Skip and Vanpool worked on Wii Play: Motion

Thanks to Quinton A. Klabon who got in touch this weekend to draw my attention to this Japanese edition of Iwata Asks, focused on Wii Remote Plus: Variety Pack – better known in the western world as Wii Play: Motion. Why is it of interest to you? Because the mini-games in this variety pack were developed by a clutch of Japan’s finest boutique developers, including both Skip and Vanpool as well as Prope, Feel Good Inc, Chunsoft, Mitchell and Arzest – all brilliant studios with some excellent games under their belts, and apparently selected by Nintendo to bring some of their own identity as creators to the Wii Play: Motion project.

The interview features contributions from Jun Taniguchi of Vanpool and Keita Eto of Skip, who reveal that they developed the mini-games Umbrella Rider (Vanpool) and Pose Mii and Balloon Drifting (Skip). Of the three, Umbrella Rider seems to be the most fun and may even be the pick of the bunch if the trailer (below) is anything to go by. So well done Vanpool!

It’s difficult to make out exactly what they’re saying through Google translator, so hopefully this one will be translated for the US or UK version of Iwata Asks soon as the story behind the collaborative development of Wii Play: Motion seems pretty interesting. Like many I’d dismissed Wii Play: Motion as yet another watered down party game for a console that’s quickly running out of compelling software. It may still be that, of course, but I’m now much more likely to check it out.

Of course, it’s just a relief to hear that these two studios are still working. Neither of their websites give much indication of any activity these days – Skip’s hasn’t been updated in over two years! – and I was beginning to get worried. In fact, not only are they alive and well but it seems they’ve been more productive than first thought. The information in this Iwata Asks has revealed to me that Skip managed to sneak a game out last year without my knowledge – it’s a WiiWare game called Penguin Life and actually got a US release under the (frankly rubbish) name of Snowpack Park. Looks like I need to get downloading!

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All not quiet on the Lovedelic front

In amongst the chaos and excitement of E3, I’ve been combing through all the news to see if there have been any Lovedelic-related announcements. Alas, the current financial state of the games industry, leading to the near collapse of publishers like Marvelous, and the fact Lovedelic-style games hardly ever get announced at a big tradeshow, means that there was nothing to report. I’d almost given up hope and then a bunch of little tidbits arrived at once. Here’s a round-up…

• Tiny Cartridge has a nice little news piece about the fortunes of struggling developer Audio Inc, claiming that Sakura Note came close to being localised by Ignition, only to be denied release after some consideration, and that Akira Ueda believes Space Agency would work extremely well on the Nintendo 3DS.

• Toni, the English editor for the Captain Rainbow fan translation has posted in our comments section to say that he believes the project will be complete in around 3 months! I’m very excited about this one.

• Route24′s latest game, Followars, has been released for iPad. I played it today and have to say that I’m not that impressed. It’s a 2-player only battle game that uses stats generated from those you choose to “follow” on Twitter. There’s no interaction beyond which people you choose for your party and the whole thing comes across as a modern version of Barcode Battler. It could be rather novel as a free download but as a game there are much better things to spend £1.79 on.

• Skip’s latest game has also been released today. Previously available in Europe as Art Style: Penta Tentacles, it’s now up on the US WiiWare store as Art Style: Rotozoa. I haven’t had chance to play it, since I’m currently broke, but it sure does look fun.

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A round-up of recent events

I’m super busy as usual and haven’t had chance to update the blog as much as I’d like. Thank Jesus for creating the big Easter break, so I can finally get stuff done. Here’s everything of interest that I can recall happening.

