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Tales of Phantasia X remixes two RPGs for PSP

Tales of Phantasia may become one of the few titles to be re-released twice on a single platform. In 2006, Namco Bandai launched an updated version of the classic SNES RPG for PSP (although it never found a Stateside release), and now it looks to be releasing that same game one more time.

Thankfully, Tales of Phantasia X won't just be the original game in a shinier box. In addition to a remake of Tales of Phantasia, the pack will include the Narikiri Dungeon sequel. Phantasia X is planned for release later this year, roughly fifteen years after the original's debut.

[Via Andriasang]

Clash of the Titans screens highlight multi-headed beasts

Click image to fetch some more screens

If you think our last batch of screens depicted some ugly creatures from Namco Bandai's upcoming Clash of the Titans, then we guess this latest round of shots are par for the course. Featuring several screens of the multi-headed nasty you see above, our gallery below is a veritable playground of potential nightmare inducers. This beast is like a smaller, more nimble version of Cerberus from Devil May Cry 3. Maybe a bit less chilly, too.

Anyway, feel free to hit up the gallery below for the new screens.

Move supported by 36 companies, 20 games this fiscal year

At Sony's special GDC event, Activision, Capcom, WB Games, Namco Bandai, Square Enix, Ubisoft, EA, Disney, Konami, Sega, Crave and Tecmo Koei all confirmed that they'll be supporting the Move in future versions of their games. Although that confirmation came in the form of a slide full of company logos and word from Sony vice-president of marketing and PSN that, "Virtually every third-party publisher" will support the new motion-control device.

Sony's Jack Tretton went on to say that 36 publishers and third-party developers will support it, and according to a press release, "In fiscal year 2010, SCE Worldwide Studios will also release more than 20 games that are either dedicated to or supported with the PlayStation Move platform. While this same group of publishers will probably support Microsoft's Project Natal as well, it's good to know that everyone is onboard. But onboard how? Are they developing Move departments that will get every possible ounce of gameplay out of these things? Or do they mean support like backrubs and cookies?

We aren't sure what titles will be supported just yet, but our team of Joystiqers are waving the Move about as you read this, and we'll have more news very soon.

Condemned to Games on Demand

Now that Sega's Condemned has been added to the Xbox Live Games on Demand service (for $19.99), you can get started with the suspense even before you play it! Turn the lights off, curl up on the couch with some popcorn and just watch it download. When will it be finished? No one knows!

Condemned is available everywhere but Australia, India, Japan and New Zealand. Instead, in Japan -- and Japan only -- Guilty Gear 2: Overture has been added to Games On Demand for ¥2,940 ($32.75). Additionally, in Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore and Taiwan, Ridge Racer 6 is now available -- also for ¥2,940 in Japan, with prices varying by region.

Shortcut: Add Condemned to your download queue [via Xbox.com]

Rising Star crowdsources Spanish localization of Fragile Dreams

Rising Star Games has taken an unusual, cost-effective step to get Fragile Dreams into Spanish-speaking homes. In collaboration with fansite DSWii.es, Rising Star is helping a group of 50 fans produce their own translation of the game's 35,000-word script. The translated text will be made available from DSWii and Rising Star's site following the European release of the game on March 19.

This is a clever approach to localization for a couple of reasons. First, fifty motivated kids will be able to get the job done in a fraction of the time a professional localization team would take. Additionally, it'll be much easier for Rising Star to laugh off the inevitable errors than it would with a 'real' localization.

King of iPhone Fist: Pocket Gamer says Namco releasing iPhone Tekken game soon

Tekken 6 for PSP
Street Fighter IV isn't the only fighting game to be shoehorned awkwardly into the iPhone. According to Pocket Gamer, an anonymous Namco staffer has confirmed that a Tekken game is on the way to the platform -- a platform that, we feel we should remind you, lacks not only a high-quality arcade-style joystick, but any mechanical controls at all. Last year, Namco's Jonathan Kromrey mentioned that the company was considering porting its fighting games onto the iPhone, and it would appear that nobody successfully dissuaded the publisher.

No details were given about the game, except that its development is near completion. We'd say Soul Calibur is next on the list, but Gameloft kind of already did that.

Meet your giant new pal: Namco Bandai announces Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom

Namco Bandai has announced that it's localizing Majin: The Fallen Realm, Game Republic's action-adventure about a boy and his giant, adorable monster pal. The game, now called Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom, is expected to release in North America on both PS3 and Xbox 360 this summer.

According to the publisher's press release, Majin stars a "cunning young outsider" who explores a kingdom that was mysteriously overwhelmed by a "dark force" one hundred years prior. During his travels, he meets Majin, a super-strong monster, and the two explore the kingdom together. Gameplay-wise, the player works with the AI-controlled Majin, who acquires new abilities throughout the game, as they solve puzzles, fight enemies, and navigate ruins together. Namco Bandai calls it an "emotional journey of courage and respect."


RE5 Gold tops Japanese charts; Heavy Rain floods top ten

Even without the PlayStation Motion Controller to back it up, Resident Evil 5 has struck gold for a second time. The PS3 version of Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition (Alternative Edition in Japan) hit the top of the Media Create sales chart in Japan following its February 18 release, selling 143,339 copies. God Eater continues to gobble up attention, taking the #2 spot with 64,192 units sold (while passing 500k units sold to date).

Another big PS3 game also debuted in the top ten this week: Heavy Rain, which fell in at #6, selling 26,775 copies. In a way, the Japanese version is the superior release, because the voice acting doesn't seem to have been performed by French people faking Japanese accents. See the full top ten after the break.

