KOEI TECMO REVEALS BRAND NEW ‘CASTLES’ FEATURE IN SAMURAI WARRIORS 4 EMPIRES
The Castle Elevates the Latest in the ‘Empires’ Series from a Tactical Action Title to a Strategy-focused Epic, Ensuring that ‘Samurai Warriors 4 Empires’ is the Most Strategy-oriented ‘Empires’ Game to Date
BURLINGAME, Calif. – November 12, 2015 – KOEI TECMO America is pleased to reveal today assets and detailed information on one of the most exciting and comprehensive new features in Samurai Warriors 4 Empires: the Castle!
The Castle provides players with a single, intuitive dashboard for all of their pre and post-battle decisions, and elevates Samurai Warriors 4 Empires from a tactical action title to a strategy-focused epic. Essentially a command center, the Castle is where the player can regulate interior and foreign affairs, formulate political and military strategy, and utilize their allied officers’ skills to grow their army’s size, power, and loyalty.
Starting off as a cluster of small rooms and growing to a multi-tiered stronghold, players can use the Castle interface to assign various tasks and Magistrate titles to their most trusted and valued allied officers. These tasks can vary from Recruitment to Diplomacy and from Development to Strategy. Regardless of the direction the player chooses to take, a careful, skill-based selection of allies will yield better results, such as more soldiers, more allies, and more gold, etc.
As relationships are pivotal to all Empires games, pairing allied officers with a friendly disposition will create high synergy, which will produce faster and better results. Furthermore, since all officers in Samurai Warriors 4 Empiresare based on historical figures with real personalities, assigning them to an appropriate position will generate unique results and trigger specific events!
Aside from allowing the player to manage recruitment, commerce, provisions, and other domestic and political affairs, the Castle can also be used to prepare for battle. The Military Magistrate will analyze the situation and make proposals to aid in battle, Foreign Affairs Magistrates will suggest alliances and diplomatic interventions, and Strategists will present the player with ideas for sabotaging and weakening the enemy. With their assistance, players can then choose how to charge the battlefield by considering how large of an army to take along, how many provisions or gold to invest, and whether a diplomatic solution is preferable to conflict.
In this way, Samurai Warriors 4 Empires blends the best of the tactical action gameplay genre with an easy-to-learn, in-depth strategy system to create the most exciting installment in the Empires franchise yet!
Samurai Warriors 4 Empires is scheduled for release on March 14, 2016 on the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system (physical and digital), and the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and PlayStation®Vita handheld system (digital only).
KOEI TECMO AMERICA CORP. is a publisher of interactive entertainment software for current generation consoles, handhelds and digital download content based in Burlingame, California. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of KOEI TECMO HOLDINGS CO., LTD., headquartered in Yokohama, Japan. KOEI is best known for its Dynasty Warriors® and Samurai Warriors® franchises. TECMO is best known for the Dead or Alive®, Ninja Gaiden®, Tecmo Bowl®, and Fatal Frame® series.
“PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
WARFRAME DOUBLES DOWN ON STEAM WITH NEW CONTROLLER SUPPORT AND STEAM WORKSHOP
Full Steam Controller Support Offers PC Space Ninja Freedom to Play from Couch; TennoGen on Steam Workshop Promises New Content Created by Tenno, for Tenno
LONDON, ONTARIO — November 12, 2015 — Digital Extremes announced today its hit AAA Free-to-Play title, Warframe®began support for Steam Controller at launch earlier this week along with recently joining Steam Workshop, where player-generated content can be submitted for consideration in Warframe.
With the official launch of Steam Hardware on November 10, PC players now have the ability to expand their Steam gaming experience to any room in the home. And with that, Warframe players — better known as Tenno — devoted to gaming on the PC can now enjoy being a space ninja while playing from the comfort of their couch with the Steam Controller’s dual track pads, dual-stage triggers, and customizable configurations. As with any first release, the Warframe developer, known for its Community-driven development, will be fine tuning the Steam Controller with additional tweaks and adjustments in subsequent updates as feedback comes in from the vast Community.
