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'Wild Hearts' is EA's answer to Monster Hunter
EA has unveiled 'Wild Hearts,' a Monster Hunter-style action game from the team behind Dynasty Warriors.
Dragon Quest Heroes hits Japan in February, Metal Slime PS4 out this year
Square Enix's Dynasty Warriors-styled action-RPG Dragon Quest Heroes will launch for PlayStation consoles in Japan on February 26, but series fanatics can grab a special edition PlayStation 4 adorned with a Metal Slime later this year. The Metal Slime PlayStation 4 retail package debuts in Japan on December 11, bundling a limited-edition console with a silver DualShock 4 controller, a code for a Dragon Quest Heroes PS4 theme, and a voucher that allows console owners to download Dragon Quest Heroes 24 hours before it hits store shelves. If you'd rather not coat your console in metallic goo, the Metal Slime figurine itself is detachable. Look at that goofy grin, though! How could you even think of removing it from its rightful place atop the PS4? You monster. Square Enix additionally revealed that Dragon Quest Heroes will run at 60 frames-per-second on the PlayStation 4, while the PS3 edition is locked at 30 FPS. Neither Dragon Quest Heroes nor the limited-edition PlayStation 4 have been announced for a North American release. [Video: Sony / Square Enix]
A Dragon Quest Heroes gameplay video draws near!
Square Enix gave a first look at the gameplay featured in Omega Force's PlayStation 4 and PS3 action-RPG Dragon Quest Heroes: Anryuu to Sekaiju no Shiro at TGS this week, showcasing army-slaughtering mechanics similar to the developer's Dynasty Warriors series. The video above, transferred from streaming service Nico Nico Douga, shows a party of heroes squaring off against dozens of Golems, Drakees, Skeletons, and other monsters ripped from prior entries in the Dragon Quest series. Gameplay sticks closely to the beat-'em-up formula featured in Dynasty Warriors and the upcoming Hyrule Warriors, as players have access to a number of melee combos and screen-clearing magic attacks in battle. Square Enix also revealed its first Dragon Quest Heroes character details (via Siliconera) this week. Playable party members consist of royal bodyguard Acht (or Mehr, if players opt for a lady protagonist), Elsarze Kingdom ruler Dirk, and magic-wielding sorceress Julietta. Familiar faces like Terry from Dragon Quest 6 and Dragon Quest 4's Alena will also make appearances throughout the campaign. Dragon Quest Heroes will launch in Japan in the second quarter of 2015. A North American release has not been announced. [Video: Square Enix / Game Kana]
Hyrule Warriors review: Moblin warfare
Though The Legend of Zelda series includes some of the most beloved games of all time, Hyrulean protagonist Link has seen some less than stellar adventures in the hands of developers not named Nintendo. Capcom's Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages Game Boy games were excellent, but both relied on gameplay elements and graphics borrowed from Nintendo's own The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. More notorious are the three CD-i games which transplanted Link into a wholly new gameplay style that's best described as a hybrid of the sidescrolling stages of the second Legend of Zelda game and an unending litany of poor design decisions. The less said about the games' baffling take on Nintendo character design, the better. Despite this disappointing history, Nintendo has now granted Koei Tecmo – more specifically, its most notable developers, Omega Force and Team Ninja – the rights to craft their own Legend of Zelda entry, a melee-focused Wii U spin-off dubbed Hyrule Warriors. It would be difficult to match the depressing legacy left by the CD-i entries, but it seems an even more daunting task to match Nintendo's pedigree of sterling high-fantasy adventures. Fortunately for fans of both The Legend of Zelda and Koei Tecmo's flagship musou brawlers, Hyrule Warriors is successful on nearly every level.
