The Wii's growing lineup of anime-influenced titles has thus far consisted primarily of ports of PS2 or GameCube game engines with a few gimmicky Wiimote actions thrown in. Given its minimal support for the Wiimote, we have a feeling that One Piece Unlimited Adventure is no different and was originally planned for a system with a more standard input option. However, in the end, Wii owners are getting this latest One Piece game all to themselves.

Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates are playable in Unlimited Adventure, which, like the title suggests, is an adventure game with a large world to explore and lots of enemies to fight. The adventure begins as the crewmembers find themselves scattered about a mysterious island following a shipwreck. Initially, you take control of Luffy in a search about the island for the remaining crew members, but Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, Nami, Tony Tony Chopper, Robin and Franky quickly join the roster.

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It's almost impossible to write about dogs and videogames without mentioning a certain hit Nintendo-published DS game in which you interact with a variety of puppies. But, I'm going to make the bold attempt and not pair the words "Nintendo" and the second half of the plural "Dogs" for the remainder of this writeup on Yuke's The Dog Island.

My task isn't too hard, actually, as The Dog Island is nothing like the Nintendo game that features all the dogs. First off, The Dog Island is on the Wii rather than the DS. Also, whereas the Nintendo dog game is more of a virtual pet sim rather than an actual game, The Dog Island is an RPG. You won't be using the Wiimote to pet your puppies here.

Our story begins in a small town somewhere. It's the day of the great festival, and you've just won the official treasure hunt. You decide to give your prize to your little brother, who snuck out of home against your mother's wishes. Then tragedy strikes, as your brother collapses! It turns out that he has an illness, and the only way to cure him is to head to Dog Island and fetch some medicine from the doctor. This involves a journey across the dangerous seas in a pirate's boat, but you decide to take up the challenge.

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It's becoming a familiar tune, and it's one we really don't mind hearing. Once again, Nintendo is topping the videogame charts in Japan, producing a pinnacle of payload payoff for both Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. As reported by Japan's Weekly Famitsu magazine (the top source of gaming info in Japan), April 23 - 29 was all about Nintendo once again, as software sales continue to dominate on both the handheld and console fronts. Though specific numbers aren't given, the magazine reported on the top ten list for software sales. The following info is taken directly from that report:

Top Ten Japan Software Sales: 4/23 - 4/29


1. Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (DS)

2. Super Paper Mario (Wii)

3. Momotarou Dentetsu DS: Tokyo & Japan (DS)

4. Wii Sports (Wii)

5. Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree (Wii)

6. Gyakuten Saiban 4 (DS)

7. One Piece Unlimited Adventure (Wii)

8. Panel de Pon DS (DS)

9. Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis (DS)

10. Wii Play (Wii)

So with Nintendo DS currently leading the pack with Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, both systems have five out of ten places on the list, showing an equal dominance of both handheld and console for Japan sales. No specific numbers were given, but we'll have the latest in US and Japan sales as the info becomes available. From the looks of it thus far, Nintendo is starting to take back the industry it's credited for creating, at least in Japan. ...

It's been six months since we received any details about Devil May Cry 4, Capcom's latest installment in the fast paced action franchise. We learned at TGS that a new character named Nero was taking the lead role of the title instead of Dante, and that his abilities will be somewhat different than the legendary Son of Sparda. However, the build that was shown then was still very early, and while it featured some slowdown and hints of large boss characters, we were teased without a lot of information about the upcoming title. Well, at their recent Gamer's Day, Capcom finally revealed the latest details about the game as well as a new playable demo of the title.

Hiroyuki Kobayashi, the producer of the title, was on hand to fill in more details about the upcoming game, which sounds like it will be much larger than any of the previous titles in the series. He started by introducing Nero once again, a young man from the town of Fortuna who belongs to a group of devil hunters known as the Order of the Sword. Nero is a unique member of the organization thanks to his weaponry and abilities. Instead of packing twin pistols like Dante, Nero's sidearm is a double barreled pistol known as the Blue Rose, which packs a serious punch. His sword is just as dangerous. Known as the Red Queen, it's a massive blade with a motorcycle handle in the hilt which Nero can rev up to inflict even more damage on his target.

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Go on, be honest. WWII games are soo 60 years ago. You'd think that shooting Nazis would never get old, and yet, here we are. It's time to move on, but before we do that, let's take a quick look back.

