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Wii Trauma Center a remake, not a sequel
In a somewhat disappointing revelation, Famitsu reports that Atlus' announced medical drama sim Trauma Center: Second Opinion (for Wii) will be a remake of Trauma Center: Under the Knife, which was released for DS in October 2005. Indeed, this pseudo-sequel will be a 'second opinion' of the various traumas that we confronted in Under the Knife.Second Opinion will feature enhanced visuals (when compared to Under the Knife), as well as voice acting -- and hopefully tighter controls. Additional surgeries will also be spliced in, including heart transplants and broken bone procedures. And this time around, Atlus will offer three difficulty settings, an obvious response to complaints about Under the Knife's inconsistent difficulty, which includes several near-impossible missions.In related news, a re-print of Trauma Center: Under the Knife has begun arriving at retail outlets.
Trauma Center: Second Opinion details
Trauma Center: Under the Knife was an excellent game, one of the those precious few on the Nintendo DS that could not be played with a standard console interface; it was also hard as Chuck Norris' abs. Regardless, the upcoming launch title Trauma Center: Second Opinion has garnered quite a bit of hype, and the latest issue of Famitsu has some details. Unfortunately, Second Opinion will primarily be a retelling of the original DS title. The game does add a few extra missions (broken bones and heart transplants were mentioned) and several new characters, but Atlas is hoping that the Wiimote will offer up an experience fresh enough to warrant a repurchase from surgery vets. Three difficulty settings are now available (thank insert-your-deity-of-choice-here), and the game will be fully voice-acted. Please, Atlus, get a decent crew for the voice work. Is this a cop-out, a scam, a ripoff? Is a fresh coat of paint enough to convince you to relive X6: Paraskevi? Will Derek ever hook up with Angie? Tune in at launch...and we might find out.
Pile on: Contact takes a jab at Sony meme
1UP's Jeremy Parish was kind enough to post the above picture on his blog, reminding us all that the lifetime of a particularly stinging internet meme is likely to extend beyond that of a mere mortal. The depicted DS game is Contact, an Earthbound-ish RPG from Atlus, one of the few developers that can don the "quirky" tag with pride even as they bounce around a drunken cosplay party. Our first instinct was to question Tomm Hulett, the man in charge of the game's localization, regarding the whereabouts of his elbow in relation to Sony's battered ribs."I'll be honest, I can't really speak for the Professor. He has a mind of his own, and he's sure to say all manner of crazy things as you play through Contact. It certainly seems like he's up on his gaming news, though, doesn't it? I have heard that battles in Contact ARE based on actual battles which took place in space, though, so who knows."Tomm confirmed the presence of crabs in the game, though didn't specify if they were of the "giant enemy" variety as commonly found in feudal Japan.
A boy and his dog: Deep Labyrinth site up and running [Update 1]
And the RPGs just keep on coming! Just in time for next month's release, the Deep Labyrinth site is up, with information on the storyline and characters, as well as a few peeks at gameplay. There are four mini-videos that showcase different game aspects -- definitely worth checking out. We're not sure what's going on with the item usage ... it's obviously something strong enough to neutralize advancing troll crotch. Lock on? Thanks for the offer, but we'll have to pass.[Via Go Nintendo][Update 1: Italics are hard, man.]
Atlus talks about Deep Labyrinth
With the recent surge of role-playing titles hitting the DS, Atlus' Deep Labyrinth has received some major attention due to its development team, Interactive Brains, recruiting some key talent from one of the greatest RPGs of all time Chrono Trigger. What's even more interesting is that the game was originally designed for cell phones. So while the game could've been brought to the PSP and enjoyed the added horsepower, the choice to go with the DS was easy. With the touchscreen capabilities and wild popularity the handheld has received so far, the game looks like it could be a big success on the platform. The game will feature two different scenarios for play, one brought over from the original cell phone title and the other being an all-new adventure created specifically for the DS.
