E3 2009 part 3 ~ final roundup.

I missed a few things from E3 2009, so this will probably be the final post, with some rant, some opinions and shiz.

PSP Go

So this was announced by Sony this year at E3, or rather leaked early, which led to it being known as the worst kept secret of E3. The new handheld will have a sliding screen mechanism like a mobile phone, with the buttons and control stuff inside.  Here's some of the tech stuff and my opinion on the thing in general.


+Pros
Smaller Size-This thing is roughly 50% smaller and 40% lighter than the PSP. Thats good I guess.

+Bright screen-similar to the one in the PSP 3000, its good quality.

+Lots of PS1 games coming out, including the rather awesome Final Fantasy VII.

+Storage seems good. 16 Gb base, with a slot for memory card for more (up to 32 Gig total I think) 

+Bluetooth for those who care, its good for files and transferring stuff like images, music etc

+Can play music and other non-gaming stuff like the PSP

-Cons

-Pricing. This is one thing that almost kills the thing outright. Damn well headshots it almost. $250. For a handheld that is so-so? [My opinion, it could be very appealing to some people] I mean, isnt that around the same as a Wii? Although I don't play my Wii much, I'd much rather have a Wii than a PSP Go. They got the PS3 prices wrong IMO, hopefully for $ony's sake *cough* they give us price drops quickly on this thing. Or I don't see it selling well.

-They are ditching the UMD hardware. That could be a good thing, as they are noisy and distracting. But they could have taken a leaf out of Nintendo's handheld stuff (bar the DSi). Having backcompatibility is a feature I really like on my consoles. If they do the digital distribution thing well, it could work. However it needs to be a million miles from what PAL gamers have at the moment on the PSP store. They have like a dozen games on there perhaps, maybe 1 or 2 updates every week and those arent even always new releases or all of the new releases. Plus they never seem to go down in price or on sale. The PSN store in Japan is the other extreme, that is done well. 

I just dont like it that I wont be able to play my PSP games. If I pay a shitload for this thing, I need to then buy digital games off the store? What if I wanna go back and play some Disgaea or something? Nah, I cant on this system, which automatically means people won't trade in their PSPs to go towards this. Thanks Sony.

-Its effect on the PSP in the meantime. This is something indirect, and will affect the handheld market in the runup to the PSP Go release. Are third party games developers going to develop games for the PSP knowing that its more expensive to do so on the PSP than the DS and equally important, knowing that PSP software sales are so poor in comparison-largely due to piracy levels but also due to the poor quality of a lot of the games coming out. For me, it seems the DS has a much better game library in place. Plus, even though a lot of people have PSPs, DS sales have far outrun them. 101 million DS's have been sold worldwide, whereas around 51 million PSPs have been sold as of March 09. Lastly,  games developers will see this PSP Go news and think "hmm, Sony are ditching the UMD format some time soon, I won't bother developing this game for the PSP system as it might not sell well." Then they might go to the DS and make their game for that system. 

-No touch screen. I'm not bothered about this. They would have just been ripping it right off from the DS, and although its nice, its very common these days and really not necessary. Still, <3>

-Aesthetically, man its ugly...I really don't like it. Looks like a fatass mechanical Cartman from South Park or something. I dont like the way the bottom half stuff is sunk in..looks bad somehow.

-It has 1 analogue stick, something which is stupid because a lot of games could have benefited from 2 and loads of people were screaming out for 2 nubs on this piece of kit.

Some PSP articles and news;

http://www.gamepro.com/article/previews/210691/psp-go-e3-2009-impressions/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_Portable_Go

http://uk.psp.ign.com/articles/993/993402p1.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/e3-2009/5432014/E3-2009-Sony-launches-new-PSP-Go-handheld-games-console.html

Metroid Other M

Hope that isnt the real name, cos that is plain stupid XD...

