RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

At a recent NIS America press event, Souhei Niikawa – best known as the producer of the Disgaea series – announced that the company will from now on limit the number of releases per year.  Niikawa stated the move is intended to allow developers to focus on game quality and customer satisfaction, though the exact limit was not specified.  Three upcoming titles were announced as part of this new policy:

• Cladun: This is an RPG, according to the press release, is an action-adventure built around a retro dungeon crawl.  Bound for the PSP via PlayStation Network, Cladun will feature character creation, randomly generated dungeons, and multiplayer through the PSP’s ad-hoc feature.  The current release timeframe is fall of this year.
• Zettai Hero Keikaku, a strategy RPG centered around creating your own superhero, was simply referred to as Z.H.P. in its own press release.  The Disgaea team will be developing  Z.H.P., which is currently set for a winter launch on the PSP.
• Ar Tonelico 3 got a formal title: Ar Tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel.  Billed as the final installment in the Ar Tonelico series, the PS3 title will have more action-oriented gameplay.  The release window for North America and Europe is spring of 2011.

Niikawa also made mention of the next Disgaea title, bound for the PS3 in Japan.  Few details were given, but he affirmed that more information would available “by the time
Tokyo Game Show comes around.”