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Taito's Egret II Mini is an arcade replica with a rotating screen
Taito is releasing a mini replica of its Egret II sit down arcade cabinet from the '90s.
'Space Invaders' movie is closer to becoming a reality
Warner Bros. bought the movie rights to Space Invaders years ago, and now it looks ready to do something with the classic alien-blasting franchise. Deadline reports that Warner's New Line Cinema is advancing production on the film, with Mortal Kombat reboot writer Greg Russo handling the script. There's no release window yet, although the lack of detail suggests you'll be waiting a while.
Korg's music-making Switch app offers Genesis and Taito game sounds
It stands to reason that a music creation app on a game console should have sound samples from consoles, doesn't it? Korg certainly thinks so. It's updating its Gadget app for the Switch with both a Sega Genesis-derived drum machine (Otorii) and a Taito arcade synth (Ebina). Both are as retro-looking as their names imply, and they each sample their fair share of classic games.
Left 4 Dead: Survivors brings a new team to Japanese arcades
Taito unveiled the player characters for the Japanese arcade version of Left 4 Dead, and it's certainly a different type of crew to what's come before. The new heroes are (left to right) American bartender and ex-marine Jordan Blake, university student Yusuke Kudo, half-American, half-Japanese tour guide Sara Kirishima and high school student Hirose Haruka. The international mixture comes from the retained American setting, with the Japanese characters visiting the States on holiday - it's always a pain when you have to deal with a zombie outbreak on vacation. It's strikingly a younger cast compared to either Left 4 Dead game, and we wouldn't bat an eyelid if someone told us we were looking at Japan's version of Scooby Doo. Minus the dog, that is, which would be somewhat weird. Left 4 Dead: Survivors, as it's called, comes to test locations in Tokyo this weekend. To see how else it differs from the original, check out Taito's trailer and the much more involved user interface. [Image: Square Enix]
Left 4 Dead arcade's clean gameplay
The Taito Channel has a video featuring the Japanese arcade version of Valve's Left 4 Dead. The video looks pretty clean and like the co-op zombie game folks have been playing on their consoles and PC for years. After the break we've got a GIF of what the game reportedly looks like. Far more clutter on the screen. The only thing missing from the UI is somone popping up and exclaiming, "TOASTY!"
Left 4 Dead planned for arcade release in Japan
Arcade game manufacturer Taito has partnered with Valve to produce an arcade adaptation of Turtle Rock Studios' co-op zombie FPS Left 4 Dead in Japan. News of the tie-in arrives shortly after Taito announced "Project Z", a zombie-themed shooter due to hit arcades this year. The official Project Z site has since been updated with a Left 4 Dead logo and Valve copyright, though it's currently unknown whether Taito's upcoming Left 4 Dead: Seizansha-tachi (Left 4 Dead: Survivors) is an all-new spin-off or a modified adaptation of a previous game in the series. Taito previously struck up a partnership with Valve for Half-Life 2: Survivor, a sit-down cabinet release featuring elements from Half-Life 2 and its follow-up episodes. [Video: Taito / Valve]
Bust-A-Move 4 on the PlayStation Network this spring
Natsume announced that it will release a digital PSone Classics version of Taito's Bust-a-Move 4 this spring, bringing the classic bubble-bursting puzzler to the PlayStation 3, PSP, and PS Vita. Bust-a-Move 4 expands on the color-matching gameplay of Taito's arcade-born Puzzle Bobble series with new pulley mechanics, challenging players to balance bubble clusters throughout its single-player Puzzle mode. The game also includes a friendship-straining competitive Versus mode, along with an Edit mode that allows players to create and save up to 25 custom level layouts. A specific release date for Bust-a-Move 4 was not announced. [Image: Natsume / Taito]
Groove Coaster Zero taps into Lady Gaga, LMFAO, Gwen Stefani
Some new DLC has po-po-po-popped up for Groove Coaster Zero, with pop being the operative word. The in-app purchase pack offers four levels for Lady Gaga, Gwen Stefani, and LMFAO songs, laying down some western beats onto Taito's free-to-play tapper. The four songs are "Poker Face" and "Bad Romance" courtesy of Gaga, Gwen Stefani's "What You Waiting For," and the fun-time vibes of LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem." If you want the love, love, love of the so-dubbed 'Global Hits Pack,' admission is $4.99.
