First off, let me thank you all in advance for your words of condolence with respect to the Shuckie issue. I have forwarded your kind words on to his family who remain terribly grief-stricken, but ever-so-slightly less so because of you.

A bit of news: Lina has opened up her blog to the public. Check it out by clicking this.

I couldn't help but notice that Bryan has retrofitted his room into a shrine to Sega games through the ages. Though I am extremely proud that the gamer in him is finally beginning to resurface, I do have to quibble about one thing. Wonderboy III simply cannot be the finest platformer of the 8-bit era because Super Mario Bros. 3 exists. I mean, come on! Did Wonderboy III have an awesome movie starring Fred Savage as its commercial? I didn't think so.

This all makes me begin to think back to the old days when so many game franchises seemed to have bright futures. In this day and age, companies seem to have forgotten to make sequels to some awesome franchises. In fact, I've compiled a top five list of franchises that I think need to be brought back and updated for the new generation. So in no particular order:

1. Star Tropics
I remember playing Star Tropics non-stop for about two weeks and enjoying every last minute of it. It was a pretty weird offering at first, blending RPG elements with yo-yo slinging action. Once you got going though, it was really hard to stop. The story got huge and bizarre, changing its focus from tropical marine life conservation to alien invasion. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this as a kid and would rather like to experience a suped-up version. I could just imagine what a next generation Star Tropics would be like. That would be crazy stuff!

2. Kid Icarus
Jumping around and shooting arrows at weird enemies was pretty cool back in the day. I imagine a new Kid Icarus game playing much like the recent Zelda games with limited flight ability. Give him a short sword for close combat but put an emphasis on pelting foes from distance with arrows and you could have a gem!

3. NiGHTS
I think every Sega fan will agree with me on this claim: the world needs a new NiGHTS game. The free-flying controls, the incredible level design, and the unbridled imagination of the NiGHTS world are all stuff of gamer legend and there has been something sorely lacking ever since. Sega's been teasing the fans with NiGHTS for years now... just go ahead and do it already!

4. Altered Beast
An awesome Devil May Cry style action game would suit Altered Beast just fine. Imagine being low on health, so you turn into a crazy werewolf and beat the crap out of your enemies. Not only that, but you could have options to change into other crazy werecreatures to give you certain advantages in combat.

5. Double Dragon
I don't think DD should ever go 3D. However, to make it appeal to a new audience the designers should make a lengthy quest with upgradable characters a focus. I think something like this would sell like crazy on the PS2, since that's where a lot of these old school style games are starting to find their way. One day, 2D is going to come back with a vengeance.

So that's my list. If you don't think this could happen, you only need to look as far as the re-invention of a few recent classic franchises. Metroid, Contra, Rygar, and Castlevania have all been successfully brought into the new generation of games in recent years. Hopefully someone can make my gamer dreams come true!

- Colin (invincibleironman@hotmail.com)