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Square Enix sale offers discounts on everything Square Enix
Square Enix is hosting another sale on its online store, one that actually appears to discount Hitman: Absolution for real. Basically, almost everything in the store is 50% off, with free shipping to the contiguous US states.Some of the noteworthy offers, just from a quick overview, include $14 Dead Island ($10 on PC); $10 each for a bunch of standout DS games like Chrono Trigger DS, Exit, Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light, and both Space Invaders Extremes; Nier for $10; and more. Even DLC is on sale. Basically, if it's from Square Enix and from this generation, it's on sale.Even iOS release Demons' Score is discounted, in its own offer. Through January 31, it's just 99 cents (down from $7), and the many, many in-app purchases are all cheaper.
Demons' Score in-app purchases create regional pricing disparity
Demons' Score, Square Enix's iOS rhythm-combat game, charges North American and European players far more than Japanese players for its total content. Pocket Gamer reports nearly all the Western versions' purchasable unlocks are included upfront in the Japanese version, minus consumable potions. When added together, these in-app purchases come to around $40, bringing the total cost of the iNiS-developed game up to $47. That's more than double the Japanese version, which costs around $19 (¥1500) with those IAPs already included.The IAPs are tied to boss fights; each defeated boss unlocks a costume, voice, and song - the first boss unlock costs $2.99. As songs are tied to in-app purchases, those paying only the initial $6.99 have far less music to hand compared to those willing to spend - kind of important with a rhythm action game. The IAPs also upscale quickly, with the unlock for the 'SATAN' difficulty mode priced at $9.99, nearly 50% more than the game itself costs.What this means is that many players are being priced out of content provided by many renowned Japanese composers. Not only is the pricing structure so hostile, but it compares very unfavorably to the all-inclusive, far cheaper Japanese model. Either way, reviewers on the App Store are clearly unimpressed with Square Enix's approach, as Demons' Score is currently sitting on a rating of 2 and half stars.
Daily iPhone App: Square Enix's Unreal game is called Demons' Score
Oh man, Square Enix's entries to the App Store just keep getting weirder. We heard a while back that the company would be working on an original game using Epic's Unreal engine for iOS, and here it is: It's called Demons' Score, and it's a rhythm-based shooter. No, really. The idea of the game is that, like the great Elite Beat Agents (which, by the way, should probably get an iOS port sooner rather than later), you have to tap circles on the screen as they count down, in time to whatever track is playing. In the background, then, your character (in this case a scantily dressed female named Serenity with a teddy bear sidekick -- oh, Japan) fights demons with a firearm, in time to your tapping. If it sounds weird, that's because it really is. And some of you might (and probably should) be tempted to pick this up just because it is so completely strange. But a rhythm game like this depends on its music, and while Square Enix's pedigree is high, hiring composers like the folks behind Kingdom Hearts, Secret of Mana and Groove Coaster, the tunes here weren't that great to my ears. They're not bad, just not really something I'd want to listen to and play again and again. Unless you just want to see the weirdness for yourself, Demons' Score might be a tough title to recommend at $6.99. But it is a universal app, which is nice, and kudos to Square Enix for being ready and willing to go off the reservation with an original iOS title. I'm ready to support this one, if for no other reason than that.
