Thursday, December 18, 2008

ADK Tamashii - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» Back in the heyday of the Neo Geo, SNK supported their own hardware platform with a bevy of (mostly) fighting games such as Garou Densetsu and King of Fighters. Unlike most other publishers who avoided the Neo-Geo, ADK was right in there, dishing out a relatively steady stream of titles that sated the hunger of thousands of Neo Geo fans and adherents. In recent years, many of the old Neo Geo games have been ported over to the PS2 and ADK's collection finally gets the Neo-Geo-to-PS2 treatment as well. The games featured on ADK Tamashii are:

» Ninja Combat
» Ninja Commando
» Ninja Masters -
worth the price of admission by its lonesome?
» Toukai Gan Gan (aka Aggressors of Dark Combat)
» Twinkle Star Sprites

Ninja Combat and Ninja Commando are hack 'n slash action games while Ninja Masters and Toukai Gan Gan are 2D fighting games. Twinkle Star Sprites is a vertical shooter with competitive twist where 2 players attack each other by shooting down waves of flitting enemy squadrons.

Beatmania IIDX 15 DJ Troopers - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» In the previous Beatmania episode (IIDX 14), the visual theme was sweet, glittering GOLD. The visuals of the fifteenth Beatmania IIDX release are built upon one unifying theme - war. Camouflage-covered dancers and maidens packing heat are only some of the clues that there's a battle or a gang of Bemani militia somewhere.

The Playstation 2 conversion of Beatmania IIDX 15 DJ Troopers features a 90+ track list which includes 9 new CS songs such as
"Battle Train -IIDX Edition-" by Sota Fujimori, "Biometrics Warrior" from GUHROOVY fw. NO+CHIN, "Sidechained Threats" by sanodg, and "Beautiful Angel" courtesy of DJ Swan. The arcade song selection features 57 tracks including "JOURNEY TO FANTASTICA (IIDX LIMITED)" by S.S.D.Fantastica feat. Emi with Arata, "Blue Rain" from Dj Taka vs Ryu, and "Sound Of Giallarhorn" by L.E.D.-G. The remaining tracks are scattered in Revivals, Old Songs, and 8 Hidden music tracks (one of which is BRAINSTORM by Hardcore United Tokyo (teranoid & DJ TECHNORCH) that must be unlocked.

Game modes include a Tutorial so newbies can learn how to get into the groove, Standard, Free, and Expert for the elite players in the audience.

Dissidia Final Fantasy - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» When two gods have enmity between each other, they don't go to fisticuffs by themselves. No, they're gods and are loathe to soil their robes with brute behavior. When gods go to war, they summon underlings and minions to do their bidding. In the case of the gods named Cosmos and Chaos, the heroes and villains of the Final Fantasy games are brought in to do some fierce 3D fighting on their behalf.

Cosmos' champions are the heroes from Final Fantasy games such as the Warrior of Light from Final Fantasy I, Cecil Harvey from Final Fantasy IV, Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII, and Tidus from Final Fantasy X. On the side of Chaos are the villains of the Final Fantasy games including the Emperor from Final Fantasy II, Exdeath from Final Fantasy V, and Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII. It's a mostly male affair with only a couple of heroines such as Tina Branford (FFVI) in the playable cast though we think Payne would have kicked ass. There is a secret heroine from FFXI who can be unlocked by meeting certain conditions while playing.

At the outset of the game, only ten fighters from the heroes side are playable. In our test game this morning, we pitted Onion Knight from Final Fantasy III against Squall Leonhart of FFVIII fame and selected the eight stage which features a bunch of craggy platforms against a hazy aquamarine backdrop. The heroes can jump from platform to platform to attack but since they're being supported by gods, they're able to jump twice in midair and attack while airborne. Light trails and clanging special effects provide visual fireworks to spice up every battle.
«Shots»

Fate Unlimited Codes - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» Saber, Shiro, Rin, and the rest of the FATE/STAY rabble are back in a 2D fighting game which reached Japanese arcades just a few months ago. The complete Namco 246 kit would have set you back about US$3500 but thanks to the magic of fast home conversions, the Japanese PS2 edition is available this week for a measly US$69.90.

Fate/Unlimited Codes was developed by Capcom and Cavia with the game engine supplied by Eighting. The game looks 3D but the fighters face off on a 2D plane with the occasional 3D background shift and special attacks that swivel the screen in 3D motion. For example, when Caster performs a magic attack, she flies up into the air and opens her cape like a butterfly before the torrent of lasers skewer her opponent below. The attack is shown in 3D via cut-scene cinema before the 2D fighting action takes over again. Gilgamesh also has a watch-worthy special attack where he binds his opponent with lengths of chain before serving the coup de grรขce. The cut scenes mesh beautifully with the fighting to provide a fluid gaming experience for fans of the Fate Stay franchise. The PS2 conversions includes a Tutorial Mode, a Practice Mode with CPU modifiers, a Mission Mode, and an Extra Mode which contains a visual collection and movies.

