winning eleven
Latest
New Winning Eleven footage shows off Wii controls
To those of us reared on playing Winning Eleven games with d-pads and/or analog sticks, the Wii version of Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 has the potential to be a slightly unsettling experience. As the video above shows, pointing your cursor to pass actually looks very natural and fluid, but we're also hoping this doesn't make Winning Eleven on the Wii too simplistic. The series has long been defined by the subtlety of its gameplay, and while greater immediacy would potentially draw in new fans, learning how to master each new game in the series is one of its biggest attractions. We're remaining positive though, if only because series creator Shingo "Seabass" Takatsuka has repeatedly demonstrated that he knows more than most people about producing superb soccer games. Here's hoping he nails this one.
Promotional Consideration: Dual screen theatre
Promotional Consideration is a weekly feature about the Nintendo DS advertisements you usually flip past, change the channel on, or just tune out. The following DS Lite ads were taken from a series of Nintendo-sponsored station identification pieces (idents) aired over a year ago on Channel 4. For those of you unfamiliar with idents, they're short spots, often themed, stuck in between television shows to help "brand" the channel. In the case of this set, the UK public-service TV station bookended its comedy programs with Japanese theatre-styled advertisements for the DS's features and games. They're some of the most creative commercials we've seen for the handheld, so don't skip this post!
Goal x Goal, Demo x Video
Fanboy alum James Konik is fancy enough (and located in Japan enough) to have access to the Everybody's Nintendo channel on the Wii. Using the service, he downloaded a demo of Winning Eleven Goal x Goal to his DS, and recorded a play session of the demo for the edificiation of the poor plebes without access to the currently-Japan-only Wii channel.The game is a much more traditional interpretation of soccer gameplay than Inazuma Eleven, realistically depicting soccer action instead of high-flying anime-ness. According to the detailed impressions provided along with the video, Goal x Goal is an admirable handheld translation of the vaunted Winning Eleven series, with the added ability to change tactics with the touchscreen.
New at Japanese DS stations: Yosumin, Winning Eleven
Japanese DS owners (i.e. everybody) will have some new demos to try at DS download stations this month, in the form of Square Enix's puzzle game Yosumin and Konami's adorably named World Soccer Winning Eleven DS Goal x Goal! We're hoping that the availability of both of these games will lead to more information, especially about Yosumin. We've already learned from the screens that Winning Eleven features a slot machine that dispenses attribute points.Yosumin is the rectangle-clearing puzzle game first seen here as a demo, which, being a puzzle game, is somewhat of a departure for SE. We're watching this one with interest, because if it's successful, Square Enix's DS offerings may begin to diversify further. Also it's cute.
PES 2008 demo makes its way to North America
North America, we've got one question for you ... are you ready for some soccer? We ask, because this morning the previously released to other parts of the world Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 demo just became available to North American Xbox Live members. We suspect this 1.18GB demo to be the same as the one that was released to Europe last month, which we remember includes lots of soccer gameplay, soccer scoring and soccer running. It's what we in the business call a "soccer game". So North America, now you're just as important as Europe, because you have the PES 2008 demo ... albeit just a bit late.
A little more video of Winning Eleven Pro Evolution Soccer
Konami seems to be one of the few companies using motion controls to make a game potentially more in-depth instead of more casual-friendly. That seems like the right approach for the new Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008. We can't imagine the Winning Eleven series being anything but complicated, and we wouldn't want to see it transition into a party game or whatever.GamesRadar took some video of the game in action, which allows us to see what a real gameplay session would look like. Pointing to pass seems like a natural method of control that will also allow for greater precision and quicker moves. Way to make us care about soccer games, Konami!
Friday Video: Keep your eye on the ball
Soccer fans, take note -- Konami's next installment of Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer is looking pretty good, and it seems they spent some time on the Wii controls. In this week's video spotlight, we've got a lengthy look at the control scheme ... and it's no watered-down, casual-friendly deal, either. Check out the video and see for yourself.
FIFA '08 headed to Mac?
Inside Mac Games reports that one of their readers, while registering FIFA '08 for the PC on the Windows side of Boot Camp, noticed that EA has both PC and Mac versions of the uberpopular soccer -- sorry, football -- videogame listed for registration. And that's a pretty good indication, of course, that FIFA '08 is on its way for the Mac.Personally, I've never really gotten into videogame soccer-- the last soccer game I really loved was Nintendo World Cup way back in 1990. And while I hear that Winning Eleven is the biggest star in the genre right now (although Sensible Soccer, I know, has its fans), FIFA is definitely still competitive. Lots of football fans, I'm sure, would love to see it on the Mac.So we'll see. Obviously no release date yet (although a good guess would be by the end of '08 -- snicker), and we'll see if EA just slipped up or if they really plan to release this one. But FIFA '08 would be yet another nice addition to the growing line of games for our platform.
