Madman Entertainment have announced via their Facebook page that they have acquired the rights to release Code Geass: Akito the Exiled on subtitle-only DVD, and will bring Cowboy Bebop to Australia on Blu-ray. Both titles have release dates in July, with exact dates to be announced. Considered a must-see classic, Cowboy Bebop was previously released on DVD but this marks its Blu-ray debut outside Japan. In a surprise move Madman is the first western anime distributor to announce the new Code Geass theatrical OVA, due to be released individually in four 50-minute chapters following cinema screenings in Japan.
The story of Code Geass: Akito the Exiled runs parallel to the original anime series but is set in Europe with all-new characters, where Euro Universe (E.U.) countries are rapidly falling to the advancing Holy Britannian Empire. Desperate, the E.U. forms a special operations unit consisting of Japanese Elevens called W-0, the Wyverns, where the survival rate is only 5%. Akito Hyuuga is the main character who is an exceptional Knightmare pilot, and also happens to be part of this dangerous assignment.
The first episode was released on January 29 2013 in Japan on Blu-ray and DVD and featured a limited edition containing a slipcase, 24-page booklet and 15 postcards. Only the Blu-ray release, priced at around AUD$60, included English subtitles but Madman have promised to release each DVD at a more affordable $24.95. Should a Blu-ray dub ever be produced, as there is none in sight yet, Madman have said it is “likely” they will release it too.
Pricing and release format for Cowboy Bebop on Blu-ray are yet to be revealed. A subtitled trailer for Code Geass: Akito the Exiled can be seen below.
Atelier Ayesha: Alchemist of Dusk Developer:Gust Publisher:Tecmo Koei Platform: PlayStation 3 Release Date: March 5, 2013 Price: $49.99
Overview: There is something to be said for remaining the same and working towards your strengths while refining your weaknesses and over the last few years, the Atelier franchise has done just that. With the Arland Trilogy coming to an end, Gust has moved on to create a new series of Atelier titles, the first of which being Atelier Ayesha: Alchemist of Dusk. Now with a new publisher and a few design changes from the Arland Trilogy, does Ayesha deserve her own time in the spotlight and more recognition than its publisher wishes to give it?
Story: Unlike past games in the franchise where the vibrant world of Arland thrived around the player and everything seemed fine, Ayesha’s homeland is in decay. The land is barely providing enough for people to live on and the art of alchemy seems to have been lost forever. In this land a girl named Ayesha works as an apothecary, living alone near the ruins of an advanced building where various medicinal herbs grow.
However Ayesha’s life wasn’t always so lonely. Just three years before she lived with her younger sister Nio. But one day when Nio ventured into those same ruins she mysteriously disappeared. Long thought dead, Ayesha visits her sister’s grave often. However during one such visit, Ayesha is suddenly presented with evidence that her sister is still alive somewhere and the only way to rescue her is to discover the meaning behind a certain flower and research true Alchemy. With hope that she can save her long lost sister, Ayesha embarks on a venture with little to no knowledge of where to start.
The storyline for Atelier Ayesha isn’t as strict as past titles in the franchise. While players are still presented with a three year time limit, various events that take place throughout the story are not limited on how many days have passed, such as reaching a certain alchemist rank or level of kingdom prosperity.
This means that outside of focusing on the main storyline, players have the ability to venture more than before as they are not held to such a strict timeline as before. And adventure you will do as mentioned earlier, Ayesha begins her mission with barely any direction and players are usually only directed on where to go via notebook updates. These vague updates can be problematic since, while the time-frame isn’t as strict, losing track of where to go next is an issue.
Although the stricter time limit allows the player more freedom, it does make it so that the story does feel less important. This can be rather disappointing at times as past Atelier games had players always watching the calendar for fear of passing up specific events or running out of time. When the player does manage to focus on the story however, they are presented with an interesting journey with a clear-cut finish line that is accented with a great cast of characters.
Ayesha may begin her journey alone but she quickly finds new friends and allies along the way that wish to assist her in various ways. Your party members tend to be very likable and each one has an interesting enough personality, though one old man is simply frustrating and a bother to deal with. As Ayesha makes progress on her journey she will interact with her friends in various ways that actually feel believable and this helps keep players focused on the task at hand. You see, while saving Ayesha’s sister is the final objective, watching Ayesha and her friends interact with one another and unveil more of the world’s secrets is the true gem of Atelier Ayesha’s story.
