Time to celebrate yet again, everyone – the Tribune is now legally old enough to drink!...if you’re generous enough to equate “weekly issues” with “years!” Don’t worry, though, I’ll find SOMEthing to highlight for every single issue if I can, I’m basically a walking, talking “365 excuses to party” calendar. I also, as it happens, have this past week’s unusual gaming news stories for you:

---------



First things first, reminder time – the awesome (and region-free) Mushihime-sama Futari releases next week. If you have yet to preorder this game and voice your support for the developers, DOO EET! DOO EET NAOUGH!

While the first Senko no Ronde (released here as WarTech) didn’t get a very friendly reception from most Westerners (including me), over in Japan these scans confirm that the sequel, Senko no Ronde Duo, is also coming to the 360. I doubt that Ubisoft or anyone else will give us another shot at the series…if they do, though, it probably won’t take long for it to meet its predecessor in the bargain bin. Some players swear by these games though, so I may well be missing something about them…

Along with a few other MSX oldies, the extra-obscure Konami side-scroller Space Manbow is coming to WiiWare in Japan – while I generally don’t recommend MSX shooters, this is definitely one of the better ones, and it was never really ported anyplace else, so those with access to the Japanese store might want to check it out. Across the console divide the excellent Raiden Fighters Aces is also available on the Japanese 360’s “Games on Demand” list, though again you pretty much need to be in Japan to get it – considering that the US disc-based release was 20 bucks to begin with, though, you didn’t have any excuse not to own it already anyways.

Just in case the six-part Sin and Punishment interview interspersed throughout the last few issues wasn’t enough for you, now you can watch the entire game on YouTube if you don’t mind being spoiled. Or just read some additional impressions instead. OR just keep waiting for a concrete Western release date in obedient silence…

The DSiWare version of Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ looks to be pretty much exactly the same as the original cart-based release, but just in case you still haven’t seen the game in action (spoiler: it features [Not-So]-Little Red Riding Hood killing zombies), you can watch a pair of videos on the front page in super-vertical Scroll-O-Vision!

Old, but apparently there’s an R-Type shirt out there someplace that someone mentioned. So yeah. On a similar note, while Space Invaders Extreme 2 turned out “okay” in my opinion, this car looks pretty darn nifty.




Check out this link for some new details on Super Street Fighter IV’s online modes, as well as a pair of videos featuring Juri versus T.Hawk and Dee Jay (as well as a really irritating announcer, who can hopefully be tuned down or turned off). (DToid coverage here). The front page also has an item on Replay Mode, and on the c-blogs RAB links to some official comments about the roster and yet another video (front-paged here), while Creamsnake has his own link to a G$ video which shows a new stage (front-paged here. Oh, and another new character may be revealed soon. Finally, while my usual tone is decidedly different from the writer’s, I still must concur with the general theme of this blog.

The “main” console editions of Tekken 6 have been out for a bit by now, but if you’ve mainly been keeping an eye on the not-yet-released PSP version the front page has two new videos to check out; a few other tidbits on the international releases are also available for perusal. Impressions of the console versions that I’ve seen have been very mixed…guess it just evokes certain reactions in certain gamers even more than most offerings.

Readers are probably already aware that I’ve never been much of a Mortal Kombat fan, but this post on the front page links to the blog of a former Midway artist who’s posted some work he did for a MK project that never got off the ground. Pretty neat, though (go figure) I couldn’t help but notice that the guy is apparently unaware of the existence of the word “whose”.

Wry Guy has unveiled his latest update on the “Fatal Destructoid” King of Fighters ‘98 tournament, focusing on fellow shmupper Zoel, who (surprise, surprise) effortlessly kicked my sorry backside when I sparred with him recently. And the video in that article doesn’t even show the Athena he used to single-handedly take my team apart…be forewarned, screeches of Psycho BAAAAALLLL will haunt your dreams.




Just in case my own piece on Atelier Annie didn’t explain the game clearly enough for you, here’s someone else’s take.

We knew it was coming, but it’s still awesome to see it confirmed – Yes, Virginia, there IS a Western release of 3D Dot Game Heroes! It’s coming in early May courtesy of Jolly Old Saint Atlus, and best of all it’s only 40 bucks! Once again I am tempted to construct maakeshift shrine to Jack Frost in my bedroom closet. (Jim Sterling is also happy here, as are the c-blogs here. Also check the front page or the c-blogs for the English trailer, as well as a sample of the soundtrack. Finally, just in case you needed any more impressions of the game, here they are (spoiler – it’s kinda like Zelda).

