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March 22, 2000 - Deadlines. When you're in the journalism business you meet your fair share of them. Whether it be as an editor or as a writer, getting that important assignment in by press time can repeatedly be an adventure in and of itself. Unpredictable as the news day may be, a hot little item can oftentimes find itself flying onto your desk at the last possible moment, and before you know it, information, screenshots, movies and demos begin to rain down upon you like a classic Hollywood thunderstorm. And so, with a just a few minutes to go before we called it a day, Take 2 Interactive saddled us with a good old fashioned surprise: they've got a new game in the works . . ..

That's right, the same folks behind Rainbow Six and Grand Theft Auto 2 have decided to hit Dreamcast owners with yet another one of their highly publicized productions. This time however, a port of a popular PC or PlayStation disc isn't what the doctor ordered. No, this time it's all about the adventures of everyone's favorite secret agent Austin Powers, International Man of Mystery.
While James Bond aficionados may wince in pain with the mere mention of another British super spy, I for one couldn't be happier. After what seemed like an eternity of rumors and veiled promises, we the Austin-loving public are finally getting our game. While the idea that the boys at Take 2 have in mind may not be in the same vein as other Espionage efforts like Syphon Filter or GoldenEye 007, I'll take whatever I can get. That said, I am more than proud share with you the news that Austin Powers is acomin' to Dreamcast in the October-bound racing jaunt Austin Powers: Mojo Rally!

Okay, okay, I know it's not what you expected - but c'mon it's Austin Powers for Cripes sake! I'll be the first to admit, that with the exception of last years Crash Team Racing, it's been a good long time since we've seen a decent kart racer. But if Take 2's track record of finding quality developers and financing high-end software is anything to go by, then we already know that we're off to a good start.

Details on Mojo Rally are still scarce, but what we do know sounds enticing. Using the latest in squishy-headed auto-technology, an over abundant supply of all you're favorite personalities from the Powers movies are set to make an appearance. From the Danger man himself, to the outright hilarious Mini-Me they're all going to be in there. Want to see what would happen if Fat Bastard went head-to-head with Dr. Evil? Go for it! Curious if Scott could take Number Two to the school of Hard Knox? Be my guest! Personally, I can't wait to see Frau Farbissina kick the crap out of Felicity Shagwell. Now there's a woman!

As any civilized kart racer should have, there are over 15 overly large courses on the way. The populated streets of London, Las Vegas, Dr. Evil's Underground Lair, and even the Moon Base are all set to get the royal treatment. Every location from the previous two films will be brought to life on your television screen in complete 640 x 480, 3D glory.

Multi-player fans are going to get their share too, as anywhere from two to four chums can race by one another all day long, blasting each other with the appropriate weapon and zooming through to the finish line. Internet support hasn't been mentioned yet, but given the fantastic reception that Chu Chu Rocket and Sega Swirl have been receiving, it's not entirely out of the question. Start mailing in those requests now!

While we've only scratched the surface of what's in store for Austin Powers: Mojo Rally, there's sure to be even more of the good stuff on the way. As the PR machine revs up its engine and the new data steadily creeps into our mailboxes, you can be sure that we'll stay on top of it. With other interesting features like random snow and weather effects, and over 70 minutes worth of motion picture-quality music, things are shaping up quite nicely. We'll be back soon with more.

-- Jeremy Dunham, Contributor

quote IGN.com

February 01, 2000 - We've known Rockstar had the rights to everyone's favorite groovy gumshoe for a while now, a PS2 version was the only sure thing for gamers to count on. Today, however, Take-Two Interactive announced that their Rockstar Games division is planning to release a series of Austin Powers-licensed games on the Game Boy Color, as well as one on the Dreamcast. The first of these games (and presumably the Dreamcast version) will be appearing on store shelves this July.

Sam Houser, President of Rockstar Games, commented, "The ability to bring such a prolific base of characters and themes, such as those contained in the Austin Powers films to the rapidly selling Dreamcast and GameBoy Color platforms, is a tremendous thrill for Rockstar. We look forward to making a great series of games."
Ryan Brant, Chief Executive Officer, said, "We are very pleased to have finalized our 2000 fiscal year plans for releasing games based on the Austin Powers license. We look forward to building a strong line-up of products based on the license, and hope to continue to bring Austin, Dr. Evil, Mini-Me and Fat Bastard to other platforms in fiscal 2001."

No specific gameplay details have been revealed at this time, but keep checking back for the coverage of Fat Bastard's DC debut. That is "all Austin".