Page 3450 – Capsule Computers

Mario Party 10 Review

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April 5, 2015

Mario Party 10
Developer: ND Cube
Publisher: Nintendo
Platform: Wii U
Release Date: 21/3/2014
Price: $69.95 (AU) – Available Here / $48.95 (US) – Available Here

Overview

It’s pretty amazing where sequels are up to these days. From humble beginnings on the Nintendo 64 with the original Mario Party, three generations of consoles later and now the Mario Party series has entered HD with Mario Party 10. The last time I really partied with Mario was back on the GameCube with Mario Party 5 and while there are still some recognisable elements from those past games, Mario Party 10 is fairly different from the titles of old. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, just different. There is still fun to be had at this party, it just might be short lived.

Gameplay

Unlike all past games in the series where a small story would tie the game together, there is absolutely none of that here. Instead we have a main menu with three modes (two modes if you don’t own a compatible Amiibo), a store which you can spend Mario Party points in that you earn simply by playing and a few separate games that are in the awkward middle area between mini games and being their own game. You’ll have a little fun with those games but they are largely forgettable, especially badminton.

The game’s main mode is Mario Party. All four characters are placed in a vehicle and attempt to reach the end of one of five game boards (the lowest amount of any Mario Party to date) and defeat the boss at the end with the most mini stars to become the winner. Nearly every space gives some type of reward or punishment, such as a special dice block, mini game, lose half your mini stars etc. so the whole random fun element is in full effect here, you just don’t feel fully in control of it thanks to the car mechanic where you are simply along for the ride for three turns.

The main problem with the linear boards in comparison to past titles is that the game plays out the same way nearly every time, ruining the unpredictability which Mario Party is best known for and limiting replay value. That’s not to say the boss battles aren’t fun however, as just like the mini games which I’ll touch on later they are well balanced and require skill/smarts or sometimes both for you to be successful. A cool feature that helps mix it up a little is the GamePad which displays Bowser trapped behind a cage. When one of each number is rolled over the course of the game Bowser is set free and wreaks havoc on the board and player who freed him. One cool effect Bowser can bring on is reverse mini games, where you’re actually encouraged to lose instead of win, completely changing the way that mini game is played.

Another gripe is how freely the game hands out mini stars. The game simply places them on the board and whoever is the leader of the car at that time and passes through the space can award up to eight mini stars. In comparison, mini games which largely require skill only hand out five to the winner in a free for all. In a similar vein, gone are the set bonus stars rewarding players who accrued the most coins or won the most mini games, replaced by a random selection of two bonuses from five that can include rewarding the person who simply rolled the lowest total amount. The real underlying problem of course is luck seems to be rewarded over skill.

This doesn’t make Mario Party 10 bad, just different. It’s still fun, especially with friends as players get poor dice rolls or have to lose half their stars to someone else and the leader still changes constantly. Most importantly, the mini games are fantastic. They are well balanced and require a good mix of memory, reflex, strategy and skill. Unfortunately, they kind of take a back seat to the game board in every mode outside of Amiibo mode as you don’t play them in Bowser party and you seldom play them in Mario Party outside of landing on a mini game space or hidden block. If you don’t have friends to play with though rest assured the A.I. provide a good challenge, especially at harder difficulties.

Bowser Party is a completely separate mode and rightfully so. Here one person uses the GamePad and controls Bowser who rolls four dice at once. Your goal as Bowser is to take down the opposing team of four players who are using Wii Remotes and trying to reach the end of the board before you reduce each member of that team’s hearts to zero. It’s a simple concept and one that works well and is a lot of fun. Being the overpowered Bowser is fun especially as he stomps through the course and can place traps in some locations on the board. You also get a unique perspective of most mini games where you do the most damage to the other teams heart totals.

Sadly, there are only 10 unique Bowser mini games and two are luck based with little input. The rest do make good use of the GamePad’s unique features though, such as breathing into the mic to shoot fireballs. Another negative is only three of the five boards are available in this mode, decreasing the replay value of this mode. Again the mode seems to come down to luck which weighs a little too much in Bowser’s favour. Bad dice rolls will lead to Bowser catching you each turn and stealing too many hearts. Once one player on the team goes down it’s pretty much game over as your dice rolls are then limited. Bowser being able to re-roll doesn’t help the situation nor do the many traps placed for the team in the home stretch. Overall it’s a fun mode just lacking in variety and a little unbalanced.

