My copy of Xenoblade Chronicles has been pre-ordered – has yours?

I am pleased to finally confirm my purchase of Xenoblade Chronicles through Nintendo, now that I had some actual money in my account!  So, I’ve stood by my promise and am supporting what I believe to be a fantastic title for Wii gamers and RPG fans with my hard-earned cash – have you done the same?

Remember that The Last Story and Pandora’s Tower, not to mention further support from Nintendo for localizing less notable Japanese titles hangs in the balance.  Xenoblade is the experiment, and we need it to succeed for all our sakes.  If you own a Wii and like RPG’s, or are just looking for a great game for 2012, pre-order Xenoblade Chronicles today through Nintendo or Gamestop.

In less preachy news, I’m considering doing some fan art and wallpapers for the game if I get time during the university homework and studying I’m supposed to be doing, so with any luck that’ll be forthcoming.

Gaming TV From Yesteryear – Nick Arcade, Salute Your Shorts Edition

Here’s one more episode of Nick Arcade, featuring the cast of the Nickelodeon sitcom Salute Your Shorts.

I can’t help but notice how short the rounds were sometimes on this show. It seemed the contestants barely had the chance to move before time was up. But I guess that was the issue of having to squeeze everything into a half-hour block.

Part 1:

Hit the link for the rest!

Capcom’s Plans for Mega Man

In the past year or so, it’s been speculated that Capcom has been in the process of phasing out the Mega Man franchise. But according to Siliconera, that isn’t the case. In a Q&A session with fans, Capcom’s Christian Svensson was asked about plans for the blue bomber’s 25th anniversary, as well as the future of the series in general. He didn’t go into specifics, but simply answered, “Let’s just say there are top men thinking about and actively discussing where we’re going to take the brand for the next ten years and how we’re going to do it.”

In fact, here is exclusive video of Svensson’s response:

Hmm… I don’t know about you, but this sounds a little shady. Especially if one of those “top men” is actually Top Man. We’ll keep our correspondent Dr. Jones on the story in case there are further developments.

(I’m sorry. I couldn’t resist making the joke. )

Rising Star Games opening up a U.S. Branch

Rising Star Games, a publisher best known for their work importing niche Japanese titles in Europe that XSEED, Aksys, Natsume and Atlus frequently offer us in the States, is going to be establishing themselves in the United States, beginning their operation with the localization of Cave’s Akai Katana, due for the Xbox 360 in the 2nd Quarter of 2012 for America and Europe.  They’re also gearing up for more digital content, founding a new chapter of the company, Rising Star Games Digital, to focus on publishing games for PSN, Xbox Live, Steam and other cell phone DL services.  Personally, the more companies we have picking up the obscure the better I say.  Good luck to you all!

Music Wednesday – Chris Rock’s “No Sex in the Champagne Room”

Corn bread.  Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

Impressions – Batman: Arkham Asylum (PS3), Rayman Origins (PS3)

Batman Arkham Asylum (PS3)
Pub: Eidos/Warner Bros. Interactive/Dev: Rocksteady
ESRB: T

I’ve put in three hours or so into Rocksteady’s first interpretation of the Batman franchise, and so far I’m really digging the quality.  The controls are incredibly smooth and flow like water (sorry, Steve Blum’s voice is in this, and I was suddenly inspired to make a Spike Spiegal reference), which makes combat, exploration and stealth an absolute joy.  The game looks very sharp as well, with a twist to the Batman regulars that give them their own unique vibe but keeps them identifiable (I, like most, however, would have preferred Harley Quinn to be in an outfit more like her original one – she looks a little too…oversexualized here).  The music is fantastic and moody, and the voice acting is phenomenal.  Mark Hamill in particular is deserving of incredible praise for his portrayal of the Joker.

In short, I’m really enjoying this game, and I am looking forward to getting further into it when school reading isn’t quite so heavy.

Rayman Origins (PS3)
Pub/Dev: UBI Soft
ESRB: E10+

The demo was a decent barometer into how awesome Rayman Origins actually is in full – three (well, two and a half) stages gave a tantalizing glimpse into Michel Ancel’s latest endeavor, but the full game is infinitely better than those fragments could convey.  This is a high-class, gorgeous, fun platformer with a lot of replay and a ton of charm.  It’s packed full of secrets, neat visual and audio moments, and it controls very well.  The level design is also incredible, especially in the second world you explore.  And the music is just mindblowing.  I don’t know how you keep doing that, Christophe Heral, but you need to be hired by more people to do music.  No joke.

If you like platforming games, you should look into this one ASAP.  I need to dive back in myself.

Music Wednesdays – Boston’s “More Than a Feeling”

How about some classic rock with this 1976 hit by Boston? I love how much this song soars, both in its vocals and instrumentation. It really stays with me after I listen to it.

Music Wednesdays – Broken Social Scene’s “Almost Crimes (acoustic)”

A lovely, lovely rendition of the much faster original version of Almost Crimes by Canadian indie group Broken Social Scene.  The original is good, too, but this slowed down take emphasizes the excellent vocals and dynamic guitar strumming.  This isn’t on any of their albums from what I could tell – the original (in a remixed form according to Wikipedia) is on You Forgot it in People.  Which, hey, I’ll include for fun.

Looking Back – 1983 Updated with Awards!

I may have mentioned that I intended to update all of my older Looking Back articles with additional “awards” to further explain my gaming likes and dislikes, and the first of those updates has finally been finished – 1983 now features a slew of new content like Worst New Character (hint – see left!), Best Song and some others (not to mention a proper fourth contender for the Game of the Year).  I’ve put in some recycled thoughts on a couple of the awards for time’s sake – if I feel like revising them with fresh comments down the road, I shall.  As of right now, though, I felt that what I had previously stated elsewhere sufficed for the purposes of the article – I may not in a month or two. :p  Anyway, enjoy the new material, and this will be something I’ll be working on in bits and pieces over the school semester.

Artistic Discussion – The Good and Bad of Gaming Box Art: 1/24/2012

Good – Archon (C64, Electronic Arts)

In the ’80′s, it can be difficult to uncover decent box art – luckily, Archon’s dynamic use of black and white is among the finer ones of the era.  I like the switch in style of the light and dark creatures combating each other, and the nifty 3D object they’re balanced on is eye catching.  In short, it makes one want to know more about the game and why these forces are at war.  Nice work.

Bad – Jumpman (C64, Epyx)

I really like Jumpman, but I never had the box when I was a kid.  Probably a good thing, because I would have run away from this box in a hurry.  Neon abuse to the extreme, Jumpman looks like a massive dork, and the background seems out of place due to its lack of bright lights.  It’s obviously a bit inspired by Tron, but Tron has a fanbase for its use of neon and 80′s effects, because it was kind of, you know, cool looking.  This fails on every level to achieve a sense of coolness.

Persona 4: The Animation is up on Hulu!

The first fifteen episodes are ready for viewing – they’re subtitled only, but it’s great to see it over here so quickly.  I was a little astounded by the speed it was added onto Hulu – I expected to hear a little more about it before it was available to view. XD  Regardless, I’ve heard some good buzz, and what little I checked out seemed pretty good animation wise, so give it a shot if you dig the game.