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PSN Store Update: El Diablo
Video games! They've been hibernating through the summer, but this week's PlayStation Store update brings plenty of the blighters onto PS4, PS3 and Vita. Let's start with the biggie, Diablo 3: Ultimate Evil Edition, which brings Reaper of Souls to the action-RPG on PS3 ($40) and debuts the game itself on PS4 ($60). It's also out on Xbox 360 and Xbox One. The two other cross-platform releases are Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare, which'll eat up 40 of your greenbacks on PS4 and 30 on PS3, and the stealthy CounterSpy, a $15 cross-buy purchase that unlocks the game ons PS4, PS3 and Vita. PS4 players also have a choice between the hyperviolent $10 Hotline Miami - also cross-buy - the somewhat less violent The Last Tinker: City of Colors ($20) and the retro Arcade Archives Rygar ($8).
Tales of Xillia 2 preview: Black and white
While you can rarely base much off an RPG's opening hour or so, Tales of Xillia 2 quickly establishes some of the things it's doing the same as its 2013 predecessor, and some of the things it's doing differently. The most obvious difference is the new central hero, Ludger Will Kresnik, and how the game presents him. It's not just Ludger's look that grabs you, with his dapper navy shirt and yellow tie overshadowed by his half-and-half black and white hair - right down to differently colored eyebrows. Unlike the last game's heroes, it's something that isn't there that claims your attention: his voice. Ludger is mostly a silent protagonist - in the hour and a half I played, the young man only spoke in grunts, mumbles and other monosyllabic noises. That reflects the other most obviously new part of the game, namely the dialogue choices Ludger can make.
Duo of trailers showcase Tales of Xillia 2's protagonists
Could you say no to chaperoning a little girl's journey to the wish-granting Land of Canaan, even if it helped her reunite with her father? Well so could we, but Tales of Xillia 2 protagonist Ludger Kersnik didn't, so you'll have to play the role of makeshift parental unit if you're interested in the Tales series' next step. Since your hands are effectively tied, you might as well get to know Ludger a bit with the above trailer, which offers a glimpse of his relationship with his brother Julius, as well as flashes of Xillia 2's combat. Ludger hopes to become an agent of the Spirius Corporation like Julias, but that whole "agreeing to protect Elle Marta on an epic journey" thing kind of stalls those plans. While a wish-granting land sounds appealing enough on its own, Elle is making the trip because her father told her to meet him there. The pair was split up after a mysterious band of villains attacked them during an evening storm, and while Ludger plays a central role in her adventure, the related press release assures Elle will cross paths with others of a "certain importance" during her travels. You can get a sense of Elle's personality in another trailer after the break, or you can read up on Xillia 2's Collector's Edition if either trailer's ending bonuses have caught your eye.
PS3 RPG Tales of Xillia 2 hits North America, Europe in August
Bandai Namco's PlayStation 3 RPG sequel Tales of Xillia 2 is headed stateside in August with a bonus-packed Collector's Edition in tow, the publisher announced today. The Tales of Xillia 2 Collector's Edition includes a figurine of the game's main character Ludger Kresnik, along with an art book, a soundtrack CD, a plush charm, and a replica pocket watch. The package also features a collection of costume DLC featuring classic series characters Yuri Lowell, Emil Castagnier, and Asbel Lhant. Tales of Xillia 2 is one of many Tales series games arriving stateside this year, accompanying the recently released Tales of Symphonia Chronicles and the upcoming Tales of Hearts R. Tales of Xillia 2 will hit store shelves in North America on August 19. A European release will follow on August 22. [Image: Bandai Namco]
First Tales of Xillia 2 trailer catches up with Ludger and Elle
Namco Bandai has revealed the first trailer for Tales of Xillia 2, the next in its longstanding RPG franchise series. Taking place one year after the events of the PS3-exclusive Tales of Xillia, which first launched in Japan in 2011 and later in Europe and North America this year, the adventure will follow the mysterious hero Ludger Will Kresnik and the traveling child Elle Mel Marta. "When a shadowy organization attacks them, Ludger awaken powers linked to a mysterious pocket watch he entrusted Elle with," Namco Bandai revealed in a press release featuring the first trailer. Tales of Xillia will continue its PS3 exclusivity when the direct sequel launches for the platform sometime in 2014.
Report: Tales of Xillia 2 coming to NA and EU in 2014 [Update]
Tales of Xillia 2 will come to Europe in 2014, Namco Bandai reportedly announced at the Japan Expo in France. A Namco Bandai representative told Gematsu that the game will also see a North American release in 2014. The game first launched on PlayStation 3 in November 2012 in Japan. Its predecessor, Tales of Xillia, is still on its way west too, as its English-localized version is slated to appear in North America on August 6 after it first launched in Japan in September 2011. We've reached out to Namco Bandai to confirm Tales of Xillia 2's 2014 localization ourselves, and will update as we learn more. Update: The official Tales Facebook page notes that Tales of Xillia 2 is coming to the west.
Rumor: Tales of Symphonia, Dawn of New World to get PS3 HD remakes
PS2 and GameCube RPG Tales of Symphonia and its Wii-exclusive sequel Dawn of the New World may come to the PS3 via an HD upgrade. Spanish site Koi-nya gained info from internal sources on a PS3 HD bundle of the two games, which it reckons is called Tales of Symphonia: Perfect Edition. Koi-nya quizzed series producer Hideo Baba, who's already teased 2013 as being a bountiful year of Tales news, the cheeky scamp that he is. While Baba said he couldn't confirm Perfect Edition, he did say such a game would be "a representation of the dreams and hopes of the fans, who have long been wanting it." One Koi-nya source also says Tales of Xillia 2 is coming to the west, but given we're still waiting on the first Xillia to arrive - it's due in August - don't expect a localization soon. We've reached out to publisher Namco Bandai for comment.
