Hey everyone! This is a momentous day for Important Importables. Today marks the 100th column. Who’d have thought, right?

Anyways, to celebrate today, I’m listing my 100 all time favorite games that you can only get by importing. These are titles that aren’t available in North America, and you have to import from either Japan or Europe if you want to play them.

Remember, this isn’t a comprehensive list and is based on my personal picks. It’s a general guide to some great games you should be aware of. It’s also a bit biased in terms of systems, because it was formed based on games that I’ve either played or taken an interest in over the years. So, since I’ve imported quite a few DS games and that’s one of my favorite systems, there’ll naturally be more DS games represented.

If there’s a great import game you know that isn’t on the list and should be, tell the world in the comments. Also remember, many consoles have region protection! If you have a Game Boy, Game Boy Color, DS, PSP or PS3 you should be region-free, and if you have a Dreamcast you can buy or make a special boot-disk which makes your console region-free.

Dreamcast

• Bomber HehHe: It’s a puzzle game with some action elements. The goal is to place bombs to take down buildings.
• Capcom vs SNK 2: A fighting game, of course. The first one did get a US release, but this one didn’t.
• Cosmic Smash: It’s sort of like Arkanoid/Alleyway, in that you have to destroy blocks. Except you’re playing as a human trying to smash them with a ball, and racing against the clock.
• DUX: A side scrolling shoot-em-up (the Dreamcast was known for them) that has the distinction of being one of the most recent DC releases. It came out in 2009.
• Last Hope: Pink Bullets: Again, one of the more recent DC releases and shoot-em-up. It’s an updated and adjusted version of the Neo Geo game Last Hope.
• Napple Tale: Arisia in Daydream: A platformer where a girl named Arisia is tasked with returning the lost seasons to Napple Town.
• Pop’n Music: A fun, bright and colorful music game.
• Princess Maker Collection: You get Princess Maker 2 and Princess Maker 3 in one game.
• Rainbow Cotton: A shoot-em-up (cute-em-up) that’s the first 3D entry in the Cotton series.
• Puyo Pop Fever: It was the last Sonic Team DC game, but was never released outside of Japan.
• Any Sakura Taisen game: They’re all fun blends of visual novel, strategic rpg and dating sim games.
• Shenmue II: Only Europe and Japan got the sequel to Shenmue. I recommend importing the European version, since it’ll be in English.
• Shinseiki Evangelion: Ayanami Rei Ikusei Keikaku: Think Princess Maker, only with Rei Ayanami from Evangelion as the potential princess. Its also available on the DS, PC and PS2.
• Wind and Water: Puzzle Battles: A recent Dreamcast puzzle release.

DS

• 100 Classic Book Collection: Basically an e-reader program with 100 classic books built in and an additional 10 that can be downloaded. It’s available in Europe, but not North America.
• Arabian’s Lost: An otome/RPG where the main character is an Arabian princess of a land filled with thieves, gamblers, assassins and crooks who must earn 10 million in 30 days to keep from being trapped in an arranged marriage. Its also available for the PS2.
• A.S.H.: Archaic Sealed Heat: A strategic RPG from Nintendo that was supposed to come to North America, but never did.
• Daigasso Band Brothers / Daigasso Band Bros. DX: A music game where you play songs using the DS face buttons. You can also create your own songs in both games and download songs in the sequel.
• Dokidoki Majo Shinpan!: A somewhat-perverted game which has gained fame and notoriety for the fact that players touch girls on the touch screen to determine if they’re witches.
• Freshly-Picked Tingle’s Rosy Rupeeland: An RPG starring Tingle from the Legend of Zelda series and revolves around his quest to get money and get to Rupeeland. It received a Japanese and European release, but never appeared in North America.
• Game & Watch Collection 2: A Japanese Club Nintendo promotion that includes the Game & Watch titles Parachute and Octopus.
• Game Center CX: Arino no Chousenjou 2: The sequel to Retro Game Challenge. Since the first game wasn’t a huge seller in North America, we probably will never see an English version of the sequel.
• Hirameki Action: Chibikko Wagyan no Daiki na Bouken: This is a side-scrolling action game where players guide a little dinosaur with a mighty roar through levels.
• Idolm@ster: Dearly Stars: The first Idolm@ster game where players act as the idols instead of a faceless producer. It’s also the first game in the series with a male idol (though he’s in disguise as a girl).
• Itadaki Street DS: A monopoly-esque board game from Square Enix starring characters from Super Mario and Dragon Quest. It also has Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection support so you can play online.
• Jump Ultimate Stars: A Smash Bros style fighting game with 300 characters from 41 Shonen Jump mangas. Unfortunately, it’ll never get a worldwide release due to licensing issues.
• Kanji Sonomama Rakubiki Jiten: A Japanese-English dictionary that’s perfect for people studying Japanese. A few Game&Watch games are also hidden in it.
• Katekyoo Hitman Reborn DS Flame Rumble X: Mirai Chou-Bakuhatsu!!: A 2D fighting game starring the characters from the manga/anime Katekyoo Hitman Reborn.
• Ketsui Death Label: An impressive shoot-em-up from Cave.
• Love Plus: A Japanese dating sim that’s gained a massive following in a short period of time. It takes place in real time and players are actually able to date, then marry, one of three girls they choose.
• Meccha! Taiko no Tatsujin DS: 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken: A Taiko no Tatsujin drum game that even has an adventure/story mode.
• NANA: Live Staff Daiboshuu! Shoshinsha Kangei: A life sim based on the Nana manga/anime/movie where the player can make a life in Tokyo and try to get a job with one of the two bands from the series.
• Ochaken no Daibouken: An adorable and enjoyable platformer starring the Ochaken dog and Ochaneko cat characters.
• Otometeki Koi Kakumei Love Revo DS!!: A hilarious and occasionally touching otome simulation where the main character is a fat girl trying to lose weight so she can get a boyfriend.
• Any Ouendan game: They’re like the Elite Beat Agents game, only better.
• Sigma Harmonics: A Square Enix adventure RPG where players must time travel to prevent murders and preserve the present.
• Slide Adventure: Mag Kid: An action/puzzle game where players attach a peripheral and slide the DS around to make the main character, Mag Kid, move.
• Soma Bringer: A gorgeous action RPG from Nintendo that may never get a worldwide release.
• Tales of Innocence: A good DS entry in the Tales of series that Namco Bandai never released outside of Japan.
• Tales of Hearts: Again, another good DS Tales of entry. It’s available in two versions - one with CG cutscenes and one with animated ones.
• Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side 1st Love and 2nd Season: These two DS games are otome life sims where players guide a girl through high school and hopefully help her find a boyfriend.
• Vampire Knight DS: A DS otome simulation with visual novel elements that is based on the Vampire Knight manga/anime.
• Xenosaga I + II: A DS adaptation of the first two Xenosaga games.

GameCube

• Doshin the Giant: a god/life simulation where players determine how Doshin interacts with island natives. It was available in Japan and Europe.
• Kururin Squash: An action/puzzle game where players must navigate through mazes.

GBA

• Any bit Generations game: They’re a nice variety of stylish, simple puzzle and action games.
• Densetsu no Starfy: The first game in the Legendary Starfy series.
• Densetsu no Starfy 3: The last Starfy GBA game and the first where Starpy is a major character.
• Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi: The only GBA Fire Emblem game not released in English. It’s the first GBA Fire Emblem, but the sequel to the Fire Emblem GBA game released in North America.
• Genso Suikoden: Card Stories: Suikoden II with card battles.
• Mother + Mother 2: The original Mother and Mother 2/Earthbound in one cartridge.
• Mother 3: The RPG Earthbound sequel. It’s main character, Lucas, appeared in Smash Bros Brawl.
• Rhythm Tengoku: A music game and the prequel to Rhythm Heaven.
• Super Mario Ball: A Super Mario pinball game.
• Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 2: A Tales of mash-up action-RPG. It’s mainly about fetch quests and quick missions.
• Tomato Adventure: An adorable Nintendo RPG designed for beginners. It has some elements found in the Mario & Luigi RPGs.

PC

• Any and every Touhou game ever released: They’re fantastic shoot-em-up (cute-em-up) games.

PS2

• beatmania IIDX 16 Empress: A fantastic music and rhythm game.
• Bleach: Blade Battles 2nd: A fighting game with the Bleach characters.
• Espgaluda: A Cave shooter that’s a prequel to ESP Ra.De..
• Fate/stay Night: Realta Nua: An all ages version of the popular visual novel Fate/stay night.
• GuitarFreaks & DrumMania Masterpiece Gold: The original guitar and drum music video game. This is one of the best entries in the series.
• Melty Blood: Actress Again: A fighting game starring characters from the visual novel Tsukihime.
• Namco x Capcom: An RPG with action and strategic elements that has characters Namco and Capcom games making cameos as either allies or opponents.
• Nana: A life simulation game based on the Nana anime/manga where the player moves to Tokyo and gets to interact with characters from the series.
• Tales of Destiny Director’s Cut: A PS2 remake of the PS1 classic Tales of Destiny, with additional content.
• Tales of Symphonia: A PS2 port of the GameCube game with additional content.
• Tian Xing: Sword of Destiny: A hack-and-slash game Devil May Cry fans would love.

PSP

• Audition Portable: A portable version of the PC MMO. The gameplay is similar to the Bust-a-Groove games.
• Any Bleach Heat the Soul game: Great PSP fighters starring Bleach characters.
• Breath of Fire III: A PSP port. It was released in Europe, so you can import it and play it in English.
• Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Portable: A PSP port of a PS2 game with extra characters. It’s a monopoly-esque board game with characters from Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.
• Hatsune Miku Project Diva: A Sega music game starring the Vocaloid Miku Hatsune that lets you import your own .mp3s and create your own songs and music videos.
• Idolmaster SP: Available in three versions, Perfect Sun, Missing Moon and Wandering Star, it was the first portable version of Idolm@ster.
• La Corda d’Oro: A PSP port of the PS2 and PC otome/simulation where players attempt to become a great violin player and win competitions while also making friends or possibly finding a boyfriend.
• Macross Ultimate Frontier: An action game that lets players fight pretty much every battle in the Macross anime series.
• Maplus: Portable Navi and GPS Receiver: turns your PSP into a GPS.
• Parodius Portable: A port of the side-scrolling shooter.
• Persona 3 Portable: A port of the PS2 game Persona 3 with a second storyline where the main character is a girl. It’ll probably get a US release, but for now it’s Japan-only.
• Princess Crown: A port of the VanillaWare Saturn game that’s the spiritual successor and prequel to Odin Sphere.
• Princess Maker 4 Portable: A port of a Princess Maker game that’s very similar to the cult classic Princess Maker 2.
• Suikoden I + II: The PS1 games on one UMD.
• Tales of Eternia: A port of Tales of Eternia/Tales of Destiny II. It’s available in English in Europe.
• Tales of Rebirth: A port of the PS2 Tales of game that never made it outside of Japan. It isn’t available in English.
• Tales of VS.: A fighting game featuring characters from the Tales of games.
• Twinbee Portable: A port of the classic shoot-em-up.
• Ys VII: The latest entry in the Ys action-RPG series. It may see a US release, but for now it’s Japan-only.

SNES

• Der Langrisser: A strategic RPG with multiple endings based on decisions the player makes.
• Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu: The fourth Fire Emblem game and regarded as one of the best. It introduced the romance/relationship element into the series and is multigenerational - if two characters get together in the first part, their child will appear in the second.
• Live a Live: A Square Enix RPG with seven storylines that unexpectedly all end up being connected.
• Sailor Moon: Another Story: An RPG inspired by Sailor Moon with an original storyline that has become a cult classic and is unexpectedly spectacular.
• Seiken Densetsu 3: An entry in the Square Enix Mana series that was never released outside of Japan.

Wii

• 428: Fuusa Sareta Shibuya de / 428: In a Blockaded Shibuya: A highly acclaimed visual novel. It’s been ported to the PS3 and PSP.
• Captain Rainbow: It’s an action/adventure game from Nintendo where a character named Nick, aka Captain Rainbow, goes around helping people on Mimin Island trying to either grant his wish or the wishes of islanders. It features many little known or forgotten Nintendo characters.
• Disaster: Day of Crisis: An action/adventure game released only in Australia, Europe and Japan. Players help Raymond Bryce, who works for the government, survive and save people during natural disasters and stop a terrorist group called SURGE. It will likely never receive a US release.
• Sukeban Shachou Rena: A mini-game collection featuring cats working at Cat Queen, Inc. Your goal is to start out as an entry level cat. You work your way up to the head of the company and earn respect of the CEO, Nekopunch mascot Rena.
• Taiko no Tatsujin Wii: The Taiko drum game series comes to the Wii.
• Zero:Tsukihami no Kamen / Fatal Frame IV: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse: The fourth entry in the Fatal Frame series.

Xbox 360

• Idolm@ster: The original Idolm@ster game, where players help an idol, or group of idols, become a success.
• Death Smiles: A new Cave shoot-em-up with a gothic theme.

COMING NEXT WEEK: Important Importables takes a one-week break, but will return November 13, 2009 to talk about Atlus’ Shin Megami Tensei series.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last weekImportant Importables looked at six Japanese gadgets that exist only to be adorable.

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On November 1, 2009, Hello Kitty celebrates her 35th birthday. Funny, she doesn’t look that old. It’s also her twin sister Mimmy’s birthday too, but she’s not the famous one so nobody really cares about her. She’s just part of the entourage.

In honor of Hello Kitty’s 35th, Important Importables has put together a list of 35 video and board games with Hello Kitty themes or where Hello Kitty is the star. This way, if there’s a game that looks or sounds interesting, you have enough time to get the games before the first. There are games for US and Japanese systems, old and new, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding something to suit you. In fact, there are two free computer games on our list, and some very affordable iPhone/iPod Touch titles.

Without any further ado, here’s Important Importables Hello Kitty game list!

35 Games to Play in Honor of Hello Kitty’s 35th Birthday:

1. Hello Kitty no Hanabatake (NES): NES systems weren’t region free, so don’t import unless you own a Famicom.
2. Hello Kitty World (NES): Again, NES units weren’t region free.
3. Hello Kitty Yume no Kuni no Daibouken (Playdia): If you’re one of the few who actually owns a Playdia, there’s a Hello Kitty game for kids out there to play on it.
4. Hello Kitty Asobi no Mochabako (3DO): Likewise, if you’re a fan of old systems and Japanese games, there’s a 3DO Hello Kitty game waiting for your time and attention.
5. Hello Kitty’s Cube Frenzy (PS1): It’s sort of a puzzle, action game where you have to create chains of similarly colored cubes and also have Hello Kitty walk on all cubes on the field.
6. Hello Kitty’s Cube Frenzy (GBC): Don’t have a PS1, don’t worry! The preceding puzzle game had a Game Boy Color adaptation as well. Be forewarned, the PS1 version is much better than the GBC one.
7. Hello Kitty: Lovely Fruit Park (Dreamcast): Sega released a puzzle game starring Hello Kitty for the Dreamcast in 1999. It’s a Japan exclusive, but if you have the right boot disk you can play it on your Dreamcast.
8. Hello Kitty no Magical Block (Dreamcast): It’s a puzzle game from Sega with a Hello Kitty theme released in 2000. Again, this is a Japan exclusive.
9. Hello Kitty no Waku Waku Quiz (Dreamcast): Another Japanese Hello Kitty game from Sega that was also released in 2000. This time, it’s a quiz game where you answer various trivia questions to succeed.
10. Hello Kitty no Onnaru Mail (Dreamcast): One more Japanese Dreamcast Hello Kitty game! Well, application. It’s a combination email program and web browser, starring Hello Kitty. Hurray!
11. Hello Kitty Bowling (PS1): Spend the day bowling with Hello Kitty. This was a Japan exclusive, and due to region locking isn’t playable on US PlayStations.

12. Hello Kitty Collection: Miracle Fashion Maker (GBA): Help make Hello Kitty even more stylish by designing new cloths and playing dress up.
13. Hello Kitty to Dear Daniel no Dream Adventure (GBC): Platformers are always fun. This portable one sends Hello Kitty on an adventure to reunite with her boyfriend, Dear Daniel. Once again, region-free means anyone can enjoy this action-packed adventure.
14. Hello Kitty no Happy House (GBC): If you’re looking to relax with an older system, get out your Game Boy Color and pop in this Japan exclusive.
15. Hello Kitty Boogie Woogie! (cell phone): This is an older game, so your cell phone may not be able to get and play it. It’s a dancing game where you use the keypad to make Hello Kitty dance to a few songs.
16. Hello Kitty: Dream Carnival (PC): You could always pick up an this carnival themed action game starring Hello Kitty for your PC.
17. Hello Kitty: Cutie World (PC): Or, you could always play some casual puzzle games, like Mah-Jong or matching, with Hello Kitty.
18. Hello Kitty: Happy Party Pals (GBA): Hello Kitty wants to throw parties for her Sanrio friends, but she needs your help! You have to deliver invitations, organize the event and make sure everything goes well for her.
19. Hello Kitty: Bubblegum Girlfriends (PC): Another collection of Hello Kitty themed, casual mini-games for your computer.
20. Hello Kitty: Roller Rescue (GC): You can always pull out your GameCube, or your Wii, and take off with Hello Kitty as she skates off to rescue her friends.
21. Hello Kitty Daily (DS): Need help organizing your life? Pick up Aspyr’s Hello Kitty themed day planner.
22. Hello Kitty: Big City Dreams (DS): Hello Kitty has moved to the city. You can help her make friends with other Sanrio characters and hopefully, one day, move into the penthouse of her dreams.