I dunno, I cant really comment too much as I've missed out on most Metroid games, got the first 2 on the Gamecube, but not finished them. Still, they are well-liked, just like most Nintendo franchises.

Nice graphics for the Wii, I must say. Looks good. Think that'll do for my E3 coverage. *dies of exhaustion.*

E3 2009 part 2~Roundup of news.

There are some other things I am pretty intrigued by. E3 2009 has finished now, and I'm gonna round up all the news that I think is worth talking about. I had wanted to do this initially, but I got swamped by the amount of announcements at the time.

Star Wars: The Old Republic (PC)

Whoa...awesome! If only I had a PC to run this. I doubt my ancient piece of crap will be able to... T_T  Would be cool if it was on 360 too, but I dont think it is.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)

Gimmicky? Zelda good? Both probably true. Video:

It just looks like they've palette swapped the ocean from Phantom Hourglass for a kind of on-rails continental setting. Cant help all those mountains and trees will make it look very linear and closed in. Hopefully theres a good deal of scope to explore and freely roam about the place. This could be good, but could be more of what we've seen before in Zelda games.

Final Fantasy XIV Online (PS3)

Yup, not a typo. FFXIV will be online only MMORPG a la FFXI. PS3 only apparantely.

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3174536

Castlevania: Lord of Shadows (Xbox 360/PS3)

Oh yeah! Don't let us down Kojima!

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (DS)

There are a few of the Layton games out in Japan, good to see we are getting more of these now. I'm pretty sure Curious Village sold well, and it was a pretty well done game in my opinion.

http://www.gametrailers.com/game/professor-layton-and-the-diabolical/5429

Project Natal (Microsoft)

This isn't a game per se, just a kind of announcement of something in the works at Microsoft. Its basically this piece of kit which will have motion sensing for controlling, as well as the ability to "scan" items in. For example, on a Tony Hawks or skateboarding game, players will be able to scan their own decks in for use in game. Sounds pretty cool, but hmm also seems familiar...where have I seen something like that before? Yeah, the Wii is way ahead of you Microsoft. They've basically done that already...I'm not too much of a fan of it at times. Although it can work, and perhaps this could be good. With that technology, it could be expensive too. In these times, are people going to want a bunch of peripherals for the console? Price has got to be right for this too. Here's a video. Some of it looks like a direct ripoff from the Wii.

This Natal hardware will be able to recognise a lot of stuff too, Lionhead showcased Natal with Milo, which can recognise details such as facial features and voices and how they change with emotions for example. Apparantely its not scripted, but I dont see how the whole handing the paper thing wasnt. Seems a bit unbelievable really. Pete on youtube (Link) talked about it in his video coverage of E3, check his stuff out, I would really recommend it. Potentially, it could be a very interesting piece of kit which could be capable of breaking down the game to gamer "barrier" that is the controller. Will it be interesting though, or just a gimmick? I don't know if I would be that drawn in to something like that, because of my inhibitions or something, I would feel stupid talking to the TV, similar to the fact that I dont like dancing around like an idiot in the front room on the Wii. Peter Molyneux said everyone that watched the video went to catch the goggles thing that Milo threw, but I'm not so sure I would.

Turning an invisible steering wheel or pointing an invisible gun sounds cool, actually..no it doesn't it sounds a bit stupid really. I'd rather have a more responsive controller, thats one of my qualms with the Wii controls at times, but who knows, this might work well.

Alan Wake (PC, Xbox 360)

I'm not too interested in this at the moment, looks a bit generic. Nice graphics in places though.

Modern Warfare 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

I'm not sure if it will be called this or CoD:Modern Warfare 2...but anyway, looks like more of the same, which probably is a good thing. Don't see what sets it apart from the first though. Heres some video:

Misc Microsoft stuff:

Facebook, Twitter and Last F.M coming to Xbox 360. Urgh...Social Networking's world domination continues to new heights... T_T

Forza Motorsport 3

Nintendo stuff

New Super Mario Bros Wii (Wii)

Visually it could be better, but the gameplay looks really good, like the look of that co-op. I'm wondering how it will turn out. I loved the DS game!

Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)

Wii Fit Plus

Wow, now theres this, Wii Fit and that EA Sports thing or whatever it was. Fitness is a big thing they got going on the Wii. Pretty interesting.

Maybe I missed something, but I dont see why you'd need or want to weigh your dog...

Wii Vitality Sensor

So what does this do? Sounds like if you are about to die from overexertion on Wii Fit or whatever, this would start beeping. Hmm, close, but heres what wikipedia says about it.

"The Wii Vitality Sensor is a fingertip pulse oximeter sensor that connects through the Wii Remote. According to Nintendo, the device "will initially sense the user's pulse and a number of other signals being transmitted by their bodies, and will then provide information to the users about the body’s inner world." The Wii Vitality Sensor was announced by Satoru Iwata at Nintendo's E3 2009 media briefing on June 2. No specific applications were revealed for the device, but when presenting the device Iwata suggested that video games may soon be used for relaxation."

E3 2009.

I had already posted about some of the E3 news, but I screwed the HTML coding up somewhere down the line and it stretched my page layout and forced my sidebars to the bottom of the page. So that one got deleted (took me ages that last post... T_T) and I'm going to do some more E3 posts that work this time.

Anyway, E3 2009 started yesterday(June 2nd) in the LA convention centre and so far there has been tonnes of announcements and info about games, games designers and whatnot.

Take a look at the official site here. 

I'll talk about some of the games I'm most interested in and give you some links, videos and info for as much stuff as I can. Enjoy! ;D

Assassin's Creed 2 (PS3, Xbox 360)

Release date set at November 17th. The first game was repetitive but had some very cool features. This sequel is set in Renaissance-era memories by the look of it, Venice in this cinematic trailer.

http://www.gametrailers.com/news/assassin-s-creed-2-release/957?e3i=1

http://e3.gamespot.com/story/6210843/assassins-creed-first-impressions?tag=topslot;thumb;2

http://www.gametrailers.com/news/assassin-s-creed-2-release/957?e3i=1

Crackdown 2 (Xbox 360)

Crysis 2 (PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

So maybe more than 2 people can get to play this one. lol =D

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3174478

Dissidia Final Fantasy (PSP)

Dragon Age: Origins (PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

Cant seem to get this to work, so heres the link for some video: http://www.gametrailers.com/game/dragon-age-origins/9022

God of War III (PS3)

Coming March 2010

Golden Sun (DS)s="">" object="" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" id="gtembed" width="480" height="392">

Video Games | Golden Sun | E3 09: Debut Teaser

XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

Coming 2010, Awesomeness.

Halo 3: ODST (Xbox 360)

http://www.gametrailers.com/news/halo-3-odst-images-from-e3/961?e3i=1

Halo 3: Reach (Xbox 360)

http://www.gametrailers.com/game/halo-reach/11394

Left 4 Dead 2 (Xbox 360)

This makes me smile. November 17th for this one.

Mass Effect 2 (PC, Xbox 360)

Some new screens and a video. Search for screens, I seem to have lost the link.

Metal Gear Solid: Rising (PS3, Xbox 360)

Coming to the 360, a first for MGS games.

No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle (Wii)

http://e3.gamespot.com/story/6210666/no-more-heroes-desperate-struggle-qanda-suda51-talks-travis-touchdown

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)

ok, this just looks stupid and gimmicky, but you never know, Zelda games can be good. I'm not hugely anticipating this one exactly. I'm far from Zelda fanboy status..all the ones I've played have been slightly underwhelming and overrated in my opinion. *Puts on flamesuit*

I'll update more as E3 continues or I find more stuff out.

Awesomeness.

This video...OMG it is too awesome for words. Enjoy!

Here is some other random junk from my folders. Wait, I mean more pure AWESOME! YEAH! XD

Click em' for enlarged amounts of awesome.

