UPDATE - Stream over! But you can still try to win the CD!

We're about to kick off our first of 12 monthly live streams featuring the classic Mega Man games! Watch along and you could win a Rockman 10 soundtrack CD!

Late last year we announced the console-sized adventure that is Resident Evil Revelations would arrive on a 4GB card instead of the standard 2GB card; this increase in memory size led to an increase in price as well, raising the retail cost to $49.99. And while we're confident in the game's value at that price (and the reviews reflect that sentiment as well), we're also exceedingly pleased to say that after weeks of effort, we've been able to lower the price to $39.99.

Since the announcement of the $49.99 price point, we've spent weeks looking for a way to bring your cost down to standard 3DS pricing. Today we can finally confirm we were successful in this, and hope the reduced price encourages even more people to check out this strong entry in the Resident Evil canon.

I've gone through this game twice now and as a former member of the press I can plainly state Revelations has enough content to warrant the $49.99 price. But I understand if that's a little hard to swallow coming from a now-Capcom employee, so I'll let the other high marks speak for themselves.

Game Informer - 9/10

“A perfect blend of action and survival”

IGN -8.5/10

“…succeeds, setting benchmarks for the Nintendo 3DS”

GameSpot - 8.5/10

“…an optimum mix of tense, creepy exploration and stop-and-shoot action”

Wired - 8/10

“…the sort of thing Nintendo 3DS needs right now, a high-quality original production.”

This change only affects the US price of the game - if you've already pre-ordered or pre-paid for the game, please contact your retailer for more information. You can also pre-order in the Capcom Store and pick up a free 3DS case!

We'll also have one more Revelations live stream before the game launches in the US on February 7th. Tune in to our Twitch TV channel for more this Tuesday.

In the SF Bay Area and itching for a fight? We'll have Street Fighter X Tekken open to the public on the evening of February 2, with plenty of kiosks for play and, I assume, loud-as-hell music.

Artist and Unity member Arttronik has pointed me to an absolutely fascinating essay he wrote for his blog. The essay takes an incredibly deep look at the origins and inspirations for the concept and design of Street Fighter's Ryu. Namely, he draws numerous convincing comparisons to appearance and fighting style of legendary karate master Masatsu Oyama, who used to train by fighting live bulls, and his disciples.

He even delves into Oyama's influence on other characters, and praises the original SF character designers for their masterful implementation of "intricate simplicity," notably pointing out the brilliance of their color schemes. Check out this simplification created by designer Ashley Browning, which he cites in the essay:

Bet you can name all these characters. A pretty clear testament to the strength of their color design.

Be sure to read the full essay right here. 

Time for another dev blog from Ayano-san. In case you missed it, we revealed some new characters yesterday, and there are more to be revealed in the near future. 

We are proud to announce the official Street Fighter X Tekken arcade stick, courtesy of Mad Catz! 

The premium model allows you to link up 2 sticks together for real two player action! There are a total of 6 models scheduled to be on sale!

These sticks will go on sale at the same time as SFXTK, on March 8th, for the price of 16,800 yen (approx. $216 USD)

My recommended stick is of course the premium version that you can link up with another premium version. For me, the ability to link up two sticks together when playing offline by myself or against friends is a really great idea, don’t you think?

Now, for Capcom’s official SSFIV AE Ver. 2012 national tournament “Hellish Spring War”...!

I hope my lame attempt at an "itchy, tasty" pun doesn't scare you away from this rather slick assortment of Resident Evil clothing from MustardBrand. Umbrella shirts, STARS hoodies and even BSAA branded pants could be yours...

The PlayStation 3 and Vita versions of Street Fighter X Tekken gain two more exclusive characters today - both Namco and Capcom lend their mascots to the battle, but in ways you might not expect...

So I coincidentally received two separate PMs from two separate users regarding two separate pieces of art for separate characters and by separate artists. They were both eerily serious renderings of typically cartoonish Capcom characters, so I've cram-a-lammed them into one bite-sized post! 

Check out the Capcom Store home page. I don't think we've ever had as many preorder items going all at the same time. Go ahead. Jump over and check it out.

As is our want, we have exclusive bonus items available for most of the preorder items.

With Street Fighter X Tekken you get a custom Capcom "VS" lanyard.

 With Asura's Wrath you get Asura and his six arms with our latest Bobble Budd.

 We're shipping Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 for PS Vita and Resident Evil Revelations for free. Not exclusive to us but also included with Resident Evil Revelations is the Resident Evil Revelations lenticular 3DS case. You get the game, the case AND free shipping all for the price of the game!

 Coming next week I'll be announcing the preorder bonus for Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City. Stay tuned. You're definitely going to want one.

Man, not to brag or anything, but Capcom makes some pretty wondrous games. Kotaku's latest round of "Best Games for the [Blank]" posts features several great Capcom titles, including a couple of unsung sleepers. 

Celebrated this time around are Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition (3DS), Super Street Fighter IV (2D edition?)(Xbox 360), Zack and Wiki (Wii), and Ghost Trick (DS). 

These lists are updated by Kotaku periodically, and are limited to twelve or fewer titles. Check out the full lists here:

Nintendo DS

Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo Wii

Xbox 360

Playstation 3

Thanks for the accolades, Kotaku!

Japanese artist Kei Suwabe has concocted an impressive melange of pop culture icons, some familiar in both East and West, others very Japanese, all done in that Street Fighter IV art style we've all come to know and love, with its ink splatters and unreal character proportions. He calls it the "Satsui no Hadou Series". 

Check out the full set of 39 characters here. Can you name 'em all? Frankly, I couldn't name 'em all and I lived in Japan for, like, ever. Japanophiles, go prove yourselves! 

*Pictured above are Ronald McDonald (making a delicious chicken pun at his opponent's expense), Professor Layton, and of course, His Excellency Demon Kogure from theatrical heavy metal band SEIKIMA-II. Of course. 

December 2012 marks the Blue Bomber's 25th anniversary. As a fan from the very beginning, even typing that sentence fills me with joy. And while we're still not quite ready to reveal official plans for the 25th celebration, I would like to UNofficially kick things off here on Unity with a live stream of the game that started it all...