Fate Unlimited Codes SP-Box - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» Saber, Shiro, Rin, and the rest of the FATE/STAY rabble are back in a 2D fighting game which reached Japanese arcades just a couple of months ago. Fate/Unlimited Codes was developed by Capcom and Cavia with the game engine supplied by Eighting. The game looks 3D but the fighters face off on a 2D plane with the occasional 3D background shift and special attacks that swivel in 3D motion.

The SP-Box edition of Fate/Unlimited Codes for the Playstation 2 includes a limited edition Saber Lily Figma figure that's being produced by Max Factory exclusively for the game. It won't be sold separately in any other capacity. «Photo Gallery»

Gensou Suikoden Tierkreis - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» A player-named lad whom we ceremonially knighted "ncsx.com" begins his adventure in Citro Village located within the Kingdom of Salsaville where he's a member of the town guard. Wandering monsters and vagabonds who happen upon Citro are met by the youthful guards who also include a girl named Marica, an experienced fighter named Dirk, a lad named Jale, and an impish boy who answers to Liu.

Although the adventure begins in a small village, the hero's destined to bring together the 108 Stars of Destiny. Once the whole gang is in attendance, they're going to storm the bastion of an overlord named The One King who intends to foster chaos across the cosmos. The battle system is turn-based and skirmishes are viewed from an isometric perspective where each attack is shown in realtime motion.

Momotarou Dentetsu: 20-Shuunen - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» Hudson celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Momotaro Dentetsu franchise with a new Nintendo DS release which features new characters, events, and game elements. The basic gist of the game is empire building where players travel the length of Japan by rail and acquire properties. By accumulating real estate holdings and building a revenue stream, land owners eventually gain the ability take over large swaths of property that produce even more revenue. Welcome to the wonders of capitalism and leverage.

Multiple players may engage in a wireless Momotaro Dentetsu contest and with all that geography that the game covers, you might learn a thing or two about Japan. Previous multi-player Momotaro games stopped once 30 years of game time had passed but 50 years is the new limitation.

Gundam Musou 2 - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» The battlefield is alive once again with the hulking bodies of hundreds of mobile suits. Right in the thick of it is a lone Gundam warrior who swings, spins, and shoots to demolish entire swaths of Zaku grunts. Similar to the first Gundam Musou, the Official Mode allows players to select a mech and battle other mechs within the context of the original Universal Century continuity. A new Mission Mode features targeted objectives that must be completed in order to proceed to the next mission.

New mobile suits featured in the game include
PMX-002 Bolinoak Sammahn, ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom Gundam, ZGMF-X42S Destiny Gundam, F91 Gundam Formula 91, and ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice Gundam. Megalithic Mobile Armors are also featured in the game such as the MA-08 Big Zam, the MRX-009 Psycho Gundam, NZ-000 Quin Mantha, JDG-00X Devil Gundam, and the NZ-333 Alpha Azieru. When fighting a Mobile Armor, parts that are destructible will visibly get damaged and flash when struck. The counterattacks from Mobile Armors are non-discriminatory in that they'll damage their own allies as well as your mech. Battles take place on the ground as well as outer space where regiments of enemy attackers gather together in true standing army fashion.

Gundam Musou 2 - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» The battlefield is alive once again with the hulking bodies of hundreds of mobile suits. Right in the thick of it is a lone Gundam warrior who swings, spins, and shoots to demolish entire swaths of Zaku grunts. Similar to the first Gundam Musou, the Official Mode allows players to select a mech and battle other mechs within the context of the original Universal Century continuity. A new Mission Mode features targeted objectives that must be completed in order to proceed to the next mission.

New mobile suits featured in the game include
PMX-002 Bolinoak Sammahn, ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom Gundam, ZGMF-X42S Destiny Gundam, F91 Gundam Formula 91, and ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice Gundam. Megalithic Mobile Armors are also featured in the game such as the MA-08 Big Zam, the MRX-009 Psycho Gundam, NZ-000 Quin Mantha, JDG-00X Devil Gundam, and the NZ-333 Alpha Azieru. When fighting a Mobile Armor, parts that are destructible will visibly get damaged and flash when struck. The counterattacks from Mobile Armors are also non-discriminatory in that they'll damage their own allies as well as your mech.

Gundam Musou 2 Treasure Box - New Import, Ships Today

«©NCSX» The Treasure Box edition of GM2 includes 14 magnetic badges that are fitted with a flashing LED and a collection of 14 cards which feature crisp artwork of the mechs and mech handlers from the game.