Midway.com has posted up some a bunch of Sound Files from Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. Lots of good stuff out there, enjoy. Thanks to long time friend and reader JRF for the heads up.

MK5.org has an e-mail interview online with MK co-creator, John Tobias, regarding his new Xbox exclusive fighter, Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus.

Do you have any favorites among the current console fighting games? And has there been any other fighting games which has influenced the play mechanics of Tao Feng?

(JT) I’m really looking forward to Soul Calibur 2. I think that TF was influenced by the genre as a whole. Our choice in play mechanics was more of a reaction to where fighting games are in general. We tried to get away from the claustrophobic feel by incorporating longer range attacks and running jumps. We wanted our characters to really get around the environments and I think that was the direct opposite of where every other fighting game has gone. So more than anything that influence pointed us in directions to take as opposed to things to emulate.

Stay tuned to TRMK as we feature our own exclusive Tao Feng content very soon.

Only 10 days until the year's most anticipated fighting game on the Xbox is released. To launch the countdown to March 18th, we've posted 10 new screenshots from Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus in the new Tao Feng gamespace. Check back all next week as we feature more exclusive content leading up to the game's release date.

TechTV's Extended Play previewed the upcoming Xbox exclusive fighter, Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus, this week. It will re-air Sunday March 9th at 2 p.m. Eastern, and Tuesday 3/11 at 7 a.m., 4 p.m. Eastern. Here is an excerpt from their online preview of the game:

Fans of fast, brutal fighters should definitely keep an eye on "Tao Feng." It features an interesting mix of twitch-based, combo-focused fighting from the old-school arcade days while adding interesting twists such as its limb damage system and the ability to use the environments. When you consider that it's also one of the most visually stunning 3D fighters ever, it's not hard to see that fighting-game fans will have a lot to look forward to when "Tao Feng" is released for the Xbox at the end of March.

Thanks to our Forum member Scranton for the heads up on this story.

According to IGN Pocket, Midway stated that a sequel to the Game Boy Advanced version of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance will be released Summer 2003. In the article, IGN claims that Midway stated that the new GBA version will be able to link with the previous version of MK:DA for GBA, amongst other features.

Though development is still early, the company has stated that the game will feature both old and new characters, as well as a new four-player link mode. The as-yet-unnamed sequel (Mortal Kombat Advance 2 is the tentative title) will even link up to the original Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance for some multiplayer action as well as special data trading which will unlock hidden specials in the new game.

Special thanks to Forum member kabal for the heads-up.

Only 8 more days until Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus is released on Xbox. To continue in the countdown until the game's release on March 18th, we have 5 all new exclusive quicktime videos, consisting of 4 combos and 1 showing off one of the game's many expansive levels.

In addition to the individual videos, we have also combined the 5 individual clips into one super clip for those on broadband connections. It should be noted that even though the animation in these videos are fluid, they were captured at only 30 fps, while the game runs at a consistent 60 fps, resulting in even smoother gameplay than the videos depict.

Stay tuned all this week as we continue to bring you more exciting Tao Feng content.

Our Tao Feng gamspace now features 5 new screenshots for your enjoyment. If you happened to missed the 5 new exclusive gameplay videos that debuted here yesterday, shame! They are still available in the media section. Only 7 days remain until Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus is released on Xbox. Keep it here as we feature all new Tao Feng content throughout the week.

According to IGN Pocket, the next iteration of MK games on the Game Boy Advance now bears the title of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Revenge. The scheduled release of MK:DR on GBA is this summer. MK: Deadly Revenge will feature new levels and single player options, along with 4 player connectability with the previous MK: Deadly Alliance GBA version. Thanks to Forum member DJ_Mo for the tip.

We've added 10 new screenshots from Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus to its gamespace, which brings our current total up to 25. Only 5 days remain until Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus is released on Xbox. Keep it here as we continue to feature all new Tao Feng content throughout the week.

Our Tao Feng gamespace has been updated with 11 new renders from 5 different levels: Yan Lo Corporation Lobby, Lower Metro China Street, Metro China Pier, Dragon's Den Arcade and Food Court, and the Neiden Sanctuary. Check back later as we feature more Tao Feng content.

In continuance of our coverage of Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus, we have 9 new videos available for your enjoyment, including 2 compilation videos, bringing our total to 15 videos. These new videos feature throws and chi attacks. In addition, our previous videos have been recatagorized into combos and interactive & expansive enviroments compilations, which the latter features a new clip of a breakable glass case.

Tao Feng is scheduled for release to retailers tomorrow and online video game retailers have comitted to shipping orders on Tuesday; however, video game-specific retailers like GameStop and Electronics Boutique have stated an in-store date of Wednesday the 19th, while traditional eletronics retailers advertise the 20th (Best Buy) and 21st (Circuit City) as their release dates. As always, call your local retailer before you make a trip out to the store. Then, hit our message forum to report your success.

In preparation of Tao Feng's release tomorrow, Studio Gigante updated their website: StudioGigante.com. They have added a Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus content area including game concept information, detailed storyline, character profiles, character conceptual artwork, new screenshots, and even some game music samples. They also put up some links and quotes from some reviews of the game from various gaming media outlets. Also be sure to check out the awesome 'Girls on Bikes' Desktop Wallpaper they put up under their downloads section.

Also Microsoft's Xbox.com updated their Tao Feng page with a review of the game along with a Behind The Scenes Feature on the "brutal" fighting effects used in the game. Included in that feature is a new video showing off all the stages of Limb Damage. Also be aware that you need Windows Media Player 9 to watch the video.

Stay tuned tomorrow for my exclusive interview with Studio Gigante's own John Tobias. And as a reminder, visit our message forum to discuss the game and report where you found your copy of the game.

To coincide with the official launch of Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus, TRMK was granted the unique opportunity of visiting the offices of Studio Gigante, makers of the Xbox fighting game. During the visit, we were able to spend a good amount of time playing the game and, more importantly, got the chance to sit down with the MK co-creator and Tao Feng project lead, John Tobias. Throughout the 6 page interview, Tobias answers questions as to why he left Midway and the Mortal Kombat franchise, the inner details of his latest project, and his ambitions for the future of Studio Gigante.

With the current lack of online play in most fighting games, fighting games for consoles have been turning to new ways to keep players interested. What did you do with Tao Feng's single player game to keep players coming back for more?

Tobias: Tao Feng single player game is generally the Quest mode. That’s kind of the method of facing your boss in the game. In regards to online play, we would have loved to have had Tao Feng function online. I think when we started and where Xbox Live was at the time, didn’t coincide with us building the engine. I think that all fighting games at some point have to have some kind of online play ability. There are some latency issues that have to be solved for that to work well. I think that with the demise of the arcade the competitive aspect of fighting games has gone away, but I think online can kind of bring that back...

Check out the full 6 paged interview! Don't forget, major video game-specific retailers like GameStop and Electronics Boutique have received their copies of Tao Feng today and are now being sold across the country.