Official Site: http://www.hanzonationalacademy.com/
Source: Youtube Channel ContraNetworkHD
I didn't think the game would ever be brought over to the West, but it has been done! North America got its digital-only version launched today while Europe will get physical and digital versions sometime next year. Senran Kagura Burst is a straight-up Beat-em-Up featuring incredibly busty schoolgirl ninjas. I remember first hearing about this game and saw some of the screenshots to the game. It looked really dumb. But then they eventually showed a footage of the gameplay and I saw some combo demonstrations and was then interested. If you can look past the copious amount of fan-service and you like beat-em-ups, this game can be very enjoyable. The combat mechanics is similar to Dynasty Warriors where weak attacks can chain into strong ones and a powerful signature attack can be unleashed. Furthermore, combos can be continued in the air for aerial combos similar to the Marvel vs. Capcom series where the player strikes an opponent into the air and continues another string of attacks in the air. Animations are fluid and the attacks string together really well so that combat doesn't feel clunky. The characters do follow the usual animé tropes, but they do give a fun personality to the cast. The game feels a lot like an animé, overall. It was a bold move for XSEED Games to bring Senran Kagura Burst over, but I'm glad they did. There aren't that many beat-em-ups and we've gotten a good amount of them this year. Senran Kagura Burst is a good addition to the beat-em-ups released this year and hopefully encourages publishers or even XSEED themselves to bring over Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus as well.
Showing posts with label XSEED Games. Show all posts
Showing posts with label XSEED Games. Show all posts
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Friday, September 6, 2013
NewNews - Trails in the Sky on PC & Sequel on its way!
Source: Youtube Channel XSEEDgames
In the past few years, I keep hearing from friends, critics, and other gamers that "The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky" is the best RPG for the PSP. I never got around to it despite wanting to see what was so great about the game. Today, it was revealed that the PC version will be brought over to the West on Steam while the sequel will be worked on being brought over. The sequel will be translated by Carpe Fulgur (Recettear, Chantelise, Fortune Summoners) which will be their first big project. It's been a while since they've announced on working on anything. Although I'm happy that they're moving up to work on big projects, I had hoped they'd translate even more indie gems to bring over. The first game for PC will release this Winter while the sequel will release next year in the summer.
Source:
-Joystiq - Trails in the Sky coming to Steam, Carpe Fulgur translating sequel for PSP and PC
In the past few years, I keep hearing from friends, critics, and other gamers that "The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky" is the best RPG for the PSP. I never got around to it despite wanting to see what was so great about the game. Today, it was revealed that the PC version will be brought over to the West on Steam while the sequel will be worked on being brought over. The sequel will be translated by Carpe Fulgur (Recettear, Chantelise, Fortune Summoners) which will be their first big project. It's been a while since they've announced on working on anything. Although I'm happy that they're moving up to work on big projects, I had hoped they'd translate even more indie gems to bring over. The first game for PC will release this Winter while the sequel will release next year in the summer.
Source:
-Joystiq - Trails in the Sky coming to Steam, Carpe Fulgur translating sequel for PSP and PC
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
NewNews - Senran Kagura Burst Localized
Source: Youtube Channel FaheyKotaku
We've been getting a decent helping of beat-em-ups this year, and that makes me really happy. From Code of Princess, the re-release of Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara to Sacred Citadel and the release of Dragon's Crown today, this year has made me hopeful that Beat-em-ups isn't a dead genre. For a while, a Nintendo 3DS game in Japan has been talked about quite often here and how it has expanded to a series of manga and animé. Senran Kagura Burst, or to some known as "booby ninjas in 3D", is a 3D, side-scrolling Action Beat-em-up with a lot of fan-service. It features an all female-cast (as far as I know) of fighters and Ninjas in a light-hearted action-comedy themed beat-em-up. For those who have played the game, they mentioned that the combat mechanics are actually pretty in-depth and provide a decent amount of variety and fluid gameplay. There is also customization in the characters outfits that changes their stats and thus changing the gameplay. The excessive amount of fan service seemed like it would have no chance of ever seeing an over sea release; however, XSeed, once again, reached out to the niche group who are interested and decided to localize the game for the Western market. This was happy news to hear for sure, but it made me sad when I found out that it will be digitally distributed only. I have expressed my dislike for digitally distributed games other than what Valve has provided on their Steam platform for PC, so this was a disappointing, happy news to hear. I might just suck it up and purchase it if I have no other choice. Senran Kagura Burst is set to release on the Nintendo 3DS eShop this Fall with no mentioned price at the moment.