23. Hello Kitty no Panda Sport Stadium (DS): What’s cuter than Hello Kitty? Hello Kitty dressed as a panda! This is a Japanese-exclusive sports game that lets Hello Kitty participate in a variety of sports events. The DS is region-free, so you can enjoy this game no matter where you live.
24. Hello Kitty Parachute Paradise (iPhone/iPod Touch): For $4.99, you can play an action/puzzle game where you guide Hello Kitty on a parachute jump.
25. Hello Kitty Camera (iPhone/iPod Touch): Add a little extra cuteness to your pictures with this $2.99 program.
26. iHelloKitty Tokyo (iPhone/iPod Touch): Hello Kitty loves to dress up, and you can help her do so in this $2.99 application.
27. Hello Kitty Online (PC): Its in the closed beta phase right now, but Aeria Games is bringing the free Hello Kitty MMO to the states. You may not be able to play immediately, but you can sign up and wait for the betas!
28. Hello Kitty’s Sunny Day http://www.sanrio.com/fun_and_games/arcade (Browser-based): You could always sample Sanrio’s free, online action game starring Hello Kitty as she tries to keep it from raining.
29. Happy Party with Hello Kitty & Friends (DS): The latest Hello Kitty release just came out in Europe, so if you’re in Europe and reading this, you can celebrate Hello Kitty’s birthday with a party on your DS!
30. Hello Kitty Flip ‘n’ Match (board game): Improve your memory and beat your friends with the help of Hello Kitty.
31. Hello Kitty Chess Game (board game): Of course, Hello Kitty is queen and Dear Daniel is king.
32. Which Hello Kitty Are You? (board game): Haven’t you always wondered whether you identify more with the classic Hello Kitty or one of the newer iterations (like punk Hello Kitty)?
33. Hello Kitty Toss Across (board game): If you’re not a big fan of Hello Kitty, you may get some enjoyment from tossing beanbags at blocks with her face on them.
34. Hello Kitty Monopoly Junior (board game): With all of the various, special editions of Monopoly, you couldn’t honestly think there wasn’t a Hello Kitty one.
35. Hello Kitty Big Roll Bingo (board game): I can’t help but thing it should be K-I-T-T-Y instead of B-I-N-G-O.

Important Importables is coming up on its 100th column! If you have any suggestions as to what you’d like to see the 100th column cover, let me know in the comments!

COMING NEXT WEEK: Important Importables talks about the Haruhi Suzumiya phenomenon, and the games that go with it.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last week Important Importables reviewed the Subarashiki Kono Sekai: It’s a Wonderful World (The World Ends with You) Original Soundtrack.

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Namco Bandai’s Tales of series hasn’t been developed in North America, Europe and other regions the way it has in Japan. We’ve never seen any of the DS entries (Tales of Tempest/Tales of Innocence/Tales of Hearts), didn’t catch the Game Boy Advance Narikiri Dungeon or Summoner’s Lineage spin-offs and weren’t priviledged enough to see Tales of Rebirth. We’ve also been neglected when it came to remakes, as we didn’t get the Tales of Destiny PS2 remake, the Tales of Symphonia PS2 port or the Tales of Eternia PSP port. And to us, Tales of Destiny 2 refers to Tales of Eternia, and not the direct PS2 sequel to Tales of Destiny.

This has given Tales of fans a greater appreciation for every entry in the series that does manage to make it out of Japan. To be honest, there really haven’t been all that many. And, while we do greatly appreciate the ones we haven’t gotten, Namco Bandai’s still chosen to leave some of the best entries in the series in Japan.

Today, Gamertell’s looking back at the five best Tales of games North America has been lucky enough to get.

5. Tales of Phantasia

The 1995 Super Famicom game Tales of Phantasia is where the series began. It is a wonderful game which introduced the linear motion battle system, included voice acting, had a voiced theme song and an epic storyline that, in the end, made players wonder about the nature of good and evil and how perspective and personal feelings can effect how one feels about a situation or person. It was a revolutionary SNES game trapped in Japan.

While Tales of Phantasia is an incredible adventure and a notable entry in the Tales of series, the only official English language release is the atrocious Game Boy Advance port. While the Game Boy Advance port does have some of the revised graphics and additional content from the PlayStation remake and some original sidequests, the translation is sloppy, the graphics look don’t look good despite the supposed polish, the sound quality is awful and there’s noticeable lag during battles and other parts of the adventure. It’s commendable that Nintendo stepped up to bring this game to North America since Namco Bandai didn’t, but the quality is atrocious and makes the port difficult to play and appreciate.

4. Tales of Destiny

For people outside of Japan, Tales of Destiny was their first exposure to the budding Tales of series, despite being the second game in the series. It’s also one of the most popular games in the series in Japan as well, earning a PlayStation 2 remake and having the distinction of being the first game in the series to receive a true sequel (Tales of Destiny 2.)

It’s memorable and deserves to be considered one of the best Tales of games because it is a pioneer and memorable first. It allowed Namco to test the waters for the Tales of franchise overseas, and the first Tales of experience for many players. The nostalgia factor alone earns Tales of Destiny a spot among the best Tales of games.

3. Tales of Symphonia

If there’s one genre woefully under-represented on the GameCube, it was the RPG. Thankfully, Namco stepped up with Tales of Symphonia, a two disc RPG for the system. This prequel to Tales of Symphonia was very well received around the world, and marked the first time the Tales of series appeared in Europe. It was so beloved that Namco Bandai created a Wii sequel to it, Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World.

The storyline is very identifiable, a traditional world saving situation where a childhood friend’s life is on the line, which may have had some effect on its success. It also featured an interesting system where players could influence the story and course of the game based on choices. Choices could affect the plot, as well as the character with whom the main character Lloyd would have a relationship with. The fact that it’s one of the few GameCube RPGs and it’s success worldwide make it a natural choice for one of the best Tales of games.

2. Tales of the Abyss

Tales of the Abyss is among the most loved and hardest to find entries in the Tales of series. This PlayStation 2 game was beloved by many, and even inspired an anime and manga. It is often mentioned as one of the most interesting RPGs for the console, due to the interesting storyline and character development.

Other interesting points worth mentioning is that Tales of the Abyss is unique in that the economy of the game can change based on how you choose to play, costumes and titles are available for all of the playable characters and the US version had additional skills for characters to learn.

1. Tales of Vesperia

Tales of Versperia for the Xbox 360 is one of the most successful entries in the Tales of series to be released in recent years. It merited a limited edition release in the US, inspired an animated movie and has lead to a PS3 port with additional content. It had downloadable content, trophies for players to earn, allows characters to learn skills and abilities through equipment and skits with English voice acting.

Out of all the Tales of games, Tales of Vesperia is being hailed as the best entry in the series. It is critically acclaimed by media outlets around the world. As the first next-gen entry in the series, and one of the most popular, it definitely deserves to be considered one of the finest Tales of games.

Site [Tales of Vesperia] Site [Tales of Phantasia]

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The Harvest Moon games are something special. They’ve developed a devoted cult following, which people who have never experienced the games may not understand. Especially since, on the surface, each game seems to be pretty much the same. Natsume obviously gets it, as the series is probably it’s best known property. Games in the series have appeared on practically every system, including the Wii, GameCube, PS2, PS1, PSP, DS, GBA, Game Boy Color, Game Boy and SNES.

It’s only when you take a closer look at the Harvest Moon series that you appreciate what the games allow players to achieve. I recently had the opportunity to rent the Wii entry, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility, and fell in love with the series again because of it.

So if you’ve never played the games and are wondering why people are drawn to them, here’s a brief overview of Harvest Moon‘s many charms.

There’s more to the world than what you can see.

There’s a strong fantasy element present in the Harvest Moon world, in the form of the Harvest Goddess, Harvest Sprites, and occasionally the Harvest God, Witch Princess and Wizard Prince. These fantasy characters won’t do mystical and magical things every day, but sometimes Harvest Sprites will help you at your farm or the Harvest Goddess will bestow some kind of blessing. It’s really more about the element of fantasy being there, but the whole point of the game is to focus on hard work and real, daily life.

Hard work is rewarded.

In Harvest Moon the overall goal is to be a successful farmer. And, thankfully, there’s really no way to fail. If you want to focus on crops to build your wealth, go for it. Or if you’d prefer to raise animals, that’s fine too. There’s really no way to totally waste or lose money, especially in the Wii entry, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility, where you can take a part time job during the day at one of the island’s establishments to earn some extra cash. As long as you’re making some sort of effort, you’ll gradually earn money that you can put toward expanding your place.

There’s no need to rush.

There are no deadlines in the majority of the Harvest Moon games. You can work at your own pace to achieve your goals, and you can spend as much or as little time a day/week/month playing the game to reach those goals. Once you’ve developed a basic farming routine for essential work and your character has built up some stamina, it’s easy to complete many tasks. There is an in-game clock, but unless it’s a festival day, you need to attend to a potential spouse event or you need to get to one of the stores before it closes, you can pretty much ignore that.

Small actions can make a difference in the lives of others.

Harvest Moon also has elements of a communication game. Players can develop relationships with all of the townspeople, and sometimes even the supernatural characters like the Harvest Goddess, Harvest Sprites, Witch Princess, Wizard or Harvest God. If you become good friends with people, you could unlock special events, earn the right to enter their homes, get special items, learn new recipes or perhaps even get one of the bachelor or bachelorette characters to marry your character. Building a relationship could be somewhat trying in earlier games, where you’d have to talk and give gifts to townspeople, but in more recent games relationships can be built by talking on a regular basis or working at the same job together.

No two games are ever really the same.

There are two basic plot elements to every Harvest Moon game - the Harvest Goddess is in some kind of trouble and there’s a dilapidated farm your character is going to restore to prosperity. Plus there’s the whole animal/crop raising and townspeople to make friends with. Aside from the fundamentals, Harvest Moon is sort of a sandbox game. Since there are no requirements that must be met to have a successful farm, you can achieve it any way you want. So you could mine, ranch, harvest, fish or work part time jobs until you get enough money to expand your little empire. Plus, there can be different villagers, crops or farm animals in each entry. Occasionally the tasks to assist the Harvest Goddess do require players to perform certain tasks, but again, assisting her isn’t mandatory. Each time you play, you can use different strategies to succeed.

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I first caught a glimpse of Bayonetta at the 2008 Tokyo Game Show so when I found out that Sega would be debuting a playable demo of this game, I made sure I held my place in line. The demo offered two different stages: A tutorial (easy mode) and actual levels (normal mode).

Bayonetta is a third-person action adventure game set in a fully 3D environment with game play that closely resembles Capcom’s Devil May Cry. It includes an intact combo system as well as a scoring meter that tallies everything at the end of the level and awards the player with different trophies representative of skill level displayed. Bayonetta was being demoed on the Xbox 360 and is scheduled for a multi-platform release in late 2009 (Xbox 360, Playstation 3). From the early looks of this game and the demo, it looks like the latter part of 2009 is heating up to be be one extremely sexy adrenaline rush.

The main protagonist is a tantalizing young woman named Bayonetta. Not only is she a witch but she has a fashion sense to literally die for. Her skintight bodysuit isn’t just black because that’s her favorite color. It’s black because it consists completely of her own ebony hair. She also sports some pretty death-defying stiletto boots whose heels are the actual barrels of handguns. These avant garde fashion stylings aren’t just for show though.

Throughout the game, Bayonetta will always retain the use of her default weapons: the pair of handguns, a katana, and her magical attacks she performs with the assistance of her Rapunzel-esque hair. As players progress through the game mincing enemies left and right, they will occasionally drop weapons which Bayonetta is able to pick up and use herself.

There are two sets of enemy weapons available to her and can be instantly switched between during game play. Apparently, the first set are primary secondary weapons featuring long arms such as spears and axes while the other are secondary weapons such as the trumpet which is used liked a bazooka. The demo only featured only a limited number of enemy weapons for usage but each of these came with a limited move set and a signature special attack. An example of a special attack utilizing an enemy weapon is when the spear is actively in use and the correct command is properly input, Bayonetta will perform an attack that will remind most people of a stripper lithely dancing around a stripper pole. However, enemy weapons are temporary and once its gauge depletes, it will disappear from her inventory. Performing a special attack with any enemy weapon exacerbates this gauge and halves its life expectancy.

Quite contrary to these types of games, players will be able to input a string of button combinations to perform long-winded combos on enemies. Bayonetta is also able to perform double-jumps and when done, lavishly colored butterfly wings sprout from her back that enable her reach higher areas as well as perform mid-air combos. During a certain time called ‘with-mode’, Bayonetta will be able to walk on walls and ceilings, making combat even more hectic and diversified. There’s also a mode called ‘witch time’ which is triggered during combat when the player is able to successfully dodge an enemy attack just before it hits her. During ‘witch time’ the screen changes colors and all actions except for Bayonetta’s enter into slow motion which allow the player to execute an additional string of combos.

In addition to the health gauge visible at all times in the upper left-hand corner, beneath it is a magical bar that increases the more you strike an enemy entity. Once this gauge becomes full, Bayonetta is able to enlist the help of her hair to perform quick summons known as ‘wicked weave attacks’ at the end of successful combos that include a stiletto-ed foot coming from the sky to stomp on the afflicted enemy. Another interesting aspect of combat is called the ‘torture attack’. This is a finishing attack that comes in all sorts and sizes and can only be done when the magical bar is maxed. An example of a torture move is when an enemy becomes encased in an iron maiden and is brutally and mercilessly ripped to shreds by our lovely little vixen.

Apparently, torture moves aren’t that easily performed and I was told that for demo purposes only, onscreen hints signaled you when to input the right combination of buttons in order to achieve the affect. Players are able to correctly determine when to push the dodge button because there will be indicators that appear over enemies that begin to flash red dependent upon the ensuing attack.

There was one die-hard boss that made an a couple of appearances at several points in this game. It was a massive statue-esque being that sported a look to parallel the fashion sense of a Greek statue complete with unruly yet silken beard, toga, and some sort of heavenly halo. It was easy enough to beat and dodge thanks to the onscreen warnings and once it was weakened, there was an indicator that told the player to input a button set which resulted in a massive summon called a ‘climax attack’. Bayonetta’s hair flows from her body (leaving her quite naked) and into a portal from which a grand horned dragon monster head comes forth to take the boss into its jaws and fling it back and forth like a puppy’s chew toy.

During the final battle with this boss, Bayonetta’s summoned beast finally engulfed the creature whole leaving not a speck in site. During these calamitous summon attacks, players are able to rack up more hits by rapidly pressing an indicated button to achieve the most amount of damage points.

Bayonetta will also be able to invoke something called “Beast Within” and this is where she “calls upon primal forces, transforming into various beasts (Panthers, etc.) according to the situation.” Unfortunately, this wasn’t present in the demo.

Site [Bayonetta] Photo Gallery [Gamertell]

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Whenever people talk about the greatest games of all time, you hear the usual ol’ Halos, Final Fantasys and possibly Metal Gear Solids come up. Yes, these are great games but there are plenty of games out there that are truly great but get little or no recognition. In fact you probably haven’t even heard of them.

Well I am here to fix that. I have compiled a list of eight great games (in no particular order) that have been neglected and forgotten. These are some personal favorites along with some you should know about.

1. Okage Shadow King (PS2)

This is definitely a classic. It’s a cute little RPG where you play as a young boy who’s shadow becomes possessed by a evil king out to rule the world. He pops up every time someone is around (kinda reminded me of Bluedragon, but more animated) and tries to intimidate them. Unfortunately for the king, all his powers where taken by the other self proclaimed “kings” of the world, so it’s your job to rid the world of all those kings and restore power to your new shadow. Despite how it sounds, it’s a real lighthearted, fun quirky game. Your shadow may be evil but he is also quite hilarious, and instead of people running in fear, they are cracking wise at him. What makes this a good game is simply the classic game play and storyline. It’s not all fighting and level grinding, which i hate in RPG’s and there are objectives in each town/area you need to accomplish.
Plus you can wander around where ever you want, and find items. The dialogue is great and it’s just fun and easy paced, plus the fighting system is standard turn-based and easy to understand.

2. Chibi-Robo (Gamecube)

I loved this game! It’s very unique and fun. You play as a little house cleaning robot who is hired by a rather dysfunctional family (whose daughter dresses and talks like a frog). You basically clean up the house, find items, and also save the family in the process. You also run around carrying your own power cord so you can plug yourself in to recharge, which is very cute.You meet some quirky/awesome characters in the game, and though you never talk, they sure have a lot to say to you. What I like about this game is it’s uniqueness. You would think cleaning up spills and picking up trash would be boring, but with all the mini games and interactions involved, it makes it worth it.  It starts out kinda slow because your battery life is not very long, so you have to charge constantly (or have your battery die and the day ends) but eventually you can buy better batteries, and junk, and end up playing almost a whole game day on one battery. You play night and day alternatively, for about 10-30 minutes depending on what your settings are. You can do different things during nights and days too. (Editor’s Note: The WalMart-exclusive Chibi-Robo: Park Patrol for DS is also surprisingly fun).

3. ChoroQ (PS2)

This game is also rather unique. You play as a race car who wants to make it big in the world racing and the part that makes this game so unique, it’s actually an RPG. Yes, you, as a car, get to talk to other cars, visit towns and people and, of course upgrade your car. You can also play mini games and do tasks for people. You also race in the game, of course, and the better you upgrade your car, the better you race. Also, if you get on the other cars’ good sides, they might let you join their teams. This game is definitely a must for all racing and RPG fans. Oh, and some of the dialogue in the game is hilarious too, possibly unintentional but who knows.