Demons' Score, Square Enix's new rhythm game, now available on iOS
Demons' Score, the Square Enix rhythm game littered with all-star Japanese composers, is now available on the App Store for $6.99. Developed by iNiS, the game combines Ouendan-style rhythm action with on-rails combat. Also, it features a talking teddy bear and an array of outlandish costumes that would make Final Fantasy X-2 proud.Square Enix also trevealed the other composers who contributed to Demons' Score. They are Hiroki Kikuta (Secret of Mana), Kenji Ito (SaGA series), Takamichi Yashiki (The Black Eyed Peas Experience), Hidenori Iwasaki (Front Mission 4 & 5), and Kenichi Maeyamada (Momokurotei Ichimon). The composers previously announced include Keiichi Okabe (Nier and Tekken series), Yoko Shimomura (Kingdom Hearts), and Zuntata (Groove Coaster).You can purchase and download the iOS version here. Android users eager for some rhythmic costumed carnage must hold steady until sometime this Autumn.%Gallery-165945%
Square Enix's Demons' Score features all-star composers
Square Enix is showing off Demons' Score, from Ouendan developer iNiS, on a brand new site. We now know the rhythm action game, coming to iOS and Android, features music from an illustrious group of Japanese game composers. Those confirmed so far include Naoshi Mizuta (Final Fantasy XI), Keiichi Okabe (Nier), Yoko Shimomura (Kingdom Hearts series), and two members of Taito's 'house band' Zuntata.There's also more background on Demons' Score's story and mechanics. The protagonist, Serenity, is "your average college girl" who suddenly finds herself attacked by demons after meeting a talking bear. As your average college girl often does. Luckily, Serenity is able to let demons possess her and then control them to her advantage, all thanks to the Demon's Score smartphone app given to her by her missing father (we're not making this up).All that nonsense aside, the story explains what we saw at E3. Not only does each demon transform Serenity's look, but each one also has its own rocking music track from one of the composers. Astaroth, for example, transforms Serenity into a blue-haired knight, and comes with music composed by Kohei Tanaka (Sakura Wars series). The other demons apparently don't come with as much outerwear.While the action is on-rails, the game plays like iNiS' Ouendan and Elite Beat Agents (as the above video shows). In short, players must tap, hold, and slide to the song's beat. Mistakes make Serenity take some damage, while tap well enough and she'll 'level up.' If you're a bit lost at this point, think of Elite Beat Agents mixed with a demonic version of Final Fantasy X-2's 'dresspheres', and you're there.As the English dialogue in the above video suggests, the game is coming to our shores at some point. Square's Japanese site proclaims an Autumn window for Android and a 'coming soon' for iOS. In the meantime, you can hop over there to check out some of the game's upcoming music.
Demons' Score is Elite Disco Demon Fighting Agents
Hidden in Square Enix's booth, among the dapper murderers and fluffy dimensions, was an iOS rhythm game about a flying, sword-wielding woman and her animate teddy bear who fight demons together in gothic-looking tunnels. Powered by Unreal Engine 3. Sure, why not?Demons' Score isn't just inspired by Elite Beat Agents and Ouendan.; it marks a return to touchscreen music gaming for iNiS, who created both of those (along with the brilliant Gitaroo-Man), which makes it a pretty cool rhythm game by default. You tap icons in response to an indicator – when a clock-like hand hits the top of the icon, you tap, and you receive a score based on your timing. You'll also have icons that require swipes, multiple timed taps, lines that you drag at a certain speed, and icons that you tap as many times as you can before they disappear.Taking advantage of multitouch hardware, Demons' Score also features multiple simultaneous icons for you to tap at once. Oh, by the way, all these icons appear in front of enemy demons that you kill upon successful contact.Along the way, as you fight through disco-musicked demon gauntlets, the boss is constantly bothering you with funky, funky taunts. Why is all the music and dialogue disco-themed? I have no idea!%Gallery-157238%
iOS and Android enter 'Final Fantasy Dimensions' this summer
Square Enix's E3 lineup is packed with unannounced iOS and Android games (packed), but the one that seems most noteworthy is Final Fantasy Dimensions, due this summer on both iOS and Android. "Drawing upon the roots of the series with such features as beautiful 2D pixel art, job-driven character growth, additional scenarios in which to inherit the jobs of your adventuring companions, and a classic story of light, darkness, and crystals," the description reads, "FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS delivers the best of FINAL FANTASY, retro and fresh alike, directly to your smartphone."It sounds like a new game in the classic Final Fantasy style. Judging by the logo, we're guessing it's a smartphone conversion and localization of the Japanese cell phone game, Final Fantasy Legends, which was released episodically in 2010.The other newly announced game that piqued our interest the most was "Demons' Score", an Unreal Engine 3-powered "breakbeat action game that seamlessly fuses music and battles."
