The Negative Edge News Report 04.30.08

Posted by Tommy Coloma on 04.30.2008

The death of Phantasy Star Online, Microsoft's rejection of Portal, a fighting game that probably shouldn't happen, and this weeks releases. All this and more in a news report that surprisingly isn't devoted to Grand Theft Auto IV.



In case you forgot, Grand Theft Auto IV came out this week. If you're reading this, then you fall into one of two groups - those who just happen to be taking a break right now (thank you for using your free time to read this) and those who have no interest in the game at this time. It's the latter for me, mostly because Persona 3 FES has done a good enough job so far at holding my interest. I was still tempted to pick GTA IV up this morning though. I went so far as to drive up to my local mall after I finished running some errands. I eventually decided against buying the game, but something about what I did disturbed me. Sure, I've bought games on a whim before and it shouldn't be a surprise that I was at least tempted to make an impulse buy considering the hype that surrounds the game. However, it still bothers me that I was ready to put a game that I'd been looking forward to for a few months away right after I got it just to play a game that I wasn't really that excited about. I was going to get the game eventually anyway (like in a few months), so why did I want it now when I have so many other games that I have yet to complete? I have my own ideas, but I thought that it would be cool to see what you, the reader, thinks. So, what compels you to buy new games while you're in the middle of a game that you're already enjoying? Or am I the only one that gets tempted to do things like that?


The Music Box

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(Ignore the dates. I was supposed to use these two weeks ago)

A few weeks ago, I learned that online service for Phantasy Star Online on the original Xbox was going to be shut down at the end of the month. The game was previously playable online on the Dreamcast, PC, and GameCube. When the Xbox version goes offline, that will mark the end of an era. Sure, PSO can still be played online by using unofficial fan servers, but it's still sad to see official support disappear for any game.

The first time I heard this week's songs was during some special Halloween missions that were made available around the time when the GameCube version of PSO was first released. I played the Dreamcast version a lot so hearing these songs while playing the special missions really made the whole experience memorable. Plus, it gave players something to make fun of while getting their asses kicked by monsters that they couldn't handle. While I'll always associate this week's songs with Phantasy Star Online, that isn't the game where they originally came from. No, they came from two games that many consider to be the beginning of the end for a particular franchise. The team responsible decided to be a little adventurous, but, unfortunately, the transition from 2D to 3D for the series in question wasn't as successful as its main rival's. Many people agree that the main problem with the games in the series that come out these days is the fact that the developers like seeing rainbows, while actual gamers would rather just see blue skies. I agree.


The News As I See It

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It's a slow week. I'm glad though, since it gives me a chance to go over some stuff that I missed during my two week hiatus.

Sorry, Portal Is Too Big For Us To Handle
According to GamesIndustry.biz, Valve's offer to make Microsoft a lot of money while giving gamers everywhere a chance to experience the ever popular Portal was denied. Size limitations and mental disorder, among other things, were heavy factors in Microsoft's decision.

I see what Microsoft wants to do with Live Arcade, but really, digital distribution of bigger games is an inevitability at this point. I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but this is once again another chance for Sony to take advantage of Microsoft's reluctance to open its eyes. Sony needs to go to Valve and beg its developers to make Portal available on PSN. Of course, Valve should also make sure that the game runs acceptably this time around. But why stop at Portal? A downloadable version of Team Fortress 2 on PSN that takes advantage of PC configurable servers would be HOT! As much as I like Xbox Live and Live Arcade, the open structure that the PS3 employs allows for so many more possibilities. I just wish that developers and publishers would realize this sooner rather than later.

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Ryu vs. The Joker Will Never Happen
For years, I'd been holding on to the idea that one day Capcom would get smart, resurrect its VS series, and finally bring us the long rumored Marvel vs DC vs Street Fighter. Unfortunately, my hopes were dashed when Midway revealed that Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe is in the works. So far, the only details that have been revealed are that Batman, Superman, Scorpion, and Sub-Zero are in and Fatalities are out.

I liked the first two Mortal Kombat games. The world that Midway had built had potential. I even liked the soundtrack for the second game enough to buy the CD that was advertised in the arcade version. Even though the fighting system was shitty, I could get by because the Fatalities were pretty cool. Unfortunately, after the second game, things started to fall apart. The Fatalities weren't that great and the dial-a-combo system was whack. Also, the story just plain sucked. It didn't help that they changed most of the actors and actresses. Years later, the fighting system is still pretty sub-par and the Fatalities aren't as cool as they used to be. Now they're planning on removing the last thing that made the series interesting. As far as I'm concerned, this will probably be on par with what you would expect from a martial arts movie tie-in game. Let's say some company made a fighting game to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Bloodsport. Yeah, that's the type of quality you could expect.

