Nomura Confirms Kingdom Hearts 3 and 2 New Titles
03/24/2010 at 5:05 PM | Posted in Blog Posts | Leave a commentTags: birth, by, hearts, interview, kingdom, nomura, sleep, ultimania
The Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep doesn’t come out in Japan until tomorrow, but already a few websites have gotten a hold of the Nomura interview included with it. In it Nomura gives new details for the future of the series.
“About the next title, Kingdom Hearts 3 depends on Final Fantasy XIII Versus, but development of the next title is already underway. There are two titles other than Kingdom Hearts 3 in conception, and I think I’ll release one within this year.”
“As from next year, I want to put out a title with multiple main characters.”
“The series won’t end in Kingdom Hearts 3, more like the conclusion of the Xehanort saga.”
“It’s not the case that when Sora’s story is over another hero’s story will begin; Sora will be the hero until the end.”
This is very exciting news indeed.
Also, Nomura made mention of the North American version of Birth by Sleep.
“We added the Critical degree of difficulty, more cutscenes, more songs to the Rhythmic Ice Cream mini game, more Keyblades, more types of enemies and altered battle balance. I still can’t say we’ll release a Final Mix, but we can’t give it the generous treatment like with Re:Chain of Memories.”
If I wasn’t excited before, AND I WAS, I am so much more excited for Birth by Sleep now, if that is even possible.
Thanks to HEARTSTATION.ORG for the translations!
Pokemon SoulSilver Version
03/22/2010 at 5:50 AM | Posted in Nintendo DS | 1 CommentTags: gold, heart, pokemon, review, silver, soul
Pokemon SoulSilver Version Review
This is a remake that I have been waiting for for quite some time. It seems I’ve been waiting a long time for a lot of things lately. HA! To think, some people say I’m impatient. Many Pokemon fans had high hopes for Gold and Silver remakes when FireRed and LeafGreen came out and I was one of those people. I remember when I bought Pokemon Silver and thinking back to it now, it’s so nostalgic. Enough with the sappy stuff, it’s review time, how exciting.
Pokemon SoulSilver is an Adventure/RPG for the Nintendo DS. It was made by Game Freak and was released on March 14th, 2010. I will warn you ahead of time, this review will be slightly abridged, only focusing on the newer things SoulSilver has to offer given the nature of Pokemon games. Also, I will be saying SoulSilver but naturally, you can just fill that in with “HeartGold and SoulSilver”
Story
SoulSilver’s story is pretty much already well known even if you haven’t played the original. You find yourself in New Bark Town where you get your first Pokemon and decide to go off on an adventure to become the champion of Johto. The story for all the Pokemon games (obviously with the exception of Pokemon Ranger, Mysterious Dungeon, etc.) is practically the same with a few twists or differences that make it unique to each title. Let’s get on to the newer and better things this title has to offer.
Score – 8.5
Gameplay
First I would like to mention the peripheral that is being packaged with HeartGold and SoulSilver. Dubbed the “Pokewalker”, it’s basically a pedometer. You transfer a Pokemon to the Pokewalker and walk around with it with the Pokemon gaining experience points for the steps you walk. While a Pokemon can only gain 1 level each time you take it for a stroll the features don’t stop there. As you walk you gain “Watts” these watts are mainly used to unlock new routes. Why new routes? Well, let me explain another feature, as you collect watts you can spend them on things like a Dowsing Machine to find items that appear on the particular route you’ve chosen or you can spend them on a Pokemon Radar that allows you to find and potentially catch Pokemon native to that route. I think the Pokewalker is really great and I think it was really well thought out. Naturally it’s also a great incentive to be a little more active.
Next, I’d like to mention a few of the newer in-game features that set SoulSilver apart from past games. First off, almost every gym has been redesigned with new puzzles for you to figure out. Another addition is the Pokeathlon. The Pokeathalon is a series of minigames you can play. You enter your Pokemon in these events and control them via stylus. It’s a fair amount of fun and it can be pretty challenging. Apricorns make a return in this game but now you can combine a few Apricorns and blend them to make juice. This juice will raise some of your Pokemon’s Pokeathlon stats. Also you now have access to the Berry Pots. You can plant and grow berries right from the convenience of your own bag! This means only being able to grow 4 berry trees at a time, but the convenience is amazing.