Visuals: One thing gamers may immediately notice is that Atelier Ayesha feature a more subdued color palette than past titles. While still very colorful, the colors are more earthy and natural and this helps accent the overall aesthetic of Ayesha. With beautifully detailed character models and impressive environment work, the world and characters of Ayesha have never looked better.
However it is worth noting that there are a few issues with the game’s graphics. One of which is due to the fact that there are no longer character portraits during dialogue sequences. Instead any talking is done with the 3D character models, which works since they are still well designed, but the developers chose to not sync the mouth flaps of the characters with the dialogue. In fact, a speaking character’s mouth will move indefinitely until the player advances the dialogue.
As for the game’s battles, the character animations and enemy animations are well handled and since the battle system has been improved from what was offered in the Arland series. It is also worth noting that the game does have some frame-rate issues which rear their ugly head in complicated environments and when some of the visually impressive attack sequences are used on a group of enemies.
Audio: In what many have called an odd decision, Tecmo Koei has chosen to forgo including the game’s original Japanese voice track. While not much of an issue for those who prefer listening to the English voice work anyways, it is a disappointing removal for fans and an unfortunate one considering Atelier Ayesha’s voice work can be hit and miss. While most of the characters are voiced well enough, Ayesha’s voice actress seems like an odd fit for her character and her personality. It is also worth noting that while most of the game’s events are voiced, there are a decent number of events that are lacking voice work.
As far as the game’s soundtrack is concerned, Ayesha boasts a euphonious soundtrack. Perhaps the best in the franchise’s history in fact, as there are numerous tracks that, despite being a bit repetitive at times, always accents the game’s presentation by making great moments even better.
Gameplay: The Atelier titles have always been about exploration, fighting and of course alchemy and Atelier Ayesha is no different. However it has received a number of changes to each aspect. First and foremost, a number of adjustments have been made to make Alchemy a bit easier to handle. One thing veterans of the series may remember is that players could always pick and choose which traits they could apply to any created item.
In Ayesha these traits are automatically applied depending on the quality of the items used to create it. This makes the system a bit easier as players no longer need to search for a specific ingredient with a rare trait to create an item, but it can be problematic. It is also interesting to note that creating items with alchemy no longer requires mana.
The exploration of Atelier Ayesha remains very similar to past titles. As players explore the world they will come across various towns where they can not only interact with their party members, buy items for alchemy and equipment for battle, but also accept various quests. It is worth noting that unlike job boards from past games, these quests are usually side-jobs that offer a cash reward and sometimes an item as a bonus. They are given time limits but there is no punishment for allowing a time limit to slip past you, nor do players have to focus on completing these quests, though they certainly offer great incentive to players who wish to complete them.
As for field exploration, the Ayesha continues to feature a world map where players spend a set amount of days traveling between each area. Exploration fields themselves continue to consist of monsters roaming around to fight against as well as harvest points. Harvesting has changed slightly in Ayesha, as your party members can actually help Ayesha acquire extra items while harvesting and some items can only be found by specific party members.
Whenever the player enters battle against an enemy they face off against them in turn-based combat. However unlike past games where enemies and allies stand in a line and hit one another, Ayesha’s combat system sees players and enemies spaced out on the battlefield. Players can now position themselves as they see fit once battle begins, though moving around the field does use up that character’s turn.
Being behind, near, or far from an enemy can offer various bonuses when attacking, though it is worth noting that allied attacks and defense can only be performed with allies near the attacking/defending character. These allied attacks can help position players to their advantage however, as back attacks and pursuit attacks automatically move the assisting character into position for extra damage. This allows players to strategize as they fight and since area of effect attacks now have to be aimed properly, positioning and resource management can sometimes mean life and death in combat, especially since players may end up far away from a town the further into the wild they explore.
Since players have a three year time limit in Atelier Ayesha, it is worth noting that time management is still a very big deal. Every action you take, whether it is traveling between locations, harvesting items in a field, fighting enemies or alchemizing items, time passes by. While the story does seem easier to finish this time around within the three year time restraint, it is still a bit confining. However veterans should be familiar with the limit and it helps serve as a driving force to remain focused and on-task, though newcomers may find it a bit too limiting despite the longevity of the title and a New Game Plus option.