Edit with more Awesome shiz:

Some random crap I found on youtube. I don't know what the hell just happened, but I want that onion suit and a cheese curry XD

Hahaha so true!

I just love the inventory thing in this one XD

More Pokaymons stuff.

Played a bit more of Platinum today (actually a LOT, like for most of the day) and after getting the 2nd badge, my traded pokemon up to lv30 would obey me (according to the manual.) So that was a load off my mind, I was able to train up my team without them loafing around and dying in battle.

This is the team now, with 2 badges. I am just through Mt. Coronet at the berry master's house (but I've backtracked and saved next to a patch of berries waiting on them growing for now)

Grotle lv 26 - Razor Leaf, Tackle, Bite, Curse

Weavile lv 26 - Faint Attack, Quick Attack, Fury Swipes, Taunt

Aerodactyl lv 26 - Ancientpower, Bite, Agility, Supersonic

Meditite lv 26 - Hidden Power (fighting), Confusion, Calm Mind, Feint (this was worse than I thought ><)

Chinchou lv 26 *New addition* - Water Gun, Spark, Confuse Ray, Take Down

I found that the previous 4 I was going through with was lacking water and electric moves, and moves on the special side of things, so I had a look through my Diamond boxes and found a Chinchou at the perfect level for my team. Transferred that across to help out and I've been levelling them a bit before I go for the next gym.

The moves on my team aren't amazing, but I dont really want to "waste" any TMs on this team. I prefer keeping them till I train up better pokemon after the Elite 4. 

I just need to remember and keep them under 30 until I get 4 badges...Dont think that will happen if they are at 26 already and I've not even got 3 yet. T_T 

I've also been trying to figure out what to put in the final slot in the team. No idea really...was thinking that Ice/Ghost thing. I don't know why but I decided early on when I was designing the team that none of the pokemon's types would overlap ie. Only 1 of each type max across the team. I feel it gives me better coverage against greater amounts of pokemon and less wasted. Definitely helps if I'm not teaching any TMs to this team as I'll be able to have a wider natural movepool, if you follow, with no need to waste moves from TMs.

Pokemon..why won't you obey me?!

I've been playing Pokemon Platinum for quite a bit today since I got it the other day. 

I decided before I got the game on a team that I would trade some of across from Diamond to help me through the game. I didn't expect to get so many problems with the pokemon not obeying me. 

Here's my team at the moment, with 1 badge. White text is from Platinum, Silver is from my Diamond game ie. traded across

Grotle lv18

Sneasel lv15

Aerodactyl lv13

Meditite lv13

I had intended to include a Horsea and another, but I gave up on those, I'm gonna pick 2 more up as I go through the game. 

Anyway, here is the problem I was mentioning before. Pokemon that are traded from another game benefit from receiving 1.5x the normal Exp from battles, however they don't always obey the new trainer if you dont have enough badges. So far I have 1 badge, but that doesnt seem to prevent any of my Diamond OT pokes from wacking off or whatever they do in battle, cos it sure aint fighting. My Grotle is lv18, a decent level for where I am in the game and obeys me no question, but the lower level traded pokemon don't! I guess I'm just getting frustrated, but its getting hard to level them when they keep passing their turns and dying.

End of passion play, crumbling away
I'm your source of self-destruction
Veins that pump with fear, sucking dark is clear
Leading on your deaths construction

Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you

Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master

Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master

Needlework the way, never you betray
Life of death becoming clearer
Pain monopoly, ritual misery
Chop your breakfast on a mirror

Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you

Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master

Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master

Master, Master, where's the dreams that I've been after?
Master, Master, you promised only lies
Laughter, Laughter, all I hear or see is laughter
Laughter, Laughter, laughing at my cries
Hell is worth all that, natural habitat
Just a rhyme without a reason
Neverending maze, drift on numbered days
now your life is out of season
I will occupy
I will help you die
I will run through you
Now I rule you too

Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master

Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master

Come on, they gotta obey me after I post those awesome Metallica lyrics =p

Oh well, back to the grind. Maybe if I get some more badges it'll even out.

