Halfbrick Studios, the little Aussie game developer behind great mobile titles like Jetpack Joyride and Fruit Ninja have given us a release date for their upcoming giant-mechanical monster puzzle game; Colossatron: Massive World Threat. You will be able to take control of the giant mechanical worm and carve your path of destruction starting from December 19th.
In Colossatron, you take control of the titular beast and create its body with different power cores to do the most damage to the surroundings. For a little bit more info of the game, check out our hands-on impressions. Colossatron will be rampaging cities on iPhone, iPad and Android devices from December 19th, and if it is anywhere near as good as past Halfbrick games then we are in for a treat. As always, stay tuned to Capsule Computers for all the Colossatron news as it becomes available
Dokuro Developer:GungHo Online Entertainment Publisher: GungHo Online Entertainment Platforms: iOS (iPhone/iPad), Android – Reviewed on iPad Release Date: 4th December 2013 Price: $0.99 – Available Here
Overview We all know how it goes. Princesses, though revered, have a penchant for being kidnapped. Once this inevitably happens, it is up to a hero to rise to the challenge and rescue the damsel. That being said, the rescue usually occurs at the end of the story, once the hero has overcome a number of obstacles. Dokuro takes things in a slightly different direction. With the Princess saved in the opening scene, its up to our unlikely hero to protect her through a perilous realm of evil.
That evil workout routine definitely shows results
Story It’s that classic story. Princess is kidnapped, Skeleton meets Princess, Skeleton betrays his Dark Lord to rescue said Princess, Skelelton guides Princess through perilous quest through an evil castle.
Having ruled her land in peace, our unfortunate Princess was once day stolen away by an evil Dark Lord. Longing to make the unwilling Princess his bride, the Dark Lord ordered one of his lowly skeleton underlings to keep watch over his not-so-beloved. However, as the skeleton stares at the poor, crying Princess, something strange begins to happen. Rather than obey his evil master, the henchman longs to save this damsel as strange feelings rise within him. With his decision made, the skeleton frees the royal prisoner, sending her on her way back to her old life…but nothing is that easy. The duo are still locked within the Dark Lord’s stronghold, along with all of the other dark minions that dwell within. Let’s just say that the skeleton isn’t exactly the most imposing of the creatures that call the dark castle their home, something our duo soon discover.
As our Hero braves the dangerous traps that litter the twisted residence, he comes face to face with a number of foes who seek toreturn the Princess to their Master’s grasp. However, as can be expected of beings of evil, they’re not exactly merciful in their approach. One particular creature chooses to let the Skeleton continue on his quest, telling him to hurry up and fail so that this whole situation will simply go away.
There’s bigger things to focus on Princess
Gameplay What Dokuro boils down to is one long side-scrolling escort mission, with added puzzles. While this is the simplest way to explain the game, it underseels it immensely. Let’s face it, escort missions aren’t the most well received in the video game world. They can be tedious, stressful and just plain difficult. However, Dokuro handles this concept well and in a fairly fresh way. First of all, due to the 2D nature of the game, your protectee doesn’t run of in a myriad of directions. Just straight forward. Often into danger but hey, if they were that clever they wouldn’t need protecting. One of the core gameplay aspects involves you actually stopping the Princess from aimlessly walking into danger. Though she often avoids the most present dangers, the Princess is not above wandering into open flames. So you’ll have to keep on your toes if you want to keep your damsel out of distress.
As no escape is simple, expect to find a myriad of impeding puzzles along the way. Being an evil leader who lives in a large castle, there’s spikes a plenty and a number of bottomless pits…I guess evil bosses share an interior decorator…who is probably also evil. Also included in the decor are a number of barriers, shifting platforms and flamethrowers. Each of these dangers comes with a handy dandy off switch, each figuring into the solutions for your escape. Though in typical game style, switches need to be pressed down constantly and levers have a tendency to revert. Honestly, how do the bad guys live in these places? Of course there are also the instant death pitfalls to avoid, so…avoid them. As if all of this wasn’t bad enough, some levels require you to not only figure out the key to progression, but also achieve this rather quickly, lest the Princess perish. Though the solutions to these speed levels are often simpler than those without time limits, they are by no means less stressful. Saving Princesses is hard. That being said, regardless of a level’s specific layout, each only takes around a minute or two to complete. This allows you to stop and start the game at frequent intervals, and also serves to mete any anger over failing a puzzle. Losing progress in such small chunks is very forgiving for a puzzle game. That being said, as the game progresses you may find yourself wanting to skip some puzzles. Along this vein, the game allows you to skip a total of 10 of the 150 levels, just in case you really get stuck…or frustrated…or lazy.
