RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

Star Ocean developer tri-Ace has announced two new titles for portable platforms, with Konami as publisher.  The first is Frontier Gate, a turn-based PSP title with some similarities to the Monster Hunter series.  The second is Labyrinth no Kanata, a 3DS dungeon crawler from Takayuki Suguro, who last headed the team behind Resonance of Fate.

While Labyrinth has no release date, Frontier Gate is expected to launch by the year’s end.  No US release was announced for either game.

Cult PS1 hit Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke is getting a PSP remake in Japan, following an unexpected surge in popularity on the PS3’s PlayStation Archives service. The game centers around a family of warriors that fights the demon that cursed them over multiple generations, which in gameplay terms means forging pacts with assorted gods and forming parties by raising subsequent generations of fighters.

The PSP version will be receiving a significant visual upgrade, giving it “an abstract Japanese feel remniscent of Okami.” Additionally, parties will be able to use special skills in tandem, which was impossible the original game. Skills can only be passed down from parent to child, and thus they can be combined across generations to perform especially powerful attacks.

Shikabane is due out this fall in Japan. A US release was not announced.

Source: 1UP

A scan out of the latest Nintendo Power – visible here if you’re curious – confirms that the Tales of the Abyss 3D redux is indeed coming to North America.

Source: GoNintendo

Bethesda’s Todd Howard, Game Director for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, recently ran down a few more changes in Skyrim over Oblivion and grouped them into five topics: travel, dragons, the country, quest adjustments, and character statistics.

Continue reading ‘Skyrim’s Changes: In-Game Quest Adjustments, Varied Environments, and More’ »

Bethesda’s Jason Bergman was kind enough to list the changes in the Fallout New Vegas patch, currently available for the PC with the 360 and PS3 versions to follow. In addition to optimizations and stability improvements, the patch makes several balance adjustments.  The list is as follows, courtesy of Bethesda’s official forums:

Continue reading ‘Fallout New Vegas Patch Notes Revealed’ »

Ragnarok Online is making a second appearance on a portable, following last year’s single-player take on the MMORPG for the DS. This installment, dubbed Ragnarok: Hikari to Yami no Koujo, has more of a strategy bent and isn’t directly based on the MMO, though it does show the same universe.

No release date has been set.

Source: 1UP

Long part of the Tales series, inter-party banter and skits will see a few revisions for Tales of Xillia. While the optional conversations still exist and are accessible in the normal way – pushing a button when prompted – characters will now comment on their surroundings in real time. This also comes into play in battles, as active party members comment on particular events. Of particular note is that players can swap their parties in mid-fight, and many battle comments hinge upon doing so.

Xillia is slated for a release in Japan later this year. No US release has been announced.

Source: 1UP

It’s almost a shame when the title says it all, it makes the job much simpler and yet more difficult. Oh well. Anyway, yes, the ever-popular Chrono Trigger will see a release as a PS1 classic in North America. The announcement comes by way of the ESRB, who listed the title for both PS3 and the PSP. However, no information about a release date was given.

Source: 1UP

Happy Easter, folks!  The news doesn’t take holidays, however, so here’s what’s new and exciting:

• A reading from the Book of Royko: the proper way to deal with a hangover.  Sony is gonna need this.  And speaking of which…
• Sony’s PSN shutdown continues for as-yet unexplained reasons.  Valve cannot possibly be amused by this.
• Ironically, the PSP Go quietly slips out the back during this same time.  With the PSN down, it shall not be missed.
• More Wii 2 specs: screens on controllers, Radeon hardware in the box, and a potential price range.  And the crowd falls silent.
• Very Serious People say Nintendo is doooooooomed! because it doesn’t sell games for $0.99.  Yeah, I’m not seeing it either.
• Obsidian lays off a few New Vegas personnel.  Speculation abounds on what this means and what Obsidian does best.  Hint: more Bethsidian Fallout please.
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution devs respond to fans, the ESRB launches a machine to do their job for them, and so much more!

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – The Industry Drives People to Binge Drinking’ »

Just in case you needed some visuals to go along with the announcement below, Dengeki was kind enough to provide screens and artwork for Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2. Along with that we’ve got some Final Fantasy Type-0, Dissidia 012 Duodecim, Pandora’s Tower, and Tales of the Abyss 3DS. Check it out:

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 04/23/11’ »

For those who didn’t get enough of the console-tan moepocalypse, Compile Heart is happy to indulge you with a sequel to Hyperdimension Neptunia. The aptly-titled Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2 is headed for the PS3 in Japan, with the standard version at ¥7329 and an as-yet-undetailed limited edition for ¥9429. While the original featured personified game consoles and companies, it looks like the sequel will focus more on handhelds.