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Maybe With This, We Can Finally Hear Mario Swear
The ESRB recently contacted MTV Multiplayer in order to explain how it plans to regulate downloadable content. Essentially, companies are allowed to offer downloadable content as long as that content is in line with the original product. If it isn't, then it must be submitted to the ESRB. If it garners a higher age rating and is optional, then that higher rating must be displayed before the user downloads it. If it is not optional, then the core product will have to be reevaluated.

These days, I don't really give a rat's ass about the ESRB. I'm at an age where I can walk into a store and buy whatever the hell I want. However, I do find this particular bit of news pretty important, mostly because it could give developers an easy way to produce the types of games they want without having to worry about the age rating their games will eventually get. Let's say that Rockstar wasn't planning on using controversy to get free advertising for Manhunt 2, but instead really wanted to put the game in as many homes as possible by providing great gameplay as well as heaps of violence for those that want it. In order to fulfill their first goal, all they'd have to do is develop a game that would get a Teen or Mature rating. Then, after the game is released, they could bring out a download which would restore the game to how it was originally envisioned. While it is already too late for Manhunt 2, I can see some developers taking this route in the future. They can sell a lot of Teen or Mature rated games, and also satisfy those who want the same game but with a little more "edge" to it.

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The last six seconds make me want to cry...
And The Award For The Worst Character Design Goes To...
So I said that I'd wait and give Street Fighter IV a chance before passing final judgment, but seriously, it's been however many years since the last good Street Fighter game and this is the best they could come up with? A round bastard clown whose super ends with him voguing enemies to death? Models look good voguing. Madonna looked good voguing. Fat bastards in fighting games? Hell no!

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Noitu Love 2: Devolution. Try it. You Might Have Some Fun
Out of all the games I witnessed at GDC this year, Noitu Love 2: Devolution was the one that interested me the most. Sure, Fez looked cool, but NL2 was more in line with the type of games that I like. Unfortunately, I didn't get to actually play the game there since some bastard cut in front of me even though I'd been waiting to play for at least thirty minutes. Anyway, the demo is now available online. You can check out the demo or buy the full game here. The demo is worth at least one playthrough, especially if you like side-scrolling platformers.

The game was developed by Joakim Sandberg using Multimedia Fusion 2. As a programmer who plans to make his own 2D platformer some day, I originally saw his use of MF2 as cheating, but, after some thought, I realized that it isn't just about being able to program. A lot of people know how to program, but what a lot of them lack is the ability to use the tools that they have, be it C, ActionScript, or even something that requires little-to-no coding skills like MF2, to make something that other people would want to play. As far as I'm concerned, this guy has it.

So, don't think that you can't make an awesome game just because you don't know what a class, interface, for loop, or a switch statement is. If you have a good imagination, there are plenty of tools out there that can help you make your dream game a reality. Well... At least as far as 2D games go.


The Release List

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Alright. Three weeks of releases? I'm going to make this a little shorter than I normally would. Otherwise, I'm going to end up dropping this week's column as well. There were lots of good releases over the past few weeks. Some include Grand Theft Auto IV (Xbox 360 and PS3), Mario Kart Wii, Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom (Wii VC), Double Dragon (Wii VC), Heavenly Guardian (Wii), Okami (Wii), Rondo of Swords (DS), Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (DS), Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time (DS), SNK Arcade Classics Vol 1 (PS2), and Gran Turismo Prologue (PS3). Other notables include -


Persona 3: FES (PS2)
This is the game that I'm ignoring Grand Theft Auto IV to play. If you like JRPGs, get it. If not, give this a consideration. It's one of the best ones to come out in years, it's at a budget price, and if you wait too long, the price of admission will be well over $100.

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Meccha! Taiko no Tatsujin DS: 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken (DS Import)
Here is another DS Taiko Drum Master. It's a little on the expensive side if you import it, but it does have some decent songs. Here's the track list (credit: NCSX) -

J-Pop
Ai Uta by GReeeeN
Age Age Every Knight by DJ Ozma
Ikenai Taiyou by Orange Range
Lifetime Respect by Onna Hen
Linda Linda by The Blue Hearts
Love So Sweet by Arashi
Peach by Ai Otsuka
Tentai Kansoku by Bump of Chicken

