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2008's Biggest Blips: Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness
Developer: Marvelous Publisher: Marvelous/Natsume Release: June 8 When it comes to light-hearted, adorable games that make us want to smile, the Harvest Moon games top the list. The formula is relatively simple: grow and harvest crops, woo boy/girl, forge friendships, lather, rinse, repeat. Yet, if playing Harvest Moon doesn't tug at your heartstrings even a tiny bit, you're probably the kind of person that eats babies for a living. Not that there's anything wrong with that (in fact, we have an excellent barbecue sauce recipe, if you're interested). In case you need even more evidence that the Harvest Moon series is full of feel-good games, the two upcoming entries for the DS are subtitled Cute and Island of Happiness. How much sweeter can you get without dying from an immediate sugar coma? Borrowing a page from Lost in Blue, Island of Happiness kicks off with your character and a handful of friends stranded on a deserted island. As the game world changes and the number of buildings increases, more and more people start settling there. The game features 100 different NPCs, some of whom are bachelors (or bachelorettes, depending on whether you start the game as a girl or boy) that you can woo and marry. The game also features 3D graphics and utilizes stylus controls, thereby making full use of the handheld's capabilities. We only wish more games could be as relaxing and refreshing as those in the Harvest Moon series. As far as we're concerned, all games could use a good dose of Harvest Moon in them. To prove our point, we've made a few suggestions of game mash-ups that we'd like to see happen. 1. Harvest Moon meets Contra in Super Seed Is it just a coincidence that one of the heroes of Contra is Lance Bean? If you ask us, this game is just begging for a Harvest Moon infused sequel. 2. Harvest Moon meets Resident Evil in Mansion of Magical Itchy ... Tasty Did you ever stop to think that zombies need a little love, too? Did Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine ever take the time to invite the zombies to a festival, or try to gain some heart points with a platter of fried brains? Maybe impaling people is just the tyrant's way of indicating that he'd really like someone to bring him a kebab. 3. Harvest Moon meets Metroid in Metroid Prime: Gatherers Samus has done enough hunting. It's time for her to switch gears. 4. Harvest Moon meets Castlevania in Dawn of Happiness Castlevania needs to turn that frown upside down. Dawn of Sorrow? No thanks, Debbie Downer IGA. 5. Harvest Moon meets Dementium in A Wonderful Ward Ending up in a mysterious place without knowing why you're there isn't uncommon in the Harvest Moon games. If one of these protagonists ended up in Redmoor Hospital, we're sure they'd spend their time planting crops and making friends with the locals. %Gallery-15230% N+ Back Come the revolution
Promotional Consideration: Flower, Sun, and Reused Video
Promotional Consideration is a weekly feature about the Nintendo DS advertisements you usually flip past, change the channel on, or just tune out.As the official hub for the Flower, Sun, and Rain DS remake, the game's Japanese site embraces Goichi Suda's (and Grasshopper Manufacture's) hip presentation, its background shifting through a collection of blown-up and blurred screenshots. Even if you don't understand the Japanese characters strewn around its pages, it's evident that something very cool is taking place. The site added a television commercial to its list of updates late last week -- jump past the post break for the video and more.%Gallery-12911%
Metareview: No More Heroes
We've been eagerly anticipating the release of No More Heroes for a long time. There aren't too many titles that offer Wii gamers a mature experience, and we're looking for more diversity in our libraries. With No More Heroes, Suda 51 attempts to sate our cravings, while at the same time making the game ridiculous and quirky. But, is it any good?You can release the breath that you've been holding; it looks like No More Heroes lives up to all the hype (or at least, most of it).Need some proof? See for yourselves: IGN (78/100) thinks that despite the game's shortcomings, No More Heroes is worth getting: "No More Heroes isn't the most polished game out there, and it certainly has its fair share of quirks all around, but it deserves to keep its place in the libraries of the more serious Wii gamers just the same. Suda 51 promised a violent, stylistic spectacle, and he delivered." GamePro (90/100) raves over the game's combat and its use of the lightsaber: "For every gamer who's felt disappointed by tacked-on motion controls, I present the game that has completely captured the essence of the Force. No More Heroes? Try No More Competition." NGamer (94/100) says that the playing No More Heroes is a unique experience: "The mishmash of visual styles, music and the world's most flamboyant dialogue has no comparison to anything else; it's impossible to put the game in a box, except to say that it is unquestionably, undeniably, unequivocally No More Heroes, and you have never played anything like this before." %Gallery-4611%
Thirty more seconds of No More Heroes
In case you forgot, there's a game that starts with "No" and ends with "More Heroes" coming out in the U.S. this month for the Wii. Ubisoft just released a new trailer to keep the game fresh in our minds -- one filled with the normal mixture of action and absolute silliness. We posted it after the break, since like many other No More Heroes videos, this one is NSFW.
