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In case you are not yet aware, Namco and Bandai merged this past year to become Namco/Bandai. But enough business, let’s hear about some games.
The game with the biggest name and platform list is Pac-Man World Rally, coming out for the PS2, PSP, and GameCube. Essentially, the game is Mario Kart with Namco characters like Pac-Man, Inky, and the Dig-Dug baddie Fygar. After that, we’ve got One Piece: Grand Adventure for PS2 and GameCube, a free-moving 3D fighter game with an additional mini-game filled single player adventure.
PS2 owners get the most love this year with nine additional games. .hack//G.U. Vol.1 Rebirth for the PS2 is the first game in a new .hack series. “The World” has been rebuilt and you will play as a legendary P.K. killer known as “Terror of Death”. Naruto fans are in for a treat with Naruto: Ultimate Ninja, an innovative new fighting game that captures the show's unique style both visually and in battle. Zatch Bell! Mamodo Fury is a fast-paced action title featuring plenty of creepy dolls for fans to swoon over.
A most intriguing title was Snoopy vs. The Red Baron, a 3D dog-fighting game where you actually play as a dog. Featuring much of the classic Peanuts cast, this one will entertain both young players and older gamers who remember the gang. RPG cut-scene lovers can expect to see Xenosaga Episode III: Also sprach Zarathustra soon. Namco/Bandai refers to it as a “conclusion to the Xenosaga Trilogy”.
Racing aficionados can enjoy a futuristic experience with IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix, or you can keep it real with The Fast and the Furious, a tuner's delight. Eureka Seven Vol.1 brings the sport of “Lifting” to gamers while Tales of the Abyss is a cel-shaded anime-style RPG.
Sony gets all the action; we have four exclusive titles for the PSP. Ace Combat X is a portable Ace Combat game that’s actually good. Unlike the horrific Game Boy Advance version, this is full-on 3D Ace Combat. Need more proof? I went in and whupped on a whole bunch of developers in the game’s wireless multiplayer mode. This thing plays just like its PS2 brethren.
Bounty Hunters is a 3D action game with “free roaming gameplay”. Tekken fans may not have a new Tekken game pushing the very limits of graphics technology, but they will get Tekken: Dark Resurrection. It’ll surely show just what the PSP can do. Our final portable title of the evening is The Legend of Heroes II. A sequel to The Legend of Heroes (in case you hadn’t picked up on that yet), this game will offer players some classic 2D RPG action with some 3D overtones.
If you’re primarily a PC player, I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about all these namby-pamby console games, as you would likely put it. Hellgate: London is an FPS with deep RPG elements. It’s exactly what you’d come to expect from team Flagship Studios, many of their members originally hailing from Blizzard during the heyday of those Diablo and War/Starcraft games.
If PC RPGs are more you’re thing, you can enjoy Mage Knight: Apocalypse, though, it won’t be the prettiest game you’ve ever played. You can also get into some real RTS action with Warhammer: Mark of Chaos, a game that insists it’s faithful to the original license.
Not all is old school in Pac-Land, however. Namco/Bandai also has an Xbox 360 game coming. Mobile Ops: The One Year War is a 3D FPS/Action game with giant robots, and who doesn’t love giant robots? |