Another prominent feature about SoulSilver is the ability to walk with your Pokemon. No not with the Pokewalker, but in the game itself. The first Pokemon in your party will walk alongside you, which in turn, raises its Happiness. They will also occasionally find things. You can compare this feature to Amity Square in Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum. You can talk to them whenever to see how they are feeling given a certain context or environment. I found that the little things like this, really made the game shine.
You would think it would be a no brainer for the DS, but Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum were released and the Pokemon Box system was still controlled by the face and directional buttons. But now, you manage your PC boxes with the touch screen and it has never been easier. It was such a breath of fresh air, and I can imagine, a highly requested feature. Like-wise your Bag is a bit more touch screen oriented, scratch that, the entire game is a bit more touch screen oriented and I can honestly say, these are all improvements.
Score – 9
Graphics
Naturally, the graphics of SoulSilver are a big boost from those of Silver. There’s lots of 3D, the in battle effects are great, the colors are vibrant and character models look great, as well as the Pokemon art. There are a few other details about SoulSilver that I really feel are worth mentioning. These aren’t awe-inspiring things, but they don’t have to be. They really just bring something great to the Pokemon table. The sound of your footsteps, whether on pavement or grass, the sound of waves on the beach or the trickling of water at a pond. The sound of fans blowing in the wind. The use of some more impressive 3D effects. All of these things show that the handheld Pokemon games are really evolving into something great.
Score – 8.5
Final Note
I was really impressed with SoulSilver as I thought I would be. The improvements and extras really make this remake something special and not just a rehash of old material. This game should tide me over for now, but I really can’t wait for the Generation V games to be released.
Overall Rating
Final Fantasy XIII
03/17/2010 at 8:20 PM | Posted in PlayStation 3 | Leave a commentTags: 13, fantasy, final, review, xiii
Final Fantasy XIII Review
4 years in the making and finally, no pun intended, I have Final Fantasy XIII in my hands. This game is, single-handedly, the longest I have ever waited for a video game release. But enough dwelling on the past. I have it, I’ve played it, time to review it.
Final Fantasy XIII is an RPG for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, however I am only reviewing my experiences with the PS3 version. It was developed and published by Square Enix and it was released on March 9th, 2010
Story
Final Fantasy XIII takes place on Cocoon, a city-world floating above a wild planet named Pulse. The residents of Cocoon fear Pulse and anything from it. When a Pulse fal’Cie, a god-like being from Pulse, is discovered to be on Cocoon, a massive panic starts which triggers Cocoons government to immediately order the Purge: the removal of the fal’Cie and anyone in close proximity to it, which includes an entire town. Lightning, a soldier, is searching for her sister Serah, who has been turned into a l’Cie by the Pulse fal’Cie. A l’Cie is given superhuman abilities to complete a task given to them by the fal’Cie. They are feared almost as much as the fal’Cie themselves if not more. Through extraordinary coincidences, this search brings all of the main characters together and, like Serah, they are turned into l’Cie by the Pulse fal’Cie as well. Here is where the story really begins.
Score – 9
Gameplay
In Final Fantasy XIII you’ll explore the worlds of Cocoon and Pulse. If you engage in battle with enemies on the map you will be transported to a separate screen where an active turn based battle will commence. Battles are normally a group of three characters against a set of enemies with you controlling one of those characters as the party “Leader”. The other characters are controlled by AI.
As you wait for your Active Time Battle or “ATB” gauges to fill you will choose actions and execute them on an enemy of your choice once the gauges fill up completely. You can also execute some actions early by pressing the Triangle button. You can’t actively move your characters around the battle field but they will move automatically. This means there can be some skill involved when it comes to the timing and executions of your actions. In FFXIII every action is determined by the ATB gauge meaning MP is not a feature in this game.
FFXIII also introduces what’s called Paradigm Shift. It allows you to assign certain roles and abilities for different characters that you can actively change in the heat of battle. For example, you could have the 3 members of your party in the “Commando” or attacking role. Once your HP gets to a certain level you could use paradigm shift to change their roles, maybe changing one, or even two party members into the “Medics” or healing role. Learning how to properly use Paradigm Shift is the only way to be truly successful in this game.