Some more updates for No More Heroes
A mix of new and old screenshots from No More Heroes burst from the ether this week, and since we can't resist anything starring our favorite anti-hero, Travis Touchdown, we've updated our gallery. So many of the screens and video we've seen from this title have been small or short or marred with watermarks that our raving obsession with everything No More Heroes is a true testament to Suda's unique vision. Come drool with us -- the waiting is almost over.%Gallery-4611%[Via press release]
Rune Factory 2 harvests more scans before release
Yet another scan has popped up for Rune Factory 2, as the game is coming out next week in Japan. There's still no announced plans to bring the title elsewhere, but even if there were, we probably won't see this game in English for another year. If you're oh-so-patiently (grumble) waiting for the game like we are, check after the break for one more teasing scan.
Comic book manual makes No More Heroes even cooler
Perhaps "cooler" isn't the best word to use, since comics tend to be associated with, well, nerdy lifestyles. Fortunately, though, this is a video games blog, meaning that we completely eat up geek culture like it's delicious candy. The folks over at Grasshopper Manufacture seem to understand this, and have therefore decided to incorporate a comic book motif into the No More Heroes instruction manual. We can only hope that Ubisoft decides to use this style as well, but in case they don't, check out some pictures provided by Siliconera's Spencer Yip after the break.
Rune Factory 2 screens give us deja vu
As we see more and more Rune Factory 2 screens, it's becoming pretty evident that the game is going to be almost exactly like its predecessor, only with slightly altered characters and possibly a kind-of-different storyline. Does the prospect of an extremely similar game excite you Rune Factory fans, or was one time around enough? Since we loved the first game so much, we're going to go with the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mantra, although it'd be nice to see a few more changes made to the sequel.You can check out some more screens that probably won't surprise you after the break.
No More Heroes themed Wii makes us sad no more
Hearing about No More Heroes' unsuccesful launch in Japan was enough to break our Suda-loving hearts, and make us really believe that the world is severely lacking in heroes. Fortunately, we were wrong. Kotaku reader Frank decided to show his support and respect for Suda51 with this Wii, which is all kinds of excellent. This fan tribute won't heal the wound of disappointing sales, but it's certainly a nice gesture. Like sending one of these custom Wiis to each of the Nintendo Wii Fanboy staff would be a nice gesture. (You can't blame a blogger for trying.)Another picture of this heroic Wii can be seen after the break.
No more blood in European version of No More Heroes
While we're glad that Rising Star will be distributing No More Heroes to Europe and Australia, some European (and yes, probably Australian) gamers might be peeved to know that the version of the game they get will be blood-free.Games Radar asked publisher Rising Star if this decision had anything to do with the recent Manhunt 2 BBFC fiasco, to which the company replied a telling, "Maybe."This certainly isn't the worst news in the world, and Japan is also playing the blood-free version, but we can understand if European gamers are a little disappointed by this development. Check after the break to see examples of the bloodless version versus the ridiculously bloody, Kill Bill-esque North American version.
Creator of Harvest Moon interested in making a game like Spore
Is anyone else interested in some sort of Spore meets Harvest Moon hybrid? If you are, the future might very well be a rosy place, indeed, because Harvest Moon creator Yasuhiro Wada dreams of making a game similar to Will Wright's creation sim. He recently told Gamasutra, "Eventually, I'd like to make something like Spore, where you create something, and from there, new stuff is going to be created again and again and again ... But you want to be one of the people living in the city, and to be a part of this growing too."Wada also said that King's Story (which was his concept) was originally supposed to be more like Spore than what it turned into. We like how King's Story is shaping up, so we're not really bothered that it deviated from its original idea, but it still would be nice to see Wada's true vision ultimately realized. Hopefully we'll one day see this Spore-like game that he wishes to make.
Rune Factory 2 scans packed with character art
The release of Rune Factory 2 is fast approaching, which explains the sudden media spotlight on the multi-faceted sim/RPG. Just yesterday, we got a peek at chatty new screens, and today? A lengthy spread from Nintendo Dream. The sequel promises a few improvements over the first installment, including better use of the touchscreen. No release dates have yet been mentioned for regions outside of Japan, but if the cycle of the first title is any indication, we're probably looking at a year until localization. But hey -- at least we'll always have these scans.
