Fan service

The Last Story finally hits North America this month, so it's a good time to learn a little more about the game's development.

This documentary by French site Sidekick.fr explains more about Mistwalker's background, The Last Story's original concept as a much darker game called Lost World and more. It's well researched and slick, and well worth a watch.

Make sure you read our The Last Story review for more on Mistwalker and Nintendo's Wii RPG.

[youtube:umH0036zoG4]

Read more...

Straight to the top

Sony's fantastic physics-bending Gravity Rush hit Vita in late June and easily walked away with our Game of the Month award.

As our Gravity Rush review explains:

It's a game that defies expectations almost as frequently as the physical properties it’s built upon. A surreal narrative is complemented by genuinely ground-breaking gameplay mechanics, and while it’s not always flawless, it culminates in one of the most outstandingly original experiences of the year.

A true must-have title for Vita owners, and one of the best PlayStation games of the year so far.

Honourable mention: Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown.

Read more...

Conquers all

June wasn't a great month for game releases it must be said, but the long-awaited arrival of Pokémon Conquest netted it our Game of the Month award in June.

A blend of Japanese strategy series Nobunaga's Ambition and Nintendo's beloved pocket monsters, it straddles the middle ground between the two RPG approaches, creating something engaging and unique in the process.

As Joe Walker put it in our Pokémon Conquest review:

Pokémon Conquest is a game that no one asked for, but many will enjoy — fans of either series will be drawn in by the familiar and be taught to love what’s new. It does just about everything right, though there are shortcomings: more Pokémon being included would have helped, as would a deeper story — these are little more than nicks in the armour. Pokémon Conquest absolutely stands with Pokémon Snap and Pokémon Puzzle League as one of the best spin-offs the franchise has seen.

European Pokémon fans have to wait a few weeks to get their hands on Conquest.

Honourable mentions: Bomb Monkey and The Last Blade.

Read more...

Coming soon

Gamebridge has announced it's bringing DSiWare game creation software Petit Computer to North America this summer.

The package serves as an introduction to the BASIC programming language that's powered games for decades. If you're not artistically inclined you can use the 512 pre-packed sprites and 256 backgrounds, or using the DSi's touch screen to draw your own.

After you've finished coding and tweaking you can share your creations online with other users by generating QR codes using a PC or Mac. This way you'll be able to pick at others' code to see how they've created their titles, a feature we can see being very popular.

Petit Computer is out on DSiWare and in the eShop later this year. You can find out more at the Petit Computer site. Want to see the sort of thing you can create with it? Here's a DSiWare rendition of Out Run:

[youtube:sg7u5svuP6M]

Petit Computer

Petit Computer is the American name of a Japanese DSiWare title called “Puchicom” by Smileboom. “Petit Computer” will be released by Gamebridge in America in Summer 2012.

Petit Computer is a BASIC programming language tool for DSiWare. Using the virtual keyboard on the Touch Screen, users can enter programming commands to create their own BASIC source code.

The first version of the software was released in Japan in March 2011 and has received a large following of users in Japan. The first version only allowed users to save their program source code within the Puchikon program, preventing users from exchanging their source code. As a result users have been videoing their code and uploading the video to youtube.

Do you recognize any of these?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDTPketCpMc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJYmkN0RZno&feature=relmfu

In February 2012, one year after the release of the original version, Smileboom released a new and enhanced MkII version of the program in Japan. MkII has several major improvements including the ability to save your BASIC program source code to a SD card. Using a computer to access the Petit Computer website users can then convert their source code into QR Codes so others can read-in their programs using the Camera in their Nintendo DSi or Nintendo 3DS as a QR Code reader.

It is the latest MKII version that Gamebridge will release in America this summer as “Petit Computer”.

Features
Petit Computer is DSiWare for your Nintendo DSi/3DS. Many Nintendo DSi features can be accessed by Petit Computer using the BASIC programming language.

Fast and colorful sprites, BG screens (screen mode specialized for drawing backgrounds), graphic capabilities, and Touch Screen input are supported by the Nintendo DSi.

Petit Computer comes preloaded with 512 sprites. It also includes 256 BG chips for use in backgrounds. And by changing colors and rotating, the world of possibilities gets even wider.

You can use MML syntax to simultaneously play an 8-channel melody and trigger 16 sounds at once. The available 128 basic tones (instruments), 68 drums, 8 patterns of PSG (duty cycles), and noise can be freely combined to create the sounds you want.

