Gamertell

I adore Final Fantasy games. It is definitely one of my favorite game franchises and Square Enix is easily one of my favorite developers. I own every game in the series and a few of the remakes and ports as well. (I have three versions of FFVI, and in a few weeks I’ll have three versions of FFIV too.)

But there’s one Final Fantasy game I don’t own and don’t plan on buying - Final Fantasy Tactics A2. It isn’t because I’m an RPG fan who can’t handle strategic RPGs. I have the the PS1 and PSP version of Final Fantasy Tactics, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and nearly every NIS game released in North America.

Simply put, Square Enix dropped the ball…

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Aeria Games has quite an impressive library of free-to-play massive multiplayer online (MMO) games. But there’s been one area where its lacking - real-time strategic rpgs. That’s where Dreamlords: The Reawakening steps in. Lockpick Entertainment’s Dreamlords will now be available for North American residents to play, thanks to Aeria.

Dreamlords: The Reawakening is a lot like Starcraft or Age of Empires - players wage strategic battles against one another. The difference with Dreamlords is that, like with all MMOs, the game keeps going when you’re not there. So players are given the opportunity to dictate their orders ahead of time, while they are playing. In fact, they can even issue directives from anywhere, so long as they have access to a computer with a browser and internet. They won’t be able to experience everything without downloading the program, but they can keep up-to-date on events and issue orders.

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I love both Atlus and NIS, so I’m always pleased when the two companies collaborate. A recent announcement revealed that Atlus will be distributing NIS America’s three, upcoming RPGs. Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice, Disgaea DS and Rhapsody: a Musical Adventure.

The first release will be Disgaea 3, on August 26, 2008. It is a PS3 exclusive of the latest entry in the wildly popular Disgaea series. It follows Mao, the best student at Evil Academy, where the worst student is the best. He decides he wants to be an overlord, but somehow misinterprets things and thinks he needs to become a hero to become an overlord. It will cost $49.99 and will also have additional, downloadable content later on.

Click through for information on Disgaea DS and Rhapsody DS…

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Those who enjoy browser games, but feel limited by their capabilities, may want to check out Seven Light’s newest browser game, The Continuum. The Continuum is billed as a sort of an online, collective TCG, strategic rpg, war game hybrid. The game is free to play, with the option to purchase a subscription or buy extra card packs.

When you begin the game, you are given some starter characters to begin playing. You can then create armies with them, upgrade their abilities, equip them with items and send them off into battle with other The Continuum players. 

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We all have bad habits we’re trying to free ourselves from. Whether its drinking, speeding, or in my case caffeine and chocolate. One of the more popular vices everyone would like to see vanish is smoking. Yep, down with the nicotine sticks, no more dancing with cancer these days. But if you have friends who smoke like I do, asking them to stop will result in their telling you to ‘butt’ out or blow that defiant puff in your face.

It’s a habit that people find difficult to shake, especially if they’ve been smoking for quite a long time, rendering the nicotine patches, gums and carrot sticks useless. But in Canada, members of the Allen Carr Team - founded by anti-smoking guru Allen Carr - found a way to help smokers break their habit with the help of a Nintendo DS.

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It isn’t uncommon for one or two big titles to be released on the same day or within a few days of each other, (Example: Grand Theft Auto IV and Mario Kart Wii.) but more often than not, publishers will avoid this and scatter dates so their games will get the attention they deserve. Apparently the Japanese DS game publishers wanted to cause a free-for-all June 26, 2008, because five highly anticipated games are being released at once. Six, if you’re excited about Simple DS Series Vol. 39 The Shouboutai (Fire Fighters).

So let’s go over Bleach: The 3rd Phantom, Bokura no Telebi Game Kentei, Daigasso! Band Brothers DX, Jigsaw World and Disgaea DS, the five major titles being released in Japan…

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Here’s great news for Gamertell readers who own a Nintendo Wii. Titanstrike has organized a Super Smash Bros. Brawl Tournament with cash prizes over at SmashTournament.com. And Gamertell readers get an exclusive discount on the entry fee…

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NIS America has announced that a preorders of Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice will receive a bonus soundtrack CD. It won’t be just any soundtrack though, as the potential buyers will be handpicking the tracks from Disgaea, Disgaea 2 and Disgaea 3 that will appear on the CD.

The poll is up on the official Disgaea 3 site and has so far has 14 tracks to choose from. There is also a short sample of each track, so you can play them before-hand to see which ones are your favorites. After selecting five songs, you submit your vote and hope for the best.

Click through to see the 14 tracks to pick from…

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I can’t wait for my copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots but I don’t want to say goodbye to elite agent Solid Snake, whom we’ve grown to love while following his adventures.

We pray that rumors of an end are not true and continue to pose theories about why the series could never end.  Even so, as a preemptive memorial to help cope with the denial that this may be the absolute last game for Snake, here is a look at the MGS franchise....

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Yggdra Union, the strategic rpg story of Princess Yggdra, the holy sword Gran Centurio and the thief Milanor and their battle to restore Fantasinia, is going to be resurrected. Atlus will be releasing the PSP port of the 2006 GBA game in North America, just like it did with Riviera: The Promised Land.

The battle system can be a bit complicated in Yggdra Union. You can only move all characters a certain number of spaces. Then you must choose which of the cards you have available for the unit to attack an opposing unit. You then watch your unit attack the other one. After the battle is finished, the winning unit’s morale is raised, and the losing unit’s morale is lowered. Like in Fire Emblem, certain unit types are strong or weaker than others, so you really have to think ahead.

Click through to watch Atlus’ official trailer for Yggdra Union......

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