Source:
-Kotaku - Oh Good, The 3DS Ninja Breast Physics Sim Is Coming To North America
We've been getting a decent helping of beat-em-ups this year, and that makes me really happy. From Code of Princess, the re-release of Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara to Sacred Citadel and the release of Dragon's Crown today, this year has made me hopeful that Beat-em-ups isn't a dead genre. For a while, a Nintendo 3DS game in Japan has been talked about quite often here and how it has expanded to a series of manga and animé. Senran Kagura Burst, or to some known as "booby ninjas in 3D", is a 3D, side-scrolling Action Beat-em-up with a lot of fan-service. It features an all female-cast (as far as I know) of fighters and Ninjas in a light-hearted action-comedy themed beat-em-up. For those who have played the game, they mentioned that the combat mechanics are actually pretty in-depth and provide a decent amount of variety and fluid gameplay. There is also customization in the characters outfits that changes their stats and thus changing the gameplay. The excessive amount of fan service seemed like it would have no chance of ever seeing an over sea release; however, XSeed, once again, reached out to the niche group who are interested and decided to localize the game for the Western market. This was happy news to hear for sure, but it made me sad when I found out that it will be digitally distributed only. I have expressed my dislike for digitally distributed games other than what Valve has provided on their Steam platform for PC, so this was a disappointing, happy news to hear. I might just suck it up and purchase it if I have no other choice. Senran Kagura Burst is set to release on the Nintendo 3DS eShop this Fall with no mentioned price at the moment.
Source:
-Kotaku - Oh Good, The 3DS Ninja Breast Physics Sim Is Coming To North America
Thursday, March 14, 2013
GameLight - Ark of the Ages
Android Site: Google Play - Ark of the Ages
Source: Youtube Channel pocketgameruk
I read about this game two week ago over at Joystiq and was curious about this Action-RPG dungeon-crawler. I never buy games for mobile devices, but I just so happened to receive a Google Play card recently and decided to give this game a try as I couldn't resist an attractive price of $2. The game promotes online interaction with other players to receive special powers as well as using real money to get benefits. That already made me sad to have micro-transactions in a game I already paid for, but I ignored it for the time being and went into my first dungeon. There are probably games with better graphics than what Ark of the Ages has for the android market, but I was pretty impressed with what was presented. Walking around felt alright, but turning does take some getting used to. The overall gameplay feels like a mix of old school First-Person dungeon crawlers (even though it's in 3rd-person when walking around) and current day touch-screen phone games where combat consists of slashing, blocking, and using specials to fight off enemies. The game is challenging in that enemies don't reveal how strong they are until the player starts fighting them and that replenishing curatives, buying new equipment, and fixing current weapons is expensive. With that, the game revolves around 2 things: Grinding and paying real money to skip the grinding. For a phone game like this, I don't really mind grinding as it's a way to pass the time and so far it's rather entertaining. The game isn't necessarily deep in combat, story or innovation, but it provides a decent amount of achievements (better equipment, strong foes, and lots of quests) for the player to stay busy and entertained. Some common complaints by others who have reviewed the game is that the game relies too much on paid items to get anywhere (I can't confirm that just yet), the game won't start up (worked okay for me so far), and the Gree taskbar is distracting (Yes, it doesn't go away but it hasn't been a problem for me yet). I don't expect too much for games on phones as long as it has a structured gameplay providing entertainment. Ark of the Ages isn't one of those games friends would talk about and share their experiences, but so far it's a great game to pass the time and have some consistency of getting stronger and progress.
Source:
-Joystiq - XSEED brings RPG 'Ark of the Ages' to Android
Source: Youtube Channel pocketgameruk
I read about this game two week ago over at Joystiq and was curious about this Action-RPG dungeon-crawler. I never buy games for mobile devices, but I just so happened to receive a Google Play card recently and decided to give this game a try as I couldn't resist an attractive price of $2. The game promotes online interaction with other players to receive special powers as well as using real money to get benefits. That already made me sad to have micro-transactions in a game I already paid for, but I ignored it for the time being and went into my first dungeon. There are probably games with better graphics than what Ark of the Ages has for the android market, but I was pretty impressed with what was presented. Walking around felt alright, but turning does take some getting used to. The overall gameplay feels like a mix of old school First-Person dungeon crawlers (even though it's in 3rd-person when walking around) and current day touch-screen phone games where combat consists of slashing, blocking, and using specials to fight off enemies. The game is challenging in that enemies don't reveal how strong they are until the player starts fighting them and that replenishing curatives, buying new equipment, and fixing current weapons is expensive. With that, the game revolves around 2 things: Grinding and paying real money to skip the grinding. For a phone game like this, I don't really mind grinding as it's a way to pass the time and so far it's rather entertaining. The game isn't necessarily deep in combat, story or innovation, but it provides a decent amount of achievements (better equipment, strong foes, and lots of quests) for the player to stay busy and entertained. Some common complaints by others who have reviewed the game is that the game relies too much on paid items to get anywhere (I can't confirm that just yet), the game won't start up (worked okay for me so far), and the Gree taskbar is distracting (Yes, it doesn't go away but it hasn't been a problem for me yet). I don't expect too much for games on phones as long as it has a structured gameplay providing entertainment. Ark of the Ages isn't one of those games friends would talk about and share their experiences, but so far it's a great game to pass the time and have some consistency of getting stronger and progress.
