Humongous Entertainment is currently best known for its line of family-friendly Backyard sports games, but the Infogrames subsidiary’s origins date back to the graphic-adventure-game heyday of the early ’90s, when it was founded by LucasArts alums Shelley Day and Ron Gilbert. Although those execs have since moved on (Ron Gilbert recently surfaced as creative director at Hothead games), a few of the properties created under their direction will soon be finding new life on the Nintendo Wii thanks to Majesco.
The casual-friendly publisher announced today that children’s adventure games Freddi Fish, Pajama Sam, and Spy Fox will arrive for Nintendo’s console. All three games will be produced by Interactive Game Group and take advantage of the Wii’s motion-sensing controls, with a focus on point-and-click-style adventure gameplay.
As each game is part of a long-running series, each game will be the first installment in their respective franchises, with Freddi Fish in Kelp Seed Mystery, Pajama Sam in Don’t Fear the Dark, and Spy Fox in Dry Cereal. Majesco had not indicated whether it intends to port to the Wii other installments from the franchises in the future, and had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.
Freddi Fish, Pajama Sam, and Spy Fox will all find release on Nintendo’s console in mid-2008 for $19.99 each.
An Xbox 360 version of Introversion’s award-winning hybrid real-time strategy game Darwinia has been speculated since the game’s first run on the PC in 2005. However, an edition for Microsoft’s console has never actually materialized. That may change in the near future, given that the Entertainment Software Rating Board has updated its online database with an E for Everyone rating for Introversion’s innovative strategy game. Introversion has been listed as the publisher for the Xbox 360 version of the game.
Originally released in 2005, Darwinia is set inside a virtual theme park in a computer network. A viral infection has broken out that you must contain to save the little Darwinians. In the game, players have to alter the status of the creatures by inputting a gesture-based command. On the PC, these gestures are achieved with a flick of the mouse, and there are currently no details on how they would be handled in an Xbox 360 version of the game.
Introversion is a small British developer whose other works include 2001’s hacker simulator Uplink and critically acclaimed global thermonuclear war strategy game DEFCON: Everybody Dies. The studio is known to be working on a PC follow-up to Darwinia, dubbed Multiwinia: Survival of the Flattest, which will bring online play to the franchise.
It is unclear whether the Xbox 360 version of the game would appear as an Xbox Live Arcade offering, and Introversion had not responded to requests for clarification as of press time. However, the developer is no stranger to digital distribution; Introversion’s entire lineup is available for download through Valve’s online portal Steam.
Reinventing a classic arcade game can be a tricky business. Developers have to stick close enough to what made the original formula so compelling while introducing enough novel mechanics to entice new people to try out the game. Unfortunately, Rainbow Islands Evolution succeeds at neither endeavor, alienating fans of the original Rainbow Islands by creating a slow, monotonous trek that does little to appeal to a new audience. Although the essential rainbow-throwing, climb-to-the-top mechanics remain intact, Evolution turns a classic 8-bit platformer into a tedious game that simply isn’t fun.
Pretty rainbows don’t make up for some glaring oversights.
As Bubby and Bobby, you must climb to the top of the Rainbow Islands to save imprisoned songwriters held captive by the evil Million Records company. The terrible music churned out by these brainwashed artists has poisoned the ecosystem, mutating its inhabitants and breaking up the landscape. Only magical rainbows from your hurdy-gurdy can change your friends back to normal. Although told through charming storybook sequences, the plot serves merely as an inane explanation for how this remake relates to the original Rainbow Islands.
What made the original game so much fun was its hectic pacing as you raced to the top of the screen, using your rainbows to climb higher and take out the many enemies scattered throughout the levels. Evolution emphasizes exploration over speed by adding three layers to each stage that can only be traversed at predetermined intervals by jumping on platforms that move between the background and foreground. Enemies are scarce, and when they do appear, it’s often in a different layer where they can shoot projectiles at you without much fear of retaliation. Rotating the analog stick summons a resonator that fires rainbow wheels into the background, but it’s difficult to judge their trajectory, and you’ll rarely aim correctly. Adding to this needless complexity, both your character and the resonator can be leveled up by finding hidden items strewn throughout the different layers. Having to search for these items, the moving platforms, and enemies quickly becomes repetitive.