Overall: Atelier Ayesha is a title that has always worked towards its strengths and Atelier Ayesha can be seen as the franchise taking two steps forwards, one step back. While offering a nice improvement to the combat system, a nice tone shift artistically accompanied by an amazing soundtrack, the streamlining of alchemy removes the creativity of the player and removing the various checkpoints players have to reach along the time frame lessen the urgency of the main storyline.
Pair that alongside a fairly average English dub and no Japanese voice track, and Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk is still an impressive entry in the series. However just like how in alchemy a few low quality ingredients can lower the rating of the highest quality recipe, Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk may bring a lot of improvements to the table that create a superb title but is marred with a few poor design choices that hold it back from being one of the best game’s in the franchise.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Overview
You know, I find it funny that five years ago, a decently sized portion of gamers did not trust licensed titles whatsoever. I mean, sure – Spider-Man 2 was excellent for it’s time and the sequel wasn’t half bad, but that stigma didn’t really disappear until Arkham Asylum showed the market how it should be done. Yeah, we still don’t trust a lot of these IPs, but super hero based romps have gotten much better over time – as everyone wants to be the next franchise to take the leap. Who better than Spidey?
Last year, The Amazing Spider-Man was released to decent praise, bringing back the hero after a few mediocre releases that have popped up on shelves during the past few years. It didn’t shatter records or blow our minds, but it was still a huge jump into the right direction. The Wii U has seen almost all ports since it’s launch, and even though that does become a tiresome sight, getting those blue cases on shelves is a good thing. The Amazing Spider-Man: Ultimate Edition brings together the full package of the original game we seen last year, adds a few tricks with the Gamepad, and throws in every bit of DLC as a nice bonus. It sounds like a great port, but does Peter Parker swing and miss in his big debut on the Wii U? Let’s find out.
Story
Unlike most movie tie-ins, The Amazing Spider-Man starts it story right after the movie finishes. Yes, this does mean there will be a few spoilers if you haven’t seen the film – but by now I imagine that most can either give it a rental or have already seen the somewhat “ok” reboot of the franchise. Back to the game, shortly after the events of the film, Peter and Gwen find themselves in a total outbreak, with Gwen and a growing number of citizens becoming infected by a cross-species virus. Along with the help of Dr. Connors and Ms. Stacey, this narrative becomes a battle against time and a lot of fodder goons as Peter hunts for an antidote that may or may not save the day.
Yes, it is quite the predictable plot, but it isn’t terrible by any means. Much like all of the other open world entries we have seen, there is a lot of smooth pacing into large events and plenty of cutscenes and collectable recordings to literally put the player in the role of our favorite web-swinger, and Marvel fanatics are sure to enjoy the fan service Beenox pumped into the final product. This story isn’t really rushed or boring by any means, but it does seem a bit lacking considering all of the material this game could have ran on. Sure, saving Gwen and the city is always going to be the primary objective, but when you start to find the side plots (such as the one with Whitney Chang) more captivating than the main story, it can be a bit of a letdown to be forced to go back into a tale that lacks the proper punch.
Gameplay
If you don’t have that swing…well, you know the rest. Thankfully, The Amazing Spider-Man does indeed have it, and then some. I know that is an odd way to start speaking about the main gameplay of the video game adaption here, but it’s very important to tell how exceptional Spider-man’s acrobatics in air truly are. With a tap of the shoulder button, players can find themselves diving through the city at high rates of speed, with the wind crisply slamming into Peter’s suit. It’s one of the most accessible and enjoyable features in the game due to the scope of the city feeling so large, but it’s also the main reason the rest of the game never comes to par with those exhilarating moments.
When The Amazing Spider-Man is at its best, we are doing battle out in the city, flinging from building to building and dealing with both powerful and aerial based foes that are primed with heavy weaponry. You see, the web-slinging ability in combination with the polished in air combat makes these battles feel as epic as you would expect, but they are too few and far between compared to the much more lackluster fodder battles. By “fodder”, I am talking about those moments where you are required to take on wave after wave of standard human and mechanical enemies alike, crawling through dark and dreary sewers just to solve a simple puzzle. Sure, there is plenty of enjoyment to be found on land, but even with the hefty amount of upgrades and tricks up Spidey’s sleeve, they just never match the excitement found in the great outdoors.