Petit Computer comes with features that allow other people to see the programs you create. When you have a friend nearby, you can use your Nintendo DSi's Wireless Communications feature to exchange programs.

And when you want to release a program to an even wider audience, you can save it onto an SD Card, load it onto your PC, and then use a browser to convert it into a QR code that lets you easily make your work public. These programs can then be loaded onto a Nintendo DSi by using its camera to scan the resulting QR code.

Read more...

And thirty seconds of clarity

Capcom-Namco-SEGA strategy RPG Project X Zone might not make sense just yet — we blame all that pesky Japanese writing and dialogue — but its blend of tactical turns-based battles and all-out chaos makes it fun to watch.

The trailer below shows what the game looks like in action (though you'd probably already figured that part out) with footage of fights, maps and dialogue taking up distinctly different positions on the scale of "interesting things to see in a game trailer." It also wins points for showing Resident Evil's Chris and Jill taking down a Blubon from House of the Dead, a winning appearance from Die Hard Arcade hero Bruce McClane and enough nerdy nods to make this an enjoyable game of I spy.

Project X Zone lands in Japan on 11th October. None of the companies involved have spoken about a Western release, but we'll keep you posted.

[youtube:uMcMpAc1Ppg]

Read more...

Rec-rec and tennis

While we don't know what the Platinum reward is for Club Nintendo members, we do know what games you can spend your Coins on in the coming weeks.

Wii Virtual Console

Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) — 150 Coins. Available until 22nd July. Read our Mario Tennis review to see if it's worth the coins.

DSiWare

Electroplankton: Rec-Rec (download only compatible with 3DS) — 100 Coins. Available until 15th July. Worth the moolah? Find out in our Electroplankton: Rec-Rec review.

Make your choices now. Or save your coins, that's an option too.

Read more...

Beastly

Yesterday we told you about Monster Hunter 4's spring release in Japan, announced yesterday alongside a new trailer. This is that trailer.

Like last year's Monster Hunter 4 concept video, this trailer shows off new terrain features, the ability to climb on monsters and destructible surroundings. It also teases new monsters alongside returning favourites Rathian, Tigrex and Rathalos.

Now how about some news for Western Hunters, Capcom?

[youtube:0p_6vlQV3po]

Read more...

Take cover

Capcom's Summer Jam event has revealed a Spring 2013 release window for the much anticipated Monster Hunter 4.

The 3DS-exclusive game includes brand new monsters as well as series mainstays Tigrex, Rathalos and Rathian, according to Andriasang. Capcom showed off a new trailer for the game but, as of the time of writing, it hasn't made it onto the web.

Of course this is no indication of a Western release. We await updates from Capcom in the West.

Read more...

Huge fanboy moment from an email I just got from @damienmcferran. I'm not worthy!

Use the hose

While the soggy British summer continues, 3DS owners in Europe will get the chance to experience some real heat in September as Reef announces Real Heroes: Firefighter 3D.

The first-person action game gives you all a fireman's tools — hose, axe, saw and more — to rescue survivors and extinguish fires. Reef promises the game's "Thinking Fire" artificial intelligence will put up a stern challenge throughout its story-driven campaign mode.

We'll find out if it's hot stuff or burnt out in September.

REEF ENTERTAINMENT ANNOUNCES REAL HEROES: FIREFIGHTER 3D for EUROPEAN RELEASE.

Hoses, Axes & Rotary Saws at the ready as FIREFIGHTER blazes onto the Nintendo 3DS™

London, June 29th: UK video game publisher Reef Entertainment today announced the European release of REAL HEROES: FIREFIGHTER 3D only for the Nintendo 3DS™.

In this first-person fire & rescue action game players will enter the soot-stained boots of an everyday hero as a newly graduated academy cadet getting their start in a big city fire station. Players must use the tools of the trade like the axe, hose and saw to battle raging blazes, tackle explosive environments and rescue survivors.

Features:

• ‘Thinking Fire’ AI technology delivers a cunning enemy unlike anything gamers have faced before.
• Utilize the myriad of control options on the Nintendo 3DS™ to bring Axes, Halligan bars, Hoses, Extinguishers, Rotary Saws and Hydraulic Spreaders to bare.
• Players work with the team of Engine Company 13 advancing through a story driven campaign and making sure everyone gets out of each mission alive.
• 3D game engine and cut-scenes deliver maximum immersion and excitement.

REAL HEROES: FIREFIGHTER 3D will be available across Europe, September ’12.

Read more...