Brave Story Shipping Today

XSEED has announced that Brave Story: New Traveler has shipped to retailers across North America today.

Brave Story is a PSP exclusive RPG with an suggested retail price of $39.99. It's developed by Game Republic, the developers of the Genji series, and features a turn-based battle system and 3D graphics. Game Informer said that Brave Story is "...one of the best looking games on the PSP." - Game Informer

Check out the game's official site here: http://www.bravestorynewtraveler.com/

Game Critics Loving Mass Effect

Microsoft has just announced that the upcoming Xbox 360 Exclusive RPG from BioWare, Mass Effect, has received several Best of E3 2007 nominations from the Game Critics Awards.

Not suprisingly, Mass Effect received a Best RPG nomination as well as a Best Console Nomination. Most impressive of all, it also received a Best in Show nomination. Mass Effect is sounding good so far, but then again, with E3 as downsized as it was this year, it just doesn't seem like the awards mean as much.

Mass Effect is set for release this fall exclusively for the Xbox 360 and is already one of the most hyped games of the holiday season. With titles like Neverwinter Nights and Knights of the Old Republic under their belt, it's no wonder gamers are excited about BioWare's upcoming offering. Not to mention, the Xbox 360 is fairly dry in the RPG area right now, so patient RPG fans have something to look forward to!

BioWare has recently released an extended E3 trailer of the game. Check it out on the game's official site: http://www.masseffect.bioware.com/

Mmmm.... Games...

The coming few months are really looking good for gaming. Two of my most highly anticipated games are nearing release, BioShock and Two Worlds, and a few others are lined up for the near future.

It's been forever since I played System Shock II, but everything I remember about the game is great. As an RPGer, I loved the game's blending of RPG and FPS elements. Combine that with plenty of action and a totally eerie atmosphere, and I was hooked right away. Needless to say, it's made me eager to give BioShock a try!

I've been looking forward to Two Worlds for quite some time. I was in love with Oblivion, so when this game started being hyped as an "Oblivion-killer" I immediately began to wonder. Honestly, I don't expect it to top Oblivion, but if it can deliver a similar experience, I'll be happy.

Blue Dragon is coming out in late August, also. I haven't played any Japanese RPGs in quite a while and it'll be nice to finally play one on my Xbox 360. In a couple more months Mass Effect will be released, which should be a great time for gamers. KotOR is still among my all-time favorite games, so I'm expecting great things from Mass Effect.

Anyway, I'm just starting to get a bit hyped for the fall. After all, we all know that we tend to get a flood of great games right before Christmas. Unfortunately I haven't had a lot of time for gaming lately, so I'm particularly excited to get my hands on these upcoming titles.

Fury Preview Event Opening

Starting today, July 27, 2007, Fury's Worldwide Free Preview Event begins!

The servers will be open for 60 hours and up to 200,000 log-in accounts will be issued on a first come first served basis. Last I checked, there were still accounts available, but you'd better hurry!

Head to www.unleashthefury.com/PreviewEvent for your free key and download instructions. If you're already a Closed Beta tester you can use your existing account to sign in.

Fury fuses RPG and FPS gameplay to make a fast playing MMORPG.

FINAL FANTASY XI FAN FESTIVAL 2007

Square Enix, Inc has announced Final Fantasy XI Fan Festival 2007!

This event is a celebration that commemorates Final Fantasy XI fans around the world. It will take place in the Hilton Hotel in Anaheim, CA. from November 15 - 17.

Attendees will be given the opportunity to be the first to play Wings of the Goddess, the highly anticipated fourth expansion to Final Fantasy XI. Wings of the Goddess will appear on PS2, Xbox 360 and PC, providing new content that will reshape the world of Vana'diel.

Lucky attendees will also participate in contests, panel sessions and live quests! Attendance for the event is limited to 1,500 and pre-registration costs only $85 for a full three days of admission, goodies and an exclusive in-game item.

To register, or for more info, check out: http://www.ffxifestival.com/.

Six New MMOs from Korea

Game&Game has announced service for SIX new MMO Games.

Game&Game is the global service platform for the Korean Software Industry Promotion Agency, also called “KIPA”. Game&Game is designed to help pave the way for Korean MMOs in the global market. They are currently hosting five online titles ( Cronous, Darkness and Light, Lunia, Bomb ‘n Dash, and Record of Lunia). The success of the current five titles has led KIPA to choosing six new ones to introduce to the world, including:

• Pi Story (Anime MMORPG)
• Red Stone (Western-style MMORPG)
• Twelve Sky(Oriental-style MMOPRG)
• Fiesta Online (Anime-style MMORPG)
• ­MicMac Online (Anime-style MMORPG)
• ­Kicks Online (Soccer MMO game)

Service for the games is to begin in September. Find out more about these titles here:
http://www.gamengame.com/gng/index.php

7/27/07 Issue at Just-RPG!

