega Team earlier this year.
	Steel Battalion Online Beta Soon? GameSpot is reporting that Capcom of Japan has started taking applications for Tekki Taisen, the game that will be released here as Steel Battalion: Line of Contact, and the long-awaited follow-up to the most ambitious 'mech sim ever made. While this is good news only for Japanese gamers, what is of note for fans elsewhere in the world is the news that Capcom says they are planning a simultaneous worldwide beta, so if you've got a copy of Steel Battalion, its that super-freaky controller, and an active Xbox Live account you'll want to stay tuned.
	NCAA Football 2004 on N-Gage The question of what EA title would be the first to debut on Nokia's phone/gaming system hybrid has been answered...EA announced today that they will be releasing NCAA Football 2004 for the N-Gage before the end of the year. The game will feature full Bluetooth support for multiplayer and the ability to download extra content as well (although specifics aren't available yet on any of that).
	Play Billy Hatcher on Your PC Here's a strange development...if you've got a PC capable of running Java, Sega has released a playable demo of Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg via IGN that you can take advantage of. This game is still a GameCube exclusive, so you can only play this demo on your PC, not the whole game.
	The Sims GBA Q&A IGN Pocket has conducted a Q&A with Virginia McArthur, the producer at Maxis on the GBA game my wife is (and I'm sure many other gamers' spouses are) looking forward to the most...The Sims: Bustin' Out. The game differs slightly from the standard Sims gameplay, which Virginia addresses in this interview.
	Backyard Wrestling Q&A A new Q&A with Mike Schmitt, the producer at Eidos on the aptly named Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home is up at Computer and Video Games tonight, in which he attempts to explain why you should play this title at home regardless of what the box says.
	Misc. Media/Previews GameSpot has a new preview of Tony Hawk's Underground (GC, PS2, Xbox) along with new media from NFL Blitz Pro (PS2, Xbox), Spy Hunter 2 (GC, PS2, Xbox) and Mission: Impossible: Operation Surma (GBA). IGN has an incredible single new image from Pokemon Fire Red/Leaf Green (GBA), a hands-on look at The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (GC, PS2, Xbox), new shots from Gran Turismo 4 (PS2), a hands-on look at SSX 3 (GC, PS2, Xbox) and new media from Metal Arms: Glitch in the System (GC, PS2, Xbox), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (GC., PS2, Xbox), Dark Night (GBA), The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (GBA) and Project Gotham Racing 2 (Xbox). Elsewhere online, GameSpy has a new preview of 1080: Avalanche (GC), The Magic Box has new media from Dream Mix TV World Fighters (GC, PS2), Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (GC), Slime Morimori Dragon Quest (GBA) and Siren (PS2) and CvG has new shots from Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando (PS2).