suda51
Latest
Possible No More Heroes t-shirt surfaces
This weird-looking t-shirt with the phrase "NO MORE HEROES" was spotted in Japan recently. Just from looking at the shirt, we have no idea if it's related to the Wii game, but the 4cr poster who purchased it seemed to think so, indicating that it is part of a line of No More Heroes shirts. We'd like to see the full line of these shirts; we'd be unlikely to purchase this one, but we really like the idea of having some No More Heroes memorabilia. Suda 51's games and his company Grasshopper Manufacture's website prove that they are capable of remarkable stylishness. Check their shop for some amazing stuff that doesn't look like it was designed by a video game company. Of course, the store is for Japan only, but go and gawk anyway.
Suda 51's inspirations for No More Heroes
This video interview with Grasshopper Manufacture's Suda 51, the eccentric auteur responsible for Contact and Killer 7, shows off the stylish semi-cel-shaded graphics and bizarre second-person camera angles we've come to expect from a Suda game. In addition, we get a few details about the storyline, which concerns an otaku named Travis Touchdown who wins a beam sword in an online auction and then (naturally) gets involved with a bunch of competitive professional hitmen.Suda goes on to discuss some of the influences that he synthesized into his new Wii game No More Heroes, including Ultimate Fighting, Grand Theft Auto, and Johnny Knoxville. No mention is made of the title, which is also the title of a Stranglers song-- no surprise from a guy who titled his GDC presentation "Punk's Not Dead." The video is embedded, after the cut.
Wii Warm Up: Antisocial behavior
The Wii is a very social console. From the marketing campaign to the pack-in, everything about it is designed to get a bunch of people together and interacting in the same room. It can even be fun to have a group together for single-player games, with everyone helping out and enjoying the events of the game together.But video games are not always social events. Sometimes you just want to get immersed in the game without all the interruptions and talking and people. Are you the kind of gamer who prefers to be alone with your games? Or do you always prefer to share your experiences? Or are there certain games that you just can't stand having people in the room while you're playing? Killer 7 on the Gamecube, for example, was something we preferred to play alone because we didn't think others walking in would have a clue what was going on. Especially since we didn't.
Suda 51 announces 'The Silver Case' remakes for DS
During a GDC presentation last week Grasshopper Manufacture frontman Suda 51 revealed that his studio would be remaking its first two games, porting them onto DS. The two installments of a mystery-riddled adventure series, The Silver Case (PS1) and The Silver Case Word 25 (mobile) were released only in Japan. Because these are both text-heavy adventures, there's a good chance the remakes will never be localized for non-Japanese markets either (Objection?!). Sure, you could import, but if you can't read the text featured in the image here, don't bother.But don't fret either, Killer 7 fans jonesing for a Suda fix have No More Heroes to look forward to. Peep the new footage and decide if this Wii game will live up to its ultra-violent billing.[Via DS Fanboy]
GDC 07: ... and that's a wrap!
Well, now that GDC '07 has come to an end, it's time to look back over the DS Fanboy experience. Here, you'll find all of the GDC news and content in one convenient location. Even without a lot of direct information from Nintendo, it was still a great show for DS fans.News:Classic Suda 51 weirdness hitting the DSThe Ward sneaks into the newsMiyamoto keynote reveals design inspirationThe making of Ouendan and Elite Beat AgentsBarnyard Blast: Swine of the NightMakeup and Japanese housewife simsHousewife Superstar: home-ec minigamesSquare Enix demos game development gameHands-on impressions:Phantom Hourglass impressionsPokemon Pearl impressionsPhantom Hourglass multiplayer mode demoedVideo:Phantom Hourglass footageMiscellaneous:Even Reggie's limo driver is famous!DS Fanboy lands at GDC: what to expect
GDC07: Classic Suda 51 weirdness hitting the DS
Suda 51's first games as part of Grasshopper Manufacture are being remade for the DS. The games, called The Silver Case and The Silver Case Ward 25, were originally released for the Playstation and mobile phones, respectively. Suda revealed this fact during his GDC keynote "Punk's Not Dead".Both are graphical text adventures; Ward 25 uses static art and the original Silver Case uses full-motion video. Unfortunately, because of the amount of text that would have to be translated, Suda isn't sure the remakes will be released outside Japan. Someone tell him that American DS players love graphical text adventures! And tell him that we <3 Grasshopper Manufacture too.
Friday Video: No More Heroes
There's nothing like a blood-drenched trailer to wrap up the week, now is there? This one delivers, but what else could we possible expect from No More Heroes? We really, really hope this one ends up as good as it looks, and so it's this week's featured video. Check out Travis and his lightsaber of doom after the jump
No More Heroes brings the violence
Goichi Suda, who you might recognize as Suda 51, recently sat down and talked with IGN about his company's upcoming game No More Heroes. Being developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, who were responsible for the stylish Killer 7, No More Heroes is aiming to be "as violent, or even more violent than Manhunt 2!" That's the exact challenge that Suda has presented to his team, ensuring that the end user (that's all of us!) are satisfied in the bucketfuls of blood in the game.So what is No More Heroes about? Well, it's a "free running/roaming style action game" that is set in Santa Destroy, a fictional town located on the West Coast of the United States. Game progression is handled through mission completion by the player (both main and sub-missions will be available). The main character, Travis Touchdown, is a man stuck in a life of poverty and must rely on a single form of transportation in his favorite motorcycle "Schpel Tiger." No stealing cars folks!The rest of the interview confirms that No More Heroes is running on a new engine created solely for the game and Suda's thoughts on the Wii hardware.
No More Heroes to be most violentest Wii game. EVAR!
