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Posts with tag lonpos

Lonpos hates your wallet

While you already know our stance on Lonpos's downloadable content, you probably didn't realize how much wallet maiming would actually be going on.

In Japan, nine puzzle packs were released this week. While that might seem like good news at first for the puzzle lovers in us all, it's not. Each puzzle pack costs 500 Wii Points (or $5, if you will), meaning that all nine packs come to a total of $45. Let's not forget the $10 to download the starter pack of Lonpos to begin with.

A puzzle pack includes twenty-five puzzles, which means that all nine packs would admittedly be a lot of content, but this still doesn't sit right with us. At the very least, the initial gimped version should be cheaper to download off of WiiWare.

With this much DLC at these prices, we'd have preferred that Genki released a disc-based game instead. Think about it: if you don't think you'd like Lonpos, you won't want to download it in the first place. If Lonpos interests you, though, you're going to want as many puzzle packs as possible, and feel completely deflated by the money Genki is asking for.

It seems that Genki has gotten the concept of nickel-and-diming down to a T.

Gallery: Lonpos

Wii Warm Up: Microtransactions

Don't get us wrong -- we're not against downloadable content by any means. Yet, the way in which microtransactions were presented during the WiiWare launch for games like Lonpos and My Life as a King seems really ... cheap. And by cheap, we mean the DLC is a total cheap shot, because it's actually expensive. Take Square Enix's title, for example, which released $13 worth of downloadable content on its first week. Yes, we're familiar with the "If you don't want it, then don't buy it" argument (and we won't), but all of that just sours us on the game in general.

What do you think, though? Are we being to hard on Lonpos and My Life as a King? Or, is there a wrong and right way to present DLC? Then again, it could also be possible that you don't support any microtransactions. Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Lonpos is only a starter pack

Lonpos, that game that has you lining up beads in a tray, might not be the game many made it out to be. In charging 1,000 Wii Points for admission, it turns out that Lonpos is actually only a starter pack. There's a 500 Wii Point bonus pack for download, as well.

Within this bonus pack, new puzzles and ... uh, new puzzles is all you're going to get. Based on impressions of the game so far, you won't want to check it out, anyway.

Gallery: Lonpos

Lonpos may be bad for your blood pressure


Lining up beads in a tray sounds easy, yeah? Don't be fooled. While we can't read the text that pops up in this video after every instance of failure, we can take a guess at what it says. "Damn," maybe, or perhaps, "Son of a-- stupid beads," or even "SCREW THIS GAME!" Only, y'know, in Japanese.

That's the forthcoming Wii Ware title Lonpos, in a nutshell. Or, rather, in a tray. See for yourself, if you've never tried it, in the video above and the screenshots below.

Gallery: Lonpos

WiiWare launched, impressions rounded up



While most of us were sleeping -- like a bunch of chumps -- Nintendo launched its WiiWare service in Japan early this morning. As expected, the WiiWare servers are taking a beating from thousands of gamers hoping to try out the new downloadable releases, but Siliconera's Spencer Yip and Wired's Chris Kohler were still able to grab a few games and write up their impressions, all of which you can peruse below.

A few surprises revealed themselves with the service's launch:
  1. My Life as a King is rife with microtransactions, offering additional costumes, dungeons, and races (Yukes, Selkies, and Lilties) for 100-300 Wii Points.
  2. Star Soldier R features three light modes -- a two-minute mode in which you play through a quick stage for a high score, a similar 5-minute mode with two levels and boss encounters, and a "Fast Shot" mode for testing your button-tapping skills.
  3. Saku Saku Animal Panic, the only WiiWare launch title from a US developer and a game we haven't paid any attention to at all, is apparently "pretty fun!" Judging by Chris Kohler's impressions, it sounds a lot like Jezzball, minus the balls ... And the Jezz.
Now all we need are detailed Dr. Mario, Okiraku Ping Pong,and My Life as a King impressions!

Read - The WiiWare Shopping experience
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Lonpos
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Angel's Solitaire
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Saku Saku Animal Panic
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Star Soldier R
Read - Extra content in My Life as a King explained
Read - Lonpos has pay-to-play content too

LONPOS joins the microtransactions conga line

Hold on tight to your wallets, purses, and Mario Coin Block Banks, everybody. With the Japanese launch of WiiWare less than a fortnight away, more news of microtransactions has begun to trickle in, with Genki confirming that LONPOS will feature extra DLC. The contents of this add-on pack are still a mystery, though we do know it will cost 500 Wii points. You probably don't need us to remind you that 500 Wii points will buy you River City Ransom. Or Phantasy Star II. Or Super Mario Bros. 3.

News of pay DLC on the Wii is nothing new -- Bandai Namco confirmed that extra content would be available for Kotoba no Puzzle Mojipittan Wii months ago, in the form of extra stages. And, while neither title is likely to receive a western release, the likes of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King suddenly seem like prime candidates to receive DLC of their own.

Wii Ware priced and dated for Japan



When it comes to Wii Ware in Japan, Nintendo is cutting it fine. Just this morning, the company announced that the service would launch in the region on March 25th, a mere fortnight from now. The U.S. launch of Wii Ware, you may recall, is down for May 12th.

As well as a date, Nintendo revealed a launch line-up of nine titles with prices that ranged from 500 (Okiraku Ping-Pong Wii and Angel's Solitaire) to 1500 (My Life As A King: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles) Wii points:
Update 1: GameTrailers has just updated with videos of Everybody's Pokemon Ranch, Star Soldier R, Word Puzzle Mojipittan Wii, and Dr. Mario. Hit the break, people!

Continue reading Wii Ware priced and dated for Japan

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