Source:
-Joystiq - XSEED brings RPG 'Ark of the Ages' to Android
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
GameLight - Ys: Memories of Celceta
Official Site: http://www.xseedgames.com/
Source: Youtube Channel YotakaOfALoY
In 1993, two Ys IV games were released: "Mask of the Sun" for the Super Famicom and "The Dawn of Ys" for the PCE Super-CD Rom. Both never saw a western release, but there were fans of the series that translated the game. I tried the Super Famicom (Super Nintendo) version and did not like it. Ys 3 had gone an entirely different route by going 2D-Action style combat while Ys 4 went back to the original bumper car mechanics. Thankfully the remake for Ys 4 will take what the remakes of the Ys series has done and add even more to it than ever before. Rather than a top-down view, Ys: Memories of Celceta will have a dynamic camera angle where it switches between top-down, behind the character, and so forth for a more involving experience. Aside from just taking the role of Adol Christin (the main protagonist in the series), the player will also get to use other characters within a party. The game has already released in Japan so there are gameplay videos up that can be watched. It looks like the player can actively block and dodge now! As excited as I am for this new installment in the Ys series, I lament the fact that I don't have a PS Vita. We can thank XSEED Games once again for bringing another awesome title from Japan over to the West.
The game will release exclusively for the Sony PS Vita on September 24, 2013.
Source: Youtube Channel YotakaOfALoY
In 1993, two Ys IV games were released: "Mask of the Sun" for the Super Famicom and "The Dawn of Ys" for the PCE Super-CD Rom. Both never saw a western release, but there were fans of the series that translated the game. I tried the Super Famicom (Super Nintendo) version and did not like it. Ys 3 had gone an entirely different route by going 2D-Action style combat while Ys 4 went back to the original bumper car mechanics. Thankfully the remake for Ys 4 will take what the remakes of the Ys series has done and add even more to it than ever before. Rather than a top-down view, Ys: Memories of Celceta will have a dynamic camera angle where it switches between top-down, behind the character, and so forth for a more involving experience. Aside from just taking the role of Adol Christin (the main protagonist in the series), the player will also get to use other characters within a party. The game has already released in Japan so there are gameplay videos up that can be watched. It looks like the player can actively block and dodge now! As excited as I am for this new installment in the Ys series, I lament the fact that I don't have a PS Vita. We can thank XSEED Games once again for bringing another awesome title from Japan over to the West.
The game will release exclusively for the Sony PS Vita on September 24, 2013.
Monday, February 4, 2013
GameLight - Ys I & II Chronicles+
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/223810/
Source: Youtube Channel RPGamerdotcom
I was so happy with the localization of Ys Origins and Ys The Oath in Felghana released last year. I bought both games last summer but didn't have the time to play them. I still had other games to finish, but couldn't help it anymore and installed The Oath in Felghana and started playing it. Right afterwards, I saw Ys 1 & 2 Chronicles+ on the Steam special page. Once again, XSeed Games bring the Western market another Ys title. Ys 1 and 2 has been remade, re-released, and ported countless times ever since its original release in the 1980's. Ys 1&2 defined the Action-RPG genre when it was still in its infancy and is one of the most influential games of its kind. Ys 1 & 2 Chronicles+ takes the player back to the original games with recreated art, updated music, and a more familiar hack-n-slash control scheme instead of the bumper-car style gameplay the game was original known for. Of course, all the original art assets, music, and gameplay style is still selectable. I've played through the first Ys and thought it was okay. I never got far in Ys 2 because it was very confusing. The original Ys games were extremely grindy, and so I'm hoping the remakes won't be. I'm willing to give the two games another play and try with the release on PC. Ys I & II Chronicles+ will be available on Steam February 14th, 2013 for $12.74 pre-purchase and $14.99 when it reverts back to its original price.