We've just posted our latest issue here at Just-RPG. This week we have an interview with the producer of Knight Online along with a few exclusive screens from the game! We're also doing a hiring call in search of new contributors here at Just-RPG, so make sure to apply!

http://www.just-rpg.com

• Knight Online Interview
• Knight Online Exclusive Screens
• Just-RPG Looking for Staff
• And More!!!

Record of Lunia War Site and Beta Launched!

Allm Corp, developers of the highly anticipated Record of Lunia War, have announced the launch of the game's official Web site along with the opening of the game's beta!

A North American server for the game has been established, providing more stable service and connecting players in North America and Europe. The new site reflects the open Beta, with user support, player guides, tutorials for beginners and account registration.

Record of Lunia War has also been selected as an official competitive game at Game&Game World Championship 2007 (http://gngwc.com/). Record of Lunia War is described as an action arcade MMORPG.

Check out the new official site here: http://global.lunia.com/

Heavenly Sword Demo Coming...

Sony has recently announced that a demo of Ninja Theory's upcoming action title, Heavenly Sword, will be available for download on Thursday, July 26 on the PlayStation Network.

The demo will be the same that was shown at Sony's Gamer Day earlier in the year, and promises to give players a taste of the gorgeous visuals and intense combat.

Mobile Gothic 3 Announced

JoWooD has announced the upcoming release of Gothic 3: The Beginning!

Gothic 3: The Beginning is new mobile phone RPG developed by HandyGames and set for release on Q1 2008. It will allow gamers to visit various locations in Khorinis and Tirith, chat with many NPCs, battle hundreds of enemies and master long banned magic attacks.

From my experience, mobile versions of RPGs tend to turn out on the stinky side (like Elder Scrolls Travels: Shadowkey). I'm curious to see how Gothic 3: The Beginning ends up, but I can't say I have high expectations.

7/25/07 Daily Links

Here's a few quick links that I gathered from a few of my favorite RPG sites.

AllRPG's Final Fantasy Review - A very un-impressed take on the classic RPG that's recently been ported to the PSP.

Persona 3 Review on AllRPG - Despite a recent delay, AllRPG has managed to review the upcoming Persona 3. They have positive things to say about the anticipated game.

Soul Nomad Preview on RPGLand - A hands on look at one of NISA's upcoming titles.

Final Fantasy II Released for PSP

Square Enix has just announced the release of their remastered Final Fantasy II on PSP.

This remastered version celebrates the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy with updated character art, updated graphics, new dungeons, an enhanced soundtrack and more!

Final Fantasy II is now available on store shelves across North America for $29.99.

Persona 3 Re-Scheduled

After discovering an error with the game's artbook mere days before the schedules release, Atlus was forced to delay the highly anticipated Persona 3. Today they announced the new release date of August 14, 2007.

This is the absolute soonest that they can get the game ready because they are not willing to comprimise the deluxe collector's edition package that they have created for the game.

K2 Network Launches New Site!

K2 Network has recently launches GamersFirst, a Web site dedicated to K2's MMO titles.

This will serve as the best destination for gamers to access the latest information, download games, find screenshots and more for games like MU Online, Sword of the New World and Red Stone.

"There are more than 10 million users worldwide who enjoy K2 Network games," said Joshua Hong, CEO and co-founder of K2 Network. "We wanted to create one destination where all the communities from our different games could go to find out everything that we have going on."

Check out the site here:

http://www.gamersfirst.net/

EVE CCG at GenCon!!!

CCP has announced that their CCG, EVE: The Second Genesis, will be celebrating the release of their first expansion at Gen Con Indy and giving away $25,000 in tournament prizes!

The game's new expansion, titled The Exiled, will allow players to build even larger, more fearsome fleets of ships with less fear of an early round loss. The expansion also features the addition of character and racial affinities, which promise to make deck customization easier than ever!

The $25,000 prize pool makes EVE one of the largest CCG payouts at Gen Con, and more than doubles last years prizes. CCP has opened up the tournament to all Gen Con attendees, allowing both n00bs and experienced players to get in on the action.

EVE: The Second Genesis first debuted at Gen Con in 2006. After the event, CCP will be sponsoring tournaments at hobby stores all across the globe where players can compete to win cash prizes.

For more information, visit www.gencon.com/2007/indy

Persona 3 to Experience Delay

Atlus has just announced that Persona 3 will experience a slight shipping delay.

