That means that Clash of the Titans should be as on par (or close to it) with efforts like Folklore or Genji. And given the strong source material—or at least source material based on strong source material—is interesting, Clash of the Titans the video game could be worth looking forward to.

Judge for yourself, based on these new screens of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game

Officially announced at Gamescom to be in development by developer Game Republic—known for its work on Folklore and Genji—the Clash of the Titans video game will arrive stateside in the spring of next year.

Both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions are in the works. Even better is that Namco Bandai "promises an unprecedented experience for video game and movie fans alike." Should they break that promise, we're sure full refunds will be in order for video game and movie fans alike. A promise is a promise.

Oh, to see what the Clash of the Titans movie looks like, make sure to check out more stills from Empire.

That original adventure game is bound for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2010, a cooperative adventure featuring a young thief and an AI-controlled monster, the eponymous Majin. Namco Bandai describes Majin: The Fall Realm as featuring a "new fusion of stealth and action adventure," with the hero and his monstrous sidekick forced to work together to solve puzzles and overcome obstacles.

While watching the presentation for Majin: The Fallen Realm, we were instantly reminded of the work of Team ICO, which looks to feature similar gameplay mechanics in its upcoming game The Last Guardian. What's more, Majin: The Fallen Realm looked to feature a similar artistic style and setting, with bits of developer Game Republic's visual flair factored in.

The game's executive director, Yoshiki Okamoto, is probably best known for his work on Street Fighter II and Resident Evil for Capcom. We'll see if he and the Game Republic crew can live up to the press release promise of "perfectly refined stress-free gameplay" next year.

That's an "incredible fantasy world"?

Okamoto told 1UP at the Tokyo Game Show that his team was developing the Tom and Jerry game for Brash, which specialized in movie-licensed titles like Alvin & the Chipmunks, Jumper and Space Chimps. The publisher was reported to have shut down operations in November, according to Variety.

Tom and Jerry wouldn't have been Game Republic's first licensed venture. It developed Dragon Ball: Origins for the Nintendo DS and Brave Story: New Traveler for the PSP.

No word yet on whether Game Republic's plans for Tom and Jerry have been shelved, but one Game Republic game that North Americans shouldn't hold out for is the PlayStation Network title Dark Mist. Okamoto says that he doesn't expect SCEA to release it in the region, despite already being localized.

Update: Apparently not! That "[laughs]" should have tipped me off that Okamoto was just being facetious about making a Tom and Jerry game. I don't get Japanese humor, y'know! Game Republic is rumored to be working on both a Clash of the Titans remake and a second 300 video game.

Yoshiki Okamoto Explains What's Up With Game Republic [1UP]

Dragon Ball Origins takes me back to the happy place that was after school and on Saturday mornings – somewhere between badly dubbed anime and expensive comics with thinly veiled adult humor. It’s an action-adventure in the same vein as Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass – an RPG that’s trimmed down for simple DS controls.

In fact, the touch screen is the only control you use in Origins, with attacks being triggered by tapping and/or dragging the stylus across the lower screen. Both screens depict the action going on in the levels – so you’ll always have a wide view of what’s going on as you guide Goku through the environments. Secondary characters run free on the screen, but are yo-yo’d to you so they never wander too far (and for the most part, they can take care of themselves with their own weapons).

The plot follows the Dragon Ball saga all the way from the very beginning of the series (where Bulma drags Son Goku on her quest to find all seven dragon balls) all the way up to the first Martial Arts World Tournament right after Oolong foils General Pilaf’s attempt to make a wish on the dragon balls. This is before super-strength training, characters dying/being brought back from the death, and the whole aliens-coming-to-destroy-the-world themes took over the series and eventually spawned Dragon Ball Z – so no one-on-one fighting, taunt button-whoring, or Super Saiyan power-ups. Just pure adventuring with a monkey-tailed little boy and his blue-haired sidekick. (Looks like you do get to participate in the Martial Arts World Tournament at the end of the game – so maybe there’s a one-on-one element to it.)

Even if you don’t know/care about the Dragon Ball series and the name Chi Chi inspires nothing in you but a vague suspicion that a breast joke has been made, this is a game DS owners will want to have. Developer Game Republic has put a lot of effort into the 3D cutscenes and intricate environments – so the game looks good, as well as plays solidly.

