We love region-free consoles! Not only does it allow us to play games that never get released in the US, but it also gives us freedom to choose the cheapest version of worldwide-release games. Renchi.com has marked down a load of DS games, and there's plenty of stuff for US gamers to enjoy.
First, the Japanese versions of US games. You can get Yoshi Touch & Go (Catch! Touch! Yoshi!), Mega Man ZX (Rockman ZX), Star Fox Command, the just-released Honeycomb Beat, and a few others for $10. If you want a uniquely Japanese experience, there's a bunch of stuff including Mawasunda!!, a lot of miscellaneous non-games and puzzle games (including an amusing-looking coloring game), and a nice selection of D3's Simple Series stuff. Stock is rapidly diminishing, so go browse right now.
This is probably more of a coincidence or an unintentional influence than anything else, and there's always the possibility that we're imagining things, but doesn't Ontama's protagonist Beat look somewhat familiar? He looks like a cross between Sonic Adventure-era Sonic (look at the poses!) and Jet Set Radio's main character, also named Beat. Well, if you had to pick two games to resemble, you could do a lot worse than these, both of which had fantastic art.
The actual game, a rhythm-puzzle thing that we totally want, doesn't look like anything else. We've got new screens after the break.
Every day we get to see even one more frame of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2 is a good day. Just getting an excuse to type the awesomely overblown title out makes us smile. And today we have two nice, big magazine scans to stare at.
The scans show two of the new levels, and we have descriptions of the objectives thanks to the language wizards at NeoGAF, who can instantly make small amounts of Japanese become English. The first level involves Tsuyoshi Hanada, the student from the first level of the first Ouendan, and his job search. The second involves a salesman who wants to peddle sneakers in space. The screenshots from this level indicate that the rival Ouendan team will be playable!
The full scans are available after the post break. Click them (rhythmically, of course) for larger versions.
Yesterday we linked the Capcom USA interviews with Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Justice For All localization team members, and they mentioned what every game translator mentions: changing cultural references to fit better with the target audience. The translations considered "best" are the ones that attempt to maintain the spirit of the original game without too much Japanese culture left behind.
Our question to you is this: do you like localization, or would you prefer a direct translation? Do you want things to be exactly as they are in the Japanese version, but directly translated to English? Are you happy with American TV references in Phoenix Wright? And what about the localized-from-the-ground-up Elite Beat Agents?
Nintendo World Report's reporters are the envy of Elite Beat Agents-loving, homebound bloggers everywhere, because they got to chat with EBA, Ouendan, and (best PS2 game ever) Gitaroo-Man creator Keiichi Yano at GDC. They've provided the audio from the interview with a promise to transcribe it later, but why wait when you can hear it all from Yano himself?
Some of the topics covered include: Ouendan sales (not as bad as we heard!), why Gitaroo-Man is so awesome, choosing music for iNiS games, and hangin' with Mr. Mizuguchi. The ambient GDC din is noticeable, but the audio quality is more than good enough to make for a pleasant listen. And if you make it to the end, you get an EBA gameplay tip!
Posted Mar 7th 2007 11:00AM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News
We aren't sure how to feel about the announcement of DS and Wii games based on the Disney TV-movie High School Musical. On the one hand, it they're music games, and we categorically get very, very excited about all music games. On the other hand, it's based on a made-for-television movie, which, despite High School Musical's popularity, still makes a negative statement about the quality of the property.
The DS game involves dancing competitively, and creating and sharing videos of those dance performances-- it sounds kind of like Unison. We're going to have to go watch the movie now and try to sort out our feelings.
Posted Mar 7th 2007 10:00AM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News
Duckroll over at NeoGAF teased us with this less than ideal scan of a Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2 preview from a Japanese magazine. Normally we wouldn't report on a scan of this quality, but it's Ouendan, and normal rules and logic do not apply.
We can learn some interesting things from the scan: spinners are back, so don't remove your screen covers; also, this is definitely new material and not a re-localization of Elite Beat Agents for a Japanese audience. You're welcome to click on the image and investigate a larger version of the scan; we hope HEEEAAALP arrives soon with a clearer scan.
We love it when people makeartifacts to celebrate their love of games. We're fanboys (it's right there in the name!) so we totally understand DS fetishism. We're guilty of it ourselves!
One of the most practical ways to combine craft and gaming is thehomemadeDScase. Craftster member MariskaLovesCrafts designed this striking DS Lite pouch with a nice little pocket for games, and we love it. We love the pocket, we (unapologetically) love the floral design, and we love the colors.
Mariska went on to write up a tutorial for the pouch, which she then posted to her blog. Why not give it a try, if you're looking for a DS Lite case? We'll remind you that you aren't forced to use the color scheme and floral motif here, so feel free to make something more macho to keep your DS scratch-free. Perhaps an Elite Beat Agents theme?
Are you depressed? Not enough cannon fire and war in your life? Well, we've got the cure! Yes, ladies and gentleman, Tank Beat from O3 Entertainment looks to blow the hell out of your blues and set fire to apathy, sparking new waves of interest in all things gaming from you. Check the video out, embedded past the jump, and let us know what you think!
There are also screenshots for the game available at DS-x2 here.
Looks like Nintendo loves seeing people make an ass out of themself dancing because, in celebration of Elite Beat Agents, they're holding a contest asking that you send in a video of yourself, along with two friends, dancing along to the theme of Elite Beat Agents. Sounds simple enough, right?