Bit of a random update.

I havent really updated with much interesting recently. Thought I'd post, even if it might not necessarily be interesting to you. But hell if it isn't interesting, people probably aren't reading so I don't see why I'm thinking into this too much.

Its starting to feel more like summer now, with the football leagues finished and the weather in the past few days improving insanely. Damn Rangers winning things this season...I don't think they deserved the league this year, but hell, I am biased. Plus Celtic dropped a stupid amount of points. actually...thats nothing to do with Rangers and probably one of the reasons they went on to win the league title. And although I hate to say it, Novo's goal in the cup final today was quite something.

I noticed that I've been overusing commas recently, don't know why... I can't remember the exact "ruling" for when to use commas, semi-colons, colons, dashes and as a result use some in the wrong situation. But OMG...I'm getting stupidly sidetracked again by minutae. I'm pretty sure people won't want to read about my grammatical errors. 

I've finished my Black Mage 8-bit painting, I'll try upload it somewhere to the interwebz at some point soon hopefully. Also been trying to work on a new banner for the blog, the one you see now (Cloud) is the result, but it might get tweaked or changed because I'm not 100% satisfied with it yet.

I've been spending stupid amounts recently on games, I'll give you a roundup of what I bought in the past few months. Some of these I am very pleased with =D I'll also tally up the total price and most likely cry.

Star Ocean IV: The Last Hope Limited Collectors Ed. (X360) £49.99 Preorder from Amazon

Knights in the Nightmare (DS) £39.55 from Ebay (with Atlus Preorder Spoils only available in US) Spoils

Pokemon Platinum (DS) £28 from HMV

Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny (PS2) £11 from Amazon [complete with soundtrack]

Unlimited Saga (PS2) £5.50ish from Ebay [complete with FFX-2 prologue disc]

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles (PSP) £12 from Ebay

Riviera (PSP) £18 from Ebay

Total: over £160...

Some of those games are only getting rarer..yeah I'll keep telling myself that. T_T 

Also, I've not paid for Star Ocean yet, as its not shipped: and I think its gone lower than 50 since I placed the preorder, so I only have to pay the lowest price its gone too.

Till next time ;D

Geometry Wars Galaxies and stuff.

I've been playing a bit more of this on and off when I need something simple but fun and addictive.

The game is on a few different systems, but I'm playing the DS version. I really like the control system with the D-Pad and stylus at the same time-its quite well done. 

This screen is not from the DS version which has slightly weaker visuals, but still looks nice. 

I think I played too much of this game somehow. The other night I had dreams of a neon wire frame dragon attacking me lol.

I'd definitely recommend the game, even though it doesnt have any storyline its still a game I really like.

Link.

I kinda forgot what else I was going to talk about actually..oh, my Black Mage painting is almost done. I'll put that up if I can get it scanned once its done =D

Upcoming PSP RPGs.

The PSP is a system that has plenty of promise, but for me, doesnt have that many RPG titles. Not many of the non-RPG titles have really jumped off the shelves at me either. It has a fair few now and that number is growing but I still prefer the DS. Perhaps given time the PSP will accumulate RPGs similar to the PS2 which has a huge collection. I'm gonna focus on some of the RPGs that are coming out soon in this post.

Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days (PSP)

I posted this video before, but this one is the US trailer and has english comments.

Persona (PSP)

I'm still not sure about this, heard some bad things about the original game, hopefully they change the bad stuff for this version, like some kind of map. The Etrian Odyssey games apparantely do FP-Dungeon crawling and map management quite well. Dark Spire was another that I was looking at.