Trauma Center supply resuscitated
Addictive cut-and-preserve hospital sim news now, with Atlus announcing that they'll be sending out enormous crates filled with copies of Trauma Center: Under the Knife to stores everywhere at the end of July. This should come as most excellent news to those who have experienced difficulty in getting their gloved hands on one of the best DS titles available, as well as to those who simply enjoy slashing a stranger's spleen into tiny, unrecognizable pieces. Jim Ireton, the VP of Sales and Marketing for Atlus USA, notes that the "continued demand for Trauma Center: Under the Knife is both gratifying and overwhelming. We apologize to Nintendo fans who've had a tough time finding the game, and we hope this scratches their surgical itch until we ship Trauma Center: Second Opinion for the Wii later this year." Apology accepted, Mr. Ireton. Rejected titles for this post: "Trauma Center stock receives transfusion" "Atlus bypasses Trauma Center shortage" "Anemic Trauma Center supply cured" "More copies of Trauma Center discharged" "Trauma Center is a really good game" [Thanks to everyone that sent this in!]
Trauma Center: Second Opinion trailer dissected
GameTrailers has recently released a new trailer (in HD!) for the upcoming Trauma Center: Second Opinion for the Wii. A direct sequel to the cult-hit DS game, this iteration will make full use of the Wii controller to produce a realistic "operating room" feel.In the trailer, we can glean a few tidbits of information. Dr. Derek Stiles and his nurse, Angie, are obviously back for the ride; other characters and locations (Caduceus, Hope Hospital) also seem to remain largely unchanged. The game is now sporting a more cel-shaded look, most likely to prevent antsy players from feeling too uncomfortable during the procedures. The game screen seems to be a bit crowded, as there's no longer a second screen to display dialogue and other statistics, but we have no doubt Atlus is going to produce another top-notch game.Enjoy the new footage; Trauma Center: Second Opinion is slated as a Wii launch title. Get psyched.[Thanks, Nushio!]
"Erotic" themes too much for Sony in America
Rule-of-rose: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Rule. Of. Rose.Alright, so it's not quite Lolita but Sony's Rule of Rose has its own controversy. The Japanese game is being published by Sony in Japan while they've opted to pass on publishing the title in the States. The reason: the game's erotic undertones involving prepubescent girls. Yeah ... err, but that's just what it appears to be! In an interview with Gamasutra, the game's director Shuji Ishikawa explained his motivations and why they thinks there's nothing inappropriate with the content:"Right, the erotic aspect you mentioned earlier isn't supposed to be the main theme. There are definitely erotic parts to it, and some things that might make people uncomfortable, but it's not the focus. It shouldn't be a problem. It's about intimate relationships between all people, not just children, not just girls. There will be people who don't understand it, but others will."And it won't be toned down for the west."Publishing rights in the U.S. are being handled by Atlus who, it appears, have no problem with the content. When asked why they wouldn't be publishing the title in the States, Sony producer Yuya Takayama replied, "How shall I say this...well, when Sony looked at the game, they felt it wasn't really in sync with their corporate image. Their personal pride wanted it to be a bit tamer, if it were to have the Sony name in the U.S. I personally appealed to them that it wasn't that kind of game, but it didn't quite work out for me."Gamers can be relieved that -- unlike many Japanese games whose themes and topics are considered either inappropriate or untranslatable -- Rule of Rose will be coming to the States despite our often puritanical inhibitions. However, you can be sure this isn't the last we've heard of this "controversy."[Thanks, cringer8](Update: embedded trailer after the break for additional context. Great comments!)
Interview: Contact developers
A developer interview conducted by CVG reveals some interesting bits and pieces regarding the philosophy and design of Contact, soon to be published in the US by Atlus. It reveals that the game initially started out as a GBA adventure and that the Wi-Fi gameplay is a bit more unusual than you might have initially thought. Takeshi Ogura, one of Contact's producers, explains that when "you are connected to the wi-fi there are new characters that might appear and new events that will happen. The more that you connect to the internet the more characters and events you will have to play with." Check out the interview for more insights, as well as our positive impressions of the game itself.
DS impressions: Touch Detective
"This game seems a little confusing.""Yes, it's almost as if it's in a completely different language."As the E3 demo had not yet been translated from Japanese, it was initially difficult to come to grips with Atlus' Touch Detective. Luckily, a background in old-school adventure gaming served as a boost over the language barrier. The game is, at its heart, a completely traditional adventure (point-and-clicker, if you prefer) augmented by a very bizarre art style. Using the touch screen and stylus to move your wide-eyed character, collect objects, traverse dialogue trees and examine the environment, the gameplay is just about a perfect portable representation of a genre considered to be dead by many. Many people are wrong.Though I couldn't make heads or tails (or any sort of appendage) of the story, the game is littered with strange characters, including a talking corpse and a sentient mushroom...phallus...thing. We'll have a better idea of where the game is headed once it enters localization, but for now, it appears to be a visually arresting throwback to the adventure games of yore.
