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Bangai-O Spirits saves stages ... through sound?
It's quite possible that this is absolutely the weirdest, yet most incredibly awesome, news DS Fanboy has ever presented. We're going to take a moment to collect ourselves here. Okay, we're ready to go now. You see, current life obsession for one of our bloggers, the quirky and wonderful Bangai-O Spirits, will have a very unique way of saving user-created stages and replays. The game will output an audio file, through the DS's headphone jack, allowing users to back-up the file on their PC. Then, the audio file can be played back to the DS through its microphone (weren't we just complaining about how awesome the mic is and how it's not being used?).One of our own came up with an interesting question regarding all of this: what if you took the file and remixed it with a song from, say, the early 90's? What kind of stage would we get then? We'll just have to wait and find out ourselves.See also: 2008's Biggest Blips: Bangai-O Spirits[Via NeoGAF]
Bangai-O lifts Japan's spirits this March
An actual Japanese release date for Bangai-O Spirits gives us a lot more faith that it'll make its announced Q2 release for North America. Treasure has finally announced one, and it's soon: March 19. How wonderful!Along with this happy news comes an overhaul of the official site. Too long have we been staring at the single splash screen waiting for content. Now there are tiny screenshots to squint at and information about the edit mode not to be able to read very well (although we think Wi-Fi stage sharing is possible!)Riki and Mami are not returning for this iteration of Bangai-O. They'll be turning the spotlight over to kids named Ruri and Masato, the latter of whom is, no doubt, named after Treasure president Masato Maegawa.See also: 2008's Biggest Blips: Bangai-O Spirits
2008's Biggest Blips: Bangai-O Spirits
Developer: Treasure/ESPPublisher: D3Release: Q2 Hello!! It is me, the super sexy M. In the year 2001 we had a Bangai-O shooting game on the Sega Dreamcast. Children Riki and Mami had a very big robot to go fight SF Kozmo Gang! I was in Infostation and sold them many infos to survive. They needed secret help information so they know how to use robot shooting power! We had many great talks together, and our game has a very deep storyline because of it! You should play our game and send money if you like it afterward!Now the Treasure company is making a new Bangai-O shooting excitement game for the Nintendo DS! Can all of the 2D big explosions fit on such a small thing? Only time can tell!! Also it is yet to know if the delightful Mrs. M herself will be returning. If Infostation does not have me, how will players learn the shooting? Failure is very possible. But without knowing if I have a job, I will be nice and offer my very special information for free! You can thank me later!! It is because of the greatness of Bangai-O that I continue.In my Bangai-O big robot had the ability to make extreme explosions based on number of the bullets on screen! It was out of control for sure! New Bangai-O Spirits has gone back to the way of N64, so the player (who is you) now has to charge up! What an exciting change of pace!Back in 2001, Riki and Mami only had two weapons on the Bangai-O robot -- homing shot and bound shot (which bounced). Now so many new weapons are available! You can choose from start and have multiple weapons, including a bat that repels enemies and a sword that absorbs bullets! Then add on EX abilities that you unleash by charging up power and you are an explosion firing machine! Make 50000 credits please! I know I said it was free but this information is too good! I wish I knew about when this game was coming out! It would be super premium information! I have been told that it is Q2, but not exactly known! I will just have to start planning my own levels for when it is out -- oh yes, did I not tell you? Bangai-O Spirits lets the beautiful Mrs. M and even normal kids like you make a level! Do you think you can make a level good enough for our 2D shooting action? [Read the full Dreamcast Bangai-O script here] The Suda pair Back Born free
Nintendo lays out 2008's releases, we totally freak
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Nintendo_s_upcoming_releases_to_flood_shelves'; Nintendo sent out a press release detailing the 2008 release schedule, and along with all the yay-awesome stuff we knew about, there's a ton of new stuff! We were just casually looking down the list, expecting familiar titles and release dates, and we almost spit out our Diet Cherry Coke when we saw previously-unknown release dates, and even a few new titles! For the safety of your computer, DS Fanboy recommends that you put down your Diet Cherry Coke before proceeding.For the first time, the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon sequels have been announced for U.S. release. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness are tentatively slated for a "Q2" release. More personally exciting is the revelation that Bangai-O Spirits was picked up by D3 of America, also Q2. And by "personally exciting" we mean "OH YES AWESOME. AWESOME."Other surprises include Ubisoft's Quick Yoga Training (April), Nintendo's Crosswords DS (May 5th!), Rondo of Swords (which we Eric surmised is Success Corp.'s Ituwari no Rondo) and complete unknowns like Organize It (May 8th).We've reproduced the whole list for you after the break, so you can freak out. We think we're over the initial shoOH DUDE SUPER DODGEBALL IN APRIL. If you can handle the intensity, check out the Wii schedule as well!
Bangai-O charges up, launches massive screenshot attack
Bangai-O's seeming rebirth as a puzzle-shooter is fascinating to us. There was always an element of knowing what to shoot first and which weapon to use when, but Treasure and ESP seem to be putting more emphasis on smaller scenarios that require thought, rather than just spamming the 'shoot' button. We never thought that we'd want the most frenetic, insane shooter ever to be a puzzle game, but we trust Treasure and we appreciate the fact that Bangai-O Spirits is not a simple remake. And anyway, look at those screenshots (some new, some old, all wow). It's still insane. And if you don't like the new level designs, the game's got an editor, so you can just make your own game.
DS Daily: What games should we write about more?
