A couple of months ago we learned that Ubisoft was planning on releasing Child of Light, their turn-based RPG, as a digital download for the PlayStation Vita. Well now that day is here and you can now download Child of Light’s standard edition on the Vita for £11.99 while a complete edition that features all downloadable content for the game is also available at retail and digital download today.
Child of Light is stylized like a playable poem where players will journey through the world of Lemuria as the young princess Aurora who must win back the sun, moon, and the stars that have been stolen by the Queen of the Night.
They are also running a competition asking fans to customise an assassin that will then be submitted and voted on for the chance to be included in a future trailer for the game. The 50 top voted from each day will be selected. For all the details on Assassin’s Creed: Unity‘s single-player, parkour mechanics, combat, co-op and more, click here. And go here to try your hand at customising an awesome-looking assassin. Be warned, however, that you are only allowed one creation all up, so make sure you are completely happy with it before submitting.
Ubisoft have detailed the ‘Access Granted Pack’ DLC that is now available for Watch_Dogsplayers on all platforms. Dedsec Edition owners will be familiar with the extra single-player missions, unlockable weapons, perks and bonuses within:
The Palace Single Player Mission: A police raid is planned on the luxury palace of an Internet mogul. His databanks have intimate details on thousands of people including Dedsec and Aiden Pearce. Break inside, wipe his hard drive and escape before the raid begins. Then silence the Internet mogul.
Signature Shot Single Player Mission: A biometrics weapon has been smuggled into Chicago for a captain of the Black Viceroys gang. The weapon only works with the first person to imprint his palm on the handle. Breach a stronghold, steal the package and be the first to imprint the weapon.
Breakthrough Single Player Mission: A secret gathering is underway. The Chicago South Club is negotiating power with Corporate CEOs. The Club has hired scramblers to block surveillance devices. Find the scrambler vehicles and take out their technicians. Locate the meeting and eliminate everyone taking part.
The Biometric Rifle is acquired after completing the Signature Shot mission and, as you’d expect, works exclusively in his hands, boasting a deadly combination of long range and high rate of fire. A pistol in the form of the Auto-6 is also included in the pack, which is a burst-fire pistol that is extremely effective and deals a large amount of damage. In regards to perks, the Dedsec Battery Boost adds an additional phone battery, the Blume Weapon Boost permits faster reloading for all weapons as well as less recoil, the Driving Master boost offers improved vehicle hit points and, finally, the ATM Hack boost increases the amount of money gained when hacking accounts at ATMs.
Gamers who did not buy the Dedsec Edition, but purchased the Season Pass have already had access to this content. For all others, the DLC is available for purchase starting this week. The early access trend will continue for Season Pass holders with the future release of T-Bone’s dedicated Single Player Story. Click through to purchase your Season Pass.
Overview The Atelier series has moved beyond the Arland trilogy but Gust and Tecmo Koei have kept the trilogy fresh in the minds of fans by releasing slightly enhanced versions of Atelier Totori and Atelier Meruru for the Vita last year. However unlike those two games, the title that began the Arland trilogy, Atelier Rorona, was quite primitive feeling as it lacked many of the advancements the later games in the series had.
You see, there is a good reason that in Japan this game was called New Atelier Rorona, as it is more than just an enhanced port, but instead a title that has been reworked in many ways. The question is, now that it has been revamped is Atelier Rorona Plus: The Alchemist of Arland worth picking up again?
Story The story takes place in the kingdom of Arland where a very familiar girl named Rorona is training/working under the eyes of a famous alchemist named Astrid who saved her life. Unfortunately for Rorona, Astrid is as lazy as a teacher can be and because of her lackadaisical attitude the kingdom has found that there is no reason to keep an alchemy workshop funded and is planning on closing it down. Even with this news, Astrid continues to do nothing and instead hands the reigns of the workshop over to Rorona who must now prove that alchemy is indeed beneficial to the kingdom.
As such, every three months Rorona is given a certain task that she must accomplish within that time frame, usually centered on creating a number of a specific item or certain quality item, and if she can manage to do so for three years she can prove that the workshop is worthwhile. If she fails to do this however, the workshop will be permanently closed in the game’s worst ending.
Though even the kingdom itself seems to take note of how much of a lighthearted game Atelier Rorona Plus is, since most of the goals that are set are fairly easy to accomplish with time to spare, meaning the player has plenty of time to explore the world and see what it has to offer. As Rorona sets out to complete various goals she will come across numerous friends and allies who all are charming and likable in their own way.