The original shipping date for Persona 3 was July 24th, but due to an unforeseen error, the game's release will be slightly later. There was an unfortunate error in the Persona 3 art book that was to be included with the game, so Atlus is taking the time to have the book totally redone in order to give gamers the highest quality product possible.

Atlus has yet to make an annoucement for the new release date.

Tabula Rasa Character Contest

The team behind Richard Garriot's upcoming MMORPG, Tabula Rasa, have announced their signature character contest!

Take a look at the image to the left. Who is he? Where does this mystery man comes from? His name and backstory are up for the Tabula Rasa fans to decide!

All entries must be a maximum of 1000 words and should be in .txt, .doc or a .rtf format. Six finalists will be selected, and the top two will be flown to Austin for the Tabula Rasa pre-launch party!

Visit the site below for more information and to submit your entry! Good luck!!!

http://www.playtr.com/community/contests.html

7/20/07 Issue at Just-RPG!

In our latest issue here at Just-RPG we have an interview with the producer of Red Stone, the upcoming MMORPG from K2 Network. K2 has also been kind enough to provide us with some exclusive screens of the game! We top that off with loads of additional screenshots and game trailers for your viewing pleasure.

http://www.just-rpg.com/

• Red Stone Interview
• Red Stone exclusive screens
• Avernum 5 screens
• Dragoneer's Aria trailer
• Sword of the New World screens
• And More!!!

More Puzzle Quest!

D3 Publisher of America has announced that Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords, will be heading to the PS2, Wii, Mobile Phones and PC! It seems gamers just can't get enough of Puzzle Quest.

All of these versions will be appearing this fall and the mobile version will be released in early 2008. This will open the door to gamers who have yet to experience the exciting hybrid Puzzle/RPG gameplay to finally get a taste. Puzzle Quest was the #1 selling Puzzle Game on the Nintendo DS in 2007, and was earlier confirmed to be headed to the Xbox 360 through the Xbox Live Arcade.

The PC and Mobile rights to the game have been awarded to THQ for publishing.

Personally, I'm the most hyped about the PC version, because I thought the early PC demo that I played was superior to the DS version. Either way, Puzzle Quest is loads of fun, so be sure to pick up one of these versions if you haven't played it yet!



Shameless Plug:
Just-RPG's Puzzle Quest Review

Disgaea 3 Announced

At a recent Sony event in Tokyo, Nippon Ichi officially announced the highly anticipated Disgaea 3!

The basic Strategy/RPG elements of the series will remain the same and the game will be appearing exclusively on Sony's PS3. The graphics will reportedly receive a slight upgrade, although it's not looking like it's going to take advantage of the power of Sony's console. The Japanese release date is set for this winter, but no North American date has been announced.

Very few details about the game have been given, so I don't have much more to say right now. Stick with Just-RPG for future updates!

7/18/07 Daily Links

I haven't posted any links lately, and since E3 just passed a while back, it seemed like this would be an appropriate time. There's a lot of Fallout 3, Hellgate London and BioShock coverage out there. Enjoy!

WarCry previews BioShock- They seemed to like it.

Kotaku previews Fallout 3 - They say that Bethesda's upcoming sequel to the cult classic is in the runnings for best of show.

GameDaily previews Mass Effect - They claim that the game seems to increase the immersion that players felt in KotOR. Let's hope so, because I'll be happy with any game that comes close to that.

Brave Story reviewed on RPGLand - XSEED's latest game receives a solid 8.

The Witcher Delayed :(

Polish video game publisher CD Projekt has announced that their upcoming PC RPG, The Witcher, has been delayed by 6 weeks. The game's new release date is set for October.

I'm personally disappointed to hear this news. After all, The Witcher is looking better and better since I first saw it. Let's hope it doesn't disappoint when it finally arrives in the fall.

Avernum 5 Announced!

The folks at Spiderweb Software have just announced Avernum 5, an upcoming fantasy RPG for Windows and Mac.

Avernum 5 will allow gamers to explore a gigantic world, embark on hundreds of quests and play through an exciting story of betrayal, mystery and plot twists! Players can master over 50 spells and battle disciplines, hunt for magical items and craft new equipment as they travel deep into the underworld of Avernum.

Avernum 5 will be released on Macintosh in late 2007 and Windows in early 2008.

For more information on Avernum 5, visit: http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/

Xbox 360 Backwards Compatability Update!

Microsoft has updated their list of games that are backwards compatible on the Xbox 360!

The complete list is rather lengthy, but there are a lot of new entries that have just recently become backwards compatible, including a few of my personal favorites like Morrowind and Kingdom Under Fire. Here's a few of the noteworthy titles:

• Justice League Heroes
• Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes
• Magic: The Gathering Battlegrounds
• Morrowind

Persona 3 Site Launched!