Take Jackass Johnny Knoxville, make him an anime and Star Wars otaku, give him a lightsaber and martial arts skills, call him an assassin, and then toss the concoction into an open-world game infested with more assassins ... that's the premise for Suda 51's Wii game No More Heroes -- but it doesn't stop there. The Killer 7 developer has proposed a particularly un-Wii-like challenge for his Grasshopper team: "make No More Heroes as violent, or even more violent than Manhunt 2!"And afterwards? Well, there's that secret "Project S" collabo with Kojima (a Snatcher sequel?) that's been floating under the radar; and, as Suda reveals, there's interest in developing for Xbox 360. "I want to develop games for Xbox 360 as soon as possible. In fact, I am planning the next project for Xbox 360," says Suda. "As for PS3, I don't have enough materials/topics to comment on this because there is only a small chance for us to develop for the console at this point in time." Small chance? Why's that?[Via Evil Avatar]
Heroes gets a new name
Forget Heroes -- we don't need no stinkin' heroes. Looks like Suda 51's latest is going through a rechristening and will sport a name not unlike the old name, just without all that messy implied hope. The forthcoming Grasshopper title will now be called No More Heroes. We're at a loss for which title is a better choice. Here we have a game rife with murder and mayhem, with light sabers katanas and a city named Santa Destroy ... it's hard not to see heroes in that!
New name, details for Suda51's Heroes
Japanese magazine Famitsu has published new information on the upcoming Wii game from Suda 51's Grasshopper Studios (Killer 7, Contact). Once called Heroes, the new name for the title is No More Heroes. Unlike Killer 7, you can roam freely around the Santa Destroy, a city purported to look more Westernized with a name so god awful we cringe typing it.In No More Heroes, you play assassin-wannabe Travis Touchdown (*cringe*), who fights with a beam katana. Sword fighting, however, sounds pretty hands-off: you position the Wiimote either up, down, or centered to indicate one of three fighting stances. Fighting is then accomplished via repeatedly tapping the A button. Repetition reprieve comes from shaking the control to build up an energy meter (Dragon Ball Z, anyone?) and swing the controlling following on-screen prompts. We're a bit dismayed by how the control scheme is described, but we'll await a hands-on impression before we make any judgments. When will a game designer figure out how to implement a fun-but-accurate sword fighting simulator?Suda 51 is hoping to sell one million copies worldwide, so expect a US release. No More Heroes is due out Summer 2007 in Japan.[Via Evil Avatar]See Also: Suda 51 reveals Heroes (Wii) game trailer
Updated Heroes trailer is no less bizarre than the last
Back in July, we posted a "leaked" trailer of Heroes for your viewing pleasure. The link has since been taken down, at the request of the publisher. At TGS, however, Suda 51's newest masterpiece was once again brought into the light. Anyone who's played their previous title, Killer 7, knows exactly how surrealistic these games can be, and this newer trailer does nothing but highlight the fact. Despite the "anybody pick up and play" design Nintendo seems to love so dearly, the Wii is accruing a rather impressive collection of extremely mature games. Between Heroes, Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles, Sadness, and the Orb/Thorn/Darkess combo from Crossbeam Studios, those of sounder mind and matter should be more than happy ... not to mention the ridiculous plethora of first-person shooters coming our way.
Heroes footage revealed: exclusive game from Suda 51 [Update 1]
Quite some time ago, Suda 51 announced he was developing an exclusive game for the Wii. As the rather insane mastermind behind the bizarre Killer 7, this was caused a noticeable stir...yet, at E3 2006, nothing was shown. Flash forward to today, where rival fellow Wii-centric news site The Wiire managed to hack obtain the official trailer for the game, slated to be shown at E3 by cancelled at the last minute. These three and a half minutes show some good stuff. Cel-shaded in a style similar to Killer 7, Heroes seems to share the assassination themes of its forebear. A man named "Travis Touchdown" uses a lightsaber to kill "Helter Skelter" and...well, maybe you should just take a peek yourselves. It's pretty insane. Seriously, props to The Wiire for obtaining and hosting this video; we would have all our readers head over to their site to check it out. This is exciting, exciting stuff, and Heroes promises to be a HUGE game for the Wii. It's being developed by Grasshopper Manufacturer, and is tentatively scheduled for release in the summer of 2007.[Update 1: The Wiire has posted a higher-resolution video for your viewing pleasure.]
New Nintendo Power issue arrives, spills beans [Update 1]
The newest issue of Nintendo Power (shown to the right) has a few interesting tidbits of information. Final Fantasy III DS will apparently have some sort of Wi-Fi compatibility (party vs. party?), and Suda51 (a.k.a. Goichi Suda) has confirmed Contact 2 for an unknown system, as well as another unconfirmed game for the Wii. That guy loves his Nintendo.A few other glimmers of information: There is the confirmation that with the exception of the control scheme, the Gamecube and Wii versions of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be identical. This is probably to avoid the screaming throngs of Gamecube owners that would certainly resort to outright violence upon hearing they were neglected. [Update 1: Made the post a little more DS-centric and environmentally friendly.]
Interview: Contact developers
A developer interview conducted by CVG reveals some interesting bits and pieces regarding the philosophy and design of Contact, soon to be published in the US by Atlus. It reveals that the game initially started out as a GBA adventure and that the Wi-Fi gameplay is a bit more unusual than you might have initially thought. Takeshi Ogura, one of Contact's producers, explains that when "you are connected to the wi-fi there are new characters that might appear and new events that will happen. The more that you connect to the internet the more characters and events you will have to play with." Check out the interview for more insights, as well as our positive impressions of the game itself.
