Gamertell

The DS game Jump Ultimate Stars is quite an elaborate fighting game. After all, 300 characters from 40 different manga series appear in the game either as fighters or support characters. With all of those options, creating a deck can be a daunting feat - especially if you’re a beginner and you don’t speak Japanese.

So today in Important Importables, we are going to offer a few Jump Ultimate Stars theme deck suggestions. Since even that could get a bit long (there are loads of possible creation options and everyone’s fighting style may vary), we’re going to focus on three anime series - Bleach, Naruto and One Piece. 

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Title: Ohimesama Debut
Price: $48.90 (Wait a while, it it’s coming to North America)
System(s): DS
Release Date: May 29, 2008
Publisher (Developer): Cave (Cave)
ESRB Rating: N/A; Cero A (All Ages)
Pros: Touchscreen dancing is fun, the story is charming and there’s a nice simulation/dating sim aspect following the six princes.
Cons: Most of the girl’s costumes aren’t cute. The 3D versions of the characters are hideous. Dances are only challenging initially, until you learn the patterns.
Overall Score: 7.5/10
As many are aware, I am fortunate enough to have some friends who also import video games from Japan. This means I get to sample games I normally wouldn’t play, and, in the case of Ohimesama Debut, be pleasantly surprised.

Yes, an Ouendan-loving friend of mine bought Ohimesama Debut. Since it has multiple save slots, she was gracious enough to let me claim one. Of course when Natsume releases it in the US, I totally intend on buying a copy.

Ohimesama Debut is a surprisingly fun game, though I don’t think we’ll see many boys or men running to stores to pick it up. Even though there are some less than pleasant visuals, the gameplay and entertaining concept make up for it. If Natsume hadn’t localized it as Princess Debut, I’d have bet money that Ubisoft would have brought it over as Imagine: Ballroom Dancer.

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JList is now taking preorders for two new, Star Wars USB hub characters - R2D2 and Darth Vader. They are pretty much decorative statues that move, light up and make noises. Both items are expected to be released in Japan before the end of July 2008, but people can preorder one (or both) of the $75 items to make sure they’ll get one.

While both R2D2 and Darth Vader look cool, they do have an addition function. Each one has four additional USB ports - very handy in an age where practically every computer peripheral attaches via a USB port. In fact, this could be an essential for a desktop owner, so you don’t have to stretch around to reach for an outlet. The computer powers each of them, so no batteries are needed, and they work with Macs and PCs.

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News broke this week that Resident Evil writer/director/producer extraordinaire Paul W.S. Anderson wouldn’t be opposed to making a fourth chapter in the film series. According to MTV’s Multiplayer blog, he’s been in talks with Sony about the possibility of making zombie magic happen yet again.

From the post:

“Right now, the hold up for Anderson is coming up with the right story. If that falls into place, another “Resident Evil” movie may be on the table.”

Just in case the film does get made, I have a few suggestions for the filmmakers…

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Title: Daigasso! Band Brothers
Price: $48.90
System(s): Nintendo DS
Release Date: December, 1, 2004
Publisher (Developer): Nintendo (Nintendo)
ESRB Rating: N/A. CERO Free (All Ages)
Pros: There’s a great variety of JPop, anime, World, classical and video game music to play. The controls are easy to adapt to. There’s single cart multiplayer for 2-8 people. The song editor is fun. Loads of replay value.
Cons: The sound quality sounds dated, you’ll need a guide to get started for making songs
Overall Score: 8/10

Since Daigasso! Band Brothers DX was recently released in Japan (on June 26, 2008), I figured it would be a good time to take a look back at the original Daigasso! Band Brothers.

The game is a cross between a music simulator and a music game, where people could play music with the face buttons. Pressing the wrong button, or failing to make a note sharp or flat with the shoulder buttons at higher difficulty levels, will cause the wrong note to be played. The goal is to successfully complete a song while keeping time with the beat and pressing correct buttons.

Click through for the full review…

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It is so going to be a good summer. Apparently the forces that be took my “I’m going to spend my import game money on gas” threat seriously, and decided to counter by exploiting one of my weak points - Hana Yori Dango.

