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DS Style details emerge-- screenshot-style
The first screenshots of Square Enix's DS Style series of nongames have shown up, and they look ... well, functional. The problem with nongames is that it's impossible to build hype for something that is used just for looking at a map of France, or teaching yourself yoga, even if the software in question is extremely well-designed.These screens answer the biggest question we had about the series: how could a game about listening to classical music possibly fill two screens meaningfully? The answer: dog animations and quizzing you on your feelings about the music.
Cooking Navi goes high-end
Cooking Navi has been a smash in Japan, so it's hardly a surprise that the game would get a sequel. This particular sequel, however, is somewhat of a surprise. Shaberu! DS O-Ryouri Navi Marugoto Teikoku Hotel (Talking DS Cooking Navi Marugoto Teikoku Hotel) is a new version of the game containing recipes from the chefs who cook in the prestigious Japanese hotel.We're thinking about picking up Koei's latest nongame, since we'd love to try some gourmet Japanese cuisine. But we have a concern: isn't Cooking Navi supposed to be about basic recipes and helping regular people make them? Seriously, look at those seven chefs on the box. This interactive cookbook has the potential to be the hardest game on the system.
Square-Enix unveils yoga lessons and gardening for the DS
Square-Enix recently announced a handful of non-games for the Nintendo DS, proving they can do more than milk the Final Fantasy franchise. What sort of winning ideas are in the pipeline? How about DS Yoga Lessons You Can Start Today, Flower-Blooming DS Gardening Lite, and Why Not Listen to Classical Music On DS?. The company is also planning a line of practical applications for the DS, such as travel guides for Italy, Hawaii and New York.If Nintendo can score a goal with a brain training game featuring a jaggy-faced Japanese scientist, who's to say these won't catch on as well? Now all we need are You Can Knit! Easy Stylus Touch Fun and Organize Your Final Fantasy Re-releases and Remakes Collection and we're set.
Square Enix brings lifestyle titles to DS
Continuing its praiseworthy support for the Nintendo DS, Square Enix has announced DS Style, a new line of software for the casual gaming audience. According to the latest issue of Famitsu, the company is venturing away from its RPG franchises for a moment, focusing instead on leisure activities like yoga, classical music, and gardening. It might not sound as exciting as SRPG battles or Chocobo mini-games, but different strokes for different folks.Square Enix will also be releasing DS travel guides based on the popular World Walking tour book series in Japan. These guides will provide maps and other useful information for sightseers visiting countries like France or Thailand. Check past the post break for the full list of destination guides and verbose titles from Square Enix's DS Style lineup. [Via NeoGAF]
Hilarious press event promotes hilarious walking "game"
Healthy Walking Navi spokesman and star Duke Saraie led a demonstration of his exercise techniques for members of the Japanese press, in order to promote his first DS program. In addition to showing off some of the exercise routines used in the game, Duke talked about his success with exercise books and DVD's. He said (within the context of a press event promoting this particular product) that the DS software is superior because it's more like one-to-one training. The president of developer Dorasu also gave a presentation, indicating that Walking Navi is only the first of six health games planned.Check after the break for two new screenshots. We've also included our favorite picture from the event, where Duke proves how strong his walk-fu is by teaching reporters about walking while they're sitting down at their desks.
English Training for the younger set
We've already accepted the fact that we'll never get a Japanese language training game in the US. It's fine. We can go to school to learn language or whatever. Because we long ago resigned ourselves to this fact, we can look at these cute screenshots of Hajimete no Eigo Training [Eitore] (Beginning English Training) without wishing we had access to such a program when we were teensy. We don't think about how maybe if our Japanese had gotten a headstart from a game, we would be able to use it for something other than awkwardly translating the titles of English training games. We're just going to go doodle in our kanji dictionary or something. Enjoy some screenshots!
Opera browser boxed, demonstrated
Siliconera got a chance to check out the American release of the Opera browser at SXSW, and they handily took some video of the demonstration, so we can see ... what Japanese and European DS users have been seeing for quite some time. We've been waiting so long for this application. Could it really be on the way?They also got some pictures of the US boxart, which says that the DS browser puts "The Internet at your fingertips". That's somewhat of a strange choice of slogan; as far as we can tell, the Internet is always at your fingertips, except when you use a stylus-based input method.
Learn to walk with Walking Navi
Now that your brain is sufficiently trained, you can begin figuring out how to move around! Okay, so really it presumes you already know how to walk and are interested in walking as exercise. Too bad, because it's a lot funnier the other way. Just like Cooking Navi and Dokodemo Yoga, Duke Saraie no Kenkou Walking Navi (Duke Saraie's Health Walking Navi) is designed so that users can choose their program, set their DS systems down and have directions barked at them while they follow along. Fitness celebrity Duke Saraie will help you warm up, then lead you through your workout. Wait, workout? We want to try this to see what kinds of "workouts" could be involved other than "walk for a while", "walk for longer than the last time", and "walk for a while, but faster".Try Screenshot Inspecting Navi after the post break.[Via NeoGAF]
