RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

In the wake of the earthquake and tsunami that recently struck Japan, Square Enix announced this week that both Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV would temporarily be shut down.  The move is an attempt to conserve power amidst energy shortages and rolling blackouts, and the servers are expected to be offline for at least a week.  In the meantime, players will not be billed through the April statement cycle.

The announcement can be read in full on the Lodestone, and further information will be posted as it becomes available.

Welcome back, everybody! Good to be back from Las Vegas, where tragically I was unable to recruit Danny Trejo and hunt down Matthew Perry. But I suppose a nacho platter at Margaritaville is victory enough for one trip. Anyway, it’s time to round up What Happened This Week. Let’s see what we have this time:

• Sony convinces European authorities to release PS3s, but the legal back-and-forth with LG continues.
• Human Revolution sees a release date, and the reason for the pushback likely goes deeper than Final Fantasy XIV‘s misfired launch.
• Microsoft to retool Windows Live and apologize for unleashing it.  Well, they’re doing the first one at least.  Also, speculation on possible price cuts.
• Best Buy is on the ropes, but Amazon.com and Steam need better infrastructure to viably fill the gap.
• Strange but true: criticize BioWare, get locked out of Dragon Age 2.  Developers have feelings too, you know!
• Krazy Kaz is back, E3 rumor mills are in full swing, and portables join consoles in the counterproductive spending arms race.
• Japan, as you know, was recently hit by a massive earthquake and resulting tsunami.  The Red Cross is accepting donations, so chip in if you can.

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Cost-Cutting Spin Doctors Reopen Europe’ »

This week, we’re going to be taking a look at Gravity, a move which, at first glance, does not really excite. However, as with many things in Pokemon, there’s more going on here than meets the eye. In this article, we’ll talk about why you should consider Gravity a threat, what your options are to get the move set up, and what you can then do with it. We’ll talk about other moves that work well in tandem with Gravity, and measure exactly how far up your opponent’s nose your team will get. So without further ado, let’s get started.

Continue reading ‘Strategy Session – Pokemon Black/White, Part IV’ »

Hiya folks! John here, fresh from my trip to Vegas and my laughably annoying flight home. Long story short, you get what you pay for, and it’s the reason What Happened This Week will be slightly delayed. But I digress, you’re here for the media. Today’s selection includes the following:

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 03/12/11’ »

In a press release today, NIS America announced that Phantom Brave: The Hermuda Triangle is now available for North American PSPs via download and retail. The European release, which is PSN only, will follow on March 16. Content previously added for the Wii version, We Meet Again, is also included in The Hermuda Triangle.

After months of speculation following the announcement of a delayed release, Deus Ex: Human Revolution has just been given a concrete launch date by way of Eidos Montreal’s Twitter feed. Human Revolution will hit US stores on August 23, with a UK release following on August 26.

Fun trick for those just joining the Valkyria Chronicles 2 party, such as myself: if one of your guys steps on a mine, use a vehicle to bump him off. Mine detonates, and neither unit is harmed. Today’s army trains you with the skills you need to get ahead in today’s world!

But enough about weird things I find in games. Got some media for you guys, so gather ’round: Cladun 2, Dissidia 012 Duodecim, Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 2, Everyday Messiah, Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection, and UnchainBlades Rexx.

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 03/06/11’ »

A personal favorite of mine, Trick Room is one of many tactics that has gained significant new tools in Pokemon’s 5th generation. The generation-wide trend of slow but powerful offensive Pokemon combines with new Trick Room users and a number of useful support abilities to make Trick Room teams easier to build. Overall, Trick Room is now easier to use, and the skill as a whole more effective. This week, we’ll take a look at the new toys it has access to, and talk about how to make use of this unusual move.

Continue reading ‘Strategy Session – Pokemon Black/White, Part IV’ »

Hey, glad you could make it! Gather around as we take What Happened This Week into its second month! Let me just grab my newsman robe and wizard hat here… there we go. As a heads up, I’ll be away from my computer for a few days next week, so that installment might be a day late. I’ll do my best to avoid a delay, however.

In any case, here are this week’s headlines:

• Cliff Bleszinski gives a speech at GDC, gets selective coverage for maximum outrage; hooray, gaming journalism!
• European customs seizes PS3s over LG and Sony patent bickering, presumably so customs agents can have their own Killzone 3 tournament.
• Visit GeoHot’s page, get your IP tracked by Sony.  There’s a meme generator image in this somewhere.
• John Romero, Rupert Murdoch to throw their hats in the Facebook gaming ring.  One of these men is to be taken seriously.
• PC gaming did well in 2010, or at least it made a lot of money.  That’s the same thing, right?
• Catherine is announced for US release and Homefront should stick to advertising by way of taco trucks.