• CING, the co-developer of Little King’s Story, has filed for bankruptcy.
  What can I say? I’m really sorry to see such a talented developer go under, but then I’m not really surprised either. LKS aside, CING’s output has been a little one note. I loved Another Code when it was first released, but Hotel Dusk and Another Code R didn’t really do anything to evolve on the concept. Even though CING is now gone, we still have two more of their games to look forward to in the recently released Again: Eye Of Providence and Hotel Dusk sequel Last Window. I’ll be picking both up out of curiosity but I’m not holding my breath for either to be a swansong.
• Punchline’s website disappeared
  I’m certain that Punchline was abandoned a couple of years ago, but the official website did stick around for a while until it finally went kaput at the beginning of this year. Incidentally, I recently picked up a copy of Chulip on eBay. It’s a wonderful little game, full of Yoshiro Kimura’s unique brand of humour and with a ‘go there, fetch that, please this guy’ gameplay that reminds me of Lovedelic and Skip’s best adventure games. The disc is widely and cheaply available on eBay so I strongly suggest you get a copy if you don’t have one already.
• Route24 has some new games in the works
  Marvelous Entertainment is set to publish Route24′s first iPad exclusive game, Followars – a multiplayer RPG that will pull data from your Twitter account in order to generate stats. Marvelous got in touch with me a few days ago and asked if we could pass on a message from Kenichi Nishi. Here it is: “Hi to all Twitter and iPad’s fans! And even if you are not, hi to you too! To be honest, I don’t have any clue why you fight in Followars, I really wanted to create a fun game.
  Right now, I’m still really busy trying to brush it up, see what works or adding new stuff but I’m confident that Followars will be a great social game so please give it a try!”. Personally I’m not that interested in Followars, as I don’t have a Twitter account and don’t intend to get one. Nor am I that bothered about Geotrion, another Nishi project currently in the works for iPhone and iPod Touch, since it seems to rely heavily on GPS functionality – another bit of tech I don’t use. If you feel differently then why not get involved in the limited beta test? Nishi does seem committed to the app store space, and I look forward to seeing what other unusual ideas he has planned – I just wish they were more character/story based, just because of my personal tastes.
• Nintendo released video of the new Art Style games
  There’s still no release date for Skip’s latest experimental creations but we do have video! Check out Rotozoa here and Light Trax here. I’d originally written of the latter as a simple remake of bit Generations: Dot Stream, but the new 3D visuals definitely seem to give it that extra something. Speaking of Art Style, and 3D, surely Skip can cook up something really special and unique for Nintendo’s accidentally announced ’3DS’ handheld? I look forward to being proved right.
• Space Agency development seems to be progressing
  Akira Ueda at Audio Inc recently updated his blog with a pretty detailed look at Space Agency. I’m not sure if this project has acquired a publisher yet but I really hope it does. I’ve always loved the idea of a space exploration RPG but rarely find a game that can get the tone exactly as I want it. Star Control II and Puzzle Quest Galactrix are just about the only games in the sub-genre I’ve ever warmed to and, just recently, I was looking forward to Platinum’s Infinite Space only to find that it’s extreeeeeeeemly dull. Here’s hoping that Space Agency can get things right. I certainly seems to be good fun.

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Skip discuss Art Style

Just a quick post to say that you really should get issue 89 of games™* this month. It features a 4-page article on the Art Style series, in which the first six DSiWare titles are reviewed and various members of Skip talk about the making of the series. It’s a short interview but it does have a couple of revelations, including the previously unknown fact that Skip was once working on a Motionplus sports game for the Wii.

Who would have believed that? Not me. Sports games are about as far away from Skip’s usual output as it’s possible to get. But then Art Style Cubello did start out as an FPS, so maybe they would have done something interesting with the genre.

In other Art Style news – the bit Generations title, Digidrive was recently released under the Art Style label, on DSi, as Intersect. I didn’t report on it at the time, since the game is made by Q Games, and not Skip, but I might as well mention it here for completion’s sake.

*Subscribers should have their copy now, while everyone else will be able to buy the issue from this Thursday onward.

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We’re back!

Well, folks. It’s been a hell of a long time since I last posted here and I really must apologise.

Sorry!

Where have I been? Well, I moved house back in the middle of July and didn’t manage to get the internet installed until this week. THANK YOU very much, Talk, Talk!

