IGN Korea interviews Nin & owner of Green Arcade about history, custom parts & closure

IGNThe well-known Korean arcade dedicated to Tekken might be closed, but its legacy remains.

IGN Korea writer Lee Dong-hun recently interviewed Nin and then-owner Yoon Kyung-sik about the end of Green Game Land arcade. Both Nin and Yoon talked about how the arcade ran before its untimely closure, its 21-year existence, its hospitality to visiting players and the future for the owner.

One of the most popular things about Green Arcade was their highly coveted custom lever. Commonly referred to as the Green Lever, Yoon goes into detail about the development of what he felt was the ideal lever. This also expands to the notion of work on a custom pushbutton.

The four page piece, which includes pictures of the now-closed arcade, can be found here. There is currently no English translation of the article.

South Korea's Green Arcade closes its doors

Core-A GamingOne of the top arcades for Tekken in South Korea is no more.

Green Game Land, known to many players simply as Green Arcade, has shuttered after several factors converged, causing the owner (known as "mom" to the patrons) to call it quits.

According to a post on the Tekken Reddit, the arcade's building was scheduled to be remodeled and thus the arcade would be closed for a time. Combined with the decreasing income due to the console and PC versions of Tekken 7 being more current than the arcade version, and the owner's advancing age, the decision was made to close the business for good.

Both Nin and Knee posted goodbyes to the arcade, with Knee saying that Korean arcades are ending.

For players outside South Korea, Green Arcade was a legendary location, where many of the best Tekken players regularly played and the level of competition was at its apex. The arcade even hosted the many trophies won by its players at events all around the world.

From this point on, however, the name Green Tekken will simply live on in Nin's social media handles.

Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS 2 coming to Japanese arcades on Oct. 30, 2018

The direct follow-up to the popular arcade arena fighting game in Japan has been fully revealed.

Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS 2 now has a release date of Oct. 30, 2018. Developed by Bandai Namco's VSTG Project team and published under BN's Amusement division, this will be playable only in Japanese arcades.

EXVS2 will include over 160 mobile suits with four new suits announced: Gundam AGE-1 Full Glansa from Gundam AGE, Gundam Astray Blue Frame D from Gundam SEED, Montero from Reconguista in G and Zaku Amazing from Gundam Build Fighters. Mechanics-wise, EXVS2 adds two more burst options to the existing three found in Maxi Boost ON. Mobility Burst allows players faster boost speed when activating EX mode. Linkage Burst, when EX mode is on, refills a small amount of both boost and primary weapon ammo depending on how much EX meter is available.

There are a variety of modes to be added in EXVS2 such as training mode and a group play mode.

From 4Gamer's article, EXVS2's cabinets will sport a new look compared to the previous Namco Noir model. In addition, the cabinets will features a 3.5mm headphone jack with volume control for headphone support, a USB charging port and even a built-in pad based on a design by Hori.

There are currently no plans for a home version as of this time. Bandai Namco's Entertainment division released Gundam Versus exclusively for the PlayStation 4 in 2017.

You can check out the promotional video detailing the modes, as well as a CG trailer from Japanese alternative metal band Coldrain, after the jump!

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The remaining arcade-exclusive customization items coming home for Tekken 7 Season Two

While players can expect six characters as well as a balance patch in Tekken 7 Season Two, players who get the upcoming season pass will also receive some added bonuses.

Those bonuses include additional customization items that were previously exclusive to T7's arcade counterpart: Tekken 7 Fated Retribution. The most notable addition is the inclusion of clothing, hair, player panels and other accessories from Bandai Namco Entertainment's PlayStation VR game Summer Lesson. New hit effects such as one featuring characters in a dot character format and another featuring various chicken sprites will also be added.

Exclusive to the season pass are promotional clothes for the Tekken World Tour. Most characters, sans Kuma and Panda, are able to equip t-shirts featuring the TWT logo. The bears will have some TWT-style accessories though. While not planned with this season pass, Noctis will get a TWT-branded version of his Fighting King's Rainment outfit in the coming future.

This is confirmed at least for owners of the home versions of Tekken 7 in Japan. Judging by the arcade items included for free during Tekken 7's one year anniversary on home platforms, it's very likely owners outside Japan will get the Season Two bonuses. For pictures on what to expect, check Avoiding the Puddle's post on it.

Tekken 7 Season Two will begin on Sept. 6, 2018, with Lei Wulong, Anna Williams and a balance patch immediately available.

Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 version 2.1 released

The newest revision to Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 has landed in arcades in Japan, bringing with it a list of changes to each character in the game.

The main news coming out of the patch is that seemingly all the changes that were made for the location test have been retained in the update. This means big changes for both Baiken and Answer, and buffs for characters such as I-No while Chipp has gotten nerfs.

