Star Ocean: Second Evolution

Saw this on the PSP section of DCEMU. Looks like you can now get your hands on a copy of the US version of Star Ocean: Second Evolution for the PSP. Great news for people like me who have yet to experience the sequel to the SNES RPG, though I would most likely get it later (I'm still working my way through the PSP remake). Hopefully, I finish both before Last Hope comes out.

New from Success hk who ship worldwide.


Space Date 366: A young Federation officer finds himself transported to a mystical planet, where he is suddenly anointed as the Hero of Light. He begins a journey to fulfill a prophecy and save a newfound race. Continuing the franchise for STAR OCEAN fans, this PSP release of the classic RPG delivers the same epic storytelling and dazzling art style. Set 20 years after the events of its predecessor, STAR OCEAN: Second Departure receives special treatment in its PSP incarnation to further entice gamers to relive the adventure. The title takes the next step with fully animated movies, all-new character designs, extra playable characters, fully voiced dialogue, and more.

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Where's the updates??

Apparently, I haven't been putting too much effort into my blog. I dunno if this is some kind of sickness that plagues first time bloggers (kinda like when I tried making a game with RPG maker XP back then, I lost motivation pretty damn early in its development) but I hope I can make up. If I don't start posting more articles in the coming days, guess it's better if I lay off this blog permanently (hopefully things don't come to this). See you later guys!

Dead Rising 2

Developer Blue Castle is rumored to be working on a sequel to the zombie-filled Xbox 360 launch title, Dead Rising. I dunno what other games Blue Castle has worked on but hopefully they don't do a messed up job with this one since I was hooked to Dead Rising. Here's a snippet of the article I found the news from:

A source close to Canadian developer Blue Castle Games has told Eurogamer that the studio is making a sequel to Dead Rising.

Rumours that the Vancouver-based outfit was working on the zombie project first emerged last year, but neither the developer nor publisher Capcom has confirmed anything on the record. But while Eurogamer was on a secret mission in Vancouver last week, we were told by a source familiar with the project that Capcom has indeed farmed out development to the Western team.

The source said: "Everyone's really excited; the team has obviously seen the rumours and it's been hard to keep quiet, but they can't wait to show off the game."

Read the full article here:
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=285199

Nintendo DS Version 3 (DSi)

Looks like Nintendo wants to come out with a 3rd iteration to their insanely popular handheld (damn, this thing just flies in Japan. Seems like every person in a japanese family has 1 or 2). This time called the DSi, it'll include a couple of new features compared to the DS Lites we have now. Here's the lowdown:

* No more GBA slot, the size has been reduced by 12%.
* 2x 0.3 Megapixel (640x480) camera (1 in front and 1 at the back)
* Built-in memory
* On-board browser
* SD card slot
* Photo and sound editor

What, no GBA slot? Well it seems Nintendo had to cut that out in order to get the DSi to have all these new features, while at the same time getting it to become even slimmer than its predecessors. Not really a big deal if you ask me since mostly everyone in the Universe has a DS already so they could still use that for GBA games, and get this new one if they need the new features.

The DSi goes on sale at Japan on November 1 for 18,900 yen. That's about $185. No details yet on a US release.

EGM November 2008 Reviews

Straight out of Neogaf:

Reviews:

Wario Land: Shake it! - C+, A-, C+
Good: Classic Wario playability, sumptuous artwork
Bad: Lackluster levels, tired design

De Blob - B
Good: Simple, colorful fun
Bad: Too-similar levels, unnecessary motion controls

Mercenaries 2: World in Flames - B+, B-, B
Good: Endlessly satisfying destruction
Bad: Gimped co-op, lacks polish

Megaman 9 - B+
Good: Old-school aesthetic and challenge
Bad: Difficulty sometimes borders on masochistic

Silent Hill: Homecoming - B, C+, B-
Good: Silent Hill never looked so good
Bad: Slow framerate, clunky controls

Fracture - C-
Good: Terraforming works well enough
Bad: Ridiculously derivative

Midnight Club: Los Angeles - B
Good: Solid controls, addictive leveling system, amazing re-creation of LA
Bad: inconsistent difficulty, some visual glitches and framerate

NBA Live 09 - B
Good: Daily roster updates
Bad: Way too many blocks

NBA 2K9 - A-
Good: 5-on-5 online games
Bad: Complicated controls

FIFA 09 - B+
Good: Improves a lot of stuff that FIFA 09 did wrong
Bad: Goalkeeper A.I. is still frustratingly incompetent

Infinite Undiscovery - B, B, C+
Good: Seamless real-time battles
Bad: Clunky menus and interfaces

Rock Band 2 - A-, A-, A
Good: Enormous setlist
Bad: Unlocking songs is taxing

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood - A GOTM
Good: Fantastic action-lite RPG in the spirit of Super Mario RPG series
Bad: BioWare's buyout by EA may mean no sequels

The Legend of Kage 2 - B-
Good: Classic ninja gameplay
Bad: Rudimentary level design

Away: Shuffle Dungeon - B-
Good: Clever core gimmick with solid action on top
Bad: Not much going on beyond the gimmick

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia - A-
Good: Deep gameplay, spooky graphics and music
Bad: Confusing puzzles, cut-and-paste levels

Kirby: Super Star Ultra - A-
Good: Plenty of powers to absorb
Bad: Forgettable DS-specific features

Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise - B+
Good: Addictive as always!
Bad: Addictive as always...

Star Ocean: The First Departure - B+
Good: Addictive item creation, relationship bulding
Bad: Archaic storyline and presentation

Spore - B+
Good: Seeing you and your buddies' creations
Bad: An imperfect mix of genres

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Killzone 2 Online Beta Gameplay Videos

Saw this post at ps3forums about some quality beta videos of Killzone 2. Here they are straight from youtube:

Gears of War 2 New Images

Gamersyde got a hold of some new screenshots for Gears of War 2 which show of just how amazing the detail is in the environments. If you ask me, this is really a step up from the original Gears of War. Here are some of the images showing that detail:

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