So what did this blog miss while I was away? A hell of a lot as it turns out. Here’s everything I can remember:

Welcome Home-Chibi Robo was released in Japan. I have my copy and I can confirm that it is a truly excellent game. It’s a lot like the GameCube version but with great touch controls and some lovely new gadgets. Sadly, I spoke to Nintendo a few weeks ago and they confirmed that there are no plans to release the game in the UK. Happily, however, it’s totally import friendly.

The new Tingle game – Color Changing Tingle’s Love Balloon Trip – was also released in Japan and has also been denied a UK release. My copy hasn’t arrived yet but, from what I’ve read, it seems to be quite a departure from the last game and is more akin to a point-and-click, consisting mostly of locked room puzzles.

Akira Ueda, longtime Lovedelic collaborator and creator of Contact, has announced a new DS game called Sakura Note. The official website has a few screens and some video footage that show off a rather unique art style, mixing 16-bit sprites with digitized photographic backgrounds. Hideo Minaba, who worked on Little King’s Story, is also developing Sakura Note.

Speaking of Little King’s Story. The rather brilliant Wii game has finally been released in the States and is about to be released in Japan, where it is being promoted in a typically wacky way.

Fans of the Art Style games should look forward to issue 89 of gamesTM, on sale at the end of October as, if everything goes to plan, it will feature an interview with several member of Skip about their popular DSiWare series.

And that’s about all I can remember. I’m sure there’s more I’ve missed but it’s been a busy couple of months. If I recall any other news then I’ll post it in the next few days.

In the meantime, I’d like to do something unusual and recommend a few non-Lovedelic games that I’ve been playing this summer. In the last two weeks I’ve been mostly playing Bionic Commando, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Professor Layton And The Diabolical Box, Blood Bowl, Wii Sports Resort, Machinarium, Tales Of Monkey Island and Space Invaders Infinity Gene.

If you have the chance to play any of these games then I suggest you do so. They’re all excellent in their own way.

Oh and look forward to Heavy Rain next year. I finally got a chance to play a little of it and I really do think it will change the way stories are told in games. Believe the hype, as they say.

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February round-up

As usual, I ‘ve been far too busy to do lots of little posts this month so here’s a nice big one full of all the latest happenings.

Little King’s Story

gamesTM has got another Lovedelic related feature and this time it’s an extended look at Little King’s Story and an interview with its development team. Many of these fine people have worked on other Lovedelic legacy projects like Moon, Chulip and Tingle RPG so I highly recommend that you read the feature. You’ll find it in Issue 80, which is on sale now.

And on the subject of LKS, I’m currently playing through the review version and can tell you that it is shaping up to be one of the Wii highlights of the year. I say this not just as a Lovedelic fan but also as a gamer in general. It really is something special and I’ll have to get around to covering it in more detail some time soon.

Art Style

Yet more Art Style games have been announced for DSi in Japan. The first is Nalaku, which looks a little like Sony’s Echochrome, crossed with a 3D version of Game Boy’s Tetris Plus. And the second is Hacolife, which seems to be one of those games where you must colour in the squares without backtracking… Though I can’t really be sure at this point.

That’s six Art Style games that are already available on DSi, and none of them are bit Generations remakes! Hopefully, they will all make it to the European DSiWare service when the handheld launches here in April.

Route24

Two bits of Route24 news for you this month. First, Newtonica Player – the free music making software, built around the Newtonica engine – has been updated to version 2 and is much more capable as the video below should prove. Secondly, Kenichi Nishi has started recording his own podcasts on a very frequent basis. Unfortunately for me, they are all in Japanese but if you are lucky enough to understand the language then be sure to give them a listen and report back here if the great man reveals any juicy info.

Now here’s that Newtonica video. See you next time. Ash.

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More Art Style, More Contact, Less Newtonica

Lots of little tidbits for you today.

SKIP

Two bits of skip news. First, they’ve announced the release of two new DSi Art Style games. One called PiCOPiCT and another called Somnium. You’ll find a great little review of the former here.