Crimson Gem Saga aka Garnet Chronicle (PSP)

This is the sequel to Astonishia Story, and known as Garnet Chronicle in Japan. I heard bad things about AS, hopefully I don't need to play it in order to enjoy this one. It looks very promising.

http://www.atlus.com/cgs/

Class of Heroes (PSP)

This one looks quite lighthearted and cheery and with what seems to be quite a common theme in rpgs-some kind of magical/adventure school. 

"This is as classic as dungeon crawling gets in an ever-changing 3-D labyrinth containing more than 75 maps full of puzzles, traps, and treasure. Over 500 character possibilities are available to you. A flexible alchemy system with more than 400 recipes allows you to synthesize new items from random items found in the labyrinths, as well as customize your weapons attributes, range, and strength.

Available June 2009."

The "500" character possibilities could be good, but could also be quite limited. There are 10 races from what I've heard, and quite a few classes for them to choose from. Could be interesting. Its kinda americanised in that the classes are called "majors." Interesting to see if they change that for the PAL release, or not. If one is on the way, I'm not too sure.

http://www.atlus.com/classofheroes/home.html

Final Fantasy XIII Agito (PSP)

*Damn...I shoulda left out the "(PSP)", these are all PSP titles...

I'm not too sure if this is within copyright laws...as trailers have been removed from youtube. So I wont bother uploading the vid. Go here to watch it and find out some more.

Also, official site, with which I cant seem to find any links on... Nice pic though I guess hehe...

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep (PSP)

*I started putting PSP after each, might as well stick with the format :P

For those confused by the forthcoming KH titles and I still am too at times, here is a bit of info for clarification/recapping. There are 3 Kingdom Hearts games set to come out in Japan. Probably only 2 of these will make it to America and the rest of us any time soon. 

The 3 games are;

Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 (DS) ~ This is an interquel, between KH1 and KH2.

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep (PSP) ~ This is a prequel to the original PS2 game.

Kingdom Hearts coded (Mobile) *We probably wont get this one where you play as a Digital Sora*

I'm not gonna look up any videos for these, as although I've beaten Kingdom Hearts, I havent started the 2nd one and I'm pretty sure I would get some spoilers if I watched vids or read through all that info in detail. Look at the links above, or do some searches if you are interested in these.

That is all for now, I'm running out of steam.

Some more gaming news.

Here's some more stuff, some of it oldish but meh.

Dragon Age Origins (PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

A video from a while ago showing the graphic content that we will see in this Bioware RPG which some people have described as a spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate.

Dragon Age Origins 'This is the new Sh*t' trailer HD

This one should be good! I might have actually posted that video before, but I'm looking forward to the voice acting in this game. They've got a big cast working on it, and it sounds good in quality!

Sometime Q4 this year for this one.

http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/rpg/dragonage/index.html?tag=result;title;1

Pokemon Platinum (DS)

This is coming out in the UK very soon - May 22nd. Everyone else has had it for a while now and we'll soon get addicted to this, well I will... I was close to getting the NTSC version or preordering it but resisted. This is one of the games I might actually pick up at launch because I love pokemon games. I don't usually buy games at launch because I am stingy but this series is one that can tempt me with my money. =D

http://uk.gamespot.com/ds/rpg/pokemonplatinum/index.html?tag=result;title;0

http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3173364

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP)

I've not played any of the games before this, but the trailers look pretty cool. This one will be out on..well sometime. I'm not sure.

Tales of Vesperia (Xbox 360, PS3)

This is due out across Europe on June, 26th 2009. I really like the look of this one.

Looks very similar to Tales of Symphonia, which I liked some things about but couldn't finish.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tales_of_Vesperia

http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/rpg/talesofvesperia/index.html?tag=result;title;0

Star Ocean IV: The Last Hope (Xbox 360)

Wow, he can run almost as fast as Kaim from Lost Odyssey :o

I've actually preordered this one already, even though I heard some things about it weren't quite up to scratch. Looks too cool not to! 

June 5th 2009 PAL release for this one.

Some gaming news.

