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Japan getting God Eater sampling platter November 26

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 5th 2009 at 2:44PM }

We like to consider ourselves open-minded when it comes to new culinary experiences, but we confess that we've never had the occasion to dine upon a god. We've heard that it's a delicious (and sizable!) meal -- in fact, on the latest episode of No Reservations, Anthony Bourdain described god-meat as being "light and airy, like aged pork, but with divine properties." Japanese gamers (or PSP owners with a loose comprehension of the Japanese language) will be able to find out for themselves when a demo for God Eater launches on November 26.

The demo for the Namco Bandai-developed action-RPG will be fairly substantial, offering 10 missions, character customization and a small sliver of the game's opening story sequence. It will also support four player co-op in the demo's non-tutorial missions. The demo will be added to the Japanese PSN on Thanksgiving and will also be available on the game's official site. Between those two options, we're sure you'll find some way to snack on a few celestial entities later this month.

Dragonball: Tenkaichi Daibouken revealed ... and it's a side-scroller

by Randy Nelson { May 21st 2009 at 7:15PM }

The Wii is seeing a revival of the classic side-scroller -- with 3D trimmings. Siliconera has shed more light on Bandai's latest Dragonball -- Tenkaichi Daibouken -- which follows in the leaping, bounding footsteps of "2.5D" titles such as Klonoa and New Play Control! Donkey Kong Jungle Beat.

The game is (to no one's surprise, we'd imagine) cel-shaded -- and looking quite sharp, as the above screenshot implies. It stars young Goku and is based on the earliest pre-"Z" Dragonball material. You can catch a glimpse of gameplay on the game's Flash-based Japanese site (if you don't mind giant kanji characters obscuring some of it). Neither Namco Bandai nor Atari has laid claim to a US release, but that may very well change come E3.

[Via Siliconera]

Joyswag: Klonoa (and his hat) [update]

by David Hinkle { May 8th 2009 at 3:00PM }

Update: Sorry, folks, but the giveaway has ended. Keep an eye on your email inbox and thanks for playing!

Namco Bandai sent us a new copy of Klonoa for the Wii, along with the titular character's hat (Twitterholics, you may have already seen an image of the hat here). If you want to get in on this action, then follow these easy steps below!

Leave a comment telling us where you will wear your new hat first
You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec)
Limit 1 entry per person per calendar day
This entry period ends at 2:59 pm ET on Thursday, May 14
At that time, we'll randomly select one winner to receive Klonoa for Wii ($30)
For a list of complete rules, click here

Thanks for reading and best of luck to you all!

Gallery: Klonoa (Wii)

Namco unleashes flurry of Klonoa clips

by David Hinkle { Apr 29th 2009 at 1:00PM }

Namco Bandai sent us a slew of new trailers for its upcoming game, Klonoa. The content within each video is pretty much the same: platforming, platforming, and more platforming. Good thing that's something Klonoa fans like most about the series, right? Head past the break to check out 5 more videos from the upcoming Wiimake.

Gallery: Klonoa: Door to Phantomile

Continued →

Even The Munchables couldn't eat all of this new media

by David Hinkle { Apr 21st 2009 at 6:30PM }

Namco-Bandai just sent us a bunch of new media for The Munchables, including a pair of trailers and several new screens (you can check them out in the gallery below). Namco-Bandai has described this as Pac-Man meets Katamari Damacy, but we're pretty sure that comparison is inaccurate. Instead, we'd say it has equal parts Pac-Man, Katamari Damacy, and Violet Beauregarde. Head past the break for the second trailer (and more addictive tunes).

Gallery: The Munchables (Wii)

Continued →

Xbox Live's exclusive Tekken 6 trailer

by David Hinkle { Apr 21st 2009 at 1:00PM }

After watching this Xbox Live-exclusive trailer for Tekken 6, we've come to realize a few things. For one, Paul Phoenix is still the most badass dude ever. Don't argue, you'll lose. Second, someone at Namco-Bandai should really proofread subtitles before they dish out a trailer, because there's a pretty hilarious bit of mangled English in the beginning. Finally, this trailer needs more Panda.

Gallery: Tekken 6

Namco Bandai working on Gundam VOD service for PS3

by Majed Athab { Mar 18th 2009 at 3:30PM }

Gundam fans just might have a new way of rewatching the original series. According to Andriasang, Namco Bandai was showing off a prototype Gundam video-on-demand service for PS3 at the Tokyo International Anime Fair. It's called Gundam Viewchives and apparently won't be like any old VOD service, since it will allow users to view specific scenes and "keywords" in addition to whole episodes. The idea behind this is to create some sort of hybrid VOD/encyclopedia where Gundam fans can experience the series in a new way.