Dragon Ball Origins DS is out this November. Check out the screens below:

Okamoto theorizes that Microsoft had simply given up on the Japanese market. After showing their follow up to Every Party to Microsoft, the publisher passed. But development continued at Game Republic, hoping that the company would come around. Okamoto calls the gamble "a major mistake for us and a bad move for our company early on."

What we're interested in knowing is how this mystery title could be any more unappealing that both Genji games?

Okamoto says that the canceled Xbox 360 game "is gone for good" so it will remain a question for the ages, we suppose.

Game Republic's Canceled Xbox 360 Game [1UP]

It's almost too late. During the Famicom (NES) era, Japanese video games comprised 70 percent of all video games. And currently, it's like 15 or 20 percent, isn't it? Now, Western games are more advanced. For games like GTAIV, those guys are spending something like 5 or 10 years to make them. Even if we thought about catching up with them now, they'd still be making progress. But, not necessarily giving up, it's just not possible to catch up in a single lifetime.

Man, that Okamoto, talk about a downer. Chin up, Japan, chin up.

「日本はもうゲーム先進国ではない」 [IT Media via 痛いニュース] [Pic]

"In collaborating with Brash, we were introduced to a very compelling fictional world and given the freedom to expand it through the game. We are working directly with the creative talent from the film, and feel that the close collaboration will result in an amazing game play experience that immerses the player in an incredible fantasy world."

Brash Entertainment Partners with Game Republic, Inc.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., March 12 /PRNewswire/ — Today Brash Entertainment announced a game development deal with Game Republic, Inc., the Japan-based studio led by famed game producer Yoshiki Okamoto. Under the terms of the worldwide agreement, the partners will collaborate on an unannounced game based on a popular Hollywood film. The game will release in 2010.

Game Republic, Inc. was founded in 2003 under the leadership of industry visionary, Yoshiki Okamoto. A 20-year veteran of the game industry, Game Republic, Inc. CEO Okamoto has had a dramatic impact on the styles of gameplay prevalent in modern titles and is credited with pioneering new genres including "one-on-one fighting" with Street Fighter II and "survival horror" with Resident Evil. In addition, his teams have delivered such popular franchises as Lost Planet, Devil May Cry, Onimusha, Darkstalkers and many more.

"As a gamer, I am extremely excited to work with Okamoto-san, who has produced some of my favorite games," said Brash co-founder and CEO Mitch Davis. "The Brash business gives us the luxury to match the best Hollywood IP with the skills of the most talented independent game developers; our partnership with a strong studio such as Game Republic, Inc. is an excellent example of that."

"One of my goals with games is to do something revolutionary with something that has been never been seen before. The opportunity to re-imagine a fictional world provided by a compelling Hollywood IP using the interactive medium of games is very exciting to me," said Okamoto. "In collaborating with Brash, we were introduced to a very compelling fictional world and given the freedom to expand it through the game. We are working directly with the creative talent from the film, and feel that the close collaboration will result in an amazing game play experience that immerses the player in an incredible fantasy world."

In addition to those the new togs, a new quest for Keats dubbed "Holy Night Visitor" and a new Folk that goes by the name Grab Bag—it's a gaping mouthed present with legs—will also come with your download. Not bad!

A Holiday Gift to All Folklore Fans! [PlayStation.blog]

I had only heard of Folklore hours before SCEA's Gamers Day and that was from McMike who told me to keep an eye out for it. It totally wasn't on my radar. But it is now.

The game is amazing, one of the most surprising titles I saw at the two day event. Developed by Game Republic (yes, of historic Giant Crab fame), this game has you wandering the hills and forests surrounding a remote village in search of creatures. Once you battle and stun a creature in real time action play you can yank up their powers and store them for use against other creatures. You capture a creature's powers by using the SIXAXIS' motion controls. The capture motions vary, but the most common seemed to be holding in two trigger buttons and yanking toward you.

Once you capture a power, you can load it for instant use with the press of one of the four face buttons. You can capture more than 100 creatures, so you have to decide which powers best suit the situation and the creatures you're taking on.