No More Heroes with some more goodies, this time music
We know that you were impressed by the opening video for No More Heroes, because, well, you told us so. The people behind the game must have degrees in tease-ology, though, because now you can download music samples from No More Heroes at the game's official website. Even though they aren't full tracks, it's easy to tell that the music for this game is going to rock our socks off. Now we're even as hyped for the soundtrack release as we are for the game itself.To download the track samples, go to the bottom of this page and click on the orange buttons. Your ears will thank you.[Via Siliconera]
No More Heroes intro turns us into wannabe assassins
No More Heroes may be too hard (for wusses), but if you think that means we're going to stop our blatantly ridiculous amount of coverage for this game, you're wrong. In fact, after hearing about the difficulty (even if it was a fake translation), we're more pumped than ever.Our latest update brings you the game's English intro, according to Gametrailers. We love how the game completely demolishes the fourth wall, although some people may find that irritating. Also of note is Travis Touchdown whistling the NMH theme at the beginning. Caveat: We at NWF are rating this trailer NSFW due to cursing, violence, and Sylvia in skimpy outfits.
No More Heroes toilet paper better be two-ply
It's not uncommon to give schwag at a game's launch party, but this No More Heroes themed toilet paper has to be one of the more original gifts. The toilet paper was only given to twenty lucky souls, making it extremely unlikely that you'll ever see one of these ridiculous rolls in your lifetime. Note to self: Next time Grasshopper Manufacture and Marvelous Interactive team up for a launch party, make sure to haul ass to Japan for the hilarious gifts. [Via Gemaga]
No More Heroes brings us one more trailer
It'll only be a few months before we get to play No More Heroes (assuming there are no delays ... please excuse us while we go knock on wood). Until then, though, we're going to soak up every bit of the game that we can, including this game trailer. This video gives a brief look at some of the characters in the game, including Travis Touchdown and Sylvia, but we think the music might be the best part. Note: Video contains NSFW language, violence, some scantily clad women, and a super excited Japanese announcer.
Rune Factory 2 comes with cool extras (in Japan)
We may have to wait a long time before Rune Factory 2 gets released outside of Japan, but that doesn't mean we can't be excited. Not only is Japan getting the game in January (those lucky bastards), but certain limited editions will come with this soundtrack disc and art book. We hope these goodies come our way when the game comes out here, although we highly doubt it.Judging from the cover of the art book, the style of the game is very similar to the first Rune Factory. Pictured are the main character (whose name is Kyle) and some girl with crazy eyes. We also like the contemplative looking dragon in the background. The soundtrack, meanwhile, includes arranged versions of four songs from the game. Pretty neat bonus, we think. Anyone else as jealous as we are?
Wii Warm Up: So many heroes
One of the most interesting aspects of the upcoming freakfest No More Heroes is the wacky cast of characters. Leading the pack, of course, is our antihero, Travis Touchdown. But we're going to discount him for our purposes today, since after all, he's the main dude of dudes in the game. Instead, we want to capitalize on the colorful secondary characters, with their humorous names and weird costumes. From Sylvia Christel to Destroyman, which one seems the most interesting to you (of those we've seen so far?)? And isn't it a shame that you'll probably have to kill them all?Wait, did we say shame? What was really meant is, isn't it awesome?
We Built This City on Project O (artwork)
Not all of you shared our excitement when we posted Project O's trailer two weeks ago, many questioning our declaration of the game as a "must buy." We considered sassing back with our usual acerbic wit, riposting, "Yeah, well your mother is a 'must buy.'" Oh, how it would have burned. We eventually decided against attacking our readers, opting instead to chip away at your defenses with as many updates on the RPG/sim as we can muster.Jeux-France posted new artwork of Project O's buildings and characters that strengthen analogies between the game and a Pikmin-styled RTS. Some of the structures are predictable, like the smithy and archery hut, while others, such as the mustachioed and heavy-eyebrowed fish restaurant shown above, are a bit more eccentric.We've got more images past the post break which you can preview while you try desperately in vain to shake the musical stylings of Starship out of your head. Consider that last link our weekend gift to you. You know, to make up for that whole your-mother-being-a-must-buy burn.
TGS07: Oboro Muramasa Youtouden looks even better in motion
We're already in agreeance that Oboro Muramasa Youtouden is one of the best-looking games announced for the Wii -- we shook hands on it, signed the appropriate forms, and even had a notary stamp the papers to make it official. Still, this first video glimpse of the 2D ARPG managed to leave us in a state of ecstasy, our skin alive with pleasure. What secret resource has Vanillaware tapped into that other developers have so far ignored? Most of the titles we saw at the Tokyo Game Show didn't look half as good as this.
