Some are awful, some are amazing. Yes, the DS has precisely one gazillion "concept" models floating around the place, from fans who want their own particular quirks included with the inevitablepossible redesign of the handheld. Nintendo Power has featured this image with an advertisement for Disgaea DS and Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure, and although it looks pretty cool, it's extraordinarily doubtful that one of the most talked-about rumors in the history of the DS has just awkwardly been confirmed via this image. Bogus, but neat!
It's pretty much the same thing as the DS Lite now, only with bigger screens. Which is more or less exactly what the DS needs -- the rest is spot on. The fact that the bottom screen is misaligned with the top screen lends evidence to some guy taking one too many coffee breaks during his Photoshop training. Looks rad, not official -- redesign will probably come soon anyway. Watch this space for all E3 Nintendo revelations!
Update: Just as we thought, Nintendo denied that this widescreen DS is a representation of a new unit, stating this is "purely rumor and speculation."
The release date for one of Nippon Ichi's SRPG remakes has been announced, and another one officially backed up, by a somewhat unexpected source. Atlus announced yesterday that they would handle the distribution for three of NIS America's upcoming games, including Disgaea DS and Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure. Before the American branch of NIS was founded, Atlus published the company's games, including, appropriately enough, the original releases of both Rhapsody and Disgaea. The games will be their own worst competition, being released simultaneously on September 23.
The American boxarts for both games have also been revealed. While the Rhapsody art (found after the break) is a simplified version of the original, Disgaea uses a different piece of artwork and a baffling "CAUTION: PLAYERS XING" road sign.
We learned of Disgaea's delay in the States earlier this month, but for those of you who demand greater specificity in your release dates, Nippon Ichi's most recent financial statement has exact dates in the US and A for both its popular SRPG and reference-dropping puzzler, Puchi Puchi Virus.
Apparently, Disgaea will be sending us crazy with its complexity on September 23rd, while the latter will be in U.S. stores from July 22nd. That's really soon and sudden, especially considering how many delays Puchi Puchi has suffered! The question is: did you remember to pick up your free Anti-Virus Stress Reliever?
To go along with the June 26 release of the new DS version of Disgaea, Nippon Ichi is doing what they do best (next to making ridiculously hardcore SRPGs for crazy people): making adorable plush dolls. The latest, available on June 20, is a representation of Prinny Kurtis, a green, angry-looking Prinny whose human form also appears in the game.
Kurtis will sell from NIS's Japanese shop for 2,980 yen ($27.88), and probably won't blow up upon arrival. NIS America has a lovely online store with lots of great promo products as well, so we think we can look forward to domestic availability.
If this Disgaea DS trailer seems familiar to you, it's because we posted the clip a week ago, only in Japanese! If you missed out on the SRPG when it debuted on the PlayStation 2 in 2003, this localized video should give you a better idea of the Disgaea series' unique mechanics -- tossing players, bribing the senate, etc. The English trailer also shows new additions to the DS port, like a playable Pleinair and commentary by a disgruntled Prinny. Supposedly, Disgaea DS will also feature an "all new story focus" with "a new experience and a new ending."
Yeah, you heard us: a blowout. We're not sure how many screens are required for something to qualify as a blowout, but we figure that 28 is quite enough.
Anyway, they're waiting for your perusal on Impress Watch, and cover everything from combat to character classes to items in Nippon Ichi's DS Disgaea port. Go look at them now, and coo in admiration at how well they stack up to previous versions of the game.
There's also a lengthy feature up discussing numerous aspects of the title, but we couldn't locate much information for those who have already played the game on the PlayStation 2 or PSP.
If there's one thing we know you can do in the upcoming Disgaea DS, it's inflict a lot of damage. Well, we know that and the game will be awesome. It's Disgaea. This isn't rocket science, people!
As said above, the video features Nippon ichi showing off the many ways you can inflict ridiculous amounts of damage. Like, in the millions. The other notable thing about the video above is the pre-order bonus for Japanese gamers. It's possible we could be receiving the same bonus when the title releases to North America in August, but nothing has been set in stone, yet.
Will what has been announced so far -- multiplayer, new characters, and touchscreen controls -- be enough for you hardened Disgaea veterans to pick up the DS game? And, speaking more broadly, how effective is extra, DS-only content at luring you into purchasing a game you've played extensively elsewhere?
Nippon Ichi is really trying to make the DS version of Disgaea the definitive one. The company's latest attempt to sway fans who are so over the series is by adding a handful of new playable characters. So far, the list of extras includes Adel and Rozalin from Disgaea 2, Overlord Zetta from Makai Kingdom, and the rabbit-loving Pleinair. The best part about playing with Pleinair? She can summon rabbits from the sky as an attack.