In fact there are over thirty different endings in the game thanks to the characters that players will be able to meet and the events they trigger with them. So while Atelier Rorona Plus may not have a big evil to face off against, this is a story about the journey, not the destination and this journey is a sweet and enjoyable story told with an amazing cast of characters and some surprisingly familiar faces for those who have played the other games in the Arland trilogy.
Gameplay As with every other game in the Atelier series, players must learn to balance their time properly since almost every action you make in Atelier Rorona Plus takes time to complete and since players are limited on the amount of time they have to complete each goal, they must plan accordingly. Things such as traveling between areas for harvesting or traveling to a dungeon take numerous days and the return trip will take just as much time.
Players will be spending just as much time venturing around outside as they do in their workshop because the majority of requests they receive, be it main quests or side-quests provided by the citizens or party members, will involve creating an item or defeating a certain number of opponents. Finishing these side-quests not only helps players raise their status within the kingdom, but also boost Rorona’s friendship with allies and potentially unlock strong equipment.
Once you are out on the field, players can harvest all sorts of ingredients from harvest points as well as battle against enemies on the field. The battle system is something that has been given a needed overhaul from the original title and thanks to this Atelier Rorona Plus’ combat is a more fluid and easy to handle affair since it takes many queues from Atelier Meruru.
All battles are turn based affairs where players will be able to see the attack order and affect it by eliminating or damaging enemies enough. The combat system itself is fairly standard as far as RPGs are concerned, but it is enjoyable nonetheless. Alchemists are the only ones that can use items so players will likely want to use her turns to use bombs or healing items to turn the tide of battle. She can also use special attacks through MP, as well as every other character, but MP is required to synthesize items so it is a tactic that is best avoided. Along those lines the assist meter also makes a return with players able to either provide an additional attack or block an incoming blow with one full meter.
Once you gather various ingredients from the field as well as from defeated opponents, players will be entering their workshop to create various items in a synthesizing system that has also been revised to be a bit easier to understand than it originally was. Players will use various ingredients required by a recipe to create a usable item that can be of various levels of quality. Various component traits can also be placed into the items and carried over to provide additional effects and since many recipes take a number of days to complete, you will need to plan properly to make sure you will have enough time to craft the items needed and that they will be of a decent enough quality to meet your goal.
Outside of the aforementioned tweaks, there are a number of other nice additions to Atelier Rorona Plus such as the ability to grow and manage a garden that allows players to grow useful items, a time capsule that can change certain items into others, new costumes and weaponry, and of course some extra dungeons and bosses to defeat.
Visuals & Audio Since the original Atelier Rorona was released in Japan in mid-2009, the series has come a long way as far as graphics and design go and thankfully Atelier Rorona Plus has been given a significant visual upgrade. The character models in the title have been given a much needed revamp and are nicely detailed while the combat scenes have been given just as much of an improvement to create an amazing looking experience on the PS3.
It is also worth noting that the user interface has been overhauled as well to be cleaner looking and more user-friendly, which is something that is necessary considering the new refinements to the battle and synthesis systems.
Just like the original, Atelier Rorona Plus supports both the English voice track as well as the original Japanese voice track for those who prefer that option. The background music itself is very enjoyable and is sounds similar to what fans of the series have come to expect, though there is also an option to switch various areas’ background music to any of the other numerous songs from other Atelier games.
Overall It always seemed a bit odd that while the other games in the Arland trilogy were given a re-release, Rorona was never touched. But now I can see that it was for the best as the re-worked systems in Rorona make it not only just as enjoyable as later games in the series but also a great way for beginners to try become acquainted with the game’s somewhat more simplistic style. By giving the game a great visual overhaul and replacing the previously un-enjoyable systems with the tried and true systems of Meruru, Atelier Rorona Plus can now stand as a great entry introduction to what is an amazing trilogy of titles.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
About a week and a half ago NIS America revealed that they would be opening up a European online store so gamers wouldn’t need to worry about importing titles from the American store. Well now that store has gone live and you can check it out here. Currently there are a few limited edition versions of games available for pre-order, with various price ranges. Danganronpa 2’s limited edition is priced at £59.99, Disgaea 4: A Promise Revisted’s limited edition costs £49.99, and finally Fairy Fencer F’s limited edition is £69.99.
