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Nintendo of Japan just launched a line of budget Wii re-releases -- something that hasn't happened out of Nintendo in a long time. The Minna no Osusume Selection (Everyone's Recommendation Selection) is a series of third-party games marked down to ¥2,800 ($30.53), and given new box art that pretty much obscures the original image, making it really difficult to tell which game it is.

Since the best-selling Wii games are all still selling at full price, Nintendo determined the titles to be released in this collection in a really smart way: with user recommendations from the Nintendo Channel. Each of the games is given a "medal" rank based on the user response, with the most recommended game on the list being Chunsoft's visual novel 428. Other titles in the collection include Muramasa, Arc Rise Fantasia, We Ski & Snowboard, and One Piece and Dragon Ball Z games. See the full list of initial releases after the break.

RPG fans, the first few reviews for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World aren't too good. Sorry to be so blunt, but them's the breaks. We have yet to try the game, but what about those of you who've already picked it up and invested a few hours? Check out the reviews then provide your thoughts in the comments!

• GameTrailers (79/100) says it needed a bit more TLC: "In some ways, it's a worthy successor to the original, but it's ultimately just another passable action RPG."

• IGN (67/100) thinks this isn't the best benchmark for the genre on Wii: "Being the only RPG on the Wii's horizon, this doesn't feel like a relief -- it feels rather depressing."

• Games Radar (60/100) tells us: "If you can look past the last-last-gen flaws that absolutely should be gone by now, there's a totally playable bit of gaming here that'll scratch your RPG itch for the time being. But if you're unsure as to which new Tales game you should play, Vesperia or Dawn of the New World, go Vesperia."

Tales fans likely don't need extra incentive to secure a pre-order for Tales of Vesperia; the only question that remains is if they're happy with the regular version or want to pony up the extra gald for something shinier. Besides being wrapped in metal and artwork by series character designer Kosuke Fujishima, the $69.99 Tales of Vesperia special edition will also include a soundtrack CD celebrating a decade of console role-playing.

While specifics haven't been revealed, Namco Bandai notes that of the 25 songs included on the disc, a hefty 14 will be pulled from Vesperia, with the remainder coming from Tales of Symphonia (4), Tales of the Abyss (3), Tales of Phantasia (2) and Tales of Destiny (2). However, as much as we enjoy our ears, this limited offering is a step back from the Big Daddies and cat helmets we're used to, though we doubt that will stop fans from switching their pre-orders over in the run up to the game's August 26 release.

We're kind of glad to see Persona 4 blow away the competition in software, even if it's not a Wii game (cough -- it should be). Nothing else really sold all that well, not even the games in the top ten. Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii keep piling on copies to their ever-growing mountains, though, and remain snug in the top ten.

The other big news in terms of Japanese software is the release of Resident Evil 0. Capcom's port did debut at spot six, but only sold 20k copies in its first week. This game won't come even close to being the cash cow that Resident Evil 4 was, but we're sure Capcom will still make a pretty ported penny.

Hardware sales show that the Wii was stuck in third, again:

You can check out Japan's software sales and rankings from last week after the break.

You don't have time to be reading this. In fact, by spending valuable seconds reading this very sentence, you have wasted enough time to insult these new Dawn of the New World trailers by not giving them your undivided attention. This massive RPG loves spamming fans with countless videos, and we don't like it. It's a tease. Still, we keep coming back and absorbing everything associated with the sequel to the best RPG on the GameCube. Anyway, what are you still doing here? Hit the jump for plenty more Tales goodness right now!

The first thing we noticed upon scanning through last week's top thirty games was that Shiren the Wanderer 3 was missing, to our disappointment. The second thing we noticed was that Tales of Symphonia dropped 100,000 copies from its debut week's sales. While the top thirty software chart definitely looks promising for the Wii at a glance, we can't really feel good about placements in light of such details. As for what Wii game topped the rest? Look up and take a guess.

On the hardware front, the Wii stayed put in third behind the handhelds:

Since hardware is only half the fun, though, check out the software numbers too after the break.

This Wii had a lot of software representation in the top ten this week, with a third-party game taking the highest honors -- Namco Bandai's Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World. Japan's Wii RPG love wasn't enough to put the newest Tales game into first place, though; a DS title about horse racing, Derby Stallion, took that coveted position. Yet, Symphonia's first week sales are pretty impressive.

The other Wii games that found themselves in the top ten were Mario Super Sluggers, and of course Wii Fit and Mario Kart. As for hardware, the Wii dropped to third place, falling behind the DS by a minuscule margin:

To see the top ten software sales numbers and rankings, just clicky clicky on the "continue reading" link below.

The above video is the opening cinematic to Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World. Considering that's what video we started off with in this very post, you can safely assume that there will be more videos, full of spoilers. Sure, all the text is in Japanese, but we're sure at least one thing will be spoiled for you, should you watch them. So, before you head past the break, keep that in mind.