On separate but related and equally exciting news, Warframe Steam players will enjoy the first round of user-made content aptly named, TennoGen to be released in the Steam Workshop later this month. Steam Workshop allows content creators to earn money from their in-game creations for their favorite games. Digital Extremes began taking submissions in late October from its incredibly talented player pool for a variety of in-game skins and cosmetics. The first round of submissions have been reviewed and Digital Extremes has decided on the first content to be released. Digital Extremes is excited to continue reviewing submissions for many more rounds of content to be considered. Revenue share for creators in Steam Workshop is typically 25% but Warframe is setting the bar higher for its creators at 30%. First round picks can be seen here.
For those who missed the first round, Digital Extremes has partnered with top 3D art site, Polycount, to host a month long contest running now through December 1, 2015. Polycount is best known as a community of artists who specialize in creating 3D art for videogames. Skilled content creators may choose from a variety of weapon model swaps and alt helmet skins open for TennoGen design submissions. Winning designs for this contest will not only be featured in-game and receive 30% revenue share but are guaranteed $500 worth of shared revenue within the first 3 months of the content released on the Workshop.
“We’re always looking for new and exciting ways to support and encourage players’ interests in becoming more involved with Warframe,” said Rebecca Ford, Community Manager at Digital Extremes. “The quality level of this first round of beautifully created user-generated content from our Community is beyond impressive and is the beginning of what we hope will grow into a thriving resource for both creators and players. TennoGen truly delivers content made by Tenno, for Tenno.”
Tenno not as artistically inclined but interested in participating in the process are encouraged to vote on early submissions they’d like to see in Warframe on the official TennoGen Steam Workshop website.
For more details on the submission process for user-made TennoGen content, please visit the Steam Workshop FAQ on the official Warframeforums.
Warframe is available for free download on PC, PS4™ and Xbox One. To find out more about Warframe, please visit: www.warframe.com.
About Digital Extremes Founded in 1993 by James Schmalz, Digital Extremes ranks as one of the world’s top independent development studios in the interactive entertainment industry. The Canadian-based developer has a rich history in developing some of the industry’s top first-person shooter and action games. Originating with the co-creation of Epic Games’ multi-million unit selling Unreal® franchise including Unreal, Unreal Tournament — and all its iterations — and continuing with such hits as Dark Sector®, BioShock® for the PlayStation®3 and the multi-player campaign of BioShock 2. More recently, Digital Extremes earned critical acclaim for the development of first-person shooter, The Darkness® II, based on the comic book series of the same name and the use of its proprietary technology, the Evolution Engine™. The studio is currently developing and publishing the Free-To-Play action game, Warframe® available now on PC, PS4™ and Xbox One. For more information about Digital Extremes, visit the company website at www.digitalextremes.com. To sign up for Warframe, visit www.warframe.com.
The racing game genre has had no shortage of entrants for top of class this generation, with classic franchises like Forza and now Need for Speed mixing it up with some new competitors such as The Crew and Driveclub. Taking a year off to build a more quality title, Ghost Games has ‘rebooted’ the long running Need for Speed series for a modern audience while also trying to appeal to fans of the ‘golden era’ of the series which most would say began with the first Underground game and ended with Need for Speed Carbon. Does this new Need for Speed succeed in doing this? Read on to find out.
Story
Taking a page out of the original Need for Speed Most Wanted’s book, this story mixes the game world with real life and puts you in a silent, first person perspective. Like pretty much every other street racing game ever, your job here is to make a name for yourself in this new city and impress the five real life street racing icons that are in the game. For someone with no idea who any of the icons are this doesn’t mean much to me but props to EA for including them as I’m sure real life fans will definitely appreciate that addition. Why your main crew like you so much when you won’t even give them a name is beyond me, but they are a pretty likable and memorable bunch even if they say and do some embarrassingly cliche things at time (fist bump, bro?). The characters somewhat evolve from their generic racer dude selves along the way, getting involved in some drama and even showing some facets of unique personality.
