Today at Nintendo’s E3 press conference, surprisingly little was discussed. Nintendo mostly announced DS titles. First off Guitar Hero Decades was announced. The only detail described was that it will support song sharing.
Also announced on the DS front was Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. GTA:CW is being built on a whole new engine designed by Rockstar Games. The game will feature a modern-day Liberty City (ala GTA 4). Too bad that is about it when it comes to details.
On the Wii side of things, Nintendo announced Animal Crossing: City Folk. Much like the previous titles, the game revolves around a world on a 24 hour clock. Animal Crossing: City Folk will support Wii Speak.
What is Wii Speak? Well, Nintendo revealed today a microphone and speaker combo, that rests on the sensor bar. Dubbed Wii Speak, it will allow for voice chat in certain games and Wii Channels.
Today Square Enix announced that they would be porting everybody’s favorite SNES JRPG, Chrono Trigger, to the Nintendo DS. This won’t be any old port, oh no. Square intends to take full advantage of the DS’s dual-screens and touch ability. Other things included are, wireless multiplayer battles and a whole new dungeon. You can expect Chrono Trigger to hit shelves just in time for the Holiday season.
My day just got a whole lot better. Hit the jump for the full press release. Continued…
Today LucasArts announced that Star Wars: The Force Unleashed will not be coming out on PC. According to Cameron Suey, producer of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: “[If we made the game for high-end PCs], someone with a low-end PC would have a watered down experience, they would have to turn all the settings down and it wouldn’t be the same game. On the other hand if we made that game for as many people as possible then it’s not taking advantage of what those $4,000 systems can do.”
This news is heart breaking to me. I have been a long time supporter of LucasArts, in particular their PC titles. Now they go an turn their back on the demographic that has supported them for so long. Long gone are the days of playing Star Wars games on a platform with superior controls and better graphics. There will be no more tweaking of systems to pull better frame rates when using force lighting. We have entered the uninspired world of console gaming.
Read: Force Unleashed Not Coming To PC, And This Is The Best Excuse Lucasarts Could Come Up With.
Today Activision announced the 15 song tracklist for the upcoming Nintendo DS exclusive Guitar Hero: On Tour. Activision previously announced that the game would have 25 songs, making this announcement a little strange. Hopefully the other 10 song will show up as unlockable tracks or something.
Hit the jump for the 15 song tracklist. Continued…
Are you a Puzzle Quest fan who live in the Los Angeles area? Well if so, D3Publishing might have a job for you.D3Publishing is looking for focus testers for the next Puzzle Quest game, which is either Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords - Revenge of the Plague Lord or Puzzle Quest: Galatrix. Either way, this is a chance to give your input for a major upcoming title.The full press release is after the jump. Continued…
Today, Square Enix announced that Final Fantasy IV will be hitting American shelves on July 22 for the Nintendo DS. The remake will include updated 3d graphics, fully voiced cutscenes and added content.
Added content seem a little vague? Alright, how about a remixed score by Nobuo Uematsu? Not enough? There will also be a local wireless “head-to-head battle” mode. Not too shabby for $40.
Read: Final Fantasy IV hits North American DS on July 22.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed will arrive in the U.S. on Sept. 15. Asia and Australia have to wait until Sept. 17 and Europe gets it Sept. 19. The game will be released on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2, Nintendo DS and PSP.
The game takes place between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode: IV A New Hope. Players will assume the role of Darth Vader’s apprentice during his quest to eliminate the Jedi.
As your typical Star Wars nerd, I will be eagerly waiting this title. The real question is, which platform should I get it on?
Read: The Force Unleashed Hits September.
Many major titles were released this week. Seven new titles ranked in this week’s top 10 ranking, and Pokemon Ranger: Battonage won this week’s #1 title.
Pokemon Ranger: Battonage is compatible with Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl, also for the Nintendo DS, allowing players to transfer the egg of the legendary Pokemon Manaphy to a Pokemon Diamond or Pokemon Pearl game.
The ranking is as follows:
1.*NEW* Pokemon Ranger (DS)
2.*NEW* Deca Sports (Wii - see a first look of Deca Sports on Epileptic Gaming’s YouTube channel)
3.*NEW* Armored Core For Answer (PS3)
4.*NEW* Sim City DS2 (DS)
5.*NEW* Tales of Rebrith (PSP)
6. Wii Fit (Wii)
7. DS Bimoji Training (DS)
8. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)
9. Dramatic Dungeon Sakura Wars (DS)
10. Crayon Shin-Chan: Arashi wo Yobu cinema land Kachinko Gachinko Daisakusen (DS)
Source: Famitsu
Just more evidence that you can’t trust blogs. Except this one.
The gaming blogosphere is full of controversy surrounding a purported Holocaust game for the Nintendo DS. Certain people are up in arms that anyone would consider trivializing the deaths of six million Jews and five million others in Nazi death camps.
Except, of course, that’s not what the game is. Titled Imagination is the Only Escape, it’s an educational game designed to teach young children facts about the Holocaust. The game’s developer, Luc Bernard, says he has gone to great lengths to keep the game tasteful, including input from members of Britain’s Jewish community. Continued…
This past year has produced some of the best games in a long time. I just wish that some other more casual games, namely Peggle and Puzzle Quest, received more attention.
This is why I was so excited when I heard that Puzzle Quest is getting a sequel.
Revealed in a press release from D3, the exact quote is: “The company will also be releasing video games based on Aardman’s popular Shaun the Sheep character in 2008, alongside the eagerly-awaited follow-ups to the best-selling Ben 10 and Puzzle Quest.”
This news makes me hopeful that Puzzle Quest 2 will get the wide spread success and critical acclaim that its predecessor deserved.
(In other news, Summa just creamed his pants).
Read: Puzzle Quest sequel cited in D3 press release, coming 2008.
Brain Age creator Ryuta Kawashima turned down almost $22 million (¥2.4 billion) in royalties from the hit Nintendo DS title based on his best-selling book.
Dr. Kawashima is a respected Japanese neuroscientist, and the author of Train Your Brain: 60 Days to a Better Brain. The game is based upon the book, and features Kawashima as a character.
Not a single yen has gone in my pocket. Everyone in my family is mad at me but I tell them that if they want money, go out and earn it.
In fact, Kawashima has directed some of the royalty money (¥700 million) to Tohoku University for new laboratories.
Via Gamernode.
The forthcoming year looks amazing for gamers, as a myriad of anticipated titles are planned for release throughout this year. I took the time to compile a list of five games, out of hundreds of possible choices, that sparked my interest enough to be noted on my list of must-have purchases of 2008. The following assemblage of games are not listed in any particular order of importance and are a true look into my own personal gaming habits.
Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3 & 360): GTA IV is planned for release within February-April of this year and takes place in a redesigned Liberty City consisting of five boroughs based New York City. The game’s map size is considerably smaller in comparison to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, but the inclusion of Liberty City will be far more detailed, and larger than any previous individual city in the GTA series. According to the Official PlayStation 2 Magazine (UK edition): “to get from one side of the new and improved Liberty City to the other will take you at least an hour.” Although you no longer have the ability to fly airplanes or changes the main-character’s physique or appearance, the game looks extremely promising. Continued…
