via CB

Looks like Harry Potter’s Hogwartz is going to get a little competition when it comes to magic schools and turning out master magicians. NIS America’s GrimGrimoire brings RTS/RPG gameplay to the PS2 with an innovative 2D atmosphere and an easy-to-learn playing scheme to help newbies learn the ropes.

There hasn’t been a lot of press covering this game, but it’s definitely one of the more original titles that is seeing shelf life this summer. I mean, seriously, what the heck was up with Shadowrun and Call of Jaurez? Geesh. Anyway, GrimGrimoire introduces gamers to 2D, strategic army battling with up to sixteen monsters in four different magic categories.

But in addition to the game’s unique playing mechanics, GrimGrimoire is built around beautifully drawn images. It’s amazing that graphics can still look fantastic, without the need of the Unreal Engine 3 or the CryEngine 2. Nevertheless, the nature of the beast says a $60 price tag on a pseudo life-like model file will guarantee platinum sales, with the exception of Bullet Witch. But that’s because that game sucked. Anyway – back to the real meat and potatoes – GrimGrimoire contains some of the following key features, and soon you'll be able to check the game out at your local for the suggested retail price of $39.95.

GrimGrimoire Key Features:

, • Grimoire Battle System Summon p to 16 monster types from 4 different magic categories. Each category is stronger and weaker from another, so summon monsters according to your adversary.

• Side Scrolling Battle Map Departing from the console n-friendly birds eye view of the

• RTS battle map GrimGrimoire adopts a simple yet unique side view map. The 2D view allows players to quickly acknowledge the situation and navigate to battle enemies.

• 50 challenging stages There are p to 50 challenging stages for players to enjoy. Each stage can be revisited through an intuitive bookshelf system that keeps all the stages vis ally in order for easy access.

• Stunning 2D Visuals Prepare to be st nned by the animated “artwork ” both in and o t of the battles of GrimGrimoire. ...

via Tech Shout



KOEI, the game company synonymous with strategy and action games announced a new game called Warriors Orochi for the Xbox 360 and PS2 consoles.

Warriors Orochi is a merge between two of KOEI’s blockbuster franchises- Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors. Yes, this new game will feature around 77 playable characters from both franchises.

About the game:

Without warning, the evil Serpent King Orochi descended from the skies above. Using his unworldly powers to shatter time and space, Orochi kidnapped the strongest, wisest and most courageous warriors from Ancient China and Feudal Japan in a scheme to test his might against the heroes of these ages.

Most of the great armies of these two periods would succumb to the might of Orochi. Yet powerful warriors remain and are ready to continue the fight. Now, the greatest showdown in history is about to take place.

Warrior Orochi includes new modes such as “Team Battle System” and “Weapon Fusion”, taking tactical action games to a whole new level.

Also, players will be able to create their own three-person tag team. So, at any given time, when one warrior is engaged in battle, the other two could be taking time off to recuperate and restore their Life Meters and Musou Guages.



Warriors Orochi will also see the characters categorized according to their offensive abilities. The game also includes many new fighting techniques.

KOEI’s Warriors Orochi game for the Xbox 360 and PS2 game consoles is being developed by the company’s internal team OMEGA FORCE. This game is expected to ship to North American retailers on September 18, 2007. ...

via Gaming Today

Some people thought that when the PS3 was released, that the PS2 would eventually fade into obscurity. Obviously this is not the case. The PS2 actually outsells the PS3 and is keeping up there with the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. It’s often overlooked, but I think the continued success of the PS2 is one of the big reasons that the next generation Sony console has yet to really catch on.

I actually got rid of my PS2 about a year ago and sold all my games for it. Of course, that turned out to be a big mistake because I really missed the system. I missed it so much; I picked up a PS2, memory card and 6 games yesterday. The system with the games combined was still cheaper than purchasing say a Nintendo Wii.

I truly believe that the PS2 will continue to be a viable option for at least another year or two. The original Xbox has already pretty much faded but I don’t see this happening with the PS2 especially considering the great library of games and cheap prices. ...

via Kotaku

So I am sitting here trying to figure out what to say about the press release I just received, and words are failing me completely. RPG gods BioWare are teaming up with Sega to create a Sonic RPG for the Nintendo DS. My excitement glands and cynicism glands just leapt out of my body and are sword fighting across the top of my desk. We'll see what Sega of America president Simon Jeffery has to say while I wrangle these suckers.

