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Samurai Shodown Sen shows up March 30
When XSEED announced that it had picked up SNK's latest Samurai Shodown game, Samurai Shodown Sen, we didn't know just how soon it would bring the 3D samurai combat to us. And after waiting a couple of years for this game to show up -- and after seeing it at E3 last year with no word of a release date -- we're kind of shocked to see the game coming out so soon, on March 30. There's a weird kind of parallelism in the design and the premise of the game: Sen is about the period when Western culture began to enter Japan, bringing foreigners in contact with samurai -- and the game is a high-definition 3D version of an SNK classic. So, if we were going to overthink this (and we are), we could see the game's samurai as a metaphor for classic 2D fighters, with the Vikings and other foreign elements representing the unstoppable influence of 3D. Then they all hit each other with swords. %Gallery-83694%
Joystiq impressions: Victorious Boxers: Revolution
With a projected late-September U.S. release, Wii-only Victorious Boxers: Revolution dukes it out for the best Wii sports title. I recently played a nearly complete localization of the June-released Japanese original, and Victorious Boxers is clearly different than Wii Sports Boxing. While Americans may think the manga art-style should appeal mostly to kids, the animation and physicality are viciously pitched to an older crowd. You're not trying to bowl over your opponent with kindness after all.The boxing mechanics were harder to gauge than the catchy art. I relied on the two-fisted, motion-only control scheme, although the game offers five other ways to play. After a lot of wild flailing, I felt like I had a general sense of my character. But I never felt like my swings were perfectly interpreted. Hopefully, after an hour or two, players will learn how to move. But while Victorious Boxers easily held my interest, I couldn't predict if this will be a perfect translation between physical moves and game action. At some point, I wonder if the Wii controllers can handle one-to-one motion mapping for fast games.%Gallery-7321%
Rumor: Dungeon Maker coming to DS?
If you're not familiar with Dungeon Maker: Hunting Ground, a PSP title that XSeed brought to the US just last month, we won't blame you. The ARPG's release received very little press and most reviewers met the game with average to above-average scores. Among their criticisms were the lack of a proper XP/leveling system, limited character customization outside of equipment upgrades, and unimaginative combat.So why were our arms thrown into the air in victory, fists clutched as if to suggest hardships we've endured throughout this journey, after hearing from the Famitsu-scanning newshounds at NeoGAF that a DS port might be on the way? We've had hungry eyes for the dungeon making portion of the game for some time now, but we've refrained from mentioning it lest those other fanboys hold that knowledge over our heads. Dungeon Maker's gimmick -- build your lair, piece by piece, to attract monsters for you to slay -- is like a tractor beam aimed straight at our hearts. Hack and slash your way past the post break for Dungeon Maker: Hunting Ground's PSP trailer.
