RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

Nothing quite like a sales binge to pick up on games you missed, especially when it reminds you how expensive some of them are. Hey, dude selling Suikoden V for $100: I hope your parents hated you, because I do. Also, a heads-up: I’ll be in DC next week starting Sunday, so no podcast while I’m away. See you all the following week! With that said, here are this week’s headlines:

• Rumors swirl that EA may be laying people off, though even if they’re true there may be a plausible explanation.  Or EA’s stock could be dropping, it could be that too.
• That said, Zynga appears to have gone off the deep end, with more OMGPop-style pricey acquisitions in the future.  OMGPop, incidentally, may have peaked the very day of its acquisition.  Get some popcorn, folks.
• Two of the Big Three schedule their E3 conferences, prompting a rehash of speculation.  My take: Microsoft offers no surprises, Sony needs to explain themselves, and Nintendo will steal headlines whether it wants to or not.
• Speaking of Sony, the New York Times offers a revealing look on where the electronics giant stumbled.  Short version: departmental tribalism, right down to war paint and scalping.
• Wired’s Chris Kohler asserts the existing publisher-hardware-retailer model is broken and we don’t really need it.  I agree, but scrapping it all seems premature.
• Namco-Bandai may avoid using GFWL for the PC version of Dark Souls.  On bended knee, I beseech Bamco to do the right thing and serve the Newell.
• A rumored meeting between Apple and Valve is debunked, Saints Row DLC may have saved THQ, and more!

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Internally referred to as “Project Adam,” Bethesda’s Kinect additions to Skyrim are planned to launch “during the week of April 23.”

Source: Joystiq

Really wanted a couple more ‘d’s to close that with. Anyway, Dragon’s Dogma will have a downloadable demo in North America and Europe. The demo goes live starting Tuesday, April 24 in North America and the following day in Europe.

Source: Joystiq

In a Famitsu interview, Namco Bandai’s Kensuke Tsukanaka, producer of Project X Zone, spoke about the unusual collaboration between his company, Capcom, and Sega. Reportedly, Namco Bandai got the ball rolling by approaching Capcom first, with Sega joining the discussion later. Characters have their signature moves and will often fight in teams – Ryu and Ken, Jill and Chris, etc. – though there are exceptions. The character list is not yet finalized, and confirmed characters include the following: (more…)

Speaking with Dengeki Playstation, Falcom CEO Toshihiro Kondo briefly brought up the Vita entry in the Ys series, Ys Celceta: Sea of Trees. The game has “evolved greatly” from its TGS 2011 showing, and more details will be released following Nayuta no Kiseki. Sea of Trees is expected to launch sometime this year.

As for Nayuta, Kondo indicated the game has no ties to past games in the Legend of Heroes series, hence its absence from the title. Further details were also revealed: the game world has boundaries and is not spherical, as no one knows what lies beyond the sea; the aforementioned mysterious girl, Noi, emerges from one of the ruins falling from the sky; gameplay and battle systems have been adjusted in response to feedback about prior games’ slow pacing; and boss fights were apparently one of the first things the staff designed.

Source: Andriasang

Via Coro Coro Comics, we have some additional details about Pokemon Black and White 2. Four additions to the cast were listed: a childhood friend currently dubbed Rival; a mysterious Pokemon researcher named Akuroma; and two additional gym leaders, Homika and Shizui. A June 23 release date was also confirmed, with both versions of the game to be priced at ¥4,800.

Source: Andriasang

Level-5 recently unveiled Little Battler eXperience Explosive Boost, a 3DS redux of last year’s PSP entry, Little Battler eXperience Boost. Apart from adding touch controls and updating the interface for the dual screen, Explosive Boost will feature wireless play for up to six players, which is new to the series.

The title is set for a July 5 release date, priced at ¥4,400.

Source: Andriasang

A recent media update has given us further information about Atelier Ayesha. In particular, the cast now includes the treasure-hunting Regina Curtis, and fellow alchemist Keithgrif Hazeldine. Regina is apparently one of Ayesha’s friends, while Keithgrif is a traveling scholar of sorts.

As for the alchemy system, it reportedly keeps most of the basics from prior games, with players gathering materials and selecting recipes. In a twist, however, you can now combine items during the fusion process to change the effects.

Source: Andriasang

Commemorating the release of Fire Emblem: Awakening, Nintendo has made the game’s soundtrack available through Club Nintendo. As is common, members who buy the game will get a discounted price on the soundtrack: 400 points normally, 250 with the discount. Participants have until October 21 to register their copy.

Source: Andriasang

Title says it all; check out Nayuta no Kiseki‘s official site here. While gameplay details are sparse, the story reportedly centers around the island of Nokosare Shima (“Left Behind Island,” apparently). Shooting stars and odd ruins have fallen from the skies around the island, with particularly strange stones, called Star Fragments, tantalizing those who find them with visions of another world.

You play one of the curious locals – the star-gazing, 15-year-old Nayuta – as he and his pal Signa investigate the ruins. Naturally there’s a mysterious girl involved, named Noi, though it’s not yet clear how their paths intersect.