Continued →

Namco teases 'Pac-Man Battle Royale' arcade game

Namco Bandai has taken a very tentative first step toward providing a solution to the puzzle of what Pac-Man Battle Royale is. In a teaser video, the company revealed an arcade game with multiple Pac-Mans (Pac-Men?). A faint image behind the "Sneak Peek at Amusement Expo 2010" caption suggests a multiplayer game with up to four players sharing a big maze. A reinvented arcade game would be the perfect way to mark the 30th anniversary of the original.

We'll have to wait, then, until the expo (March 10-12) to see more; but, in the meantime, we can watch the teaser over and over again and dream of the upcoming New Super Mario Bros. Wii-ization of Pac-Man and dream of a mythical world where we'll get to play an arcade game. Join us in this reverie after the break.

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Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 coming to North America and Europe this fall

Since its original Japanese announcement, Naruto fans have been wondering two things: When is Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 coming out? And does it still look good? Well, the answers are "this fall" and "yes."

Not only is Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 the first game based on the Shippuden story arc to appear on an HD console, it's also the first multiplatform game for the franchise. Whereas the first game appeared exclusively on PS3, the sequel will grace both Xbox 360 and PS3 later this year. Thankfully, it looks as though developer CyberConnect2 isn't cutting any corners for the sequel, promising more than 40 characters, original Japanese voice overs and "bigger and more epic cinematic boss battles."

Like the first Ultimate Ninja Storm, the sequel is likely to present an abridged version of the series story. However, the press release boasts that "a shocking story twist" will have "Sasuke wearing Akatsuki gear." Yeah, we can't believe it either.

Namco Bandai recalls buggy Tales of Graces

Namco Bandai has issued a recall notice for copies of Tales of Graces, the Wii Tales RPG released in Japan on December 10. In the announcement, the publisher listed all of the bugs it hopes to address with replacement discs, mostly occurring in "New Game +" replays. Apparently, certain enemies, team conversations, and even key items may not appear in subsequent playthroughs. In addition, bugs in shops can randomly change the types and numbers of items in player possession, and pausing during cutscenes may result in other item glitches.

Namco promises that all of these issues will be addressed in the updated discs, and that players' save files will remain compatible. Users need only send in their discs, and not the whole Wii bundle.

[Via Kotaku]

Ace Combat: Joint Assault trailer shows off four-player co-op

It seems almost every PSP game franchise wants to take a page from Monster Hunter Portable (for obvious reasons). Project Ace's upcoming Ace Combat: Joint Assault unsurprisingly adds four player co-op -- but with its aerial combat, it should prove a refreshing change from hunting monsters, eating gods, and peace walking.

While the graphics of Joint Assault have taken an obvious hit from its transition down to PSP, we're impressed by the locales shown by the trailer. It seems dogfights will blaze through the skies of Tokyo, San Francisco, London and Egypt. Hopefully, we'll see more of the game before it releases later this year.

Dragon Ball Origins 2 flying to DS on a cloud this summer

If, like us, you were surprised by how much fun Dragon Ball: Origins for DS was, prepare to be delighted once again. Namco Bandai announced that it is publishing Dragon Ball: Origins 2 in North America, with a summer release in mind.

The sequel features the same kind of Phantom Hourglass-esque, stylus-controlled action, with the option to switch to buttons. This time, a two-player co-op mode is included, so Goku and a non-Goku friend can beat up the Red Ribbon Army over local wireless. The Japanese release also includes an emulated version of what we know as the NES's Dragon Power -- there's currently no word if that awful game will be a bonus in the American version.

Noby Noby Boy available now for 'iPhone, iPhone, iPod Touch!'

We want to be up front with you: We're not entirely sure Noby Noby Boy is a "game" in the usual way we understand it. No, we're not talking about last year's PS3 release (though one could argue ...); instead, we're talking about today's iPhone release.

Let's examine the evidence: The trailer, included after the break, eschews traditional marketing tactics in favor of puppets and nonsensical dialogue. The screenshots depict a series of seemingly unrelated "functions" (minigames?) including a camera app, a map app, a stretchable Boy app, and others. And our final piece of evidence, Noby Noby Boy is filed under "Productivity" in the App Store and, regardless of its status as a "game" we're almost certain it's not going to make us more productive at anything, short of unlocking its mysteries.

While we think calling it a "game" may be a bit of a stretch, as a toy, it's now got a better price on a more appropriate platform.

Noby Noby Boy ($1.99): Orbital

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Xbox Live Top 20: The power of a deal

Major Nelson has released the usual breakdown of Xbox Live activity for last week, February 8-15. On the retail side of things, Modern Warfare 2 still dominates with Halo 3 maintaining second. The Aliens vs Predator demo takes third place, knocking the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 to fifth while Call of Duty: World at War maintains its fourth place position. So, in other words, not very exciting.

The Xbox Live Arcade activity, however, is much more interesting. One look at the list and it's clear how much power the Deal of the Week can have on sales. In the next most recent activity listing (January 25 - February 1), Marvel vs Capcom rested in the number ten slot while TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled wasn't even in the top 20. Last week, thanks to both games being heavily discounted, Marvel vs Capcom jumped to number two while Turtles in Time Re-Shelled shot directly to number one. Invincible Tiger: The Legend of Han Tao, discounted as well, also broke back into the top twenty, landing in the thirteenth slot.

Whether the turtles will keep the top spot remains to be seen. With Battlefield 1943 knocked down to $10 this week, we're guessing they might be headed back into the sewer.

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