Disciples III: Renaissance
Fans of the Disciples franchise will get a new iteration of the cult hit this week, in Disciples III: Renaissance. Not much new stuff to see here. It’s still the same RPG with turn-based battle from the first two games, and even the graphics aren’t that much better. The new features of this version include character models that reflect their equipment, and thief commanders (in the past games thieves could not command other units). With such a small list of improvements over the last game, this one is really only for people who finished Disciples II, and want more plot.
DeathSpank
DeathSpank is touting itself as a truly funny and fun video game, claiming to have a real story, rather than a video game story. The protagonist of this dungeon crawl RPG is presented as being over-the-top violent (to the point of humor apparently), with supporting characters who will likely frequently quip about just how stabby he is. All the humor will likely revolve around killing things with funny voices, in ways that 12 year olds will think is grand. If you can’t tell, I don’t expect much from games which profess to be the first funny game ever. Perhaps I’m just jaded by my recent serious disappointment with another “funny” game, but I’m not even going to give this one a chance. I don’t know, maybe if you’re the kind of person who likes violently non-funny things (someone must, since they keep being made) you’ll like this too.
Toribash
Toribash is a good idea, but its execution may fall short. The concept here is that with simplified fighter models, one can have a fighting game in which the moves are not predefined. The players can use motion controls to fluidly make the fighter do whatever they want. Unfortunately, the designers over-simplified the character models, and they look like the fighters from that old Sega Genesis game, Ballz. There is no attention to character detail nor is there any background art. It’s just ball-and-stick fighters on a white background. The only other real feature of the game is dynamic dismemberment, which is fine, I guess, but not really exciting. Perhaps a developer with a bigger budget or better vision will take up this idea, and make it grand.
Dragon Quest IX: Sentintels of the Starry Skies
The Icrontic spotlight, this week is shines across the slimy skin of Dragon Quest IX: Sentintels of the Starry Skies. Many long-time fans of the franchise were suprised when, after the great success of Dragon Quest VIII, Nintendo announced that Dragon Quest IX would be a DS exclusive. The worry was that the epic nature of the Dragon Quest games might not translate well to the portable medium. Also, the graphics in the PlayStation 2 game were so beautiful, how could they think to top that with a DS game? Of course, the graphics have had to take a major hit, but other aspects of the game seem to have stepped up. The character creation process is much different from past Dragon Quest games, in that the entire party is customizable, from their hair style to their primary class. Every character will be designed by the player. This is a departure from previous games, in which the party was determined by the plot. The big deal here, and the seeming reason for the DS exclusivity is the multi-player modes—most notably, a co-operative mode which features random dungeons. I don’t personally get much opportunity to play multi-player DS games, but that feature alone makes me want to have a Dragon Quest party. I just need more friends with DSes.
Following is a list of this week’s announced North American releases:
Windows
- Disciples III: Renaissance
- pOnd
Wii
- Balloon Pop Festival
- Little League World Series: Double Play
- The Bachelor
- Toribash
DS
- 24/7 Solitaire
- 4 TRAVELLERS
- Animal Planet: Vet Collection
- Chuck E. Cheese’s Party Games
- Dragon Quest IX: Sentintels of the Starry Skies
- Hidden Objects: Mystery Stories
- Junior Classic Books and Fairytales
- Little League World Series: Double Play
- Music on: Retro Keyboard
- Paws & Claws Regal Resort
- Pop Island – Paperfield
- Primrose
- The Bachelor
- The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Xbox 360
- Deadliest Warrior: The Game
- DeathSpank
- Little League World Series Baseball 2010
- NCAA Football 11
PS3
- DeathSpank
- Landit Bandit
- Little League World Series Baseball 2010
- NCAA Football 11
PSP
- Madden NFL 11
- Ys SEVEN
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