9/28/07 Issue at Just-RPG

In this issue we have our review of Lair for the PS3 and more!

http://www.just-pg.com

• Lair Review
• Just-RPG Looking for Staff
• New Final Fantasy XI: Wings of the Goddess Screens
• And More!!!

Depths of Peril Demo

An all-new, updated Depths of Peril demo is now available.

The demo contains the game's first act and allows you to play as all 4 of the games character classes up to level 7. It also contains a variety of fixes and improvements that were seen in the final version, but is still under 70 MB.

Depths of Peril is a single player RPG with strong strategy elements. Gamers will take the role of the leader of a Barbarian faction and must battle monsters and rival factions, as well as manage trade and diplomacy.

Download the demo from one of the following links:

http://downloads.gamezone.com/demos/d19956.htm

http://www.fileshack.com/file.x/10986/Depths+of+Peril+Demo

http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/depthsofperil/demo/17421.html

Chronicles of Spellborn Q&A

The Chronicles of Spellborn team have put together a little combat Q&A to help gamers understand the game's unique combat system.

Chronicles of Spellborn features a combat system totally different than the traditional MMORPG model. Players have more direct control over combat, so rather than combat formulas determining your "hit" an "dodge" percentage, players instead actively maneuver their character to target and dodge attacks. Spellborn also features a combo system that allows gamers to link together devastating attacks!

Read all about it right here!

Square Enix Wants the U.S.

Square Enix is apparently looking to increase their performance in the U.S. and Europe by 50% in the next three years, according to an article published in the Financial Times.

The United States is the worlds largest and fastest growing gaming market, making it particularly important to the Japanese publisher. Success overseas will help Square Enix to counterbalance the stagnant demand for games in Japan. Only 10 to 20 per cent of Square Enix's revenues came from overseas markets. However, they're hoping to increase that to as high as 50% over the next three years.

"We need to seek co-operation with a US publisher - we need local content," Mr Sasaki, senior vice-president of Square Enix, said at the Tokyo Game Show. "Our strength is in role-playing games and fantasy titles, so it is a bit difficult to appeal to the US market."

Read the full article here: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5fac144a-68a4-11dc-b475-0000779fd2ac.html

Square Enix is pretty big here, but I don't know if it's EVER going to become as big as it is in Japan. Sure, there are a lot of gamers here, but a lot of U.S. gamers prefer shooters, sports games and racing games rather than RPGs... and plenty of American RPG fans prefer American style games like Oblivion as opposed to Japanese ones like Final Fantasy. I know I do...

Still, Square Enix is certainly having less trouble conquering the U.S. market than most North American companies have moving into Japan. The Japanese just don't like our games.

Soul Nomad Ships!

NIS America has announced that their PS2 RPG, Soul Nomad & the World Eaters, has shipped to retailers today!

Soul Nomad is the latest strategy RPG from the most recognized developer in the genre, Nippon Ichi. The game promises unique, in-depth, strategy rich gameplay, featuring over 50 character classes and over 40 team abilities! Despite the complex gameplay, a step-by-step tutorial is included that will help gamers learn the ropes of Soul Nomad.

For more information, check out the official site or look for Soul Nomad at your local retailers.

Wings of the Goddess Prepares for Takeoff!

Square Enix announced today that the next expansion pack for their MMORPG, Final Fantasy XI, Wings of the Goddess, will ship to retailers across North America on November 20, 2007. Service for Wings of the Goddess will officially goes live on November 22, 2007.

Wings of the Goddess will include a new job class, new locations, new creatures, and the opportunity to further explore Final Fantasy XI. Eager Final Fantasy XI fans will have several different options when it comes to purchasing the game:

FINAL FANTASY XI Vana’diel Collection 2008 (Stand-alone product including all expansions)
Platforms: PlayStation 2 system, Xbox 360
MSRP: $39.99 and $49.99 respectively

FINAL FANTASY XI: Wings of the Goddess (Expansion pack only)
Platforms: PlayStation 2 system, Windows, Xbox 360
MSRP: $29.99 each

An all new trailer of the game debuted at Tokyo Game Show and can be seen here: http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/index.shtml

Wii Fit... Funny Video

Prepare for a brief rant... or just go down to the video... it's hilarious!

I'm not going to lie, I'm still a critic of the Wii and have yet to give in to all of the hype. Yeah, I occasionally play Wii, and there are a few titles that I've enjoyed quite a bit such as Big Brain Acadmy. Still, even the games that I've enjoyed have all had limited appeal and my Wii goes largely unplayed while I play 'real' games on my Xbox 360, like Blue Dragon and BioShock. I guess I'm still not convinced that it's anything more than a casual game system and a platform for party games. It's great that the system is attracting so much attention, but I'm a hardcore gamer, not a casual gamer. Party games are cool... but for 10 minutes. Wii Play, one of the system's best sellers, is pretty much a pile of crap. Honestly, Wii Sports is awesome considering it's free, but it still has limited appeal and isn't deep enough to hold the interest of a real gamer, who expects some level of depth in a game.

Anyway, my pessimistic views on the Wii probably made this even funnier for me. I almost fell out of my chair laughing. Enjoy!

9/24/07 Links

A few quick links you may want to check out:

Jolt Hates Two Worlds - Jolt has rated Two Worlds for the Xbox 360 an abysmal 2.2. This might be the lowest score I've seen yet.

AllRPG Reviews Jeanne d'Arc - Level 5's latest RPG for the PSP gets a high scoring 9.0.

BioShock Reviewed by GameBanshee - A solid 8.2 is their score, which is actually pretty low for BioShock.

RPGWatch Reviews Nethergate: Resurrection - Spiderweb software's latest title pulls in a 3.0/5.0.