Did you know that the lead characters in Elite Beat Agents were originally inspired by the Village People? It's true. They were even supposed to be called the Disco Rangers. Thank God for rewrites, eh?

Anyway, IGN has posted a few new bits of info regarding the sequel to the popular Nintendo DS rhythm game Osu! Takakae! Ouendan! In his GDC session entitled "From 'Ouendan!' To 'HELP!'": Inside the Elite Beat Agents", VP of Development at iNiS Corporation Keiichi Yano announced that a new rival group of cheerleaders will be introduced in the upcoming sequel. Players will be able to both encounter and play these new cheerleaders.

 

Yano also mentioned that the original Ouendan cast of characters will be returning, albeit with a subtly edgier art style. Oh, and before we all forget, the sequel will be called Moeru! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashi: Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2, which, Yano says, loosely translates to "Burn hot rhythm soul!" Nintendo is expected to release more details regarding the sequel later this week.

Keiichi Yano didn't reveal any details regarding a possible Elite Beat Agents (Elite Beat Agents = U.S., Ouendan = Japan, OK?) sequel, but IGN says that Yano did have some hopeful words that the series may continue in some capacity, either on the Nintendo DS or on another game platform. Yano also mentioned that he is currently in talks with Nintendo about developing for the Wii.

 

And DICE is all set to roll later this evening, over at The Green Valley Ranch Resort in Henderson, Nevada. Yup, the 2007 DICE Summit is the event of the month that will surely have loads of goodies for all the gamers out there.

Some of guest speakers include Will Wright, Harmonix's Ales Rigopulos, Chris Taylor, Keiichi Yano of iNiS, and Doug Lowenstein. Surely interesting will be the 20 questions session with Phil Harrison of Sony Computer Entertainment. It definitely is bound to get hot in there. Have you outlined your queries yet? Make it good and snappy. There's only room for 20.

So, expect some potential game announcements, buzz from the grapevine, leakages, news, updates, and all else that makes booze at the end of a conference day all the more welcome. Keep it posted here for updates.

There's more interesting news about the Game Developers Conference 2007 (GDC): this March's conference will include lectures from Ubisoft producer Jade Raymond about Assassin's Creed (slated for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC), from Rare Ltd. about Viva Pinata (focusing on the graphics engine), and from Keiichi Yano about making the cult hit Elite Beat Agents for the DS. This is according to the GDC News blog (via Gamasutra).

Checking the GDC's blog shows a lot interesting sessions. We're curious about the Final Fantasy XII postmortem (it'd be nice to know more about how they handled the technical issues of transitioning between the quest screen and the battle screen in that gorgeous PS2 game).

There's also a tutorial on law, because you have to cover your assets when you're making development deals. Just look at our recent article on the courtroom drama between Spark Unlimited and Activision.

There will probably be lots more of these announcements from the GDC in the next days. The GDC will be on March 5 to 9 in San Francisco. We can't wait for another conference full of quotable quotes, flame bait, big news, jaw-dropping revelations, and gaming love!

By now, pretty much everyone with a DS knows about Elite Beat Agents. You guys know the story: the super-secret bunch of dudes dubbed the Elite Beat Agents roam the world looking for people in need of 'rescue' in the form of an emotional boost or encouragement, and when they find such people they perform a song and dance number that supplies their targets with "groovy" energy to help them overcome their problems.

One very important question has remained unanswered for quite some time though: What songs will be included in the game? Elite Beat Agents is a rhythm game, and we all know that rhythm games can live or die depending on the soundtrack. Well, wonder no more because the question has just been answered. We present to you guys the Elite Beat Agents soundtrack!

1. Walkie Talkie Man - Steriogram
2. ABC - Jackson Five
3. Sk8er Boi - Avril Lavigne
4. I Was Born to Love You - Queen
5. Rock This Town - Stray Cats
6. Highway Star - Deep Purple
7. Y.M.C.A. - Village People
8. September - Earth, Wind and Fire
9. Canned Heat - Jamiroquai
10. Material Girl - Madonna
11. La La - Ashlee Simpson
12. You're the Inspiration - Chicago
13. Survivor - Destiny's Child
14. Without a Fight - Hoobastank
15. Believe - Cher
16. Let's Dance - David Bowie
17. Jumpin Jack Flash - Rolling Stones
18. Makes No Difference - Sum 41
19. The Anthem - Good Charlotte

Whoo! Nineteen songs! That's four more compared to the original game, Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan. Says designer Keiichi Yano, "We wanted everyone to have lots of songs to play, so we put in as much as the DS Card could hold! There are 19 songs you can play. As to how many levels are in the game, you will see in November."

Frankly, we can't wait to see what Yano-san means. Elite Beat Agents will hit shelves on November 8th.