4. Juggernaut (PS1)

Oh man, this has got to be the strangest, creepiest, most bizarre game I have ever played. It’s an adventure game where you play as a man whose girlfriend is possessed by a demon (oddly from a jar she bought at a antique shop). You have to go in her body and get the demon out. You start off in a mansion where you find different items and use them to solve bizarre puzzles, oh and did I mention that you are only a spirit and you have to inject yourself into an adult or child body via a strange machine to move around? Throughout the mansion you uncover sort of side adventures that are all no way related. In each adventure you become someone else and you have a certain job to complete, such as one (my favorite) where you are in the internet and you have to find out who is implanting this virus and killing people over the internet. Or another one where you are arrived on this island with a tribe of natives and find out a horrible monster is killing people. Or one where a laboratory is torturing criminals in order to get endorphins from them. All these side adventures come down to the demon that possessed your girlfriend. I promise you, these adventures are a combination of strange, scary, gory and downright stupid. Don’t play this game at night and alone! Although, it’s terrible dialogue and characterization will certainly give you a good laugh. BTW: If anyone else has every played this please let me know. It’s a bit rare and hard to find but well worth it.

5. Bards Tale (PS2 and Xbox)

This is another one of those games that just got ignored despite it’s awesomeness. It’s another RPG (it is my favorite genre, after all) where you play as a Bard who is, of course, on a mission to save a hot princess who was kidnapped. You use magic to conjure people to help you on the quest or help you get through the dungeons. So why is this game any different than other RPG’s? First of all, there is a narrator throughout the game, who absolutely hates the Bard and ridicules him throughout, which adds for some hilarious banter. Also, the Bard is completely arrogant and only cares about himself, so it’s fun to interact with others. Also, the Bard is voiced by Cary Elwes (of Princess Bride and Saw fame). During certain points in the game you are giving the choice to give a polite or snarky answer. Each choice effects the outcome in either a major or minor way. Don’t always try to play the good guy though, sometimes you need to be a bit snarky to get through the game. The other thing I liked about it is that it makes fun of all the RPG clichés, like how you can just barge into people’s houses without them caring, and how you kill a rat and items pop out? Strange! This game is roll-on-the-ground funny and not too difficult, either. You may want to buy the strategy guide to make sure you pick the right choice, or live dangerously! 

6. Princess Tomato and the Salad Kingdom (NES)

I just had to add this wonderful little game. It’s an adorable little adventure that happens to have a veggie/fruit theme. You play as Sir Cucumber who was sent by the king to rescue his daughter from the evil Minister Pumpkin. It’s one of those games where you click “look”, “search”, “take,” etc. to accomplish the goals and find items. You also have a guide Percy the Persimmon who you can ask for help and force to do your bidding and such. Everything in the game is related to vegetables or fruit, from the buildings, to the people, to the scenery. You also fight bad guys by playing a game of paper-scissor-rock with them. It’s got a cute storyline and, despite the fact it’s all a bit silly, it’s very fun and a bit challenging. Plus it’s fun for the whole family.

7. Atelier Iris Eternal Mana(PS2)

Another RPG that got no recognition when it came out, I don’t even remember it being advertised. It’s a typical Japanese RPG where evil forces are trying to take over you need to discover and use magic and recruit partners to get through the game, but a bit unique at that. As you play you unlock different Mana that take the shape of creatures and allow you get special powers that help you either during battle or just walking around. For instance, a Mana that turns into a platform so you can reach a higher location (for secret items), or a Mana that gets rid of all the enemies for one screen, which is really nice if you are trying to just pass though or about to die. There are a bunch more, too. One of the most fun things is doing alchemy. You can create new items for yourself, or you can create items for the people around town (which unlocks things for you). I always like an RPG that offers something different, aside from just level grinding and talking to people. The voice acting isn’t horrible either and you have the option to shut it off, which is always a plus. The animation reminded me of the old-school RPGs I use to love. 

8. Gitaro Man (PS2)

I figure we needed a break from RPG’s and adventures. This little classic seemed to come and go just as suddenly. What I mean by that is I heard about this game a while ago but never saw it in stores, then I see it all over the shelves and now it’s nowhere again. Either way it is a classic. I suppose the only way to quickly describe it is as a music puzzler. You are a young boy who dreams of being a famous guitar player and he has the alter ego of a superhero named Gitaro Man who saves the world with his guitar. You use your guitar to fight bad guys by basically tracing different threads with your controller. It is very addictive and can be downright hard at times. A line will appear on the enemies side and you need to repeat the line as best you can, it can be hard at times, but definitely fun. The music is very fun too. It’s a bit strange, but definitely should be checked out.

So those are my games. If you think I missed any (which I’m sure I have) then please post them here and I will try to check them out. I’m always looking for new awesome games I never heard of.

Read [Thunderbolt Games] Also Read [Gearfuse]

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When most people think of Japanese popular culture, the mascots come to mind. Characters like Hello Kitty, Godzilla and Pikachu who have become superstars due to games, toys, movies, stationary products and manga. Their popularity has become so great that they’ve become worldwide icons.

While Hello Kitty tends to steal the limelight most of the time, there is another cat mascot in Japan whose popularity rivals hers. I’m speaking, of course, about Doraemon. Doraemon hasn’t become the international star that Hello Kitty has, but in his own country he’s a household name.

So today in Important Importables we’ll go over everything you need to know about the blue robot cat Doraemon.

Who’s Doraemon?

As I mentioned a moment ago, Doraemon is a blue, earless robot cat from the 22nd century. Sadly, he’s not exactly a top-of-the-line robot cat. He has the fourth dimension pocket on his stomach, allowing him to pull out tons of gadgets, and possesses super running, jumping and propeller flying abilities, but he’s also blue instead of yellow, had a robot mouse gnaw off his ears and had many of his robotic features fail. He also has a younger sister, Dorami, who’s much more advanced and normal than him (and also has her own series).

Sewashi, a man living in the 22nd century who was poor, sent Doraemon into the past to aid his great-great-grandfather Nobita Nobi when he was a child. Sewashi figured that if Doraemon could help Nobita overcome the obstacles in his life, Nobita would end up a success instead of a failure, the future would change and Sewashi would then be a success as well.

Why’s Doraemon famous?

Doraemon began, like many popular series, as a children’s comic by Fujiko F Fujio. It first appeared in 1969 in six different magazines geared towards children. The series became so popular that in 1977 CoroCoro Comic magazine launched, running only the Doraemon comics.

There ended up being numerous animes created based on Doraemon’s adventures, all called Doraemon. There were also quite a few anime specials, as well as over 25 movies released. One of the Doraemon movies even inspired a musical play. Spin-off manga series have also appeared to capitalize on Doraemon‘s success, among them is Dorami’s series, The Doraemons and Dorabase.

What kind of video games has Doraemon inspired?

Action:

• Doraemon (Super Cassette Vision)
• Doraemon (NES)
• Doraemon (Game Boy)
• Doraemon 2 (Game Boy)
• Doraemon no Game Boy de Asobouyo DX10 (Game Boy)
• Doraemon (SNES)
• Doraemon (Genesis)
• Doraemon: Nora no Suke no Yabou (Game Gear)
• Doraemon Memories: Nobi Dai no Omoi Izaru Daiboken (Game Boy Color)
• Doraemon Nobita no Dorabian Nights (Turbo CD)
• Doraemon Nobita no Dorabian Nights (TurboGrafx-16)
• Doraemon: Meikyu Daisakusen aka Cratermaze (TurboGrafx-16)
• Doraemon (N64)
• Doraemon Pocket (WonderSwan Color)
• Doraemon: Nobi Futo to Fukkatsu no Hoshi (Sega Saturn)
• Doraemon Minna de Asobo! Minidorando (GC)
• Doraemon: Nobitaito Fukkatsu no Hoshi (PlayStation)
• Doraemon: Nobita to Midori no Kyojinden DS (DS)

Adventure:

• Doraemon Yuujou Densetsu (3DO)
• Boku, Doraemon (Dreamcast)

Baseball:

• Dorabase: Doraemon Chou Yakyuu Gaiden (DS)

Card:

• Doraemon: Nobita no Kyouryuu 2006 DS (DS)
• Doraemon: Nobita no Shin Makai Daibouken DS (DS)

Educational:

• Doraemon no Study Boy: Kuku Game (GBC)
• Doraemon no Study Boy: Gakushuu Kanji Game (GBC)
• Doraemon no Study Boy: Kanji Yomikaki Master (GBC)

Party:

• Doraemon no Quiz Boy (GBC)
• Doraemon no Quiz Boy 2 (GBC)
• Doraemon Dokodemo Walker (GBA)
• Doraemon Wii: Himitsu Douguou Ketteisen (Wii)

Racing:

• Doraemon Kart (Game Boy)
• Doraemon Kart 2 (GBC)

RPG:

• Doraemon: Giga Zombie no Gyakushuu (NES)
• Doraemon Kimi to Pet no Monogatari (GBC)
• Doraemon (GBA)

COMING NEXT WEEK: Important Importables looks at the Sakura Taisen/Sakura Wars series.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last week Important Importables reviewed HimeHibi: Princess Days Portable.

Site [Doraemon] Site [Play-Asia] Site [YesAsia] Site [NCSX] Site [Himeya Shop] Site [Strapya World]

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Didn’t have a good Valentine’s Day? Don’t worry.  You’re not alone. After all, I’m sure quite a few of us spent the day doing commonplace, unromantic things. It happens.

No Valentine means no love-gone-wrong. That’s right - it isn’t all roses, hearts and puppies. Love hurts sometimes, and relationships can go sour. To help those who didn’t have someone special this year, Gamertell’s put together a list of nine failed video game couples. It’s better being single than having an ex like this. We’re going through the failed relationships starting with somewhat unpleasant aftershocks, leading up to heinous reactions.

Editor’s Note: Please be advised that a Spoiler Warning is in effect for all games/couples in the following list.

9. Animal Crossing Tom Nook and Sable Able

Okay, so we aren’t quite sure just how close the relationship between Sable and Nook was. Nook’s too consumed with bells and business to discuss past affairs. As for Sable, she only opens up once she’s developed a close friendship with a character. What we do know is that long ago, when they were both young, they were very close friends. Then, when Sable had to take up the role as Mable’s guardian and Nook left for the city to try and find his fortune, the two grew apart. After Nook returned to town, it was as if there had been nothing between the two.

Overall, this is a fairly uneventful and commonplace break-up. After a drastic change, the previous relationship is left in the past. The loss of a close confidant is always sad, especially when he or she is within walking distance. It seems like Nook was unphased by the event, but Sable clearly is still harboring some feelings of regret.

8. Final Fantasy VIII‘s Rinoa Heartilly and Seifer Almasy

It isn’t that Rinoa and Seifer’s breakup went all that badly. Actually, we really don’t know much about their relationship. The two dated sometime before the events in FFVIII. There aren’t any scenes between the two characters that suggest it was a scandalous or dramatic break up.

However, Seifer is definitely one of those ex-boyfriends you’d be ashamed to admit you know. After all, he joins up as the Sorceress Ultimecia’s, knight. Part of his behavior comes from being brainwashed by her, but still. It doesn’t change the fact that he’s basically an accomplice to a figure who wants to compress all eras of time into one. His best friends even abandon him for being such a loser.

7. Xenosaga‘s Shion Uzuki and Kevin Winnicot/Red Testament

There’s nothing like finding out your former fiance is sort-of still alive and working with the enemy. That’s what happened to Shion though, when she discovered her former fiance is Wilhelm’s Red Testament. As the Red Testament and Roth Mantel, Kevin assists Wilhelm as his right hand-man. Not to mention that Shion ends up learning her former love created T-elos so it can absorb and destroy KOS-MOS, which Shion has put so much work into creating.

Then, when Shion does find out who Red Testament really is, she’s willing to completely change her course of action for him. Red Testament then uses her when she’s susceptible like this, and tries to convince her to reject everyone she’d held dear and be on his side.

Red Testament/Kevin isn’t all bad though. After all, he does manage to atone for his actions.

6. Septerra Core: Legacy of the Creator‘s Selina and Doskias

You have to feel bad for Selina. She started out as basically an orphan and beggar on Shell 1. She had to struggle to survive. Then, she met Doskias. he saved her, and gave her the opportunity to become a Chosen Swordswoman and follow him. She fell in love with a man who had decided that he, as a descendant of Marduk, would be the perfect one to get the Legacy of the Creator and its godlike powers.

So what does he do, after she helps him in his nefarious scheme? Ditches her. She’s not good enough for him, even though he was the one who picked her up in the first place.

Of course this then makes Selina the requisite bad guy turned good character for Maya’s party of heroes. She joins them to take down the megalomaniac with a god complex that was her ex-boyfriend.

5. Odin Sphere‘s Gwendolyn and Inferno King Onyx

You have to feel bad for Gwendolyn. She’s pretty much been a pawn her whole life, and when she finally ends up with a good guy like Oswald, someone like the Inferno King Onyx comes along to ruin it. I suppose you could also argue that it’s Odin’s fault, and Onyx is justified in his behavior.

See, Odin promised his daughter Gwendolyn to Onyx. But, Odin offers Gwendolyn to Oswald in exchange for Oswald defeating the dragon Wagner. To get Onyx to drop the matter and not cause trouble, because Oswald truly loved Gwendolyn, he offered to fight to the death when Onyx summoned him.

So when baby Leventhan showed up, Oswald was summoned. When Gwendolyn heard, she hurried there, only to be taunted by Onyx about how Oswald was probably already dead. She left to go save her husband. Sending the husband of your former betrothed to his death is totally not cool.

4. The Bouncer‘s Volt Kreuger and Echidna

Volt and Echidna used to be close. They worked together in Mikado Corporation and were lovers. Well, at least Volt supposedly cared about her. Echidna, on the other hand, didn’t have such a close attachment - she couldn’t get over the fact that Volt was just better than her. So, when Dauragon Mikado took over Mikado Corp, she decided it was time for Volt to go. She shot him in the head, blamed him for Master Mikado’s death and left him to die.

That didn’t get rid of Volt so easily. He covered up the bullet scars with piercings, and then decided to find a way to get back into Mikado Corp to settle the score with Dauragon for Master Mikado, and deal with Echidna along the way.

3. Grand Theft Auto III‘s Claude and Catalina

Catalina’s motto could be taken directly from The Godfather, “It’s not personal, it’s business.” She takes off with Claude in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The two begin a string of bank robberies and do pretty well. Until the beginning of Grand Theft Auto III, when Catalina shoots him during one of the robberies. You know it’s never good when the person you love tries to kill you.

Catalina’s reign of terror doesn’t end there. She reappears to mess up Claude’s life even more throughout GTA 3. For example, she kidnaps Maria. She also proves that shooting her exes is typical. After all, she kills Miguel, her lover after Claude, when she’s done with him. I guess that’s one way to keep guys from posting about you on Don’t Date This Girl.

2. Silent Hill 2‘s James Sunderland and Maria

If you kill your wife, and suddenly you meet an exact duplicate of her, run. That’s the one thing we’ve all learned from Silent Hill 2. James Sunderland, the protagonist, arrives in the town of Silent Hill after receiving a letter from his dead wife, that he killed, asking her to meet him there. Instead of meeting Mary, he meets Maria, a strange woman who appears identical to his dead wife. A strange relationship begins between the two, which could almost be considered romantic.

Maria is a supernatural character, dying and resurrecting multiple times. Each time, she’s murdered at the hands of Pyramid Head. James continually fails to save her. Yet when she returns, she remembers nothing.

She’s definitely James’ worst nightmare - at least in three of the six endings. She turns into the final boss in each, and goes after James after he rejects her. James better look elsewhere for his second wife.

1. Final Fantasy X‘s Seymour Guado and Yuna

What’s worse than a lover who wants to destroy his former lover’s new love or his former lover. One who wants to destroy the world, even after he’s already been killed. That’s Seymour for you though. Tenatious.

Seymour decided that the only way to really save people from Sin was to become Sin and destroy everyone. Because if everyone’d be dead, they’d be happy, right?

Part of Seymour’s “plan” involved uniting Spira by marrying Yuna. So he tried to lure her into marriage with Farplane memories. Didn’t work, as his father’s spirit helped alert Yuna and her guardians to the truth. They defeated Seymour, but his spirit still hung around as an unsent.

So Yuna and co. decided to have her “agree” to marry him, to try and get close and send his spirit to the afterlife. Good plan. Except, Seymour captured Yuna’s friends and threatened to kill them unless she married him. Yuna and co. escaped, of course.

He then goes on to cause more trouble, fights the party as Seymour Natus, Flux and Omnis, and almost succeeds in becoming Sin. He actually gets absorbed in, but the party manages to defeat him. How’s that for an atrocious ex?

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

I know that most of gaming culture centers around clever gadgets and funny memes and such, but sometimes you come across a story that’s genuinely touching, like this destructoid post. In it, D-toider eternalplayer2345 shares his memories playing games for his sick little brother (who enjoyed watching him play all sorts of titles). While his brother has since passed on, the specific memories from games - especially Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, live on for him.

From the piece:

“One example of those games that clicked was none other than the legendary Zelda: Ocarina of Time. OoT was an absolute treat. It was one of those games I started off playing while he would be asleep because at first he hated watching me play it. At some point, he could not get enough of it! There I was in 2005; finally experiencing what was hailed as one of the best games of all time.”

