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Drone Tactics is actually pretty exciting
We're pretty sure Atlus means "drone" in the "worker insect" sense, not in the "monotony" sense. If Drone Tactics was really boring, Atlus wouldn't be calling attention to it right there in the title. There's little chance of boredom here anyway! The day we get bored of giant rocket-powered mechanical beetle vehicles is the day we give up on life. Although it would certainly be ironic if the game did turn out to be repetitive and boring!Of course, we think the idea of painting your own custom bug fighting machine sounds awesome all by itself, and that doesn't even take into account the actual combat. Check out the latest trailer and our gallery of buggin' screenshots and get totally excited about drones!%Gallery-14982%[Via press release]
2008's Biggest Blips: Final Fantasy Tactics A2
Developer: Square EnixPublisher: Square EnixRelease: TBAWhat separates Final Fantasy Tactics Advance from most other handheld SRPGS? Its level of polish. As with the original Final Fantasy Tactics game for the PlayStation, Square Enix put its talents and resources behind FFTA's soundtrack, character designs, and solid mechanics. Even today, five years later, the GBA title's presentation outclasses releases like Hoshigami Remix and Luminous Arc. Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift continues that high-budget, high-quality tradition. While Square Enix hasn't yet announced a US release date, and we're disappointed about the the game's lack of both online and offline multiplayer features, we're excited about all the sequel's additions -- 400 missions, Revenant Wings-esque item synthesis, a reworked law system, bigger enemies, an expanded map with distributed "area maps," and a ton of new job classes.FFTA2 now boasts over 45+ different professions, ranging from Chocobo Knights (Chocobo-riding Moogles) to Bastards (a surly lot). Just as interesting as the vocations included are the ones that were cut from the final release due to time constraints or continuity issues. We came across their design documents while sifting through Square Enix's dumpster for discarded figurines, and we've posted the never-seen-before job classes right here for you!Chimney Sweep Action Ability sweeps your chimney walks around covered in soot Combo Ability after years of choking on grit and dust, dies an early death due to cancer caused by inhaling carcinogenic chemicals in the soot Real World Roommate Action Ability accuses you of disrespectin' her Reaction Ability refuses to accept any apologies or assurances that you had no intention of disrespectin' her Support Ability tells everyone in the house that you're disrespectin' her Damn Cargo Shorts-Wearin' Kids Action Ability wears those damn cargo shorts every day has too many pockets for their own good Support Ability perpetuates the misbelief that wearing camo anything is acceptable fashion (e.g. camo cargo shorts) Gangsta Rapper, Circa Early-to-Mid 90s Action Ability checks himself before he wrecks himself ('cause shotgun bullets are bad for his health) is the capital S oh yes so fresh N double O P -- D O double G Y D O double G, ya see Reaction Ability calls his crew while you call your crew so you can rendezvous at the bar around two Combo Ability is better than your favorite rapper Overbearing Asian Mother Action Ability belittles any and every measure you take to establish yourself as an individual Reaction Ability repeatedly insists that you should've become a doctor or a lawyer, like your successful cousins, instead of studying "computer" Support Ability leaves you with crippling feelings of inadequacy and social ineptitude Cute Friend Whom You Have a Crush On Action Ability hair smells of strawberries, sunshine, and summer possibilities is a kindred spirit; totally on the same wavelength as you Reaction Ability looks at you pityingly when you ask her out just wants to be friends isn't ready to date anyone right now Combo Ability sleeps with four other dudes -- simultaneously! -- the following week ALF Action Ability is back in pog form %Gallery-5421% Apollo Justice Back Next, on BSI: Troi
Atlus announces Rondo of Swords
Yesterday we found out from Nintendo that Rondo of Swords would be released for the DS in April, leaving us intrigued. Some of us at DS Fanboy (correctly) guessed that it was a localization of Success Corp's Ituwari no Rondo, but that's about it.Atlus cured our curiosity today, though, by providing a press release about the game. Besides copying and pasting the Wikipedia definition of "rondo" for us (gee, thanks, Atlus!), the publisher announced that the SRPG would be coming to the DS on April 15th. The press release also mentioned quite a few times that the game is "epic," making us wonder if we should have read it out loud with epic voices. Other than that, most of the information about the game can be found at the game's official website here.For all our snark, we're really looking forward to this game. The combat mechanic makes use of the touch screen, and the idea of a long, challenging game is especially compelling. Unfortunately, we won't find out until April if the game can deliver on its epic promises.%Gallery-14108%[Via press release]
The heroes of Wild Arms XF
Click for high-resolution image. Are you excited for the upcoming SPRG, Wild Arms XF? Sony's handheld has become the platform of choice for strategists, and XSEED plans on delivering yet another experience on the PSP. Not only do we have an overwhelming amount of new screenshots, we have character bios for you, after the break.%Gallery-3795%
Atlus USA reveals 'Rondo of Swords' for DS
Though Nintendo let the cat out of the bag yesterday with its extensive first-half 2008 release schedule, not much was known about the scampering feline save for its name, "Rondo of Swords." Admittedly not a great name for a cat, but it seems fitting for an "epic strategy fantasy RPG" from the capturers of quirk, Atlus USA. Judging by the trailer (embedded after the break), the Success-developed DS title is rife with saucer-eyed heroes, stylized attacks and touch-screen tactics -- just the way we like it.The Atlus folks promise multiple storylines, a "unique" combat system and the ability to send some of those annoying party members far, far away on level-raising errands. They also promise never to capture cats in bags again, because it's mean. If you can forgive them, look for Rondo of Swords on April 15, 2008.