Animation
A Cruel Angel's Thesis - From Evangelion by Yoko Takahashi
Anpanman Taisou - Bread-headed character theme song
Cha-La Head-Cha-La - From Dragonball Z by Hironobu Kageyama
Daybreak's Bell - From Gundam OO by L'arc~en~Ciel
Fukou no Kuni no Ohime-sama - From Fukou Mori
Gegege no Kitarou - From animation of the same name
Hono Kami Sentai Go-Onger - Live action tv show theme song
Oshiri Kajiri Mushi - Butt biting insect theme song
Precure 5 Full Throttle Go Go! - From television theme song
Yume wo Kanaete Doraemon - Animated series theme
Sosei no Aquarion - From Aquarion by AKINO

Children's Songs
Alphabet Song
London Bridge (is Falling Down)

Classical
Beethooven Symphony No. 5
Bolero by Ravel
Carmen Prelude
Dvorak Symphony No. 9 "From the New World" 4th Movement
La Campanella
The Entertainer
The Nutcracker Suite
Parade of the Wooden Soldiers

Video Game
Agent Yoru wo Iku - From Idolmaster -Live For You-
Brave Sword, Braver Soul - From Soul Calibur II
Moji-Pittan Theme Song
Shiny Smile - From Idolmaster -Live For You-
Spelunker Theme Song with sound effects

Namco Original
Taiko no Tatsujin - Nanairo Harmony

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River King: Mystic Valley (DS)
Well... It's called Harvest Fishing in the UK. Guess who makes this game.

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Chameleon (PSP)
This is supposed to be a serviceable puzzler for the PSP. Most reviews cite a lack of extras as the main problem.

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Days of Memories 2 (DS Import)
These types of games aren't very import friendly, but if you have a thing for SNK's female characters, I'm sure that you can get by with a walkthrough. (note: No walkthroughs for part two yet. Try part one first if you must.) Of course, it's not like I'm interested in this game. Really!

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The World Ends With You (DS)
This isn't getting the attention that I thought it would. It's been getting good reviews though. Maybe the trailer turned people off.


Trailer with terrible music and some gameplay footage.

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Co-op and RPG elements in action!
River City Ransom (Wii VC)
River City Ransom is the first co-op game I played. I remember beating it with my cousin when I was younger (Yes, they had co-op games back in the day). It can be best described as a beat-em-up with RPG elements. Buying fighting-style upgrades in towns is a thing of beauty in RCR. I'd say that the only real problem is the fact that the game made use of long passwords instead of a save feature. Fortunately, you should be able to use the Wii's save feature to your advantage so that shouldn't be a problem any more. Trust me - if you have someone to play with, this is worth a buy.


Just Around The Corner

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Windy X Windam (DS Import)
It looks like Success sees Izuna as a marketable franchise these days as the company has joined forces with Ninja Studio to create a fighting game that's based in the world that was seen in Izuna: Legend of the Unemployed Ninja. The game is set to be released in July.

Alright. Before I get started - Izuna review... Next week... Maybe...

This, combined with news that Atlus is localizing Izuna 2 for release in a few months, makes it a good year to be an Izuna fan. Then again, it is a DS fighting game from a company that I'm pretty sure isn't known for fighting games.


That will be 255 Rupees Please!

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I never really got into the Ace Attorney series since I could never find the first game at a reasonable price. I waited for the price to drop but, as usual, I waited too long. Fortunately, Capcom of Japan decided to release the first three DS games in the series with budget pricing. While the second and third can still be found on Amazon for less than $20 new, the first game is going for as much as $40 new. Now, thanks to the budget pricing, we can get the first game for $22.80 shipped at Play-Asia (NCSX has it for $25).

note: there is an English option so you won't have to play it in Japanese... unless you want to...

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Did you find Digital Devil Saga too easy? Are you craving more MegaTen after playing Persona 3? Well, here is your chance to play another Shin Megami Tensei game without getting it up the ass from our friends at eBay. Until recently, this game was pretty hard to find new unless you were willing to sell your soul to Jack Frost. Now, thanks to a restock at Play-Asia, you can get the game for the unbelievably low (really!) price of $48.30 shipped. Warning - this game is way harder than DDS and Persona 3. But you do get to duke it out with Dante from Devil May Cry, so maybe that alone will motivate some of you to push forward.


What the hell is Dante doing in a MegaTen game?

This Week's Wallpaper

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Big Daddy In Anime Form
Someone sent me a link to this a few weeks ago. I'm not sure who the original artist is, but it was posted by someone named Shuugo. I like it, but then again, I watch a lot of Anime...


To Be Continued...

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That's all I have for this week. I just saw a red ring fall from the sky after my group defeated the dark demon. For some odd reason, when I went to where the ring fell, it was nowhere to be found. If I manage to find the red ring, I'll be back next week.