When asked by Final Fantasy junkies what their favorite aspect of the franchise is, you're likely to get a variety of answers. From the battle system to the epic tales weaved by each game, Square Enix has accrued quite the fan base over the years. If you ask us, one of the things we've always loved about those games were the music.
And here comes one more reason to be jealous of the Japanese. Famitsu reports that Square Enix will be releasing a remix cd on August 6th that focuses on Final Fantasy tracks. Nobuo Uematsu's famous songs will be remixed by Ante.
If you'd like a taste for yourself, check out the official site for the remix right here.
Remember that haaauuuuge list of Japan's 500 highest-selling games of 2007? Well, sorry, but you'll have to forget them all. Yep, every last one of 'em. That's because we now have a new list which is also claiming to feature the 500 best-selling games of 2007 in Japan. This one has been compiled by Enterbrain (the original was from rival data-gatherers Media Create), and it's ever so slightly different.
The good news is that, despite the origins of each list being different, the overriding message is still the same, and that message is: DS rules all yaaay. Both lists agree that Wii Sports was top dog, but the top DS games have been jumbled about. Now, for example, it is the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Explorers games that are top of the DS pile, while Mario Party DS drops to second. The changes are subtle, but definitely exist. Hit the break to see the top ten DS games!
Fans of Mega Man's Star Force series of games, you'll be delighted to hear that the release date for the third title has been announced. Japanese gamers will be able to slide the DS cart into their favorite handheld come this winter.
Sadly, nothing else has been revealed, other than the shot of the main man himself you see over on the right side of this post. So, stay tuned to DS Fanboy for more information on the game as it develops.
This just in: the fifth game in Tose's Densetsu no Stafy series will continue the tradition of making bloggers "awwww" themselves silly with its ludicrous levels of cuteness.
New scans from Famitsu confirm that, just like its immediate predecessor, Densetsu no Stafy: Taiketsu! Daiiru Kaizoku-dan won't be light on the saccharine imagery, and also that Stafy has a new friend for his latest adventure: Rampa (?) the space bunny. According to the magazine, Rampa will be able to transform Stafy into other creatures, including a seal and a dragon, which will in turn help our squishy, five-pointed hero progress through the game.
There are only fifty-six days until Fire Emblem releases for the DS in Japan (not that we're, uh, counting), and yet we still don't know too much about the title. Aside from the fact that the game relives Marth's glory days and includes Wi-Fi battles, details on Shin Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Ken (New Dark Dragons and the Sword of Light) are surprisingly scarce.
One thing that we find slightly worrisome: is that a time limit in this Famitsu scan screen? You know how we feel about time limits. We can't be sure, since the timer might just be recording how long you're taking on a map, but the whole thing makes us a little uneasy. Are the rest of you Fire Emblem fanatics troubled as well, or would you appreciate the extra difficultly that a count-down might add to the game?
If there's one thing we've said about Steal Princess, it's that the art is fantastic. Seriously, are your jaws on the floor every time you look at something from the game? Our jaws have crashed to the floor a record number of times.
The latest on the game, courtesy of Famitsu's site, presents us with a glimpse into some of the items players would be using. Also, by way of these screens, we get to check out some of the game's environments. Which, by the way, look pretty good. Overall, we're liking everything we're seeing on the game.
Another spread of Famitsuscans featuring Square Enix's Valkyrie Profile: The Accused One are being hosted by Jeux France, largely featuring screens of the game's battle system, but also introducing some of the typically androgynous heroes you'll be questing as.
These include archer and all-round warrior dude Valmur (probably the manliest of the bunch), the Aryan-looking Langrey, and Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen tribute act and magician Fauxnel. We're not certain what role the befrilled Kristoff plays, but if he doesn't spend his evenings with a Sex and the City DVD box set and a bottle of his favorite Baby Pink nail varnish, we'd be enormously surprised.
We all know that the DS has a lot of support from the big RPG house, Square Enix. This year, gamers are preparing for a flood of titles, including remakes in the popular Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy series of games. If you're looking forward to the Dragon Quest V remake, then Famitsu has some goodies for you.
Along with some new screens to look at, Famitsu has up some general information about the game and its protagonist. It's basic stuff, which we all pretty much know. But, if you've been holding back on learning anything about the game, Famitsu's preview is a nice overview on what to expect from the game.
We love Professor Layton. No, not the game, the man. Actually, we do love the game, too. We just love to love things!
Looks like Japan loves the guy enough to warrant the series extending itself over to cell phones. The first game, Professor Layton and the Curious Village is already available and even comes pre-installed on Panasonic's new DoCoMo handset, the P906i. This port of the first title features new puzzles not found in the DS game.
Also worth noting is that Professor Layton's London Holiday, a brief DS demo that was handed out to folks at last year's Tokyo Game Show, will be available to mobile phone gamers soon.