"BioWare is one of the hottest names in RPG development in the world," said Simon Jeffery, President and COO, SEGA of America, Inc. "Everyone at SEGA has huge confidence that Sonic is in the safest of hands, and that BioWare can create the ultimate handheld RPG experience for gamers of all ages."

So we have BioWare, who have never created anything I didn't love, working in the Sonic universe, which lately has been transformed into a giant farm where they only grow crap. A shitfarm, if you will. Can a story-driven game about a character who has always been about blindingly fast action even work?

If I think about this too much my head will explode, or I'll be torn into two separate beings with the evil side getting the goatee. Kind of fond of my goatee. Here, have a press release.

SEGA And BioWare Collaborate On New Sonic Role Playing Game For The Nintendo DS

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO (Thurs 21st June 2007) - SEGA® Europe, Ltd., SEGA® of America, Inc. and Canada-based developer studio BioWare® Corp. today announced a partnership to create a new video game based on the classic SEGA flagship icon, Sonic The Hedgehog. The exact name of the game is undetermined, but this new title developed exclusively for the Nintendo DS will ship in 2008.

"BioWare is one of the hottest names in RPG development in the world," said Simon Jeffery, President and COO, SEGA of America, Inc. "Everyone at SEGA has huge confidence that Sonic is in the safest of hands, and that BioWare can create the ultimate handheld RPG experience for gamers of all ages."

BioWare is the award-winning independent developer that has created some of the world's best-selling titles including the Baldur's Gate™ and Neverwinter Nights™ series, the 2003 Game of the Year, Star Wars®: Knights of the Old Republic™ and the 2005 RPG of the Year, Jade Empire.™ BioWare is currently developing one of the most anticipated next-generation titles of 2007, Mass Effect.™

"We're thrilled to be working with SEGA on Sonic, one of the industry's most enduring and compelling icons," said Greg Zeschuk, president of BioWare. "As huge fans of Sonic ourselves, we're committed to delivering a truly amazing story-driven experience within the Sonic universe, focusing on capturing the character's broad appeal and placing him in a completely original adventure," added Ray Muzyka, chief executive officer of BioWare.

The relationship with BioWare reinforces SEGA's increased emphasis on Western content development for Western audiences. In the past few years SEGA has announced partnerships with developers Bizarre Creations, Gas Powered Games, Monolith Productions, Obsidian Entertainment, Planet Moon Studios, Pseudo Interactive and Silicon Knights. SEGA has also acquired development studios The Creative Assembly, Secret Level and Sports Interactive. ...

via eurogamer

SEGA Racing Studio's new vision of SEGA Rally should be arriving on Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network in demo form prior to release.

Racing Studio boss Guy Wilday also told Eurogamer that the team is currently targeting a September release for the game across PS3, Xbox 360, PC and PSP.

"We'll look to do potentially 360 and PS3 downloadable demos before release," Wilday said of the demo, although he admitted that content plans weren't locked down.

"We're looking at exactly how the demo's going to work and what we're going to do. The balancing act with demos is always obviously not to give too much away," he explained.

"We want people to get the experience of the game without giving the game away. So that's our challenge - we'll get some more bits of the game finished and then we'll make the final decision as to exactly what we're going to do."

During our visit to Racing Studio in sunny Solihull, near Birmingham, we also asked Wilday about the potential for PC and Xbox 360 cross-play. "I'm not sure that's going to make it in," he admitted. "We'll see. We're still finalising our PC specs to be honest with you. It's something we'd love to do, but we'll see."

Just for the hell of it, we also asked about PS3-PSP link potential. "It's something that's been discussed of course. Again, I'm not sure it's going to make it into this version," he said.

It wasn't all talk of demos, dates and cross-dressing though - we just like to ask those so we can splash news in your faces. The meat of the trip was to play SEGA Rally for the first time, and that we did. You can read our extensive first impressions of the game right now. We also have some sexy new PS3 and Xbox 360 screenshots.

And if you fancy shouting at each other about which is teh bestest consoel!11oneoneshift, you can read some of Wilday's comments on game development in an exclusive interview with our sister site GamesIndustry.biz. ...

via eurogamer

SEGA Racing Studio's new vision of SEGA Rally should be arriving on Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network in demo form prior to release.