The combat itself, and by that I mean your standard punches, kicks, and grounded web abilities – all come together nicely to give our hero a well rounded arsenal to take down any foe that crosses his path. Flipping into a foe from a wall and smashing up baddies “the old fashioned way” comes off as fluid and effortless, reminding us of that same kind of quick and chained combat we seen in the previously mentioned Batman: Arkham Asylum. As more experience is built up, new abilities can be unlocked to further the usage of Spider-Man’s techniques, coming into play during a few missions involving stealth, escape, and general progression. The Web Rush, which is also introduced here, allows for newly added quick-time events to not feel forced, while letting Spider-Man zip from one area to the next safely. This means that if you notice an area with a ton of deadly obstacles around it, you can easily perform the technique to skate across unharmed. While in boss battles, this ability is also used to let Spider-Man slow down time and lock in on a particular target. Yes, there are a few quick time events in these bouts, but the Web Rush helps shatter that image, letting the player feel more in control.
Web Rush, like a few other areas in the game comes with a little bit of frustration. I understand that this is a new mechanic, but others might not be as forgiving when they rush to the wrong area time and time again. Other techniques have a habit of missing as well, meaning that patience comes to be a bit of a requirement while dealing with narrow spaces that require the ability everywhere. The setting itself however is where the heart of the game truly lies. Sure, there will be a lot of forced indoors filler for the plot, but once outside, that feeling of freedom takes over. As I mentioned, swinging through this locale is a blast – but it comes without much focus. From time to time, an objective will appear giving you reason to fly the cityscape, but this comes with little award other than experience and makes the game begin to feel limited as a result. To make up for this, Beenox packed in a ton of collectibles to pick up and photos that must be taken, so those that have a love for completion will at least feel satisfied until every last item is found.
As far as the Gamepad goes, there isn’t a lot to say. I first want to praise Beenox for not going the Arkham City route and tacking in a cheesey feature like the “batarang”, but it’s obvious the full potential of the controller wasn’t explored upon for this port. We do however get to wipe those corner maps off the screen, as your map lies solely on the device – along with the cell phone, making the Gamepad your one-stop menu that can be controlled with a few taps and swipes. The Ultimate Edition proves it’s true worth however by including every bit of DLC that was seen on consoles, with even the Stan Lee quests that are filled with references and fan serviced dialogue.
Visuals and Audio
I’ll start off by saying that as you can see in the screenshots within this review, The Amazing Spider-Man: Ultimate Edition is just as stunning as it appears on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. With that said, the Wii U’s offering falls short in this area due to performance, rather than look. During the first few minutes of the game, you are placed in a cutscene with Gwen, and can only control the first-person perspective of Peter’s head to look around. Right off the bat, screen tearing rears its ugly head, and continues to be a distraction as the game becomes cinematic. Sure, it doesn’t break the experience, but it does make the game feel a bit rushed. I have seen and played nearly every Wii U game to date, and sadly – The Amazing Spider-Man is one of the worst offenders when it comes to chugging, frame-rate drops, and tearing. Those issues are not always prominent, but they do show that more polish could have been applied before this port was shoved out the door.
The audio does indeed fare better. I think I would have liked to have seen the on-screen performers voice the game, but that in all honesty never turns out too well for these types of adaptations. Instead we get a solid cast that still perform their dialogue well, making this narrative feel as big-budget as the flick. Music wise, there isn’t as much to note, but the intense tunes bode well in big battles, while more subtle sound effects capture wind and background noises give the game a more realistic feel. As for Peter Parker, well, his zingers start to grind after a couple of hours, but it’s a video game, so the player will have decide their own preference before hitting the mute button.
