IGN Cube has a rundown of GameCube software expected to be unveiled at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (Story). Included in their rundown is a list of what they expect Midway to have on display.

Midway Entertainment: Likely to talk about its NFL Blitz and NHL Hitz games, both scheduled to launch for GameCube later this year. Expect a demo of Mortal Kombat 5 as well.

If you recall the last chat session with Ed Boon, Boon did mention that MK5 would not be playable at E3; however, that does not rule out the possibility that it could appear in a 'hands-off' demo form. If indeed the report on IGN Cube is true that MK5 will be making some sort of an appearance at E3 2001, TRMK will be reporting every detail live from the show's floor next week. Thanks to Mark Jansen for the heads-up.

UPDATE 11:35 CDT: TRMK has learned that the IGN Cube information is false and that MK5 will NOT be making an appearance in any shape or form at E3 this year.

Continuing a yearly tradition, TRMK will be reporting live from the Electronic Entertainment Expo at Los Angeles, CA. Although we have word from numerous internal sources that Mortal Kombat 5 will not be shown at E3 this year, TRMK will be at the show live and in person to report anything related to Mortal Kombat being shown on the LA Convention Center floor. Official coverage will start tomorrow, Thursday, May 17th, with a quick report from Midway's booth on the whereabouts of Mortal Kombat 5. Also, check back later tonight to see if we can get another "sneak peek" of the show's floor a day early. Keep it tuned to TRMK for the first word on Mortal Kombat 5 at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2001.

We managed to gain access (yet again) to the show floor last night, while the show was still being set up. There was no sign of any Mortal Kombat title being shown at Midway's E3 Booth. Also, Midway's E3 2001 Press Kit mentions a Mortal Kombat title for 2002, but it does not specify the name or platform(s) that the game will be appearing on. We will continue to search high and low for Mortal Kombat 5 information here at E3 this year once the show floor opens later this morning. The doors open a half hour from now, so check back later today for a report with all our findings, if any.

Behind closed doors, Midway revealed a few bits of information regarding the next installment of the Mortal Kombat series. We witnessed a short video clip, shown exclusively to select major press outlets, which consisted of a few live-action sequences of the MK dragon symbol in different dark and eclectic settings. Fire was a major element in the clip, appearing in the form of torches and dripping candles around MK dragon symbols. The clip also showed drops of blood hitting a scroll and numerous shots of actors showing their open palms, signifying the number 5 -- one hand was actually branded with a MK dragon. At the end, a close up of the new in-game Scorpion was displayed for a split second. Unfortunately, the shot was not long enough to make a lasting impression.

Lastly, Midway disclosed that the game should be referred to as Mortal Kombat. In an effort to revitalize the series, Midway is contemplating calling the fifth installment simply Mortal Kombat in order to signify the renewal of the series. Finally, Midway mentioned that more information on the next Mortal Kombat will be revealed soon. We'll post some shots of Midway's booth at midnight tonight.

Here are a few pictures of Midway's E3 2001 booth. There is a very cool lounge area in the middle of the booth, complete with plush couches and a super big screen running promo videos from Midway's lineup.

As expected, Mortal Kombat was in extremely limited exposure at this year's E3, with absolutely no signs of the game on the floor of anyone's booth including Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. While the announcement was made that the next Mortal Kombat game will be dropping the number 5 from the title, several developers mentioned that the game's title is still being decided and nothing has been solidified. Also, don't expect broadband Internet capabilities for sure in the next Mortal Kombat. The fast-action gameplay and in-close action requires an extremely low latency (or ping) connection. Until broadband connections are developed with a latency around the low teens between two clients, Internet play will not work with intense fighting games like Mortal Kombat.

On the whole, this year's E3 was relatively small, yet contained a myriad of extremely strong games for all next-generation consoles.

Nintendo's booth was jam-packed every day, showcasing a handful of GameCube titles, including Super Smash Brothers Mele, a jaw-dropping Luigi's Mansion, an intriguing Pikman, a puzzling Star Fox Dinosaur game, a Metroid Prime video and a few others. Game Boy Advance also had a large presence. Super Mario Advance (SMB 2), F-Zero and Mario Kart Advance were all playable and look very nice on the GBA screens. Also shown was a short video of Metroid IV, which looks like it will be a very hot game when it is released.

Capcom showed a very sweet looking Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo Revival on GBA. SSF2 ran very smooth and managed to look a little bit better than its SNES counterpart. Seeing and playing SSF2 immediately brought ideas of the prospects of a Mortal Kombat title for the GBA, as the system could easily support an equally impressive version.

Sony's presence was as strong as ever. The Gran Turismo 3 area contained 6 stations, all connected via an i.link network, complete with driving chairs, Logitech force feedback wheels, and pedals. With the exception of an occasional hitch in the i.link network, GT3 looks good to go for the PlayStation 2. Along with Sony's 'A' list games, there were a multitude of very popular games to supplement the PlayStation 2's future lineup, including MK development team favorite, Devil May Cry. Sony's drought of decent PlayStation 2 games seems to be coming to an end.

Microsoft's Xbox took center stage in their booth this year. Earlier announcing the system's price at $299.99 and launch date of November 8th, Microsoft has given the system the 'lime-green' go light for their initial foray into the console arena. Jet Set Radio Future and Oddworld: Munch's Oddes
ey were Xbox's premier titles, gaining positive responses by those who witnessed and played them. Xbox will be a system that will have to rely heavily on third-party support; however, with Electronic Arts, Sega, Midway, Capcom, and Activision all in their corner, they have a very good shot at taking a run at Sony and Nintendo.

Sega's presence at the show was limited to a behind doors area, with nothing to show to the public. Fortunately, we had access to the restricted area and had a chance to check out Sega's future lineup. For the now-discontinued Dreamcast, Sega had Sonic Adventure 2 and Crazy Taxi 2 playable, featuring new gameplay options, including multiple destination pickups and low riding cabs, all set within the surroundings of New York City. Also, Sega showcased their Dreamcast 2K2 sports lineup, including NBA 2K2, NFL 2K2, Virtua Tennis 2K2, NCAA College Football 2K2 and NHL 2K2, which sat out last year to incorporate online play in this year's version. Videos of Shenmue II, Virtua Fighter 4, Virtua Striker 3 and a new ToeJam & Earl game were also shown. Sega's outstanding software is in a position to dominate the market with their support of all platforms with their Sports titles. Although they will no longer be a major player in the hardware arena, Sega will still be a major player in the industry.

Many other outstanding games were shown -- too much for us to cover here in our little corner of the gaming world. Check out GameSpot VideoGames' outstanding coverage of this year's E3 at GameSpot at E3 2001.

We would also like to extend a personal thanks to the staff of GameSpot VideoGames for their continued support of TRMK and for their generous hospitality.

We had an outstanding time at E3 this year and plan on continuing the tradition of being there every year as long as we can. Next year's E3 should be very exciting for MK fans. Development on the next Mortal Kombat should be more mature and perhaps far enough along for the game to be playable on the show's floor.

Early this week we plan to feature some exclusive footage taken from the floor of Midway's booth. Make sure that you check back later for that. You will not want to miss these images.

Through our stealthy skills and our cunning maneuvers, we managed to "sneak" a few secretive images from Midway's E3 booth this year. This is exclusive TRMK footage and is strictly confidential. Viewer discretion advised. Parental guidance suggested. Return if seal is broken. No Deposit. MA, CA, 10¢ Return. Please Recycle.