Defeating each of the bosses–who also interrupt your progress throughout the levels–relies on the resonator mechanic as well. You’ll find yourself frantically jumping from platform to platform, in and out of the screen, or rotating the analog stick as fast as you can with the hope that one of your rainbow wheels lands a hit. Every boss fight is the same, and they are all frustrating endeavors. Rushing to the top of the level usually allows you to skip these encounters, and the only motivation to defeat midlevel bosses is the ability to warp to a higher point or level up your resonator. Still, this doesn’t help the game’s slow, plodding pace.
As you make your way up the levels, you’ll find that the game’s noninteractive tutorial has not prepared you for its imprecise controls. Too often, your character will fall off his own rainbows or unintentionally jump through platforms directly into the path of an enemy. Ultimately, how fast or slowly you’re able to rotate the analog stick won’t matter because the resonator is equally unresponsive in either case. Rainbow Islands also takes a nod from its spiritual predecessor, Bubble Bobble, allowing you to shoot a homing bubble and dispatch precariously placed enemies. Unfortunately, these homing bubbles often miss their targets, which defeats the purpose of including the mechanic altogether.
With vibrant, colorful graphics and a catchy soundtrack, the original Rainbow Islands was undeniably charming. It’s therefore all the more disappointing that what could have been Evolution’s biggest strength is actually held back by poor design choices. None of the enemies will be recognizable to fans, with Bub and Bob having received some questionable style updates. Besides some minor color variation in their sombreros, the two are indistinguishable. Dull, sparse backgrounds add to the dreary style along with a grating, monotonous soundtrack that you’ll quickly want to turn off.
Frequent boss battles are an exercise in tedium.
The biggest problem with Evolution is that it fails to capture the frantic action of Rainbow Islands. You can unlock time-trial versions of each level that make a valiant effort to simulate the original arcade feel. However, by the time your character is powerful enough to sprint to the top, you’ll have lost interest altogether. The multiplayer mode offers a similar race to the clouds, but it feels tacked on to the game. A two-player cooperative mode would have gone a long way toward pleasing nostalgic fans.
Rainbow Islands Evolution stands as a missed opportunity to reinvigorate a beloved franchise. Its slow pacing and monotonous gameplay mechanics make Evolution difficult to recommend. Nostalgic fans will want to look elsewhere for their 8-bit fix, and those who are unfamiliar with the franchise should seek out the original, more exciting version.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII achieves a striking balance of old and new, and juggles fan service with pure role-playing satisfaction. It’s striking how these elements have been shaped into such an appealing and emotionally affecting prequel. There are some new characters and plenty of fan favorites too, such as Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith. However, the characters your most likely to empathize with are unlikely ones, including main protagonist Zack, as well as Sephiroth, who is complex, troubled, and even sometimes likable. The way their personal stories weave in and out of each other–and set the stage for the events in Final Fantasy VII–makes Crisis Core not just the finest role-playing experience available on the PSP, but also one of the best Japanese RPGs in years.
Zack’s journey is one of the franchise’s most memorable.
Zack isn’t new to the franchise, but he was a mere flashback in Final Fantasy VII, which may not make him seem like the best choice of leading man for a prequel to one of the best RPGs ever created. Yet he’s as interesting as any Square Enix star, and transcends the usual spiky-haired heroism and teenage angst with an uncommon maturity that only develops as the game continues. Revealing almost any plot point could be a spoiler; the Gaia world is rich with mythology and complex character motivation. What’s important is how the characters interact, change, and grow. Scenes between Zack and Cloud are both effortless and poignant, and stem directly out of Zack’s most impressive character traits: trust and loyalty. As each plot thread twists together and the game reaches its inevitable conclusion, your heart will soften and you may shed a few tears. Crisis Core tells a memorable and exciting tale, but more importantly, it makes you care about its characters, even if you are new to the lore. The game’s final scenes are amazing and heartfelt, and one sequence in particular that brilliantly mingles gameplay with narrative is one of the most incredible and moving moments in role-playing history.