It’s a great read, and not too sappy or long for those who may be wary. It’s also a wonderful example of games being so much more than “just” a hobby.

Read [destructoid]

Full Story » | Written by Danielle Riendeau for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Nielsen’s latest top ten list for 2008 has revealed something that most Sony fans already know - the PlayStation 2 is still a hot commodity. It is so hot, in fact, that Nielsen is saying it was the most played console in 2008. I guess Sony really knew what it was doing when it made the PS2.

Nielsen Wire reported all the official figures from Nielson concerning the top seven consoles. The PS2 game in first in terms of use, followed by the Xbox 360, Wii, Xbox, Playstation 3 and GameCube. There was also an ambiguous “others” given for seventh place, likely refering to all older consoles that alone didn’t have enough usage minutes to achieve a ranking.

I bet Sony is disappointed to see the PS3 come in fifth place. The original Xbox even beat the PlayStation 3. At least the PS3 did better than the GameCube - that way Sony can save some face. 

I totally get it though. I’ve had a PS2 for years. (Since Final Fantasy X, to be exact.) If I’m playing a video game, chances are I’m using either the PS2 or the DS. Its a wonderfully versatile console with a fantastic game library. I even use it as a DVD player on a regular basis. I’ve never used it to play CDs, but hey - at least I’m using two of the three available functions. It’s just a shame that the PSP and PS3 don’t receive the same amount of love.

Read [Nielsen Wire] Also Read [eFlux Media] Also Read [Ars Technica] Site [Nielsen Media Research]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Nintendo promised us that the North America chapter of Club Nintendo would be available by the end of the 2008 year and sure enough, only 15 days until 2009, Club Nintendo is now officially live.

If you have already signed up for a “My Nintendo” account, you can use that login information and anything you already registered on that account will be transferred over to you Club Nintendo account, meaning you will have coins to spend from the get-go.

If you don’t already have a My Nintendo account, all you need to do is fill out your name, age, and email address (also choosing a username and password) and you’re all set to start registering those Nintendo products for coins. An “Intend to Buy” survey allows you to earn an additional 10 coins when you register your purchased (now previously intended-to-buy) game.

Coin values for Nintendo games (specific point values for systems weren’t detailed) are as follows:

• Wii games = 50 Coins
• Nintendo DS games = 30 Coins
• Wii Shop Channel games/Wii Channels = 10 Coins

As for spending your coinage, Nintendo already has a few items available for you to “purchase” although none are as sharp as that Super Famicom Wii controller Nintendo gave to the Japanese clubbers (Japanese get all the luck). There is at least one decent item on the list - the official North American version of the DS Game & Watch Collection. The Game & Watch Collection contains three Game & Watch Gallery games for 800 coins.

A poster on NeoGaf took this screen shot of all the prizes earlier today, yes they are the official prizes:

Way to finally include North America, Nintendo!

Official Site [Club Nintendo]  Read [Joystiq] Also Read [Gamertell]

Full Story » | Written by Kris Rosado for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Let’s face it, gaming is expensive. With the economy currently in its poor state, gamers have quite a bit to worry about.

There are, however, are some ways to appease the habit and get more bang for your buck. You can take everything that you’ll read to heart as advice from a fellow poor gamer along with some of the advice given to us by MSNBC. These tips should help ease some of your monetary burdens when it comes to gaming.

Old Does Not Equal Bad

People tend to be more obsessed with the newer,  potentially better product and either don’t know about or forgot about the beauty of older games. While we have Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, some forget that we also had Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. While Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is out now, we occasionally forget Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2 and Metal Gear Solid.

There’s nothing wrong with getting (or digging out) one of the older consoles and getting some of the better games from those systems. If you go to places like Disc Replay you could get older consoles for anywhere between $50-90, depending on what console you’re buying. Games, unless they are rare yet popular, range anywhere from $3-20. Stores like Half Price Books also sell used games at half or less than half of the retail price.

Time Management

A lot of people also forget about replayability. Since some games tend to be the same thing, only offering a different difficulty level doesn’t offer much in the way of replayability. If you want something that will really last you a while, especially if you happen to get one of the newer consoles, try to find something that is fairly open-ended in the way that you can play it. This means that you might end up going back to some older games (see the above point).

The Elder Scrolls (Oblivion for the newer consoles) series, Fallout (Fallout 3) series, the S.T.A.L.K.E.R games and Far Cry 2 allow for players to play through the game in many different ways. If you play through multiple times while following the different paths and story lines, there is only a small chance that you’ll play the game the same way more than two or three times. Even if you spend a lot of money on a game, length and replayability is always important.

Independent Pay Dirt

When you get around to it, independent games can be great games. Usually, due to simplicity, they’re easy to get into and can be quite engaging. They’re usually inexpensive, normally ranging from about $10 to $20, due to the fact that it’s a small staff with a small budget. It really doesn’t take that long to remake the money spent in development, so the low price really isn’t that bad. Here are the top 5 of independent games as compiled by MSNBC.

Group Help

Multiplayer is a great thing with a lot of the different games right now. No matter what you’re doing, the higher the multiplayer possibility the more fun it will be. The biggest reason why we game is because it’s fun and the more people there are the more fun it can be. Get a game that has the possibility of two or more people joining in. Multiplayer increases the replayability quite a bit, especially in terms of first-person shooter, action/adventure, real-time strategy, music and sports games.

There’s Still More (or Less)

A lot of games have downloadable content that will be available almost monthly or even mods of other games. Some things might end up costing some money (usually $1 to $10) but quite a few mods (if you already have the game it’s based on) are completely free. There is still much play in many games even after beating them.

In terms of space economy, if you’ve got an Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PSP or PC you can work with direct download services like Steam (for PC), Xbox Live, Playstation Network Store or the Wii Virtual Console. They usually have a good selection and, in the case of Steam, usually have good sales or packages that would save some money. These games only take up disc (or removable media) storage space instead of plastic boxes on a shelf.

If you want to get into MMOs, it can be a bit daunting to find an affordable one. Aeria Games has a host of good and beautiful MMOs that are free. Guild Wars is still evolving as a MMO and is also free2play so it works out. All you need to do is fork out the money for the initial buy, which is $20-40 depending on which standalone version you’re trying to get.

Read [MSNBC] Read [Gamertell Gift Guide]

Full Story » | Written by Jonathan Gronli for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

In both civilian and military communities worldwide, the world of video gaming is expanding more and more, especially with popular massive multiplayer online titles. MMO games such as World of Warcraft, War Hammer and Call of Duty 4 have become a way of life and provide people with ways to meet other people who share their love of interaction through gaming.

One of the major fascinations of MMO games are the teams and communities players form while online, and a kinship a soldier often has to leave behind when he deploys. Ed Hale, a former member of 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, now a corporate executive officer for CompeteSoft, Inc., offers free online gaming servers to Soldiers across the globe.

Hale, who graduated from West Point in 1971, said the idea for the community gaming concept came to him after finishing his five-year enlistment.
“The people I worked with at Fort Bragg forged some of the most vibrant memories I carry with me, even today,” Hale said.

But after leaving the service as a ranger and infantryman, he said trying to find a career in an unstable computer industry made it hard to maintain a career, with one job layoff after another.

“(So) five years and 110 jumps later, I found myself struggling over 25 years, working for numerous firms with either hardware, software or service/support responsibilities related in some way to computers or computer peripherals,” he said.

During one of his many ‘dot com’ job searches, Hale finally found a job in Texas where he met his current business partner, Randy Van Gelder. The two would eventually start an online business for the growing competitive XBox community called TeamCompete. When they realized how many of those gamers were deploying service members, they wanted to create a community for military gamers. So they created CompeteSoft.

“Our mission is to provide a free online space where gamers in the military can play solo or in teams, set up matches, record scores and establish bragging rights, with their fellow service members, friends and families for free,” he said. “We don’t sell anything. This is something we do because our military men and women deserve anything we can provide that’s safe, fun, free and connects them to family and friends.”

Hale admitted that he never knew any gamers over the age of 50 until they began registering on the site.

“You would be surprised at the number of gamers we have met who are (50 years old) and older who play online with their kids, on teams and in online leagues,” Hale said, and added that learning about the different kinds of online gamers was just as exciting. “We have a small handful of gamers over 50 who are actually military veterans.”

Veterans like Anthony Rivera, a Navy veteran who has been using CompeteSoft since 2004, said he enjoys being able to compete in multiple video game competitions.

“I also use the software to compete and to build a team of members with like minds,” Rivera said. “Another advantage of using the software is the abilities it has to brand a team a member etc. The experience that members will get out of the program is the social network potential it has. Compared to other software on the market I believe that there is nothing like it.”

Hale said CompeteSoft was created to become a place where active duty, retired and former military service members of all branches, veterans, Department of Defense civilians and their families play online games together. Hale said anyone could participate and play along side their military counterparts on the server since the site is free.

Staff Sgt. Craig Rader, noncommissioned officer in charge, Armed Forces Network Korea - Television News, said he uses CompeteSoft because he prefers to compete and interact with ‘real’ people instead of computer-generated opponents.

“I also enjoy talking and meeting people from around the world with similar game interests as mine,” Rader said. “With global servers, I can play against gamers worldwide, so being geographically remote becomes less of an obstacle while online.”

Rader said he’s still fairly new to CompeteSoft but has enjoyed the convenient and unique features the site provides.

“(Ever since) I discovered CompeteSoft and StripesGamer through an advertisement in the Pacific edition of Stars and Stripes newspaper, the site has allowed me to reach out to other players and play in organized online matches much more conveniently than other commercial sites,” Rader explained. “I recommend this site because it offers a chance for service members to connect with each other through gaming. As far as I’ve seen, it’s the only site that caters specifically to a military audience and offers services specifically suited to the military.”

Hale predicts CompeteSoft will grow. “Military gamers may not all have the newest consoles and many prefer playing the PC games or handheld games they have been playing for the past few years. Tools and games that best satisfy the player’s lifestyle and interests will be sought out and provided as the site grows and matures,” he said.

Site [CompeteSoft] Site [TeamCompete]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Well, the most anticipated video game related Black Friday ad may have just emerged today. Both Kotaku and BlackFriday.info are reporting that GameStop’s ad circular for Black Friday 2008 has been leaked onto the internet. Aside from the rather obvious “Buy 2 Get 1 Free” used game deal that GameStops are known for, there are also a few extra notable sales. Plus, GameStops will give an extra $40 credit to people who trade in PS3s, Wiis or Xbox 360s. Extra credit will also be given if you trade in games - 3 games get 10% extra credit, 4 gets 20% extra and 5 gets 30% extra.

You have to be careful when checking the ad though. While some deals are really good, there are quite a few advertisements for games that aren’t discounted. So be sure to comparison shop before committing to buying a game from GameStop’s Black Friday ad. The ad also highlights that GameStops will have 2,500 possible video game items for under $20 and, if you don’t mind picking up a preowned game as a gift, they likely will. However, a lot of these 2,500 items under $20 are that price everyday, so you don’t have to worry about the sales.

Also, GameStop will be donating to charity this holiday season. The ad mentions that GameStop will donate $1 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation every time someone buys a gift card between November 3 and December 26, 2008. It also states that up to a $300,000 donation will be made to Make-A-Wish due to this promotion.

To make things easier for you, Gamertell has poured over the possible GameStop Black Friday 2008 ad and picked out the notable deals.

7am - 11am Door Buster Deals

• 4gb SanDisk memory stick is $24.99
• Select PSP UMD movies are reduced to $3.99
• Free copy of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 for Xbox 360 when you buy any of the following new Xbox 360 Arcade, Pro or Elite bundles
• Xbox 360 Arcade bundle with Sega Superstars Tennis, five Arcade games disc, wireless controller and 256 memory card
• Xbox 360 Elite bundle with Kung Fu Panda, Lego Indiana Jones, wireless controller and 120gb hard drive for $399.99
• Xbox 360 Pro bundle with Kung Fu Panda, Lego Indiana Jones, wireless controller and 60gb hard drive for $299.99 (Note: After 11am you won’t receive a free copy of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 with this bundle.)
• If you buy the Rock Band game or bundle, you can purchase Rock Band Track Pack Volume 2 for $0.99
• A special Wii Guitar Hero bundle deal for $129.99 that appears to include the Guitar Hero World Tour and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock games with guitars
• Only November 28, 2008 - If you buy a new PS2 system for $129.99, you can get a new $19.99 PS2 game with it for free.
• Only November 28, 2008 - World of Warcraft Battle Chest will be $19.99

System Sales

• Preowned Xboxes will be $39.99
• New, limited edition ice blue DS with Brain Age and Mario red DS with New Super Mario Bros. bundles are $149.99 each
• Preowned GameCubes will be $29.99
• Preowned original DSes will be $79.99
• Preowned GBAs will be $49.99
• Preowned Xbox 360 will be $149.99
• Preowned PS2 will be $49.99
• Xbox 360 Pro bundle with Kung Fu Panda, Lego Indiana Jones, wireless controller and 60gb hard drive for $299.99 (Note: After 11am you won’t receive a free copy of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 with this bundle.)
• Madden Cobalt PSP bundle with 1gb memory stick, In Just One Play UMD, Beats coupon, Madden NFL 09 and a $30 gift card for $199.99
• Ratchet & Clank PSP bundle with 1gb memory stick, National Treasure 2 UMD, Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters and Echocrome coupon for $199.99
• If you buy a new PS2 for $129.99, you will get a $30 gift card

DS Sales

• Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution will be $19.99
• The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure will be $9.99
• A TouchMaster and TouchMaster 2 game bundle will be $34.99
• Guitar Hero On Tour will be $29.99

PC Sales

• If you buy Guild Wars Trilogy ($49.99) or Guild Wars ($19.99), you get Guild Wars: Eye of the North free
• World of Warcraft will be $9.99
• Crysis will be $19.99
• Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria will be $29.99

PS2 Sales

• The Dragon Ball Z Trilogy will be $19.99
• Final Fantasy XII will be $9.99
• Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 will be $14.99
• Resident Evil 4 will be $9.99
• Monster Jam will be $14.99
• Guitar Hero Aerosmith will be $19.99

PS3 Sales

• Preowned Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune will be $39.99
• Preowned Madden ‘08 will be $9.99
• Metal Gear Solid 4 with bluetooth headset will be $89.99
• Overlord Raising Hell will be $24.99
• Dynasty Warriors 6 will be $29.99
• NBA 2K9 will be $49.99
• Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution will be $49.99
• Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year Edition will be $39.99
• Guitar Hero Aerosmith will be $29.99

PSP Sales

• Get preowned copies of both Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai Another Road and Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai for $29.99
• Ben 10: Defender of Earth will be $9.99

Wii Sales

• Preowned Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be $34.99
• Preowned Metroid Prime 3: Corruption will be $29.99
• Preowned Game Party will be $17.99
• Guitar Hero Aerosmith (game only) will be $19.99
• Samba de Amigo will be $19.99
• Luxor 3 will be $14.99
• de Blob will be $39.99
• Star Wars Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duel will be $49.99 and come with a free sticker book
• If you buy Wii Fit for $89.99, you get a free Wii Fit bag

Xbox 360 Sales

• Tomb Raider: Underworld will be $59.99 and come with a free art book
• Monster Jam will be $14.99
• Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year Edition will be $39.99
• Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution will be $49.99
• Guitar Hero Aerosmith will be $29.99
• Dynasty Warriors 6 will be $29.99
• Left 4 Dead will be $49.99
• NBA 2K9 will be $49.99
• Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway will be $19.99
• Bad Company will be $29.99
• Spider-Man: Web of Shadows will be $39.99
• Armored Core: For Answer will be $19.99
• Soul Calibur IV will be $49.99

Read [Kotaku] Also Read [BlackFriday.info] Also Read [CAG]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Yesterday, Gamertell started our look back at the 10 cutest games Nintendo has helped develop and produce. Today we’re going to continue that list starting with number five and ending with what, in our opinion, is the cutest Nintendo title.

We last left off at #6 - Pikmin 2 for the GameCube. Today, we’ll pick up with #5 - Yoshi’s Story. So join us for our look back and see if one of your favorite games made our list.

#5 Yoshi’s Story
Platform: Super Nintendo
Release Date: March 9, 1998 (also released on Virtual Console on September 17, 2007)
Claim to fame: Yoshi was the sole star for the first time in Yoshi’s Story. It also has a unique presentation, where it looks like a pop-up book or like it was taking place in an all fabric world.
Why is it cute? First of all, Yoshi is cute. Especially when you see the different color variation of the yoshis. Second, the whole environment is soft, fluffy and pastel. It looks like a children’s book brought to life - definitely adorable.

#4 Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak
Platform: Game Boy Color
Release Date: April 8, 2003
Claim to fame: It was an anime/manga game both developed and produced by Nintendo. It also is mentioned in Super Smash Brothers Brawl‘s Vault section.
Why is it cute? Well, aside from the fact that the star is a hamster, one of the cutest and teeniest animals, the star also has tons of hamster friends who all are also equally adorable. Look at their huge black eyes! Their adorable expressions! Its irresistible! Plus the premise - reuniting hamsters with their other hamster friends! Plus, the whole world is shown through a hamster’s point of view. It is just too much.

#3 Nintendogs
Platform: DS
Release Date: August 22, 2005
Claim to fame: It is one of the most successful DS games and was created by Shigeru Miyamoto. Five different versions of the game were released in the US.
Why is it cute? You get to take care of and play with adorable puppies, who will never grow up. They always stay in a state of perpetual puppydom. You also get to enjoy the dog without the real life mess or training.