When you begin your perilous journey you possess no equipment, instead relying on your agility to keep out of danger. Double jumping is a nifty skill for anyone to have and it is what allows you to survive your first boss encounter. With only two hits before you are made considerably more dead than you already are, expect to dodge a lot. However, once you conquer your towering foe, you receive a curious potion that allows you to transform in to the archetypal Prince. A Hero. It is after this moment that you are able to shift between your meek Skeleton form and that of the gallant Prince. Whilst in Prince mode, you are granted a new set of abilities. Though robbed of double jumping from the outset, you are able to carry the Princess, escorting her down large drops or ferrying her from combat. The Prince is also able to vanquish foes, whilst the Skeleton can merely bat them away. In adition to form changing, you are also provided with some items that aid both Heroic personas. At the end of Stage 1 you receive a bell which provides you with a much needed increase in damage resistance, granting you a more favourable hit-to-death ratio. You also receive three sticks of chalk which allow you to solve specific puzzles by connecting two points. It’s like a colour by numbers book, only instead of seeing a picture, you free a Princess. Which is also nice.
A little too happy in his work if you ask me
Visuals and Audio The game definitely features a unique visual style, the most obvious element of which is the overarching chalk style. As you can probably infer, the world appears as if it was drawn with…well, chalk. This gives the characters a certain unsettling vibe, almost taking on a hollow quality. As if they are mere representations of the true characters. This concept is supported by the lack of detail given to character’s faces, robbing them of any intricate individuality beyond their basic role. Characters also move in an odd jittery fashion, which is, again, slightly unsettling. Combined with the film reel borders, the game seems to relish in the notion that this is indeed a story being told.
Whilst in Skeleton form, the world is very bleak. Black, grey, white. Not a very exciting place to be. However, when our heroes transforms into the gallant Prince, the world gains a newfound vibrance. Red, blue, green…still an evil castle, but the colour certainly spruces the place up. Colour also comes into play with the bell that increases your durability. When undamaged, the bell glows with a calm blue aura. As you take more damage however, you may will progress through yellow and wind up at red…red is bad. Try not to get hit again when you reach red…it won’t end well.
The sounds of Dokuro are very thematically relevant to the entire fairy tale genre. The use of pipes, flutes and other wind instruments expresses a certain whimsical nature, giving the game a quirky charm. The soundtrack also includes the rarely utilised accordion to support the strange visual elements. The instrument serves to add an European flair to the game, relating to the castle setting and general time period of classic Princess stories. Standard sound effects also serve to complete the audio experience, such as the clattering of bones, or the scraping of crates as you search for the answer to yet another puzzle.
What a hauntingly beautiful moment
Overall Dokuro is a quirky puzzler with a visual style that you’ll definitely remember. The puzzles aren’t incredibly difficult although some may require you to restart…if you make a mistake that is. Or if the Princess decides to not stop walking into danger. But even if that happens, the penalty isn’t too harsh. Collectibles take the form of a single coin per level, so as to not overburden you with tasks. Which is nice. All in all, Dokuro is a quick fire game that will challenge you fight wisely and think quickly. Protect the Princess. Kill the baddies. Escape. Help the little Skeleton who could save his damsel and become the Hero he longs to be.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
After revealing the new Wargame Red Dragon sequel, Eugen Systems are still expanding Wargame AirLand Battle with free DLC titled Magna Carta. This is the second free DLC pack following the release of Vox Populi a few months ago.
The new Magna Carta update focuses on large-scale multiplayer battles, if things can get any bigger, and brings 12 units new along with 7 new maps. One of which is Three Miles Island, a fan favourite from European Escalation, now playable in Conquest and Destruction modes.
Set between 1975-1985 during a Cold War flare up, Focus Home Interactive published the real-time strategy game earlier this year for the PC, Mac and Linux platforms.
After a fairly relaxed shopping trip, Episode 9 has started what is an ominous saga in the plot of Nagi no Asukara. It seems the significance of the Sea God and the differences between the sea villagers and the surface people have caught up to our young friends.
The saltflake snow continues to fall on both the surface and the village, gradually dropping the temperature over time. The village elders don’t know what to do and their sacred fire, the fire they borrow from Lord Uroko, has been running out at a quicker pace. Uroko visits the village himself and begins to explain just what is going on..
Meanwhile, despite Hikari’s stubborness he still cares about his dad and we see him worrying about how he’s handling himself on his own back at the village. Not only that, but he spearheads the effort to repair the wooden maiden and restart the boatdrift ceremony for the Sea God. While they go about their efforts, we learn that Tsumugu didn’t always live in the harbour town and he came over from the city nine years ago to live with the old man. It seems there is a lot we don’t know about that guy.