Source: Youtube Channel RPGamerdotcom
I was so happy with the localization of Ys Origins and Ys The Oath in Felghana released last year. I bought both games last summer but didn't have the time to play them. I still had other games to finish, but couldn't help it anymore and installed The Oath in Felghana and started playing it. Right afterwards, I saw Ys 1 & 2 Chronicles+ on the Steam special page. Once again, XSeed Games bring the Western market another Ys title. Ys 1 and 2 has been remade, re-released, and ported countless times ever since its original release in the 1980's. Ys 1&2 defined the Action-RPG genre when it was still in its infancy and is one of the most influential games of its kind. Ys 1 & 2 Chronicles+ takes the player back to the original games with recreated art, updated music, and a more familiar hack-n-slash control scheme instead of the bumper-car style gameplay the game was original known for. Of course, all the original art assets, music, and gameplay style is still selectable. I've played through the first Ys and thought it was okay. I never got far in Ys 2 because it was very confusing. The original Ys games were extremely grindy, and so I'm hoping the remakes won't be. I'm willing to give the two games another play and try with the release on PC. Ys I & II Chronicles+ will be available on Steam February 14th, 2013 for $12.74 pre-purchase and $14.99 when it reverts back to its original price.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
NewNews - North America gets Pandora's Tower
Official Site: http://www.xseedgames.com/
Source: Youtube Channel GameNewsOfficial
It was great news to hear Xenoblade Chronicles and The Last Story getting a release in North America, but many were still wondering if the last of the 3 petitioned games would see the light of day in the Western Market. Let us thank the dedicated members of XSeed games for once again bringing another great title to North America. In this dark and gritty Action-RPG, the protagonist must bring back the flesh of slain beasts to rid the curse of the girl "Elena" who is slowly turning into a beast herself. An exact release date hasn't been announced, but the game is set to launch in spring of this year 2013. This will possibly be the last real Wii game worth buying as all attention and work has been turned to the Nintendo Wii U, so keep an eye out for this game.
Source:
-Joystiq: XSEED erecting Pandora's Tower for Wii in NA this spring
Source: Youtube Channel GameNewsOfficial
It was great news to hear Xenoblade Chronicles and The Last Story getting a release in North America, but many were still wondering if the last of the 3 petitioned games would see the light of day in the Western Market. Let us thank the dedicated members of XSeed games for once again bringing another great title to North America. In this dark and gritty Action-RPG, the protagonist must bring back the flesh of slain beasts to rid the curse of the girl "Elena" who is slowly turning into a beast herself. An exact release date hasn't been announced, but the game is set to launch in spring of this year 2013. This will possibly be the last real Wii game worth buying as all attention and work has been turned to the Nintendo Wii U, so keep an eye out for this game.
Source:
-Joystiq: XSEED erecting Pandora's Tower for Wii in NA this spring
Thursday, May 31, 2012
GameLight - Ys Origins
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207350/
Source: Youtube Channel RPGamerdotcom
I heard rumors about Ys Origins being localized, but I didn't think it'd release so quickly out of nowhere. I've been wanting to play this game for over 5 years now as it was only a Japanese release exclusive and so I couldn't get it. Ys Origin is a classic-style Action-RPG with Pseudo-3D graphics in a very fast-paced game environment (adventure and platforming). The Ys series has existed since 1987 and has since had 9 installments but has always been under the radar and satisfied niche players or fans of the series. The series can almost be seen as a hack-n-slash the way the combat works. Combat is fast-paced and movement can be a bit too fast for first time players, but it's a welcome mechanic to have the flow of the game push forward at high speed rather than crawl along. I'm not exactly sure if there has been any additional content added to the international release of Ys Origin, but there seems to be quite a bit the player could do. There are 3 playable characters with additional ones in other modes, 5 difficulty levels (the game can be quite challenging), Time Attack mode, Boss Rush mode, and an Arena mode for the most replay value it can offer. The game has been adjusted to support true wide-screen and high-resolution (remember that the game released back in 2006 and may not have supported those things) and it supports various gamepads. It's only a shame that I have so many games backlogged now compared to 5 years ago when I barely had any as I'll be now waiting a bit longer before playing this game. Ys Origins is now available on Steam for $19.99.