A lovable gang of misfits
It’s really good to see story back in to Need for Speed. A lot of people would probably argue it’s unnecessary but I feel it gives life and context to the game and gives the player extra motivation to play as opposed to just gaining rep and money. The story will be fun for most and is at the very least harmless as those who are not interested can simply skip the cutscenes anyway. At least it’s not another undercover cop story.
The only real issue I have is the phone calls you get from each of the cast, the amount of times they called didn’t bother me as you can simply let the phone go to voice mail, but a lot of the time the phone call you get references an old event or happens at a strange time like just after you finished speaking with them which kind of makes the calls feel more like mission intro’s as opposed to calls from real people. Not a big deal but it will take you out of the immersion a little.
It’s time to race.
Gameplay
At it’s heart, Need for Speed is an arcade open world racing game. You drive around the city of Ventura Bay and take on missions, most of which are offered to you by your crew from the story. There are standard events such as sprint, time trial and circuit races, however there are also more unique events such as drift events and crew drift train events. The latter is particularly creative as each member of the crew takes turns jostling for top spot as you earn more points for being at the beginning of the drift train then at the back. Some of these events have different stipulations such as finish in a certain time or hit a certain speed before finishing the race which definitely helps keep the events feeling fresh over longer play sessions.
In addition there are also daily challenges to complete for money and rep and you can challenge other racers, both real and AI controlled, to a race at anytime if you see them cruising on the map. Unfortunately that multiplayer aspect comes at the cost of a true multiplayer lobby meaning there is no simple way to say race a friend or join a random race online, but it is definitely cool the few times you see an online street race happen right before your eyes.
Challenge anyone you see cruising the streets.
Each type of race fits into one of the games five ways to play, from speed, style, crew, build and outlaw. This basically comes down to multiple ways to earn rep, which is your level which when it increases allows you to further customise your car and take on harder races. It’s a tidy progression system that rewards variety but also allows a player to only focus on certain events if for whatever reason they don’t wish to beat them all. If you have any friends playing the game also challenges you and rewards you for beating their scores or times which is great for some fun and bragging between friends.
Now how do the cars handle? In my opinion extremely well. Of course each car is a little different, but right from the start I had no quarrels with how my Ford Mustang controlled, it felt very natural to me coming from playing a long line of arcade racers. This is definitely a case of everyone is different, but with the amount of cars and tuning options available and the simplified grip vs. drift slider meant for beginners, I find it hard to believe that anyone wouldn’t be able to find a control setup they are comfortable with. The racing is the core of this game and it delivers in spades with fun, responsive controls and a great sense of speed. Drifting is easy to pick up but kind of hard to master as you try to find that sweet spot your car can ride to get that perfect angle. It’s challenging but in a fun way and there is no sweeter feeling in the game then nailing a perfect drift around a tight corner on a mountain.
The racing is fast, responsive and overall a very good time.
When you’re not racing you’re most likely spending time in the garage and I’m glad to say the visual customisation does live up to the hype for the most part. Novice players will be able to make some cool designs simply using the fair amount of prebuilt complex decals which includes both original creations and real aftermarket stickers. Meanwhile pro players will be able to use layering and simple shapes to create some truly creative visuals. There are a few issues like no mirroring option for left and right sides of the vehicle (although it has been confirmed this is being worked on for a future update) and no grouping decals to move a selection all at once, however with what is available your imagination is pretty much your only limit (unless you want to use semi circles which for whatever reason are not part of the basic shapes category). Where the visual customisation falls a little bit is with custom car’s body parts, where changing parts of the car is either extremely limited or non existent for most vehicles.
Unfortunately there are some fairly major drawbacks here that try their best to detract from all the fun you may find in Need for Speed. Opponent AI is mostly terrible, relying on old fashioned rubber band mechanics to keep races close but this creates way more frustration then tension. Imagine leading an entire race only to be taken over in the last seconds of the races simply because it was the AI’s time to challenge you and try to take over your position. The reverse is true where you see cars majorly slowing down or under performing simply so you can catch up. This system basically takes away any point of you being a skilled racer and may even cost you some races even if you dominated the track.
