Natsume Inc., a worldwide developer and publisher of family-oriented video games, today launches their first title for the Nintendo Wii U, Alphadia Genesis. The first game in the classic Alphadia series to hit consoles in North America, the game is rated E10+ by the ESRB, is available exclusively on the Wii U eShop, and can be downloaded for just $14.99.

Alphadia, Year 1092: Fifteen years have passed since the end of the terrible Energi Wars, where clones were used as weapons. Two kingdoms, after nearly destroying each other and the natural resources of Energi, signed an important peace treaty, and have been co-operative neighbors ever since: Augustine and Archleign, where the story of Alphadia Genesis begins.

“We are excited to be launching our first Wii U title, and are especially excited that it’s a JRPG,” said Hiro Maekawa, President and CEO at Natsume. “We hope veteran fans who loved the classic gameplay style and storytelling of Mystic Chronicles and End of Serenity as well as new fans will love Alphadia Genesis!”
Read More

Today, Ubisoft announced that The Crew open beta will take place from November 25th to November 27th for the Xbox One video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation 4 computer entertainment system.

The open beta will allow players to explore the entire United States and complete challenges in two of the five regions available in the game, the Midwest and East Coast. The PvP lobbies in these regions will also be accessible for players who want to prove their competitive skills. For those who like to customize and fine-tune their ride, two of the five spec classes, Street and Dirt, will be available.

The open beta will be accessible to all Xbox Live and PlayStation Network members, however some online features will require an Xbox Live Gold or PlayStation Plus membership.

The Crew 101 Trailer:

The Crew will be available on December 2, 2014 for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and PC platforms. Visit www.thecrewgame.com for more information.

Soaring high in the skies on the back of a majestic Pokémon, discovering the mysterious origins of Mega Evolution and releasing the primal powers of Legendary Pokémon. These are only a few of the new franchise features that players can experience for the first time in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, both launching exclusively for the portable Nintendo 3DS video game system on November 21. With new Mega Evolutions of favourite Pokémon characters, new areas to explore and new ways to travel, fans who fell in love with the original Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire games will feel like they are embarking on their adventure through the Hoenn region for the first time.

“Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire kick off the holiday shopping season with games that both old and new Pokémon fans will love,” said Pierre-Paul Trepanier, senior director and general manager. “The games let players explore and experience the world of Pokémon like never before, with hours of portable entertainment perfect for long holiday trips.”
Read More

Nintendo’s campaign of heavy hitters continues for the Wii U this year. First we had Mario Kart 8, and just a couple weeks ago Bayonetta 2 touched down to rave reviews. Now comes the long awaited return of Smash Bros. to the home console. While there are many more 3DSes out there already playing the handheld version of game, the big N is hoping this will entice many of its fledgling gamers back to its living room offerings. If Super Smash Bros. for Wii U fails to do that, it’s certainly no fault of the developers, who have put together the most comprehensive version of the fighter yet.
Read More

It’s not every day that you see an RPG that plays like a JRPG, let alone one from the latter day SNES era, and is also in a Wild West setting. Well the silence on this oversight has been broken and Experimental Gamers has answered the call. And the all prove their grit, rough as it may be.

The game’s setting takes places years later after a Showdown with the local sheriff of a town and the leader of the evil Saints-Little Gang. The sheriff dies but succeeds in putting the leader behind bars. You play as his son. And while it starts out with you trying to earn money to save your farm, the plot reveals that there is a plan to free Coyote Saint from prison. Of course you get caught up in it as the town is set to have a violent confrontation with a tribe, unless you can stop it that is.
Read More

While the Samurai Warriors series isn’t as long as the Dynasty series that inspired it, the spin-off has already made it to entry number four to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the series. The same quick fix gameplay is back, with some twists.