Source: Youtube Channel RPGamerdotcom
I heard rumors about Ys Origins being localized, but I didn't think it'd release so quickly out of nowhere. I've been wanting to play this game for over 5 years now as it was only a Japanese release exclusive and so I couldn't get it. Ys Origin is a classic-style Action-RPG with Pseudo-3D graphics in a very fast-paced game environment (adventure and platforming). The Ys series has existed since 1987 and has since had 9 installments but has always been under the radar and satisfied niche players or fans of the series. The series can almost be seen as a hack-n-slash the way the combat works. Combat is fast-paced and movement can be a bit too fast for first time players, but it's a welcome mechanic to have the flow of the game push forward at high speed rather than crawl along. I'm not exactly sure if there has been any additional content added to the international release of Ys Origin, but there seems to be quite a bit the player could do. There are 3 playable characters with additional ones in other modes, 5 difficulty levels (the game can be quite challenging), Time Attack mode, Boss Rush mode, and an Arena mode for the most replay value it can offer. The game has been adjusted to support true wide-screen and high-resolution (remember that the game released back in 2006 and may not have supported those things) and it supports various gamepads. It's only a shame that I have so many games backlogged now compared to 5 years ago when I barely had any as I'll be now waiting a bit longer before playing this game. Ys Origins is now available on Steam for $19.99.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
NewNews - The Last Story confirmed for localization
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
According to Gamasutra, publishing company Xseed Games will be bringing "The Last Story" for the Wii to North America. To have Xenoblade Chronicles confirmed for localization was a special treat, but this announcement was mind blowing! From before, the decision to "not" bring it over to stateside seem adamant and irrevocable, but I suppose seeing the strong support from the fans in the West convinced Nintendo to bring Xenoblade Chronicles over to North America. Upon seeing the overwhelming positive reaction by the community, publishers might have felt a bit more optimistic about taking the responsibility to bringing the other games over.
For those unfamiliar with "The Last Story", it is an Action-RPG developed exclusively for the Nintendo Wii with Hironobu Sakaguchi of "Final Fantasy" leading the project with Takuya Matsumoto along with renowned videogame composer Nobuo Uematsu. Sakaguchi takes on the Action-RPG genre by formulating a new and unique combat system that mixes tactical planning with fluid hack 'n slash attacks. As always, there is a focus on story, the environment, and character development to keep the game's progress moving and the player involved.
The game has received high ratings and praise by critics and players who played through the Japanese version. One of the major arguments pointed out by a lot of supporters of the petition to bringing the 3 JRPGs (Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, Pandora's Tower) to the western market was that they are possibly the last few games developed for the Wii considered worth buying anymore for the aging console who has failed to come out with anything new or interesting other than those developed directly by Nintendo (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword). Judging from 2011's abysmal list of game releases, I'd say that seems to be the situation. So Wii owners and JRPG fans rejoice as 2 out of 3 of the petitioned games have now been confirmed for a stateside release. The Last Story does not have a release date yet.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
GameLight Review - Half-Minute Hero
I bought Magicka & Breach for PC, tried out Modern Combat Domination for PS3, and beat Half-Minute Hero last night. I accomplished a lot for one night, haha. Anyways, I'll be doing some game reviews since it's been quite a while since I've done one (a month), and I wanted to do it on Magicka and Breach; however, I think I need a bit more time with it to give it a fair review. Even though I'm very late at giving a review for Half-Minute Hero, I think it deserves some recognition.
Developer: Marvelous Entertainment
Publisher: XSEED Games
Platform: Sony PSP
Release Date: October 13, 2009
Genre: Action-RPG, RTS, Shoot 'em up (It will make sense, don't worry)
Upon first glance, Half-Minute Hero seemed like a silly parody of RPGs with the nostalgia of pixel-based art; however, I now realize it is much more than just a short laugh and a tiny gimmick after completing the game. It tells an epic tale spanning 500 years of a never-ending war with charming characters, catchy music, and fast-paced gameplay suited for playing in short and long term durations.
