XBLA Version Of Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night Gets The Recompilation Treatment
If you’re a fan of classic Metroidvania titles, then listen up – the Xbox Live Arcade version of Konami’s legendary Castlevania: Symphony of the Night has been statically recompiled by Marco Andronaco / birabittoh (thanks, Video Game Esoterica).
Built on the ReXGlue SDK, this recompilation works on Windows and Linux and converts the Xbox 360 PowerPC xex file into native x86_64 code at build time, then wraps it with a small host runtime so the game “runs natively and can be modded like a PC port.”
Empire Interactive Withdraws From “3DO Project” Due To “Likelihood Of Prolonged Legal Disputes”
Less than a week after announcing it acquired “the trademark and select intellectual property rights of The 3DO Company,” Empire Interactive has now announced plans to “withdraw from the 3DO project.”
The announcement was made in an email to Time Extension, with a separate statement having since been posted on LinkedIn stating that it is abandoning plans to enter “console production” and giving up on “the idea of remastering retro games.” Instead, Empire Interactive now states the company “will focus our efforts on developing our own next-generation games,” which will be “published under the Empire Interactive label.”
A Musical Treat Isn’t The Only Secret Hiding Inside Banjo Kazooie’s New Handheld Edition
It turns out a secret music player isn’t the only extra included in the new handheld release of Banjo-Kazooie.
Fans have also discovered a new cheat menu, unlocked upon beating the game 100%, that lets you activate cheats without visiting the Treasure Trove Cove sandcastle.
This lets you grant yourself infinite blue eggs, infinite feathers, and infinite air supply; gives you the ability to reset secret items (presumably the Swop ‘N Stop items); and also, interestingly, contains a new move for Kazooie called Breegull Boost.
There’s a new ability in the Evercade version of Banjo-Kazooie. When you collect all Jiggies and Music Notes you unlock the ability ‘Breegull Boost’ which lets BK fly anywhere.
Might be a reference to the prototype that originally allowed BK to do that without pads.
— Facts About Banjo-Kazooie (@factsaboutbk.bsky.social) 2026-07-02T19:55:55.019Z
M2’s ‘Ganbare Goemon’ Collection Hides A Never-Before-Ported Konami Shoot ‘Em Up
The M2-developed Ganbare Goemon collection, Ganbare Goemon! Daishuugou is out today in Japan, bringing 13 games from Konami’s popular series to Nintendo Switch, PS5, and Steam.
But as if that wasn’t enough to make us all jealous of Japanese players who are able to get their hands on the collection with ease, it appears there’s also a rather fascinating bonus game included in the package, too, in the form of Konami’s 1991 Famicom-exclusive shoot ’em up Crisis Force.
Sony’s recent confirmation that it is abandoning physical media on PS5 and future consoles has sent shockwaves through the industry – but for some, the shift to a digital-only landscape is long overdue.
Back in 2013, Microsoft was forced to perform an embarrassing U-turn with its Xbox One console, following the announcement of DRM policies that would have prevented second-hand sales and marked a big step towards an all-digital distribution model.
I spoke to Codemasters co-founder David Darling for GamesIndustry.biz shortly after the kerfuffle 13 years ago, and he was of the opinion that Microsoft had made a mistake in bowing to consumer and media pressure.
I Was Already Excited About Truxton Extreme, But Playing It On A Next-Gen Cinema Screen Is Something Else
It’s fair to say that Truxton Extreme has held my attention ever since it was first revealed.
The latest instalment in a series which started life in arcades all the way back in 1989, the game – which is helmed by Masahiro Yuge, former Toaplan staffer and the driving force (and composer) behind the entire series – stays true to the core of Truxton (also known as Tatsujin) and its 1992 sequel while ramping up the challenge and offering a 2026 lick of paint.
The game launches later this month, and with that in mind, I was invited to attend a preview event in nearby Nottingham – a hands-on session with a key difference: I’d be playing the game on a massive ‘Epic’ screen at VUE’s Corner House cinema.
Damien has been writing professionally about tech and video games since 2007 and oversees all of Hookshot Media’s sites from an editorial perspective. He’s also the editor of Time Extension, the network’s newest site, which – paradoxically – is all about gaming’s past glories.