Report: Bladestorm plots new dynasty on PS4, Xbox One, PS3
Bladestorm: The Hundred Years' War and Nightmare is preparing a three-way attack on PS4, Xbox One and PS3, according to reports. The new version of the 2007 real-time tactics game was unveiled for PS4 at Sony Japan & Asia's press conference on Monday, and now Gematsu and Siliconera claim this week's Famitsu confirms PS3 and Xbox One versions, too. According to Gematsu, the enhanced revision returns to the original's Hundred Years' War campaign, but also introduces a new "Nightmare" section that takes place in a fantasy world. The PS4 trailer seems to tease that when a dragon suddenly lands in the middle of a battle, which we don't seem to remember from our history lessons - not that we remember our history lessons. Anyway, Gematsu adds we can expect more otherworldly critters to show up, like goblins and cyclopes, and ones that the players get to control, too. For now, the new Bladestorm remains confirmed for Japan only, where it's due to launch later this year. Nonetheless, you can charge past the break to check out the PS4 trailer.
Dragon Quest Heroes coming to PS4 from Dynasty Warriors devs
Dragon Quest Heroes is coming to the PlayStation 4 in Japan, marking the first time the series has appeared on a Sony platform since 2005's Dragon Quest 8. Helmed by Dynasty Warriors series developer Omega Force, Dragon Quest Heroes is an action-oriented spinoff in the same vein as the upcoming Hyrule Warriors. Sony will also release a Metal Slime-themed PS4 console in Japan to commemorate Dragon Quest Heroes' release. [Image: Sony]
Hyrule Warriors' adventure mode has NES Zelda appeal
Nintendo offered new details on Hyrule Warriors during a Nintendo Direct livestream last night dedicated to spilling new beans on the game. The Tecmo Koei-developed offering will include an adventure mode that features a NES-style map inspired by the original Legend of Zelda. In it, players hack through levels with unique victory conditions, such as "defeat 300 enemies in 10 minutes," acquiring and using classic items from the Zelda series to find rare goods like heart containers. Additionally, Zelda fans will appreciate the familiar ability to chop away at grass in Hyrule Warriors and attack the chicken-like Cuccos, which will attack players after enough unjust damage has been done to the creatures. The livestream also touched on the game's leveling and skill/equipment crafting system; we've embedded the full Hyrule Warriors Direct stream for your viewing pleasure. Hyrule Warriors will launch September 26 for Wii U, and those that register their copies on Club Nintendo by October 23 will receive two Ganondorf costumes. [Image: Nintendo]
Hyrule Warriors has couch co-op, no online campaign
Nintendo's upcoming Zelda-themed brawler Hyrule Warriors will not support online co-op campaign gameplay, a Japanese-language promotional Twitter account revealed this week. A local team of players can still play through Hyrule Warriors' campaign in an offline co-op multiplayer mode, which assigns one player to the Wii U GamePad's screen while the television displays their partner's character and viewpoint. Hyrule Warriors will feature online play in some capacity, but its core campaign is strictly offline-only. News of Hyrule Warriors' lack of online play comes shortly after publishing partner Koei Tecmo confirmed that the upcoming Samurai Warriors 4 will feature cross-platform online multiplayer gameplay for the PlayStation 4, PS3 and PS Vita. Online play has been a standard feature for Koei Tecmo's Warriors series and its spinoffs since 2011's Dynasty Warriors 7. Hyrule Warriors launches in North America on September 26. [Image: Nintendo / Koei Tecmo]
Samurai Warriors 4 conquers PlayStation platforms Oct. 24
Omega Force's Sengoku-era beat-'em-up Samurai Warriors 4 will premiere for the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita on October 24, publisher Koei Tecmo announced via a newly launched website. Featuring 55 playable historical figures, Samurai Warriors 4 includes the new Chronicle mode, allowing players and their co-op partners to take on quests using custom characters. The upcoming release heralds the franchise's return to PlayStation platforms following the Wii-exclusive Samurai Warriors 3, and marks the first time the series has appeared on the PlayStation 4. [Image: Koei Tecmo]
Samurai Warriors 4 coming to PS4, PS3, Vita this fall
