via IGN


Wondering what it's like to play a game that lasts just 30 seconds? In Japan, gamers will get to find out in just a few months. Marvelous Entertainment announced today a final Japanese release date of May 28 for Hero 30 (Yuusha 30 in its native tongue).

But before that, Marvelous is making available series of demo samplers for the title. That's right, a full series of demos! In case you didn't read our initial preview, Hero 30 includes four modes of play, each with a different style of gameplay. To convey what it's like to play each of those modes, Marvelous will be releasing four separate demos.

The first demo hit Japan's PSN today. Additional demo will be released one per month leading up to the final release.

Getting access to PSN from a non-Japanese system is simple (just a few seconds of Googling), so we'd suggest interested parties take a look!


Screenshots ...

via Eurogamer


Hudson online FPS Onslaught leads the WiiWare fortnightly refresher today.

It costs 1000 Wii Points (approx GBP 7.00 / EUR 10.00), and features the future and aliens and four-player Wi-Fi co-op. And there don't appear to be any mini-games.

That's more than can be said of Pop-Up Pirate, which adapts the popular plastic party game starring a salty sea-dog inside a barrel stabbed by swords. This costs 500 Wii Points (approx GBP 3.50 / EUR 5), and has a Party mode for friends or a Logic mode for one person.

Finally, there are new content packs for puzzle game Lonpos. Each costs 300 Wii Points (approx GBP 2.10 / EUR 3) and contains 25 extra challenges, as well as some new backgrounds and visuals.

We'll bring you our thoughts on these soon. ...

via Eurogamer


SEGA Japan has teased a mysterious piece of work called Project RINGO.

The Flash animation on the SEGA Japan website shows a silhouette of a 2D character followed by the words "What happens? ... next_2.24". There's no explanation, but "2.24" could mean 24th February.

The character appears to be female and has big shoes and a sticky-up bit of hair. It's all very cartoony.

This could also be the platform game Sonic father Yuji Naka has been working on.

We're just not sure. What we do know, however, is that Yuji Naka has tested innovative Wii rhythm-platformer Let's Tap on cats and dogs. He even told Eurogamer recently that penguins could play the game. He's clearly mental.

Head over to our interview with Yuji Naka, or our review of Let's Tap, to find out more. ...

via Eurogamer


Square Enix boss Yoichi Wada has said the Dragon Quest IX delay may cause problems for the release of Final Fantasy XIII.

Square Enix plans to launch Final Fantasy XIII exclusivley for PS3 across Japan this year. Europe and North America won't see the sprawling role-playing game until sometime after April 2010.

However, Square Enix won't begin work on the Western Xbox 360 version until the PS3 game has safely launched in Japan. That means that, if the publisher sticks with plans of a simultaneous Xbox 360/PS3 launch in West, we could be waiting even longer.

Still, fresh information for Final Fantasy XIII has begun to trickle out, lead by the arrival of a brand new trailer showing battle gameplay and sumptuous CGI scenes.

Japan will be treated to a Final Fantasy XIII demo next month as part of the Blu-ray release of Advent Children: Complete. There's no word on a Western release yet. ...

via Eurogamer


Sony plans to release Worms, Ragdoll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic, Diner Dash and many others on PlayStation Network this spring.

That's according to a Sony US press release outlining plans for "PSN Spring Fever", which was sent out yesterday.

However, the same list reproduced on the US PlayStation blog has a few amendments, notably the removal of Worms and Diner Dash. There's no explanation, so we've gone in search of one. We'll let you know.

Other games due this spring on PSN, says the press release, are Flower, Noby Noby Boy, No Gravity, Wheel of Fortune, Burn Zombie Burn, The Punisher: No Mercy, Bomberman Ultra, Cellfactor Ignition, Flock, Texas Cheat-'em, Comet Crash, Hammer Fall, Underfire, Watchmen and Zen Pinball.

There's no mention of bonkers action game Fat Princess, sadly.

Our pick of the pack is Ragdoll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic. This is made by LittleBigPlanet developer Media Molecule and puts multiple fighters up against each other in a Smash Bros.-style brawl. The twist comes from characters being flung around by their limbs in a wobbly Saturday night-like mash-up.