You might be asking yourself what exactly you'd win for dressing up and acting the fool on camera, and it turns out Nintendo thinks that 3 DS Lites (Polar, Coral and Onyx), 3 copies of Elite Beat Agents and 3 'Secret Agent Kits' including headphones and a t-shirt are about the right price.
So what do you guys think? Good enough prize to cause you to dress up and shake it on film?
MTV.com's Stephen Totilo recently sat down with Nintendo's one-and-only, ass-kicking, name-taking man in charge Reggie Fils-Aime, where the man in charge admitted that he has a great amount of respect for the touch-screen tapping game. He also says that, given the sales figures for the game, a sequel is likely.
Personally, we'd love to see a sequel, however we wish it to be more a sequel to Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! than Elite Beat Agents. Nothing personal against the agents with the most elite of beats, we just feel that the song selection and gameplay of the Japanese edition were superior. What about you guys?
Elite Beat Agents, the western localization of one Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan!, released to retail with favorable reviews. As such, we know a lot of readers had it on their radar for immediate purchase upon release. So, are any of you guys playing it? If not, what are you playing? For us, this weekend will mainly be filled with playing Star Fox: Command (our fascination with Electroplankton has waned slightly) and preparing for the launch of another Nintendo console.
The localized version of Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! has finally hit our shores and, as Elite Beat Agents, the player is charged with maintaining the super-cool, dressed-in-black stylings of the crew as they bust the most elite beats and kick it to save those in need. Apparently, if the critics are to be believed, in its overhaul from Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! to Elite Beat Agents, they lost a little something, however reviews generally say the game is worth owning.
Gamespot - 89%: "Though there isn't much competition, Elite Beat Agents is easily the best rhythm game available for the Nintendo DS, and for that matter, it's easily one of the most randomly addictive experiences on the platform. The idea of just tapping circles in time with music while dudes in suits dance doesn't sound like much on paper, but the insane presentational components and enjoyable challenge the game puts forth do a lot to bring the whole experience together into something extremely playable. Those without a penchant for the unabashedly bizarre might find Elite Beat Agents to be a bit too much, but just about anyone else with a DS would do well to try this one out."
IGN - 95%: "Westerners who've played the original Osu! Tatake! Oendan! might end up a little disappointed that the Nintendo of America version might lack the kitschy Japanese flavor with its bandana-adorned personal cheerleaders and incomprehensible J-pop tunes accomodating the quirky, lost-in-translation stories. But even with new characters, popular Western tunes, and plots that actually make sense, Elite Beat Agents retains the awesome, addictive gameplay core.And let's be honest: the Elite Beat Agents are too cool for school and could kick those pansy bathrobe-wearing cheerleaders' asses any day of the week."
1UP - 90%: "Import-geek protestations notwithstanding, Elite Beat Agents ishere, and it deserves to be in every DS owner's library. Very few games can truly claim to be for all players of all ages, and this is one of them. With a delirious mix of slapstick humor, comic storytelling, infectious music, and tons of replayability, Elite Beat Agents is one of the best music-oriented games to date and stands among the cream of the DS's impressive library. Don't miss it."
Elite Beat Agents made us realize that the general stigma male cheerleaders have on them is completely false. Turns out, male cheerleaders are even more awesome than we thought! Honestly, if we had a group of them that were anything like the Elite Beat Agents, we would find getting up in the morning to do our usual routine much more fun. With their help, washing dishes, going to class, brushing your teeth and flipping burgers would be twenty times more exciting. You can tell we have really thought about this.
There are two new Elite Beat Agent videos to get us even more pumped up about this game -- as if their Flock of Seagulls hair isn't enough to be happy about already.
Click continue to see their awesome cheering power.
Have you ever gotten home from a long day at the office, stared at the sink full of dishes and just wished there was someone, nay, some team of particularly motivating and inspirational folk that could help skyrocket your self-esteem? Have you ever hoped there could be those available to cheer you on as you make your way to victory loading the last dish into your dishwater, adding detergent, and finally, with authority, slamming the unit's door closed to be rewarded with the soft whir of the machine's cycle startup? Well, then you might want to consider moving to Japan and looking these guys up, because that is the only way it will happen.
Video has been embedded into the post after the break.
We love region-free consoles! Not only does it allow us to play games that never get released in the US, but it also gives us freedom to choose the cheapest version of worldwide-release games. Renchi.com has marked down a load of DS games, and there's plenty of stuff for US gamers to enjoy.
Every day we get to see even one more frame of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! 
Yesterday we linked the Capcom USA 
We aren't sure how to feel about the announcement of DS and Wii games based on the 
Looks like Nintendo loves 
MTV.com's Stephen Totilo recently sat down with Nintendo's one-and-only, ass-kicking, name-taking man in charge Reggie Fils-Aime, where the man in charge admitted that he has a great amount of respect for the touch-screen tapping game. He also says that, given the sales figures for the game, a sequel is likely.
The localized version of Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! has finally hit our shores and, as Elite Beat Agents, the player is charged with maintaining the super-cool, dressed-in-black stylings of the crew as they bust the most elite beats and kick it to save those in need. Apparently, if the critics are to be believed, in its overhaul from Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! to Elite Beat Agents, they lost a little something, however reviews generally say the game is worth owning.
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