The Release List 12.10.08

Posted by Tommy Coloma on 12.10.2008

What could possibly be the PS2's last great RPG, a Street Fighter to tide us over until February, and the sequel to Puzzle Quest. It may be close to the end of the year, but there are still new games to look forward to!



This is my first week back on the job, and guess what gets released today of all days. Yeah - Persona 4. It doesn't help that I've been wasting away in MegaTen: Imagine for the past few weeks. Despite my strong wish to be playing those games right now, I know that I've got to do what I've got to do, so here it is - the first edition of The Release List, the column where I show you what to look forward to each week. While every release gets a mention here, my focus will usually be on the games that will most likely get the shaft as far as coverage goes. Of course, there are some big names that even I can't ignore...


This week's highlights

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Persona 4 (PS2)
I've been playing this for the last few hours, and my quick assessment is that this is Persona 3 with a fresh coat of paint - they basically upgraded Persona 3's engine, threw in a new story and some new characters, and set it in the country. That's not necessarily a bad thing considering how good P3 is. In fact, I've only played two hours of it, and I already love the characters and am engrossed in the story. If you like JRPGs, this is a definite must buy.


the opening (this is the Japanese version, but it's the same in the US release)

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Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes (Wii Import)
It's been seven years since Capcom's last Marvel versus fighter. Most gamers would have rather gotten another Marvel or even another SNK versus game instead, but this'll do until someone knocks some sense into Capcom.

In Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, fighters have three different attack buttons (weak, medium, and heavy) as well as a tag/assist button. As the name suggests, it takes a lot of the gameplay elements from Capcom's previous Marvel games, such as variable combination supers, snapbacks, push blocking, air combos, etc. There's also something called the Baroque mode that allows you to deal even more damage for a short amount of time. Players will be able to select from two different characters as was the case in XvSF, MSHvSF, and MvC. There is, however, an exception when choosing the larger characters (Gold Lightan and PTX-40A), in which case players are limited to choosing only one.

If you didn't figure it out already, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom features anime characters from shows produced by Tatsunoko Productions and, of course, characters from Capcom's games. From Tatsunoko Productions, we have -

Casshern (Shinzo Ningen Casshan)
Doronjo (Yatterman)
Gold Lightan (Ogon Senshi Gold Raitan)
Hakushon Daimao (Hakushon Daimaou)
Ippatsuman (Gyakuten Ippatsu-man)
Jun the Swan (Gatchaman)
Karas (Karas)
Ken Washio the Eagle (Gatchaman)
Polymar (Hurricane Polymar)
Tekkaman (Uchuu no Kishi Tekkaman)
Yatterman-1 (Yatterman)

and from Capcom we have -

Alex (Street Fighter III)
Batsu (Rival Schools: United By Fate)
Chun-Li (Street Fighter II)
Morrigan (Darkstalkers)
PTX-40A (Lost Planet)
Rock (Mega Man Legends)
Roll (Mega Man 3)
Ryu (Street Fighter)
Saki (Quiz Nanairo Dreams)
Soki (Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams)
Viewtiful Joe (Viewtiful Joe)
Yami (Okami)

When I first heard about this, my first thought was that a Jump vs. Capcom title would have been much better. Actually, I still think that, but, from what I've seen in the gameplay videos out there and what I've learned about Tatsunoko's properties since the announcement, I think that this is actually pretty cool in its own right. Don't expect this to ever make it to the US in any form due to the licensing nightmare Capcom would have to contend with, so if you want to play this game, your only options are to use a Freeloader on a Wii with a 3.2U firmware, or use a homebrew program that changes your system's region. Or, you can just wait for the inevitable PS3 port.

the opening


gameplay

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Neopets Puzzle Adventure (Wii)
Wait! Read the next sentence before moving on to the next game! Neopets Puzzle Adventure was developed by the same company that made Puzzle Quest. You know, the game that you probably spent a lot of time coming back to (or would have if you never picked it up). This time around, Infinite Interactive made use of some Reversi/Othello gameplay mechanics instead of Bejeweled as they did with Puzzle Quest. It's unfortunate that many will ignore this because it has Neopets in the title, but for those in the know, this is technically the sequel to PQ.


sadly, the only gameplay video I could find was for the PC version

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Dungeon Maker II: The Hidden War (PSP)
The gist of this game is that you create a dungeon to attract monsters. You then return to the dungeon and take out the monsters that have taken residence in it. The types of monsters that your dungeon attracts are dependent on how well you designed it. As you kill more monsters, you gain the ability to purchase different parts with which you can improve your dungeon. The concept sounds cool, so I may end up picking this up down the line. It helps that its predecessor got some decent reviews when it came out last year.

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Build-a-lot (DS)
This real estate mogul simulator looks to be another web/PC game port. I tried Cake Mania a few weeks back and it was surprisingly fun to play, so I have a little more respect for web/PC game-to-DS/Wii ports in general, as long as they are priced accordingly. You can check out the PC/Mac version for free here.

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Cate West: The Vanishing Files (DS)
Another PC-turned-DS game. This one involves "seek-and-find" gameplay elements as well as a plot that unfolds in a style similar to the one found in Fatal Hearts. The trial version of the PC original can be downloaded here.


The other US releases

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Winter Sports 2 The Ultimate Challenge (360)
Prince of Persia (PC)
Sonic Unleashed (PS3)
The Tale of Despereaux (PC)
Left Brain Right Brain 2 (DS)
Drivers Ed Portable (DS)
Imagine Fashion Party (Wii)
Ski and Shoot (Wii)
Slingo Quest (DS)


The Import Scene

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Hakuna Matata (aka Afrika) (PS3)
It looks like an English version of Afrika is now available at Play-Asia. I've heard good things about it, but with no US release on the horizon, importing is the only option for those who want to play Pokemon Snap with animals on their PS3, at least for now...

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Taiko no Tatsujin (Wii)
We finally get Taiko Drum Master for the Wii. What's cool about this is that you can connect your Wii remote to the drums for wireless play. If you like J-Pop, Anime, and classical music and if you like beating drums, this is the game for you.

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Yatterman Wii: Bikkuridokkiri Machine de Mou Race da Koron (Wii)
This is a racing game that features characters from Yatterman. It's obviously here to ride the coattails of TvC, and, unsurprisingly, it has shovelware written all over it.

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Chocobo to Mahou no Ehon: Majo to Shoujo to 5-Jin no Yuusha (DS)
Penguin no Mondai (DS)
Zwei!! (PSP)
Argos no Senshi: Muscle Impact (Rygar: The Battle of Argus) (PSP)
Samba De Amigo (Wii)
Souhashiki Gadget Robo (DS)
Major Wii: Perfect Closer (Wii)
Chou Kaseki Monster Battle: Gekitotsu Galaxy (DS)
Elebits: Adventures of Kai & Zero (DS)
Rekishi Gunzou Presents: Monoshiri San Goku Shi (DS)