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Posts with tag strategy

Rondo of Skippable Cutscenes


When, as this video displays, one of your characters in Rondo of Swords attacks an enemy, the view zooms in and the perspective switches into side view, as a fast-paced scene of the attack plays out. We happen to think the attack sequences look pretty dang cool, and at first we're sure we'd enjoy a bit of (simulated) action in our strategy game.

But how long do you think it would take the average Rondo player to get so sick of the interruption (and so used to the attack animations) that he or she would begin skipping every single attack scene? Three, four minutes?

Gallery: Rondo of Swords (Atlus)


Nobunaga's Ambition is to provide you screenshots



It's a shame that of Koei's many DS strategy titles, the only one to make it stateside so far has been Dynasty Warriors DS: Fighter's Battle, a poorly executed action spin-off of the revered Romance of the Three Kingdoms series. We would love to see more games like this in US stores, especially Sega's Sangokushi Taisen. Kunitori Zunou Battle Nobunaga no Yabou (Domination Battle of the Brains: Nobunaga's Ambition), Koei's newest turn-based strategy title, will likely never see a release here, either.

As with other titles in the Nobunaga's Ambition series, players command armies and manage their territory's expansion to unify a feudal Japan in this DS title. Warlords and military forces are represented as chess-like pieces on a game board. Players have the option of playing both computer warlords and their friends, online and locally. Hit the gallery below for more screenshots or head over to the official Japanese site for some in-game video.


[Via Inside Games]

Disgaea dated for Japan

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.

Gallery: Disgaea


[Via Go Nintendo]

Check out more of the units in Drone Tactics


Atlus sent us some new media on their upcoming game Drone Tactics, focusing on some of the units that will be in the title. When this game hits store shelves come April, you can bet we'll be there to get our copy. Each time we see it, the game looks better and better.

We've got some nice in-game screens, as well as some rendered art, all available in our gallery below. So dive in and get that notebook out. Knowing is half the battle, after all.

Gallery: Drone Tactics

Warhammer $18: Sale Command


THQ's Warhammer 40K: Squad Command may have earned a Metascore of just 57, but today it's also earned a $17.99 on the crucial "How much does this game cost on Amazon" scale. That's, well, less than the $29.99 you would normally have to spend to try the turn-based strategy title. It's just 44 cents per K of Warhammer!

It's almost worth $17.99 just to have a constant reminder of how great the custom Warhammer 40K DS Lite was. But of course just printing a picture of it would be significantly cheaper. Alternately, it could be worth picking up if you want to play a strategy game or something.

Tiny Sprites of Gundam

Gundams are huge -- 50-foot-tall mechanical monsters that leave great shockwaves as they traverse the battlefield. Except, of course, in strategy games like Emblem of Gundam, in which Gundams are tiny, thumbnail-sized sprites, rendered so small due to the need to cram as many as possible onto the screen.

The latest screenshots put aside the cinematic presentation in favor of the real game, which has a lot of numbers and a lot of little robots. Custom teams can be built from a stock of mobile suits on each side. Each unit seems to add to a team's total attack and defense value, which seems to affect the first-strike ability of the attacking team.

Disgaea gets boxart, limited multiplayer

With the Disgaea franchises finally hitting the DS, we were wondering how the look of the new game would compare to other entries in the series. We solved that mystery. Now, we're solving another mystery, courtesy of the information available from Siliconera pertaining to the boxart for the Japanese release of the game.

That is nowhere near the only item of note, however. Aside from the boxart, Siliconera managed to confirm that multiplayer functionality will be making its way into the DS game (along with the other confirmed extras). The only feature known as of right now is the ability to go 1-on-1 over wireless and the odds of Wi-Fi implementation making its way into the title are slim at best. Sad, but hey, at least there's some multiplayer.

Gallery: Disgaea

Disgaea: Afternoon of Comparing Screenshots


Dengeki posted a bunch of new screens of Disgaea: Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon, and we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to see how the DS edition stacks up visually to its predecessors. We collected similar-looking screenshots from Disgaea: Hour of Darkness on the PS2, Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness on the PSP, and the new DS game.

We weren't able to grab the exact same locations in all three games, but we think the areas represented are similar enough to give you an idea of the relative graphical differences in the three games. In addition, the capture on the PSP and DS games is better than the PS2 screenshots, so bear that in mind. Hit the post break for our comparison pictures, and click any of them to see them in full resolution!

Gallery: Disgaea

Continue reading Disgaea: Afternoon of Comparing Screenshots

The latest buzz on Drone Tactics

While the DS may be flush with strategy games lately, what it really needs is one that's all about bugs. Luckily, that need is set to be filled this May with Drone Tactics. Yes, that's right, May 13 -- pushed back from April, as rumored -- but from everything we've seen, it will be so worth the drudgery of waiting. Atlus isn't holding back on the media, either; they seem to want us to get an eyeful of the mecha insecta, and we're okay with that! Check out our updated gallery below for the latest.

