That's how Treasure rep Arthur sums up Bangai-O Spirits (2:28), and we're struggling to concoct a more befitting description. The lucky blighters at Gamespot's "On the Spot" show got a chance to chat to Arthur (and his colleague Kaori) about the game, which launches later this year in the States.
The first few minutes are dedicated to chatting about and showing off some of the now-familiar shooting action and the level editor, while the second half deals with the game's amazingSound Load system. Arthur admits that this idea "took a lot of explaining to Nintendo," but then demonstrates how easy it is to share files (5:20) -- simply holding two DSes closely to one another does the trick. This idea still seems like witchcraft to us, but we absolutely love it.
Arthur also confirmed that there was no official U.S. database planned to host Bangai-O sound files (9:05). Not that this should bother you -- after all, there's at least one other (really accessible) way to share your masterpiece of a level.
If you love Naruto and are ruing the fact that you can't make it to this year's Anime Expo, don't rue too hard. You may not be able to try out Path of the Ninja 2 this July, but your day to get your Naruto RPG on will come soon enough.
Tomy announced that the game is releasing this September, meaning you only have to make it through three measly months. In the meantime, there are plenty of other Naruto games out there to keep you busy, or you could pass the time by browsing through our updated gallery below.
Want to get your hands on Bangai-O Spirits before its August release? Then head on over to California and go to this year's Anime Expo. Not only will you get to play this gem of a game, but the entire DS Fanboy staff will envy you for your hands-onBangai-O experience.
Another DS game that will be playable is, of course, Naruto: Path of the Ninja 2. Would you really expect the orange-clad Ninja not to make an appearance? So, if you plan to stop by the Expo, make sure to check out D3 Publisher's booth (901) for some fun times on the DS.
There's nothing quite as charming as a Nick Park creation. After the worldwide success of Wallace & Gromit, a show with 7-minute episodes was devised starring an above-average farm animal. This animal now has its own DS game, and it's awesome. Why? It just is, man -- Shaun the Sheep owns all.
The premise of the game involves Shaun herding the rest of the flock back to the barn before the nondescript "Farmer" character returns home. Not much else is known about the gameplay at this point, beyond maneuvering around obstacles to safely guide the other dumb-as-donuts sheep. However, an additional mini-game mode is included - standard fare for children's games these days. Hey, if you're a kid or not, this is a fantastic game -- Shaun rules. Check out the trailer above and the first screens in our new gallery!
Let us make our position on this subject absolutely clear: any website that wants to post new videos of Bangai-O Spirits between now and the game's August 12 release has our blessing. For that matter, we'll be happy watching playthroughs of new stages long after the game is out. The video above, from IGN, is especially awesome, featuring numerous enormous scatter bomb shots in a level devoid of anything but missile-firing enemies (which feed the scatter bombs).
The two videos after the break feature the game's gentle first level and a bizarre gimmick level in which the player hits soccer balls with the bat weapon as they fall from a chute, pinball-style. There certainly appears to be enough variety in the level designs.
It should be good to drive emergency vehicles without the possibility of running people over, GTA-style. The DS enjoys the odd sunday drive, but the latest from Japan shows a different take on handling big vehicles and getting down to some serious work.
Norimono DS from D3 serves up ten different vehicles, each with jobs to complete. For example, the fire engine needs to be driven to a rescue operation, the backhoe needs to dig some holes and unearth dead bodies (not really, but awesome anyway), while the garbage truck takes out the trash.
Control will be handled by turning a steering wheel on the touch screen. Skills with each vehicle will increase upon the completion of each job; the aim of the game being to build up an impressive portfolio of driving abilities. More screens of this interesting import can be found after the break.
These English-language gameplay videos of Bangai-O Spirits give us a look at a few of the game's weapons -- the yellow Shield "weapon" there seems like a good choice for obvious reasons (including the number of bullets on screen and their tendency to blow you up upon impact). The "Mix" icon in the weapon selection screen (which can now be read) indicates that the two chosen EX weapons can combine into a new scatter bomb attack. Amusingly, within the first few seconds, we see the demo player fail a level. That's the mark of a hardcore game!
The video after the break shows off two of Spirits' more labyrinthine levels, as well as the awesome bullet-destroying "Sword" attack. We cannot express how thrilled we are that the release date is approaching. There hasn't been a DS game yet to match the few minutes of demo time we've had!
Posted Jun 24th 2008 2:00PM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News
Bangai-O Spirits is packed with amazing features -- the level editor, the Sound Load system, the shooting of stuff. But as if that weren't enough, it also has co-op. It's local, and limited to two players, both of whom require their own cartridge, but everyone should probably have their own Bangai-O Spirits anyway.
You can be joined by another shooty robot in any stage in Free Play -- which means any stage. This includes stages you've created yourself or transferred via Sound Load. IGN's Daemon Hatfield reports a lot of slowdown, especially in multiplayer, but slowdown in Bangai-O games is inevitable given the nature of the super attacks, and may even be part of the design.
We know getting our hopes up about a "book turned movie turned video game" always ends disastrously, but this time we really can't help ourselves. Perhaps it's because the software in question is inspired by one of our favorite writers, Neil Gaiman (the genius behind Neverwhere and The Sandman, to name a few).
