Dungeon Hunter Alliance

I love the Vita boxes; they're so tiny.

First off, I hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend.  Secondly, I've said it before, but I'll say it again, buying an iPod Touch or an iPad and getting a game from the App Store does not make you a gamer.  If, however, one of those games is released onto a console with extra content added in, making it a real game in the eyes of the console world, then it's okay.  Sounds like it's just a sneaky way for me to be a hypocrite, but it's definitely not that.  It's a loophole...trust me.

Dungeon Hunter Alliance was developed for iDevices but was eventually ported to the PSN.  After that it was polished a bit more, with added Vita features, and slapped onto the PS Vita in cartridge form.  The idea of the game is that you're a king that was betrayed and now you're back to life trying to avenge your death and your kingdom.  It's a simple idea, and the story is pretty bland, but we're here more to talk about how the game plays rather than how awful and cliche the story is.



There's a lot of great loot in this game, and the Vita tracks the last "epic" loot you found, which is fun to see.



As soon as you get past the first section of dialogue, you're put right into the action.  Dungeon Hunter is a simple hack-n-slash RPG a la Diablo.  The formula is basic:  Kill enemies to get loot, use loot to kill enemies, and embark on quests to get more loot until the end of time.  There are three classes to choose from, Warrior, Rogue, and Mage, and each has a pretty large skill tree to level through.  There are auras, activated, and passive abilities that help you demolish your enemies.

4-person multi player is interesting to say the least.

There can be some slowdown when there are too many creatures on the screen and for whatever reason the standard melee attacks tend to miss if you aren't standing right in front of your target.  There are multiple equipment sets and multiple skill sets that you can create with an auto-equip function to keep you equipped with the best as you plow through the dungeons.

The Vita updates here are minimal: the touch screen controls your fairy power, the camera, and the menus.  Other than those few additions the only real new content included on this version is the multi player.  I haven't had a chance to experience it for myself as of yet, but from what I understand it flows pretty smoothly.  The main issue is that all four players are stuck on the same screen, which really hampers movement from one area to the next.

For what it's worth, this game is fun.  There are a few issues that occurred in it's transposing from the iDevice to the PS3 and finally to the Vita, but I can overlook those since I love the genre and can enjoy many aspects of it.  The main question is this, "Is it worth the $20 extra on the PS Vita from the $12.99 version on the PS3?"  I don't think that's something I can necessarily answer, having not played the PS3 version, but I think that portability alone is something that you need to pay for, and a portable Diablo-esque game is something that can't be passed up.

Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention

I have no idea where to start with this game; it's a great game but it feels weird.  It breaks the fourth wall and yet still manages to maintain the dignity of a good Strategy RPG; note that the version that I'm going to talk about is on the PS Vita.  There we go, that's my starting point, the genre.  As you probably have read, SRGPs are one of my favorite genres of all time.  In fact, Final Fantasy Tactics is my favorite game of all time, which I've said enough times to kill an elephant.  In any case, Disgaea 3 is an installment in the Disgaea series, which takes place in the Netherworld. 

Just one sample of humorous dialogue.

In the Netherworld there's an evil school that your main characters are, normally, students of.  Most missions take place in and around the school setting, and your home base and other stats, like Honor Student Quotient, are all based off of a school theme.  It seems kind of silly, but that's only because it is.  The game takes great advantage of the situation and constantly makes reference to itself as a video game, characters playing video games, characters reading comic books, the hero and demon ideals, and a ton of other things that make you chuckle and shake your head.  As you can see from the various screen shots that I have up here, it takes a lot of the qualities from anime and manga that we all so love, which really makes you want to keep up with the story in between all of the great battles.

I like how sharp everything looks on the Vita.

The humor and self-realization of the game are the main things that give it such an enjoyable role-playing experience, but the meat of Disgaea 3 really brings you a great tactical world.  The various stats, HP, SP, Str, etc, all go up to insanely high values, at least 100x as high as your common RPG.  The game itself says that you should spend a million hours playing it...and the anime style, funny dialogue, and strategy elements combined really make it seem like you could spend that much time, and then some sitting in front of your PS3 or holding your PS Vita.

A four-person combo attack.

As for the game play, it's pretty much your typical SRPG.  You move along on a grid and use tactics to eliminate your enemies.  The main innovation that Disgaea provides is the combo attack.  Depending on where your team member is seated in home room, which is your base, they can perform an attack with someone that's sitting next to them.  The combos are significantly more damaging than normal attacks and are even more destructive when you use special skills to combo.  I also like the Magichange feature where your monster allies can transform into a weapon to be used by a teammate that's next to them in home room.  For instance, the prinny monster class, which is essentially a penguin, changes into a laser.  How much more awesome can you get?  I can't think of anything I want more than a penguin friend that turns into a laser cannon.