More often than not, we keep the front page current with news on games we're interested in. It's a selfish policy, yes, but fitting with our character. Unfortunately, in our pursuit to cover all things Super Dodgeball and Bangai-O, we often miss the titles you're anticipating.With that in mind, we'd like to know what games you'd like us to pay more attention to. Is it that import puzzler no one's ever heard of? Or is it the high profile release we've completely ignored in favor of posts about rubbing down sweaty hunks lads? Help us help you!
Friday Video: That's some Spirited gameplay
You may have noticed that we're a little into Bangai-O Spirits. Luckily, it seems that we're not alone in lusting after every scrap of media we can find on the upcoming DS game. And sure, we may have already shown you a trailer earlier today, but this is nothing but gameplay footage straight out of Tokyo. We love it, and we can think of no better use for this week's video spotlight.
TGS07: Explosive Bangai-O Spirits trailer
We love the Tokyo Game Show, if only because it gives us a valid excuse to talk about Bangai-O Spirits every single day. And actual video of the game is an especially good excuse. The video features the normal huge, massive super attacks that are the game's trademark, but you'll also notice that new weapons, including a sword, are now available. How will super attacks work with the sword? No idea!Another video features a strangely non-action-packed level that involves a Sokoban-style box-pushing puzzle. It's a weird change of pace from the frenetic shooting-- so weird, in fact, that the player continues to fill the screen with missiles for no reason.Even though Bangai-O was originally an N64 game, we're still amazed at how well Bangai-O Spirits makes the transition to the DS. Thanks so much for making another sequel, Treasure. We know you don't really like doing that.
TGS07: Bangai-O Spirits dazzles IGN
IGN's Craig Harris had never played a Bangai-O game when he stepped up to the TGS demo of Bangai-O Spirits. The game he described, which was new and mysterious to him, sounds comfortingly similar to classic Bangai-O to us: he describes enemies turning to fruit when destroyed, 100-plus bullets on screen at once, and even the slowdown that was found in the other versions during super attacks-- and that we honestly can't distinguish as being a feature or a technical problem.We sympathize with Harris. By virtue of being there, we played a lot of stuff at PAX that we didn't really know anything about. Not everyone can be intimately familiar with every game, you know? Even if he doesn't quite have the historical background right, he did a good job of describing a Bangai-O game in a way that's meaningful to Bangai-O fans. He says that "a brief hands-on is clearly not enough to get a solid grasp of the title's concept", but he pretty much nails it. There's a lot of stuff on the screen, and you shoot it, and the shooting makes your future shots bigger. Also there's fruit.Not everyone is as big of a Treasure fan as this guy.
GameCrazy predicts U.S. Bangai-O
With the game just now announced for Japan, it's a little premature for American publishing announcements for Bangai-O Spirits. But it's never too soon for rumors! (On that note, Bangai-O Spirits 2 for Dreamcast 2, coming 2009!) GameCrazy, whose mystical fortune-telling computer broke the news of Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations, now lists a DS Bangai-O. No information about publisher or release date, but it shows a price of $29.99. Since D3 Publisher is releasing the game in Japan, we asked the U.S. branch of D3 if they were going to publish the game over here. Unfortunately, the D3 rep told us that they don't comment on unannounced games, and that D3 "will only focus on what makes sense for the Western market." Whether Bangai-O falls into that category or not is strictly a matter of how much insane hype we can generate on DS Fanboy.
Small sprites, big spirits
Just looking at Bangai-O Spirits makes us cheer-- yes! The Nintendo DS exists and Treasure got a development kit for it! And we also have a Nintendo DS! The world is an excellent place! It's not a catchy cheer, but it's heartfelt. We can close our eyes right now and imagine huge missile volleys flying out in 100 different directions, turning gun turrets and little houses and other missiles into gigantic fruit. It's the same heartfelt feeling that compels us to share these screens from Famitsu with you. They're the same screens seen in the "scan" before, with the added benefit of being clearly visible. We think that's kind of important! Speaking of visibility, we worry a little bit about being able to see what's happening on the DS's smaller screens-- teensy sprites and chaotic bullet patterns don't seem like the best fit for a portable system. But we'll put our eyes right up to the screens if we need to. It probably won't be a problem; Treasure generally knows what they're doing.
We must be dreaming: Bangai-O for DS
We hope you're ready for a Wednesday morning freakout, because that is exactly what is going to happen in this post. We didn't dare speak our secret wish that the new Treasure game would be Bangai-O; it seemed too beautiful a thought for our real world. But according to the kind NeoGAFfers who post the news from Famitsu every week, a new Treasure game called Bangaioh Tamashii (Bangai-O Spirits) is on the way, with 4-player local wireless and a stage editor.Of course, there's always the chance that it'll be a spinoff puzzle game or something, but we doubt that kind of behavior from Treasure. No, get ready for tiny sprites and huge chain-reaction explosions. For those of you unfamiliar with Bangai-O, it's a free-scrolling shooter originally for the Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast, in which players, as a pair of mecha-piloting kids, shoot thousands of missiles and laser beams at tiny enemies. Special attacks gain power based on the number of bullets and explosions on the screen, leading to a constantly-escalating feedback loop of super attacks. If this DS game is a real Bangai-O with multiplayer and a level editor, then the Nintendo DS will have crossed the line as the best game system ever released. Whatever it is, it's got a level editor and 4-player mode. Cheer and hurrah past the post break for a scanned page from Famitsu showing off the first screenshots for the game.