Thought I'd post up some more news..news in the video gaming industry moves fast and I'm not usually up to date or the first to know, but hell...I found this stuff awesome so you might too!

I'll start off with Knights in the Nightmare, the genre-crossing game from Sting and this one is apparantely the 4th title in their Dept. Heaven series, which includes Riviera: The Promised Land and Yggdra Union: We'll never fight alone. The 3rd title in the series isn't out at the moment, and there are few current details on it. This one looks really unique and different from any of the games out there on the DS. Its kind of a mashup of srpg, strategy and shooter from what I can tell, but take that with a pinch of salt. Style-wise it is slightly similar to Riviera and Yggdra Union and this is one game that looks so nice I really want to get the artbook. It might cost me a bit, but I'll probably look into ebay for the package that ships with US preorders. 

Some nice art from Gamespot, RPGfan, RPGamer dunno where else...

Some links and details because theres lots of stuff on there I cant really fit on here. Take a look at these for more;

http://uk.gamespot.com/ds/strategy/knightsinthenightmare/index.html?tag=gallery_summary;title

http://www.rpgamer.com/games/other/nds/kitn/kitn.html

http://uk.ds.ign.com/objects/142/14235020.html

Knights in the Nightmare (DS)

Developer: Sting

Publisher: Atlus Co

Release Dates: Jun 2, 2009 (US)

Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days (PSP)

I'm quite interested in this one as I really liked the quirkyness, humour and references in the story of the first game. Its a remake or port of Disgaea 2 from the PS2, with added story and aspects of gameplay from the 3rd game on the PS3 from what I can tell. I've not played the 2nd one before, so I'll be looking to get a hold of this one. UK gamers have got all of the recent Disgaea releases, so hopefully we'll get this one as well. If not, I can always import the US copy.

We'll have to wait for this one a while longer, it'll be out later this year in the US.

Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days

Developer: Nippon Ichi Software

Publisher: NIS America

Release Dates: All we've got is Q4 2009 at the moment.

Source: http://playstation.joystiq.com/2009/02/27/disgaea-2-dark-hero-days-psp-trailer/

Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis (PS2)

Us PAL gamers have this now, its released with a pretty cool premium edition with lots of nice stuff: soundtrack, poster and stuff.

I might check this out if I can get it reasonably cheap.

Ar Tonelico 2: Melody Of The Metafalica (PS2)

This is also coming to PAL regions, hopefully there is a better job of it done than the US gamers got. Bugs, bad localisation are not good things, so I'll look at some reviews for this first. Don't know if the insane amount of innuendo and whatnot would be my thing, but still, its cool that PAL gamers get a chance on this one. There is too much going on in this post. I will edit or do another one after this.

Finished Odin Sphere finally!

I finally beat Odin Sphere and the ending is...amazing! Such a breathtaking, emotional final few scenes and it ties together everything that had come before it in the story. I won't give any spoilers because I don't like getting games, anime or movies etc spoiled for me. I'll simply recommend the game, it definitely is way up there among my favourite games. Yeah, there are some bits and aspects I didn't like, perhaps it was a tad too drawn out, slightly repetitive, it often lags and is quite hard at times, but all of those flaws are only minor superficial scratches and really don't take too much away from the overall experience of the game.

My final clear time was 65 hrs 20 and I got the true ending (yeah, I had a peek at Gamefaqs to find out what order to do things in to get it =p) and it is such a beautiful ending to an incredible game.

I'm going to sleep now. ^o^

Mass Effect 2 - Prelude to E3

Bioware have released a trailer which they dubbed "prelude to E3" and gave us a lot more insight into the game mechanics, graphical overhaul, storyline, weapons and a few other things. 

Check out the link for the article I saw below;

http://exophase.com/xbox360/mass-effect-2-prelude-to-e3-trailer-11467.htm

This has just jumped way up on my list of anticipated games. I can't wait for this. Roll on E3 so we can get more on this!

Here's the video;