Insect mecha to swarm Nintendo DS in 'Drone Tactics'
For too long entomology has gone ignored in game design, with us having to turn to the likes of Insector-X and SimAnt for our six-legged fix. Thankfully niche game publisher Atlus USA aims to change all of that with next March's release of Drone Tactics, a newly announced game of 'mechanized insect RPG strategy' for the DS. Nintendo's touchable handheld is practically tailor made for turn-based SRPGs, and the promise of being able to command our own personal army of customizable "mecha insecta" is just too good to pass up. On top of the game's "dozens of campaign operations," Atlus reveals that Drone Tactics will also include an additional 50 maps and support local wireless multiplayer, inspiring those of us with a thing for arthropods to look forward to the game's March 25 release.
Fans equip FFTA2 editor for translation project
Translating Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift just became serious business, as the GBAtemp community has actually built an application around the project to streamline its script-editing process. With this sort of dedication and this new specialized editor, it won't be long before the team releases an English translation patch for, uh, people with pirated ROMs.Though an official FFTA2 localization seems certain, Square Enix has yet to announce any plans to bring the SRPG stateside. Why not settle for Front Mission DS in the meantime?
Two PlayStation ports summoned to the DS
Further emphasizing the DS's status as the system that companies want to rerelease their old RPGs on, the latest issue of Shonen Jump revealed today that Summon Night 1 and 2, both originally PlayStation titles, are headed for the DS. We haven't been able to glean much information from the Japanese magazine's photographed page yet, but it looks like the two SRPGs will be released separately and not as a collection, the first one slated for Spring 2008, its sequel planned for Summer.Though the GBA and DS received several Summon Night side-story ARPGs, the first two of which were eventually brought to the US by Atlus, this will be the first time that entries from the main series see a handheld port. Neither Summon Night 1 or 2 ever made it stateside -- this seems like an excellent opportunity for a North American publisher to finally localize the games![Via Ruliweb]
FFTA2 maneuvers to the top of the Japanese charts
Final Fantasy fans seem to be split pretty rigidly into fanbases for the original Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, but that isn't stopping Japanese gamers from gobbling up copies of the newly releases Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift. The title took the top spot this week among Japanese games, with nearly as many sales as the original Tactics Advance in the first week, despite a bevy of games on the shelves. FFTA2 moved 142,000 copies, nearly twice as many as the number two title, Ar Tonelico II for the PS2.Will you be picking up FFTA2 when it heads to your local retailer? Or are you firmly in the other fanbase and refusing to cross over? Of course, if you're a rabid fan, you might not have to wait long, even if you can't read Japanese.
FFTA2 fan translation project underway
Though Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift doesn't officially hit Japanese stores until tomorrow, forumers at the GBAtemp community have already managed to procure a copy and are working on translating its squiggly words. The motivated group has deciphered an impressive amount of cutscene conversations and menu items, overlaying shots from the SRPG with English text. Even in its early state, this picture guide will be a huge boon to interested importers without any Japanese reading skills. Considering that Square Enix has yet to announce its plans for bringing Final Fantasy Tactics A2 to the states, this fan-backed effort may be the best way to play the game for a while.
Mech porn: Hella Front Mission screenshots
Though you wouldn't know it by the amount of advertising Square Enix has done so far for Front Mission, a total equal to nothing, the mech-filled SRPG stomps into stores next week. Those familiar with the series will agree -- as far as SRPGs for the DS go, this is the best one coming out in North America this year. Just to make sure we've swayed as many of you over as we can, we have updated our gallery with over 65 new screenshots and artwork images from this remake of the original, never-been-localized SNES/PS1 game. If you prefer your pictures moving, Square Enix has also swapped out its completely uninformative, six-minute clip of a building exploding in slow-motion with a new English trailer at the official Front Mission site. %Gallery-4781%
ASH wins over Siliconera
After hearing some negative impressions about Archaic Sealed Heat, the beautiful-yet-apparently-flawed SRPG from Mistwalker, Rolando of Siliconera approached the import with some understandable trepidation. He tried it anyway, however, and that worked out -- it seems ASH wasn't as bad as he expected. While he promises a full review later to come, for now he talks about the interesting combat system and the heavily stylus-dependent gameplay. It seems that if you're not a fan of stylus-based title, ASH is not for you ... but if you like SRPGs and don't mind the language barrier, this could be an import worth spending a little time with. Late game, he added later in the comments, things really pick up.
