RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

Upcoming DLC for Final Fantasy XIII-2 will add new enemies to the game’s coliseum battles: Gilgamesh and the alien-like Koyo-Koyo, specifically. The coliseum DLC, alongside Noel’s Assassin’s Creed outfit, are due out on April 10, priced at ¥400/480MSP for Gilgamesh, ¥200/240MSP for Koyo-Koyo, and ¥300/360MSP for the Ezio costume.

Source: Andriasang

Famitsu has listed some of the characters to be featured in the upcoming .Hack//Versus. Haseo and Sora have been previously announced, and it’s now known that Tsukasa, Ouan, and Sakuya will also be playable. Additionally, the game’s story mode ties into the movie, and clearing it will open up a short sequence told from the perspective of David, a character in the movie.

Source: Andriasang

Via Famitsu, a release date for Legend of Heroes: Nayuta no Kiseki has been announced as July 26.

Source: Andriasang

Unexpected crossover Pokemon+Nobunaga’s Ambition is crossing over again, this time to US retailers. Retitled to simply Pokemon Conquest, the DS entry is scheduled to release on June 18.

Source: Joystiq

If life in the retail trenches has taught me anything, it’s that those jobs are really more precautionary prison sentences. True, there’s no cell and there aren’t as many gang fights, but it’s a stain on your past nonetheless, and the longer you stay in the harder it is to get out.

This depressing thought brought to you in part by nostalgia, for which I have that April Fools’ burst of Toonami to thank. Damn but that was good teevee. Anyhow, here’s the news:

• GAME exits administration, having found a buyer crazy enough willing to take on its debts.
• Sega, by contrast, announces a sizable drawdown in operations due to an income shortfall.  Basically, don’t expect Valkyria Chronicles 3 in English anytime soon.  Or ever.
• Meanwhile, Denis Dyack alternates between reassuring people that Too Human is still a thing, and warning that used games will crash the industry and kill your family in their sleep.
• EVE Online‘s developer partners with Nvidia to offer select video cards for virtual currency.  I’d love to hear Paul Krugman’s take on this.
• Brian Fargo speaks out on the lopsided balance of power between publishers and developers.  A lengthy interview on RipTen, but a good one: read it all here.
• Obsidian joins forces with inXile to help develop Wasteland 2, pending a Kickstarter goal of 2.1 million.  So, when I write the check for all of my money, which of you do I make it payable to?
• An OMGpop developer explains why he balked at Zynga’s offer, Michael Pachter disregards a silly PS4 rumor, GOG.com gets a facelift, and more!

(more…)

There ain’t no getting off the DLC train, or so Final Fantasy XIII-2 would have us believe. Dengeki Playstation reveals that the next set of content, featuring Lightning, has been titled Requiem of the Goddess. Apparently Lightning and Caius will be squaring off again in Requiem, though few particulars were discussed. A formal announcement from Square Enix is expected to follow.

Source: Andriasang

As usual, the title covers it. Microsoft has set up the official site for Crimson Dragon, the (currently Japan only) Kinect-based shooter from the Panzer Dragoon developers. Check it out 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

Ahh, April Fools’ Day, the day when everybody takes time out of their busy schedule to come up with ideas that we all laugh at but secretly wish were real. I have a similar problem, only with content I openly wish was real. Got a bit sidetracked this weekend folks, afraid WHTW won’t be up until tomorrow night. You know how it is, never enough time in the day. That, and one of the companies I applied at got bought by one of the other companies I applied at, so… yeah, been an interesting last couple days. Sorry ’bout the delay, I’ll see you all tomorrow!

Not one to let Square Enix have all the bulk news posts, NIS America has issued press releases for the following games, all PS3 exclusive:

• The Witch and the Hundred Knights is set to hit store shelves in early 2013. (link here). As previously suggested, this action-RPG centers around two witches duking it out, with one unleashing a horde of Dark Knights to destroy the other.
• Mugen Souls will see a fall release this year (link here). A free-roaming RPG with turn-based combat, it’s perhaps the first game I’ve seen to use “Moe Kill” as a bullet point.
• Legasista is scheduled to launch in August (link here). A dungeon crawler “survival action RPG,” this one will be exclusively on the PlayStation Network.

A recent Famitsu interview has shed some light on the meaning of Bravely Default: Flying Fairy. According to scenario writer Naotaka Hayashi and producer Tomoya Asano, the title references the game’s overall concept, more or less meaning “Have courage and renounce the promises and responsibilities that are expected of you.” Basically, have the guts to do what you think is right. The Flying Fairy part of the title remains curiously unexplained.

The interview also revealed that Hayashi got involved somewhat indirectly. Assistant producer Shinji Takahashi recommended to Asano the anime Steins;Gate, for which Hayashi had written. As a result, Hayashi was tapped to develop the plot and character settings, with some of the more detailed work split up between Square Enix and developer Silicon Studio.

