Pole’s Big Adventure (Sega) – WiiWare – 3rd Feb 2009
– Famicom style 2D action platformer
– Filled with in-jokes and gags which you have to discover in the stages
– Comedy action game
Crystal Defenders R1 (Square Enix) – WiiWare – 27th Jan 2009 – 1000 WiiPoints
– Port of the FF themed tower defense game on cellphones and iPod
– PSN and XBLA versions will be coming later
I also thought I should mention that Famitsu had what will probably be Marvelous’ “countdown game.” It’s only for the PSP – Sorry folks!
The latest Famitsu review scores are as follows:
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (DS, Square Enix): 8 / 7 / 7 / 7 – (29/40)
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (Wii, Square Enix): 8 / 7 / 7 / 8 – (30/40)
Ninja Blade (Xbox 360, From Software): 8 / 8 / 8 / 8 – (32/40)
World Soccer Winning Eleven 2009 (PSP, Konami): 8 / 8 / 7 / 8 – (31/40)
Hirameki Action: Chibikko Wagyan no Daiki na Bouken (NDS, Bandai Namco): 8 / 8 / 7 / 7 – (30/40)
Tom Clancy’s EndWar (Xbox 360, Ubisoft): 8 / 9 / 8 / 9 – (34/40)
Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 2 (PSP, Bandai Namco): 8 / 8 / 8 / 8 – (32/40)
Annie no Atelier: Sera Shima no Renkijutsushi (NDS, Gust): 7 / 7 / 7 / 7 – (28/40)
Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3/Xbox 360, Eidos): 8 / 8 / 8 / 8 – (32/40)
Soul Eater: Battle Resonance (PSP, Bandai Namco): 7 / 6 / 7 / 6 – (26/40)
Soul Eater: Battle Resonance (PS2, Bandai Namco): 6 / 5 / 6 / 5 – (22/40)
Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution (NDS, Cyberfront): 6 / 8 / 7 / 7 – (28/40)
GTA: Chinatown Wars
– Craig got to play it last week
– Showed him early part of the game
– Craig had certain expectations, he’s pretty psyched
– A lot of emphasis placed on touchscreen “side-things”
– Will need your stylus in your hand
– One minigame has you shoving trash aside looking for drugs
– Game engine runs on top screen, bottom screen is where the story happens + touch screen minigame
– Fixed perspective angle
– Never cuts away from action on the top-screen – will still see action on top screen during minigames
– Not hiding from being M-rated
– You’re a drug dealer – buy and sell drugs, dialoge all f-bombs and s word, there is violence
– Blood stays on the road when you run over someone
– Bozon’s excited for the game
– Engine itself runs really smooth – Craig didn’t see frame rate falter – 30 FPS
– No voice-overs, subtitles in cut-scenes – there’s only environmental voice – radio stations are instrumental (probably due to limitations of the cartridge)
– Can listen to radio while walking around
– Not too much humor in the first 5 missions
– Surveillance cameras are hidden packages in the city – if you destroy one of the cameras it can affect the price of what you can get for drugs
– Comes out March 17
– Game is ambitious, it’s a full-fledged GTA experience – Taken seriously at Rockstar
– Bozon thinks he might get more play out of Chinatown Wars than GTAIV
– Huge focus on online – next month we’ll know more about online
Marble Saga: Kororinpa
– Only specific levels use the Balance Board
– Sequel to Kororinpa Marble Mania
– Craig thinks its fun
– Like a Marble Madness clone
– Marble can be a panda head
– For Wii Balance Board stuff there are 30 original mazes just for the peripheral
– Can make own levels and send them to friends or send them to Hudson (who will send them to everyone)
– Comes out March 17
For a number of months, IGN teased a “secret dark Wii game.” In the last Nintendo Voice Chat podcast, Matt Casamassina unfortunately stated that the game had been canceled. Now the first details on the game – Winter – have been revealed, including pictures. Perhaps the most important bit of information is that the developers still want to release the game if publishers show interest.