We also see the first signs of little Sayu admiring Kaname and igniting what may be a child’s heart throb. Unfortunately it seems like Kaname is only interested in where Chisaki went instead of complimenting her paint job. It turns out Tsumugu took Chisaki to replenish her ena moisture and here we have an awkward moment. It’s almost like Tsumugu can’t socialise with people properly and he speaks way too directly to her.
He probes why she’s given up on Hikari and then passive-aggressively states how he thinks she’s feeling. Then most suprisingly he states that he likes her the way she is, rather than her trying to change herself. What?! What is he trying to pull here? Obviously Chisaki feels incredibly uncomfortable and leaves for the village with Kaname in tow, revealing to him that she hates Tsumugu.
At this point, and I’m throwing speculation around here, I wouldn’t be surprised if Tsumugu isn’t human. It’s a long stretch but the fact that he’s so close to the ocean and his interest in the Sea Village makes me think he’s related to the Sea God or something. There’s just no way someone would talk to someone else like that.
The second half of episode 9 kicked off the ominous part of the plot. The whole village is waiting for Kaname and Chisaki’s return and we only find out why when Hikari goes back down trying figure out why none of them have returned to school. The snow has thickened and the villagers are not letting the kids go back up, saying that it’s too dangerous. Is something really going to happen or is it the village being stubborn and backwards again?
Here is what’s probably the most intriguing bit of the show up until now. In a powerful moment, Hikari can’t resist his love for Manaka when she’s standing in front him, vulnerable, despite knowing her feelings aren’t exactly the same as his. He gives her an awesome hug but she declines, pushing him away. Embarrassed, Hikari runs out only to be confronted by his dad who tells him to go home but also seeming like he will explain everything.
With a “dangerous” turn of events, we’re lead towards Episode 10, scratching our heads and thinking just how Hikari and Manaka will normalise their friendship. That was a cringe-worthy scene and one that none of us wanted to happen to the main leads.
Settlers Online fans get ready for the Christmas blitz as the Holiday season is hitting the Settlers universe in grand fashion. Ubisoft and Blue Byte are bringing the wonders of Christmas to Settlers Online with a special Christmas themed event.
Starting from December 12th, Settlers Online players will come to discover that the world has been covered in a layer of snow and that Santa Claus has made some silly mistakes by dropping presents all over the place.
Players can gather these presents for some Christmas goodies. On top of all that there is a Christmas Surprise awaiting players through the press of a button besides their avatars.
You can check out some of the Christmas event images for Settlers Online in the gallery below. You can also get in on the fun now through the official Settlers Online website.
This is an odd piece of news but it is definitely one piece that will have Pokemon fans from around the world jumping with joy, if I wasn’t writing this article right now I too would be jumping with all the joy of a Pokemon Master…which is something 15 years of playing Pokemon has made me. The Pokemon Company and Nintendo have just released the “Pokemon FireRed and Pokemon LeafGreen: Super Music Collection” album on iTunes, this collection features fantastically adapted and orchestrated versions of the original music from the FireRed and LeafGreen games, something that all true Pokemon fans should have playing on repeat while going on random walks through areas with grass that is at least at knee height.
Originally the music for the games were compased by Junichi Masuda, Go Ichinose and Morikazu Aoki, well now you can have all those tracks awesomely remastered for your listening pleasure. For anymore information on this fantastic release I suggest that you head to the Official Pokemon Company website which you can get to by clicking the link here or if you’re in a rush to get your hands on the album head to its very own iTunes page by clicking here. Enjoy yourselves, Pokemon Masters, you’ve been waiting a long time for something like this and now…it’s yours for the taking!
Not only does every Shonen series in circulation have an almost uncountable number of episodes under their belt, with more set to come, but they also have a handful of story-branching movies to go along with it, Naruto is one of those series’ and considering it’s been going for many years I can’t say any of us are really surprised by this. Year after year we’re given movie after movie, some of them are actually pretty good, others seem more like extended episodes rather than full movies. I have to give it to the show-runners of these series’ because every time they branch off the storyline into something that is meant to fit into a movie they try their very best to make it different, unique or even slightly interesting, it doesn’t always land but when it does…it does it well. Naruto Shippuden Movie 4: The Lost Towerfits perfectly into this description; it’s different, it’s thought-provoking and it’s slightly odd but does it do justice to the Naruto franchise? That’s the question I have to pose.
