Last year, Monkey Paw (responsible for many of the PSOne Imports on the PSN) and Gaijinworks (a publisher founded by former Working Designs head Vic Ireland) tried to run a Kickstarter campaign to bring over Class of Heroes II. The original Class of Heroes was released by Atlus in 2009, but didn’t exactly make waves with gamers or critics.
The Kickstarter wanted $500k to produce a deluxe edition of the game – something Working Designs had done in its past incarnation (sans the Kickstarter part!) It was an interesting experiment – for a genres quickly receding into obscurity such as Japanese RPGs, could Kickstarter be a viable but low-risk venue for still bringing fans what they want by having them prove their desire with their wallets? The Kickstarter notoriously fell through, but the companies still said they would proceed with a translation and a digital release. Now that Class of Heroes II’s release is close at hand, Gaijinworks is giving fans one more shot to voice their interest in a simple physical release. If you’re interested, head over to Gaijinworks and scroll down to the form for the physical release. You don’t have to put any money down, but you do have to give them your email (and verify it for “special offers”) so that may be a turn off for some folks.
It is disappointing that things turned out the way they did with this Kickstarter – Japanese companies can get very squeamish about uncertainties like this and as the linked Kotaku article above mentions, it may be awhile before they let a company try this again. (Though maybe Production I.G.’s success with Kick-Heart will change that!) Different game choice, smaller starting funds, and more preparation may have helped this Kickstarter succeed, but at least Gaijinworks isn’t giving up. In the coming months, I’ll be spotlighting some Kickstarter campaigns and also releasing a series about JRPGs in the West. If you have any Kickstarter campaigns you’d like to recommend, feel free to post them in the comments!
Last summer I discussed the issue of reverse importation, focussing specifically on the case of Persona 4. When situations like that happen, they can often redirect focus from the content itself. So let’s talk about the Sentai Filmworks release of the first volume of the Persona 4 anime and whether or not it’s worth your time – and your money.
Copyright Atlus/Index, Aniplex, and Sentai Filmworks.
The plot of Persona 4 follows close to its video game source material – transfer student Yu Narukami finds his new life in rural Inaba is far from boring when he and his classmates gain the ability to travel to an alternate universe inside the TV. There, with the help of a strange creature named Teddie, they must use manifestations of their deepest selves known as Persona to fight Shadows and solve a serial murder case sweeping the once quiet town.
For those who haven’t played the game and feel a little lost, don’t worry – the series does an adequate job explaining the new world and its mechanics. At points, it even makes light of the mechanics or the very fact that it’s based on a game (evident in the series’ commercial eyecatch, which displays the protagonist’s ever-increasing personality statistics). For fans of the game, this will likely be an amusing bonus, but its effect on newcomers may be hit or miss.
The story itself moves at a brisk pace, giving just enough time to the action scenes and the characters’ own struggles to overcome their personal demons. The mystery at the center of the story is interesting enough, but the characters of Persona 4 are its strongest point. The game Persona 3 had an arguably more intense plot than Persona 4, but Persona 4′s cast arguably blended better. The anime does a good job adapting what made this cast particularly charming. The most interesting change is one that probably couldn’t be helped – the silent, nameable protagonist from the game is now Yu Narukami and has been given a moderate, yet distinct personality.
The dub is fairly well-done, reuniting many voice actors from the original game. The returning voice cast is given a chance to expand their characterizations this time around. Johnny Yong Bosch does especially well as Yu Narukami, who didn’t have much in the way of voice work in the game, but is presented as a cool-headed, quietly sarcastic teenage boy in the anime. For veterans of the game, the replaced voice actors may take a little getting used to. Erin Fitzgerald quickly settles in and gives a bit of attitude and edge to the character of Chie. Sam Riegel as Teddie may take some getting used to, but it isn’t for lack of trying and he too settles in to the new role by the end of the set (with a particularly amusing performance in episode 11!)
While absent from the Blu-Ray, the Japanese voice track still appears on the DVD sets. This Japanese dub is fairly typical but solid, with big name seiyuu like Daisuke Namikawa, Yui Horie, Kappei Yamaguchi, Rie Kugimiya, and Romi Paku among the main cast. The biggest problem with the Japanese dub may simply be the fact that many Western fans who played the English game first may not be used to the Japanese voices, but it’s a concern easily overcome. The DVD sets also contain Japanese episode commentary.