The WWII shooter genre was here to stay from the moment Medal of Honor stormed onto the scene back in the days of the PSone. Gamers loved the authenticity of the weapons and liveries, the recreations of famous campaigns and the grittiness of the setting as a whole. It was with Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, however, that the fledgling genre took its first big step forward, with the player's role no longer falling into the Rambo category - single-handedly taking down the enemy forces, but instead became that of a cog in the war machine. The scale of the battles suddenly grew, and the player now assaulted enemy positions flanked by squads of allies, with fire echoing all around.

Call of Duty took that this concept one step further. Little wonder either, given that many members of the Allied Assault development team left to form Infinity Ward. Call of Duty was intensely cinematic - comrades fell as they charged, shells rocked the ground and planes got shot down as you were desperately crouching behind cover. Since then, the series has become one of the WWII shooter genre's greatest stalwarts, with a slew of releases across both PC and consoles. Ask the hardcore fans about the games in the series, however, and they'll tell you that it's the Infinity Ward titles that stand head and shoulders above the rest, which is why it's so exciting - after Treyarch developed Call of Duty 3 - for Infinity Ward to be back for Call of Duty 4. And let's not forget the biggest bombshell; that this is the first game in the series not to be set during WWII.

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So which are you? A hardcore old-skool purist who spits on anything that dares to stray beyond the second dimension or a drooling new-age graphics whore - the kind whose scrotum physically inverts if the number of polygons in a game drops below the number of DNA strands in the human body? Well, step right up boys and girls, because CRUSH is the game to build bridges, link hands and caress thighs for both camps. Why, it's almost as if the internet never happened…

So, with that tenuous intro out the way, let's have a look at SEGA's latest PSP title - a pan-dimensional platform puzzler, if you must. As is the way with buses, videogames and STIs, you wait ages for one and then, all of a sudden, a whole bunch come along at once. We are, of course, referring to the slightly unfortunate proximity of both CRUSH and Nintendo's Super Paper Mario. If you've cast your eyes over synopses of either then you'd be forgiven for throwing your hands in the air and hooting like a kazoo in a wind tunnel. However, while there are definite similarities between the perspective-flexing progression of both games, where Mario dabbles, CRUSH pushes the concept with utterly focussed determination.

Everybody loves a block with a sad face.
Ignoring the over-elaborate narrative framework of CRUSH for a minute, the game is pretty much pure puzzler, with snatches of platform action thrown in. Each small, perfectly-formed level consists of stacked blocks suspended over nothing in particular. While some are conveniently placed close together, others are impossible to reach under normal circumstances. Thankfully then, you've got your titular 'crush' ability to see you through to the exit. While levels are fully navigable in three dimensions (provided there's a route through), progress frequently requires adjusting the camera to one of five perspectives (assuming the level is roughly cubed shaped, that's one for each side and one overhead view) then crushing.

Essentially, everything on the side you've selected flattens together, making for one long 2D passage. That means that blocks seemingly miles away can spring forward and join with platforms in the foreground. It's then simply a matter of clambering up then un-crushing to whisk yourself deeper into the level. Well, 'simple' might not be quite the right word for it. You see, blocks come in three different types, indicating how they'll behave once crushed. Green blocks form solid impenetrable walls and ledges, dark blocks become hollow while any highlighted areas within form platforms and, finally, ghost blocks vanish completely in 2D mode.

And who said retro was dead?
In other words, it's not simply a case of crushing wildly and platform-hopping to victory. You'll need to study each level's layout carefully to figure out the path through. Complicating things further, each level's exit only opens once you've accrued sufficient points - gained by collecting different colour orbs. That means it's not just a case of reaching the end point - you'll have to make numerous diversions to gain a sufficient quotient to wrap things up.

If that wasn't enough to be dealing with though, you also have to grapple with alarm clocks which threaten to wake you from your slumber (or, if you're not following the story, send you back to the previous checkpoint), boulders which can be rolled to form platforms and 'thoughts'. The latter act almost like jigsaw pieces - squash the different fragments together to form a complete whole and you'll either reap benefits or rue the day. For instance, completing a trophy offers up a reward that contributes to unlocking new items, while other thoughts might disable the exit while it's on screen.