Story
The Lost Tower is set somewhere within the Naruto Shippuden story, I’m not too sure because they never really give an indication but that I don’t think that would’ve been necessary anyway. Team Seven whichm right now, consists of Naruto, Sakura, Sai and Yamato are out on a mission to hunt down the rogue, and highly dangerous, ninja named Mukade. Mukade is a master of puppet manipulation jutsu and uses it alongside the desert winds to temporarily get the best of the team. Armed with chakra-enhanced blades, the team follows Mukabe into the ruins of an old city, there lies a sealed source of energy called the “Ley Line” that, once in the hands of a skilled Ninja like Mukabe, could mean ultimate power for him and major strife for the rest of the ninja world. Mukabe unlocks the seal and a magnificent but maleficent light fills the underground ruins. Naruto and Yamato are engulfed by the light alongside Mukabe and that’s where the movie truly begins.
The two men are thrown way back in time to an age where the city ruins once stood tall and went by the name of Loran. The city of Loran is an odd one indeed, it resembles both a futuristic setting and yet it is still reminiscent of old European structures, it’s populated mostly by puppets that work like guard robots and it really does give the overall feel of a dystopian future rather than a beautiful past. I’ll skip through most of the in-between scenes and get to the more juice stuff from the movie. It mostly revolves around the taking over of the throne by Mukabe, the current ruler of Loran, Queen Sara, is a young girl who is still a little green behind the ears and doesn’t quite know what exactly is going on in her city but, under the guidance of Mukabe who reached the past six years before Naruto and has built a fine reputation, she rules it in a way that she believe her, now deceased, Mother would have.
After an assassination attempt and on obvious and heroic save by Naruto the two finally meet in what will end up being a friendship to remember…or will they? Now, straight out of the gates, this movie does a lot of things wrong…not entirely big things, in fact, I would consider them to be more like rookie mistakes which shouldn’t be happening to a series like this that has been going on for so long. The story is fairly basic, we’ve seen it all before, and while it does take us to a brand-new location with some brand-new people it does also disappoint. I didn’t expect this movie to be ground-breaking but I also didn’t expect it to be as basic as it was. It was a typical “save the princess, save the world” kind of storyline, one that we’ve seen a hundred times before and one that you cannot make good simply by putting it in a wonderful location, it just doesn’t work that way and it didn’t work this time.
What I really enjoyed about the movie was the appearance of some series’ favourites like the Fourth Hokage (who in the movie was NOT the Hokage) and his team-mates who just so happen to be the fathers of some of the younger characters in the present Naruto timeline. Seeing Minato (The 4th Hokage) and seeing Kakashi as a young Ninja were, without a doubt, the greatest scenes in the movie despite the fact that they didn’t turn up a great deal. The very fact that the reason they’re there makes sense is a big plus in the positive column but, unfortunately, to add to the negative side of that column; the movie ends in a really tacky and cliché way that actually had me extremely annoyed by the time the credits ended and it had finally sunk in. Now I can’t actually tell you what happened because it would be a massive spoiler but I can hint at it, only slightly; it’s worse than the “Oh! It was all a dream!” angle and made the movie seem entirely redundant.
Visuals
Naruto Shippuden: The Lost Tower played jump-rope with the quality of its visuals, some scenes were incredibly cinematic and beautifully animated and some just fell far too flat, it almost looked like they had pulled some scenes straight from the Anime and it’s so unfortunate because we as the audience continuously see this type of thing in Shonen Anime movies. The costume designs were fairly good, the younger versions of the Leaf Ninjas also look incredibly good, their designs are sleek and unique and pretty much exactly how ninjas should look unlike Naruto who is this shining, orange beacon in the ninja world. The puppets also had some incredibly designs, they were extremely well thought out and really made an impact on me, they looked like the puppets we know and love from the series but with an odd and interesting twist. What amazed me was the design of Loran itself, it was an incredibly good-looking location that both harnessed the overwhelming image of an ancient European city yet looked modern enough to almost seem futuristic and seeing as Naruto takes place in a world almost entirely populated by Japanese-style buildings it’s a nice, fresh and different view that will surely take audiences by surprise.
Audio
When it comes to the audio aspect of the movie it really doesn’t break down any walls, so to speak. It doesn’t entirely have a memorable soundtrack and the voice acting for most characters is sub-par but there are some redeeming qualities that should keep you around or, at least, keep you from going crazy while watching the film. I watched this movie in English and, unfortunately, the only voice acting I enjoyed was that of Yamato’s who only really popped up in the movie twice, the rest were a bit of a let-down. There was quite a good range of music within this movie, it went from typical Naruto tracks that are quite reminiscent of traditional Japanese tunes to some nice rock scores that seemed to fit in well with action scenes, the only bad thing is that these songs were overshadowed by the overly-loud sound effects that were present within the fight-scenes.
