In an IGN interview, Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon producer Yuki Yokoyama described the game as a toned-down roguelike, made in such a way that "users who have never played a dungeon crawler can enjoy it as well." Item and experience loss after death, then, is gone to make the experience friendlier. Good for new players, but roguelike devotees may be put off!
Square Enix was motivated to return to the Chocobo's Dungeon RPG series, Yokoyama said, after the last Chocobo game on the DS. In Japan, the Chocobo Tales minigame collection was apparently popular, leading Yokoyama to believe it was a good time to make another game in the Chocobo's Dungeon series.
While you're reading about the cutest dungeon RPG this year, be sure to check out IGN's new screens as well.
Square Enix hasn't had their memories of Europe taken away by some enchanted bell yet. The company has just announced that their roguelike-ish Final Fantasy spinoff game, Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon, will be released "across Europe and PAL territories" in the fall of this year.
The game, a turn-based dungeon RPG about a cuddly Chocobo's adventures in random dungeons created from villagers' lost memories, came out in Japan in December. It is being released in North America on July 8.
Along with the new announcement, Square Enix has released new screens, which can be found in our gallery. And in addition to the totally sweet video above, two more videos of Chocobo in action -- as a black mage and dragoon -- are available after the break.
Posted Jun 24th 2008 8:00PM by JC Fletcher Filed under: News
Surprise! Four brand new Chocobo games are available for your enjoyment right now -- exclusively to registrants at the Square Enix Members website. They are, of course, the four adorable web games released in May of last year to promote the Japanese release of Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon.
Now you can read the instructions and understand the nuanced control schemes involved in keeping Jail Bird on top of a stick so he can catch apples in Chocobo's Balancing Act, deftly avoid ice in Chocobo's Snowboard Glide, fly on borrowed wings in Chocobo Flight, and goof off in class in Chocobo's Classmate. Not that you couldn't have figured out how to play those.
It's hard enough to convince gamers to buy a roguelike, but asking them to pay $39.99 for a dressed-up remake of a Sega Saturn dungeon crawl? Fuhgeddaboudit!
If pricing has been that barrier keeping you from exploring Baroque's Neuro Tower dungeons, look to Amazon for a deal-of-the-day discount. The online retailer has slashed $14 off Baroque, bringing it down to $25.99. That makes this Sting-developed, Atlus-published title eligible for free shipping!
Make sure to read our review for Baroque first to get an idea of what you're jumping into! It's not a game for everyone!
Perhaps the updates on Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon have been few and far between, but Square Enix has made up for it with a sudden blitz of media from the upcoming title. The screenshots are bright and beautiful, though for the most part, they seem embiggened versions of the DS's Final Fantasy Fables title. Of course, the two are similar -- they feature a largely similar cast, mini-game elements, and obviously, supercute Chocobo himself. But while the DS game was simply a blend of adventure, mini-games, and card battles, the Wii title is set to focus on more dungeon-crawling, with a heavy dose of RPG elements.
We're a little wary of the watered-down roguelike-lite gameplay in Chocobo's Dungeon, but when push comes to shove, we're suckers for Square Enix (and anything with a job system). Come July 8, any hesitation will probably disappear in a single squee of ultimate joy.
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer 3's setting, the Clockwork Palace, has given developer Chunsoft license to pit Shiren against some supremely freaky-looking mechanical monsters. Just the very existence of monsters in a Mystery Dungeon game is cause enough for fear, as any single one of them can kill you and erase all your progress. It almost seems like overkill, then, to design enemies that actually look creepy at all.
Famitsu has revealed some of the boss creatures found in the dungeon, including the five Ikusa Oni, a sort of Power Rangers-type organization, but made of monstrous samurai, and the Clockwork Kasha, a flaming cart with a Noh mask.
The Clockwork Giants aren't particularly frightening, but they're certainly weird. Both are mechanical heads with one pair of appendages each; one has hands and the other feet, and both have totally metal eyebrows.