Amiibo Party is really just too bland to be anything special. Sure it brings back the classic coin and star system and mini games in between rounds, but at the expense of any sort of uniqueness or strategy within the board itself, which is literally a square board like monopoly with a few very repetitive events sprinkled around and one special type of space such as warp pipes on the Mario board. The game only lasts 10 turns with no option to change it. Cool things can happen with the tokens that are spread about the board but because they are so limited and the games are so short you would be lucky to even get to use one or two a game. Anyone without a compatible Amiibo really isn’t missing out on much here.

Surprisingly, there are some annoying user interface features present in Mario Party 10. Constantly being told to turn my controller back to the upright position after a mini game, which isn’t necessary in order to take your turn is incredibly annoying. In Amiibo mode you are constantly bugged to tap the Amiibo to the NFC device on the GamePad which always has a slight delay to it and I can imagine it being a huge pain with four players all trying to do so, juggling their remotes, Amiibo and the GamePad. It should be noted a lot of people are saying it is required to tap the Amiibo to role the dice, that is simply not true you can just press A, the game just doesn’t tell you that for some reason even though it gives you heaps of other obvious advice. Most other actions do require the Amiibo tap though.

The game is also overly child friendly, displaying notes over the game board literally telling you the dark purple stars are bad or that the gold stars are important and you want to reach them. In contrast, basic controls and mini game instructions are not clearly detailed, instead a single line of text that scrolls so you have to wait to read it sits along the bottom of the mini game video and no tips are offered either.

Visual

Mario Party 10 is a great looking Nintendo game that seems to be running off the Super Mario 3D World graphics engine. Characters are well modeled as are the game boards and the signature bright and colourful ‘Nintendo’ style is in full effect here. Textures are high resolution, menus are cheery and all the special effects and lighting also look great. The only slightly odd thing I noticed was DK’s arms when he lifted up the Superstar at the end of a Mario Party, it’s like he’s wearing a shirt with long sleeves as opposed to normal fur but if that’s my biggest problem with the games visuals then you can tell I didn’t have much to complain about.

Audio

Like the visuals the audio is also pretty classic from a Mario Party series view. Audio is mostly forgettable but it all fits the mood of the board/event/mini game perfectly and there are a few stand out tracks you might find yourself enjoying quite a bit. Bowser’s challenge theme and the 2nd theme for the spooky ghost board stood out to me as hits. All the characters sound as they have in past titles and all retain that charm we know and love. There’s really not much else to say here, the Mario Party series has always looked and sounded good and Mario Party 10 is no exception.

Overall

I was admittedly a bit apprehensive coming into Mario Party 10 due to the car mechanic but I can’t deny I had fun playing the game. The mini games are top notch with great balance and variety, Bowser Party is a good take on asynchronous gameplay and a fun mix on the formula and having the car in standard Mario Party allows for quicker games, albeit at the expense of non-linearity and less emphasis on skill and strategy in comparison to luck. The question for me lies in how much more fun I will have with this title as the minimal amount of boards and lack of outcomes within them don’t really encourage multiple plays. Small user interface issues aside, solid visuals and audio along with a few extras make Mario Party 10 a decent sized family fun package offered at a fair, cheaper price point.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Mortal Kombat X ‘Kombat Kast’ 8 Covers MKX Mobile, Kenshi, Sonya and the Sky Temple

Zac Elawar

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April 5, 2015

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This past week’s ‘Kombat Kast’ (you can watch the ‘Kombat Kast’ in its entirety, embedded below) revealed two exclusive skins made available to players who download and play the mobile edition of Mortal Kombat X, and sign-in with WB Play in order to gain access to said skins on console. Just like with Injustice: Gods Among Us, NetherRealm has other special skins for us to unlock, cross-platform, should we choose to play the mobile edition of Mortal Kombat X. It’s free, and c’mon, ‘Ninja Mime’ Johnny Cage and ‘Farmer’ Jax should be enough incentive!

Other than that announcement, we know what to expect from Mortal Kombat X mobile: it’s a card battle game just like the studio’s past offerings, although Fatalities will be featured, with touch-screen gestures integrated to make them more interactive. Now, before moving on to the gameplay breakdowns for Sonya and Kenshi, the usual ‘Kombat Kast’ hosts, designer Derek Kirtzic and community specialist Tyler Landsdown, also broke down a new Stage called the Sky Temple. Featuring the best lighting and environmental effects, Raiden’s place of worship seems to be in the midst of a gigantic storm. You can leap off a gong on the right side, throw a ceremonial fire pit and flammable, hanging lantern, and finally, toss a monk at your opponent ala Blanche in the Outworld Marketplace level, at which point a lightning strike will hit and scare the others into a state of fervorous begging and prayer. They’re just hoping for FRIENDSHIP Lord Raiden!

