RandomNPC - Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features » Vandal Hearts (series)

Mass Media 11/05/09

Slayer of God — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:26:46 +0000

Hexys Force just got infinitely more disturbing.

Hexys Force
Source: Dengeki

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Dragon Quest IX
Source: Famitsu

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Final Fantasy XIII
Source: Game Watch

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The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Source: Game Watch

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Mass Effect 2

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Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey

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Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

Mass Media 09/30/09

Slayer of God — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 01:17:43 +0000

I took time away from Fallout 3: Broken Steel to do this update. You’d better appreciate it.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Source: Dengeki

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Rune Factory 3
Source: Dengeki Famitsu

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Final Fantasy XIII
Source: Famitsu Game Watch

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Inazuma Eleven 2
Source: Famitsu

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Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep
Source: Famitsu

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Tales of Graces
Source: Famitsu

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Mass Effect 2

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Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

Mass Media 08/23/09

John "Karlinn" Boske — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 22:45:18 +0000

Hang in there Slayer, I gotcha! Right after I eat this cake that’s mysteriously lying out on the table for some reason, on which that dead guy was apparently trying to write ‘poison’ before he keeled over. There we go! Now, on to save the good man from the – gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! *death*

In this update: Cross Treasures, Dragon Quest IX, Dragon Age: Origins, Persona 3 Portable, Phantasy Star Portable 2, Wizardry: Dungeon of the Imprisoned Souls, Vandal hearts: Flames of Judgment, and Guild Wars 2.

Cross Treasures
Source: Famitsu

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Dragon Quest IX
Source: Famitsu

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Dragon Age: Origins

[Gallery not found]

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Guild Wars 2

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Persona 3 Portable
Source: Famitsu

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Phantasy Star Portable 2
Source: Famitsu

[Gallery not found]

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Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

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Wizardry: Dungeon of the Imprisoned Souls
Source: Dengeki

Mass Media 08/20/09

Slayer of God — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 23:38:08 +0000

May the powers that be bless the return of football.

Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

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Mass Effect 2

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Dragon Age: Origins

Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment Cast Revealed

John "Karlinn" Boske — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 02:10:06 +0000

Konami has just released details about several main characters for the upcoming Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment. The story centers on two kingdoms at war, with the protagonist and his friends caught in the middle and presumably trying to make things less bad. Along the way, a lot of enemies are killed so brutally that blood jets out of their bodies in massive, physics-defying fountains. Anyway, here is the cast so far:

Tobias Martin: A war orphan turned street punk turned church ward, Tobias is the archetypal main character who thinks he knows right from wrong.

Luce Valenci: A war orphan turned knight, Luce’s a once-stellar soldier who’s had better moments in her career. Reportedly standoffish and uptight.

Altyria Jono: A bookwormish farm girl, Altyria is separated from her friends and family by the war, and “must learn new ways to survive.” Odds are low that it involves duct-taping a flamethrower to a pulse rifle and going into an alien hive after a little girl.

Connor Ganson: Street criminal, con artist, and one of Tobias’ oldest friends, Connor parted ways with Tobias over the whole ‘joining the church’ thing and he hasn’t been seen since.

Calvin Atrias: Tobias’ younger friend in the church, Calvin is a timid and socially inept fellow who tends to stay well behind friendly lines.

Gren Silas: Luce’s right-hand man, which most definitely does not come off. Gren’s the strong, silent type, loyal only to Luce, and supposedly no one has seen his face. Except Luce, in all likelihood. So, almost no one.

Daldren Grey: The Kingdom of Balastrade’s greatest war hero, Daldren’s a veteran soldier with few peers, and one of the most respected men still on active duty.

Kelbrun Hale: The bandit chief of the “Fist of Enkidu” gang, Kelbrun’s an ex-soldier who was kicked out for raiding a defenseless village. For some reason, his group has grown larger and better armed recently.

Shance Aya: Shance heads a group of bounty hunters known as the Hellhounds, with a reputation for being infallible. She reportedly tilts between ‘jolly’ and ‘psychotically bloodthirsty.’

Source: Gaming Angels

Mass Media 07/02/09

Slayer of God — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:28:41 +0000

You’re better off not knowing the lengths it took me to get these up.

Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

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Ys Online

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Final Fantasy XI: Moogle Kupo d’Etat

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Dragon Quest IX
Source: Famitsu

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Harvest Moon Makiba no Omise
Source: Famitsu

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End of Eternity
Source: Game Watch

Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment Impression

John "Karlinn" Boske — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 04:13:48 +0000

While poking around Konami and hoping the psych profile thing for the Silent Hill remake isn’t as gimmicky as it sounds, I got a quick taste of Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment for the 360, a prequel to the original for the PlayStation. It’s been a while since I got a taste of a good, turn-based strategy RPG, such that I probably would’ve gotten creamed by the giant enemy worm if it hadn’t been half dead when I started playing.

I picked up the controller smack in the middle of a battle and sort of had to learn the controls on the fly. The heroes were fighting some ugly flying parasites, backed by a giant worm that appeared to be spawning them somehow. The good guys were stacked with a healthy amount of muscle, magic, and potions, and the boss monster was crippled, but the fight was by no means a pushover considering how much damage the things were dishing out.

Fortunately, house rules still apply: red team over here, blue team over there, units go one at a time across a grid-based battlefield and whack each other with weapons and spells until one side’s had enough. Anyone familiar with games like Final Fantasy Tactics or Disgaea should have no trouble with the basics. In a change from the series, units are sequenced individually according to their stats, and a scrolling bar at the top helpfully indicates which unit, friend or foe, will get to move next.

One interesting new twist is that units now have both melee and ranged weapons, and can switch between them on the fly. A fighter that can’t quite get to an enemy in one turn, for instance, can switch to a bow and launch an attack at a distance. The trade-off is that one can’t counterattack with a ranged weapon, so if a melee unit gets in close they can strike without fear of reprisal. While I can’t speak to its balance in general gameplay, given that my units were scattered when I started playing this proved a useful, if risky tactic.

I only saw part of one mission, and can’t comment much on the visuals – the fight took place in some colorful but dreary-looking swampland – save to say the style felt odd at first. Characters were well animated, but they didn’t quite gel with what was going on. In contrast to the relatively competent semi-adults from the first game, it looked and felt like I was controlling a pack of kids. It may take some getting used to, but I didn’t see a speck of writing so a decent script could make this a non-issue. Giant fountains of blood pouring from defeated enemies, an odd but endearing series staple, remain intact here.

All that said, the original Vandal Hearts is an old favorite of mine, so I’ll be checking this out as soon as it’s available. I couldn’t get word on a release date beyond September of this year, though it will be available as a downloadable title on Xbox Live Arcade. The developer stated it should run about fifteen to twenty hours of playtime. Time will tell if that means fifteen quality hours, or five hours stretched out due to frequent death by giant worm. Maybe walking without rhythm will help.

Mass Media 04/15/09

John "Karlinn" Boske — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:10:00 +0000

No rest for the weary or wicked, eh? Incidentally, I just tried to bypass a Fallout 3 crashing problem with a custom Pipboy radio station by just playing Winamp in the background. This, sadly, chopped up the framerate like so much meat at the mercy of a certain butcher some of you may know. The moral of the story is Fallout 3 and Whitesnake do not get along. Anyway, more media for you fine folks: Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment, Tales of Graces, Crimson Gem Saga, Tales of Vesperia for the PS3, Blood of Bahamut and Arc Rise Fantasia.

Arc Rise Fantasia
Source: Famitsu

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Blood of Bahamut
Source: Famitsu

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Tales of Versperia
Source: Famitsu

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Tales of Graces
Source: Famitsu

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Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment

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Crimson Gem Saga

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Vandal Hearts Shuns Shelves

Erika "wolfraven80" Lachapelle — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:37:54 +0000

Konami has announced a new entry into the Vandal Hearts series, but in an interesting twist the game will not be heading to a store near you — or near anyone else for that matter. Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment will be coming to Xbox Live and the Playstation Network, in August and September respectively.

Flames of Judgment is set as a prequel to the original Vandal Hearts. It promises new game mechanics along with the fast-paced tactical gameplay of its PlayStation predecessors as well as current-generation graphics. The plot revolves around Tobias Martin, a young orphan determined to defend his homeland in the face of a brewing war.