#2 Chibi Robo!
Platform: GameCube
Release Date: February 6, 2006
Claim to fame: Chibi Robo made doing chores fun. It is also a cult classic.
Why is it cute? He’s a cute, silent, tiny protagonist who just wants to make everyone’s (be they human, toy or robot) life a little bit better. What adds to his cuteness is that his “tools” are really normal items like a toothbrush or spoon, but because he’s so tiny, they serve as a mop or shovel for him. He also has incredibly adorable costumes.

#1 Animal Crossing
Platform: GameCube
Release Date: September 15, 2002
Claim to fame: It has become a signature Nintendo title, appearing on the GameCube, DS and soon the Wii. It is a very relaxed, social simulation where players can live however they want in a virtual town filled with anthropomorphic animals.
Why is it cute? The animal neighbors are cute and have funny personalities. Also, the ability to design outfits, build friendships and create a place for yourself is incredibly entertaining and addictive.

Read [Gamertell] Site [Nintendo]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Nintendo’s smart. It knows human beings can be incredibly superficial creatures and this superficiality gives items and people with beautiful appearances an edge. After all, are you going to buy a game that doesn’t look good? Probably not.The company didn’t get to be one of the top three video game players by ignoring its potential consumers. The result of this is the company developing and producing incredibly adorable games. Now, the adorability isn’t the main selling point but some titles just end up being cuter than others.

Gamertell has lookeed back over Nintendo’s extensive video game release history to pick out the 10 sweetest titles Nintendo’s ever had a hand in. I’d recommend not eating candy while reading - You don’t want to go into diabetic shock or something.

#10 Doshin the Giant
Platform: GameCube
Release Date: September 20, 2002
Claim to fame: Doshin the Giant was a god/life-sim game, where you got to decide whether Doshin helped or hurt the innocent islanders. It was never released in North America, only in Europe and Japan.
Why is it cute? Doshin himself is fairly adorable, like a big smiley face come to life. Plus, the villagers are pretty cute as well.

#9 Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Platform: GameCube
Release Date: March 24, 2003
Claim to fame: The Wind Waker was cel-shaded, and marked the first appearance of “Toon Link.”
Why is it cute? Super Smash Brothers Brawl proves Toon Link is cute, if you go by Cute Overload‘s seventh rule of cuteness which says (and I quote), “A thing, accompanied by a smaller version of that thing, is always cute.”

#8 Rhythm Tengoku Gold/Rhythm Heaven
Platform: DS
Release Date: 2009
Claim to fame: It is the first Rhythm Tengoku game to be released outside of Japan. It also has music from Tsunku and was created by the team behind WarioWare.
Why is it cute? Stylish characters appear throughout the title. They may look quirky, but they’re also quite adorable.

#7 Mario & Luigi: The Superstar Saga
Platform: GBA
Release Date: November 17, 2003
Claim to fame: It was a Mario RPG that took place in the Beanbean Kingdom rather than the Mushroom Kingdom. It also spawned a sequel, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time.
Why is it cute? It marks the return of the Koopa kids, which look great. It also had gorgeous sprites of famous Mario characters.

#6 Pikmin 2
Platform: GameCube
Release Date: August 30, 2004
Claim to fame: It was the sequel to the successful Pikmin and featured more Pikmin, two space captains and plenty of time to explore the world of the Pikmin.
Why is it cute? Pikmin was cute, but Pikmin 2 was even cuter since it had blue, yellow, red, white and purple Pikmin.

Keep reading to discover the top five…

Site [Nintendo]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

While gamers all enjoy video games with voice acting, they often tend to also take for granted the people behind the voices. As gamers progress from one game to the next, they may notice some similarity when it comes to characters’ voices, but they may not make the connection between, say, Yukari from Persona 3 and Sophia from Star Ocean: Till the End of Time.

It probably isn’t often gamers actually read the closing credits, search instruction books or take to the internet to discover who voiced their favorite characters. Many times, the voice actor for a character isn’t even credited or listed, so people might just think someone sounds familiar, but not bother to confirm it.

Gamertell has compiled a list of 10 prolific, famous and noteworthy voice actors who have lent their talents to video games. Not all of the games that the following actors have appeared in will be mentioned, just a few of the more famous entries as well as significant roles in TV series.

1. Michelle Ruff

In games she provided the voice for Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny‘s Viese Blanchimont, Baroque‘s Alice, Bleach: The Blade of Fate and Shattered Blade‘s Rukia Kuchiki, Disgaea 2‘s Etna, Persona 3‘s Yukari Takeba, Odin Sphere‘s Velvet, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time‘s Sophia Esteed, Tales of Vesperia‘s Rita Mordio, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria‘s Alicia and Wild ARMs 5‘s Avril Vent Fleur.

She also does anime voice acting, and has voiced Bleach‘s Rukia Kuchiki, Blue Dragon‘s Kluke, Chobit‘s Chi and Freya, Disgaea‘s Etna and Lupin the 3rd‘s Fujiko Mine.

2. James Arnold Taylor

In games he provided the voice for Final Fantasy X‘s Tidus, FFX-2‘s Tidus and Shuyin, Kingdom Hearts II‘s Jack Sparrow and Timon, Ratchet in almost every Ratchet & Clank game, Speed Racer‘s Jack “Cannonball” Taylor, Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror and Logan’s Shadow‘s Gabe Logan,  and Tales of Symphonia‘s Lord Yggdrasill.

He also does cartoon and anime voice acting, and has voiced: The Boondock‘s Officer Frank, Drawn Together‘s Wooldoor Sockbat, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind‘s Muzu, Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ Obi-Wan Kenobi

and Static Shock‘s Eddie Felson.

3. Paula Tiso

In games she provided the voice for: Atelier Iris‘s Vier, Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed‘s Mindy Peters, Disgaea‘s Jennifer, Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem‘s Chandra, Final Fantasy X & X-2‘s Lulu,  Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots‘s Laughing Octopus and No More Heroes’ Sylvia Christel.

4. Derek Stephen Prince
In games he provided the voice for:  Bleach: The Blade of Fate and Shattered Blade‘s Uryu Ishida, Shino Aburame in almost every Naruto game, Odin Sphere‘s Oswald, Persona 3‘s Takaya, Radiata Stories‘s Cross Ward, Trauma Center: New Blood‘s Vakhusti and Xenosaga I‘s Chaos.

He also does anime voice acting, and has voiced:

Arc the Lad‘s Gene, Bleach‘s Uryu Ishida, Love Hina‘s Keitaro Urashima, Naruto‘s Shino Aburame and Paradise Kiss’ Arashi.

5. Tara Strong

In games she provided the voice for: Blue Dragon‘s Kluke, Final Fantasy X & X-2‘s Rikku, Jak 3‘s Keira, Killer 7‘s Kaede Smith, Ninja Gaidan & Ninja Gaidan Sigma‘s Rachel, Bubbles in most Powerpuff Girls games, Psychonaut‘s Sheegor, Talwyn in both Ratchet & Clank Future games, Tales of Legendia‘s Norma Beatty and Tales of Symphonia‘s Presea Combatir.

She also does anime and cartoon voice acting, and has voiced: Ben 10‘s Ben Tennyson, Drawn Together‘s Princess Clara and Toot Braunstein, Fairly Oddparents‘s Timmy Turner, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends‘s Terrence and Powerpuff Girls‘s Bubbles.

6. Jamieson Price

In games he provided the voice for: Bleach: The Blade of Fate and Shattered Blade‘s Yasutora “Chad” Sado, Castlevania: Lament of Innocence‘s Walter Bernhard, Clive Barker’s Jericho‘s Xavier Jones, Disgaea‘s Seraph Lamington, Eternal Sonata‘s Legato, Radiata Stories‘s Gawain Rothschild, Rogue Galaxy‘s Narrator, Shadow Hearts: Covenant‘s Masaji Kato, Suikoden V‘s Georg Prime, Tales of Vesperia‘s Duke and Wild ARMs 6‘s Nightburn Acklund.

He also does anime voice acting, and has voiced:

Bleach‘s Yasutora “Chad” Sado and Fate/stay Night‘s Kirei Kotomine.

7. Stephanie Sheh

In games she provided the voice for: Atelier Iris 3: Grand Phantasm‘s Nell Ellis, Bleach: The Blade of Fate and Shattered Blade‘s Orihime Inoue, Disgaea 2‘s Hanako, Eternal Sonata‘s Princess Serenade, Grandia III‘s Alfina de Palma, Mana Khemia‘s Nicole Mimi Tithel, Hinata Hyuga in most of the Naruto games, Odin Sphere‘s Mercedes, Persona 3‘s Metis, Radiata Stories’ Ridley Silverlake, Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles’ Rebecca Chambers and Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria‘s Silmeria.

She also does anime voice acting, and has voiced:

Bleach‘s Orihime Inoue, FLCL‘s Mamimi, Tales of Phantasia‘s Arche Klein and Tenjo Tenge‘s Aya Natsume.

8. Crispin Freeman

In games he provided the voice for: Balmung for most of the .hack// games, Atelier Iris’ Delsus, Crisis Core: FFVII‘s Rude and Kunsel, Death by Degrees’ Alan Smithee, Kingdom Hearts II‘s Setzer Gabbiani and Will Turner, Makai Kingdom‘s Overlord Zetta, Itachi Uchiha in many Naruto games, Nano Breaker‘s Jake Warren, Phantom Brave‘s Raphael, Rogue Galaxy‘s Gale Dorban/Jaus, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time‘s Albel Nox, Tales of Symphonia‘s Regal Bryant, Too Human‘s Baldur, Albedo and Gaigun Kukai in every Xenosaga game.

He also does anime voice acting, and has voiced: .hack//SIGN‘s Balmung, Chobits‘s Hideki Motosuwa, FFVII Advent Children‘s Rude, Ghost in the Shell‘s Togusa, Hellsing‘s Alucard, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya‘s Kyon

, Naruto‘s Itachi Uchiha and Ebisu, Revolutionary Girl Utena‘s Touga Kiryuu and Slayers’ Zelgadis Greywords.

9. Wendee Lee

In games she provided the voice for: Black Rose in every .hack// game, Ar Tonelico‘s Claire Branch, Atelier Iris’ Lita Blanchimont, Brave Story: New Traveler‘s Tatsuya, The Bouncer‘s Leann Caldwell, Disgaea 2‘s Rozalin and Taro, Front Mission 4‘s Ines Torres, GrimGrimoire‘s Lillet Blan, Neverwinter Nights’ Aribeth, Soul Calibur II-IV‘s Chai Xianghua, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time‘s Nel Zelpher, Tales of Vesperia‘s Karol Kapel, Wild ARMs 4‘s Raquel Applegate and Wild ARMs 5‘s Rebecca Streisand.

She also does anime voice acting, and has voiced:

Bleach‘s Yoruichi Shihouin, Tatsuki Arisawa and Ururu Tsumugiya, Cowboy Bebop‘s Faye Valentine, TK Takaishi in Digimon Adventure and Digimon: The Movie, Fushigu Yuugi‘s Yui Hongo, Lucky Star‘s Konata Izumi, Magic Knight Rayearth‘s Umi Ryuuzaki, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya‘s Haruhi Suzumiya, Sakura Wars: The Movie‘s Sakura Shinguji, Viewtiful Joe‘s Sprocket and Wild ARMs’ Loretta Oratorio.

10. Yuri Lowenthal

In games he provided the voice for: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night‘s Alucard,  Destroy All Humans 2‘s Dr. Go, FFIV DS’ Cecil Harvey, the announcer for Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, Sasuke Uchiha in the Naruto games, Odin Sphere‘s Cornelius, Riviera: The Promised Land‘s Ein, Persona 3‘s main character, Ryoji and Pharos, Persona 4‘s Yosuke Hanamura, Suikoden V‘s Kyle, Tales of the Abyss and Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology‘s Luke fan Fabre/Asch, Trauma Center‘s Derek Stiles, Wild ARMs 4‘s Arnaud G. Vasquez, Wild ARMs 5‘s Dean Stark and Xenosaga III‘s Kevin Winnicot.

He also does cartoon and anime voice acting, and has voiced: Ben 10: Alien Force‘s Ben Tennyson and Alien X, Bleach‘s Keigo Asano, Blue Dragon‘s Shu, Naruto‘s Sasuke Uchiha, The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie‘s Prince Alexander and Saiyuki Reload & Gunlock‘s Goku

Site [The Internet Movie Database] Site [CrystalAcids.com] Site [Anime News Network Encyclopedia]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

In 2001 Tom Clancy put his name to an incredible tactical squad-based first-person shooter called Ghost Recon, a franchise that contains almost prophetic parallels with current events.

In the original Ghost Recon game, set in 2008, Russia is taken over by ultra-nationalists who want to rebuild the might of the former Soviet Union by re-acquiring several Eastern European states. The reasoning for the Russian spread in the game could just be to regain the former territory of the Soviet Union or to do as Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told Telegraph when he said he would “protect the lives and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are located.” Even more coincidental, the game opens in the former-Soviet state of Georgia. While the spread of the Russian sphere of influence is incredibly quick, it is still unsettling at how close it is to real events.

Near the beginning of the Summer 2008 Olympics, Russia invaded Georgia, claiming they were provoked because a region of Georgia, South Ossetia, wants to separate from Georgia. The Georgian government ordered a major offensive on the region. Telegraph reports that separatist leaders say that the Georgian shelling of Tskhinvali, South Ossetian capital, killed over one thousand people. They have also quoted Medvedev as saying “We won’t allow the death of our compatriots to go unpunished.”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, according to the same article, made claims that the Georgian government committed ethnic cleansing in the region. While Georgia has been asking the West for assistance in removing Russian troops, Lavrov has also asked the West to come to the right conclusions on this military act. This act is one that threatens to drag more nations into the mix. This may be a catalyst for something bigger and much uglier or it could be resolved quickly. However it all depends on the actions of the powers that be.

Read [Overclockers Club] Also Read [Telegraph]

Photo from Georgia borrowed from USA Today.

Full Story » | Written by Jonathan Gronli for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

The Game Critics Awards list of the best games of 2008 has just been announced and the winners for the Best of E3 2008 include Fallout 3, LittleBigPlanet, Spore, Gears of War 2 and Madden NFL 09.

Here’s the complete list of this year’s winners:

• Fallout 3 published by Bethesda Softworks for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 won Best of Show and Best Role Playing Game.
• Mirror’s Edge published by DICE/Electronic Arts for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 won Best Original Game
• LittleBigPlanet published by Media Molecule and Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3 won Best Console Game and Best Social/Casual/Puzzle.
• Spore published by Maxis/Electronic Arts won Best PC Game.
• Resistance: Retribution published by Bend Studio/Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayStation Portable won Best Handheld Game.
• Rock Band 2 Ion “Drum Rocker” Set published by ION Audio/MTV Games for Xbox 360 won Best Hardware/Peripheral.
• Gears of War 2 published by Epic Games and Microsoft Game Studios for the XBox 360 won Best Action Game.
• Dead Space published by EA Redwood Shores/EA for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 won Best Action/Adventure Game.
• Pure published by Black Rock/Disney Interactive Studios for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 won Best Racing Game.
• Madden NFL 09 published by Tiburon/EA for All Systems won Best Sports Game
• Street Fighter IV published by Capcom for Arcade systems won Best Fighting Game
• Tom Clancy’s EndWar published by Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 won Best Strategy Game
• Left 4 Dead published by Valve/EAP for PC and Xbox 360 won Best Online Multiplayer

Read [LA Times.com] Site [Game Critics Awards]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

E3, up until about 2006 or so, was the huge, major, central expo for the industry. A huge percentage of the big announcements and unveiling’s occurred at E3 - they still do, as evidenced by our massive E3 coverage and the fact that everyone is buzzing with excitement about next week. It’s just that now, we have a steady stream of news all year long, and several other expos, like PAX, E-for-all, and GDC that offer up plenty of buzz-worthy announcements.

But back in the day (the day being 2000-2006, in this installment), E3 was king. If you’ve read part 1, you know that the show was started in the mid 1990’s, and it grew steadily into the biggest single event of the year for the press, gamers, developers, harried PR people, and the “booth babes” as they were called. The early 2000’s continued the trend, with ever-increasing attendance rates and marketing budgets.

Truly one of the most exciting E3 moments -ever- was the unveiling of the Metal Gear Solid 2 trailer in 2000. The game was so hotly anticipated, and the PlayStation 2 was such a new technological marvel at the time, that the amazing-looking trailer literally brought some show-goers to tears. Powerful, postmodern stuff, no? The 2001 show was all about new hardware and the bloody console war, with Microsoft’s first foray into console gaming (the Xbox) and Nintendo’s latest, the Gamecube.

As the years went on, the current state of the industry was established. Nintendo started going experimental and casual, first with the DS’ unveiling in 2004 and finally with 2006’s epic showing of the Wii, in which attendees waited in hours-long lines just to get a swing at Wii Sports. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 both had stellar, super-hyped shows in 2005 and 2006, respectively, and a host of hot titles were shown off to the massive audience.

Everything changed for 2007 - the show became a much smaller, much more compartmentalized affair, with invitation-only press conferences playing to harried journalists rushing from one location to another. Still, the “Big three” each had a massive press conference, streamed in realtime to eager fans the world over, and there was plenty of excitement over titles like Halo 3, Assassin’s Creed, Super Mario Galaxy, and so on. 2008 looks to be a similar affair - but that doesn’t mean there’ll be any shortage of big reveals. We’ll find out next week, so stay tuned!

