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Lord of Arcana grants PSP an audience on Jan. 25
Finally, Square Enix is giving us a chance to play a Monster Hunter-style action RPG -- and on the PSP. How novel! Lord of Arcana will be released in North America, on both PSN and UMD, on January 25. While our own experience with the bloody PSP adventure didn't leave us terribly impressed, the game was directed by Deadly Premonition creator Hidetaka "Swery65" Suehiro. So maybe it'll turn out to be a misunderstood, quirky masterpiece, instead of just a bad game.
Lord of Arcana preview: Bloody bad monster hunting
Ever since Capcom's Monster Hunter Portable lit up the Japanese sales charts, there's been no shortage of clones hitting the PSP. This year's TGS show floor featured follow-ups to many of them, including Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, God Eater Burst and Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity. Square Enix is throwing its hat into the crowded monster-hunting genre with Lord of Arcana ... and doesn't appear to succeed. If you've played a dungeon crawler on PSP before, Lord of Arcana will feel immediately familiar. An on-screen mini-map will direct you throughout the dungeon, until it ends with a climatic battle against a giant boss monster. Along the way, there are battles with smaller creatures, and straying from the beaten path will reveal loot-filled treasure chests.
Lord of Arcana gives birth to new trailer
Square Enix's approach to the Monster Hunter formula adds one key component: blood -- and lots of it. If you couldn't tell by the hardcore guitar riffs of this new trailer, Lord of Arcana is aiming for a slightly older audience. Still, gore can't hide what seems to be an awfully familiar premise. %Gallery-99654%
Square Enix's Lord of Arcana be-heading to the PSP
We were just thinking to ourselves this morning, "You know what Square Enix should do? Make a multiplayer action game for PSP. And boy, I could really use a large Berry Blast from Jamba Juice!" And wouldn't you know it, the publisher announced plans to bring Lord of Arcana, a "multiplayer action game," to Sony's handheld at some point in the future. A release date "will be announced at a later time," though the EU PlayStation blog says the game will be "coming soon". The announcement details Lord of Arcana as allowing play with "up to three friends" and including creation tools for crafting your own playable character. Between LoA's official website (can we call you LoA, LoA?) and the handful of screens released thus far, it appears that, regardless of the game's "multiplayer action" description, there'll be plenty of numbers and bars and giant swords to satiate Square Enix fans. Unfortunately, the press release contains no mention of that Berry Blast smoothie. For shame.%Gallery-96718%