Source: Andriasang

Ah, 16-bit-era Shadowrun. Come for the cyberpunk revenge plots and foxgirls, stay for the considerable XP/money grind so you can break the game in half. Good times, both SNES and Genesis. Anyway, on to the news:

• Sony’s financial woes catch up to them, doubling their loss forecast and forcing 10,000 layoffs.  “Holy s***, now what?” indeed, Mr. Hirai.
• Jack Tramiel, Commodore International founder and the man behind the C64, died at 83.  Yet another legend in the tech field that I knew almost nothing about.
• Peter Molyneux speaks out about leaving Microsoft for his indie venture.  Will it change the world, or will it OH JUST REMAKE SYNDICATE ALREADY GODDAMNIT
• The Better Business Bureau weighs in on the Mass Effect 3 ending furor, which is my personal “this has gone way too far” threshold.
• Meanwhile, Victor Ireland rather gloriously misreads Steam’s effect on RPG sales, while his own Clash of Heroes 2 Kickstarter falls well short of its goal.  Time to serve the Newell?  I’d say so.
• Wired’s Chris Kohler takes a scalpel to the argument that used games are hurting the industry.  The conclusion: the industry is hurting the industry.
• Project X Zone‘s creators are among the least likely to localize anything, Wasteland 2‘s Kickstarter coasts to a comfortable finish, and more!

 
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Howdy howdy. Sadly, What Happened This Week is not ready for your consumption tonight. Got a wee bit sidetracked with other matters. I won’t bore you with the details, suffice it to say a family of raccoons was determined to add some audio intensity to my playing of Silent Hill Downpour. That, and I had to hunt around for a blazer, the use of which will become obvious in a couple weeks.

Anyway, sorry about the delay. We’ll have the podcast up for you folks tomorrow night.

Via Famitsu, we have news that a crossover 3DS project is in the works between Namco, Capcom, and Sega. Dubbed Project X Zone, the crossover SRPG will feature characters from various series, ranging from Street Fighter and Resident Evil more esoteric ones, such as Space Channel 5 and Shining Force EXA.

The title will launch in Japan sometime this year. No word exists on a worldwide release.

Source: Joystiq

Namco Bandai has just announced that Level 5 and Studio Ghibli’s Ni No Kuni has been delayed, with its European and North American release dates pushed back to Q1 2013.

Source: Joystiq

In an official response, Square Enix admitted to a major bug present in Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance. Although rather specific, it can prevent players from making further progress, and SE has set up an information page on how to avoid the problem. Said page is accessible here, currently in Japanese as KH3D has not been released worldwide yet.

Source: Andriasang

On the off chance you haven’t bought one of the many hard copy versions already, Persona 3 FES is one of the latest releases on PSN. Shoot yourself in the head with a magic summoning gun for the low, low price of $9.99. So sayeth the official blog.

EA has just released the Resurgence Pack DLC for Mass Effect 3. As previously announced, the pack includes two new maps, six new classes – or “Krogan Vanguard and those other guys” as I call it – and an assortment of new weapons. The pack is free for all players with a valid online pass code.

Source: Joystiq

Yaknow, you can say what you want about Silent Hill: Downpour, but when it comes to being tense and creepy it doesn’t screw around. The actual enemies and combat are pretty naff, but it does a fine job instilling a sense of dread. There are rooms I just do not want to enter. I consider that a mission accomplished for a horror game.

Anyhow, on to the news:

• The Consumerist wrapped up their online poll for 2012’s Worst Company in America.  EA jumped to the front faster than you can say “biased sampling data.”  And speaking of EA…
• Mass Effect 3‘s Extended Cut DLC was announced, prompting LOTS OF SPECULATION FROM EVERYONE.  A PAX East BioWare panel offered some more information, likely only stoking the fire at this point.
• An industry analyst predicts doom for Nintendo, which happens often and just as often is disproven.  What’s new here is getting basic facts wrong.
• Get your credsticks out: a Shadowrun Kickstarter launched and met its goals handily.  Check it out here, chummer.
• Gamasutra ran a survey about salaries in the games industry, with some surprising data.  Long story short, I’m in the wrong line of work.
• Sonic the Hedgehog‘s creator winds up at Nintendo of America, Final Fantasy Versus XIII music winds up in Theatrhythm, and more!

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With indie studio Zeboyd Games at the helm, Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode Three is officially back on track for development. Retitled as the slightly-less-wordy Penny Arcade’s On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3, the game is scheduled to launch this summer on PC, Mac, XBLIG, iOS and Android platforms. As previously stated, the game is a departure from the series in terms of content, playing more as an 8-bit RPG in line with Zeboyd’s previous releases.

Founder Robert Boyd cites Final Fantasy V and Grandia as major influences, and this extends to combat through the use of a semi-real-time combat system. Boyd added that the title will have connections to previous games, but will be more of a standalone adventure. Zeboyd is handling the majority of the content creation, through collaboration with Penny Arcade’s Jerry Holkins. Unfortunately, players will not be able to import characters from previous games.

Source: Joystiq

Not one to satisfy itself with DLC music for existing games, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy will reportedly include music from Final Fantasy Versus XIII – specifically, the track “Somnus” – as part of its downloadable setlist. As a reminder, Versus XIII still has no confirmed release period. Theatrhythm, however, has been confirmed for North American and European release on the 3DS this summer.

Source: Joystiq