Winning Eleven DS Goal x Goal: Screens x Screens
Check out some screens from the other Eleven. This isn't the soccer RPG from Level-5, but rather the plain-vanilla soccer game from Konami. With RPG elements. Or at least, a shop. Winning Eleven DS Goal x Goal is the sequel to the game that released as Winning Eleven Pro Evolution Soccer 2007 in the U.S.So why would we be interested in a DS soccer game? Well, it's got some bonus minigames! If that helps. Oh, and it's got 2-on-2 Wi-Fi play. Also, despite the fact that reviews for the first Winning Eleven DS game were mixed, people really enjoy those Winning Eleven games, we've heard.
Japan receives new additions to budget lineup
Budget conscious importers can cheer as Japan's "The Best" lineup continues to grow. While American gamers rarely get new additions to the Greatest Hits lineup, Japan's offering has been far more generous. The newest batch of titles to enter budget status include the following: Magna Carta Portable Valhalla Knights Super Robot Taisen MX Portable Boku no Natsuyasumi Portable World Soccer Winning Eleven 10 Ubiquitous Evolution It's evident from this update that Japan sure does love their role playing games. The games will be priced at 2800 yen ($23) and will be available starting June 28th. Let's hope that other divisions of Sony will learn and add some more budget titles as well.[Via Siliconera]
Winning Eleven 2007 demo free kicks XBLM
Sure, today may be a momentous day because we have an Arcade release that is neither retro nor nonexistent, but we also have a footy demo just in time for humpday. That's right, we have a demo of (deep breath) Winning Eleven Pro Evolution Soccer 2007. Whew! That's a mouthful. The demo clocks in at a whopping 1.3 GB, so you may want to go fix yourself a sandwich while it's downloading.Go grab the demo and tell us what you think.
DS releases for the week of February 5th
We haven't had a lot of excitement when it comes to weekly releases lately, but this week makes up for it. Count 'em -- we've got three new titles this week that all look pretty good in their respective genres. Now the only problem is coming up with enough money to support our habit. They never talk about game-buying in those anti-drug ads, but we'll tell you ... sometimes our need for new games makes us consider knocking over the occasional convenience store. Not really. Please don't call the cops. We don't handle enclosed spaces too well. This week in the U.S. Diddy Kong Racing Lunar Knights Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007 For the rest of the world, check after the jump.
Rumor: Konami cancels PS3 Gradius, several others [update 1]
If the latest issue of Japan's Famitsu magazine is to be believed, Konami has quietly cancelled several of their upcoming PS3 and Wii projects. IGN reports that an updated release list for the company has been shortened by no less than six games, one of which was a Playstation 3 version of side-scrolling shooter, Gradius. Of course, since mere absence doesn't confirm outright cancellation, it would be best to treat this as a rumor for now. One potential explanation is that Konami has now made enough progress on some of these titles (if they were even in development to begin with) to warrant less ambiguous descriptors. If "New Action Game" turned into Castlevania: Polka of Purgatory, the publisher would likely choose a grander announcement than simply having it pop up on a standard release list.The removed titles are as follows: Gradius Series (PS3) Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball (PS3) New Action Game (PS3) New Role Playing Game (PS3) New Action Adventure Game 2 (Wii) Role Playing Game (Wii) Games still appearing on the release list include two sports titles, a music game and an "action adventure" for the Wii. Pro Baseball Spirits, Winning Eleven and Metal Gear Solid 4 are also still slated for the PS3.[Update: This rumor is bogus.]
Japanese trailer for Winning Eleven
This is one of those ads that we kinda wish would get aired outside of Japan, though maybe with onscreen text translated, simply because there's a lot crammed into a very small package. The music, the expressions on the guys' faces ... it's just perfect. And pretty damned funny, too. Anyone up for soccer?Check out the video after the jump.
DS releases for the week of October 16th [update 1]
Big week, Nintendo fans! Looks like the winter glut of games has begun ... and so many of us already blew our gaming wads for the month on Wii preorders! Guess it's time to start making some sacrifices, since this week brings us a new Nintendogs as well as the latest published by Atlus, Contact. Grasshopper Manufacture's new offbeat RPG is our pick for the game of the week, though there's a good possibility that anything with the Nintendogs logo might just outsell the Bible, much less any games that dare to compete.DS: Contact Disney's American Dragon: Jake Long, Attack of the Dark Dragon Disney's Chicken Little: Ace in Action Justice League Heroes Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning, The Lionel Trains: On Track Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab GBA: Justice League Heroes: The Flash SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab Summon Night: Swordcraft Story 2 And for our counterparts in the UK, the exciting release this week is Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007, which hits shelves on the 20th. As always, availability is subject to manufacturer delivery.[Update 1: Changed category from Interviews, which this ain't, to news, which it is.][Via Joystiq]4 leaves take 5 4 good, 6 feet under. A shame, really.