I've been waiting to write this brief review for some time now, and I finally got the guts to do it today.  The reason I was putting it off is because I could spend 100 paragraphs explaining the game and giving it the props it deserves, but no one wants to read that.  I just wanted to introduce you to the world of Disgaea 3, not write a book.  For anyone that is an SRPG gamer, RPG player, or an anime/manga lover; I highly recommend this game.  Personally I'd take the PS Vita version for the mobility, which I think SRPGs were designed for, but the PS3 version has some great advantages too.

Motorstorm RC

Free games can be hit and miss, especially on mobile devices.  Take for instance all of the crap apps and "games" that get released for the various iDevices.  It's all just terrible.  Every once in a blue moon, however, you'll find that one free game that's actually worth downloading.  I have found that game for this moon cycle, and it's Motorstorm RC on the PS Vita.

Yeah, powered by Scion.

This game was released on the PS3 and later came to the PS Vita in March for free.  I snatched it up off the PS Store on day one, as I had basically just gotten the system and was looking for more games to experience.  At first I scoffed at it and balked at the controls.  Later, after I got more used to them, I began to enjoy the game.

Reminds me of the Micro Machines games.

The concept isn't much different than your normal racer, other than you're racing an RC car instead of a real car.  The 16 tracks are scaled down to fit the size of the cars, and each one has it's own flavor, which keeps the game fresh as you play the four different game modes.  To keep the game as real as possible, the controls are set in such a way that it makes you feel like you are actually controlling the car; like you're using the remote that controls it rather than playing a game with a controller.

The graphics are a bit lackluster, but since it's free, I can't really complain.  The same could be said of the sound.  There is a decent array of cars to unlock and choose from, and even some online leaderboards to compete against.  Compared to other free games out there for the Vita, like Montezuma Blitz, this is actually what you would expect from a video game.  I would recommend this any day of the week; like today...I'm recommending it today.

See?  Just like Micro Machines on the NES.

Day 22: Nextnext Gen in 18 months?

What the shit?

This is totally and completely accurate.  No lie.

I know it's been a couple of years since the 360 and PS3 came out and they've been excellent thus far, but why the fuck do we need to see the next next generation Sony console in under a year and half?  Of course this is just a rumor, and the information isn't substantiated in any way, but this is how Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo tend to work with releasing new consoles or developing something super exciting.  Soon we'll be "leaked" information about Project Moonbound and we'll see infamous pictures of things like the controller on the right that have little or no resemblance to what they'll eventually become.  Or if they do resemble in image, they'll be piles of glamorized, over-hyped shit like the Virtual Boy.

So clearly this "announcement" is linked to the development and release of the Wii U.  I'm sure that on a corporate level, Sony and Microsoft are both petrified that the Wii U is going to blow them out of the water in terms of sales when it first hits the market, but I don't think that they're seeing clearly long term.  If they are going to grunt out whatever pieces of shit they can in 18 months, or even two years for that matter, it's going to be a waste of good toilet water.  The 360 and PS3 have consistently outsold the Wii except for maybe in the early stages of Nintendo's baby when it was an extreme novelty.  After that, third party support dropped due in part to the companies love of using it's mascots as well as the newer, yet awkward technology used in the WiiMote.  My analysis brings me to one conclusion then, start development of a new console, but take the longer, more considered approach rather than shitting something out in 18 months or so.  The Wii U will outsell the next next generation consoles until it's novelty wears off and people realize that it's just a redesigned Wii with little or nothing new to offer. 

The clown child is sad for the Wii U.

To that end, Sony and Microsoft can wait a bit.  Not all three consoles need to be released at the same time.  In fact, it might just be better for all involved if each has it's own launch window.  Let's think this through, why release your console on the same day as its competitor?  Say that there are 100 people who want to buy a new console gaming system but there are two being released on the same day.  On that day potentially 50 would buy one and 50 would buy the other for a variety of reasons including game library, appearance, cost, etc.  I made those factors all even because let's face it, how different are the PS3 and 360 really?  Besides, it's not like much goes into the thought of buying a new console for most people, it's usually just personal preference or purchase history.

None of this please.  This is all bad.

The bottom line here is that Sony and Microsoft shouldn't jump the gun with their next consoles.  I think that they can take a measured approach and wait more time before releasing their next big console without pressuring their sales versus the Wii U and it's launch.  My own psyche just doesn't want to see another decent console that completely bites the dust like the Dreamcast.  I do like to think that as a community, gamers have evolved beyond the necessity of novelty, but I doubt that will ever actually be true.  The Wii U will most likely satisfy that annual need and it will suck more sales than it probably should from consoles that have a more thoughtful design, but once that time passes things will be right in my tiny little gaming mind and a new console will be all that I need to console any lingering fears about another Virtual Boy.  It literally haunts my dreams; the goggles burn red in the darkness, staring, watching, waiting.