Read [Part 1]

Full Story » | Written by Danielle Riendeau for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Last time we took a look at the original trilogy of Prince of Persia games, and now we move onto the era of Ubisoft. The French developer took the franchise in a new direction, while maintaining the original feel the series was known for.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Despite the mainly negative reaction to the first 3D Prince of Persia, when publishing giant Ubisoft picked up the rights to the franchise it decided to stray from its two-dimensional roots. Designer Jordan Mechner joined up with the team at Ubisoft Montreal in an attempt to finally bring the classic gameplay of the original PoP games into the modern era. The fruit of their labor was Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

Story: Released in 2003, The Sands of Time received almost universal critical acclaim and several Game of the Year awards. The game featured the most engrossing story the series had seen yet. While attacking an Indian kingdom with the Persian army, the Prince discovers a magical dagger that grants him power over time. Later, the Prince is tricked by an evil Vizier into releasing the titular sands of time, which infect the world, turning regular citizens into violent, hideous sand monsters. He eventually restores the sands, and in the process, reverses all of the events that happened, including a romantic relationship with the daughter of the Indian Maharajah, Farah. But since all of their time together had been reversed, by the end of the game she no longer has any memory of him.

Gameplay: The dagger of time created the most unique gameplay aspect of the new Prince of Persia. With it, players could now control time by reversing events that had happened. For example, if a player was hurt by an enemy, reversing time would refill their health bar. The dagger had a bar itself, which could be refilled by killing the sand monsters who would then release the sand used by the dagger.

Aside from the dagger, Sands did an excellent job of updating Prince of Persia for a modern audience. The Prince’s trademark acrobatics made a return, and this time around he could run along walls or even jump back and forth between them. These moves are also translated into combat, which would often see the Prince taking on several enemies at once, forcing him to use high-flying tactics to survive.

Unlike many games that receive such high critical praise, Sands was also a commercial success, and so, Ubisoft brought out a sequel just a year later.

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within

The release of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within saw a dramatic change in tone for the series. For the first time in its history, the lead designer of this Prince of Persia game was not Mechner. Instead, Kevin Guillemette took the reigns, and the result was a much darker, grittier game.

Story: Warrior Within takes place seven years after Sands, and sees the Prince haunted by the guardian of time, Dahaka. Since the Prince was able to escape death in the first game by using the dagger of time, Dahaka wished to kill him in order to set the time-line straight. But, in an attempt to save himself, The Prince heads to the island of time in order to stop the magical sand from ever being created in the first place. Throughout the game, the Prince’s journey becomes entangled with that of Kaileena, the Empress of Time. Having witnessed her own death at the hands of the Prince, Kaileena attempts to kill him in order to save herself. In the end the two join together and are able to kill Dahaka and escape their fates.

Gameplay: While Warrior marked a strong stylistic change for the series, for the most part the gameplay remained in tact. The platforming, puzzle solving, and adventuring elements were all as good, if not better, than what was seen in the games predecessor. However, the new direction had a strong impact on combat. The Prince could now carry two weapons at once, as well as use combos, special attacks, and the environment in battle. Warrior also featured extremely violent fatalities—including full-on decapitations—which caused the game to receive a Mature rating in North America, a first for the series.

But despite the still solid gameplay, many fans were disappointed with the changes made to the series. And so with the final installment in the trilogy, Ubisoft decided to go back to what made the original so successful.

Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones

Guillemette once again headed up the third installment of the series, but this time, scaled back the violence and darkness that turned so many off of Warrior. But while Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones harks back to Sands of Time, it also has a a fair bit of Warrior‘s spirit, merging some of the best aspects of its predecessors.

Story: This time around the Prince finds his ship attacked by an army led by the Vizier from Sands—who, despite dying in the first game, is alive due to the Prince’s reversing of time. When the Prince attempts to stop the Vizier from making himself immortal with the dagger of time, he ends up being partially contaminated by the sands. This contamination leads to the creation of the Dark Prince, an alter-ego that is much stronger and more aggressive compared to his lighter counter-part.

Eventually, the Prince is able to overcome the darkness that tried to consume him, and kills the Vizier once and for all. Farah, who has no memory of the events of Sands, once again falls in love with the Prince and becomes his Queen.

Gameplay: Gameplay wise, Thrones feels a great deal like Sands, with a very strong emphasis on platforming and puzzle solving. The Prince has many more moves at his disposal this time around, including more impressive wall jumps and the ability to balance on swinging poles. In terms of combat, the Prince is once again armed with the dagger of time, which removes a great deal of the excessive violence seen in Warrior. But with the inclusion of the Dark Prince, not all was lost. When he transforms to his dark alter-ego, the Prince becomes much more powerful and is given a new weapon, a serrated whip that has become fused to his arm. This whip allows him to pull enemies in close, for some impressive kills. But, as with everything good, there are drawbacks to being a Dark Prince. When in that state the Prince’s health would slowly drain. In order to keep him alive players were forced to continually collect the sands of time released from fallen foes.

With Thrones, Ubisoft was able to successfully close out one of the biggest series’ of this decade. But with the story wrapped up, many wondered where the franchise would head next. Next time, we will take a look at the future of Prince of Persia, which includes a brand new take on the series, as well as a big-budget, major motion picture.

Read [Gamertell’s Prince of Persia Chronicles Part 1: The Early Years]

Full Story » | Written by Andrew Webster for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

I can’t wait for my copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots but I don’t want to say goodbye to elite agent Solid Snake, whom we’ve grown to love while following his adventures.

We pray that rumors of an end are not true and continue to pose theories about why the series could never end.  Even so, as a preemptive memorial to help cope with the denial that this may be the absolute last game for Snake, here is a look at the MGS franchise.

Baby Snake: A Very Live Birth

For those who are not familiar with the Metal Gear franchise, it is a series of stealth games, created by Hideo Kojima and developed and published by Konami, that follows the mission of special forces operative Solid Snake.

The very first Metal Gear game, developed by Konami with Hideo Kojima as top designer and published by Konami for an old gaudy looking machine that looked like a typewriter called the MSX2 or Sony MSX2 home computer system in 1987. It was then re-released by Konami’s Ultra Games Division for the North American Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988 along with a version for the Commodore 64 and PC-DOS system.

Later, in 1990, a true sequel was released on the MSX2 system but Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake would only be released in Japan. But it wouldn’t be long before Metal Gear would later be transported over to the Nintendo Entertainment System where players followed a young rookie called Solid Snake who had just been recruited into an elite special forces unit called Foxhound. But soon the MSX2 system would fade out and the new NES would take over as the entertainment system of choice and the sequel to Metal Gear would be released in North America, simply titled Snake’s Revenge. But it wasn’t a true sequel, in fact, Kojima wasn’t even involved in the making of this game and was not even considered a part of the Metal Gear series. All references of this game are completely ignored in the PlayStation Adaptation of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake eight years later, even though Snake’s Revenge did inspire Kojima to create Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, according to Kojima’s interview with Gamer’s Today.com and even confirmed rumors as to where Kojima got the idea for Solid Snake, who some say looks and acts a lot like Snake Plissken from Escape from New York (pictured). It didn’t really matter where Kojima got the character idea from, it became a big seller.

In 1998, Metal Gear would find a new home adapting the sequel for the PlayStation console.

Adolescent Snake: Gathering a Group of Friends

In 1999, Metal Gear Solid was developed and released by Konami for the PlayStation console and Metal Gear Solid: Integral was developed by Digital Dialect and released by Microsoft for the PC-Windows version of the game. Both titles received an ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board) rating of M for Mature. The game itself was an expansion to the original Metal Gear where the players were introduced to Dr. Hal “Otacon” Emmerich, a geeky scientist who would rather make peace than fight even though he’s in love with Sniper Wolf (who wouldn’t blink an eye to put a bullet through Snake’s head). Players would soon be introduced to a slew of characters who have either made cameo appearances in games to come or referenced to throughout the series to come. Characters such as Vulcan Raven, Revolver Ocelot, Liquid Snake (Solid Snake’s genetic twin) and Psycho Mantis to name a few. This is where you really get some of Snake’s background and gist of the real mission. In Metal Gear Solid, you learn that the Foxhound unit is a next-generation special forces unit made of genetically enhanced Soldiers ... mostly clones of the perfect soldiers the government wants to recreate. Even Snake himself is a clone according to Liquid Snake.

Also released in 1999 was Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions which basically helped build up your stealth, sneaking and fighting skills with more than 300 stage-based missions. Those who owned a PocketStation could download and play the mini-games that allowed players to control characters including Cyborg Ninja and Meryl Campbell and even got a sneak peek at trailers for Metal Gear Solid and preview artwork for Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.

In 2000, Metal Gear: Ghost Babel was released for the Game Boy Color. Totally ignores the Metal Gear storyline but uses the same familiar characters found in MGS: Integral. Using 2D overhead animations, Snake must infiltrate a base undetected with the help of Sgt. Chris Jenner, a female Delta Force agent. I managed to find a copy of this game and, believe me, it’s not easy. You can’t blend with your environment as well as you could in the current Metal Gear games. It took serious skills just to make it off the first level of the game without being spotted or caught.

In 2001, a sequel to the Metal Gear Solid series was released. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, introduces pretty boy Raiden who emerges from the ocean as Snake but had to quickly change his name to Raiden because the original Snake is rumored to be sneaking around the Big Shell tanker and may be working with the terrorists. Snake later shows up in one of the rooms as Iroquois Plissken (recognize the name?) and offers advice and tips to Raiden so he could finish his mission of locating and rescuing the President and people trapped inside the tanker.

In 2002, The Document of Metal Gear Solid 2 was released as well as Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance. The Document of Metal Gear Solid 2 was more of a documentary about the making of the Metal Gear Solid games.

Announced in 2003 and published in 2004, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes developed by Konami and Silicon Knights was released for the Nintendo Game Cube system and is a remake of the Metal Gear Solid game. The game received a mature rating as did the original for the PlayStation version.

Also in 2004, while Nintendo owners got a chance to play with Snake, Konami released a spin-off for the Playstation Portable called Metal Gear Acid. In this game, Snake is on a completely different type of mission, chasing down a dangerous terrorist and a set of baby dolls with a twisted thirst for blood. It’s more of a side-story to Metal Gear: Ghost Babel and uses a card-based turn system to move Snake and Teliko in the game. The game had an arena function that allows players to pit their skills against familiar enemies from the game series like Vamp, Liquid Snake and others.

Big Daddy Snake: Gettin’ Naked and Eatin’ Snakes

Also in 2004, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater for the PS2 is released. Developed and published solely by Konami with a rating of M for mature, this game is set years before the previous games. In fact, in MGS3 Snake goes by Naked Snake which I personally take as meaning new and he is often referred to as “a child” by his mentor and lover, The Boss. This game is set during the Cold War in 1964, where Naked Snake is sent to the jungles of the Soviet Union to rescue a scientist named Sokolov and discovers that The Boss has defected and rejoined her team, the Cobra unit, with memorable protagonists including The Fear (can move through the trees like a spider), The Pain (controls hornets), The Fury (some sort of astronaut with a jetpack and flamethrower), The End (old man with an annoying parrot and an expert sniper) and The Sorrow (the spirit of a medium who protects The Boss and offers tips to Snake). In this game we also find Raiden, or actually Major Raikov a Soldier who looks like Raiden and is in fact Colonel Volgin’s other lover aside from Eva.

Moving on, in 2005, Metal Gear Acid 2 is released for the PSP using the same card-based turn system but this time more challenging missions and an easier story line to follow featuring cell-shaded graphics. A direct sequel to Metal Gear Acid, Snake is captured by a man named Dalton who forces Snake to obtain top-secret information within a SaintLogic research facility. But during the mission Dalton is captured by General Wiseman and Snake is now being forced to work with Venus to track down and eliminate key officials within the facility. The game came with a thin cardboard called the Solid Eye, which allowed players to watch movies in 3D that are unlocked by the cards you collect or use from the card shop in the game. The movies range from cut scenes from all the series CGI movies to a model showing off certain equipment used by Snake.

In 2006, Konami releases several games starting with Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence which offer extra missions and online capabilities that the original MGS3 didn’t offer.

Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel is released soon after Subsistence for the PSP. As an interactive comic book based on the Metal Gear Solid comic series in 2004 written by Kris Oprisko and illustrated by Ashley Wood which, as of 2006, has published 12 issues which fully covers the Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty storyline. The graphic novel also featured a 3D interactive mode that allows the owner to scan, collect and trade items with other players.

Also in 2006, those who didn’t want to spend time reading the graphic novel could play Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops for the PSP, which worked just like the games on PS1 and PS2. Portable Ops takes place six years after the events of MGS3, Snake’s former team, Fox Unit, has separated themselves from the CIA and have become renegades. After attacking and capturing Snake, the Fox unit torture snake for information and throw him in a cell next to Roy Campbell. Snake must enlist the help of defecting enemies to find these renegade members and stop them. If you played the Acid series, you can unlock those character cards for use in arena mode or use the Ops characters you find in the Acid arenas.

In 2007, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus is the standalone expansion of the first portable ops game. Difficulty ranging from easy missions to extremely hard missions. I’m still stuck in extremely hard myself. But if you save your game as often as I do, any previous Metal Gear games saved on your PSP memory stick duo will unlock special characters you can enlist into your team that will help you sneak past guards to the next mission. Old Snake, Solid Snake, Raiden, Venus and Null are a few unlockable characters you can control during the missions.

Now in 2008, just a few days from now Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be released for the PlayStation 3. Published and released by Konami the game received the usual M for Mature rating. Just watching the trailers for the game and playing the beta version that came with my reservation order, this game is simply amazing and yet sad. Sad because if this is the last game, I wouldn’t want it to end. In this game we find a much older Snake, code name Old Snake and a more mature looking Otocan. We find Meryl Campbell is now a leader of a rag tag bunch of Soldiers who to me personally look just like the Cobra unit in MGS3. Many familiar faces from Para-medic to Col. Roy Campbell makes an appearance at some point in the game. Even pretty boy Raiden and his oh so bouncy blond hair sporting a cool cyborg ninja outfit. I simply can’t wait to rip the plastic off Wednesday night and toss MGS4 into the PS3 and totally vegetate.

Read [Konami History List] Portfolio [Hideo Kojima] Site [Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots site]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Nearly every successful video game series has a mascot, a character who immediately calls to mind a genre of games or perhaps a company. They’re instantly recognizable and, more often than not, prompt fond memories of classic games.

Mario, Sonic, Pikachu and Pyramid-head are some of the more recognizable figures, but there are plenty of other memorable mascots who often get pushed aside.  These are mascots from some really entertaining and enjoyable games that might not have enjoyed the same popularity as other series. Classic gamers may remember some of our five favorite obscure mascots.

#1. Mr. Saturn
With the speculated Virtual Console release of Earthbound, it is only right that Mr. Saturn takes the top place in this list.  Mr. Saturn refers not to a single individual, but an entire race in Earthbound (SNES) that live only in Saturn Valley. All Mr. Saturns are named Mr. Saturn (except for Dr. Saturn) and look exactly alike. They also happen to be pretty darn adorable.

Despite being situated in Saturn Valley, they do quite a bit of traveling. Mr. Saturn characters show up in Mother 3 (GBA), Super Smash Brothers Melee (GC) and Kirby Super Star (SNES). He also was popular enough in Japan to inspire statues and stuffed toys.

#2. PaRappa the Rapper
PaRappa is probably the best known of the mascots on this list, but still isn’t a huge star. PaRappa is the star of PaRappa the Rappa (PS1, PSP) and PaRappa the Rapper 2 (PS2), as well as having a cameo in the PaRappa spin-off, Um Jammer Lammy (PS1). He’s a rapping dog who has a habit of frequently exclaiming, “I gotta believe!” It’s a bit hokey, but that’s what makes him lovable.

His games were also incredibly entertaining. It was one of the first rhythm games which managed to make it to North America, had hilarious raps and was incredibly stylish. They were a joy to play. I’m still puzzled though, as to how a dog (PaRappa) can have an anthropomorphic sunflower (Sunny Funny) as a girlfriend.

#3. Stafy
Including Stafy, starfish star of the Japan-only Densetsu no Stafi aka Legend of Stafy (GBA, DS) games might be cheating since so few Americans have seen him in action, but he’s just too sweet to exclude. He’s a star/starfish prince who lives in the clouds and spend a lot of time in the ocean. He usually ends up assisting denizens of the deep in retrieving lost items and fighting wayward sea critters. He also is often accompanied by his little sister, Stapy, and his clam friend Kyorosuke.

Despite making his home in Japan, he’s made quite a few appearances overseas as well. Stafy was an assist trophy in Super Smash Brothers Brawl (Wii), was in a poster in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (GBA) and there were Super Princess Peach (DS) enemies which resembled Stafy. In Japan there have been four games starring Stafy, along with an anime and manga.

#4. Klonoa
Klonoa is, well, he’s some sort of anthropomorphic animal. He looks like an odd kind of cat/rabbit hybrid. He also looks a bit like Sonic the Hedgehog, especially around the eyes. He’s a dream traveler from the world of Phantomile with his grandpa, and apparently is in the habit of traveling to other worlds to save them and protect their inhabitants’ dreams.

Klonoa has been in a number of video games but hasn’t recently starred in any. His first title was Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (PS1), and went on to star in Klonoa: Moonlight Museum (WS), Klonoa: Empire of Dreams (GBA),  Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil (PS2), Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament (GBA), Klonoa Beach Volleyball (PS1) and Klonoa Heroes: Legend of the Star Medal (GBA). Many of the games are classic action or platformer games, but the volleyball game is a sports title. He also stars in a manga called Shibuutenkoku Kaze no Klonoa, and had cameos in QuickSpot (DS), Namco X Capcom (PS2) and a Presea costume cameo in Tales of Symphonia (GC).

