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Cave Story 3D includes 'expanded' stages and Prinny, but not original game
In an interview with Siliconera, NIS America producer Jack Niida hinted at a Prinny crossover in Cave Story 3D. "You can probably expect our most popular character in there. Aside from that, you might see him as an item, as well." Prinny is a shoo-in for NIS's most popular character, and it's been used in Cave Story 3D teaser images before (see above), so that's probably the dood in question. Niida also offered a bit more info about the expanded content in the 3D version, which Nicalis hinted at during our preview. "For the old time fans of Cave Story, there aren't brand new stages," he said, "but what we did for these stages is we expanded it. So, there is more to it than there was before. There are new areas to explore; long time fans will definitely see the difference." What won't be in Cave Story 3D is the original Cave Story. "That's one thing we were talking about too," he said, "but the problem was the amount of space on the card size. We sort of squeezed everything in and at this point we don't have enough space for it."
Disgaea DS comes jam packed with some nice extras
Disgaea, as niche as it is, has quite a following. In a recent interview with Crispy Gamer, Nippon Ichi's PR Manager Jack Niida stated that the entire reason for bringing Disgaea to the DS was because of demand -- specifically, a constant barrage of emails and calls. Hear that, people? Your pestering worked. Still, those of you who have already played the PSP's Afternoon of Darkness or the original Hour of Darkness on the PS2 might be wondering why you should buy another adaptation. Niida explains that, for one, a main attraction of the new Disgaea is the multiplayer. So, if you're hoping to battle friends (we're assuming through Wi-Fi and not locally), it might be a worthwhile purchase. Even if you aren't, though, the DS version (which will be called Prince of the Demon World and the Red Moon in Japan) seems to have a lot of nifty extras. Besides including all the content from the PSP version and more, the game will feature new characters and utilize touchscreen controls. Niida also hinted at a unique battle feature, but kept tight-lipped on that, promising more information soon. The DS game will keep the voice acting and music from Afternoon of Darkness, but (as was expected) will make some sacrifices in terms of graphics. Crispy Gamer also asked Niida if we'd ever see a Disgaea game on the 360 or Wii, to which he replied coyly, "Who knows, you might see something interesting coming out later in the year." If you ask us, it won't be happening anytime in the near future, but it's nice to know that they're open to the possibility. Still, we're happy enough that we'll be seeing such a full, time-sucking game on our favorite handheld -- everything else is just gravy. Gallery: Disgaea [Thanks, James!]
Joystiq interview: NIS America talks PS2 love, Mana Khemia details
With most of civilization abandoning the workplace in order to converge on local shopping malls for those last-minute gift ideas, the gaming world seems to have all but shut down. However, in between trips to Kohl's and Barnes & Noble we did manage to grapple with NIS America's marketing dynamic duo, namely Jack Niida and Nao Zook. While they kept eying the exit behind us, we asked them a number of questions, including the publisher's opinion on the aging PlayStation 2, as well as some specifics on NIS America's latest PS2 RPG, Mana Khemia ~Alchemists of Al-Revis~, which they both go into after the jump.