Onto the character gameplay…blind swordsman Kenshi is back and deadlier than before. Kenshi seems to be a great character for beginners to pick up, because his main specials don’t differ too much across all three variations. In Balanced, Kenshi gains the ability to project spectral versions of his common special attacks that give him more range, along with a projectile reflect. His second Variation, Possessed, sees Kenshi summon a demon from his now cracked and corrupted Sento sword to do his dirty work. Again, his specials are altered here, with the demon adding a hit here and there, and also changing the positioning of the opponent for different mix-ups and combo possibilities. Finally, Kenjutsu grants the telekinetic abilities that also define the character, including the TK Push, Slam and Toss, which throws the enemy over you to the other, perhaps if you’d like to back them into a corner.

Now Sonya’s variations, on the other hand, drastically change her play-style. Covert Ops focuses on parries and timing, adding garrote parries and military stance, from which you can pull off multiple added attacks, much like Erron Black’s ‘Gunslinger’ stance. If you pick the Demolition variation, Sonya will have three grenades at her disposal. They can be set to frag or stun. If she needs them replenished, she can call upon a Special Forces drone and reload, so to speak. Speaking of, her last variation is named Special Forces, and allows her to use said drone as an actual offensive tool. The player may shoot a homing blast, a low shot, mid-air level shot or order it the drone to go kamikaze on the opponent for even bigger damage. The drone has a timer on how long it can stay in play, and the player can even park it to set up traps, or play on the mind of the opponent, potentially affecting their game. Check it all out in motion below.

Mortal Kombat X is only days away from release for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. If you haven’t pre-ordered already…what are you waiting for?!

Right Stuf and Sunrise Reveal the Upcoming Release of ‘Turn A Gundam’ Part 2

K. Roberts

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April 5, 2015

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Right Stuf and Sunrise Reveal the Upcoming Release of ‘Turn A Gundam’ Part 2

Right Stuf, Inc. and Sunrise, Inc. have just announced the North American DVD release of Turn A Gundam Part 2. This is the second and final release of Turn A Gundam, featuring episodes 26-50 with English subtitles.

On-disc extras for this release will include a three-part interview with the Mechanical Designer Syd Mead and the textless opening and closing animations. Syd Mead may be known among sci-fi fans for his work on Aliens.

Part 2 will be released on August 4, 2015, with a suggested retail price of $49.99 USD. Pre-orders can be made here for $33.49 USD. Part 1 is available for pre-order here for the same price ahead of its release on June 30.

The Awakened Fate Ultimatum Review

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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The Awakened Fate Ultimatum
Developer: Nippon Ichi Software
Publisher: NIS America
Platform: PlayStation 3
Release Date: March 17, 2015
Price: $39.99 US – Available Here, $59.95 AU – Available Here

Overview
Two years ago, NIS America released what can best be described as a spiritual successor to Z.H.P. Unlosing Ranger in the form of The Guided Fate Paradox. An enjoyable story with a likable cast of characters combined with interesting gameplay elements made The Guided Fate Paradox a worthwhile title. Now NIS America has brought the game’s sequel, The Awakened Fate Ultimatum, to the West. A number of changes have been made to the original game’s formula but is it still worth picking up?

Story
Shin Kamikaze had a difficult life growing up and because of this he distrusts those around him and never really interacted with the world. While he may be a loner, he did have a fairly normal life until one day while walking home from high school he is attacked by a group of devils. Before he is able to understand what is happening, he is grievously wounded by these devils and only with the help of an angel named Celestia and a devil scientist named Ariael is he able to stay alive.

This is only the beginning of the story as the only way Shin was able to remain alive is thanks to a Fate Awakening Crystal being inserted into his body and given half of an angel’s soul and half of a devil’s soul. Thanks to the crystal in his chest, Shin now has become God and must enter into the battle between angels and devils in a story that may have less humor than the first game but makes up for it by keeping a tighter focus on the storyline.

Both Ariael and Celestia are developed well enough for players to care about what is going on, especially since they will be spending a lot of screen time with each girl in rather long conversation sequences. Now there are still a few humorous moments throughout the story and most of this humor comes from interacting with these two girls but it is worth noting that the tone throughout the story is far more serious this time around and also not quite as complex as the previous game, though an interesting choice mechanic has been implemented instead.

