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Up close and personal with Arc Rise Fantasia
Ever since we've learned that Arc Rise Fantasia was going to break out of Japan, we've wanted to see more of the RPG, but there was a long gap and not a lot to see. Now, however, we can check out ... well, honestly, it's a bunch of poses. Sometimes the same pose against a different background. There's serious fighty business going down, though, so they're worth a look. We've gone too long without some quality time traveling the world in search of turn-based battle. Now if only we had a firm date ....
Gallery: Arc Rise Fantasia
Sega officially announces Sands of Destruction
We knew it was coming, but Sega finally saw fit to send out the press release announcing the North American version of World Destruction, called Sands of Destruction. The press release is even dated December 4! We'd love to know what happened to make Sega decide at the last minute to sit on the announcement for a week.According to the press release, Sands of Destruction follows a group called the World Annihilation Front who, in an attempt to free the world from the tyrannical Ferals, decide to destroy it, using the powers of a kid named Kyrie Illunis.
The "voice system" seems to have been dubbed the "Quip System" in the US release: characters can enhance and change their status in battle by saying "inspiring battle commands," which are found throughout the world and equipped by characters. It's a game about trying not to save the world, in which you battle by talking! All they need in order to totally break JRPG tradition is to put a very friendly, outgoing person in the lead who remembers his childhood just fine.
Gallery: World Destruction
[Thanks, Volcynika!]
Sega leak confirms planned US release for World Destruction
It's not too much of a surprise: Image Epoch president Ryoei Mikage told Siliconera at TGS that the company was currently working on the North American version of the game, with new music from Chrono Trigger composer Yasunori Mitsuda. We're happy to see an "official" "announcement," though, of course! We expect a for-real announcement soon, to catch up with this leak.
Gallery: World Destruction
Arc Rise Fantasia: refreshingly familiar
This doesn't mean Arc Rise Fantasia doesn't have potential on its own. We've certainly enjoyed Image Epoch's work so far, and more RPGs on the Wii means more happiness. It just looks very ... familiar, and more so every time new media is released.
Anyone else hoping for a Japanese track in the English-language versions of the game? Everything just sounds so right in the footage that it's hard to imagine with less-energetic American voice actors.
TGS08: Rising Star reveals four for Europe
Rising Star Games just unfurled an official list of Marvelous games that it plans to localize for Europe, including Luminous Arc 2, Avalon Code, Rune Factory 2, and a fourth game that is yet to be announced for North America: Steal Princess. We expected most (if not all) of these to reach us at some point, mainly because Rising Star Games is totally awesome and we love them.
Previous evidence has suggested that Steal Princess and Luminous Arc 2 won't be appearing before the end of March 2009, but we can't be mad at Marvelous. The company has had an action-packed Tokyo Game Show, and this is the cherry on top of a whole pile of other excellent announcements for Nintendo fans. Make the jump for screens, screens, and more screens!
Gallery: Steal Princess
Arc Rise Fantasia and its hammerhead turtle in screens
Marvelous has yet to announce any release outside Japan for this game, but TGS is around the corner, and they'll have to talk about something! This seems like exactly the kind of high-quality RPG they'll want to push worldwide.
Gallery: Arc Rise Fantasia
Grab your hair gel and weapons: new Arc Rise Fantasia shots
But seriously, we can handle the generic characters, weapons, and enemies -- we're used to that in RPGs -- but can we dispense with that very soft, very muted look for Wii games? We can do better than this.
Gallery: Arc Rise Fantasia
Sega shows more Destruction
Along with the news that World Destruction will be releasing in Japan on September 25th (shock, gasp, it was pushed back a week!), Sega has released a new video for the title. Although it shows some more gameplay footage, most of it is your classic RPG fodder and not battle scenes. Still, we're pretty impressed by how it seems to be turning out. Not only does it look great and have an interesting story, but the 300 event scenes and plethora of maps and voices that Sega promised should be enough to excite any RPG gamer.
Also, folks interested in the game (or anime, or comic) can go and check out World Destruction's official website. There's not much in the "Game" section, aside from a nice-looking background and a gorgeous song (the one from previous trailers), but the song alone is enough to get us to keep on coming back until they add some content.