These tweaks and alterations have been translated by GreatFernMan and can be found on Evernote. While the update is only in arcades for the time being, it is scheduled to be released on PC and console platforms sometime in March 2018.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme Vs. 2 coming to arcades in 2018

A new arcade version of Bandai Namco's popular arena fighter will be coming before the end of the year.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme Vs. 2 will be the first numbered sequel of the Extreme Vs. series, which started in arcades in 2010. The most recent update is Extreme Vs Maxi Boost ON, which was first released in 2016 but has continually received updates in the form of new mobile suits.

According to Gematsu, a location test for the new game is scheduled for summer 2018 in Japan. It is unknown at this time if the release of Extreme Vs. 2 will have any effect on Gundam Versus, or if the PlayStation 4 and arcade versions of the Gundam Vs. series will remain independent but related titles going forward.

Readers can check out the game's teaser trailer after the jump.

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Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 version 2.1 comes to arcades on Feb. 14

After a short location test, the next update to Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 will be released in mid-February.

The new version will arrive roughly a month after Arc System Works announced its existence during the ASW Fighting Game Awards 2017. The company added a lengthy list of changes to the game for the location test (translations by GreatFernMan), but it is unknown which modifications have stuck for the update and which have been discarded. Hopefully ASW will provide a document listing the changes closer to or on release of the patch.

Although the update will also roll out to the console and PC platforms, no date was given for its release at this time.

Back to the world of Street Fighter III: Cooperation Cup 16, Jan. 7, 2018

The 16th installment of the world's largest five-on-five Street Fighter III: Third Strike tournament comes to Japan on Jan. 7, 2018.

Asakusabashi Hulic Hall in Taitō, Tokyo will be the setting for event where the best Third Strike players converge for a weekend to celebrate their favorite title. As usual, while the main Cooperation Cup event is only a one-day tournament, a special Pre-Cooperation Cup five-on-five, same-character tournament will take place the day before on Jan. 6.

The event will again be streamed on Game Newton's Twitch channel much like last year's event.

Players interested in signing up for Cooperation Cup 16 can head over to the event's official website, with team entries being accepted until the end of Dec. 3, 2017. 

Readers can check out a short announcement trailer—in Japanese—featuring the captain of last year's winning team, Kuni, after the jump.

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Golbez controls his own destiny in Dissidia Final Fantasy

One of the main antagonists of Final Fantasy IV is joining the cast of Dissidia Final Fantasy and its upcoming PlayStation 4 counterpart.

Golbez is a powerful sorcerer who fights at a distance from his opponents with the aid of his shadow dragon.

Golbez is the last character announced as part of Square Enix's plan to roll out a new Dissidia character for every month from August through November. Jecht, Ultimecia and Cloud of Darkness have also been revealed for the title.

Along with Golbez, Dissidia is also a receiving a new stage in the form of the Stellar Fulcrum from Final Fantasy XI.

Readers can check out the trailer for both Golbez and the stage after the jump. Dissidia Final Fantasy NT is scheduled for release on the PlayStation 4 console on Jan. 11, 2018, in Japan and Jan. 30 in North America and Europe.

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Million Arthur: Arcana Blood coming to Japanese arcades on Nov. 21

Square-Enix's upcoming 2-D fighter has a release date at the end of November 2017.

Million Arthur: Arcana Blood will be launching in Japan on Nov. 21, 2017, three days after a nationwide location test.

Originally announced in January, MAAB features anime-style gameplay and uses "Support Knight" cards that act as assists. The game also features characters from Square-Enix's classic Seiken Densetsu series.

Readers can check out the game's opening cinema scene after the jump.

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Cloud of Darkness to engulf Dissidia Final Fantasy

The main villain of Final Fantasy III is joining the cast of the Dissidia Final Fantasy and its upcoming PlayStation 4 counterpart.

Cloud of Darkness fights with its two tentacles, which give it much longer melee reach, as well as several powerful magic attacks including one that seems like a counter of some kind.

Cloud of Darkness is the third character announced as part of Square Enix's plan to roll out a new Dissidia character for every month from August through November. Jecht and Ultimecia have also been revealed for the title.

Readers can check out the Cloud of Darkness trailer after the jump. Dissidia Final Fantasy NT is scheduled for release on the PlayStation 4 console in early 2018.

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Blade Strangers location test announced for Sept. 22-24 in Japan

The upcoming fighting-game collaboration between Nicalis and Studio Saizensen will have a public test at the end September 2017.