Bugs serve as yet another obstacle. Crush 'em, right?
If CRUSH sounds complicated, that's because it is. There's simply a ton of stuff to keep track of at any one time. From what we've played so far too, this could either end up being the game's greatest strength or its biggest curse. While the sheer depth of proceedings makes for some incredibly satisfying puzzle and platform action, we found things incredibly overwhelming at times. That's particularly true of more complicated levels: certain areas feature multiple routes across platforms of varying heights. With so much geometry to contend with, we found it hard to keep track of all the different permutations possible when crushing a particular perspective. Simply, there was way too much on screen, leading to endless repetitive crush and un-crush trial-and-error progress. Throw in movable obstacles - many requiring numerous re-crushes before they're in the right place - plus those different block types to keep in mind and there's an awful lot to confound you.

Despite this, there's no doubting the game's impressive implementation. Levels are fiendish in their design and even CRUSH's bizarre Psychonauts-style storyline, involving a hunt through the memories of an insomniac to find a cure, is superbly ...

via IGn

Imagine a threat prophesied to destroy an entire clan that also endangers the world. No one is powerful enough to stand up to the danger that's been posed, which has emboldened rogues and other unsavory characters to launch savage incursions on a kingdom. The only possible salvation for the land is a party led by a brave adventurer. If this sounds like a plot ripped directly from a fantasy movie, you might be close, but Dungeon and Dragons fans know this adventure module formula well. Soon, they'll be able to take the pen and paper game on the go as Atari and Kuju Entertainment bring Dungeons and Dragons Tactics to the PSP. We managed to check out an updated build for some new impressions of the anticipated RPG.

Like most D&D games, players start out by building their individual parties from a variety of character classes. Tactics will feature 13 different classes for players to choose from, including classic roles like Barbarians and Clerics. There are some newer types of warriors that can be chosen as well, like Psionicists and Psychic Warriors. If players happen to be new to the D&D universe and don't particularly feel like manually allocating skill points and choosing feats and spells (or you don't trust letting the computer making your choices for you), they can always select from one of 26 pre-created characters. Regardless of what you decide, one of your characters will be the primary figure of the story, with the game's actions revolving around his or her personal alignment and their actions.



Pick your party well -- they might just save the world.While fans of the various D&D campaigns might expect Tactics to be set in the Forgotten Realms or Eberron, you won't be crossing the paths of any locations that you'd recognize; Tactics takes place in a brand new setting on a nondescript world map, which features cities and other locations where you'll be able to hire new party members, buy items and other party management aspects. Depending on the location, you may find a cutscene that gives your party a new direction to adventure in, or acquire a mission. Akin to modules themselves, each mission has a varying number of characters that can go out and fight their way through the monsters in their path. Only large scale battles or key plot points will involve all six party members, but you won't have to worry too much about your unused characters falling far behind: they'll still receive experience points for a completed adventure, albeit at a reduced amount.

Once a mission has been chosen, players will press forward in either exploration or combat mode. Characters can move through the various environments, bantering back and forth between each other and performing actions as often as they'd like, such as equipping weapons and shields or resting. However, as soon as an enemy is detected, the game immediately switches into combat mode, with turns for your party and the enemy being dictated by the rules of initiative. When it's someone's turn, they'll have the ability to perform two separate actions: movement and standard actions. Movement obviously dictates forward progress, but it can also be applied to reloading weapons or opening chests or doors. Standard actions, on the other hand, are based around spell or item usage, as well as attacks. Speaking of attacks, players will receive three separate color indicators when they assault an enemy. Red means that there's very little chance of a successful strike, while Orange is a 50% chance of landing a hit and Green is practically guaranteed.

This goblin doesn't stand a chance.The myriad of options that you can select during a mission are designated by the game's spinner wheel, which allows a player access to the various game commands with a simple press of the X button. While it may be somewhat daunting for a novice D&D player or someone who hasn't been exposed to the 3.5 ruleset, you don't have to fear being too swamped by the complexities of the game. Each menu provides a healthy amount of information that breaks down whatever you might be getting involved with, and the game comes with a large glossary of D&D terms to help get everyone up to speed. Tactics also features four different tutorial missions to get players a sense of what the 30-40 hour gameplay will be like, so you'll be ready to take on the hordes that the game throws at you quickly. We'll have more on Dungeons and Dragons Tactics shortly. ...

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