EL33TONLINE: News tag archive: level5
I’ve always thought the Professor Layton series on DS was something remarkable in videogame terms. Beautiful music, quaint locales, an intriguing plot and entertaining puzzle-based gameplay offered a portable experience quite unlike anything I had ever experienced before.
The good news is that this stellar series is far from over, and developer Level-5 is doing a wonderful job keeping the franchise relevant and ensuring its main attractions remain intact.
Ni no Kuni is one of those Japanese-developed games which has received plenty of attention in the West despite there being a constant question mark over whether it would ever be released here.
Today Level-5 president Akihiro Hino confirmed that an English localisation is in the works, and that the publisher is targeting an early 2012 release date in North America.
One of my all-time favourite games is The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker on GameCube. A large part of its appeal is its use of cel-shaded graphics which lend it a unique, cartoonish charm.
I’ve often wondered how cel-shaded visuals would make the transition to the current generation of consoles, and have even played some titles like Tales of Vesperia on Xbox 360 which utilises a fairly subdued form of this technique.
If you’re a fan of games developed in Japan you’ll no doubt understand the importance of having a dedicated localisation team to ensure that the title in question receives a proper English translation and is released in Western territories soon after the Japanese version.
During the PSOne era it was not uncommon for a highly anticipated game like Final Fantasy VII to take more than six months to reach our shores, and often the English translation contained various spelling and grammatical errors.
Thankfully the situation has improved over the years, and some current-gen Japanese games such as Metal Gear Solid 4 were released worldwide on the same day.
I want to like White Knight Chronicles II; to recommend it to you as a fellow RPG enthusiast. Don’t get me wrong – there are some wonderful aspects to WKCII. It features classic RPG elements like towns brimming with interesting Non-Player Characters to converse with; errands to run and bounties to collect. The visuals and music are inviting and serene. In fact, this is Level-5’s best-looking game yet.
Continue reading El33tonline’s review of White Knight Chronicles II.
Yes, you are still very much alive, but after reading that headline you may have been tricked into thinking that you’ve ‘passed on,’ because these kinds of videogame mash-ups could only occur in a place other than this place we call ‘Earth’… surely?
But no. Capcom Japan and Level 5 recently announced the existence of a game called Professor Layton VS Ace Attorney for Nintendo’s 3DS.
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[Update] Added a new trailer showing snippets of animation from the DS version of Ni no Kuni, and an extended look at the special magic book. [End of Update]
Level 5 and Studio Ghibli are currently hard at work on the duo’s videogame collaboration, a stunning Nintendo DS and Sony PS3 RPG by the name of Ni no Kuni, and thanks to a recent press conference held by Level 5, some new media and details from the game have emerged.
Ni no Kuni features real-time 3D animation on the PS3 during gameplay, and after watching the released trailer, in-game graphics look to have been taken straight from a Studio Ghibli movie, with (what appears to be) traditional turn-based RPG combat, overworld exploration and town navigation.
According to Japanese game magazine Famitsu (and discovered by Kotaku), the excellent looking Nintendo DS game, Ni no Kuni, has made the transition from that handheld console to Sony’s home platform, the PS3.
Level 5 has (kind of) unveiled a new Professor Layton adventure/puzzle game, this time for Nintendo’s recently detailed handheld console, the 3DS.
The game is called Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle, and as expected, the game will take advantage of the console’s stereoscopic 3D visual effects.
Yet another Professor Layton game was also announced, called Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, which will be for the regular DS… but we’re here to look at screenshots from Mask of Miracle!
Until some more details emerge, have a look at some images from Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle below:
Level 5’s RPG, White Knight Chronicles, was released across North America yesterday and to celebrate Sony has released an intriguing launch trailer for the game.
White Knight Chronicles is an online-enabled RPG that enables players to create a customised character before engaging in an accessible active turn-based battle system.
Level 5’s upcoming RPG heading to the Nintendo DS, Ninokuni, is looking amazing, especially thanks to the visual work that Studio Ghibli is providing for the title.
Studio Ghibli, the famed Japanese animation studio responsible for My Neighbour Totoro, Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle, amongst many others, are working with Level 5 (Dark Cloud, Professor Layton and the Curious Village) to create Ninokuni, which is shaping up to look just as distinctive as both of the company’s previous signature works combined, as the latest screenshots released by Famitsu can attest.
In Ninokuni, players take on the role of Oliver as he uses a special magic book to take part in battles in the game, while the game itself will ship with a real booklet (to represent the in-game magic book) which will be required to play, which includes hints, a bestiary and other information to help players progress through the adventure.
Ninokuni is expected to release on the DS in Japan this year, while a release date for the rest of the world is unknown. Check out the rest of the screenshots from Ninokuni below:
Previously known as White Knight Story, White Knight Chronicles is probably one of the reasons PlayStation 3 owners are, indeed, PlayStation 3 owners. If you’ve never heard of the game before and you happen to own a PS3, then you’re in for a treat.
White Knight Chronicles, currently still in development at Level-5 (Dark Cloud, Professor Layton, select Dragon Quest games) is an RPG using a real-time combat system in which you can freely choose to control any character in your party during a battle. Sequences shown so far reveal that the main character can transform into the ‘White Knight’ to inflict more damage on opponents. Other than that, not much is known about the game itself, except that it looks truly amazing. Check out an old video from the Tokyo Game Show last year to see if you agree.
Hopefully there’ll be more to see at TGS this year. White Knight Chronicles is reported to be releasing in Japan on the 25th of December, exclusively on the PlayStation 3.
Level 5’s puzzle adventure game Professor Layton & the Curious Village will be available on the Nintendo DS across Europe on the 7th of November.
Puzzle fans will delight with over 130 puzzles as well as additional puzzles available every week via Nintendo WiFi.
Set in a village called St. Mystere, the game tasks players to solve puzzles as Professor Layton and his apprentice Luke. Players will only reveal the mystery surrounding the village once they have discovered everything, solved all the mysteries and recovered the Golden Apple.
Uncover information from conversations and the environment but also keep a weary eye out for some characters who will try to confuse the issue with riddles and may even try and prevent you from discovering the truth.
The game features fully animated cut scenes and a unique hand drawn art style. Players can also look forward to various side missions as well as mini-games.
For a closer look at this quirky game head over to the game’s website.
Game Watch have posted a whole bunch of new screenshots which were released at Nintendo conference today in Japan.
Included among them is some shots of Kirby Superstar DS, which may or may not be a straight remake of the SNES game. Also particularly exciting are shots of the newly announced Fire Emblem DS which looks to be a remake of an early Fire Emblem game from the NES/SNES era. Square Enix’s games are looking beautiful as always (except for the DS Kingdom Hearts with the odd name). Anyhow, this is one amazing batch of games - check them out if you love gaming.
Why do I single out Kirby you may ask? Kirby is awesome, that’s why.
Here are the names of the games shown on that page in English and in order so you at least know what you’re looking at:
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