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Cherry-Picking San Francisco’s Facebook Page’ »

By way of a freshly-minted official site, French developer Ankama announced that Islands of Wakfu is headed for an Xbox Live Arcade release come March 30.  Details are currently sparse, although it is known that Islands will cost 1200 MS points to purchase and that achievements in the game can unlock content in the free-to-play MMO Dofus.

Source: Eurogamer

Last year’s Fallout New Vegas lived up to the series’ pedigree in many important ways, not all of them to its credit. But no one can accuse Obsidian of not knowing how to plot, and even in a crowded field Vegas easily gave other story-heavy RPGs a run for their money. Dead Money is their first step into DLC territory, essentially playing as its own separate game that just happens to use your character. Minor, but frequent nuisances are determined to hobble the experience, yet beyond that are real moments of ingenuity that even Vegas didn’t pull off.

Continue reading ‘Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money – Staff Review’ »

Who said March could get here already? Stop making me feel old, 2011! With that said, it’s time for some media: Cladun 2, Final Fantasy III iPod, Final Fantasy IV Complete, Gungnir, Oz Chronicle, Persona 2 Innocent Sin, RPG Maker X, SD Gundam G Generation World, Shining Hearts, and Tales of Xillia.

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 03/01/11’ »

Perhaps the most significant change that Pokemon Black and White have introduced to the metagame is the availability of automatic weather starters for Sun and Rain. Where only Sandstorm and Hail had access to infinite weather generators in the 4th gen, Sun and Rain now have them in Ninetales and Politoed with Dream World-available Drizzle and Drought abilities. What this means for the metagame is that weather is now not just another viable strategy, it is the black hole at the center of the game.

Continue reading ‘Strategy Session – Pokemon Black/White, Part III’ »

There’s a mouthful for you. Hello, me good smilin’ friends! In today’s thrilling episode:

• Xenogears arrives on PSN, nostalgia ensues.
• Name your kid Dovahkiin, get free Bethesda games: madness, or radness? Probably madness.  Although…
• Atlus tops Japanese sales charts, is probably fun to hang out with on the weekends.
• Vietnam begins banning online gaming between 10pm and 8am.  Now who’s lost in fantasy?
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution personal media blackout begins now, and will last until I have to index more about the game.
• PSP price drop, Unreal Engine 3 on the NGP, and Ubisoft’s Beyond Good & Evil proposition.

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Atlus Breaks Internet Curfew in Stolen DeLorean’ »

Just in case you need some imagery to go with your announcements, we have a few shots of Traitor’s Keep fresh out of the oven. Each serving comes with a free side of Devil Survivor Overclocked too. C’mon, dig in!

Continue reading ‘Semi-Mass Media 02/24/11’ »

Courtesy of Lionhead’s official blog comes a hefty chunk of Fable III news.  For starters, the first set of DLC, dubbed Traitor’s Keep, will be available starting March 1 for 560 MS funbucks.  Little else is known other than it will feature three new levels – Ravenscar Keep, Clockwork Island, and the Godwin Estate – and involve the player “encountering a mysterious prisoner.”

Additionally, a PC port of Fable III was part of this announcement.  Due out on May 17, the PC version will include a unique Hardcore Mode that ratchets the difficulty even higher.  And last was the reveal of Fable Coin Golf, a minigame of sorts which both lets you transfer money earned into Fable III and unlocks unique weapons in Traitor’s Keep.

Dead Money was made for Hardcore Mode. Or is it the other way around? Ah well. Anyway, got some media of the following: Persona 2 Innocent Sin, Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity, SD Gundam G Generation World, Shining Hearts, Tales of the Town, and Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 3.

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 02/23/11’ »

By way of press release, Atlus issued a friendly reminder to all would-be time travelers that Radiant Historia was released today at select US retailers. As previously mentioned, all launch copies of the game come with a bonus music CD of piano selections from the game’s score.

Remember the 90s? I know I do: dial-up internet, MTV that actually played music videos, and having to pick sides in console wars because mom didn’t care what your pal Marty had, you were only getting one or the other. And lest I forget, the 90s was also a time of gigantohuge multi-disc RPGs, like for instance Xenogears. I bring this up because Sony announced via official blog that Xenogears is available on PSN starting today.

One long, long trip down memory lane is priced at $10.

Capping Sunday off with some media for you, in hopes that you’re not getting hit with still more snow. Also, does anybody else ever imagine fight scenes and chases set to something classic? Like, a guy jumping through a window and doing a parkour bounce off the far wall and landing in a dumpster, but with “Just a Gigolo” by Louis Prima playing in the background? Sometimes I empathize with the guy from Seinfeld who zoned out every time he heard “Desperado”. But I digress.

Today’s media update: Disgaea 4, Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 2, Everyday Messiah, Tales of Xillia, and Tales of the Abyss 3DS.

Continue reading ‘Mass Media 02/20/11’ »