A couple more screens and a bit of additional character information are available for Ar Tonelico III, which NIS America had better have a very close eye on…

While the Tribune has already mentioned the upcoming PSP remake La Pucelle Ragnarok, as it turns out the game won’t be merely a one-shot revival, but merely the kickoff point for a pair of all-new La Pucelle sequels. No word on the nature of the games or what system(s) they’d appear on, but expect further news from Prier and company at some point.

Some vital information about the upcoming Lufia revival has come out – 1) It’ll be on the DS. 2) It’ll be in 3D. 3) It’ll be an action-RPG. I’m not particularly excited about any of those developments, to be perfectly honest…hopefully I turn out to be wrong in my premonitions.

The Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! fan art contest has concluded, and the winners have been posted. The official site for Badman! 2 has been updated, as has the corresponding site for Sakura Wars: So Long My Love. To round out this issue’s NISA hodgepodge, apparently the Powers That Be are coinsidering bringing Mana Khemia 2 Portable over if there’s a demand for it; considering how shoddy the PSP version of the original game was I’m not sure it exists, but if they’ve managed to improve this one…

The official site for the upcoming localization of Shiren the Wanderer for Wii is also up, though there’s not much to see as of yet – for more information visit Atlus’s forum for a “developer blog” post, with more like it to come (DToid coverage here). Also, this page suggests that the game might be here as early as February – Amazon currently slates it for April, so we’ll have to wait for some official word from Atlus to settle this discrepancy.

I haven’t played Nostalgia myself, but for anyone who has (or is just interested in the developer’s perspective) click here for an interview with the game’s Project Director. Those of you who have tried the game, how is it, overall? I’m kind of hesitant to take the plunge myself…

Any of you out there who are interested in the Turbo CD homebrew scene ought to be interested in a fan-made RPG called Mysterious Song, which is nearly complete and open for pre-orders. Apparently it’s a remake of a PC game (which I’m not personally familiar with) from about a decade ago – some of the Tribune’s readers probably know more about it than I do, so if you have any additional relevant information to share, let us know.




Ol’ Yuji Naka (aka Mr. Sonic) is releasing a nice-looking Kirby: Canvas Curse-esque title called Ivy the Kiwi?, in which you help a constantly-running bird along by drawing “vines” on-screen to use as platforms or slingshots. It’s only on Windows Phone, but the rest of the world can hope it sees a DS port or the like eventually.

Just a rumor right now, but if it turns out to be true we can expect Scribblenauts 2 sometime next year, on the PC and Wii as well as the DS. Gamasutra also has excerpts from a Game Developer magazine interview with 5th Cell about several notable aspects of the “original” game, including the control scheme, localization, and level design – a link to said article can be found here.

I haven’t kept up with Raskulls as well as I probably should have, but the front page has thankfully been more fastidious – one of the developers talks about the game’s modes, and also offers a more general take on how hard it is for new IPs to be noticed in this day and age.

Marvelous Entertainment posted some of their Japanese sales figures for this past year, with some semi-discouraging results…while their PSP output (most notably Half-Minute Hero) made some money, it wasn’t enough to make up for the losses the company endured on their Wii output (most notably Muramasa and Little King’s Story). These guys put out some worthy stuff, so hopefully next year will turn out better for them…

Last issue I linked you to a video shot by a shmup forum member who hosted King of Kong personality Mark Alpiger and had him try a bullet hell shooter or two – this week, a fuller rundown of their encounter (which spanned quite a bit of time and space) can be read over here.

This is old, but just in case anyone (like me) hadn’t seen it yet, be sure to check out the Arcade Game Screen Quiz, which tests your ability to recognize arcade titles by their screenshots. A lot of the time the options you’re given make the correct answer rather obvious, but it’s still not a bad way to kill a little time.

Aaaand your Silly Photo of the Week. AAAAND your Non-Obscure But Still Amusing Video as well.

---------

Hoping to have another non-Tribune article up sometime next week…back to work! As usual, thanks for reading and keep gaming obscurely.