Well, that about sells us on the port. If you're still looking for more reasons to buy Disgaea: Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon, though, the game also has multiplayer battles worth mentioning. The one disappointing aspect to these shenanigans is the lack of Wi-Fi multiplayer, but even so, we can't complain too much.
Perhaps it's because there's even more goodies packed in, such as a new intro movie and some sort of Prinny commentary. Since NIS is putting so much effort into the software, we'll definitely take notice -- even if it means we're easy.
Posted May 17th 2008 6:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: News
NIS America's online storefront, Rosenqueen, is promising a goofy preorder bonus for anyone who reserves Puchi Puchi Virus, Nippon Ichi's budget puzzler. Customers who pay the $19.99 in advance will receive a squishy, pill-shaped Anti-Virus Stress Reliever, much like the image on the right, except branded with everyone's favorite Disgaea mascots, Prinnies.
As far as we know, the actual game doesn't feature any Prinnies, so it seems as if Rosenqueen is looking to move more Puchi Puchi Virus units by attracting Disgaea fans who have to own every piece of the series' merchandise. Then again, we wouldn't put it past Nippon Ichi to pack one of its games with cameos from the developer's other franchises.
Rosenqueen plans to only have a thousand of these two-tone capsules, so make sure to preorder soon! Hopefully they made sure not to line up any of the colored halves while packing these, lest they accidentally clear out their entire stock.
Click image to look at more comparison screens in our gallery
SRPG nuts, you're likely still feeling the intoxicating effects of that come from knowing your favorite handheld will be home to an installment in the widely-acclaimed Disgaea franchise. It's okay, we're kind of feeling it ourselves after checking out the control scheme news this morning. Time for more, though!
The Japanese site for the game has updated, providing those of you with an ability to read Japanese with a plethora of information and eye candy on the title. For us, it's like an adventure within an adventure, as we try to solve what lurks within the mysterious Japanese website. What vexes us most is the weird clock that seems to be counting up, instead of, say, counting down to the game's release in Japan.
This GAME Watch article about Disgaea: Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon says that the "flow" of the new DS game will be almost identical to the PSP Afternoon of Darkness. But the new version will only control identically to the PSP game if you want it to.
Disgaea on the DS offers three control options: a touchscreen-only configuration (which, it must be said, can obviously be operated with a totally cutePrinny stylus), a no-touchscreen configuration, and a combination option. Whether this combined setting is just the other two in simultaneous operation or a separate control scheme designed specifically for this purpose is currently unknown.
The item hasn't been produced yet, but Nippon Ichi has released a preview image of a totally adorable bonus, which we expect will be handed out to people who preorder Disgaea: Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon. It's a stylus in the shape of the series' well-known mascot/punching bag/exploding projectile, a Prinny. Another drawing gives us an idea of what the final item will look like, and suggests that there will be another Disgaea item made for the DS -- some kind of dangling charm thing. And in addition to news about adorable pseudo-penguin styli, Dengeki has a ton of new screens!
What would you have to do in life, we wonder, to be reincarnated not just as a Prinny, but as a piece of plastic shaped like a Prinny? And how would you earn your way back into the world -- would it be as simple as never scratching the screen?
We love sprites, the older, the better, and so do many crafters. After all, the blocky character figures are easier to recreate on quilts and cookies than are more rounded models. Sprites also lend themselves well to cross stitch, as reader Jenni can testify. Jenni, who also writes for Gamertell, has built up quite a collection of character cross stitch, and many of her efforts feature characters Nintendo fans just might recognize. Hit up the gallery for some of her work -- and if you're interested in getting started yourself, Jenni has a good piece on how to go about it.
Got something you want to show off to all the other DS fans? We like just about anything with a little Nintendo flavor, so snap a few pics and send 'em off to tell us what's up, and send it all to showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.
Hot on the (very pink) heels of yesterday's website reveal, Nippon Ichi has confirmed a Japanese release date of June 26th for Disgaea. NIS has previously stated that it would like the game to launch stateside this summer, so we shouldn't have too long to wait.
Until then, we suggest you pass the time by reading up on some of the extras the DS version will boast, reflecting on how purdy the DS game is compared to the PSP and PS2 editions, or taking in some lovely Disgaea art. Before you know it, Nippon Ichi's SRPG will be back to own your life all over again.
Yeah, you heard us: a blowout. We're not sure how many screens are required for something to qualify as a blowout, but we figure that 28 is quite enough.
Nippon Ichi is really trying to make the DS version of 
NIS America's online storefront, Rosenqueen, is promising a goofy preorder bonus for anyone who reserves 
_thumbnail.jpg "Korg DS-10")