Users of the service can search through 400 keywords and look up detailed information, which will include a list of individual scenes relating to that keyword. There will be over 800 individual scenes taken from the original 43 episodes. Namco Bandai also plans to make the service a social experience featuring chat options with other fans.

Gundam Viewchives is currently still in the "research" stage. If something like this actually gets out the door and becomes a hit, imagine what other anime series could follow next. Perhaps it could spawn a grander initiative for other television series and ilk. We'll keep an eye on this one.

Namco's Klonoa remake releasing to Europe

by David Hinkle { Mar 6th 2009 at 12:45PM }

Eurogamer reports that Namco's Klonoa remake will be making its way to Europe, likely putting a smile on a face or two along the way. Klonoa is an updated version of the original PSOne game, Klonoa: Door to Phantomile, and features a new control scheme that takes advantage of the capabilities of the Wiimote and Nunchuk, but will also include a classic control method for those who wish to ditch the waggle.

Klonoa is currently available in Japan and will make its way to North America sometime this spring. It'll arrive in Europe sometime this year.

Gallery: Klonoa (Wii)

Namco unleashes 4 new Klonoa trailers

by David Hinkle { Jan 26th 2009 at 2:00PM }

Namco Bandai shot over some new videos for Klonoa and we must say they look rather good. Even though it's a remake of a PSOne game, we're still excited for this one. It looks like the platforming is going to be as fun as ever, and the updated graphics make it much easier on the eyes. Head past the break for three more videos, if the one above this text tickles your fancy.

Gallery: Klonoa: Door to Phantomile

Continued →

We Ski and Snowboard and Look at New Screens

by David Hinkle { Jan 21st 2009 at 8:12PM }

Click image for new screens

Namco Bandai just sent off a bunch of new screens for Family Ski: World Ski & Snowboard. The screens feature everything from splitscreen gameplay down to penguins on skis. If you were wondering, yes, we do approve of penguins on skis. It defintely gets them around faster than walking and, boy, are they cute. Click on the image above or hit up the gallery below for the new screens.

Gallery: Family Ski: World Ski & Snowboard

Fragile battle montage is very Hitchcockian

by David Hinkle { Jan 13th 2009 at 5:20PM }

Well, maybe not really, because there's only a brief segment at the tail end of this video for Fragile that shows several attacking birds on a sunny beach. The parts of the video leading up to that segment mainly focus on battling other creatures, such as glowing, floating jellyfish. Check it all out in the video above.

Gallery: Fragile

Namco confirms Klonoa coming to North America

by David Hinkle { Jan 9th 2009 at 7:10PM }

And it's doing away with that pesky subtitle Door to Phantomile. Yes, Namco's remake of the classic PSOne game will release in North America, as reported earlier, and will simply be titled Klonoa. Should be easy enough to remember.

All we have to go on right now is a 2009 release window. Namco hasn't specified an exact date within the year, but, hey, it's 2009 right now. Let's hope we get it sooner rather than later.

See also: Born for Wii: Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil

Gallery: Klonoa: Door to Phantomile

[Via press release]

LittleBigPlanet skin coming to Lumines Supernova

by Alan Tsang { Dec 5th 2008 at 12:45PM }

Dengeki Online is reporting that Q-Entertainment will be collaborating with Media Molecule to create a LittleBigPlanet skin for Lumines Supernova, an upcoming PSN-exclusive title (read more about the game here). Not many too details have been announced, except that it will appear some time this winter. There are also three screenshots, which you can check out here.

[Via Kotaku]

TGS 08 picture tour: Namco Bandai booth

by Majed Athab { Oct 15th 2008 at 3:45PM }

click to enter

Namco Bandai was all about the anime games at TGS this year. That's counting playable builds of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, at least three Gundam titles, Macross Ace Frontier and Soul Eater. Other titles like the Idolm@ster PSP games were also a hit with the crowd, as huge queues snaked beyond the booth's perimeter. Get a closer look inside our Namco Bandai Booth Photo Tour.

Namco bundles DVD with National Geographic Panda

by David Hinkle { Sep 30th 2008 at 6:18PM }

Namco Bandai just dished out a press release about upcoming National Geographic Panda. With the game hitting U.S. retail shelves this fall, the prospect of playing with virtual pandas on your DS is not the only enticing aspect panda fans should be focusing on. All copies of the game will come packaged with a DVD titled Secrets of the Wild Panda. What is Secrets of the Wild Panda? Well, it's an hour-long special produced by National Geographic on the subject of, you guessed it, panda bears. So instead of just being a DS game full of cute pandas to play with, it also holds some educational value, as well.