The game’s stunning cutscenes have an immeasurable effect on the emotionally resonant story. There is a harmonious mix of prerendered cinematics and in-engine cutscenes, and both were created with precision. Dramatic camera angles frame Crisis Core’s greatest moments, from earth-shaking soliloquies to the quiet pauses Zack and Aerith share. There is a standout scene in which Sephiroth comes into deep focus using a camera technique familiar to Alfred Hitchcock fans. This kind of range is rare in cutscenes, even in RPGs, yet it’s never forced or overdone here. The quality is further enhanced by incredible voice acting. Past Final Fantasies have sometimes suffered from awkward English voice-overs, but each actor here delivers the right degree of emotion at the right time, which in turn gives weight to the story. As Zack matures, you can hear the newfound confidence replace his adolescent arrogance; when Angeal tells Zack that he’s just a little more important than his sword, you can hear a subtle grin in his deep, commanding baritone.
If you enjoyed Final Fantasy VII, this kind of attention to detail won’t come as a surprise. However, you may be startled at how the combat works. Crisis Core is an action RPG. Granted, it does have many of the same elements as FFVII: materia, limit breaks, and so on. However, it plays nothing like its inspiration, which may irritate some fans. This doesn’t make it better or worse, but it does make it different, and once you get used to it, it’s a lot of fun. Battles are almost exclusively random, with the exception of those that end your side missions (more on those later). When combat begins, you are limited to a contained area, but you can move freely within it. To target an enemy, you simply face in its direction, and to attack, you hit X. It’s not quite real-time, but rather a series of quick turns that give you a smidgen of time in-between to select a different spell or attack. You can switch among different options and spells on the fly using the shoulder buttons. If you’re familiar with the Tales series (Tales of the Abyss, and so on), you’ll have a rough idea of how the combat works in Crisis Core.
Combat is exciting but on the easy side.
You can also guard and evade oncoming attacks, though doing so spends action points. A number of special attacks, such as assault twister, also use action points. Other attacks, like spells, use up magic points. To perform them, you need to possess and equip the corresponding materia. Zack can’t use an unlimited number of materia in battle; he’s limited to a certain number at a time, so you’ll want to choose wisely before you head into late-game combat, especially if you know a boss fight is imminent. You can also fuse materia together to make new spells or enhanced attacks, such as the impressive Thundara Blade. There are times when you’ll need to take advantage of your materia and dodge oncoming attacks. Nevertheless, for the first half of the game, Crisis Core is remarkably easy, and a lot of battles come down to mashing on the X button. There is no shortage of potions and gil (the series’ currency), either, and given that you can purchase items at any save point, there’s no reason not to be fully stocked.
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Silverfall
Set in a fantasy realm, this action role-playing game features expansive worlds rife with monsters.
Monster Hunter PSP
Monster Hunter Freedom is based on the Monster Hunter G game for the PlayStation 2. New features have been added to this version of the game including minigames and the ability to raise cats. The game supports 1 to 4 players via an ad-hoc connection.
Kingdom of Paradise
Kingdom of Paradise is a 3D martial arts role-playing game based on Eastern mythology. You can collect various fighting skills and items to tailor the fighting style of your character.
Final Fantasy XII (PS2)
Final Fantasy XII stars a princess named Ashe, who teams up with Vaan, an urchin, and several other characters to protect their homeland of Ivalice against invaders.
Score: 9.0
Final Fantasy XIII (PS3)
Final Fantasy XIII is the first installment in the best-selling series of role-playing games from Square Enix to appear on the PlayStation 3.
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