Extras
Like most Anime releases, Naruto Shippuden Movie 4: The Lost Tower comes with pretty much nothing. There’s the typical things like some nice art on the flipside of the DVD cover, some movie trailers of other Madman products, a clip of the textless closing song and the trailers but it also actually came with one 14-minute episode called “Naruto and the Three Wishes” which is just a silly little “muck around” episode wherein which the youths of the Konoha Village find a magical lamp which holds a genie, it’s obvious that this genie causes a lot of trouble when the kids realise they ALL want the wishes and it leads into a wacky little adventure that all Naruto fans will enjoy. Apart from that small extra, the rest is fairly normal.
Overall
What else can I say? Naruto Shippuden Movie 4: the Lost Tower has turned out to be another typical Naruto movie; it’s watch-able but it’s in no way memorable or even that great. It was almost like watching an extended filler episode of the Anime but with an ending that just shook me to the core…in a bad way. Look, Naruto fans will like it, I actually enjoyed it for the most part but I can see exactly what is wrong with it and exactly what people wont enjoy about it and that is, unfortunately, a great deal of it. I was excited to see some older characters make a return in their younger bodies and that kept me going through most of the movie, hopefully you Naruto fans who’ll purchase this movie regardless will find that little something to get you through it. Just to reiterate; it’s not a terrible movie at all but do NOT expect it to instantly hit your “Top 20 Favourite Movies” list.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
SANTA CLAUS LANDS ON THE SETTLERS® ONLINE ISLANDS DURING THE ANNUAL CHRISTMAS EVENT
With his bag full of presents for the well-behaved players
London, UK – December 11th, 2013 – Ubisoft® and Blue Byte® are launching a special Christmas event for The Settlers® Online. Starting on December 12th players will discover their islands covered with snow and presents fallen from Santa’s sled.
Through several ways, players will be able to gather presents – the special event resource. Those presents will be tradable in exchange for special Christmas items. Santa himself will lead you through a main quest containing about 8 festive sub quests. Candies will spawn all over the islands and daily quests will be available.
For the first time, players will discover an exclusive Christmas Surprise, reachable via a button right beside the avatar image and offering users the chance to open a door each day and get a special reward. As the cherry on the cake a new Provision House will also be available, providing new buffs and refillers.
Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s, Rayman and Far Cry. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2012-13 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,256 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.
About Blue Byte, a Ubisoft studio:
Blue Byte was established in 1988 and released its first hit game in 1991: Battle Isle. This was followed in 1993 by the development strategy game The Settlers®, which established itself as a longlasting favorite. In 2001, Blue Byte was acquired by Ubisoft, and in 2004 the studio moved into the premises of Ubisoft’s German branch in Düsseldorf. The team at Blue Byte is responsible for new productions of The Settlers® and ANNO®. The studio is also active in the free-2-play genre with the web-based browser game The Settlers Online, available in several languages and currently captivating millions of players worldwide.
It is a big day for 3DS owners. No, it isn’t more Pokemon or Zelda news (though I am sure most of you are playing one of the two). The Miiverse has officially landed on the 3DS. This social networking service allows users to doodle and send messages to others, in a organized forum like format.
Those who own a Wii U know all about this, and will be able to link their profile to their 3DS. Keep in mind that your Mii on your 3DS may be sacrificed for the whole transfer option, so choosing between the two is something you should decide while downloading the update. This is Nintendo’s next step towards a proper profile function, and hopefully its full evolution will be something we see in the future. You can download the update as of today, and keep an eye out for further functionality in the future.
You heard that right! After over a year of seeing the Wii and 3DS get all of glory, Nintendo have finally put up some rewards for Wii U owners for the month of December. This new line of digital features Super Mario Bros. 2 and Balloon Fight for the Wii U’s Virtual Console, while also offering up Mario’s Picross and Starship Defense from the 3DS’ eShop catalog.
Sure, we have seen some of these before for the handheld, but the Wii U is brand new to this, and let us hope things only get sweeter from here. On that high note, I must ask just where all of the physical merchandise is going, as items are now going out of stock left and right. Maybe there is more Club Nintendo users than ever, or Nintendo is just going the full digital route for prizes at a slow pace. For now, check out the prices below and get to redeeming if you must!
Super Mario Bros. 2 : 150 Coins
Balloon Fight: 200 Coins
Starship Defense: 150 Coins
Mario’s Picross: 100 Coins