Over the course of the game players will be presented with numerous decisions that they will have to make and while some may seem rather innocuous there is a lot of gray area on play here. The core aspect of the decision system is to show whether the player is leaning towards the Angels or the Devils with each choice providing the player with Crystal Points that will be used to upgrade skills on the corresponding side.

What makes it interesting however is the fact that the outcome of these decisions are usually not as one would expect. Choosing to try and do something good may result in a much worse outcome than if you had chosen a darker route. At other times there isn’t even a good option to choose from as players will know that someone will need to be sacrificed regardless of the player’s choice. That being said, many of these decisions don’t seem to carry long lasting consequences outside of the immediate results until the end of course, but even then there is always a ‘True’ option to pursue.

Gameplay
Not only is The Awakened Fate Ultimatum a bit of a darker title; it also is one that has shrugged off nearly all of the mechanics of the past title and most of the complicated systems at the same time. While still a roguelike that will punish the player if they die, it is far simpler to control this time around as everything has been streamlined, making the title far easier than the earlier game even though you always have to prepare for the worst when you enter a dungeon.

As you enter a dungeon, Shin will now be by himself with no companion fighting alongside him and players will need to explore dungeons with each one having a set amount of floors while battling against the enemies they come across. Combat works in an easy to understand manner, especially now that the equipment has been limited compared to the original. If you happen to fall in combat, players will lose every item they have equipped and anything they may have been carrying with them. While this is a punishment, players will also no longer have to worry about their levels being reset to 1 at the start of every dungeon as Shin will now level normally and retain his level no matter what dungeon he is entering.

New to this system is the ‘Deitize’ mode. Since Shin now has part of an Angel and Devil soul inside of him, he can now transform into an angelic form and devil form in combat. As you travel through dungeons you’ll encounter enemies that are angelic as well as demonic and while you can choose to fight these enemies in base form, transforming into the opposing form through a simple tap of a button increases the damage you deal while also taking less damage.

These forms level up separately from one another using the Crystal Points mentioned earlier (gained through choices and basic leveling and fighting) and players will be able to choose how they wish to level these forms through a level-grid system that is easy to understand and contains a number of skills that can be unlocked. Another notable thing about these forms is that the various stat boosts and focus are built around different aspects and their skills match that. The angelic form features abilities and boosts dealing with destructive power and wide-ranging attacks while the devil form is more defensive, boosting the player’s defense and featuring skills that allow for easier running away and draining health from opponents.

Despite being more streamlined and easier than before, players will still need to prepare for random spikes in difficulty that occur throughout the title, especially after a few hours in. As players navigate the floors looking for the way down, they’ll need to worry about traps, enemies that can and will try to surround you, especially when they are two different types meaning that death can and will happen even if you are prepared. That being said, those looking for a harder title will find The Awakened Fate Ultimatum a far easier experience than the original game.

Visuals & Audio
While I am unsure whether or not the shift from the original sprite based dungeon gameplay to the new 3D chibi form was Nippon Ichi dealing with a smaller budget this time or attempting to go for a different look (or both), I can say that the shift to the 3D forms is a downgrade compared to the original title. While dungeon exploration is much easier thanks to the view players are presented with, the actual designs of the dungeons, the enemies, and Shin, in any of his forms, will leave players wanting.

This is especially true thanks to the limited customization system as well as how well designed the actual character portraits are during the visual novel sequences. These dialogue sequences are the same as one would expect for a game such as this and the character designs and backgrounds have a nice level of detail which is found lacking once you enter a dungeon.

The Awakened Fate Ultimatum comes with a newly recorded English dub as well as the original Japanese voice track which will please both types of gamers as the English voice actors portray their characters well. As far as the soundtrack is concerned, there are tracks ranging from heavy rock music for combat and boss encounters to simple background music for dialogue sequences to grand dramatic pieces for main story moments meaning that there are some great songs here, including the opening theme.