For those unfamiliar with the series, it sets itself apart from Dynasty Warriors by featuring stories and character’s from Japanese history during the Sengoku period, as opposed to Dynasty’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms setting: Although it’s still loosely based on those events. It is an action game where you take a character in a Hack and slash map to lead your chosen faction to victory. There are a number of different victory conditions, but they are merely variations of ‘defeat this officer’. There are also sub-conditions that earn you bonus points that boost your ranking. Leveling up characters earns new combos and skills. Like the more recent Dynasty games, you play campaigns in story mode with factions as opposed to being stuck with a different character. What is new however, is the ability to bring in a second character and switch between in the middle of battle. In addition, you have two new moves to use. Hyper attacks let you rush through large swaths of enemies, but they are mostly ineffective against officers. There is also Rage mode, which gives you a temporary power boost at the expense of orbs that recharge with normal attacks when not in use. You can step out of the story if online multiplayer isn’t your thing, and make your own character: These custom characters can then be used for Chronicle mode, which acts somewhat like an RPG.
Read More

The Far Cry 4 Season Pass extends players’ time in Kyrat and includes new missions that can be completed in either single-player or co-op. Content includes a Season Pass exclusive day-one mission, prison break from Durgesh in an open world survival mode for single player and co-op, exclusive missions with Hurk and his harpoon gun, a new PvP mode that will have friends teaming up to fight opposing forces and a chance to encounter the rarest beast in the Himalayas – yetis.

Rockstar Games is proud to announce that the critically acclaimed and record-breaking open world experience, Grand Theft Auto V is now available for the PlayStation 4 computer entertainment system and Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft.

Rebuilt and enhanced specifically for these new platforms, Grand Theft Auto V for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One includes an all-new First Person Mode, allowing players to experience the world of Los Santos and Blaine county in an entirely new way.

“This was our chance to push Grand Theft Auto V even further, adding a new First Person Mode and working to make the most of the power of the new consoles,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “We’re incredibly proud of what the team has been able to achieve.”

Grand Theft Auto V for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One also features a range of sweeping visual and technical upgrades, including vastly increased draw distances, new weather and lighting effects and an increased resolution of 1080p on both platforms. The world of Los Santos and Blaine County is deeper and more immersive than ever with new weapons, vehicles and activities, additional wildlife, and over 150 additional songs across the game’s 17 radio stations.
Read More

Level-5 must be the eternal foot draggers of the video game industry when it comes to the issue of localization of its titles. Fantasy Life was originally releasing in Japan in 2012, the game finally made it to the West. And the wait was worth it, although the extra wait time hasn’t seen any improvement to the game in any discernible respects.

The game is setup much like am MMO, but stripped of being strictly online focused or turn-based. This is an action RPG, and it even has its own story. The story is very basic stuff, and cute, but you can play a large portion of the game doing things outside of the Tale of Lunares. It should be noted that in story missions you can’t change classes. Classes in the game are called Lifes, and the play-on-word is meant to be something of an allegory for the denizens of the game world and their chosen professions. When you choose a class, you get to undergo a quest to get the associated license to switch it at will. After you get your fist class and try to get another, you do have the option of skipping the quest and just going for the license: Although you might miss out on some funny dialog, as this game is full of it. This game’s localization’s is one of Level-5’s best. Maybe that’s why it took 2 years to translate.
Read More

2K today announced that WWE 2K15, the newest addition to the flagship WWE video game franchise, is available now in North America for the PlayStation 4 computer entertainment system and Xbox One, all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, with international releases scheduled for November 21, 2014. WWE 2K15 for the PlayStation 4 system and Xbox One showcases the most authentic WWE video game to date, including striking graphics, significant gameplay updates, an abundant roster of WWE Superstars, Divas and Legends, the story-driven 2K Showcase and an inaugural MyCareer experience. WWE 2K15 also marks the first collaborative development release from Visual Concepts and Yuke’s.

WWE 2K15 Launch Trailer:

WWE 2K15 Launch Screenshots:

“WWE 2K15 for the PlayStation 4 system and Xbox One takes the franchise to a whole new level,” said Greg Thomas, President at Visual Concepts. “The next-generation of consoles let us create and deliver gameplay, authenticity and realism previously unseen in a WWE video game, as well as build the foundation for an exciting future. Major gameplay improvements, the historic rivalry experience in 2K Showcase and our first foray into a comprehensive career mode with MyCareer make us pleased to offer fans an impressive WWE video game experience.”
Read More