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Game Announcements

game announcements

This Spring, Wii Owners To Dine In Bullet Hell

Aksys Games announced today that it would be bringing hardcore vertical-shmup Castle of Shikigami III to the Nintendo Wii early next year. Loaded with coin collecting and intense bullet dodging, the series has previously come to North America under other publishers as Mobile Light Force 2 and Castle Shikigami 2. This is eyeball drying, twitch filled stuff and the kind of content we certainly wouldn't mind seeing more of on the Wii. Pre-localized screens are in the gallery below, followed by a handy press release for reference.

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game announcements

Dragon Quest Swords Dated For US, Canada

Square-Enix announced today that the Wii exclusive slime slasher Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and The Tower of Mirrors will be shipping to North American retailers on February 26th. The best part? Those of us in the West will be given new, never before released bonus content, which the publisher describes as "a "Payback Mode" and four hidden bosses." This will inevitably lead to Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and The Tower of Mirrors Payback: International Remix + being released in Japan in the summer or fall of 2008. It will then sell an extra 50,000 or so extra copies of the game to people who already own it. Those poor bastards probably don't even see it coming.

game announcements

FIFA Street 3 Brings Ball Juggling To The DS

The latest version of EA's FIFA Street series, which is like NFL or NBA Street only for soccer-loving weirdos, is getting a tiny handheld sidekick when the game releases for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 early next year. The Nintendo DS is getting its own version of arcade-flavored street football, featuring an all new touch screen control system that lets you control all aspects of your team's performance with buttons and a tiny plastic stick. The DS version of the game features a special African stage exclusive to the handheld, as well as an exclusive mini-game called Kick Ups that will help you practice your ball juggling skills. In order to keep a straight face and avoid saying something completely offensive, I'll just let you folks continue ride that train of thought into the comments section. More »

game announcements

Wild ARMs Puts Hex On PSP

I am convinced that the PlayStation Portable is going to become the best platform for Japanese RPG if they ever get around to phasing out the PS2, and XSEED's announcement of Wild ARMs XF (Corssfire) coming to North American PSPs in Spring of next year only strengthens that belief. The first handheld Wild ARMs game ever, XF is the natural progression of the series from the hex grid system used in the past two console versions into full-on hex-based strategy. It places you on the dying world of Filgaia, where a personal story of revenge slowly transforms into a mission to save the world. Pretty standard for Wild ARMs, really. What isn't is standard is the turn-based strategy, which features over 60 stages, tons of optional battles, and 20 job classes to help customize your party. As a special bonus, the US version includes a 20 track music library accessible from the game's main menu, letting you listen to the game when you shouldn't be playing. Check out the gallery below for tons of portable Wild ARMs goodness.
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game announcements

Dungeon Lords Somehow Expands, Sequalizes

JoWood Productions has announced plans for a stand-alone expansion and sequel to 2005's PC action RPG, Dungeon Lords. The production of the games will be overseen by Dreamcatcher Interactive, the original game's publisher which JoWood purchased in November of last year in an effort to move into North America. For the record, Dungeon Lords was probably the buggiest, most incomplete game I had ever seen upon release. Buttons didn't work, tutorials were hosed, etc. Even now the game isn't complete, over 2 years after release. It was the only PC game that GameStop ever let me return, calling it defective. How that game scores an expansion pack in 2008 that bridges the gap between the original and the 2009 sequel is completely beyond me. Apparently it sold over a million copies. I'm guessing they've figured bargain bins sales into that number. Ew. More »

game announcements

Akella's City Of Abandoned Ships Pirated

Russian developer Akella are the closest thing gaming has to pirate specialists. They've got titles like Pirates of the Caribbean (Xbox), Age of Pirates, and Sea Dogs under their belts already, and they've just announced a new game for 2008, City of Abandoned Ships. It's a pirate RPG that allows you to take the role of the pirates themselves or any of the usual suspects: England, France, Spain, or the Dutch. You'll get ship=to=ship combat, meet historical figures, and explore land-based locations throughout the Caribbean. They're so pirate they've even come up with a nifty anagram for their advancement system: P.I.R.A.T.E.S - Power, Impression, Reaction, Authority, Talent, Endurance and Success. They might be going a little overboard here, but years at sea will do that to you. City of Abandoned Ships is due in the first quarter of 2008, most likely for the PC. More »