No release date was given and a US release was not announced.

Source: Dengeki
Translation: Google

You know what’s more annoying than writer’s block? Having an idea of what to write and how to write it, but just being so busy that when you finally get a chance to write the idea is gone. Seriously, that’s just cruel. But enough about me and my now-tabled idea about a time-traveling ska band that goes into space to fight crime. You’re here for media and I’m happy to oblige. Here’s what we have: Alphadia, Atelier Meruru, Gungnir, Persona 2 Innocent Sin, Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity, and Rekusu Ancheinbureizu.

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 04/20/11’ »

In response to player feedback over object highlighting in Human Revolution, director Jean-Francois Dugas and David Anfossi released a short video explaining how this feature is now optional.  During a short demonstration of this, they also revealed some details about difficulty levels.  Namely, they will have certain features (such as highlighting) enabled or disabled by default, which can be toggled at any point in mid-game.

Incidentally, the name of the hard setting was “Give me Deus Ex.”  Take from that what you will.  The video in full is but a short YouTube away.

A few more details have emerged about Type-0‘s main characters and obligatory Cid.  In particular, we now know the following:

• Machina Kunagiri uses a set of dual swords known as bolt rapiers, and is voiced by Hiroshi Kamiya.  Kamiya is known for, among other things, his role as Nozomu Itoshiki in Sayonara, Zetsubou Sensei.
• Rem Tokimiya’s weapon of choice is a pair of daggers, not to be confused with a pair of swords.  Rem is voiced by Ryoko Shiraishi, last seen – heard, anyway – as Juliana in the Japanese version of Valkyria Chronicles II.
• Cid, fully Cid Oldstein, is looking to round up the crystals held by each of the nations.  He gets his voice courtesy of Shuichiro Moriyama, who showed up as Wagram in The Last Remnant.

Source: Andriasang

Apart from being a handheld redux, the 3DS version of Ocarina of Time will sport a few extra features.  Past a certain point in the game you’ll gain access to Boss Challenges, which let you revisit any boss encounter, or all of them in one long battle if you’re up to it.  Additionally, puzzles will have discreetly placed “bite-sized videos” to keep players from getting stuck.

Ocarina of Time is set for a June 19 release.

Source: 1UP

Happy Sunday, folks! Yeah, I know, getting up for work is no fun, so why not put off going to bed a little while longer? Stick around and let’s talk some news. In today’s award* winning** broadcast:

• Wii 2 speculation is a go: higher definition, screens in the controller, competitive specs with the 360 and PS3.  Well, at least two are plausible.
• 3DS to sell 11.6 million units by year end, or, to hear doomsayers tell it, “3DS UNDERSELLS DS BY 1.6 MILLION!”
• iOS/Android get a better share of the handheld market.  Analysts jump to conclusions speculate how this affects Nintendo.
• Stardock’s Wardell insists that Half-Life 2 Episode 3 has been delayed because of Steam.  I, too, have trouble finishing things when I’m making $Texas.  Of course I have trouble even without the money, a trait that Valve seems to share.
• Mass Effect and Persona 4 get “the animes.”  Ohhh goody.
• Jay Walker, of Walker Digital: Suing everybody over alleged minor IP violations erry day.

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – The Other Half of Wii’s Life’ »

Following a two-week delay from the recent earthquake, the Pokemon Global Link for Black and White is now officially online and available hereabouts.

Not one to miss out on announcing things, Nintendo revealed this week that the 3DS remake of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is due out on June 19.

Source: 1UP

Now there’s a title that needs no introduction. Final Fantasy VI is set to launch on the Japanese PSN next week, although the exact date was not announced and a US release remains out of reach. But at least now another generation of players can experience the joy of pawning the cursed shield quest onto a gullible friend, then taking back over when it’s done.

Uh, not that I would know about that.

Source: 1UP

An exceptionally influential tactical RPG, Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together is responsible for a large number of the more common elements found in the genre today. As the original printing has been more or less relegated to the status of collector’s item, the PSP remake of Let Us Cling Together is an excellent opportunity for fans of the genre to enjoy this seminal title. There have been a great deal of changes made to the game, and although the core mechanics remain basically unchanged, it has been heavily rebalanced, with new systems and ideas added in order to make it a bit more forgiving. The end result is that Let Us Cling Together is a more than worthwhile play, though the hugely complicated nature of the game, along with some lingering balance issues, makes it difficult to recommend without reservation.

Continue reading ‘Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together – Staff Review’ »