Puzzle Quest

So, I'm not a huge fan of the Nintendo DS... or any handheld gaming for that matter. But, I do love Puzzle Quest. I recently started playing Puzzle Quest: Galactrix, and I have to admit it's pretty awesome.

If you haven't checked it out (or the original Puzzle Quest), I highly suggest you do. It's a perfect blend of RPG-depth (character upgrading, stats, levels, equipment, story), and fast-paced, addictive gameplay. I'll try to get around to writing a review of it one of these days.

Either way, Galactrix recently came out on Xbox Live, so check it out that way if you're not into handhelds. I played the original on DS and enjoyed it, but loved it even more when it came out on Xbox Live. It was much easier to play on a TV screen rather than little DS... and it added in the awesome achievements and versus mode.

Here's some more Puzzle Quest Info:
Puzzle Quest DS Review http://www.just-rpg.com/default.asp?pid=2464
Puzzle Quest Xbox 360 Review http://www.just-rpg.com/default.asp?pid=2622
Puzzle Quest Galactrix Press Release http://www.just-rpg.com/default.asp?pid=3200

Grimoire of the Rift headed to DS

Square Enix has announced that gamers will be making the return to Ivalice this summer with the release of Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rifts on June 24th.

This title is the sequel to the popular Final Fantasy Tactics Advance on the GBA and brings the popular franchise to the DS for the first time.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 will feature a familiar grid-oriented battle system with intuitive use of the DS stylus, as well as new jobs and character classes. The game will feature over 400 quests, vibrant dual-screen presentation and improved gameplay.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rifts will be available in stores June 24th, 2008 for $39.99. For more information, visit: http://na.square-enix.com/ffta2/

New Summon Night

Atlus has just announced the continuation of the popular RPG Summon Night: Swordcraft Story. This newest title will be a DS exclusive titiled Summon Knight: Twin Age.

Twin Age will be headed for release on May 20th, complete with two playable characters, and the ability to trade items with other gamers via local wireless, and full DS functionality.

More information on this upcoming title is sure to be released shortly. Head to the Atlus site for more info:

http://www.atlus.com/.

FFCC: Ring of Fates Now in Stores!

Square Enix has recently announced the release of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates. (whew, what a name!)

Ring of Fates follows the adventures of Yuri and Chelinka, two twins that live happily with their father in a peaceful village. However, like any good RPG, this happiness comes to a sudden end when an ancient evil arrives! Armed only with determination and courage, and guided by Chelinka's magic crystal, players lead the twins on a quest to recover their lost friends, avenge their family and heal their damaged world!

Ring of Fates features both a story mode, allowing gamers to explore the world rotating between four characters, and multiplayer mode, where you can play with up to four gamers.

The game was officially released on the DS on March 11, 2008. Much more information is can be found on the official site here.

Disgaea for DS

Nippon Ichi has recentl officially announced the upcoming release of Disgaea for the DS.

The game has already been released in Japan to much praise and will be headed to North American on the DS in summer 2008. Look for more news in the near future.

Dragon Quest Swords Moves Up

Square Enix dropped me a little note earlier today informing me that the release date for their upcoming Wii game, Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors, has changed.

Normally this is BAD news, but in this case it's great news because rather than the previous release dsate of February 26, gamers will now be able to get their hands on Dragon Quest Swords on February 19!

Designed specifically for the Wii, Dragon Quest Swords takes full advantage of the systems unique capabilities and allows gamers to use the remote as a powerful weapon. This unique adventure is the latest entry in the popular Dragon Quest series and the first to appear on the Wii.

Dungeon Explorer is Gold!

Hudson Entertainment has announced that their Multiplayer Action RPG, Dungeon Explorer: Warriors of Ancient Arts, has gone gold for the PSP and DS and will be available in stores next month!

Published by Hudson and distributed in North America by Konami Digital Entertainment Inc., both versions of the game are planned to ship February 12th, 2008 for a SRP of $29.99 each.