Atlus has all sorts of news up their sleeves today! Their latest announcement is the recent launch of the official Persona 3 Web site. You can view the new site through the link below:

http://www.atlus.com/persona3/

Persona 3 is set to be released on July 24, 2007 in a special edition package for the PS2. The official site will be home to character information, wallpapers, movies and more!

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

So I just saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Honestly, I thought it was pretty good. It started out on the slow side, but it picked up towards the end and left me eager for the next film. My personal favorite part (*spoiler ahead*) was an all-out battle of magic between Dumbledore and Voldemort. It had some great special effects and reminded me of what I would have liked to have seen between Gandalf and Sarauman in The Fellowship of the Ring. I think I liked a couple of the previous Potter films better, but Order of the Phoenix is still a solid entry in the series.

I've also played the video game (Wii version), which is a total stinker. Don't bother with it. The controls are just a mess, the voice acting is poor, and it's only one player.





Anyway, this isn't RPG related, but I assumed that everyone here is a fantasy fan and might want to know.

Luminous Arc Site Launches!

Atlus has just unveiled the official Web site for Luminous Arc, a Nintendo DS Strategy RPG that will be released in August.

The official site promises to contain plenty of updates as the game's release grows nearer, so be sure to check it often. You can view the official site through the link below:

http://www.atlus.com/luminousarc/

ArchLord Announces Credits Increase

Codemasters Online Gaming has announced that every new account started using a retail version of ArchLord will now receive 6,000 credits! All that is requires is to purchase a retail version of the game and start a new account. These 6,000 credits will be a major help in getting you started in the world of Chantra.

This offer doesn't apply to old accounts or digital downloads of the game. To locate a retailer to purchase ArchLord, head to http://www.archlordgame.com/wheretobuy.

Sword of the New World Goes Live!

K2 Network has just announced that their age of exploration MMORPG, Sword of the New World: Granado Espada, is now live!!!

The game is now available for free to download in Europe and North America from www.swordoftheneworld.com. There are several packages for players to choose from, ranging from a Free2Play package to $19.99 per month.

Sword of the New World is a fantasy MMO that takes place during the European age of exploration. Players will travel to the new world in search of treasture, adventure and fame!

Atlus Ships Riviera

Atlus has announced that Riviera: The Promised Land for PSP is now shipping to retailers across North America.

Riviera: The Promised Land for the PSP is an enhanced version of the GBA classic RPG. It features fully voiced events in both Japanese and English, higher resolution artwork and a remixed soundtrack.

Oblivion: Game of the Year Edition Announced

Bethesda Softworks has just announced the upcoming release of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Game of the Year Edition.

This Edition of the game will be available on store shelves in September, 2007 for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. It will include all of the content from Shivering Isles, Knights of the Nine, and all of the extra downloadable content.

As an Oblivion fan, I'm personally glad to hear this news, although I must admit I expected it sooner or later. After all, Bethesda did the same thing for Morrowind.

Brave Story Web Site Launched

XSEED Games has just launched the official site for Brave Story: New Traveler!

Brave Story: New Traveler is an original title developed exclusively for the PSP by Game Republic, the developers of the popular Genji series. It will feature a traditional turn-based battle system enhanced by innovative features based on the game's themes of friendship, courage and growth.

Brave Story is scheduled for release on July 31, 2007. Click the link below to view the official site.

http://www.bravestorynewtraveler.com/

7/06/07 Issue at Just-RPG

We've got new screenshots and news in this week's issue at Just-RPG. Our editor, Robert Stock, would also like to ask our readers to vote for Springfield, MA in the Simpsons hometown contest!

• Blue Dragon Screenshots
• Knight Online Screenshots
• Dragon Hunters Announced
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Now Available!
• And More!!!

http://www.just-rpg.com

Space Siege Announced

Sega and Gas Powered Games, the developer of the popular Dungeon Siege RPG, have announced that they will be releasing Space Siege in 2008 for PC.

Space Siege will be a sci-fi RPG taking place after earth is devastated from an alien attack. After the attack humanity is spread across the galaxy, with many humans living in colony ships. It will follow the story of Seth Walker, a cybernetics engineer, as he attempts to save the human race. It will include cybernetic augmentations into its storyline, leaving gamers with the ability to enhance Seth and choose how much of him should remain human.

Sega of America marketing VP Scott A. Steinberg was quoted as saying "Space Siege promises to be a compelling and innovative successor to the very popular Dungeon Siege franchise."

Let's hope so.

Some of these elements remind me of the upcoming Too Human, which also involves robotics and cybernetic upgrades. Stay tuned for more news of Space Siege as it becomes available.