First reason to be hyped about Shiren the Wanderer: The Sleeping Princess in the Clockwork Palace's release, even though no one has announced a U.S. localization yet -- Famitsu's review score: 35/40 (9 / 9 / 8 / 9). Though many consider Famitsu to be too forgiving with its reviews for highly advertised, big-budget games, the Shiren series doesn't seem to fit that description. For such a niche game to receive a high score like this, Chunsoft must have done something right!
Second reason -- See Asuka model pictured above (and past the break). We're not the type to leave figures of female anime characters posed around our rooms, giving women even more reason to run away from the mess we've made of our lives, but as we demonstrated with the Koppa remote stand preorder bonus, we have a weakness to Shiren merchandise.
As for our third reason, swing your sword to check for traps, and step past the break for a new Shiren 3 commercial. It features a collection of player deaths set to Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 -- what's not to like?
Usually with these niche and traditionally Japan-only titles, we spend the post complaining about missing out on another potentially great game, as we did with our last Shiren the Wanderer post. But with Sega's recent localization for the Shiren the Wanderer DS remake and with the Wii game's U.S.-friendly title -- Shiren the Wanderer 3: Karakuri Yashiki no Nemuri Hime (Shiren the Wanderer: The Sleeping Princess in the Clockwork Palace) -- this game has a relatively good chance of making it to the states!
The clip above is from the Wii game's opening movie, one of two videos posted at Sega's official Shiren the Wanderer site. It's got airships, the titular Clockwork Palace, and everyone's favorite white weasel, Koppa. The other video, a four-minute promotional trailer, has all that and shots exploring the roguelike's dungeons, including their new enemies. Take a diagonal step past the post break to watch it!
Posted May 21st 2008 7:00PM by JC Fletcher Filed under: News
There seems to be an inordinately low level of hype surrounding the July release of Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon. It's an original Final Fantasy RPG (of sorts) on the Wii! That's awesome, right? Roguelikes, as well, are relatively hot right now, so we think this is a noteworthy release.
The website has been updated with a short story introduction, descriptions of three of Chocobo's available jobs (Knight, White Mage, and Black Mage), and even gameplay information, which describes areas in the game's town and the weird "Romantic Phrases" sidequest. In this quest, you find hidden "Romantic Phrases" in letters and recite them to Romantic Hero X.
There are also two wallpapers, one of which was the source for the lovely art adorning this post. We've stared at it long enough that we're now convinced we like the game.
I'll be frank -- when I first started Baroque, I hated it. Being thrown into such a strange and ugly world with the barest of backstories was completely disorienting. I had no idea where to go or what to do, and didn't have the luxury of taking my time to explore because my vitality meter was plummeting from the get-go. One character (known as the Coffin Man) kept yelling "goddamnit!" at me, and when I finally got to the place where I was supposed to be, it wasn't long before I died.
If I hadn't been reviewing this game, I probably would have quit right there. But, since it's (clearly) considered bad form to write a review after only twenty minutes of playtime, I trekked on -- and I'm extremely glad that I did. Once I delved deeper into the world of Baroque, I realized that first impressions aren't always the best impressions.
Now that you've kindly read through my personal aside, let's move on to the actual review, shall we?
We're impressed with Rising Star, who have been bringing a lot ofnichegames to Europe. The most recent one on the publisher's list is Baroque, which will be hitting the continent on June 27th. We're sure that Rising Star is hoping that the game will sell decently, but after seeing how it was received in Japan, the company might be a little worried. Of course, it can't do any worse than that ... can it?
In any case, we're sure that at least some of you folks in Europe will be glad to get the chance to play Sting's hardcore roguelike on your Wiis.
Ever the pessimists, we're having a hard time convincing ourselves that Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer 3 will ever make it stateside. Yes, we thought the same about the Shiren game that just hit the DS when localization rumors materialized, but we doubt that sales for the niche title impressed Sega, compelling the publisher into adding the Wii sequel to its North America release schedule.