The opponent racer AI is cheap, but that’s nothing on the completely pathetic police.
In a similar vein the police AI also struggles. Finding a cop in the first place is hard enough no matter how much destruction you cause, but when they do show up the police in Ventura Bay have the aggression level of a bunny rabbit and struggle to put up any real challenge even at higher heat levels. The cops in the 2005 Most Wanted were relentless, chasing you down in packs of 10 to try and bring you down where as here the most cops you can get on your tail is 3 or 4 and they are far too easy to lose, making a cop chase feel more annoying then an epic struggle against the law. I literally cruised around this parking lot at low speeds while fumbling with the control trying to take a good screenshot and the cops still didn’t arrest me! Baiting them to try and complete challenges is just a pain when it should be one of the most exciting parts of the game.
Another issue is the always online requirement. While it’s cool to have your pictures uploaded and find other racers traveling around your map, these pros do not outweigh the cons. Always being online means the game requires PlayStation Plus to play, takes longer to load up, can’t be paused, you can’t simply put your PS4 into rest mode and come back in whenever you want as the game will log out and you will undoubtedly experience the annoyance of being kicked back to the main menu at least a few times whether it be your fault or EA’s servers playing up, so have fun redoing that 6 minute race or trying to remember all the decals you put on your car before you were kicked back to the main menu. This game has no reason to force an online connection and at the very least should have been an option. Forcing online on to the user base was a poor decision plain and simple and hurts usability.
At least being always online doesn’t detract from the games visuals.
Visuals
This is a very impressive game visually and at times gets very close to passing for real life. The car models, water droplets, lighting, car damage, textures and shading all look terrific as does the environment. That being said it does cheat a little to achieve this using a slight grain filter on top of the game’s world to masks it’s imperfections that itself unfortunately makes the image look slightly unclear.
While the size and variety present in the map is great, the world feels incredibly empty. Traffic is so scarce you can easily travel for half a kilometer and not see a single car. There are also no pedestrians roaming the streets making this ‘take’ on Los Angeles feel more like a deserted city. The way time of day and weather handled is also incredibly outdated. Instead of a dynamic day/night cycle and weather, these atmospheric elements are tied to parts of maps, meaning you could go from night to sunrise to night all in one stretch of road which looks as ridiculous as it sounds and takes a lot of visual variety away from the game.
Anyone around?
The games modern menus and UI is also a treat and I’m a big fan of the way cop chases in particular let you know how close you are to getting busted as opposed to the old standard meter. The way the camera starts losing focus and tightening in on your car is the perfect way to make the player feel tense as they try and reverse just in time before getting busted.
As for performance the game normally maintains a solid 30 FPS and I only experienced a couple of drops throughout my playtime. It’s far from game breaking but does detract a little from the overall experience.
I just wanted to show off the Android sticker I made.
Audio
The sound effects and sound design here are 100% brilliant. From the crystal clear unique sound of each cars engine to police sirens, drifting, crashes and even the spray paint sound in the garage, whoever was in charge of the sound nailed it.
The soundtrack on the other hand is a bit of a let down. There are a few songs I enjoyed but most of the time I was pushing L3 down to skip the track, which makes that certain ridiculous key binding even more frustrating. Music taste is of course subjective but some variety would have been nice here with a large portion of the track list being tied to the house/electro genre. Those few tracks that do represent music outside of the house genre aren’t that memorable either unfortunately. Luckily in this day and age you can simply mute the audio and play whatever you want off the Spotify app so it’s not a major drama.
Yeah, I spent a lot of my time in the garage.