Minecraft belongs in a museum, according to MoMA
New York's Museum of Modern Art has announced that it is adding six video games, including Minecraft, and a console to its famous collection of contemporary art. The Museum chose to honor fourteen games last year (including Pac-Man, SimCity 2000, EVE Online, and Portal) based on their traits of behavior, aesthetics, space, and time. This year, the museum is adding Atari classics Pong, Space Invaders, Asteroids, Tempest, and Yar's Revenge, as well as Mojang's modern hit, Minecraft. MoMA's also adding the Magnavox Odyssey to the collection, remembering it not only as the first commercial home video game console, but as "a masterpiece of engineering and industrial design." As part of the museum's collection, all of these games and the console will periodically show up in exhibits put together by MoMA's Architecture and Design department.
Groove Coaster going to arcades in Japan
Groove Coaster is moving from its extremely portable iOS format to the least portable format possible: a dedicated arcade machine. Taito has revealed plans for an arcade version of Reisuke Ishida's touchscreen music game, for release in Japan only this winter.Rather than a touchscreen, the arcade game uses a mysterious "BOOSTER" system, seen above. Is it an Etch-a-Sketch type situation? We don't know. We do know that Taito promises a "very different control experience" from both other music games and the existing Groove Coasters.The cabinet will make its debut at the Japan Amusement Expo on February 15 and 16. If you have an iOS device and haven't tried Groove Coaster, get Groove Coaster Zero for free and check it out. Put your headphones on if you're at work.%Gallery-177610%
'Cooking Mama Seasons' goes free to play on iOS
If you've never tried the touchscreen culinary minigames of one of the Cooking Mama games before, now you can sample her recipes for free. Cooking Mama Seasons is now on the App Store, replacing the previous iOS version, with new Retina graphics, "Food Art" decoration, and, of course, a free-to-play model that allows you to buy new recipes to try. A version with more recipes pre-loaded is also available for $6.99.It's worth a download for free, in our opinion, just to have some heavily-accented encouragement from Mama any time we need it.
Groove Coaster becomes free-to-ride with new release Zero
Groove Coaster Zero sped onto the App Store today, the game a free-to-play version of Taito's rhythm-tastic Groove Coaster. The new version features over 30 tracks including those from the original game and some new tunes too. Some of those tracks have to be purchased in-app, with the ones in the game's shop including some from the original.Groove Coaster delighted JC last year. with him saying he'd happily have paid $50 ten years ago for a game like it. With a free version out now, Taito is showing its thanks to those who did put down money for the original game by giving them three "limited edition" tracks in Zero. We of course don't begrudge Taito making an excellent game free and now accessible to more people. but showing a rollercoaster of love for early, paying adopters is neat too.%Gallery-171399%
Space Invaders hub site invades your browser space
Square Enix has launched a site that conveniently rounds up licensed Space Invaders merchandise for you to buy (like the above "space hopper") – and even gives you licensing contact information if you want to make more.The site will also serve as a news hub about the series and offer links to recent games, including Space Invaders Infinity Gene and the honorary Space Invaders game Groove Coaster. Mostly, we're excited for the potential: If Square Enix cares enough about Space Invaders to continue promoting the series, maybe it cares enough to continue the series. Have we mentioned lately how cool Space Invaders Extreme was?
Taito's Ishida: 'Expect to see more Groove Coaster'
If you've played Taito's beautifully abstract iOS music game, Groove Coaster, you probably want more of Taito's beautifully abstract iOS music game, Groove Coaster. And you'll have it. During an interview today, producer Reisuke Ishida told Joystiq: "People can expect to see more Groove Coaster in the future." As for the details, like when, or whether it's in the form of game updates or a full sequel, we got "No comment."One (vector-based, icon-covered) avenue he'd like to explore is a console port, much like the XBLA/PSN port of his iOS shooter Space Invaders Infinity Gene. "There's no plan for a console release of Groove Coaster yet, but if it's possible it's something that I'd like to do," Ishida said. "I don't think the controls would be much of an issue; it's pretty simple controls." Ishida said he kept consoles in mind while designing Groove Coaster. "I didn't want to add something that wouldn't be able to be communicated for consoles in the future."In terms of non-Groove Coaster games, Ishida teased a third game in what he called the "Infinity Gene series (which currently includes Infinity Gene and Groove Coaster). "It'll probably have a similar aesthetic to the previous two games, but people shouldn't expect another shooting game. It'll be something different."Ishida quickly clarified: "I'm not saying I'm never going to make shooting games again, just not for the next project."
