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Infinite Space hits Japanese shelf space in June
Platinum Games' second project (the first to be released in Japan) is about as different from MadWorld as any game could be: it's Infinite Space, the epic sci-fi RPG for DS. Sega just announced that it'll be released in Japan on June 11. No international release dates have been announced yet, though GameStop suggests July 7. Infinite Space casts the player as a spaceship crew member who works his way up to captain, and features giant, customizable spaceships and wireless ship-to-ship battles.Along with the announcement, Sega refreshed the Japanese website for the RPG with some animated story scenes, and released new screenshots. Hopefully as we approach release, we'll be able to see more gameplay stuff.[Via Siliconera]
Joystiq interview: Hifumi Kouno on Infinite Space
Ever wanted to create your own spacecraft and sail the ocean of stars? Well, you can do that with Nude Maker and Platinum Games' Infinite Space for DS -- sorta. We caught up with Hifumi Kouno, both president of Nude Maker and director of Infinite Space, to find out more about the spaceship-building title that's due out next year.%Gallery-22958%
Infinite Space and a finite film
The above video is the best animated short made to advertise a video game you will see today (absolutely definitely), and maybe the best ever, even if this sort of marketing becomes commonplace. If it does? We all win, especially if the videos are half as good as this one, made by Production I.G. and Gonzo.Below? The best screenshots you'll see from a game advertised in this way. Basically, we're just offering you the best of the best here. That's easy when you're talking about Infinite Space, and considering the pedigree, probably easy to say about anything Platinum Games decides to do, ever. %Gallery-22973%
Infinite Line website officially translated
Sega Europe's official Platinum Games sites are up, including one for the DS RPG Infinite Line. It's a faithful translation of the Japanese Infinite Line site, with the same three Japanese screenshots. But this time, you can read the text on the website.The newly-legible text doesn't exactly contain gameplay details, but it confirms what we've puzzled out so far. You upgrade your ship with "a combination of module-like parts," which sounds like an accurate description of the Tetris -style parts we've seen. You won't be limited to customizing a single ship. According to the site, you can choose to work on the same ship, or you can acquire multiple ships.The bombastic copy concludes with "A magnificent story that more than lives up to the word 'voyage'. A world that cannot be constrained by the word 'RPG'." As if Clover fans didn't have high enough expectations.
Sega talks Platinum Games deal, franchises
In a Q&A session with Gamespot, the folks at Sega detailed some of their plans and expectations for the recently announced four-game publishing deal with Platinum Games. The agreement, which grants Sega exclusive rights to Mad World (Wii), Bayonetta (PlayStation 3 / Xbox 360), Infinite Line (DS) and a mystery title from Resident Evil designer, Shinji Mikami, was officially announced during a special event last week."The guys at Platinum are just at the top of their game right now, and what they've delivered is so clearly AAA in every way, when they started to show us product, we had to have it," said Sega of America president, Simon Jeffery. When asked about the marketing challenges inherent in starting up three (possibly four) new IPs, Jeffery notes that Sega is in it for the long run. "What we've seen today is the starting point, but all of those games--Bayonetta, Madworld, Infinite Line--won't be one-offs," he explained. "They're all uniquely different enough from everything in their space to build complete franchises out of. The whole foundation of PlatinumGames is built around that long-term strategy."Though talk of franchises this early in a game's life would normally elicit concern, the ex-Clover talent at Platinum Games could certainly do with the commercial success to match their critical acclaim. Y'know, aside from the Devil May Cry and Resident Evil guys.