Source: Youtube Channel TheGamingCriticz
Story
I wasn't expecting any sort of real story out of a game based on having each mission lasting 30 seconds, but there was a story and it really added to the game (surprisingly). The game tells of a tale that spans over 500 years of constant conflict between the Time-Goddess and the Ultimate Dark Lord who tries to destroy the world by casting a spell that activates in 30 seconds. The story is told chronologically through four individual characters with each one stopping the Ultimate Evil Lord from being resurrected into the world. The structure of the story is generic, but is done so in parody of typical Japanese RPGs. There is a main antagonist trying to destroy the world to rid a life of fear, sorrow, pain, and such but along with happiness, love, and tranquility. Heroes of different time periods approaches and stops the efforts to destroy the world. More detail on each character's story will be explained in gameplay. I liked how the narrative is separated 100 years from each other with different characters and gameplay each time. It created a distinctive bridge between each character's story and brought it all together at the end. Each character had a unique personality to them (maybe except the hero parodying the silent protagonist) that connects with the player after playing their story for a while. With each mission lasting only 30 seconds (more or less, depending on the mode) and each character having their own little story, the overall feeling doesn't seem all that grand. But near the end, everything is brought together and shows how pivotal each character was to the peace that is finally realized at the end (I'm trying my best not to spoil anything). It could be just me, but the ending of the whole story truly moved me and it was a good feeling after finishing the game. For a game based on small proportions on gameplay, the story had a rather big impact to the whole experience. Story: 9/10
Graphics
This will be a category that will be a bit more difficult to determine a score for since the graphics were more pixelated than a Nintendo Entertainment System/Famicom on a system capable of rendering 3D graphics. The only fair way to judge this is by giving my own opinion to its design of the game rather than on how far the developers went with the capabilities of the hardware. I personally loved the pixel-based graphics for the game because it's easy on the eyes, takes zero loading time (except for loading a save file), is distinctive from the way RPGs typically look now, and has a nostalgic charm to it. Alongside the pixel art are images of typical Japanese RPG-ish drawn characters for cut-scenes and progressing the story. They don't appear often (except for Princess 30 mode), but it has a nice contrast to the retro art and reminds the player in a subtle way saying "hey, you're playing a new game on the PSP and not the Famicom!" The direction of the art style in both pixel and hand drawn is appropriate to the type of game the developers wanted to portray. I do have to admit that after a while playing the game I had the urge to play a game with better graphics. So I guess it's good for the short term and not the long term. Graphics: 8/10
Audio
Although the game went for the retro pixel-art, it did not go for retro 8-bit music in its game. The sound effects is typical in an action game nowadays and works well with the format in art and design. It's not too retro, but it's not too realistic either. The music, though not all of them are memorable, are well composed and has that new age techno-rock genre to contrast the retro look.
Source: Youtube Channel koukoupuffs
Source: Youtube Channel asukacrystalrose
Yuzo Koshiro even did some compositions in the game. There are 65 tracks according to the music player you receive as a gift once you beat the entire game and has various composers contribute to the list. The main theme seemed very cheesy and has that "this game is so epic!" wannabe sound to it the first time, but it changed my mind when I heard it at the very end of the game. Some of the tracks are definitely worth listening to outside of the game. Audio: 10/10
Gameplay
So as mentioned before, there are four distinctive characters that the player takes control of throughout the game, and each character comes from a different era within the story. After naming each of the four characters, three of the game modes will be available and can be played in any order. The last three modes can only be played after finishing the first three the then the previous one before it. Each mode plays differently and tells their own story that all links to a larger plot in the game.
Source: Youtube Channel XSEEDgames
Hero 30 - Goddess Era 100: The Action-RPG mode that follows a blond haired boy who thwarts the efforts of the evil lords from reciting the ruination spell that destroys the world. Fight monsters, gain levels, buy equipment, talk to NPCs, and fulfill quests within 30 seconds. The time-goddess offers to reverse time back to 30 seconds again...for some money (that cheapo). Each mission consists of all the above with an evil lord at the end casting the spell. This mode is the main game and has a nice balance between action and RPG elements such as leveling among others listed above. Some of them are pretty difficult and forces the player to think more tactically rather than just bum rushing.
Evil Lord 30 - Goddess Era 200: The Real-Time Strategy (RTS) mode where the Evil Lord summons and commands numerous monsters to protect his beloved Millenia. The mode is chaotic, has lots of action with the strategy, and is a ton of fun. The mode has a very satisfying feeling similar to playing Starcraft or Age of the Empires and you see a swarm of your men decimate the opposition.
Princess 30 - Goddess Era 300: The Shoot 'em Up mode where the King of the land has fallen ill. It's up to the princess with her trusty crossbow to fight through dozens of enemies and find a cure for her father and unite the people of the land. The princess' personality was both light-hearted and humorous which sets up the conception of the princess being pretty crazy out in the field when she's firing 30-50 bolts a second. The mode wasn't particularly difficult for a shoot 'em up, but it was very relaxing compared to the other three modes which required much more thinking and strategy.