The existing trailer for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World is a glorious cinematic, and there's nothing quite as tasty as an epic RPG doing what it does best - showing off and kicking ass. Fortunately for us, the Tales series does lots of stuff best, and we're hoping this latest footage from Dawn plays as good as it looks.

The opening cinematic features Lloyd, Collette and the rest of the gang from the GameCube's Symphonia. Keep in mind -- the entire video is overrun by lighting-fast Japanese commentary, and it's information we only wish we could comprehend. Nevertheless, you'll witness plenty of gameplay here, with the new world map featured (as opposed to the rather empty free-roaming map in the previous game), along with a couple of dialogue scenes and some heavy battling action. There's really nothing to criticize at this point -- we just want to play this stunner.



[Via GoNintendo]

There's no doubt that Wii-owning RPG gamers are thirsting for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, an oasis in a barren desert filled with only ... well, Opoona (as far as traditional Japanese RPGs go, at least). That's why we're really looking forward to Namco Bandai's Tales effort for the Wii, and hope that it can fill the gaping holes in our gamer hearts. Fortunately, everything we've seen on the title so far both looks and sounds enticing. Take, for example, this latest trailer.

This three-minute video is packed with gameplay, cinematics, character introductions, action, drama, romance, and anything else you can think of. The only catch is that it's in Japanese, so unless you understand crazy talk, you probably won't know what's being said. (Note: The video stops short at the end because the last ten seconds got cut off.)

Japan will be getting the game next month, but those of us waiting for North American localization can expect it in September.

[Update: Trailer replaced with a version that doesn't cut off at the end.]


[Via Destructoid]

Adding to the ever-growing list of "cool stuff Japan gets that we don't," Bandai Namco is offering a sweet preorder bonus with Tales of Symphonia. The RPG, which releases in Japan in late June, will come with a Dramatic DVD for gamers that preorder the title. The DVD will include original animated scenes that add to the game's story, which sounds like a pretty nice extra to us.

We're sure the DVD will never see the light of day outside of Japan (officially), so the rest of us will just have to be content to look at screens and pretend that's dramatic. Some new screens might help you with such a task, so just click on the "Read" link below (or the picture above) to check them out.


[Via Gemaga]

Some of you may not be fond of Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World's fighting-with-monsters scheme, but we think it looks pretty neat. Spencer Yip from Siliconera gives us an even more in-depth look into the system than before, reporting that you can ditch your entire party (with the exception of the main character Emil, of course), for a party full of monsters, like in the screen shown above.

After you battle monsters, you'll often have a chance to negotiate with them and have them fight for you. It's not as simple as "catching" them all, though, since some monsters will refuse to join your party if they have a grudge against one of your other allied creatures. Since the game provides 200 different species of monster that you can fight with, which we think this can add a lot of depth to this Tales rendition. As long as you don't become obsessed with collecting them, that is, because then you might as well be playing something else.

Drawing more similarities from Pokemon, these monsters also evolve. However, you can cause their evolutions by serving them certain foods, so the cooking system in the game should be pretty interesting. We're not sure yet, though, whether these are true, outward-and-inward evolutions, or just stat alterations (as we reported before).

Those of you who are looking forward to this title still have a long wait ahead of you. The RPG is set to hit North America in Q4 of this year.

More delightful media has emerged from the Namco Bandai Editors' Day event! We've updated our gallery with new English screens (and a few inexplicable Japanese screens) of Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World.

The latest game in Namco Bandai's milked-to-death RPG series (though the relative milked-ness of the Tales name may not have any bearing on the quality of this game!) features a new twist in the form of 200 unique monsters, all of whom can (and, perhaps, gotta) be caught. You can swap out monster party members and alter their stats with various foods.

Dawn of the New World will dawn on the shelves this fall.

The more we see and hear about Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, the more excited we get. Not only are we craving some RPGs for the Wii (although Opoona and Baroque will be out relatively soon), but also we're happy to see how the game has improved. Tales has come a long way since its earlier screens, and we can't wait until it hits American shores.

To see a deluge of new Tales of Symphonia screenshots, make sure to check past the break.

Namco's Tales RPG series is a lot like the bus -- if you miss one, just wait a moment and another will be around shortly. The series, which got its start back in 1995 with Tales of Phantasia for the SNES, is now set to get two new entries as Namco Bandai announced plans to localize both Tales of Vesperia (pictured) for the Xbox 360 and Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World for the Wii later this year.

While Vesperia was first announced during Tokyo's Jump Festa event last December, the game's console destination had been something of a question mark until now. The game, which marks the franchise's first entry on Microsoft's console, will feature character designs by series stalwart Kosuke Fujishima of Oh My Goddess! and Gungrave fame, and promises "significant additions" to the series' action-heavy combat, a facet that has been Tale's defining feature since hit met points.

For those with a taste for nostalgia, Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World will take place two years after the GameCube original, whisking Wii owners away on a journey wrought with discovery, old friends, and what we're sure will be plenty of waggle. There's also talk of being able to "recruit" more than 200 different monsters, no doubt pleasing those harboring an incessant need to "catch 'em all."