Gallery: Drone Tactics


[Via press release]

Advance Wars: Days of Reflection



1UP has posted an excellent interview with some of the names behind Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, in which the team reflects on the new direction taken by the game, and explains why many of the changes were made.

As well as addressing the new "serious" tone adopted by the game (they wanted to "surprise" people, and also attract sci-fi fans who wouldn't usually play war games), the team also revealed why lead protagonist Will is such an unbearably self-righteous bore why so many features had been left out of Days of Ruin (the game has no unlockable hard mode, no Survival or Combat mode, no dual-screen battles, no War Room, and no opportunity to purchase maps).

Unsurprisingly, the reasoning behind said omissions makes perfect sense, and the cuts arguably resulted in the most streamlined, balanced Advance Wars game since the first GBA title. 1UP also opened the floor to members of its community, who made one or two cracking suggestions for the next entry in the series -- an infantry unit equipped with smoke grenades (thereby allowing 'portable' Fog of War) would be a welcome addition!

Disgaea DS comes jam packed with some nice extras

Disgaea, as niche as it is, has quite a following. In a recent interview with Crispy Gamer, Nippon Ichi's PR Manager Jack Niida stated that the entire reason for bringing Disgaea to the DS was because of demand -- specifically, a constant barrage of emails and calls. Hear that, people? Your pestering worked.

Still, those of you who have already played the PSP's Afternoon of Darkness or the original Hour of Darkness on the PS2 might be wondering why you should buy another adaptation. Niida explains that, for one, a main attraction of the new Disgaea is the multiplayer. So, if you're hoping to battle friends (we're assuming through Wi-Fi and not locally), it might be a worthwhile purchase.

Even if you aren't, though, the DS version (which will be called Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon in Japan) seems to have a lot of nifty extras. Besides including all the content from the PSP version and more, the game will feature new characters and utilize touchscreen controls. Niida also hinted at a unique battle feature, but kept tight-lipped on that, promising more information soon. The DS game will keep the voice acting and music from Afternoon of Darkness, but (as was expected) will make some sacrifices in terms of graphics.

Crispy Gamer also asked Niida if we'd ever see a Disgaea game on the 360 or Wii, to which he replied coyly, "Who knows, you might see something interesting coming out later in the year." If you ask us, it won't be happening anytime in the near future, but it's nice to know that they're open to the possibility. Still, we're happy enough that we'll be seeing such a full, time-sucking game on our favorite handheld -- everything else is just gravy.

Gallery: Disgaea




[Thanks, James!]

We can actually understand this Emblem of Gundam trailer

It's odd for a Gundam game trailer to be in English, since there's only about a 0.1% chance that such a game will end up in English-speaking markets. The language choice of this trailer is also strange, considering that it's on the official Japanese website for the upcoming title, Emblem of Gundam.

Maybe Namco Bandai knows that everyone in Japan is going to buy the game anyway, so they're trying to encourage imports.

In any case, if you'd like to check out the newest trailer for Emblem of Gundam, we've tucked it away after the break. It doesn't tell us much about this title that we wouldn't already expect, but it will help whet the appetite of the Gundam fanboy or girl inside of you.

Warning: The video will autoplay if you venture past the break.

Continue reading We can actually understand this Emblem of Gundam trailer

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 gets confirmed for North America


Well, what do you know. We were only just writing about Square Enix localizations, and now the news has spread that Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift is headed to North America. According to Game Informer, the projected release date isn't too far off, and the strategy game will be coming to American shores this summer.

We knew this game would get here eventually, but we can relax now that we really know. In case you thought you might actually get outdoors and be active this summer, though, this announcement might have just caused a rift in your plans.

[Via GoNintendo]

October may be Ninjatime

Gamefly, the online rental service that takes too long to ship things to our apartment, now has a release date for the adorable Ninjatown: October 16th of this year. This is the first we've heard of even a ballpark release date for the action/strategy/awwwww game based on Shawn Smith's characters. Gamefly tends to know their stuff, too, so if this release date turns out to be inaccurate, it's probably because the publisher changed it.

Now that we know when the game is coming out, we can start budgeting our expenditures of hundreds of Pocket Staches and plush ninjas versus the actual game.

[Pocket Stache available here]

More like Fire Emblem of Gundam

Well, no, not really. But when a strategy game called Emblem of Gundam comes along, we're pretty much required to make that joke. The latest Gundam game on the DS explores the history of the Gundam universe while simulating strategic ground battles.

Emblem of Gundam is, at its core, a turn-based strategy game. It also includes a heavy character-driven adventure component, based around conversations between characters. At certain points in the game, you'll be given a choice about which scenario to follow, or, as the game puts it, which "history button" to press.

Expect a lot of story in Emblem of Gundam: the game is designed to add extra perspective to the storylines in Mobile Suit Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team, Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: A War in the Pocket, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory, and Mobile Suit Gundam Z.

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