So, until monkeys fly out our butt someone announces a localization deal for Shiren 3, the only way you'll play this revamp of the revered roguelike is an expensive import -- provided that it's compatible with Freeloader. If you're shelling out the big bucks, why not grab the Koppa Wii remote stand, too? NCSX has the stands available to gamers who put down their $65 (plus shipping and handling) for an early preorder. Though Shiren 3 isn't due until June 5th, the import shop has a limited amount of stands, so reserve soon!
Those of you who've played the DS remake of the SNES game -- all four of you -- and aren't sure if Shiren 3'sadditions are enough to warrant a purchase, make sure you check out the new boss characters in the Famitsu link below!
Read - Preorder Furai no Shiren 3 at NCSX Read - New Furai no Shiren 3 screenshots
Back in January, Sega announced a delay for the Japanese version of Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer 3, bumping the title back from February into June. Today, Sega announced the official release date, confirming that it (probably) won't be bumped further: June 5th.
We're inclined to think that Sega delayed Shiren until production of the limited preorder bonus was finished, but Chunsoft was probably working on the game or something. The two events do happen to coincide, however: along with the release date announcement, Sega sent out a real picture of the Koppa Wii remote stand, which we want almost enough to import the game.
We love Gamefly. We hear they're okay for sending games to people, which is great. But more importantly, they love to reveal unannounced games to us. Case in point: their "Coming Soon" page includes a listing for Final Fantasy: Chocobo Dungeon. We've long suspected that Square Enix would decide to localize their adorable roguelike, Chocobo no Fushigi na Dungeon: Toki-Wasure no Meikyuu. There's really no reason not to believe Gamefly on this one. It's currently marked for a July 3rd release date on the website.
Also found on the "Coming Soon" page: oddities! Like Space Chimps! Well, that's not really that odd, since there's a CG movie coming out by the same name. Anything called Space Chimps qualifies as odd by default, though, we think. But much more unequivocally odd is Guinness Book of World Records ... the game! Look forward to that this October, according to Gamefly.
Gametrailers has posted a surprisingly comprehensive preview of Square Enix's new roguelike-lite, Chocobo's Dungeon: Toki-Wasure no Meikyuu (Dungeon of Forgotten Time). It does a good job of introducing the basics of the turn-based system, the methods of upgrading your character, and, of course, the storyline.
We were amused by the major fakeout involved in the story: Chocobo and a treasure hunter named Cid head to a big tower, which we think is going to be the basis for the game, like The Tower of Druaga or something. They've got this perfectly serviceable roguelike setting, a tower made up of many floors, full of treasure, and then -- nope! The tower gets hit with some kind of beam that sends Chocobo and Cid into a vortex, landing them in the Land of Forgotten Time. Okay, we thought, so they'll explore this land, then, like Shiren the Wanderer.
Then a space-baby shows up and lets Chocobo go into people's minds to recover their memories.And those are the dungeons.
It's hard enough to convince gamers to buy a roguelike, but asking them to pay $39.99 for a dressed-up remake of a Sega Saturn dungeon crawl? Fuhgeddaboudit!
Perhaps the updates on Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon have been few and far between, but Square Enix has made up for it with a sudden blitz of media from the upcoming title. The screenshots are bright and beautiful, though for the most part, they seem embiggened versions of the DS's Final Fantasy Fables title. Of course, the two are similar -- they feature a largely similar cast, mini-game elements, and obviously, supercute Chocobo himself. But while the DS game was simply a blend of adventure, mini-games, and card battles, the Wii title is set to focus on more dungeon-crawling, with a heavy dose of RPG elements.
We love Gamefly. We hear they're okay for sending games to people, which is great. But more importantly, they love to reveal unannounced games to us. Case in point: their "Coming Soon" page includes a listing for Final Fantasy: Chocobo Dungeon. We've long suspected that Square Enix would decide to localize their adorable roguelike, Chocobo no Fushigi na Dungeon: Toki-Wasure no Meikyuu. There's really no reason not to believe Gamefly on this one. It's currently marked for a July 3rd release date on the website.
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