Console Classix re-launches

File this one under “sounds questionably legal,” but Console Classix, a site dedicated to providing classic gaming to the masses, has re-launched with an improved user interface, additional video game platforms supported and a library of more than 3,000 classic console games. This library includes games for the Sega Genesis, NES, Super Nintendo, ColecoVision, Atari 2600, Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. A free version of Console Classix is now available, which includes access to hundreds of Nintendo (NES), Atari 2600, and ColecoVision games.

To access the additional classic console video games you’ll have to pay a subscription fees of $5.99 per month or $59.99 annually.

A new dawn for Final Fantasy IV

In the torrent of E3 news and announcements this week, Square Enix and Nintendo quietly released Final Fantasy IV: The After Years on WiiWare. Perhaps some of us will have time this weekend to check it out if we don’t go completely and utterly insane. Besides the main product, available for 800 Wii Points, Square Enix has released an additional episode called Rydia’s Tale for an additional 300 Wii Points. Additional episodes will become available in the coming months.

Final Fantasy Iv: The After Years is described as a true sequel to Final Fantasy IV on the NES offering single and multiplayer modes for up to four players. The game, which will play out in a number of episodes, takes place seventeen years after the events of FFIV, where the world has returned to a state of peace. The second moon has left the Blue Planet’s orbit and Damcyan, Eblan and the Village of Mist have been rebuilt. After the Kingdom of Baron came under the rule of Cecil and Rosa, the people of the land rejoiced with the birth of Prince Ceodore. However, the second moon has reappeared in the sky, much closer to the planet than it was years ago, and the Castle of Baron is besieged by monsters. It is now up to Ceodore to unravel the mysterious events befalling the Blue Planet.

Begin you adventure by logging on to the game’s official web site or turning on your Wii and check out the Shop Channel.

Bionic Commando Released

Capcom has shipped Bionic Commando for the Xbox 360 PS3 to North American retail outlets. The game is rated M for Mature by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board and retails for $59.99. Based on the classic NES game (and Xbox Live Arcade remake), the new Bionic Commando takes the arm swinging, gun slinging action of the original to an all new 3D world.

Players are able to take their swinging skills from single-player mode and challenge their friends online in a 8-player multiplayer game that will be available when the game ships on PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE. Players will need to utilize all the skills honed in single player such as Zip Kick, Death from Above and Adrenaline attacks to to win against human players.

The development team behind Bionic Commando was a collaboration of cultures and skills, consisting of an American Producer living in Japan, a Japanese Creative Advisor and Swedish developer GRIN providing a European influence. Interesting stuff. Look for a review from our very own Scott Jones  right here.

A Boy and His Blob Returning This Year

Proving the old adage that everything old is new again, Majesco and developer WayForward Technologies have announced officially that they are resurrecting the classic NES title, A Boy and His Blob, and updating the game for a new generation of gamers and a new generation of consoles, bringing the title to the Nintendo Wii later this year. WayForward is no stranger to handling classic characters, having previously developed the DS titles Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck! and Contra 4. This time around, the developer will be feeding gamers’ sweet tooth, bringing the jelly bean powered Blobert back with new animations, new abilities, and new gameplay options.

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Super Smash Bros. Brawl Masterpieces

The latest update to the Super Smash Bros. Brawl Dojo, the official site for all things related to the upcoming all-star Wii beat-”em-up, reveals yet another feature that is hard to stay neutral: Virtual Console trial versions of some of the best classic NES and Super NES and N64 games. The titles are being included as a way to illustrate the greatest battles of some of the characters making an appearance in the game like Star Fox, Kirby, Link and Zelda, Mario and Luigi, Samus and many others.

This trial version collection has been dubbed Masterpieces and offers a taste of such classics as Ice Climber (1985, NES), Super Mario Bros. (1985, NES), The Legend of Zelda (1987, NES), Kid Icarus (1987, NES), Kirby’s Adventure (1993, NES), Super Metroid (1994,Super NES) and Star Fox 64 (1997, Nintendo 64). According to the Dojo, some of the aforementioned titles will come with save data included, and more titles await those who purchase the game when it ships in March. Finally, if you enjoy these trials you can purchase them from the Wii Shop Channel.

More importantly, this sounds like it could be the beginning of the Shop Channel finally making an effort to create playable demos of classic game releases. Many Wii owners would welcome that option, especially since many of the previously released VC titles have…well…sucked.