Winning Eleven headed to the Wii
Wiinning Eleven? Oh, we couldn't resist. In any case, the extremely popular soccer sim (which almost consistently dominates European sales charts immediately upon release) is coming to the Wii, complete with (you guessed it) a revamped control system designed specially for the system. As cool as a "power boot" clip-on ankle-brace for the Wiimote would be, however, we think it'll be something slightly more traditional. Strangely enough, the CVG article mentions whispers of that very insanity taking place in EA's camp, with the FIFA series. Bizarre. Winning Eleven is a brilliant series, and it's great news for Nintendo to have the series aboard. Note to the confused: Winning Eleven is also known as Pro Evolution Soccer in many parts of the world, including Europe. In retrospect, shouldn't it be called Pro Evolution Football over there? Hmm.
TGS 06: Every PSP game previewed
There are way too many PSP games at this year's Tokyo Game Show. Because not all of us have time to read all the impressions and previews of all the games coming out, PSP Fanboy has created this nifty guide for all the games that were previewed. You'll get a thumbs up or a thumbs down from the major video game news sites. If a game looks like it might be a real winner, we'll award it "The Official PSP Fanboy Entranced Korean Award." These are the games that'll end up in Korea on giant PSPs, luring people to their eventual doom. And, that's pretty cool. Read on to see all the previews!
TGS 06: Which games support wireless? [Update 1]
The good folks at IGN have compiled a fantastic list of games that support ad-hoc (local) wireless and infrastructure wireless. It's been slow to start, but more and more games have been adding support for internet play and downloadable levels, and they should be commended. The games that use Infrastructure mode include: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters Monster Hunter Portable 2 (downloadable levels only) Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Kingdom of Paradise 2 (downloadable items only) Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology (online leaderboard & downloadable levels only) Mahjong Fight Club P-Kara While this isn't a huge list of games, it's a huge improvement over the early years of the system's life. I'm happy with the support we get from heavy-hitters like Ratchet & Clank and Metal Gear Solid.[Update 1: This list is only of games present at TGS. There are tons of other games that feature wireless support that aren't on display.]
Winning Eleven Special Edition DS
So, Nintendo finally tossed us a bone and set the Black and Pink version of the DS Lite for release in North America. Still, any real gamer knows that all the awesome special edition everythings are Japan-only, and this little beauty is no exception. Soocer/football fans, go ahead and drool...the stylistic playbook sketch makes the Onyx Lite that much hotter. Sure, if you want it badly enough, you can import it...but who knows how much you'll be paying?
Pro Evo Soccer exclusivity proves enigmatic
Furious footie fans were quick to cry foul when Microsoft announced at the Leipzig Games Convention that Pro Evolution Soccer 6 was to be a 12-month, next-gen exclusive for the Xbox 360. The initial wave of anger has since been replaced with confusion, as several remarks from Konami seem to indicate that Microsoft was already celebrating a goal which they hadn't quite scored yet. Has Microsoft been caught in a lie or is this merely a case of misinterpretation and marketing hyperbole? The story thus far: After the initial announcement, Konami shoots down claims that Pro Evolution Soccer 6 is exclusive to the Xbox 360, pointing out that the game is a planned "multi-platform release" in order to satisfy "as many people as possible." Konami was right to take issue, as Microsoft never claimed to have total exclusivity. The deal only encompasses next-generation platforms. That means the PS2 version, sure to be the most widely played one, remains unaffected. Next, 1UP has a chat with series producer Shingo Takatsuka and triumphantly reveals that "Winning Eleven is not exclusive to Xbox 360." Well done, especially considering that Microsoft was speaking about Pro Evolution Soccer and not Winning Eleven. Same game, different regions. Microsoft is certainly to blame for not clarifying further, but nabbing Pro Evolution Soccer affects European territories, the only place where the series goes by that name. Takatsuka goes on to say that Konami "never said exclusive for one year on the next-gen platforms. We said this year. We were agreed that it was this year." The agreement largely occurs by default, as the man admits that the PS3 entry in the series has no chance of being completed before 2007. Next Spring is the earliest date it could see release and even then, it would be the Japanese Winning Eleven first, followed by the European edition. Can Konami put together the European release before 12 months have elapsed? Absolutely, especially if they want to prove Microsoft wrong. It would seem that Microsoft could be accused of being overly vague but not of being untruthful. Both Microsoft and Konami are correct and the confusion thus far is only due to different naming conventions and choice marketing words. Still, it'll be interesting to see which really lasts the longest -- Microsoft's 12 months or Konami's development time on a PS3 Pro Evolution Soccer 6. The race is on. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in.] Read -- Microsoft's original announcement. Read -- Konami denies 360 exclusivity. Read -- Series producer chimes in on the situation.