#5. Li’l Cactus
Li’l Cactus is one of the Mana series’ most recognizable characters, having appeared in Sword of Mana (GBA) and Legend of Mana. He’s an anthropomorphic cactus which has the ability to walk and write. He occasionally goes out on adventures but ultimately lives a sedentary lifestyle.

He happens to be an exceptional listener. In Sword of Mana the player can speak to him, and he’ll write little poems about each adventure the player has been on. If you run into Li’l Cactus in a Square Enix game, take the time to talk to him - he’ll appreciate it, even if he won’t say anything back.

Read [Gamertell] Site [RPG Classics Shrines] Site [Hardcore Gaming 101] Site [PaRappa the Rapper]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Naruto has sadly succumbed to the same fate as Sailor Moon and Dragonball. It became a worldwide hit. That’s not the bad part though, the bad part is what happens after becoming a worldwide hit - the merchandising.

Companies decide that, since a series is so beloved, the franchise becomes this mystical money-tree. They have to quickly harvest as much fruit as possible before fans get smart/grow up and it all rots away.

Which often results in subpar games. Games so wretched that you wouldn’t buy them even if they were in a $5 discount bin at GameStop.

Every once in a while though, developers and publishers will get things right. A licensed property will produce a good game. Lucky for Naruto fans, this has happened quite a few times and for quite a few systems. So today Important Importables will look at some of the more successful games based on the series.

Title: Naruto: Narutimate Portable: Mugenjou no Maki (Narutimett Portable) aka Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes 2: Phantom Fortress and Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes
System: PSP
Genre: Fighting, with occasional mini-games and RPG elements
What makes it so good? It’s probably the best portable Naruto game available. It has a decent character roster of 33, 3-on-3 battles, an extra side adventure with Jiraya, and a single player mode which is very focused on an original story.

Now you’ll probably notice I mentioned 2 English Naruto games up there. That’s because the English versions (yes, versions) of this game are a bit precarious. The original Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes game was an edited version of Narutimett Portable, with some characters removed, moves edited, story changed, English voice acting and some other changes. Naruto: Ulimate Ninja Heroes 2: Phantom Fortress is reported to be a more faithful adaptation of the original Narutimett Portable. So, in a way, the three games are somewhat interchangeable - if you own one, you don’t really need the others.
Kunai rating: 4.5/5

Title: Naruto Shippuuden: Narutimate Accel 2
System: PS2
Genre: Fighting and occasionally RPG
What makes it so good? Its almost like owning two games at once, because there is the standard fighting game, which can be played alone or with friends, and there’s a sort of RPG mode, where you control Naruto and explore Konoha village. It also manages to balance these aspects pretty well - both sides are good, and since neither excels over the other, you don’t get the feeling that the CyberConnect 2 alienated any aspect of the game.

It also adds some nice gameplay elements. You can add an assist character, who will be able to occasionally help out during battles. It also feels pretty realistic in terms of what the Naruto ninjas are capable of. You can interact a bit with the environment, do the walk on water up trees/buildings and throw shuriken and kunai.
Kunai rating: 4/5

Title: Naruto: Gekitou Ninja Taisen 4
System: GameCube
Genre: Fighting
What makes it so good? First of all, the character roster. It has a varied amount of over 39 Naruto characters. It may not sound impressive, but since this game is perfect for multiplayer matches, it is. It also features both 2-on-2 and four player free-for-all multiplayer fights. Gekitou Ninja Taisen 4 is the best GameCube Naruto fighter, and arguably the strong entry in the Gekitou Ninja Taisen (aka Clash of the Ninja) series.

The only quirk is the new unlocking mode. Rather than a shop where you can buy unlocked items, you must earn them by completing missions. If you’re a button smasher, this can end up being a huge turn-off, as many missions are quite challenging.
Kunai rating: 4/5

Title: Naruto: Saikyo Ninja Daikesshu 5
System: Nintendo DS
Genre: Platformer/fighter
What makes it so good? Its the first good Saikyo Ninja Daikesshu (aka Ninja Counsel) game. All the other Naruto Saikyo Ninja Daikesshu games failed for some reason or another, and with the fifth entry quite a few of the trouble areas were fixed.

First of all, the single-player platformer mode is finally challenging and fun. It has a coherent storyline (set during the Shippuuden arc). The means of unlocking characters, by playing levels as certain characters and buying them, also provides replay incentive. Finally, it uses the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the fighting game portion. Four players can fight each other at once over Wi-Fi.
Kunai rating: 3/5

COMING NEXT WEEK: I’ve managed to crack my friend’s kung-fu grip on his copy of the new Taiko DS game, so next week Important Importables will review Taiko no Tatsujin: 7 Islands’ Adventure. If you don’t miss a single installment of Important Importables, or want to know right away when the next column is up, then sign up for the Gamertell Newsletter and RSS feed.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last week Important Importables talked about the Kisekae Set System.

Site [Play-Asia] Site [YesAsia] Site [NCSX] Site [Himeya Shop]

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If you’re a fan of music video games, then chances are you’re a Bemani fan without even realizing it. In Japan the term has become synonymous with music games, but it specifically refers to the music video games created by Konami. This division of Konami handles 10 different game series which all require music and intense player interaction to play.

In fact, many Bemani titles have been the inspiration for other music video games released in recent years. Also we can’t forget that the localization of Dance Dance Revolution is what brought dancing games to North America and helped game publishers and developers realize that audiences outside of Japan were ready for these kinds of games.

Since there are so many different series released by Konami, it is difficult to cover them all so I’ll concentrate on how the titles are played. While each of the series has unique, defining elements which make them unique, they do share some hallmarks that allow them to be grouped.

I’m the DJ

The most famous Bemani game in Japan is the series Beatmania, which inspired the name. Before this game existed, the music game division was known as GMD, aka Games & Music Division. The popularity of this single franchise made Konami’s music games famous.

Beatmania is basically a DJ game, where players use activator keys, turntables and pedals to mix the music. The original Beatmania, released in 1997, only had five keys and a single turntable. It was so successful that it multiple console releases of the game were made available, and Beatmania games could be found for the Playstation, Game Boy Color and the Wonderswan.

As players became more adept, Konami decided to provide more of a challenge. The success of Beatmania led to its 1999 replacement, Beatmania IIDX, which has seven keys, a turntable, more songs to choose from, a bigger screen and a better player area. Beatmania IIDX games also became available for play at home, with PS2 versions of the arcade games. The third entry in the series, Beatmania III, was released in 2000 and attempted to slightly mix things up by returning to five keys and the standard turntable, while also including a foot pedal. It didn’t enjoy the same success as Beatmania IIDX, so Beatmania III machines range from ‘rare’ to ‘non-existant’.

Beatmania isn’t the only DJ style Bemani game. There is also Pop’n Music, another wildly successful title in the division that was first released in 1998. It looks adorable but it is all a facade. When you first step up to a machine, you see adorable anime characters on screen, cute music and only buttons to press. It seems like no challenge at all, until you realize there are nine different keys to keep up with when playing.

The latest entry is Jubeat, which is frankly more similar to Pop’n Music than it is Beatmania. It is another arcade title, as most Bemani titles start, where there are multiple screens on the console that light up in time to music. When one lights up, you must touch it before it goes out or else you’ll fail. This game is so new that it is still in a testing phase in Japanese arcades, it was only even just revealed to the public in December 2007.

Dance for Me

The Bemani title most Americans are familiar with is Dance Dance Revolution. In Japan the title was first released in 1998 as Dancing Stage and, as pretty much everyone who has been in an arcade or video game retailer in the past few years, requires players to step up, down, left and right on a dance pad in time with the music. While Beatmania was undoubtedly the first major Bemani hit, DDR is definitely the second. Home versions were released on the Dreamcast, Gamecube, Game Boy Color, PS1, PS2, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Wii

The game inspired Konami to try releasing a more challenging spin-off in December 1999, known as Dance Dance Revolution Solo. Two more arrows, in the upper right and left corners of the pad on either side of the up arrow, were added in this release. It didn’t do as well as the main title, and it was later shelved - just like Beatmania III.

The success of DDR and the use of feet in play led Konami to create music games which required arm movement to succeed. The first game, Dance Maniax, was popular enough to warrant some machines being imported to America. (I remember seeing Dance Maniax at a local arcade during college.) In it there is what looks like a shelf jutting out towards the player, and it contains two motion sensors which can sense hand motions above and below them. You then must wave your arms above or below the sensors in time with the music. It didn’t do to well, and like Beatmania III and DDR Solo bit the dust.

The last dancing Bemani title is my personal favorite, and I was exceptionally sad when it too was shelved when the fad end. I’m talking about ParaParaParadise, first released in 2000. It involves using Para Para dance moves, triggered by five arrows on screen, to play. There are five motion sensors which register hand movements (left, diagonally left, up, diagonally right and right) and you must move your hands through the sensors. It features classic Konami music but also quite a few European dance tracks. I loved this game so much (a local Japanese mall had a ParaParaParadise machine), but once the Para Para dancing fad ended, so did the game. A home version of the game, with a special USB 5 sensor peripheral, was created for the PS2 during the height of the game’s popularity.

Musical Peripherals

If you love Guitar Hero, then you’ll love the Bemani title GuitarFreaks. Before you begin crying trademark or copyright infringement, you should know that GuitarFreaks (1999) actually existed before the Guitar Hero (2005) series ever did, and probably helped inspire that series. A guitar peripheral is used to play GuitarFreaks, and it is strikingly similar to the Guitar Hero controller. It has three fret buttons, a strum bar and the same motion sensor which causes action on screen if the neck of the guitar is raised. The series began in arcades and then was released in home versions. For all intents and purposes, a GuitarFreak game is nearly interchangeable with a Guitar Hero title. Home versions of this title were released for both the PS1 and the PS2, and are often bundled with our next Bemani game, DrumMania.

And then there is DrumMania, also released in 1999, which many Rock Band fans would be very comfortable playing. DrumMania provides players with four or five drum pads, which are beat in time to the music. It probably sounds like another peripheral you recognize. Like GuitarFreaks, PS2 home versions of this title were also played and it usually was released with GuitarFreaks.

There was a third entry released in 2000, Keyboardmania, but it now resides in the Bemani graveyard. While it was a game it could also be considered a teaching tool. This game had an actual 24-key keyboard attached to it and players needed to play the keyboard to progress through the game. There was even a mode called “Real Mode” which made gameplay even more difficult, as it required players to know how to read music and play a piano. Even though it eventually failed, there were still two PS2 versions of the game released.

An interesting point is the connectability between GuitarFreaks,  DrumMania and Keyboardmania. The arcade versions of each of these three games can be linked together if an arcade has all the compatible machines. Players can then form their own little band, minus a singer. I guess this is where Rockband got the idea from.

Before we end today, I just want to remind you all - while many of the titles above may be available for consoles and for sale at import sites, think before you buy them. In order to play Japanese console games, you either need a modded system (which voids your warranty) or a Japanese system.

COMING NEXT WEEK: Next week Important Importables will focus on a few games that might help you learn Japanese. If you don’t miss a single installment of Important Importables, or want to know right away when the next column is up, then sign up for the Gamertell Newsletter and RSS feed.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last week Important Importables reviewed Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side: 2nd Season.

Site [Bemani] Site [Music in Every Direction]

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At seeing the list of top-selling games for 2007, the first thing I saw that made me scour the internet for confirmation was that Wii Play took the #2 spot.  I know it has been out since February 12, 2007, and had more time to collect sales, but come on. This game got mediocre reviews across the board, and Mario Party 8 didn’t fair a lot better. 

Where is Bioshock?  Where is Forza 2?  Where is The Orange Box?  Where are all the games that we hardcore gamers look for?  Well son, the times they are a changing.  I think the Seth Scheisel, of the NY Times has hit this one on the head: critically praised single-player games that appeal to hardcore gamers are being outsold by multiplayer games that appear to a less hard-core audience (and critics).

Take a look at the list below again and you will see that 9 out of the 10 are games possess a fun multiplayer aspect:

1. Halo 3 (Xbox 360) - $4,820,000
2. Wii Play with Remote (Wii) - $4,120,000
3. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Xbox 360) - $3,040,000
4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (PS2) - $2,720,000
5. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) - $2,520,000
6. Pokemon Diamond (DS) - $2,480,000
7. Madden NFL 08 (PS2) - $1,900,000
8. Guitar Hero II (PS2) - $1,890,000
9. Assassin’s Creed (Xbox 360) - $1,870,000
10. Mario Party 8 (Wii) - 1,820,000

Like it or not, we live in a market driving economy.  That means that whatever sells is what companies will produce.  I mean, if you were making a living selling video games and you looked at the list of the top selling games for 2007, what types of games would you plan to make in the future? 

Multiplayer aspects of games are moving from nice-to-have status to being absolutely essential.  It is already to the point that successful games are being produced without a significant single player aspect.  Take the two Wii games mentioned above for example.  You won’t see many people playing those games alone, yet they graced the top ten list.

It looks like the days of playing by yourself, down in some dark basement are over.  Now it looks like you’ve either have to stick to the classics or develop enough social skills to step out into the real world.  Or just stick to World of Warcraft, where you get the best of both worlds - LEEROY JENKINS!

Via [NY Times]  Also read [Kotaku]

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As part of their thousandth issue celebration, renowned Japanese videogame magazine Weekly Famitsu discussed Nintendo’s past and future with Shigeru Miyamoto.

Miyamoto discussed what he and others at Nintendo felt were the main failings of the Gamecube controller and the impetus for creating the Wii remote.

From 1up:

“We made it as a culmination of everything leading up to it, but it really underwhelmed. ‘This line of thinking doesn’t give us anything else to shoot for, does it?’ That’s how I felt. ... The GameCube controller is a product of us feeling that, without this or that, people wouldn’t be able to play the games we make. But then we realized that was a problem, that we were thinking based on that controller as the premise.”

He also reiterated two key philosophies behind the DS’ inception.

“The first was ‘something Mom won’t hate.’ It had always been that if your mom caught you playing Mario she would frown, but if she walked in while you were watching a Disney movie she’d be all smiles. Both give kids something to dream about, if you ask me. ... The other theme was ‘making it so you could bring the system to school.’ Why can’t a game system help out at school, right?” If the DS could fill the role of existing classroom materials like flash cards, maybe the world would change. “I wanted to make titles like [the Japanese/kanji dictionary released only in Japan] even if they didn’t sell. If we could succeed in getting them out there and take that next step, people might be able to take their DS’s out into public or to school.”

Miyamoto’s future plans seem to revolve around the DS and he hinted at increased online functionality, via what I can only guess are public WiFi systems.

“Once people can use it in a wide range of public places, we could probably set up servers and create a good environment that links together play at home and play on the go-then work game technology into that.” He later adds, “When you take your DS out on the town, you’ll be able to do all kinds of fun things with it in public spaces. This year we plan to challenge ourselves with that kind of system.”

Read [1UP]  Also Read [Destructoid]

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Over this past weekend, starting from Friday at 5 PM CST and commencing on Sunday at 5 PM CST, a group of friends took on four Zelda titles in a row in an epic feat to raise money for Penny Arcade’s Child’s Play charity. The four buddies planned on taking on the recent Zelda canon: Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess in a 48-hour contiguous challenge that began as a ploy to garner $20 for pizza and ended up raising over $1150 for the fund (which benefits sick children in hospitals by providing “toys, games, books and cash”). While the players didn’t quite meet their virtual goal - they were thwarted by a buggy copy of Majora’s Mask and never got to Twilight Princess - they received well over the projected $1000 and countless numbers of supportive emails and fan art submissions.

The event was streamed over live video and liveblogged, with many of the most entertaining fan submissions (including some great limericks) getting special attention. Cameron posted the final blog at 5:21 PM, announcing the results. From the blog:

“... this weekend wasn’t about us, the e-mails, or even the sweet limericks. Instead, it was about how a love for something as simple as a couple of video games can pull together the masses and raise over $1150 to help a bunch of kids through a kickass charity such as Child’s Play.”

What an inspiration - this is a perfect antidote to all the mainstream media “gamers are violent misanthropes” rhetoric that gets thrown around. My compliments and congratulations to the good folks who participated and proved that gamers can make a difference.

Read [Cameron Banga] Via [Kotaku] Also Read [Child’s Play]

Full Story » | Written by Danielle Riendeau for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

It looks like Nintendo’s squeaky clean family image isn’t so pristine after all. According to a recent gamedaily report, Nintendo has become the first global company to score a zero on Greenpeace’s guide to greener electronics. Ouch – this means that the company scored nil on each and every criteria.

As for the other players in the big three, Microsoft fared pretty badly as well, with a total score of 2.7 out of 10, due to an issue with toxic chemical eliminations and a poor takeback policy. Sony, however, scored fairly well at 7.3 out of 10, with “more products free of toxic PVC and improved reporting on recycling and takeback especially in the U.S.”

Of course, the worst offender was Nintendo,

“with no product specification or list of banned/restricted substances, no information on how the company communicates with its supply chain, and no mechanism for identifying substances for future elimination or examples of these substances.”

I guess releasing Chibi Robo: Park Patrol just isn’t good enough, Nintendo.

Read [Gamedaily]

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Just as we thought the Manhunt 2 issue was over, Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) have cooperatively written and sent a letter to the ESRB president, Patricia Vance, on November 21, 2007, concerning the Mature rating assigned to the revised version of Manhunt 2.