Dungeon Explorer: Warriors of Ancient Arts features hundreds of variations of weapons, armor and equipment that can be chosen and upgraded throughout the adventure to battle through armies of foes in multiplayer action-packed combat! There are also unique features in both the PSP and DS version, including a unique story.

For more information, visit http://www.hudsonent.com/.

Atlus Announces Rondo of Swords

Atlus has just announced a new Strategy RPG, Rondo of Swords, for the Nintendo DS.

Rondo of Swords is a fantasy RPG that promises to combine an epic narrative tale complete with storyline branches and multiple endings, with a deep and innovative combat system that takes full use of the touch screen of the DS. Gamers will embark on a quest to cleanse the sacred blade, protect the princess, and vanquish the oppressing armies of your enemy and deliver the Kingdom of Bretwalde from tyranny!

Expect Rondo of Swords to be on store shelves on April 15, 2008. For more information, see: http://www.atlus.com/rondoofswords/

Revenant Wings Soars to Retailers

Square Enix has just announced that Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings is shipping to retailers across North America today!

Revenant Wings is a Nintendo DS exclusive title and spin off of the popular PS2 RPG Final Fantasy XII.

The game features touch screen functionality, allowing gamers to control massive armies and unleash deadly special moves and will reunite gamers with their favorite FFXII characters. Look for Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings in stores today!

Orcs and Elves Now In Stores!

Electronic Arts has recently announced that Orcs & Elves for the Nintendo DS is now available in stores across North America.

Orcs & Elves originally appeared as an award winning RPG mobile game created by famed developers id Software. Now on the DS, Orcs & Elves has been enhanced with more levels, weapons and fierce foes.

Taking the role of a young half-elf, players will dungeon crawl their way through a massive Dwarven fortress riddled with ancient treasure, powerful weapons, and waves of ruthless enemies, on a quest to expel the ultimate evil from the mountain’s core.

Interested gamers can look for Orcs & Elves on store shelves now!

DQM Joker is Unleashed!

Square Enix has announced that Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker for the Nintendo DS has shipped to stores across North American today.

DQM is the latest installment in the popular Dragon Quest franchise, and allows players to
capture, train and synthesise a powerful team from a selection of over 200 classic Dragon Quest creatures! It promises to combine the depth of a traditional RPG with the addictive gameplay of a monster-catching adventure!

DQM is now available in stores for an price of $39.99.

Front Mission ships!

Square Enix has announced that their classic Strategy RPG, Front Mission, has shipped to retailers today for the Nintendo DS.

The origin of the popular Front Mission series has finally been localized for North American gamers. This updated version of the original introduces exciting new features, such as dual screen presentation and multiplayer modes, and bring new life to the classic series!

In Front Mission players will utilize the Touch Screen functionality to command a squad of customizable mechs (also known as wanzers) and direct them through turn-based skirmishes across the battlefields of the 21st century.

Front Mission is available in North American retailers now for $34.99.

Puzzle Quest Now on Live!

Puzzle Quest, the innovative puzzle/RPG from D3, is now available for download on the Xbox Live Arcade!

Puzzle Quest was highly praised by reviewers when it originally appeared on the PSP and DS. Now D3 and Microsoft will be opening up the game to a brand new audience of players! Developed by Infinite Interactive and based in the popular Warlords universe, Puzzle Quest combines addictive gem swapping, puzzle gameplay with deep RPG elements of storytelling, character building and exploration.

While I really enjoyed Puzzle Quest, I originally played the DS version, and many of the problems with the game stemmed from the platform itself. For example, using the stylus as a gem selector seems natural enough, but it's also far too easy to accidentally miss and select the wrong piece. Splitting the content among the two screens also caused some problems because it made it difficult to keep track of exactly what was going on. This makes me even more excited about the 360 version!

Phantom Hourglass Released!

Today Nintendo released The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the Nintendo DS.

This latest Zelda adventure has received great ratings in Japan and is already seeing praise in North America.

"The storyline for The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass represents a new pinnacle for hand-held video games," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "The touch-screen controls make it easy for newcomers but fresh and engaging for Zelda fans."