Mark Healey of Media Molecule made and released the original Ragdoll Kung Fu on Steam back in 2006 to considerable applause, ours included. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Pokémon Platinum, a beefed-up version of the Diamond and Pearl games that released in 2007, will have British kids shouting "I choose you, Giratina" from May 22.

It's the same deal as with previous enhanced games, Pokémon Yellow, Crystal and Emerald - you get pretty much the same adventure, but with a host of new features and areas to explore.

New stuff includes "new ways to play online at the Wi-Fi Plaza over the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection and the ability to save your greatest victories in the Vs. Recorder."

You'll also get to explore a "brand new Distortion World, governed by neither time nor space", which'll get little Jonny all excited in his Pokémon-branded boots.

And then there's the appearance of Giratina in it's new "Forme", the Origin Forme. That's brilliant too, right Poké-people?

Battle is updated, too. "An all-new Battle Frontier, a special building packed with challenges and tournaments, is accessible after defeating the 'Elite Four' and the Pokémon League Champion - the game's final boss Trainers - and gaining a ferry ticket to the Fight Area.

"In addition, the Global Trade Station from Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version has been expanded and renamed the Global Terminal, where you can check out other people's battles," explains Nintendo. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Here are the latest screens for Wii title Sonic & the Black Knight.

It's part of the 'storybook' series that began with Sonic and the Secret Rings, the title will bring Sonic into the world of Arthurian legend.

In development at the Sonic Team in Japan, the game takes the blue hedgehog into a medieval world armed with a sword to save the day.

Check out NGamer's latest preview here.

The game's out on March 13.


Screenshots ...

via Games Industry


Square Enix has delayed the release of Dragon Question IX in Japan because of a recently discovered "critical bug" in the software.

The DS-exclusive RPG will now launch on 11th July across the region. A European date, the publisher told Eurogamer, remains TBC.


The DQ IX delay, along with a predicted under-performance of offline games, has caused the RPG specialist to lower yearly earning forecasts by 16 per cent. That represents a loss of JPY 27 billion, or approximately GBP 211 million.

The Square Enix financial papers blame "a severe business environment".

We've not seen anything of Dragon Quest IX since an early preview back in 2007. Still, this remains one of - if not the - biggest RPG series in Japan, and developer Level 5 will be lavishing the expected amount of care we've come to expect of each fully-fledged instalment in the series.

And if the quality of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King on PS2 is anything to go by, then we're in for a treat. ...

via Eurogamer


Pretty as a petal PSN game Flower heads the PlayStation Store weekly update today.

It's a bit short to cost GBP 6.29, but that's the price Sony's opted for, and we'd still recommend a purchase; soothing, delicate, serene. Read our full Flower review to find out more.

Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars, a football-like sports/racing affair, is the other PSN game on offer. This costs GBP 7.99, but there's a free trial available.

There's also a second demo for MotorStorm 2: Pacific Rift to try out, plus a PSP sampler for Resistance: Retribution, which we think looks promising.

LittleBigPlanet gains Ape Escape and Toro the cat costumes at GBP 1.59 a pop, and there's a free All-Star Weekend 09 pack for NBA Live 09. Also free is a David Hasselhoff theme for Pain.

Guitar Hero World Tour gets the full Dig Out Your Soul album by Oasis for GBP 13.99. Tracks can be bought individually for GBP 1.59, and comprise of "Bag It Up", "The Turning", "Waiting for the Rapture", "The Shock of the Lightning", "I'm Outta Time", "(Get Off Your) High Horse Lady", "Falling Down", "To be Where There's Life", "Ain't Got Nothin'", "The Nature of Reality", and "Soldier On".

There are also Acoustic and Southern Rock Track Packs at GBP 4.39 each. The former contains "Drive" by Incubus, "New Slang" by The Shins and "Wonderwall" performed by Ryan Adams. The latter, meanwhile, boasts "Commotion" by Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Black Betty" by Ram Jam covered by Wavegroup, and "Gimme All Your Lovin'" by ZZ Top.

Rock Band pickings are slim in comparison: The Fratellis Pack for GBP 2.49. Again, tracks can be snapped up individually for GBP 0.99, and include Creepin' Up the Backstairs", "Flathead" and "Henrietta".

And that's all the weather. ...