– Premise: unnatural snowstorm that has settled over a small town in the Midwest, effectively closing it off from the outside world. The main character, Mia, begins the game inside a wrecked ambulance with no recollection of how she got there. As she treks off towards the small town, she starts to see signs of something monstrous that is traveling with the storm.
– Developed by n-space
– Initially player just keeps Mia alive (sheltering her from temperature/snow)
– Learn that Mia has a connection to the storm
– Creatures appear, town is being transformed by snow and icedoors are blocked
– Ways to keep Mia warm: Use Wii controller to spark fire, light oily rags, finding keys to abandoned vehicle to start engine and run the heater
– Wiimote/nunchuck extension of player’s hands
– Opening a door: Player points at handle, punches A+B buttons, pukllsit open
– Each tool takes advantage of Wii controllers – Flashlight flickers, player has to tap the Wiimote until it starts working again
– 12 people were working on the game at its peak
– Video was made to publishers in March 2007
– If the game got a publisher, would have liked to improve graphics (lighting, etc)
– Game was pitched for months, response was positive. Got hung up with sales and marketing groups – couldn’t get behind a survival horror
– Fact that the game was an original IP might have been part of the problem – also, publishers would have to go out of their confort home
– There were talks of movies/comic books (standard tie-ins) – Had to get game off first which stalled everything
* – Devs would still want to release Winter if publishers showed interest – would welcome to the opportunity to pick up where they left off
“DR: CTYD is not all about the number of zombies on screen. That said, the game is shipping in a couple months. You’ll see for yourself soon enough…The point of Dead Rising is to be able to pick up and use hundreds of objects in the environment to defeat your enemies (zombies and psychopaths). It’s about gameplay variety and flexibility, not technology. It’s the Tony-Hawk-of-death if you will. In our focus tests of CTYD, that uniqueness and the game’s tongue in cheek nature has been received very well as compared to [those] who haven’t played it. Naturally, your millage may vary and please make your purchasing decisions accordingly.” – Christian Svensson, Corporate Officer/VP of Strategic Planning & Business Development
For me, the number of zombies in the original Dead Rising was a memorable gameplay aspect. I think a lot of other gamers feel the same way as well, which is why Chop Till You Drop has received a lot of backlash. Not only is Chop Till You Drop missing the same number of zombies in the original (though that should be expected), but also the game, graphically, doesn’t look exactly pleasant either. Still, here’s hoping the game can shape up to be a somewhat enjoyable experience.
The NPD confirmed today that Wii Play was the best-selling game of 2008 in the United States. One could try to make the argument that Wii Play is purchased merely for the extra controller. However, data shows that Wii Play owners have spent an average of nine hours on the game. The top 5 best-selling games of 2008 are below:
1. Wii Play 5.28
2. Madden NFL ‘09 5.25
3. Grand Theft Auto IV 5.22
4. Mario Kart w/ Wheel 5.00
5. Call of Duty: World at War 4.63
– You can do up to 5 chained follow-up jumps
– you can glide for about 2 seconds (measured by a bar)
– Enemies aren’t that much of a challenge to defeat early on, but avoiding them may be a bit tough
– the main character can only stun some enemies earlier on in the game
– if you are stunned, shake the Wiimote to get out
– divine powers will help you take down enemies
– multiple ways to complete missions
– multiple hidden objects that can unlock bonus levels
– divine powers can allow you to move giant objects, ride on rocks, build platforms, redirect fireballs, build platforms and more
– exaggerated physics
Jaleco Holdings’ Kizuna, an action RPG that has drawn many comparisons to Shadows of the Colossus could be in trouble. The company announced last week that they are withdrawing from the video game business. Instead, Jaleco will shift its focus to financial services. The company’s games subsidiary is now owned by Game Yaro.
All of this spells trouble for Kizuna, a game that has been in development for the Wii. Right now, the status of Jaleco’s projects is unknown as Game Yaro has not officially commented on the game’s future.
