New Shantae Game in the Works?

Way back in 2001, speculation begin circulating through the gaming community that newcomer developer WayForward Technologies were developing a Game Boy Color game, called Shantae, that would push the system's hardware capabilities to their utter limits. The game was said to feature some of the most advanced animation ever seen on a portable game system. Anticipation for the title began building, unfortunately the Game Boy Color system's days were already numbered with the impending release of Nintendo's newest portable game system the Game Boy Advance.

Capcom snapped up the rights to publish the game, but sadly the game would end up spending over eight months in the cue and wouldn't be released until June 2002, almost a full year after the release of the Game Boy Advance system. By the time the game hit the market, many gamers were already heavily entrenched in the Game Boy Advance system and Shantae would go on to sell less than 15,000 copies.

Over the years, the original game has garnered quite the cult following among the classic gaming community and news of a Shantae sequel tend to pop up every time a new console or handheld game system is released. Of course there's a good reason for this, as according to WayForward's lead game designer Matt Bozon, "Each time we build tech on a new platform, we'll demonstrate our abilities with a Shantae effort of some sort." Matt went on to name the Gamecube, Game Boy Advance, DS, and Wii systems as targets of these various Shantae demos.

Fans of the game have long been clamoring for a new Shantae title, and this was further fueled when Spencer from Siliconera reported that at the GDC 2008 conference he had run into WayForward founder Voldi Way, who mentioned that they were looking into the Nintendo Wii console as a possible home for a new Shantae title. When asked whether or not the new WiiWare service might be a possibility for the game, Way responded, "that's the plan"

Over the past few months, there hasn't been much in the way of new information on this possible Shantae WiiWare title, but like clockwork, speculation is once again running rampant since the first edition of the Official Shantae Fan Club Newsletter was sent out to fans yesterday that had an interesting excerpt mentioning of the possibility of a WiiWare Shantae release.

"Shantae WiiWare: informally (and inadvertently) announced at GDC, this is an ongoing experiment in 2D on the Wii. As it currently stands, the game is very traditional as an action/platform game (no Wiimote Wagging) with its main draw being 480P 2D artwork. If the project gets legs, we’ll have more to say in the next newsletter. For now, it just looks cool!"

WayForward is also asking that game fans who are interested in the prospect of a new Shantae title sign up for the Official Shantae Fan Club in an effort to gauge interest in a new Shantae game. Click on the Shantae Fan Club logo above to show your support for a brand new Shantae title on Nintendo's WiiWare service.

WiiWare - Family Table Tennis (Review)

It would be easy to dismiss Family Table Tennis as just another ping-pong simulation, especially since we already have a Wii table tennis game built into the Wii Play package, but if you do you're going to be missing out on one of the most charming and playable WiiWare games to date and a game that you and your entire family can have fun playing together.

While the main focus of Family Table Tennis is the ping pong game, there's quite a bit more to the game than just that. Not only do you get single and multi-player table tennis competitions, but there are also some really interesting and playable mini-games thrown into the mix as well.

In the table tennis games, you take on a computer player or bring in a friend and go head-to-head with them. The first player to reach six points wins. The mini-games range from a target attack, which forces you to aim your shots for a red target that will move around to various spots on the table. The closer you get to the target with your shot, the more points you'll earn. Another mini-game allows you to take on the computer player in a race that calculates the number of shots made in a rally. Whoever wins the point will ultimately be rewarded with the number of shots in the rally that just took place. First player to 99 rally points wins.The final mini-game forces you to hit certain falling object to the corresponding side of the table that features a picture of that object. This is a good way to work on the timing of your swings and is a nice diversion from the main game.

The control in Family Table Tennis is extremely responsive. Timing plays the biggest role in determining where your shots will travel and also the pace with which you hit the ball. If your opponent hits a lob shot over the net, you can even press one of the buttons while you swing to trigger a special move in which your player will perform a powerful smash shot to win the point. The control in the mini-games is equally good, and once again they place a high degree of emphasis on timing and shot management. If you want some good practice for the main competitions, these mini-games will do the trick quite nicely.

The visuals in the game are absolutely gorgeous. The cel-shaded graphics really make the game jump off the screen and the animation of the characters is also quite superb. There's plenty of vibrant colors and all of the various areas in the game look just as amazing, with each having their own distinct look and feel to them. In fact, the characters look so good you won't mind that you can't use your Mii in place of the included characters. This game might be just a WiiWare release, but it's easily one of the most polished releases to date and a testament to how great these downloadable games can actually look.

As if the impressive visuals and play control wasn't enough, the developers have really outdone themselves with the music and sound effects in the game. There aren't a lot of different musical tracks, but the ones that are here are very well done. Even the tunes that play at the end of matches is exciting and upbeat. The sound effects are very realistic, but don't expect a lot of diversity as this is ping-pong, after all. Some character voices might have been a nice added touch, but there's still plenty of audio charm to go around.