To use a power you just press a face button and their spirit jets out of you, performs an attack and then dissipates, it's an amazing thing to behold. The game features two story lines and seven realms. I suspect it could be a title that pushes PS3 sales. I can't wait for it to hit. Brian Crecente

Folklore
FACT SHEET

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, JAPAN
Developer: Game Republic
Platform: PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3 ) computer entertainment system
Genre: Adventure/Fantasy
Players: Single-player
Rating: "RP" for Rating Pending

OVERVIEW

Developed by Tokyo's Game Republic under legendary game creator Yoshiki Okamoto, executive producer for Onimusha , Devil May Cry and Resident Evil , Folklore is a unique, dark fantasy adventure inspired by western fairy tales and built to showcase the power of PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3 ) computer entertainment system. Set in the mysterious town of Doolin, two strangers, Keats and Ellen, are drawn together to uncover a mysterious legend in a remote village that exists on the border between dreams and reality. They soon learn that the town serves as a gateway to fantastic realms, full of creatures, spirits and monsters. In order to solve the mystery of the town, and their past, the pair must journey through these worlds to uncover its secrets.

STORY OVERVIEW

Despite being a realist, Keats unhappily finds himself a journalist for a third rate occult magazine. One day Keats receives a phone call from a woman asking for his help.
Through the static Keats hears the word "Doolin". Sensing something wrong, Keats rushes to the village, but the woman he believes to have called him, is found murdered. He stays on to find out more about this murder. Strange events follow that night, and he travels to the "Netherworld".

Having lost her mother as a young child, Ellen is prone to dreaming and tends to look away from reality. Strangely, she spends her holidays actively searching England's countryside for folk stories. She is not so good with people but seems to have a rapport with children and the elderly. One day Ellen receives a letter from the mother she lost as a child, the message proposing a meeting in Doolin. She finds herself in the village at the same time as Keats. Here they wander between "reality" and the 7 Netherworlds, in search of the end to their stories.

KEY FEATURES

Journey to seven incredibly vibrant realms, all uniquely designed and tailored to fit their distinct personalities. From the ruins of the Undersea City to the never-ending maze of the Endless Corridor, each destination is different from the next.

Inspired by western fairy tales, players interact with or clash against a cast of over 100 originally designed creatures, characters and monsters.

Using the SIXAXIS wirelsess controller, the player must battle monsters and literally "shake" them into submission and "yank" their powers from them. The absorbed powers will be used to capture or defeat the monsters that lie ahead.

Begin the game as either Keats or Ellen and learn their story and gameplay style. Keats uses traditional direct attacks while Ellen uses strategic methods to trap her enemies. Decisions made in one story line will directly impact the story path of the other.

Today it looks like they may have a new one. Sony Computer Entertainment America has trademarked the name Folklore, a potentially duller, but easier-to-read rebranding for the North American market. The game ships next month in Japan but North American release dates are all over the place.

Western retailers are still referring to the game's original name, Monster Kingdom, on their web sites but that information may be outdated. No response from Sony about our titular speculation as of publish.

We've got our fingers crossed, hoping that no one we know will ever have to say FolksSoul aloud. Ever! Michael McWhertor

Worst. Title. Ever. Originally, dev Game Republic's PS3 title was Monster Kingdom (meh). Then it was dubbed Unknown Realms (vague, but decent). This week's Famitsu unveiled the game's new and final name, Folks Soul: The Lost Folklore. Just look at how awful it looks in print! And say it out loud: I just bought Folks Soul. What do you think of Folks Soul? You digging Folks Soul? It sounds like a bad compilation CD. A really bad one — Like one with Donovan, but without Dylan because they couldn't afford for the rights to his music. It sounds that bad. For those not familiar with Folks Soul (ungh), the game follows young Ellen as she goes to a mysterious town to meet her dead mom. The biggest mystery, though, is why Game Republic couldn't give this game a decent name. Brian Ashcraft

Game Republic honcho, Street Fighter creator and general wild-man Yoshiki Okamoto talks about his team's work on Genji: Days of the Blade. He tells game site Kikizo that work on the title had begun before Sony had even announced the PS3 specs. The title was originally slotted as a PS2 title. What about that rumble-for-motion-sensing swicheroo? Okamoto says:

Obviously you lose something without the rumble... The game design was not thought out with the Sixaxis in mind. Yes we did lose something but we probably gained a lot more.

But, what exactly? Brian Ashcraft

Okamoto Talks Genji [Kikizo]