The Release List 07.14.09: Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman!, Unbound Saga, Ys I & II Chronicles, and Awatama
Posted by Tommy Coloma on 07.14.2009
NISA asks us to defend Badman with a pickaxe, Vogster channels Comix Zone into its beat 'em up, Falcom releases yet another Ys compilation, and Interchannel decides that Soul Bubbles needs a new look.
I skipped last week as there weren't enough games to talk about. The same could be said about this week, but I'll bite down and try to find something positive to say.
This week's highlightsNote: Release dates are subject to change
In Badman, your goal is to save an evil tyrant from a bunch of heroes by building and maintaining an ecosystem filled with various monsters and spirits. You do this by taking control of a pickaxe and creating a dungeon full of corridors and mazes through which those heroes must pass. As you break up the ground with your pickaxe you will release various creatures from special blocks. The first types of monsters that you will release are slimes. As these slimes move around they add nutrient to adjacent blocks. When enough nutrients are infused into the blocks, they will change color, indicating that a different creature will emerge if the block is broken. Sometimes slimes will take nutrients away from the blocks, so scaling back their numbers may be necessary if you are trying to develop stronger monsters. Bugs can be released from blocks that have a slightly orange tint to them. They happen to dine on slimes, so you must be careful not to release too many if you want your slime population to flourish. If the bugs eat enough slimes they will start to reproduce, which can be good or bad depending on what you're trying to do. Lizards come out of blocks that are mostly white. They're decent fighters, so you may want to have a few around once the heroes start to appear. Unfortunately, lizards feed on bugs, so you need to produce enough to keep your cold-blooded friends happy. However, you must be careful not to release too many bugs, as they eat Lizard eggs, and, as indicated earlier, they can completely wipe out your slimes if they aren't put in check. As you can see, even with only three different types of monsters to worry about, having to figure out when to release what is already a challenge. Things become even more complicated when you add stronger monsters and spirits to the mix. After being given a few minutes to develop your army, the hero will begin to seek Badman out. Hopefully, you were able to populate the dungeon with an army that is strong enough to bring the hero down before he reaches the evil overlord. Otherwise, it's game over. After the hero is defeated, you are given the chance to upgrade your monsters before starting the next challenge, after which you are able to continue to develop your army.
Badman is a little hard to get into, but once you figure out how things work, it can get pretty fun. Check it out if you're looking for something different on your PSP.
video from the forth stage
Unbound Saga (PSP Digital)
There isn't much to say about this other than it's a beat 'em up with a Comix Zone vibe. Just check out the video down below. By the time you finish it you'll know whether or not it's worth trying.
the E3 trailer
Ys I & II Chronicles (PSP Import) Ys I and II have seen many ports and remakes since the first one came out in 1987; they've seen the light of day on such systems as the PC-8801, Famicom, Master System, DOS, Apple II, Saturn, PS2, and DS to name a few. The most widely-known versions are contained in the TurboGrafx-CD compilation, and for years that release was considered the best. Its place at the top was eventually challenged by Ys Eternal as it sported upgraded graphics, effects, and artwork as well as extras like new characters and scenarios. Unfortunately, Eternal didn't include voiceovers and some say that the remixed music was not as good. Apparently, enough people weren't satisfied so another update known as Ys Complete, which is said to have better graphics but an inferior soundtrack, was unleashed. Despite my best efforts, I could not find any agreement amongst Ys fans as to which official release is the definitive version since each of the three does at least one thing better than the others.
Preferences aside, there is one thing that fans of the first two Ys games can agree on no matter which version they've played - Ys I and II have some of the best music you will find in a video game. Every place I researched for info makes note of how awesome the soundtrack is. When the DS version came out a few months ago I questioned whether or not it would be worth purchasing knowing that I could just as easily track down the PC version and patch it or download the Wii VC one. Portable Ys is nice, but not so much if you have to sacrifice one of the best features of the series. Now we can have the best of both worlds as Chronicles is supposedly a port of Ys Eternal. So, it could possibly be the best non-PC version available if done right. Unfortunately, I heard that the DS version didn't sell too well, so don't get your hopes up on this being released in the US any time soon. Oh well...
the trailer
Awatama (DS Import)
This is essentially Soul Bubbles with a new coat of paint. Apparently, the Japanese publisher didn't think that gamers in Japan would find the original character design very appealing. If it means that more people will play it, I guess it's alright. It's a little sad that they had to resort to something like this though.
the trailer for Awatama
Soul Bubbles gameplay
The other US releases Birthday Party Bash (Wii)
Nancy Drew: The Ransom of the Seven Ships (PC)
NCAA Football 10 (360, PS2, PS3, PSP)
Science Papa (DS, Wii)
Sherlock Holmes: Mystery of the Mummy (DS)
The Import SceneJapanese localizations of domestic games, "Asia" versions of games that do not have English options, and "Best" (greatest hits) versions of already released games are ignored.
Releases for the Week of July 6, 2009Other than Trine and maybe the PC version of SFIV, there really wasn't anything worth talking about. Not unless you're into baseball games...
Trine (PC) Trine is a side-scrolling platformer in which you control three people whose souls have been intertwined by a mysterious glowing object. Each character has unique abilities that must all be utilized in order to progress through the game. The wizard, for example, can levitate objects. The thief has a grapple hook that can be used to get to higher places or to cross pits and chasms. She can also shoot arrows at far away targets. The warrior can deflect enemy attacks with his shield and can also attack with a sword. You can easily switch between the three using 1,2, and 3. The control scheme uses the WSAD keys for movement and to jump and the mouse is used for aiming and using each character's abilities. While I found the demo pretty fun and would have no problems with laying down $30 to get the whole game, I am certain that most will complain that it is too much for a downloadable game, especially when it finally gets released on PSN. Pity...
This was supposed to come out on the 9th on PSN, but it looks like it was a no-show. At least it made it onto Steam on time.
gameplay trailer #3
Fritz Chess (DS)
CID The Dummy (PS2)
Street Fighter IV (PC)
The Bigs 2 (360, PSP, PS2, PS3, Wii)
The Hardy Boys: The Perfect Crime (PC)
Imports: Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamoribito (DS)
Hayarigami 2 DS: Toshidensetsu Kaii Jiken (DS)
Maplus: Portable Navi 3 (PSP)
Sekai wa Atashi de Mawatteru Hikari to Yami (PSP)