Knight 30 - Goddess Era 500: The fast-paced Action mode where a lone knight must protect a pretty boy Sage who holds the power to defeating all that is evil in the world. The concept is reversed in that instead of fighting against the clock, the player aims to have the clock go down to zero each level in order to win. This was perhaps one of my favorite modes in terms of gameplay because of how much control is given to the player in fighting. There's still a lot of strategy involved, but it doesn't distract the player from the action aspect of the game.
Hero 300 - Goddess Era 500: Everything is brought together to sum up the whole story and the player takes the role of the Hero once more to save the world in a final effort under 300 seconds (5 minutes). This was hard, not gonna lie. It was fun though, and really brought the whole game together in one final mission.
Hero 3 - No Era: Yes...3 Seconds. Nothing to explain, it has to be played to be understood. I beat it though.
With all the game modes put together, it's a nice distraction. And depending on the price, it could be worth it. The game has a fairly good replay value with a hard mode for each one, different ways of approaching a situation for each mission, and little secrets scattered around that can be found. Gameplay: 9/10
Overall
After beating Hero 30, I didn't plan on playing the other ones and was going to put the game aside as (finished). Once I started playing the other modes, I realized how diversified the game was and how well the story flowed once it was brought together. I'm very glad I went through the rest of the game and beat it. I'm not sure if I'm ready to go through the whole game again on hard mode since I've accumulated 12 hours and 47 minutes of it already and have a backlog of 50+ games I still need to finish (no joke). Still, I'm very glad I picked up the game and gave it a go and got through it. It was fun, charming, made me feel good, and has music I'm willing to listen to. Overall: 9/10
As an ending note, a sequel to Half-Minute Hero is in the making but I have heard that the other three modes will not be back for the second installment.
Developer: Marvelous Entertainment
Publisher: XSEED Games
Platform: Sony PSP
Release Date: October 13, 2009
Genre: Action-RPG, RTS, Shoot 'em up (It will make sense, don't worry)
Upon first glance, Half-Minute Hero seemed like a silly parody of RPGs with the nostalgia of pixel-based art; however, I now realize it is much more than just a short laugh and a tiny gimmick after completing the game. It tells an epic tale spanning 500 years of a never-ending war with charming characters, catchy music, and fast-paced gameplay suited for playing in short and long term durations.
Source: Youtube Channel TheGamingCriticz
Story
I wasn't expecting any sort of real story out of a game based on having each mission lasting 30 seconds, but there was a story and it really added to the game (surprisingly). The game tells of a tale that spans over 500 years of constant conflict between the Time-Goddess and the Ultimate Dark Lord who tries to destroy the world by casting a spell that activates in 30 seconds. The story is told chronologically through four individual characters with each one stopping the Ultimate Evil Lord from being resurrected into the world. The structure of the story is generic, but is done so in parody of typical Japanese RPGs. There is a main antagonist trying to destroy the world to rid a life of fear, sorrow, pain, and such but along with happiness, love, and tranquility. Heroes of different time periods approaches and stops the efforts to destroy the world. More detail on each character's story will be explained in gameplay. I liked how the narrative is separated 100 years from each other with different characters and gameplay each time. It created a distinctive bridge between each character's story and brought it all together at the end. Each character had a unique personality to them (maybe except the hero parodying the silent protagonist) that connects with the player after playing their story for a while. With each mission lasting only 30 seconds (more or less, depending on the mode) and each character having their own little story, the overall feeling doesn't seem all that grand. But near the end, everything is brought together and shows how pivotal each character was to the peace that is finally realized at the end (I'm trying my best not to spoil anything). It could be just me, but the ending of the whole story truly moved me and it was a good feeling after finishing the game. For a game based on small proportions on gameplay, the story had a rather big impact to the whole experience. Story: 9/10
Graphics
This will be a category that will be a bit more difficult to determine a score for since the graphics were more pixelated than a Nintendo Entertainment System/Famicom on a system capable of rendering 3D graphics. The only fair way to judge this is by giving my own opinion to its design of the game rather than on how far the developers went with the capabilities of the hardware. I personally loved the pixel-based graphics for the game because it's easy on the eyes, takes zero loading time (except for loading a save file), is distinctive from the way RPGs typically look now, and has a nostalgic charm to it. Alongside the pixel art are images of typical Japanese RPG-ish drawn characters for cut-scenes and progressing the story. They don't appear often (except for Princess 30 mode), but it has a nice contrast to the retro art and reminds the player in a subtle way saying "hey, you're playing a new game on the PSP and not the Famicom!" The direction of the art style in both pixel and hand drawn is appropriate to the type of game the developers wanted to portray. I do have to admit that after a while playing the game I had the urge to play a game with better graphics. So I guess it's good for the short term and not the long term. Graphics: 8/10
Audio
Although the game went for the retro pixel-art, it did not go for retro 8-bit music in its game. The sound effects is typical in an action game nowadays and works well with the format in art and design. It's not too retro, but it's not too realistic either. The music, though not all of them are memorable, are well composed and has that new age techno-rock genre to contrast the retro look.
