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The Legend of Kage 2 details emerge from the shadows
Looks like The Legend of Kage 2 is going for just a little more depth than its predecessor. Not that that's hard, considering that The Legend of Kage had five (brutal) stages that repeated three times. We loved the game, however, and that's why we're as happy about this sequel as 22 of you are.The new game has 12 stages for Kage and 12 stages for his kunoichi counterpart, Chihiro. Though these stages will probably use the same environments, we are hoping for different enemy and item layouts, or Taito's cheating by calling them different stages.There will be over 30 equippable abilities, which are gained by picking up and equipping elemental spheres. According to the GAME Watch article, these abilities will allow players to customize their play style. The NES game only had one style that we were aware of: jam on the attack buttons while jumping randomly and hoping that you'll kill all the bad ninja before getting hit by an unavoidable shuriken.%Gallery-7439%
Poll results: New games in old franchises
Last week, we asked you which of the many upcoming DS sequels to NES-era classics turned your heart to a heart-shaped powerup. No surprises here: the overwhelming majority of you picked Konami and WayForward's Contra 4, which we've been hyping into the stratosphere ourselves. If you voted for Contra 4, CONSIDER YOURSELF A HERO.Of course, all of these games look unfathomably awesome, and are all winners. But in the other regard of receiving votes from DS Fanboy readers, Super Dodge Ball DS is more of a winner than Arkanoid DS, International Track & Field, and The Legend of Kage 2, in that order. The important thing is that you guys cared enough about these games to click on a button within a blog post.
Taito goes DS-only at TGS
Taito knows where the money is in the Japanese video game market: the DS. Thus it seems that they've decided to concentrate their development efforts on games for the money-printing handheld. The company released the list of games they'll be displaying at this year's Tokyo Game Show, and every single one is a DS title. Most of the games are things that we already know (and have said "yay") about, but two games are new: the first is Space Invaders Extreme, which, we hope, is either more of an update than Space Invaders Revolution or includes Akkanvader. We also hope it works with the Arkanoid paddle controller. The other is Pet Shop Monogatari DS, which is an RPG about a pet shop. The lineup includes: Cooking Mama 2, Exit DS, Arkanoid DS (and its controller), The Legend of Kage 2, Pet Shop Monogatari DS, and Space Invaders Extreme. All games that we would totally play at TGS ... if we were going. Which we aren't.
Poll: New games in old franchises
The DS is seeing an unparalleled boom in surprise sequels to venerable franchises. That leaves retrogamers and other sensible people in a dangerous financial situation. With many of these games currently yet to be confirmed for US release, we face the possibility of expensive imports, or letting them pass us by.Even if everything on this list comes out stateside, picking them all will make for a costly exercise and a terrible poll. So we're asking you to choose: given the opportunity to pick up only one new DS game based on an 8-bit series, which would you choose? A WINNER IS WHICH RETRO SEQUEL International Track & Field Super Dodge Ball DS Arkanoid DS The Legend of Kage 2 Contra 4 Free polls from Pollhost.com
Legend of the Shirtless Ninja
Kage, star of The Legend of Kage 2, seems to be carefully avoiding wearing a shirt. He's wearing shoulder armor, and even a scarf-- but we suspect that a shirt would do much more to protect him from the cold than that scarf. What is it with ninja and scarves, anyway? We suppose that if they're vain enough to swordfight without upper-body covering, they're vain enough to want all their jumping to be trailed by a pretty red ribbon. The new Kage game also stars a kunoichi named Chihiro, who carries a sickle with a long chain attached. Their game has them running and jumping (really, really high) in a very lushly colorful, detailed 2D environment. There's some kind of level indicator in the lifebar, which portends either RPG elements or multiple levels of upgradeable weapons. In any case, it's more depth than the arcade-style first game had. Just don't look directly at the guy with the head (you'll see which one) and you'll be every bit as enthused about the game as we are.
A sequel for Legend of Kage? Really?
Taito must be reading our diary! We thought nobody liked The Legend of Kage! Taito is working to singlehandedly replicate the fall of 1987 on the DS, as both Arkanoid and Kage were released on the NES in that period. We remember seeing the distinctive rainbow-colored boxes on the shelf and being excited about playing these games in the near future.Okay, so our love for Kage is probably the result of having been 7 and not knowing any better, combined with current nostalgia for that time. But whatever the reason, we still love it. And maybe Taito will make a better game this time that more people can enjoy! Unfortunately, we can't tell much from the blurry scan, except that it looks like a graphically updated version of the original game, and that it's due in February of next year. It's got a lifebar, which should prevent those instant, unavoidable kills caused by a ninja tossing a shuriken at you while you're in the midst of one of those sailing, uncontrollable jumps. By the way, the DS's aspect ratio is perfect for those jumps. The DS's size is also, unfortunately, perfect for throwing and smashing after all of the rage that makes up the average Kage gameplay experience.
Donkey Kong Country and Streets of Rage headline Wii Virtual Console Monday
This week's Virtual Console Monday sees the release of four rather high profile games of yesteryear making their way virtually onto the Wii. 16-bit superstars Donkey Kong Country and Streets of Rage, available for 800 Wii Points, are headlining the show, while Hudson's New Adventure Island for TurboGrafx16, available for 600 Wii Points, and the early NES wuxia-esque Legend of Kage, available for 500 Wii Points, are opening. We know fans are torn: both excited to hear Yuzo Koshiro's techno beats in Streets of Rage and disappointed they won't be playing as a boxing Kangaroo. Be patient, Roo fans. There will come a time when your enemies will again know the pugilistic sting of a well-trained marsupial; every blow a reminder that kangaroos are fierce fighters, not to be reckoned with ... also, they're cute.Oh yeah, so the Virtual Console lineup for February 19th, available 9am PT is: Donkey Kong Country (Super NES, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points) Streets of Rage (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points) The Legend of Kage (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points) New Adventure Island (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, 600 Wii Points)