Phantom Hourglass has players navigate through the game using only the touch screen, making it easy to find your way through. Possibly the coolest feature of all is that players can write notes on their maps to remind them of places they should revisit. How many times have you wanted to do that before? I know I'm always writing things down when I'm embarking on an epic quest... Phantom Hourglass also allows players to join up through a local wireless connection or log-in through the internet.

THREE New Kingdom Hearts Titles

I hope gamers out there haven't had their fill of Kingdom Hearts yet, because straight from the Tokyo Game Show, Square Enix has announced three new Kingdom Hearts titles!

All three of these new titles are unique and designed for portable platforms: Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for the Nintendo DS, Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep for the Sony PSP, and Kingdom Hearts Coded for mobile phones.

358/2 Days will allow both single player and multi-player modes made possible through the Networking features of the DS. It will be the untold story of Organization XIII's Roxas. Birth by Sleep will feature an entirely new trio of heroes and takes place long before Sora ever wielded the Keyblade. Coded will be the story of Jiminy Cricket trying to organize his records and coming across the strange message "We must return to free them from their torment". The King decided to digitize the message and start an investigation!

No North American release details have been given yet and will be announced at a later date.

DQM: Joker Goes Gold!

Square Enix has announced that Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker for the Nintendo DS has gone gold!

The game will ship to retailers by November 06, 2007, and fans who pre-order the title will recieve a free, lmited edition Nintendo DS screen wipe and map! DQM has a suggested retail price of $39.99.

You will play the game as a young hero locked in a prison by your father, the leader of an organization known as CELL. You find yourself released under orders to enter the Monster Scout Challenge, and frm there embark on a journey starting with a single monster and a scout ring, only to discover the dark and mysterious intentions that surround the competition.

DQM : Joker promises over 200 different Dragon Quest creatures and the ability to synthesize customized monsters to create al new ones! Gameplay will be an innovative mix of the monster arena battle from Dragon Quest VIII and traditional Dragon Quest gameplay.

Pokemon Sells Big

Nintendo has announced that their recent Pokemon titles have fueled the success of the Wii and DS!

Pokemon games are almost always among the best selling games around. Partially boosted by Pokemon sales, the Nintendo DS and Wii were again the two best-selling videogame systems in the United States in July. According to the independent NPD Group, through July Pokemon Diamond is the best-selling video game of the year on any system, while Pokemon Pearl ranks No. 3. Wow, two of the top three best sellers are Pokemon!?

Young and old gamers alike are enjoying Pokemon, and the next-gen systems have opened the door to countless new Pokemon fans.

DQM Pre-Order Freebie!

Square Enix has officially announced that will be a special pre-order item for Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker.

Gamers who pre-order Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker will recieve a DS accessory that contains a handy screen wipe inside. Additionally, the screen wipe has a navigational map of the Green Bays archipelago from the game.

If you want to get your hands on this freebie, pre-order the game at Amazon.com, EBGames, GameCrazy or GameStop.

You can get a glimpse of the item below (click for zoomed view):

Heroes of Mana Ships

Square Enix has announced that Heroes of Mana is shipping to retailers today across North America, exclusively for the Nintendo DS.

Heroes of Mana is an exciting real-time strategy game that promises to breathe new life into the series and take it into an entirely new direction. For the first time in the Mana series, players will plan, plot and strategize their way to victory on the battlefield, all through the intuitive Touch Screen capabilities of the Nintendo DS!

Heroes of Mana is now availible in stores for $39.99.

The Mana RPG series has a pretty big cult following, so I'm curious to see how well the new strategy emphasis goes over with fans of the series.

Luminous Arc Ships!

Atlus has announced that Luminous Arc, the strategy RPG for the Nintendo DS, has shipped to retailers across North America!

Luminous Arc promises a traditional strategy RPG experience, enhanced with professional voice acting, an involving storyline, versatile controls, multiplayer mode, and an epic musical score! If this sounds like a game that you're interested in, then make sure to head to your local game store and check it out.

Find out more info about the game from the official site:
http://www.atlus.com/luminousarc