Source: Andriasang

Square Enix recently revealed a string of new browser/iOS properties, including the following:

• Crystal Conquest, a team-based, free-to-play side scrolling action game. Players set up as one of four classes, customized via a card-based skill deck. The official site has details about the upcoming alpha test, and the game is expected to go live on Yahoo! Games this summer.
• Star Burial Dragnir, an iOS RPG from Wild Arms designer and writer Akifumi Kaneko. Little is known about this one, though further details will be announced on April 5.
• Guardian Cross, an iOS card battle RPG. Also free-to-play, this title is planned for a Spring release and has a teaser site hereabouts.

Source: Andriasang

Yoichi Wada, Square Enix’s CEO, announced that he is stepping down from his role as chairman of the Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association. Though he will remain a member of the CESA board, Namco Bandai’s vice president Shin Unozawa is set to take his place as chairman effective May 23.

Source: Andriasang

The BlazBlue team has announced a new game in development, a first entry in what they call an “Adventure Project.” Titled Xblaze, the game is set for a winter 2012 release window, though a platform has not been specified. Screenshots refer to Xblaze as “another Blue story,” suggesting possible but unconfirmed ties to BlazBlue.

Source: Andriasang

Square Enix revealed that an upcoming new version of the Final Fantasy XIII-2 soundtrack will include additional music. Alongside previously unreleased tracks, the aptly-titled FFXIII-2 Original Soundtrack Plus throws in new mixes and songs featured in downloadable content.

The OSP will be released on May 30, priced at ¥2,100.

Source: Andriasang

Ragnarok Odyssey has just received its first expansion, adding full online support over the initial ad-hoc only multiplayer. Paired with the release, Gung-Ho has given details about two upcoming expansions. The second will include a desert stage from Ragnarok Online, along with additional quests, and is set to launch sometime in April. The third adds still more quests, chat macros, more character customization choices, and other features.

Source: Andriasang

Yeah, I watched the Idolm@ster anime. What can I say? I indulge in the occasional weird Japanese thing. Went better than expected, although I’m not wading into the games anytime soon unless one can guarantee more box malfunctions.

Right then, to the news! This week we have the following:

• UK retailer GAME files for administration, the UK equivalent of Chapter 11.  Which means it’s game over NO MUST RESIST THE OBVIOUS PUN
• Meanwhile, Zynga buys out Omgpop, makers of Draw Something, for a whopping $200 million.  They’re gonna have to sell a lot of Zynga funbucks to make it up.
• BioWare plans “clarification” DLC for the Mass Effect 3 ending.  Forbes, by the way, has a better read on this fiasco than most games media outlets; spoilers aplenty, but give this article a read when you get time.
• Dragon Age 2 winds down as the team gets ready for Dragon Age 3.  Presumably they’re all just glad they’re not the Mass Effect team right about now.
• Speaking of dragons, Dragon’s Dogma‘s producer wants to sell ten million copies worldwide.  I’m just going to leave that there and let you picture it.
• Yet another producer, this one for Resident Evil: Revelations, tells the truth and breaks my heart about where the survival horror genre has gone in recent years.
• GameStop’s standing in retail is examined, Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition gets confirmed for the iPad, the .Hack series gets a fighting game, and more!

 
(more…)

Via Twitter, Dragon Age 2 executive producer Mark Darrah has revealed that planned DLC for the game – titled Exalted March – has been halted in mid-production. The reason for this came later, as Darrah further announced the Dragon Age 2 team has officially moved their focus to “the next phase of Dragon Age‘s future.” Darrah added that the team has spent time reexamining BioWare’s older titles, looking at “new possibilities that today’s industry allows.”

Source: Joystiq

From his official blog, BioWare’s co-founder Ray Muzyka has issued a response to the ongoing criticism of Mass Effect 3‘s ending. In it he restates that the team has been listening to all feedback, in and out of the press, and adds that “Exec Producer Casey Hudson and the team are hard at work on a number of game content initiatives that will help answer the questions, providing more clarity for those seeking further closure to their journey. You’ll hear more on this in April.”

No further details were provided, though Muzyka also mentions they plan to continue with new content for Mass Effect and other games. “Rest assured,” he writes, “that your journey in the Mass Effect universe can, and will, continue.”

The post in its entirety can be read here.

Care of Famitsu is the news that .hack Versus, the PS3 title bundled with the Blu-ray version of .hack//Sekai no Mikou no, is in fact a fighting game. Little is known, other than screenshots that show a similar perspective to the Naruto fighting games (which CyberConnect2 also develops). The game/movie bundle will be released on June 28, priced at ¥7,140 with a limited edition at ¥10,500.

Source: Andriasang