For an extra bit of help, you can also summon Eidolons, powerful beings that are assigned to each of the l’Cie. Most Final Fantasy games features summons, but the way FFXIII incorporates them into the story is quite interesting.
Score – 9
Graphics
Once again, Square Enix wows on a platform with truly stunning graphics. Pre-rendered scenes are, of course, top notch, but in-game graphics are some of video games greatest to date. I’ve been following this game forever and I was always impressed with how it looked, Square really did next-gen Final Fantasy well. In a first for the Final Fantasy series the game was apparently lip synced to the English language versions. However there are times where it looks as if they thought they didn’t need to change some of the lip movements because they were “close enough”. Also I have a thought that the Japanese lip syncing is a lot better than English. However, as a die-hard fan, I am nit-picking. Overall everything is done really well. The game occasionally drops a few frames but this rarely happens. If it does happen though, I find it is mostly in cutscenes.
Score – 10
Final Note
Final Fantasy XIII was everything I could have hoped it to be. Once again, go figure, I’m really impressed with Square Enix. I think it’s worth mentioning that, the game looks as good as it does, yet load times, with the exception of loading the game up, are nearly non-existent, with no install needed. Battles could be a lot more fun because they could be harder as, 1, you no longer have MP, and 2, you are fully healed after each battle. At first I didn’t like that, but now I realize every battle can be truly exciting and challenging because of it. I have a few, VERY minor issues with FFXIII but they didn’t affect my playing of the game that much. This game really had a lot to offer, whether you’re deciding what Paradigms to use, upgrading your Crystarium (think an improved Final Fantasy X Sphere Grid), upgrading your weapons or taking part in a bunch of optional missions, you’ll spend a pretty fair amount of time on it. Naturally, I really enjoyed Final Fantasy XIII and I think I will be enjoying it for some time.
Overall Rating
Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Officially Announced For North America!
03/16/2010 at 8:48 PM | Posted in Blog Posts | Leave a commentTags: america, birth, by, english, hearts, kingdom, north, sleep, us
Finally, a day that I have personally been waiting for for what seems like forever has finally arrived as Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep for the PSP has finally been officially announced for North America.
The press release has all the details, however, things to note; It’s currently announced for “Summer 2010″ and says that new features will be added. It goes on to list some of these features including; new multi-player options, “Crown Stickers”, and an additional boss. Hopefully more of these new features will be revealed soon.
Thanks to Kotaku, I have some really nice, high quality screenshots!
the brilliant green – LIKE YESTERDAY
03/02/2010 at 4:19 PM | Posted in the brilliant green | Leave a commentTags: like, review, the brilliant green, yesterday
~Single~
the brilliant green – LIKE YESTERDAY
1. LIKE YESTERDAY
2. Spring Gate
3. at light speed (“Sono Speed De” English ver.)
the brilliant green is back with another comeback single! Horrah! But I hear this time they are actually going to come out with a new album. After finally getting to listen to LIKE YESTERDAY I forgot how much I missed the sound of Tomoko Kawase’s voice.
“LIKE YESTERDAY” starts off mid-tempo with acoustic guitar and some lower vocals from Tommy, electric guitar joins soon after. I really liked the chorus and the bridge which features prominent electric guitar and Tommy just vocalizing. I also liked the quieter part after that features some slight clapping. Altogether I guess you could say I really liked this song.
Score – 8.5
If I really liked LIKE YESTERDAY, I think I love “Spring Gate”. I’m not sure why really, although I really liked the feel the chorus gave. The songs tempo is a little faster than LIKE YESTERDAY and it has more going on for the entire song rather than certain parts. I really liked the note held by Tommy at the end and thought it was a great closing to the song.
Score – 9
I’ve never heard Sono Speed De, so when it came to the English version “at light speed”, I didn’t have anything to go by. As far as being in English, I think Tommy has gotten a little better but there are plenty of times where I don’t really know what she is saying. I’m on the fence about everything but the chorus which I thought was done really well, although Tommy’s vocals can sound a little funny at times.
Score – 7.5
Final Note
This was good, but I can only hope for better things to come.
