Master Ninja Tournament kicking off Tecmo's E3 schedule

Tecmo unveiled its E3 schedule today, with an assortment of contests, giveaways, and photo ops. While the announcement revealed that the publisher will release Gallop Racer 2004, a new installment in its PlayStation 2 horse-racing series, its primary purpose was to promote the kickoff of the Master Ninja Tournament.

On Wednesday at 11:30am PDT, round one of the Master Ninja Tournament will commence online. On hand at E3 to celebrate the event will be Gaiden creator Tomonobu Itagaki, who will engage in a boss battle with Cam Ferroni, general manager of Xbox platform evolution. Also on hand will be the obligatory booth babes dressed as Gaiden characters Rachel and Ayane. Details about the Master Ninja Tournament can be found online at www.masterninjatournament.com.

Tecmo will also have some other activities at E3, as listed below:

Who Wants to Be a Master Ninja?: Attendees can play Ninja Gaiden for the coveted Master Ninja status. Privileges of said rank are cool prizes and photo ops with Rachel and Ayane. (Wed. 11:00-11:30, Thu. 10:15-11:30, Fri. 9:15-10:30.)

Dead or Alive 3 Tag Battle Tournament: This one-day tournament pits two two-man tag teams against each other in Tecmo's fighting game.

The Ultimate "Spin & Win" Wheel: Besides giving visitors a chance to check out the new Dead or Alive Ultimate trailers, this event will feature models dressed as Dead or Alive characters dispensing prizes. (Wed. 2:00-3:00 & 5:00-6:00, Thu. 1:00-2:00 & 4:00-5:00, Fri. 11:00-12:00 & 3:00-4:00.)

The Players Club: A dog and pony show without the dogs, this event will let attendees "bet" on a Gallop Racer 2004 game, with prizes dished out by models dressed as jockeys. (Wed. 3:30-4:30, Thu. 2:30-3:30, Fri. 1:30-2:30.)