RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

The latest patch for Dragon’s Crown has gone live, reportedly the fifth and final update for the Vanillaware RPG. Apart from various bug fixes, the following features have been added:

• A new “Ultimate” difficulty level, accessible by clearing the ninth layer of the Labyrinth of Chaos. This difficulty provides access to the bonus Tower of Mirages dungeon, and also increases the level cap from 99 to 255.
• Damage can now be displayed as a running total, instead of being broken down by individual hits.
• Character transparencies have been added, to allow visibility when one character is on top of another. This can be toggled in the options menu.
• Save files with story mode cleared can skip the first few Talisman quests when creating a new character.
• Cleared guild quests can be skipped in repeat playthroughs.
• Item shortcuts can be assigned and used through holding L1 and Up on the d-pad.

Source: Gematsu

Thanks to a recent patch, Dragon’s Crown now supports cross-platform multiplayer between the PS3 and PS Vita. At present this only affects Japan; a global update is likely but not confirmed at this time.

Source: Gematsu

Speaking of Europe, Dragon’s Crown at last has a European release date. NIS America announced that the Atlus/VanillaWare fantasy sidescrolling RPG will launch in Europe on October 11.

Source: Gematsu

Atlus has announced that the VanillaWare RPG/beat-em-up Dragon’s Crown will see a European release this fall, though a specific date was not announced. The game hits the PS3/PSV in Japan this week and comes out August 6 in North America.

Source: Gematsu

Index Holdings, best known as the parent company of Atlus, has declared bankruptcy to the tune of 24.5 billion yen, or about $250 million US. This comes amidst an investigation by Japan’s Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission of improper accounting and exaggerated revenues, particularly through the use of roundtripping; a common tax evasion and money laundering strategy, a large component of that Cyprus flare-up from earlier in the year.

For their part, Atlus has stated that upcoming game releases haven’t been affected. Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millenium Girl is out now in Japan, and Dragon’s Crown hits stores on July 25.

Source: Gematsu

As Dragon’s Crown inches toward its August 6 release date, Atlus and VanillaWare have revealed still more details:

• As previously mentioned, you’ll have an AI-controlled partner in the form of a rogue, Rannie, who handles treasure chests and locked doors. A fairy named Tiki will also serve as navigational support, hopefully with as little “HEY! LISTEN!” as possible.
• Characters will be customizable to some degree, with players picking their color, voice, and messages for various events (greeting, selection, dying, etc.)
• You’ll earn skill points upon leveling up, which can be spent on either class skills (those unique to your character) or common skills (which anyone can learn). For instance, Gold Healing is a common skill that restores HP when you collect money.
• Exploring dungeons may trigger certain events, such as meeting new characters.

Source: Gematsu

Via IGN is a rather extensive preview of Dragon’s Crown, bringing us a healthy chunk of gameplay details:

• The game’s opening drops players in a town, in which players can mill around interacting with townsfolk (or bothering them by knocking things out of their hands). Players can visit various shops and guilds in this area before moving on to the world map.
• Enemies scale to match your level, and increase in number as well. It is not clear if this is scaling is one-to-one with your levels.
• Mounts can be found in each stage and used as temporary weapons; the preview specifies a giant bird in one stage, which must first be beaten before it can be ‘boarded’.
• As shown earlier, a hooded companion follows each character to hold their acquired loot for them.
• Known statistics: HP/MP, strength, constitution, dexterity, intelligence, magical resistance, and luck.

The full preview is available here.

Brooks Orpik of all people sends the Pens to the next round. Continue reading ‘Mass Media 05/11/13’ »

VanillaWare beat-em-up/RPG/fanservice generator Dragon’s Crown has finally been given a North American launch date of August 6. Prices are set at $39.99 for the Vita version, and $49.99 for the PS3.

Source: Gematsu

After a long period of silence, Dragon’s Crown is back in the headlines. Weekly Famitsu reports that Vanillaware’s fantasy beat-em-up RPG will hit the PS3/Vita in Japan on July 25, priced at 8,190 yen.

Source: Gematsu

If Light Yagami was a military strategist, he’d be Shu. Continue reading ‘Mass Media 03/03/13’ »

Over on the Playstation Blog, Atlus PR Manager Aram Jabbari announced that Atlus has assumed the role of publisher for Dragon’s Crown. With the transfer of publisher, Vanillaware’s 2D fantasy brawler is planned for a 2013 release. Additionally, some Atlus staff will now be assisting with production.

However, Jabbari did state that the game will retail north of $29.99. “We don’t know where that price point came from,” he writes, “but it is a logistical impossibility. We’re all gamers and we all wished it could be so, but it would have essentially destroyed any chance for profitability.”

The post in full can be read here.

With rumors circulating that Vanillaware’s Dragon’s Crown may have been cancelled, illustrator Shigatake posted on twitter that the title is “still in development.” Little else was confirmed, though he asked fans to be patient pending an official update.

Source: Andriasang

In an interview with Dengeki Playstation, Ignition’s Kashow Oda addressed several topics about the upcoming Vanillaware RPG, Dragon’s Crown.

• Difficulty will be based on improving skills by collecting items, rather than granting levels for particular play styles.  In multiplayer mode, beginners who are matched with more advanced players can acquire powerful items to close the gap.
• Character overlap is allowed; all players can choose any character, or even the same character if they like.
• Dungeons are sized so quests alone won’t take you through their entire length.  Completely clearing a dungeon may take considerably more time.
• Related to the above point, quests will sometimes take you on different paths through dungeons.  Some bosses can be evaded while others will pursue you.  An example is given of stealing an item from a particular boss; enraging him will cause him to chase you even into other dungeons.
• Piles of bones mark the spot where another player has died.  You can see their status and a dying message, and can also retrieve the bones to revive them as an NPC.
• The game has an estimated 40 to 50 hours of play time.

Source: Andriasang

Evening, folks! Hope you brought your appetite for media, because we have, shall we say, generous portions. In today’s update: Cardboard Troopers, Dai 2 Ji Super Robot Taisen OG, Dragon’s Crown, Final Fantasy XIII-2, Grand Knight’s History, Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2, Pandora’s Tower, Tales of the Abyss 3DS, Tales of Xillia, and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Dig in! Continue reading ‘Mass Media 06/13/11’ »

George Kamitani, director of the upcoming PS3/PSV RPG brawler Dragon’s Crown, spoke with Famitsu Magazine this week and laid bare a few new details about the game. Amongst the gameplay details and design notes comes the unexpected tidbit that Dragon’s Crown was in fact initially slated to appear on the Dreamcast, but that the developer could not find a publisher for the title. Continue reading ‘Dragon’s Crown Details Emerge’ »

After causing some surprise by appearing in the Playstation Vita’s coming attractions reel, Vanillaware has announced a new title called Dragon’s Crown. A 2D brawler RPG for both the PSV and the Playstation 3, Dragon’s Crown supports cross-platform multiplayer for up to four people. The game’s official site opened earlier today, and there’s a fancy trailer available for viewing on YouTube.