Tecmo Koei announced that the fourth entry in Omega Force's Samurai Warriors series is coming to the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita in North America and Europe this fall. Boasting a roster of 55 playable characters inspired by figures from Japan's Warring States period, Samurai Warriors 4 adds several new modes and features to its hack-and-slash repertoire, including the quest-based Chronicle Mode and networked cooperative play across all supported platforms. The release also marks Samurai Warriors' return to Sony's platforms after a brief absence. Though the series traces its origins back to the PlayStation 2, Samurai Warriors 3 premiered in 2010 as a Nintendo Wii exclusive, and the follow-up Samurai Warriors: Chronicles was available only for the Nintendo 3DS. Further details regarding Samurai Warriors 4 will be revealed at E3 next week. [Video: Tecmo Koei]
Dynasty Warriors 8: Complete Edition strikes Steam on May 13
PC-only gamers haven't been able to enjoy Dynasty Warrior 8's hectic, definitely-true-to-history battles between ancient Chinese kingdoms, but Tecmo Koei is about to fix that. The publisher is bringing Omega Force's DW8: Xtreme Legends Complete Edition to Steam on May 13 in North America and Europe. The Complete Edition bundles the base game of DW8 with its Xtreme Legends expansion, which adds new characters, story episodes, weapons and enhancements to the Ambition, Challenge and Free modes. Complete Edition's minimum requirements call for at least Windows Vista, with 512 MB of RAM, a VRAM 256MB video card and an Intel Core 2 Duo Processor 2.4 GHz (or Intel Core i7 860) rounding out base requirements. Support for gamepads will also be present, as will be support for DirectX 9.0c. [Image: Tecmo Koei]
Hex Heroes is a five-player real-time strategy game for Wii U
Some of us don't know how to play real-time strategy games. Some of us just turtle in our initial base until we run out of resources, at which point our brainiac rivals storm the place for an easy victory. That's okay though, because in Prismatic Games LLC' Hex Heroes for the Wii U eShop, which the studio describes as a "party RTS," strategists will use the GamePad to lead up to four allied friends, with the allies sharing screen space on the TV. As TV players complete objectives and harvest resources, the GamePad player decides how those materials are used. The GamePad overlord can also construct ally-powering buildings and boost the individual stats of teammates, so it might be best to listen to them instead of going Rambo. TV players can select two types from eight unit classes, allowing for combinations of practicality and offense like the Knight/Woodcutter, or purely support-based hybrids like the Woodcutter/Scout. Teams can take on Hex Heroes' Lair Mode, an attempt to discover and seal off enemy lairs, or brave endless waves of foes in a Horde Mode. If and when your friendships need a break, there's also single-player versions of each, as well as an online, single-player battle mode. Prismatic has also enlisted Banjo-Kazooie composer Grant Kirkhope for the game's soundtrack, which certainly doesn't hurt the experience. Prismatic is seeking $80,000 in funding to develop Hex Heroes and will announce stretch goals "soon," some of which backers will be able to vote on the priority of. Backers will also be choosing half of Hex Heroes' character classes, so aiding its Kickstarter is a bit more involved than just chipping in money and waiting for a token to show up. At the time of this writing, Prismatic has collected $8,579 for its co-operative friendship-ruiner take on the RTS genre. [Image: Prismatic Games LLC]
Toukiden: The Age of Demons review: Oni hunter
Toukiden: The Age of Demons isn't quite developer Omega Force's "Monster Hunter clone," though just like its closest neighbor, up to four players pound away at larger-than-life beasts in exotic locales to haul in rare items and acquire new gear. Toukiden attempts to maintain the same appeal as Monster Hunter and similar games by emphasizing progression through equipment upgrades. The Tecmo Koei-published Toukiden bears so many similarities to Capcom's franchise, in fact, that it's practically a part of it, which ends up being its problem. Toukiden falls short when it comes to pushing the genre forward in any meaningful way, resting as a functional, albeit hollow monster hunting experience.