Also: It looks as though Division24 (Giftpia, Chibi-Robo, Captain Rainbow) is hiring, so perhaps we can expect another big console adventure in 2010. Or perhaps they need extra staff to work on the Wii port of Chibi-Robo.

ROUTE24

Those of you who read the comments to my previous post will see that Kenichi Nishi has directly responded to my criticism of him making too many Newtonica games. In his response he says, “OK, I know your opinion. Just moment please.” Which may suggest that something new is just around the corner. I’m looking forward to seeing what it is.

AUDIO

Finally, Akira Ueda of Audio Inc has posted a lenghty blog entry on his website about his desire to make Contact 2. Using the wholly inadequate Babelfish I can’t really make out the details but he seems to be saying that he has lots of ideas for a sequel that may never happen. Here’s hoping he gets the chance to do it one day. Contact wasn’t the best RPG ever made but it had some fun ideas that could really be built upon.

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Merry Christmas

As is becoming common these days, I’ve completely neglected this blog as real life gets in the way and countless Lovedelic happenings come and go. Here’s everything you should be aware of, that I can remember.

NEWTONICA2

The big news of course, is that Route24 has released Newtonica2 on iPhone for the bargain price of just 59 pence. I picked this up a while ago and I’m really liking it. The game is completely different to the first one and is well worth picking up in addition. I’d kind of liken it to ‘space pool’, in that you have to knock a ball (space chick) into a hole, by bouncing him around the screen with gravity emitting cue balls. All in all it’s a really good puzzle game with a fiendish difficulty curve.

LOVEDELIC MEDIA WATCH

If you enjoy reading about Lovedelic and its offspring in places other than this blog (I wouldn’t blame you) then check out the following. GamesTM magazine has recently run a couple of substantial features. One in issue 76 took a look at the characters of Captain Rainbow and compared them to their retro counterparts, while another in issue 77 interviewed good old Kenichi Nishi about the making of LOL: Lack Of Love. In other news, Patrick Alexander, at the delightful EEGRA, has finally transcribed the second part of his Nishi/Skip interview and it is ESSENTIAL that you give it a read. As usual, Patrick asks some smart questions and gets some equally smart answers.

MORE ART STYLE GAMES

As I may or may not have reported before, Skip’s Art Style series is set to hit DSiWare in Japan just before Christmas, and details of the first two games in the series have just been announced. One is called Aquario and the other is called Decode. Follow the links to scope them both out. Then pray for a worldwide release in 2009.

That’s all for now. Go away, have a great Christmas break and we’ll hopefully share some more Lovedelic moments in the new year.

Ash

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Art Style coming to Europe

Skip’s first three Art Style games (Cubello, Orbient and Rotohex) have been confirmed for European WiiWare release and now have an official UK website. Check it out and make sure to read through the Q&A with Skip.It’s a pretty interesting read and contains the revelation that Cubello began life as an FPS.

An FPS, developed in Japan, by Skip?!?!?! I’d love to see that.

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Introducing PostPet and Art Style: Cubello

I recently interviewed Kenichi Nishi for gamesTM and in that discussion he told me that he had projects in the works for both Wii and DS. I figured that Captain Rainbow was probably his Wii project but had no idea about the DS one until now.
The game is called PostPet and appears to be some kind of Virtual Pet game that takes a little inspiration from Animal Crossing. I’m not sure what Nishi’s involvement was in the project but I don’t imagine that he’s too heavily invested in this one. The game’s website doesn’t feature the Route24 logo and the characters appear to be based on a pre-existing children’s brand, so I’m guessing this is just one of those things that independents have to do to pay the bills now and then.

Having said that, the pink teddy bear does look quite a bit like the one in Chibi-Robo.

In other news, there’s a new Art Style game up on WiiWare today, called Cubello. It’s a brand new game (IE: not from the bit Generations line) and is developed by skip. More details on that one as soon as I’ve played it.

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