Source: Youtube Channel koukoupuffs
Source: Youtube Channel asukacrystalrose
Yuzo Koshiro even did some compositions in the game. There are 65 tracks according to the music player you receive as a gift once you beat the entire game and has various composers contribute to the list. The main theme seemed very cheesy and has that "this game is so epic!" wannabe sound to it the first time, but it changed my mind when I heard it at the very end of the game. Some of the tracks are definitely worth listening to outside of the game. Audio: 10/10
Gameplay
So as mentioned before, there are four distinctive characters that the player takes control of throughout the game, and each character comes from a different era within the story. After naming each of the four characters, three of the game modes will be available and can be played in any order. The last three modes can only be played after finishing the first three the then the previous one before it. Each mode plays differently and tells their own story that all links to a larger plot in the game.
Source: Youtube Channel XSEEDgames
Hero 30 - Goddess Era 100: The Action-RPG mode that follows a blond haired boy who thwarts the efforts of the evil lords from reciting the ruination spell that destroys the world. Fight monsters, gain levels, buy equipment, talk to NPCs, and fulfill quests within 30 seconds. The time-goddess offers to reverse time back to 30 seconds again...for some money (that cheapo). Each mission consists of all the above with an evil lord at the end casting the spell. This mode is the main game and has a nice balance between action and RPG elements such as leveling among others listed above. Some of them are pretty difficult and forces the player to think more tactically rather than just bum rushing.
Evil Lord 30 - Goddess Era 200: The Real-Time Strategy (RTS) mode where the Evil Lord summons and commands numerous monsters to protect his beloved Millenia. The mode is chaotic, has lots of action with the strategy, and is a ton of fun. The mode has a very satisfying feeling similar to playing Starcraft or Age of the Empires and you see a swarm of your men decimate the opposition.
Princess 30 - Goddess Era 300: The Shoot 'em Up mode where the King of the land has fallen ill. It's up to the princess with her trusty crossbow to fight through dozens of enemies and find a cure for her father and unite the people of the land. The princess' personality was both light-hearted and humorous which sets up the conception of the princess being pretty crazy out in the field when she's firing 30-50 bolts a second. The mode wasn't particularly difficult for a shoot 'em up, but it was very relaxing compared to the other three modes which required much more thinking and strategy.
Knight 30 - Goddess Era 500: The fast-paced Action mode where a lone knight must protect a pretty boy Sage who holds the power to defeating all that is evil in the world. The concept is reversed in that instead of fighting against the clock, the player aims to have the clock go down to zero each level in order to win. This was perhaps one of my favorite modes in terms of gameplay because of how much control is given to the player in fighting. There's still a lot of strategy involved, but it doesn't distract the player from the action aspect of the game.
Hero 300 - Goddess Era 500: Everything is brought together to sum up the whole story and the player takes the role of the Hero once more to save the world in a final effort under 300 seconds (5 minutes). This was hard, not gonna lie. It was fun though, and really brought the whole game together in one final mission.
Hero 3 - No Era: Yes...3 Seconds. Nothing to explain, it has to be played to be understood. I beat it though.
With all the game modes put together, it's a nice distraction. And depending on the price, it could be worth it. The game has a fairly good replay value with a hard mode for each one, different ways of approaching a situation for each mission, and little secrets scattered around that can be found. Gameplay: 9/10
Overall
After beating Hero 30, I didn't plan on playing the other ones and was going to put the game aside as (finished). Once I started playing the other modes, I realized how diversified the game was and how well the story flowed once it was brought together. I'm very glad I went through the rest of the game and beat it. I'm not sure if I'm ready to go through the whole game again on hard mode since I've accumulated 12 hours and 47 minutes of it already and have a backlog of 50+ games I still need to finish (no joke). Still, I'm very glad I picked up the game and gave it a go and got through it. It was fun, charming, made me feel good, and has music I'm willing to listen to. Overall: 9/10
As an ending note, a sequel to Half-Minute Hero is in the making but I have heard that the other three modes will not be back for the second installment.
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