Everything about Family Table Tennis is of a higher quality than the ping-ping game included in the Wii Play package. The visuals are outstanding, the music is well-written and compliments the action in the game perfectly, and the control in the game is very well executed and extremely realistic. Considering that the game will only set you back 500 Wii Points, you'd be crazy not to at least give this unique and charming title a try. It's actually better than a lot of Wii retail releases, if the truth be told, and a solid addition to the growing WiiWare library. (RATING: 8/10)

My work is never done...

Well it seems that someone actually likes my reviews so much that they've offered me a job. The guys at VC-Reviews and their new spin-off site WiiWare-World have hired me on as a game reviewer. At least someone can appreciate greatness when they see it. : ) I've already begun work and have done several WiiWare reviews. If you guys get really bored you can check them out. I'll be doing more reviews weekly, and I believe my Star Parodier review is already up on VC-Reviews as well. It's more work, but I enjoy it so much that I just couldn't say no. Click on the logo above to surf over to VC-Reviews.There you can also find the link to WiiWare-World as well. Enjoy.

Star Ocean: First Departure US Release? - PSP

As many of you who read the blog back in December might remember, I mentioned that Star Ocean: First Departure was coming to the PSP system in the US. Although I got many emails and comments stating that this was not going to happen, we have just received word that Gamestop stores now have a placeholder for Star Ocean: First Departure in their computers with a September 30th release day. Now of course there has still been no official announcement from Square-Enix, but I think these coincidences are beginning to add up and I'd be willing to bet that we're going to see Star Ocean: First Departure here in the US sometime between now and October 2008. News for RPG fans just keeps getting better and better and the PSP is turning into quite the RPG machine. I'll have more information about the game as I get it. You can even click on the logo above to visit the blog entry from December 2007.

LostWinds Review on WiiWare-World!

Just a heads up for those who were wanting the URL of the LostWinds review I did for WiiWare-World. I'll also be reviewing Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As a King for their site as well as Star Parodier for VC-Reviews. Busy week with the launch of the Wii Ware titles and the Hanabi Festival is still going strong as well. I just hope the US starts getting some of these Japanese PC Engine titles soon also. Click on the LostWinds logo above to visit the review on the WiiWare-World site.

Super Famicom Wii Classic Controller

Got my hands on one of the Super Famicom Wii Classic Controllers that are floating around Japan courtesy of the Nintendo Club. This controller is basically a Super Famicom controller right down to the black wire that connects it to the Wii Remote. The only difference I can find is that this Wii version of the controller has a slightly heavier textured feel to it. Other than that, you couldn't tell the difference if you're life depended on it. And it works like a dream with the Super NES Virtual Console games. Heck, it works great with ALL of the Virtual Console games, to be honest. If you have access to one of these from overseas, grab one. It might cost you a little more than a normal Classic Controller but it's a much better controller overall. And there's nothing like the real controller for playing these classic game titles. (RATING: 9.5/10)

Banjo Threeie Screenshots!

Well we finally have some real screenshots of the new Banjo Kazooie 3 game that's due to hit the Xbox 360 console sometimes this winter. There are supposed to be more screenshots coming later this week, but for now these two will have to do. I wasn't supposed to post them until Tuesday, but I just couldn't wait any longer. Besides, I can always blame it on someone else if the need arises. : ) I've got a few more shots I'll put up tomorrow, along with some really cool drawings of two of the vehicles that will be used in the new game. Enjoy these shots and I'll post more screens and information when I get them.

Super Nintendo Enhancement Chips

When Nintendo created the Super Nintendo system, they made it so that enhancement chips could be used with the system's hardware instead of forcing consumers to buy expensive expansion peripherals. Over the lifespan of the Super NES console, there were quite a few different enhancement chips used in Super Nintendo cartridges, some more powerful than others. Check out the full special on www.super-nes.com for a look at each of these chips and what they do. Click on the Super FX logo to visit the special article.

Earthbound is Virtual Console Bound!

That's right Mother fans, Earthbound has just been ESRB rated which means it shouldn't be too long before this grossly overrated RPG hits the Virtual Console. Sorry, but I have to take every chance I get to raz this game. In all honesty, I like Earthbound, but I would never rank it up with the elite Super Nintendo RPGs like Final Fantasy III, Chrono Trigger, or Super Mario RPG. Just wouldn't do it. But I do love to see how loyal a cult following the game has among RPG fans. Nice to see gamers rally around a title that didn't exactly light up the sales charts the first time around. Maybe given a second chance on the Virtual Console, the game will finally get some limelight. I'm playing it on the Super NES right now as a refresher to be ready when it hits the VC. I'm even going to write up a brand new review for the game on www.super-nes.com given the fact that my original review was written over a decade ago. I'll post on here when I add it to the web site.