Toukiden introductory anime saves kids, puts an eye out
There's selfless, and then there's killing off your own kind while working toward your own demise to save the human race. This anime trailer serves as a separate introduction to Toukiden: The Age of Demons from its opening cinematic. Toukiden is set to trample demons on the Vita on February 11.
Dynasty Warriors 7: Empires struck by delay in Japan
Dynasty Warriors 7: Empires has been delayed in Japan until November 8, Tecmo Koei announced this morning. The traditionally strategy-heavy adaptation was due for a PlayStation 3 release of September 27, but according to Andriasang the publisher felt the game's quality was not yet up to scratch.Whether or not any of this will affect the US release, listed as February 2013, remains to be seen. Either way, it'll be the first Empires game not to appear on American store shelves. Instead it will release on PlayStation Network, as did Tecmo Koei's Warriors Orochi 3 earlier this year.
Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll launch trailer looks great, sounds humiliating
There's some surprisingly beautiful imagery in this trailer for next week's Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll. And some silly names, though we shouldn't be too surprised in a game called "Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll." Watch it after the break, with the sound off so you don't hear the words "Chancellor Zofor."
Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll unite for Feb. 8 release
Having been delayed back in February, Tecmo Koei's fantasy action-RPG, Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll, finally has its official release dates. North America will be able to battle through hordes of monsters as a team of three warriors on February 8, 2011, while Europe will be able to follow on February 11. Unfortunately, though the release date has changed for the Omega Force-developed PS3 game, the name hasn't: It's still called "Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll." We wish it the best of luck.%Gallery-102565%
Quantum Theory, Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll delayed [update]
Tecmo Koei announced delays of two of its titles in Japan today. The female-focused shooter, Quantum Theory, has been moved out of its March 25 date to a troubling "TBA" date in the interest of improving quality. Tecmo Koei Europe confirmed that the delay affects the European release date, and it's likely to bump the North American date as well -- after all, if the game is still being worked on in March, we don't expect it to be released. [Update: Tecmo has confirmed the North American delay to Joystiq.] The Koei side also delayed a title: Omega Force's RPG Trinity: Zill O'll Zero, which is to be released outside of Japan as Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll. Its new release date is also "TBA." [Via Andriasang] Source: Quantum site Source: Zill O'll site
The whereabouts of Saihai no Yukue's screenshots
Advance scouts on the field have reported back their findings on Koei's approaching force, Saihai no Yukue (The Baton's Whereabouts). In addition to receiving valuable intelligence on the army's troop strength and supply routes, we have also learned that the Omega Force-developed title will be an "adventure" game!According to intercepted communications, Saihai no Yukue will see an overseas release in Q3 2008 and will focus on 17th century samurai Ishida Mitsunari as he leads Japan's Western Army against rival and Eastern Army commander Tokugawa Ieyasu, also known as "the portly dude with the pipe."Our spies have send back photos of the game's formation, which we've filed in our classified gallery below! Is it just us, or does it look like Ishida, the guy in the background, has been wading through a knee-high river of blood? The way he's raising his fist, it looks like he's pretty angry about it. "These pants are dry clean only!"%Gallery-27407%[Via Koei Warriors]
Where did you go, Samurai Warriors?
Koei's Samurai Warriors Katana released earlier this month in the U.S. to a distinct lack of fanfare, and next month, European gamers will get their shot at the action title. Last August, the game sure sounded like it had potential, so what happened between then and now that resulted in an average score of 53 on Metacritic? Apparently "fun" is as far as the concept went, and many other elements were left unpolished. Still, the reviews are not all bad, and the screens didn't make any of the staff at Wii Fanboy vomit on their shoes, so it might be worth keeping an eye out for the inevitable markdowns that are sure to come in a few weeks.%Gallery-14913%