So is the first set of the Persona 4 anime worth buying? If so, should you go with DVD or Blu-Ray? If you’re a fan of the game, the series is absolutely a must-buy! While the Blu-Rays look nice, fans will have to decide on their own whether they value the dual languages or the nicer viewing experience more. For me, the DVDs (which run a little more expensive, ostensibly due to the added dub) were worth it.
For newcomers, Persona 4 provides a solid viewing experience. While the action may play out a little “monster-of-the-week” in this first set, it’s played out with interesting characters who continue to grow as the series progresses. Newcomers won’t feel lost amongst a sea of terminology or story points left out from the transition. I highly recommend this series, but if you’re on the fence, check out an episode or two on Hulu (or grab one off of iTunes if you prefer an English dub) and see for yourself.
Persona 4: The Animation Collection 1 is available now. You can also find episodes on iTunes dubbed.
Book of Shadows got me thinking about digital-download games and the interesting avenues they open up. They give game publishers like XSEED a chance to deliver games like Corpse Party – games that might not have a market sitting on a Gamestop shelf. They also give game developers a chance to try and create something truly unique – both groups benefitting from the (seemingly) reduced overhead of a digital distribution outlet.
One digital download game first came to my attention about a year back, when I heard the story of an artist who had won Microsoft’s Dream.Build.Play with his prototype game that he made while teaching himself to program. From what I heard, this developer was almost single-handedly doing the art, programming, and writing on the full game. I looked up a video of the prototype and was blown away, both as a gamer and an aspiring developer. However, I didn’t hear anything on that game until it hit the XBLA store (complete with a Toonami review) at the tail end of last summer.
Copyright Humble Hearts/Dean Dodrill
Excitement over a game’s “Making Of” story can only carry it so far. Dust: An Elysian Tail lives up to its creative roots. The game follows an amnesiac protagonist named Dust, his talking sword, and the sword’s chatty guardian Fidget. Dust uses his blade and his fierce skills to help people and fend off an evil general, all while searching for his memory. The game’s premise may not sound like it’s breaking any new ground, but a few interesting plot twists, endearing characters, and reasonable pacing keep the game fresh.
For those more concerned about challenging and engaging gameplay, you won’t be disappointed. Dust is a 2D beat-em-up/RPG hybrid with visual novel-style cutscenes for good measure. Each area is vast and full of places to explore. The enemies are challenging and plentiful, with the game’s level-up system allowing for ample opportunity to prepare your character for any challenge. Battling and leveling were enjoyable necessities. Dust and his flying accomplice Fidget will also gain special skills and combination attacks that can be used to deal with larger groups of enemies. And there will be large swarms of enemies, at times flooding the screen.
Though not getting distracted by the artwork will be equally challenging. Dust’s world is colorful and carefully illustrated. While the style is certainly much more cartoon-y than many games nowadays, it is not for lack of detail or skill. From the first moments of gameplay, players will be able to see Dean Dodrill’s strength as an artist. The aesthetic is matched throughout the game – characters and enemies do not look out of place against the 2D backdrops.
The audio is one area that Dodrill handed off to another company. HyperDuck SoundWorks provides a lively soundtrack that blends into the game well, whether you’re fending off swarms of zombies in the Sorrowing Meadows or watching Dust explore his past. The game also includes voice acting. The quality varies throughout the game (many of the actors appear to be new). Dust’s delivery is a little overdramatic at times and while many players will find Fidget amusing and endearing (I certainly did), the high-pitched mascot may grate on some players’ nerves. However, by the end of the game, many of the actors hit their stride and settle in to their characters. If you’re not taken by the voice-acting from the start, give it some time.
All-in-all, I found Dust to be a fantastic game. It was enjoyable to play, beautiful to look it, had a good soundtrack and a story that carried my interest through to the end. I would recommend this game to anyone who enjoys a challenging 2D game in the vein of Metroid or Castlevania, to JRPG/anime/visual novel fans who enjoy a light and interesting story, or to anyone looking for a brief nostalgia fix. My expectations were exceeded and I hope to see more in the future from Humble Hearts.