Racing Studio boss Guy Wilday also told Eurogamer that the team is currently targeting a September release for the game across PS3, Xbox 360, PC and PSP.

"We'll look to do potentially 360 and PS3 downloadable demos before release," Wilday said of the demo, although he admitted that content plans weren't locked down.

"We're looking at exactly how the demo's going to work and what we're going to do. The balancing act with demos is always obviously not to give too much away," he explained.

"We want people to get the experience of the game without giving the game away. So that's our challenge - we'll get some more bits of the game finished and then we'll make the final decision as to exactly what we're going to do."

During our visit to Racing Studio in sunny Solihull, near Birmingham, we also asked Wilday about the potential for PC and Xbox 360 cross-play. "I'm not sure that's going to make it in," he admitted. "We'll see. We're still finalising our PC specs to be honest with you. It's something we'd love to do, but we'll see."

Just for the hell of it, we also asked about PS3-PSP link potential. "It's something that's been discussed of course. Again, I'm not sure it's going to make it into this version," he said.

It wasn't all talk of demos, dates and cross-dressing though - we just like to ask those so we can splash news in your faces. The meat of the trip was to play SEGA Rally for the first time, and that we did. You can read our extensive first impressions of the game right now. We also have some sexy new PS3 and Xbox 360 screenshots.

And if you fancy shouting at each other about which is teh bestest consoel!11oneoneshift, you can read some of Wilday's comments on game development in an exclusive interview with our sister site GamesIndustry.biz. ...

via N-Sider

Famitsu has released details and screenshots on a new fishing game for Wii. Six-O Legend isn't the first fishing game for Wii, but it will be the first online fishing game. Bass Fishing Wii is being developed by Sims, the team behind the Dreamcast game Sega Bass Fishing which worked with the Dreamcast fishing rod peripheral. You can check out Sims' unusual game mascot for the title at the official website.

The game will include six locations for bass fishing, including the Grand Canyon and Crater Lake in North America, among others. The different levels include changing seasons, weather, and time of day. There will be various gameplay modes available, such as time attack and, as previously mentioned, online. No specific details have been released regarding the online mode.

Bass Fishing Wii is currently set for a release later this year in Japan, but there is no word yet on a North American release. ...

via Gaming Bits

SEGA is sponsoring an Armored Core 4 Tournament for the Xbox 360. Be among the last to survive in a ladder of 128 and you'll be rewarded with Xbox 360 gear.

To the last mech standing: "The grand prize winner wins an Xbox 360 Elite system, Xbox 360 HD-DVD player, Armored Core 4 for the Xbox 360, a Logitech Harmony remote, and Logitech Z-540 Speakers."

Four runner-ups will win an Xbox 360 HD-DVD player, Armored Core 4 for the Xbox 360, and a Logitech Harmony remote.

Signup here by 6/24/07! Read the rules of the tournament here.

...

via Cubed3

THQ has today revealed that it will be bringing the popular Warhammer 40,000 series to Nintendo's DS at long last, under the title of "Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command". The game will bring the carnage of the 41st millennium to gamers this coming Autumn, taking full advantage of the system's unique features. This edition will feature a new and immersive single-player campaign, along with a robust global multiplayer component, which seems to imply it will use Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connection.

"Bringing the Warhammer 40,000 universe to handheld systems creates exciting new game play options for fans across the globe. An all-new single-player storyline and the ability to battle head-to-head with anyone in the world make this an exciting addition to the Warhammer 40,000 library."
- Bob Aniello, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, THQ.

For those that have no idea what the Warhammer 40,000 series is about, here is the company blurb about Squad Command:

"Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command marks the first time the brutal, war-ravaged world of Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 universe will be playable on the Nintendo DS. Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command features action-packed combat and turn-based strategy through an engaging, authentic single-player storyline. Gamers play as the elite Space Marines of the Ultramarines chapter and strive to combat the encroaching evil of the daemonic forces of Chaos through 13 cinematically-tied missions. With a robust multiplayer mode featuring nine unique missions, gamers will team up to go head-to-head with other players worldwide as either the Imperium of Man or Chaos, ensuring hours of replay ability. Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command will also fully utilise all the portable functionality of the Nintendo DS, including the dual-screen and stylus." ...