E308: Luminous Arc 2 screens add a dose of hilarity
Just last week, we found out Luminous Arc 2 was slated for localization (at last!), and since then we've been on the receiving end of a few fresh new English-language screens. We've already slipped in a little humor of our own in our coverage of the title, but conveniently, this time they've done all the work for us. Check out the latest screens while we kick back and relax. Atlus has also put up the game's official English-language site (move your mouse around the front page for some motiion-sickness-causing lulz), as well as a trailer. Hit it up after the break to learn all about the horrors of anti-witch prejudice, battles, and rings.
Gallery: Luminous Arc 2
Luminous Arc 2 radiates to the U.S.
Clearing up doubts on whether Image Epoch's bootytastic SRPG sequel, Luminous Arc 2: Will, would ever come stateside, Atlus has announced that it is localizing the game for this fall.Why would you want to buy a lower budget Final Fantasy Tactics Advance knock-off, especially when you could just get Song Summoner for the iPod instead, you ask? We have an easy answer for that: online multiplayer battles. Also, big butts.
Luminous Arc 2 will retail for $39.99, significantly higher than most other DS titles, but each copy will come in an oversized box containing a CD with selected songs from the soundtrack. Presumably, it's the same CD that was released with the SRPG's preorders in Japan.
Enjoy three video clips from the English-translated game after the break! Interestingly, the voices are still in Japanese; we wonder if Atlus will leave the Japanese audio track intact?
Gallery: Luminous Arc 2
Sega provides soundtrack, commercials for World Destruction
Making the most of its multiple media production, Sega debuted two new commercials for its forthcoming World Destruction DS game during the Japanese premiere of its accompanying World Destruction anime series. The videos are blurry, and there's less than fifteen seconds of actual in-game footage between the two clips, but you can still see a preview of the JRPG's combat! Plus, one of the girls totally kicks a prison door off its hinges.
Sega has also announced that it will throw in a "premium soundtrack" for anyone who puts in a preorder for World Destruction's September 18th release in Japan. The CD will contain five tracks picked out by composer Yasunori Mitsuda, whose name you should recognize from his work on Chrono Trigger and the Xenosaga series. Jump past the break for the album cover and second commercial!
Gallery: World Destruction
The first clear look at Arc Rise Fantasia
The creepy cutscene stills illustrate the invasion of "Contaminant Dragons" on the city of Diamant -- basically creepy monsters who fly around en masse in the dark. The player's party includes Bright, a soldier (and generic spiky-haired RPG avatar), Alse, a prince who also decides to go fight for some reason, a mysterious girl named Ryphia, and the pictured Adele, a mage-type character, seen here casting
Gallery: Arc Rise Fantasia
Up come the first shots of Arc Rise Fantasia
It just wouldn't be an RPG without a bunch of spiky-haired teenage boys and some girl holding a staff -- thanks to character designer Kenichi Yoshida. The director responsible for the gorgeous locations and epic battles is Hiroyuki Kanemaru, and you can check out a couple more scans after the break. Look out for more Arc Rise Fantasia news real soon, because no RPG should be left behind.
Arc Rise Fantasia plays a role on the Wii
RPG fans, take note.If you've played Luminous Arc on the DS (pictured), you probably have an idea of what an under-hyped little gem it was. While we might not have enjoyed it as much as a few other SRPGs, the point is, we did enjoy it. Now, some of the team behind that series are bringing their talents to the Wii.
Called Arc Rise Fantasia (no relation), both Image Epoch and Marvelous will be involved with the title. It's an RPG that involves a three-character party, all of whom share the same action gauge. Balancing your AP among your party, therefore, is part of the challenge. Other than that, the latest issue of Famitsu didn't reveal too many juicy details. We're always thirsting for more RPG blood, though, so we feel this game will be a welcome addition to the Wii's lineup.
DJ Sega hits the airwaves with World Destruction radio show
World Destruction isn't just a game. Apparently, Sega wants to create a worldwide media onslaught of WD information. There's the standard JRPG in development, a TV-destroying anime, and even comics hitting the stores. To assault all your senses, a weekly web radio show has now been announced, to begin airing on July 3rd.The show will be a blog of sorts, with various members of development staff coming in every Thursday to discuss project updates and reveal detailed World Destruction information. Voice actors Furuya Toru and Yuuko Kobayashi will be hosting, and producer Youiti Shimosato will be the go-to guy for any specific questions.
It's all in Japanese, so that's kind of a problem. Minor setback -- go ahead and tune in anyway. In order to learn a new language, you need to listen to it at least once, right?