NIS America is planning on placing the Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth: The Wild Cards Premium Edition up for pre-order on the site starting on July 14th.
The Bandai Namco Japan Expo has begun so expect a lot of news from the company over the coming days. They have kicked off the expo with a huge bang, releasing an all new trailer for Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution showcasing characters, game play mechanics, game modes and limited edition content. Highlights of the trailer include some epic ultimate reveals, game play of characters such as Konohamaru, Iruka, Hashirama and more, overviews of the three new game play types in the game (Drive, Ultimate and Awakening), gameplay footage of the four character brawler style Ninja World Tournament Mode which is now revealed to have world exploration, story mode overviews and more. At the end of the trailer it was revealed their would be an exclusive animation for Day 1 buyers (for both the Collector’s Edition and Standard Edition) that has been labelled the Sunny-Side Battle and has Itachi wearing an apron to cook Sasuke an egg. Strange I know, but the animation will come on a separate DVD and the apron outfit that Itachi is wearing in it will be made available as free DLC to those who buy the game early. You can watch the trailer below for yourself.
That’s not all the Ninja News for today though. The Xbox 360 demo for Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution was released early today and is available now (at least in North America), with the online multiplayer being active only until July 24th. Unfortunately the PS3 version of the demo has been delayed in the states but is available from the Japanese PSN should you have access to a Japanese account. It is unknown if this delay will also effect the European/Australian markets so all we can say for now is keep an eye on the PSN or get a Japanese account. With the release of the demo someone was able to rip all the characters portraits from the game so we now have the full roster. It is important to note not all the characters below will be playable (some are support such as the Sound 4) and some are just alternate outfits such as the two Hinata portraits. The picture is below and can be clicked to make it larger. People may or may not be happy to know that the 100 character roster will see the return of the pre time skip characters, so all the young versions of the characters will be back after being absent in Storm 3 but present in Generations.
We’re still not done with the news however. Bandai Namco had another surprise in store with the announcement of the Storm League. The Storm League is an official website(which you can visit by clicking the link) that aims to prove who really is the best online at the Naruto Storm games and will provide a community driven place for users to find others to battle, create tournaments watch and stream live competition. Interesting the site is sponsored by ESL (Electronics Sports League) which indicates Bandai Namco may be getting more serious about the competitive scene when it comes to its anime fighters. You can view the Storm League trailer below. Let us know your thoughts on the roster and new trailer as well as the Storm League in the comments below! The full game releases on September 12th for the PS3 and Xbox 360.
On Monday Night Raw WWE took the time to reveal that none other than John Cena, the face of the company and current WWE World Heavyweight Champion, will be the man on the cover of WWE 2K15. This was then followed by 2K Sports releasing various box arts showing off the same image that can be seen above.
Last year 2K Sports gave fans of the game a chance to use a double sided cover that featured Daniel Bryan instead of The Rock, but it is currently unknown if there will be such an option this year. Currently WWE 2K15 is set to be released on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on October 28th in North America and October 31st in PAL regions.
Last week we learned that a new original character named Lana the “White Witch” was going to be added to Hyrule Warriors and a few days after that we saw some of the first screenshots of her. Well today Koei Tecmo has released a gameplay trailer showing how Lana will play in the game as she makes use of magical blocks and spells to deal damage to her enemies.
You can check out the gameplay trailer below and be sure to keep an eye out for Hyrule Warriors once it is released for the Wii U in North America on September 26th and on September 19th in Europe.
Last week Koei Tecmo America said that they were going to be releasing Ar nosurge: Ode to an Unborn Star in North America but at that time, they could not give fans a solid date despite the European release of the game getting a set date of September 26th.
Well today, Koei Tecmo announced that Ar nosurge: Ode to an Unborn Star will be released in North America, as one would expect, September 23rd, a few days prior to the European release date. The game will be given both a physical and digital release in North America and will be priced at $49.99
So often in this day and age of gaming it is rare to see something new and unique. Most games out there are just variations on a well known genre. Battle Princess of Arcadias is a rare exception to the rule, and while at its core it is a combination RPG/third person brawler, its unique mechanics and RTS strategy really help it stand apart from the competition. While it has a few hiccups in terms of gameplay, it is still an awesome experience (especially if you are an anime fan).