No surprise since these four particular politicians have been attacking the videogame industry since 2005. Brownback’s pending legislation to the senate to mandate that the ESRB play the game to its entirety before giving it a rating and Lieberman, Bayh and Clinton’s unsuccessful Family Entertainment Protection Act all sounds like nothing more than drudging up old news, polishing it off and putting a new spin on the sex and violence in videogames issue.

Did I mention this may be a political move on Clinton’s part? She is of course a presidential candidate *shudder in fear* In the letter, the senators basically state that they advise the ESRB to raise the ratings for Manhunt 2 and goes into why the British banned the game. The issue is over the Wii version of the game is the best I can figure out reading the letter.

The letter reads:

Dear Ms. Vance,

We are writing to suggest that it may be desirable to revise or enhance the current ESRB rating system. We continue to believe that the ESRB takes seriously its responsibility with respect to the ratings and their enforcement. However, we believe that a number of issues have been raised regarding the release of Manhunt 2.

As you know, in June 2007 the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) refused to rate Rockstar’s Manhunt 2 video game, effectively banning its sale in British stores, stating that it contains “unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone… which constantly encourages visceral killing with exceptionally little alleviation or distancing.” The BBFC Director concluded that any other action “would involve a range of unjustifiable harm risks, to both adults and minors.” Consistent with your British counterpart, this version received an “Adults Only” (AO) rating from your Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB).

In October 2007 the BBFC again refused to rate a revised Manhunt 2 stating that “[t]he impact of the revisions on the bleakness and callousness of tone, or the essential nature of the gameplay, is clearly insufficient. There has been a reduction in the visual detail in some of the ‘execution kills’, but in others they retain their original visceral and casually sadistic nature.” Other countries agreed and have also banned the game.

Unlike the British Board, the ESRB reduced the revised version’s rating to “Mature” (M) effectively opening the door to its widespread distribution and its licensing approval by game system manufacturers Sony and Nintendo. And, while significant progress has been made, the FTC reports that 42 percent of unaccompanied children 13 to 16 years of age can still successfully purchase M-rated games meaning that the practical difference between an AO and M rating affects more than simply 17-year-olds. ...

Then, near the end of the letter, the foursome chided the ESRB’s capabilities of reviewing a videogame, which is funny since Clinton and Lieberman both congratulated and applauded the ESRB for their rating systems in 2006.

...Further, do the same reviewers view the original and the revised version of a game after an AO rating is received? How frequently do you use more than your minimum of three reviewers when evaluating a game? Are three reviewers adequate for the more violent games? How often do your reviewers disagree in their initial ratings and how frequently is the final rating a majority opinion rather than a consensus?

In sum, we ask your consideration of whether it is time to review the robustness, reliability and repeatability of your ratings process, particularly for this genre of “ultra-violent” video games and the advances in game controllers. We have consistently urged parents to pay attention to the ESRB rating system. We must ensure that parents can rely on the consistency and accuracy of those ratings.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Joseph I. Lieberman United States Senator

Sam Brownback United States Senator

Evan Bayh United States Senator

Hillary Rodham Clinton United States Senator

Read [Video Business] Read [Game Politics] Site [Senator’ Lieberman]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

With Thanksgiving over walk off that turkey and stuffing at Best Buy. Best buy is offering console bundles, discounted games and accessories during their Black Friday Doorbuster sale. Check out these prices:

Bundles and Specials:

• Xbox360 Premium System with a free Guitar Hero II Bundle for $349.99
• 40GB PS3 Bundle with a free copy of NBA 2K8 and Blue-Ray Movie Open Season for $399.99
• 40GB PS3 Spiderman Bundle with a free copy of NBA 2K8 and Blue-Ray Movie Open Season for $399.99
• Nintendo DS Zelda or Nintendogs Special Edition Bundle with free starter kit and Over the Hedge game for $149.99
• PS2 react Legacy Wireless Guitar with pedal for $39.99
• PS2 Guitar Hero II Game for $24.99

$4.99 game titles at Best Buy:

• EA Replay for the PSP
• Stacked for the PS2
• Destroy All Humans! 2 and The Incredibles for Xbox
• Gun for the Xbox360
• Princess Natasha: Student, Secret Agent, Princess for the GBA
• Ravenhearst for the PC

$9.99 game titles at Best Buy:

• Madden 07 for the PS3
• GTA San Andreas for PS2
• Cooking Mama for DS
• GTA Liberty City Stories for PSP
• Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition for PSP
• MLB 2K7 for DS
• Guild Wars for PC
• LOTR Online for PC
• World of Warcraft for PC

$14.99 game titles at Best Buy:

• Tony Hawk’s Project 8 for XBox360
• ICON for Xbox360
• Spiderman 3 for PS2
• SSX Blur for Wii
• Chicken Shoot for Wii
• The Sims 2 Pets for Wii
• Kim Possible for DS

XBox game titles for $19.99:

• Stuntman
• Spiderman 3
• Call of Duty 3
• Ghost Recon 2

PC game titles for $24.99:

• Bioshock
• Orange Box
• Two Worlds

The following are memory card accessories on sale:

• Sandisk 2GB SD memory card $14.99
• PNY 4GB SDHC memory card $27.99
• Sandisk 2GB MicroSD memory card kit $19.99
• Sandisk 2GB MSPro Duo $19.99
• Sandisk 4GB MSPro Duo $34.99

Site [Best Buy]

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A young boy was hospitalized early Monday morning in Nashville, TN, to treat burn wounds that were allegedly caused by video games.

According to the Nashville fire department, 6-year-old KeKee Whitlow claimed he was playing his Nintendo Gamecube when the console suddenly caught fire. The fire, after spreading to his clothing, resulted in burns all across Whitlow’s neck, chest, stomach, and parts of his legs. After the burning clothing had been removed from Whitlow’s body, his mother ran to an apartment two buildings away to call for help. Paramedics rushed young Whitlow from his Delway Villa apartment to the medical facilities at Vanderbilt, where Whitlow relayed the tragic story to his grandmother, Vickie Southern.

Whitlow’s Nintendo Gamecube and a small television were taken into evidence by fire and police investigators. Although Whitlow said that the plug had caught fire while he was playing, investigation showed that the young first grader had been toying with a lighter, which investigators confirmed to have caused the fire.

Second degree burns now cover 20 percent of Whitlow’s body and doctors say that he may need skin grafts during his two-to-three week stay at Vanderbilt, but Whitlow’s family is trying its best to keep in high spirits despite the awful circumstances. Southern said that the family intends to cook its Thanksgiving dinner and have it at Vanderbilt so that Whitlow can enjoy the holiday with his family.

Read [WSMV] Also Read [WTVF]

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Since the rumors about Nintendo’s North America Marketing Department’s key executives quitting by the end of the year began, Nintendo ignored the chatter and blogs that speculated the reason is because the execs did not want to move from their current location in Redwood, Washington to new offices in New York and San Francisco.

In response to the chatter Nintendo of America’s president Reggie Fils-Aime admitted to the company’s relocation and the mass resignation of its staff.

“Virtually all of the employees affected by the relocation plan have now responded with their decisions, and approximately four of every ten have agreed to make the move to either New York or the Bay Area, in keeping with our original expectations,” Fils-Aime wrote in a letter posted by Gamasutra in July 2007in which he added that he “can not discuss the relocation status of any individual involved.”

Nintendo’s Senior Vice President, Marketing and Corporate Communications George Harrison, confirmed his resignation at the end of the year during the company’s transition which will end Harrison’s 15-year career with the company.

“I have confirmed to all employees that I will be leaving at the end of December [2007] and not making the move to California,” said Harrison.

Other key executives to resign have not yet been confirmed but includes Senior Director of Public Relations Beth Llewelyn and Vice President, Marking and Corporate Affairs Perrin Kaplan. With the executives leaving this will wipe out a majority of Nintendo of America marketing staff leaving only two executives to take up the loss, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Tatsumi Kimishima and president and Fils-Aime. No word on whether they will leave for San Franscisco or New York at the moment.

Read [Gamasutra] Also Read [Game Informer]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

During the Royal Television Society’s Cambridge Convention held September 14, 2007, Electronic Arts’ chief executive officer, John Riccitiello, stood up for the gaming industry after ITV’s executive chairman, Michael Grade, attacked the industry calling it a “moral vacuum.”

“Those acts of violence [shown in games] exist in a moral vacuum, whereas in films and television, it is set in a moral context, with real consequences, such as pain,” argued Grade.

Riccitiello, who attended the conference as a guest speaker, returned the volley by claiming that the violence portrayed in video games is no worse that the popular television shows being broadcast today.

“Compared with programs like 24 or The Shield, or any movie from Quentin Tarantino, games are not any more violent,” said Riccitiello. “With video games, I can be on the edge of my seat immersed in them, but TV is storytelling – I’m lying back and it comes to me.”

Riccitiello went on to argue that the gaming industry have been acting responsibly then pointed out that most of the home consoles have parental controls and then admitted that although video games have the ability to present moral framework it was still being explored due to the medium’s infancy and then stated he believes that video games in general are being “unfairly demonized” by the press.

Read [Times Online] Site [Electronic Arts] Site [ITV]

Full Story » | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

What in the world is Jack Thompson, an anti-game activist and Miami attorney, doing now? He’s not out on the streets warning parents about the evils of video games as usual or attacking the game industry. Apparently he’s trying to take down business who sell video games now according to a e-mails he’s sent to Joystiq.

Recently, Thompson arranged a stinging operation in which he sent his 15-year-old son into a Best Buy to purchase a copy of BioShock, an M-rated video game published by Take Two Interactive. When his son successfully walked out of the store with the game in his hand, Thompson was quick to demand that Best Buy fired the retail clerk and store manager for selling the game to his son.

This isn’t the first time Thompson conducted his own personal stinging operation. In 2002, he sent his then 10-year-old son into a store to purchase the game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City by Take Two Interactive and later in 2005, his then 13-year-old son, was again sent into a store to purchase an M-rated game. This time junior’s mission was to purchase Warriors by Rockstar.

And what does Thompson have to say about his sting operation?

“The sting proves that Best Buy is not enforcing its own stated policy not to sell adult, Mature-rated games to young kids,” said Thompson. “It was all a public relations lie by Best Buy to fool parents into thinking it is a responsible retailer of porn and violence.”

According to an email Thompson sent Joystiq, he wants to defend children against “hyperviolent and sex-themed Manhunt 2 (Wii, PSP, PS2)” wrote Thompson who went on to say that the video game industry along with retailers who sell video games are lying to the general public. “Grand Theft Auto IV (Xbox 360, PS3) will be widely sold to kids of all ages despite promises by Take Two, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), and major retailers.”

Earlier this year in August, Take Two Interactive file a law suit against Thompson for continuous attempts to have the games published by Take Two Interactive declared a public nuisance under Florida law, again Thompson tried the same tactic in October 2006 when the game Bully was released but Thompson’s contention was rejected by a Florida judge because it violated the company’s first amendment rights which states:

“Amendment I - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

Of course nothing has been mentioned if Thompson allowed his son to keep or play the video games he was sent into the store to purchase.

Read [Joystiq] Site [US Government - Bill of Rights]

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Sierra Entertainment has announced that it is willing to ramp up the development of new products based on four titles from different genres - real-time strategy, open world, first person shooters and children’s games.

The games, most of which have already been released, include F.E.A.R. as a new first-person shooter by Sierra followed by Prototype as an open-world action title from Radical Entertainment, a polished TimeShift from Sabre Interactive and a future development of The Spiderwick Chronicles as a movie based children’s game to be released on February 2008.

“On top of these four pillars of genres we’re going to create original IP (Intellectual Properties), and I would say we’re pretty solid in that direction compared to any other publisher,” said Martin Tremblay, president of Sierra Worldwide Studios. “We’re going to be up there with the big guys with regard to creating new franchises.”

Trembley added that compared to other Game Publishers on the market today, its’s still considered the new kid on the block and knows its sudden risk-taking strategy will surprise a lot of people.

Sierra’s Senior Marketing Executive, Al Simone, said the third party space is currently dominated by Electronic Arts:

“...and then there’s everybody else - maybe Activision has broken out of that pack a little bit - competing to be the number three. We have great respect for what EA’s been able to accomplish.

Do we expect our third party share to grow? Absolutely. It’s going to come on the back of innovation, very fresh product experiences, covering all the platforms. Will we be number one? It’s always going to be our goal, but that’s one that’s off in the distance future.”

Simone and Tremblay said their commitment to quality is there and they plan to take a real step forward in terms of the balance of licensed titles, original IP and strong sequels.”

Tremblay said he and his entire organization are more than committed to embracing the risks associated with creating original products and looks forward to generating intellectual properties across the board to bring quality games to the gaming community at a pace most third party companies have yet to achieve.

“I wouldn’t describe our appetite as being over-committed to either console or PC. Both platforms are viable and are a big part of what we do. It’s like a 60-20-20 split between consoles, handheld and PC,” Simone said. “We have many examples of bringing very high quality products to market, and what (Tremblay) and his team are bringing is a discipline to do that consistently, in a world where product investment has escalated versus the previous generation.”

Read [Game Industry Biz] Site [Sierra Entertainment]

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“We are taking a break from the Metroid series and from Samus”, said series director and Retro, Mark Pacini during a video interview on Yahoo Games. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption which shipped for the Nintendo Wii console last week was the series third and final installment.

Retro Studios, owned by Nintendo, blew the dust off and revitalized the old Nintendo sci-fi favorite when it began creating the Metroid Prime series. While many were skeptical about the game’s character Samus moving from the old side-scrolling action adventure to a first person shooter, the game was able to successfully held true to the story of the old game while introducing new functions and playability to the newer version.

After enduring several canceled projects to include Raven Blade for the Nintendo GameCube in 2001, Metroid Prime gave the company new life and, since then, has been dedicated to the series. Pacini said after eight years of creating the series they want a break bur promises there will be other games to experience.

“I’m sure there’ll be other titles created, but as far as the Retro Studios is concerned, we’re taking a break for a little bit,” Pacini said but no word on upcoming games from Retro Studios have been announced as of yet.

Read [Computers & Videogames] Also Read [Gamez Space] Site [Retro Studios]

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HOOAH! A warcry for paratroopers and a way of life for the United States Army. I should know ... I work with them every day. I may not wear the digital patterned Army Combat Uniform but I do know a majority of them are gamers. It was no surprise when recruiting game America’s Army was featured on the list of games for the Summer 2007 CPL Championships being held Aug. 30, 2007,  to Sept. 2, 2007, at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

According to Cyberathlete Professional League registration site, gamers can compete on America’s Army PC game stations and America’s Army: Rise of a Soldier on the Xbox game station during the four-day event. Gamers will get a chance to play with the America’s Army Future Soldier Trainer which is similar to the virtual trainers already in use on military installations. It uses real weapons modified with lasers so that the user can feel the recoil of a real weapon as they fire at targets or participate in different scenarios that range from single player training to multiplayer missions that have been adapted from the America’s Army PC game.

Having played on the simulators personally and actually qualified on the virtual ranges and took out a terrorist with one shot. And for anyone who plans to attend this competition, you have to try out the virtual trainer. I personally guarantee its awesomeness.

Read [Yahoo Biz] Also Read [Cyberathlete Professional League] Site [America’s Army]

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Conspiracy Entertainment recently announced that a new agreement with German game publisher and developer RTL Games Ltd. will allow Conspiracy Entertainment to distribute RTL’s new game releases in the US, Canada and Mexico.

RTL Games Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the RTL Interactive GmbH and a subsidiary of the German division of Europe’s leading entertainment network, RTL Group, has designed and published casual style videogames for a variety of game publishers to include the Nintendo Wii system. Titles include Ski Alpine Racing 2007 and Simon the Sorcerer.

Since August 1, 2007, RTL has been working on developing games for all consoles including a few sports title under the name of Black Inc. and, although the agreement has just been signed,  are looking forward to publishing adventure, action and sports titles for the US. As of yet no stateside releases or titles have been named.

Read [CNN Money] Site [Game Daily] Site [RTL Games]

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Have you ever become so infuriated with a game because you just can’t seem to overcome an obstacle. Like the hand-numbing button masher scene in the first Metal Gear Solid when you have to save Snake from getting electrocuted to death by Ocelot? Or maybe you just want to do something funny like give James Bond a bobble head or play as a piece of Tofu in Resident Evil, put your character in god mode or even unlock secret ending movies or minigames?

Who didn’t enjoy the bobble head mode on James Bond: Goldeneye or the extra blood splatter on Mortal Kombat?

Gamer Help Online recently posted 99 - yes you read that right - codes that will unlock secret movies, game enhancements, practical jokes, humor, mini-games and system tricks.

One of the tricks available on the list is the hot towel red ring remedy trick for the Xbox 360, but please be advised to try this at your own risk since I do not own an Xbox 360 (yet) and have not tried this myself. According to Gamer Help online, the towel trick seems to solve the problem many Xbox 360 owners seem to be experiencing lately. The site suggests that if your console keeps getting the red ring warning light three times in a row, shut the system off and wrap it in a towel. Then turn it back on for at least an hour then shut it off again. Remove the towel and viola, the system will function normally.

My all time favorite secret is the 7777 HP damage in Final Fantasy 7. Though this is a hard trick to pull off, but having that code makes the final battle with Sephiroth a whole lot easier to deal with than the long drawn out traditional way.

Read [Gaming Today] Site [Gamer Help]

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