Nintendo publishing Dragon Quest IX in North America
American DS owners have been waiting patiently for Dragon Quest IX, as the game racks up crazy sales in Japan and weekly DLC is released from Square Enix. Well … we’re going to have to keep waiting. While Nintendo didn’t announce a date for the RPG at the Nintendo Media Summit today, the company announced that it will not only co-market Dragon Quest IX, it will publish it in North America. This is the first official confirmation of a localized release.
Square Enix previously said that it would consider localizing DQIX in its next fiscal year (beginning in April). Our best guess is to expect Dragon Quest IX later this year.
Gallery: Dragon Quest IX
Nintendo publishing Dragon Quest IX in North America originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Cursed Mountain dev Deep Silver Vienna shuttered
As confirmed by parent company Koch Media to Develop, Cursed Mountain developer Deep Silver Vienna has apparently been closed. Citing “the overall economic situation” and noting “this decision is not easy for us,” the 20-person staff was recently cut and told they would receive pay through the end of March. Develop posits that the studio’s other game — Ride to Hell — will likely remain unaffected by the shutdown, as UK dev house Eutechnyx is handling development and Koch Media’s Munich offices will oversee the game’s management.
Deep Silver Vienna was formed in the wake of Rockstar Vienna’s closing back in 2006, and originally called itself Games That Matter. Ex-Rockstar Vienna heads Hannes Seifert and Niki Laber launched the studio, and it is said that Siefert has moved on to a position at Square Enix Europe as a creative director. As with every case like this, we’d like to wish those affected the best of luck.
Cursed Mountain dev Deep Silver Vienna shuttered originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 31 Jan 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Tatsunoko producer would ‘love to’ work with Nintendo, Square on fighting games
Were you up in the wee hours of the morning this past weekend, waiting in line for your chance to pick up Tatsunoko vs. Capcom a bit early at the Nintendo World store in New York City? Yeah, neither were we, but Nintendo World Report was there and they asked producer Ryota Niitsuma a whole mess of questions about the game.
Notably, when Niitsuma was asked what other franchises he might like to work with in future “vs.” titles, the producer openly stated his desire to work with not just “a whole lot of” game developers in the US, but also that he’d “love to” work with Nintendo or Square Enix. As for us, we’d love the chance to shoryuken the hell out of Cloud Strife. But hey, who wouldn’t?
Tatsunoko producer would ‘love to’ work with Nintendo, Square on fighting games originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Dragon Quest VI advertised in Japan by these guys
Maybe this is why Dragon Quest games haven’t caught on in America like they have in Japan. Square Enix is promoting the DS remake of Dragon Quest VI the same way it did for IV and V: with a wonderfully goofy commercial featuring actors dressed up as hilarious semi-realistic versions of the game’s Akira Toriyama characters. This ad totally fills us with nostalgia for a childhood that we didn’t actually spend playing this game!
Check out the new ad after the break. Dragon Quest VI will be out in Japan this week, with a Western release to follow at some unspecified later date.
Continue reading Dragon Quest VI advertised in Japan by these guys
Dragon Quest VI advertised in Japan by these guys originally appeared on Joystiq Nintendo on Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Review - Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicle: The Crystal Bearers
System: Wii
MSRP: $50.00
Release Date: December 26th, 2009
Is Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers (FFCC:TCB) a unique addition to the never ending Final Fantasy/Crystal Chronicles series or is it a one-trick pony?
Graphics
FFCC:TCB is a beautiful game! It would be extremely difficult to find a Wii exclusive that looks just as good, if not better, than this game. The towns and characters are drawn very well and the somewhat lively environments are detailed nicely, too. After playing the game for awhile, you will probably forget that you are playing a Wii game.
- 19/20
Sound
All of the voice actors were excellent, with the exception of one character, Belle. She has a very whiny, high-pitched, piercing voice of a 12 year old girl. However, besides that one character, the other voice actors were excellent.
Additionally, like in all the other Final Fantasy games, FFCC:TCB has an excellent sound track that melds very well with the game. There could be a few more upbeat tracks, but overall, the soundtrack is great.
- 18/20
Story
The story in FFCC:TCB centers around Layle, a crystal bearer (someone with magical abilities) with telekinesis, who is also a mercenary/odd job for hire. In the opening, he’s hired to protect an airship, which ends up being attacked by monsters and loses control. Also, for those of you following the story line from the other Crystal Chronicle’s titles, a member of the “extinct” Yuke tribe appears on the airship. Layle thinks this mysterious person is the reason for the attack and he proceeds to track her down, which leads to him uncovering a lot more than he expected.
The story is pretty good and has a few twists that add more depth to it. If you haven’t played any of the other Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles games, don’t worry. You won’t really miss anything in The Crystal Bearers and the game covers the important events that happened in the previous games to keep the story moving.
- 17/20
Gameplay
You can do just about anything in the world, like going Grand Theft Auto and picking up elderly people and tossing them around a town to see if they have any gil (money) for you to pick up. Everything is done in real time. There are no load screens when you are exploring the world and run into enemies. You instantly start fighting them. This is where the problems start. All you can do is use Layle’s telekinetic powers to pick up and throw enemies and objects. You can change things up a little, like throwing two beetles into one another, creating a ball that you can toss around the area to take out other enemies, but sadly that is about it. Just toss enemies and objects around until everything is dead. The fighting is by far, the worst thing about FFCC:TCB. Additionally, Layle doesn’t level up or gain any experience. Instead, he acquires materials that can be used to create wards, rings and earrings that will boost his stats.