Overall
The Awakened Fate Ultimatum may be the sequel to The Guided Fate Paradox but just like how there is very little story crossover between the two games, very few of the original mechanics have survived in this release. Instead the experience has been streamlined and made more accessible to newcomers and in no way does this make The Awakened Fate Ultimatum a bad game as it still provides a solid experience with a serious tone, but one that is watered down and far easier than fans of the original will expect.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Dragon Ball Xenoverse DLC Pack 2 Release Date Announced

Nathan Farrugia

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April 5, 2015

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After a slight delay the second DLC pack for Dragon Ball Xenoverse now has a release date and it’s not too far off. The pack will be available in the Americas beginning April 14th with a European release either on the same day or a day later. You can view the full details of DLC pack 2 in our past article along with some cool looking screenshots but the basics of the pack include

– Four new playable characters including: Eis Shenron, Nuova Shenron, Mira, and Towa
– Three episodes and three quests from the GT Saga
– New Master “Pan”
– 22 new moves, five new costumes, and six new Z-Souls

The details of DLC pack 3 including Golden Frieza, more costumes and more mentors were also leaked recently. Dragon Ball Xenoverse is available now for PS3, Xbox 360, PS4, Xbox One and PC. The season pass is available now at a price of $37.99 AU.

Kanji Tatsumi Performs in Latest Persona 4: Dancing All Night Trailer

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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Last week we saw Chie take the stage in Persona 4: Dancing All Night and this week Atlus is having Kanji Tatsumi dance with everything he’s got. Since Persona 4: Dancing All Night takes place a bit after the original game, Kanji is now a second year in high school and despite his tough appearance, those who played the original games know his hobbies include sewing and cooking.

You can check out Kanji’s powerful dance moves in the trailer below while the game itself is currently set to be released in Japan on June 25th and will be released in the West sometime later this year.

BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend Opening Video Released

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend Opening Video Released

With BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend set to be released in Japan on April 23rd Arc System Works has decided to release the new opening movie for the game and you can check that out below. It is worth noting that this intro is fully animated by Production I.G. and features the theme song “Blue Desire” by Faylan.

BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend features two new playable characters in Celica and Lambda-11 as well as refinements to the Overdrive mechanics and new story elements and side stories including scenarios for Bullet and Kokonoe. Currently BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend, is set to be released in North America sometime this summer for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PS Vita.

FUNimation Brings Despair with Danganronpa English Voice Cast

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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Today at their panel during Sakura-Con FUNimation announced the English Dub cast for their upcoming release of Danganronpa: The Animation and unfortunately for fans, the company has only managed to retain one of the original English voice actors from the game.

Unlike the Hyperdimension Neptunia and Blazblue adaptations, only Makoto Naegi’s original voice actor, Bryce Papenbrook, is returning to dub the anime.

The full English cast can be found below:

Greg Ayres to voice Monokuma
Bryce Papenbrook to voice Makoto Naegi
Felecia Angelle to voice Aoi Asahina
Lindsay Seidel to voice Celestia Ludenwerg
Jamie Marchi to voice Junko Enoshima
Kara Edwards to voice Chihiro Fujisaki
Carli Mosier to voice Toko Fukawa
Christopher Bevins to voice Yasuhiro Hagakure
Austin Tindle to voice Kyotaka Ishimaru
Caitlin Glass to voice Kyoko Kirigiri
Justin Cook to voice Leon Kuwata
Monica Rial to voice Sayaka Maizono
Rachel Robinson to voice Sakura Ohgami
Christopher R. Sabat to voice Mondo Owada
Josh Grelle to voice Byakuya Togami
Tyson Rinehart to voice Hifumi Yamada

FUNimation is planning on releasing the series on Blu-ray and DVD sometime this year but it is worth noting that before watching the anime, potential fans should try and play the original game as the anime adaptation follows the entire plot of the game and will spoil numerous mysteries.

Stella Glow Announced for North American Release This Year

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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Atlus USA has announced that they will be localizing Imageepoch and Sega’s 3DS game Stella Glow for release in North America later this year. The company will reveal more details about the localization and when they plan to release the game later this year but you can check out the Japanese trailer for the title below.

In Stella Glow, players will control Alto, a young knight who is tasked with convincing the witches throughout the Regnant Kingdom to join his side to put a stop to Hilda, the Witch of Destruction. It is interesting to note that this is the first game that Atlus has localized from Sega since the parent company was acquired by Sega, meaning this may be the first of many Japanese Sega titles that could possibly make their way to the West.

Second Makai Shin Trillion Trailer Released

Travis Bruno

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April 5, 2015

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A new trailer for Makai Shin Trillion (Destroyer Trillion) has been released by Compile Heart. The four minute video can be found below where it primarily focuses on showing off gameplay while also showing off the game’s battle system, introducing characters, as well as showing off event scenes and some dungeons that players will see as they prepare to fight against Trillion, a boss with a trillion HP.

Currently Makai Shin Trillion, the first game in the Makai Ichiban Kan series, is set to be released in Japan on May 21st for the PlayStation Vita and at the moment no Western release plans have been announced.