Overall
Most fans of the PS2 era Need for Speed games will love this game. It takes most of what people loved about those titles and brings it to an all new generation but not without it’s problems. The story is decent, the core racing experience and car customisation is excellent and the games visual and audio presentation do all three of those elements justice. Unfortunately issues like rubber band AI, weak cop chases, the always online requirement and a handful of other problems bring down the overall experience. If these issues don’t bother you or you’re interested in this game and have played some Need for Speed before then I would definitely recommend it. No doubt it’s a fun arcade racer you can sink hours into, however those who are easily bothered by the aforementioned issues should probably wait for a cheaper price point.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
So here is a new one. Nintendo are set to launch a new app for the 3DS deemed Nintendo Badge Arcade. This freemium app works a lot like the free mini-game in Smash Bros., where players can randomly win (or pay for tries) to win badges to decorate their home screen.
In true Nintendo style, these badges will be from the company’s main franchises. Here are some further details:
Owners of Nintendo 3DS family systems can already customise their system’s HOME Menu with a range of colourful themes, and they’ll soon be able to take that personalisation to a whole new level with Nintendo Badge Arcade, coming to Nintendo eShop as a free download* from 13th November.
In this lively arcade run by a chatty rabbit, players can take a shot at crane games and similar classic amusements, collecting badges based on Nintendo games and series like Mario Kart, Splatoon and Animal Crossing. Badges can be used to decorate the HOME Menu, with some even usable instead of the standard system icons that access, among others, Nintendo eShop and StreetPass Mii Plaza – perfect for total HOME Menu makeovers.
Every day, visitors to the arcade get five free plays on a practice machine: it only offers dummy badges, but players can win free plays for the machines packed with real badges. Plays can also be bought at a price of AU$1.30 / NZ$1.70 for five plays.
Players can show off their unique HOME Menu designs via Miiverse, and check out other creators’ designs for inspiration. There’ll be plenty to discover in the weeks and months following launch too, as the badges and machines on offer will change regularly, opening up even more customisation possibilities.
So whether you’re creating a Mario Kart-style starting grid or adding a splat of colour with the Splatoon badges, there’ll be plenty of new ways to liven up your Nintendo 3DS family system’s HOME Menu when Nintendo Badge Arcade launches in Nintendo eShop on 13th November.
You can check out the screenshots below of the badges and app in action. Even though this seems a tad like freemium gambling of sorts, I guess I am down – as personalizing any menu with Nintendo characters does sound fun. I would stay tuned for now as the Nintendo Direct due tomorrow is sure to cover this.
Today a new English trailer for Senran Kagura: Estival Versus was released by Marvelous and this time around they are showcasing some gameplay footage where they show off Katsuragi, Hikage, and Renka in action where not only are their special moves shown off, but even the clothes tearing and “PuruPuru” finishes that can occur in combat.
Senran Kagura: Estival Versus is set to be released in North America by XSEED Games and in Europe by Marvelous for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita sometime this Winter. In Europe Marvelous is planning on releasing a special Bahonkas edition of the game that will include a number of bonuses including a hugging pillow design.
With Rodea: The Sky Soldier coming out this week on the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS a new trailer for the game, that focuses primarily on showing off the game’s many characters as well as a glimpse at the story, some of the enemies that players will be facing off against, and the action gameplay players will be using to fight against them, has been released by NIS America.
All retail launch copies of the Wii U version of Rodea: The Sky Soldier will include the original never released Wii version of the game that has been said to be closer to the developer’s original vision for the game.
Last month it was announced that the sixth and final episode for Telltale’s Game of Thrones would be coming out on November 17th and now that we are exactly a week away from that release date Telltale has decided to release some screenshots giving us a bit of a look at Game of Thrones: The Ice Dragon. Though it is worth noting that, depending on certain choices you’ve made so far, the way these scenes may look for you will be quite different, especially in my case.
Game of Thrones: The Ice Dragon‘s release also marks the same week that the series will be released at retail allowing those who haven’t picked up the series yet a chance to grab it all at once. As for those screenshots you can check them out below.