DS impressions: Contact
The game that has been jokingly called "Almost Earthbound" is quite possibly one of the most unique RPGs to hit Nintendo's touchy-feely handheld. The impetus of Contact is that you're not in direct control of the main character. Instead, you act as a mysterious external force that helps out a young boy as he searches for the parts of a weird professor's downed spaceship. The bottom screen of the DS allows you to guide your character through some wonderful looking environments, while the top screen always shows the professor scurrying about and doing work in his lab. He constantly communicates with you, making odd remarks, providing useful information and generally hurling a wrecking ball through that pesky fourth wall.Getting back to your character in the bottom screen, it's possible to engage enemies by tapping on them with the stylus and selecting the attack icon. Now, the battles are competely automatic with the exception of using the d-pad to dodge some attacks. Some will definitely be turned off by ths approach, but it fits in well with the game's exploration and its acknowledgement of the player as an entity in the story. The game makes pretty good use of the touch screen, with the special attacks particularly standing out. Essentially, you peel off the attack command as if it were a sticker on your screen and then stick in back into an appropriate slot. Much like the rest of the game, it's a pretty fun and quirky experience.
Paging Dr. Booth Babe
With booth babes prancing about the E3 show floor dressed as warrior princesses, dragon slayers, futuristic mercenaries and (rarely) realistic independent females, it's fair to say that their role-played lives are vastly different from their real ones. There are exceptions, however, and just such an exception could be found at Atlus' colorful booth. Celebrating the announcement of Trauma Center: Second Opinion for Wii, Atlus' booth babes were all dressed as alluring nurses (the best kind). In Wendy's case, this wasn't much of a stretch at all.Self-proclaimed Halo addict, Wendy told me that she is currently in her fourth year as a medical student at Western University. In what is an unusual transition from model to medicine, Wendy hopes to become an excellent doctor with equally excellent bedside manners. It's an amusing coincidence that may just shatter that old booth babe stereotype collecting dust within the recesses of your mind.
Overheard at E3: Why no DS Lites?
Since the Atlus USA booth is host to some pretty interesting DS games this year, it seemed somewhat odd that all the units in the booth were of the Phat variety."So, why no DS Lites?""Oh, we wanted to order a bunch of them from Japan.""You couldn't get them?""Uh, no. We couldn't get the little stands for them."To be undone by such a minor issue illustrates that behind the scenes, E3 must be a logistical nightmare.[Game pictured is Atlus' Touch Detective.]
E3 booth tours: Atlus
They're not as big as Sony, Nintendo or Microsoft, but Atlus has a cool booth construction definitely worth taking a quick peek at.
Trauma Center 2 for Wii launch window
Encouraging gamers to slice people open with a scalpel and prod at their various internal organs, Trauma Center: Second Opinion (cool title!) clearly fits in well with Nintendo's all-inclusive family strategy for the Wii. Okay, so it's a sequel to last year's DS doctor sim, Trauma Center: Under the Knife, meaning that you're generally gutting people for their own good. I managed to track down Tomm Hulett of Atlus USA and, after threatening him sufficiently, managed to extract the following information: The game should be released within the Wii's "launch window" (i.e. before the end of the year). Two playable characters will be available, each one following a different path in the story. Unlike Derek (the original game's main character), the new doctor will not possess the "Healing Touch", instead boasting some other, sure to be wacky power. The game was almost called Trauma Center: Relapse. Thanks to the wiimote, Second Opinion will be much more intricate than the DS version and allow you to use more surgical tools. The nunchuck analog stick is used for selecting tools. The game will not be fully voice-acted. Only a couple of voice samples will be matched to on-screen text, much like the Legend of Zelda titles. Tomm hinted that you'd be able to use the wiimote and nunchuck as a defibrilator. Speaking of which, the Atlus meeting rooms just happened to be situated right next to the wall mounted defibrilator pictured to the right. Must be one for the fanboys.