There's no hiding your secret. After seeing the latest on Ketsui DS, we know you're absolutely in love with the game now. It's okay, we fell in love immediately way back in September, so we know full well your pain right now, as your body must be violently, and randomly, throwing itself into convulsions of desire for the title. That's how it's been for us, at least.
Well, courtesy of Famitsu, we all get a brief fix. Their site has a variety of screens up for your perusing pleasure. Also reiterated is the inclusion of a DVD showing Japanese gamers how to get those high scores. Of course, we already knew about that.
Almost two months have passed since we last heard a peep out of Valkyrie Profile: The Accused One (but what a peep it was, if you remember: this extremely fine trailer, which we just watched and got really excited about again). Now, Famitsu has broken the silence over the game, revealing a bunch of new screens, as well as the news that the tri-Ace RPG will be out in Japan at some stage this year.
Click the image above for numerous shots of magnificently coiffed, epicene young men and further screens of the combat system (including the returning "Soul Crush" battle mechanic).
Infinite Line, the rumored Platinum Games sci-fi RPG published by Sega, is totally a real game and not something made up by jerks to hurt us. These Famitsu scans reveal the Platinum Games/Nudemaker (Steel Battalion) co-production as pretty much what we heard, only awesome.
You'll have over 150 ship parts from which you can build your ship, and over 200 crew members. Infinite Line uses a sort of Final Fantasy-like active-time system, in which each character has an individual wait between turns, but those count down in real time. The interesting wrinkle with Infinite Line's system is that a full ATB gauge enables more options.
Famitsu has revealed the next Castlevania game for the DS, confirming recent speculation over Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia. Judging by the screens in the scan above, those mysterious shots from last month were the real thing. The magazine also divulges the involvement of Koji Igarashi, producer on Portrait of Ruin and Dawn of Sorrow. As in those games, there will be support for two players, though the exact nature of the multiplayer (local play? WFC?) remains a miserable little pile of secrets.
And that's it for now! Leap past the break, whip in hand, to see another snippet of a scan.
Hey, who doesn't know how awesome Shigeru Miyamoto is? Your grandmother? Shove her to the ground. Seriously, the man is a legend and your grandmother's frail, aged bones need to recognize that.
Miyamoto himself received top honors, as he accepted his time in the spotlight and thanked everyone by stating that he was happy to "get an honor like this, it makes me glad to have worked so hard over the past thirty years. This is going to sound a bit like a lie, but it's like a dream. That said, I didn't think five years ago that I'd be making Wii Fit. I thought I'd be making more Mario and Zelda."
Well, if there's someone who should be used to accepting awards, it's him.
The latest issue of Famitsu has screens and information about a new DS horror game from Square Enix. Nanashi no Game (Nameless Game) seems to try to convince players that they are in danger even as the characters are in danger.
The concept is like The Ring, but on your DS: a cursed game kills everyone who plays it within seven days. It looks from the scans like your character plays this game; but somehow, so do you. There's a fake retro RPG that will no doubt begin dripping with insanity effects, and even a fake DS menu through which you'll receive creepy messages.
We're not sure how the main game works, and how it interacts with all these little fourth-wall-breaking touches, but we're sure we'll find out soon. Square Enix is apparently releasing this in July.
Remember that haaauuuuge list of Japan's 500 highest-selling games of 2007? Well, sorry, but you'll have to forget them all. Yep, every last one of 'em. That's because we now have a new list which is also claiming to feature the 500 best-selling games of 2007 in Japan. This one has been compiled by Enterbrain (the original was from rival data-gatherers Media Create), and it's ever so slightly different.
Fans of Mega Man's Star Force series of games, you'll be delighted to hear that the release date for the third title has been announced. Japanese gamers will be able to slide the DS cart into their favorite handheld come this winter.
We all know that the DS has a lot of support from the big RPG house, Square Enix. This year, gamers are preparing for a flood of titles, including remakes in the popular Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy series of games. If you're looking forward to the Dragon Quest V remake, then Famitsu has some goodies for you.
There's no hiding your secret. After seeing the latest on Ketsui DS, we know you're absolutely in love with the game now. It's okay, we fell in love immediately way back in September, so we know full well your pain right now, as your body must be violently, and randomly, throwing itself into convulsions of desire for the title. That's how it's been for us, at least.
Infinite Line, the rumored Platinum Games sci-fi RPG published by Sega, is totally a real game and not something made up by jerks to hurt us. These Famitsu scans reveal the Platinum Games/Nudemaker (Steel Battalion) co-production as pretty much what we heard, only awesome.
Hey, who doesn't know how awesome Shigeru Miyamoto is? Your grandmother? Shove her to the ground. Seriously, the man is a legend and your grandmother's frail, aged bones need to recognize that.
_thumbnail.jpg "Prince of Persia: The Fallen King")