Besides fighting, there are other things you can do, and believe me; you’ll want to do anything else in this game besides fight. You could actually beat the game by avoiding most of the battles you encounter. The towns and cities are fairly unique and you can explore them a little. Each area has little easter eggs and hidden areas to explore, too. There are various mini-games that you will encounter throughout the entire game. All of them incorporate the Wiimote and nunchuk very well. I wish there were more mini-games in place of the battles.
One more thing to note, you will constantly readjust the camera, which quickly becomes tiresome and annoying.
- 13/20
Replayablity
FFCC:TCB is full of side-quests and mini-games. Yes there is a lot to do besides fighting, but after awhile, even they can become tiresome. Most people will probably complete FFCC:TCB in 12 – 20 hours, depending on how much you explore and do. For those of you that are just dying to play this game a second time, yes, there is a New Game +. Also, for the obsessive compulsive, there are numerous in-game “accomplishments” that you can try to attain.
- 13/20
Conclusion
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers is not a bad game, but it is an “acquired” taste. It has a boring combat system, annoying camera and is a very short game. This is more of a Zelda game than it is a Final Fantasy game. However, there are different things to do and explore as you progress through the game. As a Wii exclusive, FFCC:TCB is probably the most graphically pleasing title out today for the Wii. If you’re looking for a unique Action-RPG for the Wii, you might want to give this game a shot.
- 80/100
Justin Hubbell
January 19, 2009
Square Enix introduces ‘Ultimate Hits’ line for DS in Japan
It’s a formula gamers are all too familiar with. First step: Release a game (and hope it sells a bunch). Second step: As time goes on and the sales pile up, gain interest in your product again through a discounted re-release. Rinse and repeat.
Enter: Dragon Quest IX, Final Fantasy IV, Dragon Quest IV and Dragon Quest V, a line-up of games to be branded under Square Enix’s ‘Ultimate Hits‘ (partial machine translation) line of DS games. Square Enix is gearing up to re-release these games this March, at a discounted ¥2,940 (around $32). That’s cheap, considering most DS games release there for around $50.
[Via Kotaku]
Square Enix introduces ‘Ultimate Hits’ line for DS in Japan originally appeared on Joystiq Nintendo on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 18:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Snap Judgment: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Time played: 10 hours
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers is a game with seemingly no built-in audience. There aren’t any Final Fantasy fans, that I can imagine, who love the series but hate all that role-playing and complexity, and there’s likely a very small portion of the fanbase that love the Crystal Chronicles universe, but hate multiplayer.
Because of that, because of the current climate for third-party Wii games, and because of the sizeable budget and long development time that went into this project, Crystal Bearers is a bold experiment that’s unlikely to be repeated. Which is a shame, because I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve played so far, and I feel like some small tweaks in a sequel could make a truly great game out of what is currently an interesting, flawed (and very, very strange) game.
Continue reading Snap Judgment: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Snap Judgment: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Ogre Battle 64 on Japanese Virtual Console in January
Ogre Battle, the greatest Queen-influenced strategy game series of all time, will make another appearance on the Virtual Console in Japan next month, following the 2009 release of Ogre Battle for SNES (which made its way around the world). Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber will be released on Virtual Console some time in January, according to Nintendo’s most recent Virtual Console schedule.
Siliconera notes that releasing international versions may not be as simple for Ogre Battle 64: developer Quest was an independent studio at the time of the Atlus-published game’s creation, but is now owned by Square Enix. If Quest (and therefore Square Enix) has the rights to the IP, then Atlus may not be able to publish the VC release Stateside. Perhaps the two companies can come to an agreement over the right to upload a file to a server.
See the rest of the Virtual Console offerings for Japan after the break.
Continue reading Ogre Battle 64 on Japanese Virtual Console in January
Ogre Battle 64 on Japanese Virtual Console in January originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The World Ends With You, Crisis Core, FFIV just $10 today on Amazon
Looking for a ludological stocking stuffer for the RPG fan in your life? Amazon’s Deal of the Day has you covered — three of Square Enix’s portable titles (Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII for PSP and The World Ends With You and Final Fantasy IV on DS) have had their prices rolled back to just $9.78 for today only. At those prices, you’ve got no reason not to buy one of these for your dearest friends and family. Especially family who writes for the same gaming news site as you, who let you borrow their copy of The World Ends With You in March, which you beat and then traded in, you thoughtless bastard.
[Via CheapAssGamer]
The World Ends With You, Crisis Core, FFIV just $10 today on Amazon originally appeared on Joystiq Playstation on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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New Crystal Bearers trailer is exciting, a little mean
Square Enix has created a thrilling, cinematic trailer for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers — and it didn’t even have to lean on the Bon Jovi crutch! The latest trailer for the Wii action title makes it look kind of like a Final Fantasy take on the Indiana Jones style of adventure story — complete with the hero being a total jerk. Instead of a whip and years of archaeological study, however, Layle has the ability to lift stuff with his mind.
We always feel compelled to remind everyone about this game, especially since it’s tucked away the day after Christmas. So here it is. Once again, that’s Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers.
New Crystal Bearers trailer is exciting, a little mean originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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