Dust is now available on XBOX Live for 1200 Microsoft Points.
(still trying to recover a different pre-Thanksgiving review, bear with me. In the meantime, please enjoy this review for a truly terrifying PSP experience!)
Horror, like humor, can be quite subjective. Both rely a lot on what the audience brings to the experience – if they’re in a thoughtful, serious mood, it’ll be harder to make them laugh. Horror is similar – you have to be willing to suspend your disbelief. No matter how good the scares are, if you’re not open to the experience, it may well have no effect.
This, perhaps, is the biggest strike against Corpse Party, and one not entirely fair. I believe that many players, especially in the West, won’t give this game the time of day, due to the 16-bit graphics and the anime cut-in characters. Which is a shame. Because those who do allow themselves the chance to delve into the experience are in for far more then a traditional survival horror romp.
Copyright Team GrisGris/5pb/XSeed Games 2011
The story follows 7 high school students, one little sister, and their teacher. Cleaning up after the school’s cultural festival, class representitive and occult fanatic Ayumi decides they should celebrate the last day of transferring student Mayu by telling a ghost story and performing a charm she found online. Shortly after performing the charm, an earthquake devastates the building and the students wake up – in the elementary school that provided the setting for Ayumi’s horrific ghost story.
Relatively typical ghost story set up so far, right?
But there’s not much that’s typical about Corpse Party. The game started out in the mid-1990s as a NEC PC-9801 game developed by a small group of developers using the RPG Maker software. Over the years, the game garnered a surprising number of fans and with them, fangames. Those fangames lead Team GrisGris to return to Corpse Party and remake it – twice. The second (and further updated) remake, which was released on the PSP, is the game that XSeed brought to the PSN on November 22nd. The game maintains a 16-bit look that is updated and further expanded with anime portraits for the characters and occasional anime-style CG images depicting important images.
The gameplay that takes the characters through their horrific advneture is mostly reminiscent of a 1990s SNES RPG, without the random battles. Characters in your party do have HP, but it rarely means anything – by the time you’ve stumbled into danger, it’s already far too late. The majority of gameplay revolves around exploring the school, guiding your characters out of harm’s way, participating in timed events, solving puzzles, and retrieving items. The gameplay is minimal compared to most modern games and the game could be said to be more visual novel than RPG. But the gameplay plays an important role in making you feel connected to your characters and their fates. While dialogue choices can effect outcomes, the endings that may have the strongest effect are the ones achieved when you failed to save a friend from death in time. Or failed to run from a ghost.
Or accidentally ran into one.
The writing is the other thread connecting the player to the characters. The main cast at first appears to be your generic cast of anime regulars (with some adjustments), but they quickly develop well past mere archetypes. Past memories and conversations flesh out the character and make the player more cautious of just who they want to protect at all costs – and who they might be willing to sacrifice as well. Development continues well outside of a character’s immediate role in the game. The game’s central plot is well developed as well, leaving a few small lose ends, but otherwise tying up the mystery of the school nicely with several interesting plot twists.
The audio is this game’s other remarkable feature. The game is best played with headphones, not just to increase the atmosphere, but because of the game being recorded binaurally. This means that it was recorded with two microphones, which gives the voice acting the effect of sounding like the voices are all around you. A character moving sideways down the hall not only sounds like they’re getting further away, but the sound seems to come from where they are in relation to your character. When this is used to effect, it’s extremely chilling.
The voice acting is very good. Most of the cast are veteran voice actors and play their parts believably as well. The game’s audio is Japanese only, but I believe this will add to the effect. The sound effects are gritty as well and many of the games most horrific ending rely completely on text and audio, leaving the screen black. In these situations, your imagination has the tendency to produce things far more disturbing than any illustrated CG ever could. The soundtrack is also worth a mention. it maintains a balance between being true to the game’s 16-bit roots and having a more modern feel. But most importantly, it does a good job of not intruding on the effects the rest of the audio has on the game.