Overall Rating
BoA – IDENTITY
03/01/2010 at 4:14 PM | Posted in BoA | Leave a commentTags: album, boa, identity, review
~Album~
BoA – IDENTITY
1. This Is Who I Am
2. EASY
3. BUMP BUMP! feat. VERBAL (m-flo)
4. LAZER
5. interlude #1
6. is this love
7. Mamoritai ~White Wishes~
8. interlude #2
9. Neko Love
10. The End Soshite and… (album ver.)
11. Possibility duet with Daichi Miura
12. Fallin’
13. my all
OK, so here it is, my review of IDENTITY if ANY of you care anymore considering I slacked off on it for so long. To be honest, the only reason I can give was that I didn’t think it was that good and so I had to force myself to write about it. Again, sorry it took so long.
“This Is Who I Am” kind of sounds like a rip off of some other Japanese songs mashed together. Mainly, I really just got serious Ayumi Hamasaki vibes. Unlike any of the Ayu songs I thought it sounded like, I just found it to be a very uninspiring sounding song. I thought the vocals sounded a little strange throughout and I just really couldn’t get used to it. This song wasn’t really a good way to start an album that I was already skeptical.
Score – 6.5
My only issue with EASY is that it seemed to draw from one of her English songs except it lost any emotion and the way she sings in it, it just sounds really awkward and drags. I really just don’t know what she was going for with those kinds of vocals.
Score – 6.5
When I first listened to “BUMP BUMP!” I really didn’t like it and actually decided to skip it and start reviewing BoA’s singles with Mamoritai ~White Wishes~. However, I will say that that judgement was way too harsh and this song is really not too bad. I really don’t like the rapping, as little as their is, but it doesn’t take too much from it. This song samples some of “It Takes Two” by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock, which at first I thought was a little cheesy but it ended up working well.
Score – 7.5
For some reason I got some serious Lady Gaga vibes from “LAZER”. Nothing really wrong with that considering I love Lady Gaga. I kind of liked the creepier electronic feel that this song has. Unfortunately, a few of the vocals still sound a little dead.
Score – 7
“interlude #1″ just sounded kind of silly with a few footsteps, and at 9 seconds I just didn’t see any real point for it.
Score – 4
I feel like “is this love” could have been a pretty good track if everything was kicked up a few notches. The vocals, the sound and beats just need to all be ramped up. I’m not saying this slower track needs to be turned into a dance track or something but again the song just drags a little and needs more emotion.
Score – 7
Like I said in the review, “Mamoritai ~White Wishes~” is a nice song but at the same time a little bit of a let down when it comes to the chorus. I liked BoA’s vocals in it and it still manages to be a good mid-tempo track.
Score – 7.5
“interlude #2″ was even more pointless at 4 second. The first two seconds are silence! I actually thought that it was part of the next song Neko Love and that my player somehow accidentally skipped over it.
Score – 1
I’m not sure what’s going on with “Neko Love”, but it kind of sounds funny. I mean, Cat Love? Regardless, I didn’t find too much wrong with it and I did like when the beats picked up but I didn’t particularly love the whole song itself.
Score – 7
“The End Soshite and… (album ver.)” is a little different in that it adds a little intro bit that wasn’t in the original. I liked that and my only complaint with this song is that it can drag a little sometimes. But getting past that, I tend to enjoy listening to it.
Score – 8
“Possibility duet with Daichi Miura” is a song on this album that actually does almost everything right. It’s got a really good sound and beat, and BoA’s vocals actually have some emotion in them. On a related note, I really liked the sound of this Daichi Miura’s voice who I’ve never heard of.
Score – 8
“Fallin’” had a different kind of sound going for it being pretty electronic down to some synthed up vocals. I liked it, and I liked the repition in the chorus even if it was a little simple. My only complaint is that I wish it would be a little faster.
Score – 7.5
“my all” is meant to end the album off on a bit of a softer note but it feels a little strange after Fallin’. I was really hoping she would pull it together and give something to end the album off clean with but once again, it just doesn’t hit the mark.
Score – 6
Final Note
I like BoA, but I feel like this was an album with maybe 2 or 3 good songs and the rest were all… I don’t know, C-sides? The production quality just didn’t seem to be up to par on a lot of these songs, and considering it was self-produced, well, that says something unfortunately. I was just really let down, after listening to it and I feel that BoA needs to step things up next time. This album was utterly forgettable.
Overall Rating
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