Blade Strangers will have five playable characters when it is available to play at Sega Akihabara Building No. 1: Solange and Master T. Drakkhen from Code of Princess; Curly Brace from Cave Story; and Umihara Kawase and Emiko from Umihara Kawase (known as Yumi's Odd Odyssey in the United States).

Blade Strangers is currently scheduled for a late 2017 release on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PC in regions outsiden of Japan.

Time will not wait: Ultimecia joins Dissidia Final Fantasy arcade

The main antagonist of Final Fantasy VIII is coming to the arcade version of Dissidia Final Fantasy.

A powerful sorceress, Ultimecia possesses many ranged attacks and looks to be a character who prefers to fight from a distance instead of up close. She is the second new character being added to the arcade version of Dissidia in as many months, as Jecht joined the game's cast in August.

Ultimecia has also been confirmed for the upcoming PlayStation 4 game, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT.

Readers can check out Ultimecia's trailer after the jump.

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New character coming to Dissidia Final Fantasy arcade on Sept. 5

A new character will be announced for the arcade version of Dissidia Final Fantasy early in September.

This will be second character since August, as Square Enix announced in June that a new character would join the arcade version of Dissidia for every month from August through November. So far, Jecht from Final Fantasy X has joined the game.

While there is currently no guarantee that the forthcoming characters will all make it into Dissidia Final Fantasy NT when it arrives on PlayStation 4 in early 2018, Jecht has already been confirmed for that game. With that in mind, it seems reasonable to believe that new additions to the arcade game will be part of the console game when it is released.

BBCF version 2.0 brings balance changes, Jubei to arcades on Aug. 3

A new update to BlazBlue Central Fiction was first announced during Evolution 2017 and now the update's release date has been confirmed: Aug. 3, 2017.

BBCF 2.0 will come first to arcades and include new character Jubei as well as changes for the entire cast. The list of alterations is in Japanese, but Brazilian player HiagoXYZ is currently translating them on Twitter. These translations and others are also being collected in a Google Document.

There is no console release date for BBCF 2.0 at this time.

Tekken 7 console characters coming to arcades on July 27

The arcade version of Tekken 7: Fated Retribution will be updated with console characters at the end of July.

According to a tweet from the official Tekken Project Twitter, Eliza, Eddy, Lee, Panda, Kuma and Miguel will join the cast as part of the newest version on July 27, 2017. While the update will also contain changes to game balance and item customization, those details will be announced later.

The update was first announced in May, when no date was given for additions to the game.

Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st] version 3.20 changes by Sourenga

The new balance patch for Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st] has released in Japanese arcades ahead of the game's console release on July 20, and Twitter user Sourenga has translated the changes.

The eight-page document includes changes for all members of the UNIST cast, and also makes note of overall goals the designers wanted to achieve with the update. The big ideas for 3.20 were adding new attacks to characters to create more depth; strengthening assault and jump overheads to help break the guard of defending players; and adding attribute invinicibility to certain attacks which will allow them to act as effective anti-airs.

Players can find the original Japanese change list on the official UNIST website, and a link to the translations on Sourenga's Twitter.

UNIST balance update coming to arcades

Arc System Works has announced a balance update will be coming to the arcade version of Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st].

The update comes just ahead of the game's release on PlayStation 3, 4 and Vita console on July 20, 2017. The title was also recently announced for a late 2017 release in the North America via Aksys Games.

No changes have been revealed as this time, but it seems like this is intended to get the arcade version to parity with the upcoming console version. Console characters Enkidu and Erika Wagner are not going to be added yet, however.

Afreeca Tekken League season one concludes with top four finals this Friday night

Knee, GoAttack, Qudans and LowHigh battle for first place in the season finale for Afreeca Tekken League.

GoAttack takes on Knee while Qudans will fight LowHigh in a double elimination bracket. With a total prize pot of ‎₩6 million, first place gets ‎₩3 million while second and third get ‎₩2 million and ‎₩1 million, respectively.

The finals will take place on June 16 at 10 p.m. PDT on both the global AfreecaTV stream and the Korean stream. You can check out the press release after the jump.

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Seiken Densetsu characters join Million Arthur: Arcana Blood

Lise and Hawkeye from Square-Enix's Seiken Densetsu franchise, also known as Mana, will be making an appearance in the company's upcoming fighting game.

Announced in January 2017, Million Arthur: Arcana Blood is a 2-D fighter developed by Square-Enix featuring "Support Knight" cards that act as assists. It is currently being developed for Taito's NESiCAxLive 2 platform with a target release date of fall 2017. 

The characters Lise and Hawkeye appear from Seiken Densetsu 3, a game that has never been officially released outside Japan.

The official Seiken Densetsu Twitter account has posted a short clip of Lise, which readers can check out below.

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