Microsoft debuts its first Australian flagship store on Sydney’s Pitt Street Mall
Sydney, Australia – November 12, 2015: Microsoft Australia today opens the doors to its first flagship store outside of North America, in one of Australia’s busiest and most sought-after retail shopping districts.
The two-story, 6000 square-foot space located at Westfield Sydney on Pitt Street Mall, features an assortment of best-in-class products and in-store services. The Microsoft Flagship Store in Sydney will serve as the centrepiece to the Microsoft store experience in Australia and will offer cutting-edge retail and experiential spaces that allow consumers to get hands on with products in an immersive way.
“Our new flagship store is here to showcase the very best of Microsoft to the local community and we are delighted Sydney has been chosen as its home,” said Pip Marlow, managing director, Microsoft Australia. “This is a key part of our commitment to delivering a truly interactive retail experience that gives customers, partners and community organisations the opportunity to see, experience and do great things, all made possible by Microsoft technology.”
The Sydney Flagship Store will be a cutting-edge space that features the latest technologies from Microsoft and its partners, the highly-anticipated Answer Desk – a one-stop shop for technical questions, troubleshooting and repairs for Microsoft hardware, software and services – regardless of device or where it was purchased – and the unique community theatre where members of the community can immerse themselves in new technology, learn and engage with experts.
It follows the recent opening of the company’s first flagship and largest store to date, located on Fifth Avenue, New York City, making Australia the home of the second only retail flagship and first outside of North America to be opened by Microsoft. Since opening its first store in 2009, Microsoft has expanded its retail footprint and online presence to serve more than 1 billion customers through the company’s community-based retail strategy. There are more than 110 stores across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, as well as online stores operating in 189 countries.
Get hands-on with Microsoft’s latest technology
The Microsoft Flagship Store offers best-in-class products that take advantage of powerful and versatile hardware to unlock new Windows 10 experiences. Products available through the store include new Surface devices, such as the Surface Book and Surface Pro 4 and the new fitness wearable, Microsoft Band 2, which go on sale today for the first time. Other products include Microsoft Lumia, Signature Edition PCs, Xbox One, Office, a variety of accessories, and more. Local Sydney residents and visitors alike are invited to experience the unique energy, expertise and service that Microsoft stores associates are known for.
Commitment to serving local community
With each store opening, Microsoft aims to deliver a positive impact on the communities in which it operates by providing opportunities to empower local youth and businesses through technology, training and experiences. In celebration of the new flagship location at Westfield Sydney, Microsoft will today donate a total of AUD$4.8 million in software and technology grants to 11 not-for-profit organisations making a difference in Sydney, and across Australia. Recipients include The Smith Family, Mission Australia, Service to Youth Council, Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, YMCA, YWCA, United Way, Reach, Girls & Boys Brigade, WAYS Youth Services and AEISEC.
Celebrating a first in Microsoft’s history
Microsoft is celebrating the opening of its first flagship store with fans and the local Sydney community with festivities throughout the day. Microsoft Australia’s managing director, Pip Marlow, will host the inaugural ribbon-cutting ceremony joined by Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President of Marketing and Operations, Peter Cray, New South Wales Treasurer, The Hon. Gladys Berejiklian and the new Sydney Flagship Store manager, Nick Wells. Following the ribbon-cutting ceremony outside of the main entrance, a curtain will drop – unveiling the inside of the Microsoft Flagship Store for the first time – before it officially opens to the Australian public at noon.
The first 750 customers to visit the flagship store will be rewarded with two complimentary tickets to an exclusive concert with international artist, Jessie J, who will be supported by The Voice Australia 2015 winner, Ellie Drennan. The concert will be held at 7 PM at the iconic State Theatre, on Market Street, Sydney.
Experience what’s in store for Microsoft
The Microsoft Flagship Store will offer a full line up of products, devices and services. Microsoft associates will be able to help customers with any Microsoft hardware, software or services – regardless of device or where it was purchased.