On July 10, 2008, Konami will release Hana Yori Dango -Koi Seyo Otome!- for the Nintendo DS. If that isn’t enough to get you excited - it is going to be an otome (girl’s dating game) life sim title with mini-games. Like all import games, it’s going to be pretty expensive, retailing for $52.90 at both NCSX and Play-Asia. For that price, I want voice acting - preferably from the Japanese TV drama actors.

Keep reading to learn more about Hana Yori Dango…

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In Japan, video game art and design is celebrated. People relish game design and respect the effort that went into creating them, resulting in the plentiful publication of books filled with various designs and extra images from games. In fact, nearly every major video game release has an art book devoted to it.

These art books aren’t the flimsy pubs found roaming wild in North America. You know what I’m talking about - 16~20 page pamphlets that some companies try to pass off as limited edition, sacred, preorder items. The art books in Japan are of extremely high quality with dust covers, or even hard cover compilations. They are to be treasured.

Click through to find out more and for the “Nearly Complete Alphabet of Artbooks...”

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Title: Otometeki Koi Kakumei: Love Revo DS!!
Price: $48.90
System(s): Nintendo DS
Release Date: 2/14/08
Publisher (Developer): Interchannel-Holon (Interchannel-Holon)
ESRB Rating: N/A
Pros: Pretty English friendly, good character art, funny storyline, handy quick save/quick load options and CG events happen naturally provided you meet the stat requirements.
Cons: Get out your Action Replay DS - you’re gonna need it. These guys are hard to please, and the hara heri hunger/stress gauge just keeps rising. Some people may also find the story insulting.
Overall Score: 8/10

Otometeki Koi Kakumei: Love Revo DS!! sends a pretty clear message to players - gorgeous guys will only date and fall in love with thin, toned and intelligent girls who are willing to tell the guys what they want to hear. Of course most dating sims require the player to tell their in-game mates what they want to hear, and many also require players to improve their avatar’s traits to win a character’s heart. However Love Revo DS!! is the first game I’ve played where weight can make or break a relationship.

Amazingly enough, it accomplishes this task without being insulting. Rather than feeling like the boyfriend candidates are shallow individuals, the whole set-up seems rather funny. The girl (the player) was adorable as a child, she won beauty pageants and was just precious. Then she got lazy. At the start of the game she’s a 100kg (~220lb) slob who’s dumb as a stump. 

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Originally I was going to review Otometeki Koi Kakumei: Love Revo DS!!, another DS girl’s dating game, this week. However my bid for the blue-haired guy Shouta is taking a bit longer than I thought, so it will be delayed until next week.

Instead, I’m going to talk a bit about the cultural phenomenon that is Neon Genesis Evangelion and some of the strange video game offspring it has produced. Evangelion is undoubtedly one of the most well known Japanese anime series. This is probably because it possesses most of the essential anime staples: Big robots? Check. High school drama? Check. Cute girls occasionally dressed in revealing/form fitting outfits? Check. Occasionally twisted storyline? Double check.

Frankly, you have to invest a lot of time to truly understand the series. Just watching the End of Evangelion movie one weekend (cough) isn’t going to cut it. Thankfully, many of the video games inspired by the series have nothing to do with the whole tangled storylines and hidden truths which permiate the series. So let’s look at Neon Genesis Evangelion: Ayanami Ikusai Keikaku with Asuka Hohan Keikaku, Shinseiki Evangelion: Typing E-Keikaku, Neon Genesis Evangelion Magokoro wo Kimini and Puchi Eva: Evangelion @ Game, four games loosely based on the whole Evangelion experience.

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Title: Soma Bringer
Price: $48.90
System(s): Nintendo DS
Release Date: 2/28/08
Publisher (Developer): Nintendo (Monolith Soft)
ESRB Rating: N/A

Soma Bringer is an interesting effort from Nintendo and Monolith Soft. It basically is everything that people wanted Children of Mana for the DS to be. Its a fairly straightforward action/rpg/dungeon crawler with the primary focus on customizing characters and providing an effortless battle experience.

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