Reisuke Ishida on why perfect games can't be perfect
Taito designer Reisuke Ishida devoted a GDC panel to "five techniques for making an unforgettable game," and his most interesting tip for accomplishing that was perhaps counterintuitive: don't make it perfect.Perfect games, argued Ishida, are boring. In Space Invaders Infinity Gene, for example, he originally experimented with making the invaders more colorful (which you can see on the right in the shot above). But that look made the game "look too 'normal,'" Ishida said. "It didn't really stand out enough for us." He decided to go back to the white coloring of the original invaders, and that helped give the game a unique look.Those graphics may not be the most aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but Ishida said that helps more than it hurts. "You need a little bit of that quirkiness," he told the crowd, "so it captures your eye and your attention, and it leaves that impression."And that attention leads to curiosity, which Ishida said will really make a game shine. "People will find that curiosity and they'll want to find out where that curiosity is going to take them," he said. Developers obviously don't want to turn off an audience with disharmony, but Ishida said a great game should have "just a little touch -- something that will trigger someone to think that maybe there's a little more that I need to seek out."
Darius Bursts onto the App Store
Square Enix has released another Taito shmup on the App Store, and as with pretty much all Square releases, we can't help but be aghast at the price. Given the source material, however, maybe $11 isn't that bad.Dariusburst Second Prologue is based on both the PSP Dariusburst and its arcade followup, Another Chronicle -- the two latest iterations of Taito's long-lived shmup series about shooting enormous robot fish. The PSP game content is all here, along with a remixed mode with new enemy patterns and stuff from Another Chronicle. There are also four new tracks by Taito's Zuntata band.In other words, if it were on PSP, there'd be no question of its value. We admit we're still kind of balking at the App Store price anyway. That's just how the market is on that platform!%Gallery-147056%
Taito's RayForce hits iOS for ... more than you'd expect
The term "Square Enix Tax" refers to the publisher's frequent tendency to price its games more than others on the same platform. Most of Square Enix's DS games retailed for $39.99, for example, and even the simplistic Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy carries a price of ¥6,090 ($79!) in Japan. Even with that background, however, we were a bit surprised when the publisher released an iOS port of Taito's 1993 arcade shmup RayForce yesterday, with a price point of $11.99. It's not that the game doesn't appear to be worth it (the port looks great!) -- that's just more than we'd expect any publisher to attempt on the iOS market. Especially for a vintage game. We're trying to be excited about this, Square! That price point is not helping.%Gallery-144591%
Taito's Rayforce shmup coming to iOS this winter
Classic shmup news now, with Taito's Rayforce, the first entry in its series of vertical shmups starting with the word "Ray," coming to iOS. Japanese outlet Famitsu (via Andriasang) says the game is planned for the smaller iThings, like the iPhone and iPod Touch, and will launch on the App Store this winter. The teaser trailer above gives us a small taste of what to expect. (Shmupping, mostly.)
Hark, the herald Groove Coasters sing
It's a Christmas miracle! Taito Claus has bestowed five new downloadable Groove Coaster songs upon all the good little vector dots and Invader icons of the world -- including a techno-y Christmas tune. We're not going to be listening for the tapping of reindeer feet this Christmas because we're going to be tapping out music. Even better, the game is on sale right now for .99 -- joining other seasonally discounted Taito games including Cooking Mama and Space Invaders: Infinity Gene.
'iNVADERCADE' turns your iPad into a tiny Space Invaders machine
We really, really want to like Square Enix's new iNVADERCADE. The iPad arcade cabinet peripheral is basically the same idea as the iCade, but modeled after a vintage Space Invaders cabinet. It allows you to play (supported) iOS games using a real joystick and button, includes speakers and a headphone port, and charges your iPad while you use it. Square Enix is even promoting the (approximately) £150 peripheral with the spot-on retro "show" above. So why are we conflicted about the device? Well, for one thing, it's called the "iNVADERCADE," complete with annoying capitalization. For another, it has only one button, limiting its utility for arcade-style games, especially compared to the iCade's eight. Maybe you're not buying one of these to be practical.