game announcements

Hudson Delivers Handheld Dungeon Explorer

The TurboGrafx 16 classic dungeon crawler Dungeon Explorer returns! Hudson has announced that Dungeon Explorer: Warriors of Ancient Arts is coming in February for the PSP and Nintendo DS, and don't worry about which version to buy, as both games have their own separate story, with the DS version taking place centuries after the events of the PSP game. Wha a frigging brilliant way to get me to buy a game twice! Both versions will allow three players to join up to fight co-operatively via PSP As-Hoc and Nintendo Wireless Connection respectively. The only thing that worries me is that there only seem to be three character classes in the game, as opposed to the original's 9 (including the hidden Hermit character.) I wanna be a Knome! I'll let you folks figure out which screenshots are PSP and which are DS. Good luck.

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game announcements

PS2 And Wii Get Alone In The Dark

The title of this post sounds like a recipe for some hot console lovins, and it might not be too far from the truth. Ever cheerful in the face of impending doom, Atari has announced that the next game in the Alone in the Dark series is heading to the PlayStation 2 and Wii, along with the previously announced PC, Xbox 360, and PS3 versions. Hydravision is handling development on the two consoles, with Eden Games of course handling the more current-gennish versions. The developer promises to push both consoles to their very limits, with the Wii version of course getting the requisite Wiimote-specific control scheme. I'll still be getting the game for the 360 myself, but as the screenshots show the Wii version isn't looking too shabby.
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game announcements

World Heroes Anthology Stateside This Spring

Are you ready to beat up some historical figures? SNK Playmore USA is bringing yet another famous fighting franchise home to the PlayStation 2 with World Heroes Anthology, due out next Spring. It collects the entire World Heroes saga into one convenient package. You'll get World Heroes, World Heroes 2, World Heroes 2 Jet, and World Heroes Perfect. While their In Development page might have beat the press release to the punch, it's always nice to get an official target window. The game was released earlier this year in Japan with online fighting capability, though the press release for the game doesn't mention the feature, which one would think would be a pretty big detail to leave out. Still, with characters inspired by such infamous characters as Jack the Ripper, Billy the Kidd, Rasputin, Genghis Khan, and Jeanne d'Arc, it's like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure gone horribly, horribly wrong - and that is beautiful. More »

game announcements

Turok Tracks Dinosaurs To PC

Previously announced for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, the dinosaur hunting has gotten too large for two consoles to contain, spilling over onto the Windows PC in the Spring of 2008. I'd bet the move has something to do with the rich history of first person shooters on the PC platform, what with their enthusiastic, dedicated fans and all.
"First person shooters have a rich history on the Windows PC platform and are known for having enthusiastic, dedicated fans," said Josh Holmes, vice president and general manager, Propaganda Games. "Turok will be an unforgettable experience ideal for the Windows PC platform when it becomes available in 2008."
See? Just had a feeling. The conversion is being pulled off by Aspyr Studios - the same company responsible for Guitar Hero III's journey onto the PC later this month - and will have all the dino-goodness of the console version, along with multiplayer for up to 16 players. Hooray for PC Turok! More »

game announcements

The Whispered World

On this most spooky of spooky days, nothing gets my attention on a new game announcement more than dressing your video game characters up in Halloween garb. It also helps if your title is an adventure game, a genre I like to think I champion at every turn. German developer Daedalic Entertainment has both these bases covered as they announce The Whispered World, an new adventure game for the PC, heading our way next year. Toss in phrases like "hand-painted backgrounds" and "lovingly crafter characters" and you've pretty much got my undivided attention.
"The Whispered World is a project carried by a strong creative vision. The story about courage, sacrifice and the search for yourself is expressed with the help of unique visuals. We look forward to revealing more of the game's fantastic world in the coming months", added Creative Director Jan Mueller-Michaelis.
And there you have it, a game announced in seasonably spooky fashion. Now we wait. More »