As part of our commitment to providing the best possible choice, value and service for customers, the Sydney store will also include an expanded assortment of Dell products on the first and second floor, as part of a global partnership. Customers will have the chance to experience a range of innovative Dell products, including the XPS, Inspiron, Vostro and Latitude lines of end-user computing and Alienware gaming products — all built using Microsoft technology. The Sydney store will also feature the latest technologies from a wide range of hardware manufacturers.
In collaboration with design firm Gensler, the Microsoft Flagship Store features a number of unique and sustainable design elements including a two-story façade of glass with minimal attachments to display all the store has to offer inside:
Answer Desk. Free services include Windows 10 assessment, extended diagnostics on any device, software repair or support, virus and malware removal, PC tune-ups, and more.
Community Theatre.The first of its kind retail theatre in Australia is a space where customers can learn from experts how to use Microsoft’s latest and most popular products for their everyday work and lives. The theatre is used for training sessions and also hosts activities for local community organisations and other in-store events.
Immersive video walls.High-definition video walls and digital signage will be featured throughout the Microsoft Flagship Store to engage directly with visitors while streaming videos, images and information. There are more than 178 digital panels throughout the store with 38 different video feeds. All digital screens are 1080p resolution, delivering more than 2 million image pixels through the store.
About Microsoft Stores
In 2009, Microsoft opened its first Microsoft store in Scottsdale, Ariz. Since then, Microsoft has opened more than 110 retail locations across the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico and welcomed more than 1 billion customers to its full-line, specialty and online Microsoft store properties in 189 markets globally. Microsoft stores are committed to delivering outstanding choice, value and service for each customer, featuring an assortment of best-in-class products, including computers, software and games to music, tablets, phones and wearables. For a list of Microsoft stores, visit http://microsoftstore.com/locations.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services, devices and solutions that help people and businesses realise their full potential. More information can be found at: www.microsoft.com.au.
At the start of the year we learned that the long dormant Langrisser series would return in Japan on July 23rd with the release of Langrisser Re:Incarnation Tensei and now Aksys Games has announced that they will be bringing that title to North America.
Developed by Masaya Games, this strategy RPG will be released on the Nintendo 3DS in North America sometime in spring 2016. This marks the series’ first appearance in fifteen years and will allow players to venture through a massive world at war.
Aksys Games has provided a list of a few key features as well as some screenshots of the game and you can check those out below:
The Hero’s Path – Branching story paths will present themselves during battle based on the choices you make. Will your heroic deeds blaze a righteous path to glory or will your villainous treachery lead you down the road to ruin? The balance of the fates hangs heavy as your choices define the course of battle!
Who Will You Fight For? – 3 unique factions desperately need your command skills! Will you lead the armies of light to victory in the name of your Goddess? Will you side with the enigmatic forces of darkness and embrace chaos or will you take the reins of an ancient imperial juggernaut? Forge your legendary command skills in the fires of war!
Your Cunning Will Be Tested – 100+ hours of gameplay ensure your war chest will never run low! Choose mercenaries from the guild, shop for stronger gear and gather tide turning items in your unending quest for tactical supremacy! An epic campaign, divergent battle routes and bonus secrets will push your strategic skills to the limit!
Now that Koei Tecmo has announced the release of Yoru no Nai Kuni in the West under the name Nights of Azure the company has released the first details regarding the two main characters of the story. You see, Nights of Azure focuses on the friendship between the two heroines who are extremely different people but have bonded deeply as best friends.
Arnice is a warrior of great skill and the protagonist of Nights of Azure. While she’s skilled with a blade, her talents aren’t just a product of her training. Arnice has some demon blood herself and is actually the only human that has managed to touch azure blood and survive.
This event hasn’t left her unscathed and its thrilling implications become apparent quite early on; among others, it allows her access to a set of impressive abilities including the power to summon monsters to her aid in battle. Lilysse is a chosen saint whose fate is inextricably intertwined with the outcome of the game, and Arnice’s best friend.
Their friendship is one of the most vital storytelling elements of this title, and the ending of the game will be greatly affected by how players choose to incorporate it in key decisions.