Live a lie with Hori's FFTA2 accessory set
Buying Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift when it hits Japan in two weeks might not be economically feasible for you, what with shipping costs and jacked-up import pricing, but that doesn't mean you can't make everyone believe you've purchased and played the game.Hori's FFTA2 kit, available for preorder at Play-Asia for an affordable $17.90, includes everything we've come to expect with these supplementary kits -- a themed system case, an extendable stylus, a stylus pen casing, and a screenwipe strap -- enough branded stuff to convince any doubters out there that you're the proud owner of Square Enix's newest SRPG, even if you really aren't.As for why you'd want to live this double life, pretending you're in possession of a game you've never actually held, we're not sure what your motivation would be; we're just offering advice in case you ever find yourself caught up in the dilemma we've described. Click past the post break for more photos of the set.
Mystery trademark revealed: Monolith Soft's Soma Bringer
Last month, Nintendo registered a bunch of trademarks in Japan that were primarily Wii-related (which led to some confusion when we spotted Nintendo Magic on the list). One of the more mysterious trademarks was something called "Soma Bringer." Along with about a billion other things, the identity of Soma Bringer was revealed today in a Nintendo conference. It's a new strategy RPG (from the looks of it, at least) developed by Nintendo's newest acquisition, Xenosaga developers Monolith Soft. Just from looking at the screens, we see attacks mapped to the face buttons, and multiple camera angles. As a new Nintendo-published SRPG, we're sure we'll be hearing more about Soma Bringer soon.%Gallery-8412%
Decorative Sealed Heat
With Archaic Sealed Heat out in Japan, we're entering the "dead zone" for news about the game. Japanese sites will no longer be posting screens or video with their previews, and American sites won't start previewing the game until a localized version is at least announced, meaning that unless the Japanese reviews all have new screens and video, we may be saying goodbye to Mistwalker's pre-rendered sprites for a little while.What better way to keep ASH (painfully) fresh in your memory than by putting some of the game's character art on your desktop? Gpara has three different wallpapers, each in four resolutions, to keep the game on your mind in the slow ASH news season.[Via GoNintendo]
Front Mission DS site slowly explodes into the internet
Two weeks away from Front Mission DS's release, Square Enix has introduced the SRPG's official North American site with a bang -- a drawn-out, "exploded bits hanging in the air for what seems like an eternity" bang. A bang that consists of a five-plus-minute movie in which nothing about the game is revealed.If you poke around the site, though, there's a lot of material there to help you get hyped up about this remake of the Front Mission series' first title. In addition to information about its setting, story, and characters, you'll find four short clips demonstrating Wanzer (mecha) customization and combat, all of them significantly more substantial than the explosion video arbitrarily embedded on the main page. %Gallery-4781%
Final Fantasy Tactics A2 advances
With Final Fantasy Tactics A2 hitting Japan this month, FFXII: Revenant Wings out for US gamers next month, and the PSP's Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions out this week, the Ivalice Alliance ... uh, alliance seems to be going strong. Of the set, FFTA2 seems to be the most controversial, with lines drawn between the fans of straight Tactics and Tactics Advance, and fans of both on the sidelines shaking their heads. Reviews on this one should be interesting! In the meantime, you can check out the latest screens in our updated gallery. %Gallery-5422%
Advance Wars DS 2 videos turn the series on its side
As much as we appreciate this first video look at Advance Wars DS 2, shot at Paris' Micromania Game Show, couldn't Nintendo Masters' video editors have rotated these clips counterclockwise before uploading them to their site and exacerbating that crick in our neck? If you don't mind rotating your monitor onto its side -- and when it comes to new media for the tactical RPG, we're sure you don't -- there are two more clips past the break for you to watch.See also: Advance Wars 2 gets shown off in Paris
Square Enix teases Front Mission 2089
Square Enix has released a short teaser video for Front Mission 2089. Before you watch, a warning: this video contains no mecha. No giant robots, no "gears", no mechs, no wanzers, or any of that. We assume they're in the game (it's a Front Mission game! Besides, the mobile version had them.) but that Square Enix decided it wouldn't be enough of a tease if we actually got to see any big robots.Instead, we get an introduction to the story, with English voice acting. For such a short video full of static character portraits and no mechs, which advertises a DS remake of a cellphone game, we think it works pretty well! We want to know what happens along the ... BORDER OF MADNESS. [Via NeoGAF]
TGS07: Front Mission 2089 announced for DS
Square Enix quietly revealed its next Front Mission project at the ongoing Tokyo Game Show, and it's for the DS! Aside from its name, Front Mission 2089: Border of Madness, not much else has been announced -- we can safely assume, however, that it'll be an SRPG packed with highly customizable wanzers (mechs) and political drama.Previous Front Mission 2089 titles have been released for mobile platforms, but we're not sure yet if Border of Madness will be a port of one of those cell phone games or a completely new entry to the spin-off series. Of course, we hope for the latter. Regardless of its origin, we likely won't see it localized for the US unless we support Front Mission DS's release in the states next month!