Overall
The Amazing Spider-Man: Ultimate Edition is yet another hit and miss port. On the good side, all of the same features, visuals, and scope of the original has made it to the Wii U untouched. On the other side, we have screen tearing, bland Gamepad integration, and a script that is a bit lackluster. That being said, this is indeed a great game to see on the Wii U, and with it’s many bonus DLC packs and discounted price, there really is nothing to stop fans of the flick from feeling guilty for double dipping. I know everyone wants to make that next great film to video game adaptation, but this title – Ultimate or not, is just not quite there. There is a lot of promise on this disc packed in along with the solid experience we already knew existed, making this one Wii U title to consider for the backlog down the road. Beenox however have proven they know how to handle the franchise with The Amazing Spider-Man, and as long as their name continues to be attached to our favorite web-slinger, we can rest easy knowing the city will be in good hands.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Just as Mage’s Initiation is closing up shop on their Kickstarter page, Himalaya Studios is presenting to the community a demo version of the title. Having reached well over the goal of $65k, the project is currently at $90.5k funding. Perhaps the extra funds will provide more quests and fine tuning that every game desires.
To make a pledge towards the project or download the demo, click (here). Please note that the demo is part of the game’s alpha build thus any bugs or glitches should not deter you from the game’s overall content.
Take a look at our own preview of the demo (here).
Free to play this weekend is Jagex’s own Ace of Spades available on Steam. Ace of Spaces is a first-person shooter that not only allows you to engage in “Minecraft graphics” combat but also allows you to create/destroy your environment in the process.
What more does Ace of Spades have to offer? While you are taking a free tour of Jagex’s demo this weekend on Steam, you can take advantage of their discounts for the title. From now until Monday, March 18th 17:00 GMT all packages will be available for half the price! This means you can pick up the game for $4.99 right (here). Take a look at the trailer below to get your jollies full of box people shooting at each other!
Today 5pb. revealed that they are offering fans of Phantom Breaker Battle Grounds a special treat. If you happen to enjoy the retro sounding background music offered in their recently released game, then you can now download a track a week from SoundCloud.
Over the next five weeks the company will be releasing one song per week for a total of five songs. Here is the kicker though, each song will only be available for one week and will be taken down when the next song is added. Each song is free to download and you can find the first song “Demon Boss” hereand the whole Soundcloud page itself here.
Today Activision chose to release a new video for their upcoming Walking Dead video game, The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct. The video can be seen below and this time around it shows off behind-the-scenes footage including some new information about the game, voice recording and talks with Norman Reedus who plays Daryl and Michael Rooker who handles Meryl.
As you can see, the game has seen a drastic visual improvement since we last saw it and a decent amount of never before seen gameplay footage has also been included. The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct is set to be released next week on March 19th in the US and March 22nd in Europe for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U.
Grinding Gear Games, developers of the popular action roleplaying game Path of Exile, recently announced that they have already hit two million registered users, despite having only launched the Open Beta in late January of this year. With overwhelming praise from both media and the player community, it’s on track to become on of 2013’s most popular PC games.
Chris Wilson, producer of Grinding Gear Games, said of the news:
“We’re really pleased with Path of Exile’s reception. It blew our expectations out of the water and continues to grow every day. The continued feedback and support from our fans has been great. We expect to add a lot of new content and features during the Open Beta period as we approach full release later this year.”
Grinding Gear is sticking to the schedule of releasing a content patch every week, including new skills and unique items, many of which were designed by the game’s Diamond supporters – people who’ve contributed $1000 or more for the chance to be part of the game’s development.
You can check out this runaway free-to-play PC game at its official website here.
Today the first piece of artwork for the next Hyperdimension Neptunia title was released. As you may already know, Hyperdimension Idol Neptunia PP is going to be an idol simulation type of game instead of a standard RPG which explains why Neptune is wearing the outfit that she is in the image to the right, which can be clicked for a larger version.
Currently little is known about the exact gameplay aspects of Hyperdimension Idol Neptunia PP, but it is known that the company developing it is Tamsoft which is known for their work with Dream C Club and that it is meant to be released on the PlayStation Vita on June 20th. As for a Western localization, it is certainly possible but still up in the air.
Dollar Dash, Kalypso Media’s newest game, has finally received an official release date for the PlayStation Network. The game will be dropping in America for the Sony faithful on Tuesday, March 19 for $9.99.
Developed by Candygun Games, Dollar Dash is a fast-paced free-for-all multiplayer game. Up to four people can take on the role of a thief to duke it out, using extravagant weapons to steal bags of money. You’ll then have to stash it in the getaway vehicle before it disappears. It offers 18 maps, loads of weapons, player customization, and a heaping helping of comedy.
You can check out our review of Dollar Dashhere. The game has also recently dropped on for XBox as well.