Story
So as I am sure you are expecting from an anime-styled title like this, the story is a little bit out there. You primarily play as Princess Plume, the battle princess of the Schwert Kingdom who at the bequest of her brother the king (who incidentally is a goose… like an actual goose wearing a robe and crown) must defend the kingdom from all sorts of attacks from monsters and opposing forces.
Plume teams up with friends and employees to save the kingdom after the untimely death of her steward. Despite such a horrific act, the dialogue and story itself are all pretty light-hearted, although filled with quite a heaping serve of sexual innuendo. While the story serves its job of tying the missions together quite nicely, it is filled with a lot of unnecessary fluff and can really drag on at points which significantly lengthens a game that didn’t need it.
Gameplay
Battle Princes of Arcadias is a unique and exciting mix of genres. It is part side-scrolling beat em up, part RPG and part tactical RTS. Yep, you read that correctly. Now I can see why you would be confused, so let me explain each section in detail.
The game is entirely played in old-school arcade style side-scrolling beat-em up. You will enter a battle with three different characters. Each character has their own weapons and special skills and abilities that they can utilise in-battle. You are able to switch freely between your characters at will, and if you happen to have all three killed on you during the course of a stage, you will be forced to start over.
Here is where the RPG elements kick in. Not only do you have a veritable army of characters to choose from (in addition to the ACTUAL army that I will mention in just a moment), but each character levels up independently of everyone else. XP is earned by striking the killing blow against an enemy, and of course this bestows the usual bonuses we expect from RPGs – more HP, attack power, new skills and abilities. In addition, you can buy, upgrade and enhance weapons to further increase the skills of your fighters.
Ok, so far we have a mixture between side-scrolling action title and an old school RPG. Nothing new here right? WRONG! Some stages of the game will also have you commanding a squadron of soldiers, whilst you do battle with giant monsters or enemy forces of your own. Your squadron can be controlled via a few simple button presses, which means you wont ever be distracted by all of the action going on in the background, and can still focus on the enemies right in front of your face. The squadron gains bonuses if they are wielding the same weapon as your current playable character, and can replenish their soldier count by retreating from battle for a short while.
The RTS elements really shake up the formula and offer a new and frankly unique experience. Paying attention to two different things at once can be a bit tricky at first, but neither of the two gameplay styles are particularly deep or challenging, so you should be able to bounce between the two without any issues.
Battle Princess of Arcadias does have one gameplay issue where it really struggles; it is very grindy. The difficulty level takes sudden and unexpected jumps where you will find yourself facing off against enemies that are 10+ levels higher than you, necessitating a return to previous stages to grind your way through and level up some more. The game tries to make it a rewarding experience by grading you on your achievements at the end of each stage but it still feels tiresome and frustrating to have to spend hours facing the same horde of enemies before you can move on.
Visuals & Audio
Battle Princess of Arcadias is built almost entirely on 2d sprites, so it isn’t the most graphically intensive game out there, but it is still quite beautiful. Clearly inspired by a lot of Japanese anime, the game’s world and characters are all vibrant and colourful. Scarlet red hair, bright green foliage and just a veritable rainbow of colour make this a really compelling game to look at.
The sprites themselves are all drawn in an extremely high quality that makes them look sharp and their motions fluid even when performing the most intense attack combinations. The best way to describe them is being similar to “paper puppets.” The things you made as a kid where the arms and legs were thumb-tacked to the body. The overall look when you combine all of the visuals together is that of a simple but elegant animated diorama.
The audio itself is just as impressive. Often game designers will use a mixture of fully voiced cinematics and text only in-game dialogue. That isn’t the case here, and the entire game is fully voiced. Although for me, I didn’t get much out of the voice acting because it was entirely in Japanese (with no option for an English dub) I still admire the work that has gone into this world.
The soundtrack is a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to genre and style. Harps and string music is used for the peaceful areas like the town square and the castle, but once you get into the game’s stages you are met with some pretty sweet rock and roll tunes, as well as a healthy assortment of heavy bass. Despite seeming so vastly different to the animation style, the audio seems to fit in perfectly and it really helps the action feel all that more exciting.
Overall
Battle Princess of Arcadias is an odd mix of genre’s that seems to just work. From its fluid yet relatively simple game mechanics to the beautiful art style and music choices, this is a solid package that just captures the spirit of gaming. The fact that you have to grind your way through levels several times can feel like a bit of a chore, but the characters are endearing enough that you likely wont mind all that much.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