Infinite Line site open with new screens
The website for Sega and Platinum Games' Infinite Line is already up, with little more than teaser content at the moment. There are a few paragraphs explaining what we already know about the game (150 crew members to choose from) along with some PR-type text about how deep the story is. But there are also three new screenshots, which we've added to our gallery. They're a bit confusing to look at out of context, but we can at least tell that one is a spaceship selection menu, and one shows more of the Tetris-like upgrading. Parts take up varying amounts of a 3-by-3 square, and there seem to be many of each type of part to choose from (the screenshot shows Type-A through Type-K of some part). The last screenshot, as far as we can tell, shows a ship flying toward some kind of portal structure, maybe. Some kind of pretty, futury space stuff.%Gallery-22973%[Via GAME Watch]
Infinite Line RPG announced for DS
click to enlarge Infinite Line director Hifumi Kouno of Nudemaker showed up at last night's Platinum Games event (fully clothed, to our surprise) to debut the studio's forthcoming sci-fi RPG for DS. The game is built around two key concepts: Players command (1) a "highly-customizable" spaceship through (2) a "large and expansive" world that encompasses two galaxies. The team has prepared over 150 ship models, as well as more than 150 potential crew members that can be stationed around the ships. The insides of the crafts are modular, so players can place the bridges, engineering rooms, fire control rooms, etc. as they see fit.As per The Space Opera Mandate® of 1941, Infinite Line will explore "what it means to be human" in this touching adventure around the stars. Nudemaker plans to show off some actual screenshots -- that will apparently "blow you away" -- in the near future. %Gallery-22958%
Sega officially announces Platinum Games deal, Infinite Line media released
We totally knew it was coming, but Sega announced their partnership with the Platinum Games supergroup last night, officially revealing the three games in development from the former Clover staff. Of interest to us: Infinite Line, the sci-fi RPG codeveloped by Platinum and Nude Maker and directed by the latter company's Hifumi Kouno. Along with the announcement, three pieces of spaceship concept art were released, which you can be totally impressed by in our gallery. They all show dates from early 2007, so this thing's been in the works for a while.In addition, Famitsu has posted some very confusing-looking screenshots, which reveal the process of arranging ship parts as some kind of Tetris puzzle-type thing, a matter of fitting parts composed of differing numbers and configurations of blocks onto your ship.%Gallery-22973%[Via Joystiq]
Sega announces Platinum Games partnership, first three games
At a private event last night, a very excited (and cautious) Sega told us about their new partnership with Platinum Games, the creative team comprised of former members of Capcom's Clover studio. Sega of America pres Simon Jeffrey introduced them like this: "These guys are some of the most talented, some of the most respected guys in the entire gaming business. Their portfolio is incredible, they're revered, they're almost worshiped in some parts of the gaming community and we're very truly honored to be working with them."The first three games should come as little surprise to anyone reading Joystiq the last couple days: Bayonetta, by Hideki Kamiya, creator of Devil May Cry, Okami, and Viewtiful Joe; Infinite Line, by Hifumi Kouno at Nudemaker, creator of Steel Battalion and, before that, the Clock Tower series; and MadWorld, a mad-cap feast of ultraviolence for -- you guessed it! -- the Wii by first time director Shigenori Nishikawa.%Gallery-22953%
A finite wait for confirmation of Infinite Line
Infinite Line, the rumored Platinum Games sci-fi RPG published by Sega, is totally a real game and not something made up by jerks to hurt us. These Famitsu scans reveal the Platinum Games/Nudemaker (Steel Battalion) co-production as pretty much what we heard, only awesome.You'll have over 150 ship parts from which you can build your ship, and over 200 crew members. Infinite Line uses a sort of Final Fantasy-like active-time system, in which each character has an individual wait between turns, but those count down in real time. The interesting wrinkle with Infinite Line's system is that a full ATB gauge enables more options.[Via NeoGAF]
Rumor: Sega publishing Platinum Games ... games
Oops! Looks like some Sega news slipped through the grip of an embargo. The now-removed report detailed an agreement between Platinum Games – the development studio born from the ashes of Capcom's much-loved Clover Studios – and Sega, who will publish three of the developer's titles. Those three games are Bayonetta, directed by Devil May Cry creator Hideki Kamiya, featuring a female protagonist with "guns on her feet" (finally!); a DS sci-fi RPG titled Infinite Line; and an "ultra ultra violent" Sin City-esque Wii game titled MadWorld. There's a good chance we may hear more during Sega's Gamer's Day event on Wednesday but, for now, consider this one a rumor.