Based on his novella Coraline (which is being made into an animated 3D film this February), the game is a multi-platform "surrealistic adventure" developed by D3. The story revolves around a young girl who enters a parallel universe that's like her own, only more fantastical.
There's no definitive date for this title (only Q1 2009), but we'd expect it to come out near the movie's release.
Upon first seeing Detroit Metal City: Death Shout, we came to a conclusion: the game was the perfect amount of crazy for us. It's no secret that we enjoy odd things here at DS Fanboy, so we'd like to point out that the game is now getting action figures, allowing you to act out scenarios you might not find in the Japanese title.
As you can see to the right, Johannes Krauser II came out wonderfully in his action figure. He's not only available as you see him there, but also in another costume. Joining him for this run of action figures is also the band's drummer.
So, anybody want to pick these up for us? Our birthday is, uh, soon or something.
At the end of May, Treasure announced the winners of their Bangai-O Spiritsstage contest. The 1st place winner, MKLL, received a 50,000 yen prepaid debit card, a soundtrack CD, and a Bangai-O Spirits t-shirt (which we'd like to see) for the "Tokimeki Doukasen" stage. The 2nd place winner, NeoGAF's Sp0rsk, won a Wii in addition to the soundtrack and shirt. All the contest-winning stages are now available for download and play via Sound Load.
That means that we won a bunch of downloadable stages that we're going to grab now and hang onto just in case they work in the U.S. version of the game. We wouldn't be surprised if these contest-winning stages made it onto the cartridge anyway!
Tomy confirmed with Siliconera that there are no plans to localize Naruto RPG 2: Chidori vs. Rasengan. As you may or may not remember, Path of the Ninja 2 is actually a localization of the third game in the Naruto RPG series, Reijuu vs Konoha Shoutai.
Skipping a game in the series is definitely a bummer, but on an unrelated note, Tomy has also added an odd feature to Path of the Ninja 2 -- the ability to play in French. Perhaps this is an indication of one of Naruto's biggest markets. Now, people in France will have an easier time importing the game, and French-speaking Canadians can choose the language they feel more comfortable with. While strange, we wouldn't begrudge these groups the pleasure of being catered to.
Siliconera revealed some more details as well, including the fact that people with the North American version of the game won't be able to battle those with Japanese copies. Spencer Yip speculates that this is a good thing, since Japanese gamers will be more apt at the game with their experience, but we're sure some of you Naruto hardcores won't be happy with this development.
New screens of Detroit Metal City: Death Shout confirm our suspicions that the performance portions of D3's manga-based J-metal game take their inspiration from the Ouendan series: numbered circles appear all over the screen, and the player taps them in order to rock. But that (and, well, the makeup and title) is about the limit of Detroit Metal City's derivative nature.
The "Cult Game" mode is a set of minigames that includes activities like trying to climb Tokyo Tower in a lightning storm, wiping bats away in hell, and spanking a guy in drag until he takes flight -- in a race. Spanking him with the stylus. As if that weren't enough, Detroit Metal City features a shmup game in which you, as Johannes Krauser II's head, shoot at other heads.
Detroit Metal City is a manga series about a mild-mannered Japanese teacher who joins a metal band and instantly becomes totally metal (in the KISS style, not in the Scandinavian killing-people style). D3 Publisher has wisely decided to take the manga, which we've never seen, and make it into an insane kabuki-rock music minigame RPG thing called Detroit Metal City DS: Death Shout.
The performance modes seem (from the comic/3D style and the single screen we have of the interface) to rip off Ouendan pretty openly, but we can't bring ourselves to get outraged. The minigames range from lyric-writing to whatever the hell this is, and that can't be described as anything but original.
Besides, we want to play an Ouendan game about decadent hair-metal performance. We desperately want this RPG about defeating rival bands to be awesome.
If you're wondering why the DS Fanboy staff is so wired up for Bangai-O Spirits, you only have to watch this trailer to understand. Packed into a minute of explosive goodness, this video manages to highlight all of the completely sweet features that will be in the game. With so much content and such a deep stage editing/sharing system, you can bet that this Treasure title will be keeping us occupied for a long, long time.
Those of us in North America and Europe that are waiting for its localization can expect the game in August.
Want to get your hands on 
It should be good to drive emergency vehicles without the possibility of running people over, 
We know getting our hopes up about a "book turned movie turned video game" always ends disastrously, but this time we really can't help ourselves. Perhaps it's because the software in question is inspired by one of our favorite writers, Neil Gaiman (the genius behind Neverwhere and The Sandman, to name a few).
Upon first seeing Detroit Metal City: Death Shout, we came to a conclusion: the game was 
At the end of May, Treasure announced the winners of their 
Tomy confirmed with Siliconera that there are no plans to localize Naruto RPG 2: Chidori vs. Rasengan. As you 
New screens of 
Detroit Metal City is a manga series about a mild-mannered Japanese teacher who joins a metal band and instantly becomes totally metal (in the KISS style, not in the Scandinavian killing-people style). D3 Publisher has wisely decided to take the manga, which we've never seen, and make it into an insane kabuki-rock music minigame RPG thing called Detroit Metal City DS: Death Shout.