This game isn’t for everyone. If you hate the anime aesthetic or simply can’t get over games that don’t meet today’s graphical standards, then you won’t be able to enjoy this game. Which is a shame. I don’t think this game could have been done with modern 3D graphics (I think this video on the Uncanny Valley does a good job explaining one of the reasons I believe this.).
But if you’re ready to let your mind be taken to a truly horrifying place – one with well-developed characters you’ll actually want to see through til the bitter end of this spooky thriller – download this game for your PSP.
Yes, I know, I know. I’m like five or six years late on this one – to be fair, I’ve had a used copy and my trusty old GameCube for about four years now, but never got around to anything past Palmacosta. I even played the Wii sequel before I went back and finished the original (I was looking for a good Wii RPG at the time that made use of the WiiMote – while I liked ToS2 as my icon might show, it wasn’t exactly a top Wii RPG by any stretch).
So I finally made it a point this summer to dive into Tales of Symphonia and if it was good enough, to finish it.
I did end up enjoying it – enough so early on that my roommate (who ended up watching most of the game) and I ended up picking up a few of those ToS One-Coin figures while we were in Akihabara (somehow, out of eight figures bought between the two of us, we ended up with four freaking Lloyds, but that’s a rant for another day. )
The basic, spoiler-free version of the story is that a restless young man named Lloyd heads off with his best friend and resident wiz-kid Genis to help protect their friend Colette, who happens to be the Chosen of Regeneration – one descended from angels who must herself become an angel and awaken the world’s goddess, Martel. Only by awakening Martel can they reverse the world Sylvarant’s poor state and defeat the human-enslaving Desians.
That clichéd plot lasts you about 8-to-10 hours. You’ll have to play the game to find out the rest.
And without saying too much, I will say that was one thing I really liked about Symphonia – it set you up for a story you felt like you’d played a hundred times before, with characters that were interesting, but that could be paralleled with several other RPG casts. It started out feeling like “RPG Comfort Food” – nothing too new or innovative, just something you played if you wanted a simple fantasy adventure story. Then it took everything you were expecting and turned it on its head. I figure it may have been a little more effective when it first released than now, when games in general have made strides in storytelling, but I was still impressed with the plot twists in this game and the plot in general – it kept me interested.
The cast is a lot of fun too – and they all seem to experience decent amount of growth as they each come to terms with what they thought they knew about their world. Lloyd is of course the naive, yet sincere protagonist who struggles to balance his idealism with his harsh new reality and most of the other 8 main members of his traveling party must also confront their own challenges as they journey together. Probably the only complaint that I have about the cast is that, despite some of the potential explanations, the main villain’s motivations felt a bit flimsy and at best end up boiling down to something closer to “the villain’s just crazy at this point” – but maybe that’s not such a bad explanation.
I like the bright-colored, anime art style, but if neither of those descriptions appeal to you, this may not be the RPG for you. I think it’s a great style and I though, even for a GameCube game, it was beautiful to look at.
This music was pretty good – appropriately placed and serves as decent background music with only one or two tracks that have the potential to get annoying if left playing (fortunately those songs tend to appear only during cut scene/story sequences, rather than in towns or the like where you might be dealing with them for awhile.) There’s not really a stand-out song with vocals, mostly because the US version comes with a new instrumental opening rather than either of the pop-style openings by the band day after tomorrow that were used in the GC and PS2 releases of the game.
I thought the voice acting was pretty good, especially for a GameCube era RPG. Granted, there’s still plenty of lines with cheesy delivery or mis-placed over-dramatization (just look up “What is this ominous light that threatens to engulf us?” on Youtube – people have had a field day with that line), but on the whole I think most of the main characters were appropriately casted and performed. The localization features many animation and video game veterans, including Scott Menville as Lloyd, Cam Clarke as Kratos, Tara Strong as Presea, and Crispin Freeman as Regal Bryant.
On the whole, I thought the game was an entertaining and thoughtful JRPG. It’s probably not going to be the game that will convert you Call of Duty-loving friend, but for people who are or ever have been fans of Japanese RPGs, this game is a must! I’m not sure how easy it is to get at this point – I’ve seen it for as low as 40 and as high as 130 on eBay, but if you can find it online or used at your local game store, definitely give it a shot!
I give it four-and-a-half freaking Lloyds out of five!
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