It's been a busy few weeks here at Everybody Plays. When we haven't been being featured on the BBC (see the bottom of this article for all the info!), we've been being snowed under with gaming news, devouring everything we can about Disney Infinity 2.0, and trying to stay on top of our alternate cephalopod existence in Octodad: Dadliest Catch. Due to reason far too boring to go into here (mostly staff sickness), we've fallen behind on our news round-ups as of late - so here's a bumper edition to get you back up to speed. If you're wondering where the number above came from, it's because we decided to multiply the weeks we've missed together. Makes sense, right?
Deathmatch Love Comedy
While Japan's games industry isn't exactly known for producing hard hitting opuses anchored in gritty reality, upcoming Wii U dating game/visual novel Death Match Love Comedy manages to feel a little bit weird even by usual Japanese standards. In this eShop exclusive game (which has yet to be confirmed for release in the west), you play as Kai Yagi, a new student in a high school with something of an odd flaw. If a girl confesses her love for him, he'll spontaneously combust - making this the only dating sim we know of where the whole idea is to avoid actually dating anyone, while trying to figure out what keeps causing you to explode and die (presumably on multiple play-throughs). While we're certainly hoping it'll come out in the UK, we wouldn't keep our fingers crossed too tightly for this one. You can find the game's bizarre trailer above.
Rock Band 4 really is happening
We can't wait to get back up on stage.
At a keynote presentation at gaming expo PAX East that was intended to be about the history of his company, Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos set tongues wagging for a totally different reason, when he opened it by all but confirming that Rock Band 4 will return - at least, at some point.
"[Rock Band and Dance Central] are near and dear to our hearts and our minds, and we have grand plans to bring back both of them with guns blazing at some point in the coming console cycle." he said, raising our hopes once again that the plastic instrument strumming, guitar rocking, drum smashing music games will once again become a fixture of our Friday nights. As Harmonix's Director of Publishing and PR told us when we quizzed him on the subject at last year's Gamescom, Rock Band 4 is something Harmonix really want to make, and that in itself is enough to get us excited. In the mean time, the studio will be releasing their take on Disney's Fantasia later this year, a game which we recently previewed on the site.
Princess Peach Wii U Remote Plus
If you've ever thought your Wii (or Wii U) gaming sessions could use a little more Pink, then good news, as Nintendo have just announced a controller just for you. Coming soon to add to the previously released Mario and Luigi Wii Remotes is a bright pink Princess Peach Wii U Remote Plus, coming with a yellow +Control Pad, and the all important upgraded motion sensor, Motion Plus, built in. While there's no word as of yet as to when the controller will hit these shores, the pad is out now in the US - and seeing as the Mario and Luigi controllers are currently available to buy over here, we imagine the Princess Peach version will rear its head sooner rather than later.
New Disney games - Planes: Fire and Rescue and Violetta
Disney Interactive, partnering with small publisher Little Orbit, have announced that they'll be bringing two new Disney games to a console near you. First up is Planes: Fire and Rescue, based on the upcoming film of the same name, which will be getting its very own action packed tie-in on Wii, 3DS and DS this autumn. Carrying on where the film left off (wherever that is - seeing as it's not out yet), the game promises plenty of airborne fire fighting action - although the fact it's missing out Xbox 360 and PS3, not to mention the next-gen platforms leaves us a little bit disappointed.
Next up is Violetta, a game based on a tween "telenovela", which will also be shimmying its way onto Wii, 3DS and DS this summer, this time in the form of a rhythm action game. With plenty of timely Wii Remote shaking and button pressing action, you'll apparently be able to "experiment with music and rhythm to become a star performer". As though we need to experiment. You should see us thrust to Daft Punk on Just Dance 2014.
Tales of Hearts R
if you're one of those people who clicks a video without reading the text first, you may be wondering quite what you've just watched - why there's a slightly eccentric man holding a pillow adorned with anime style Japanese ladies, while a stuffed cat the size of a particularly overweight human sits on a chair behind, giving a death stare while making sure all is going according to its evil plan. As ever, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation behind it all, which is that PS Vita role playing game and long time Japanese exclusive Tales of Hearts R will soon be making its way to our shores. Well, by "soon" we mean "Christmas", but it's better late than never.
Telling the story of Kor, a young man who attempts to rescue a young woman's Spiria (the embodiment of her heart and soul) after it's been frozen by a witch, only to accidentally shatter it in the process, Tales of Hearts R is a story of redemption, and putting right that which you've clumsily shattered into a million tiny pieces. Promising all the bright colours, crazy haircuts and upbeat characters we've come to expect from the long running series, with Tales of Zestiria and Tales of Xillia 2 both also due for a release this year, it's set to be a bumper year for role playing fans.
New Ace Attorney game
Now here's one that caught us ever so slightly off guard. Although we've only recently been playing through the latest game, Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright, it seems gaming's favourite (only?) lawyer isn't willing to rest on his laurels, with another heavily story based, crime-solving visual novel set for release in Japan - only this time, it's a little bit different.Rather than being set in the present day, the next Phoenix Wright game shoots back in time some 300 years to the Meiji period in Japanese history, where you'll play as one of Phoenix Wright's ancestors. Promising the same witness interrogating, contradiction spotting, objection making coutroom gameplay we've come to know and love, this is one we'll be hoping gets localised for UK audiences soon. For an idea of the sort of thing that lies in store, check out our Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright review!
Theatrhythm: Curtain Call has a release date
Originally announced a little while back, Square Enix have recently revealed more details about its upcoming 3DS Final Fantasy themed music game, Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy Curtain Call. A sequel to the popular 2012 Theatrhythm, Curtain Call once again promises an eclectic mix of tracks from Final Fantasy games old and new, with some 200 songs on the cartridge, and the same easy to pick up, yet tricky to master gameplay of the original.
As with many rhythm games, all you have to do is keep track of icons coming across the screen, and swipe in the direction they show when the icon crosses a line. Easier to explain that it is to do in practice, Theatrhythm nevertheless comes with several difficulty levels to ensure everyone can find their footing - and you don't even need to be a Final Fantasy fan to play! Curtain Call also promises a new versus mode, and over 60 characters to play at, including Barret from Final Fantasy VII and Yuna in her Final Fantasy X-2 form, where she decided to ditch her conservative summoner dress in favour of some hotpants. The game's set for release "later this year" - and we'll bring you more as soon as we get it.
Fatal Frame Wii U
Now here's a rarity for you. It's recently been announced that the Wii U will be receiving not only a new instalment of the photographic horror game Fatal Frame - but that it'll be a Wii U exclusive. Viewed very much as life through a lens, Fatal Frame is a series that revolves around exploring creepy old houses, solving a paranormal mystery, and defending yourself against ghosts by using a camera. Yes, you read that right.
While other games take a more brutal or gory approach, Fatal Frame instead sees you taking pictures of spirits to fend them off, with the usual horror game drawback of having to wait for a rather long time for your camera to reload in between shots. It's all a question of keeping the angry spirit in the frame for long enough to get in a few decent spirit selfies, before banishing it to camera obscurity. While a release date has yet to be announced, we'll be hoping to hear more soon.
Pokemon Art Academy
Saving the best game announcement until last comes news of a brand new game in the Art Academy series - only rather than painting boring trees and people, this one has you sketching your own take on the lovable Pokemon.
With lessons and instructions on how to draw 40 Pokemon (a pretty small number considering there's now over 700 of the beasties), and a selection of templates for over 100 more, we'll be hoping our perennial favourite underdog (fish?) Magikarp gets the nod - even if the trailer seems to suggest that Voltorb will be one of the 40. We're looking forward to that lesson about how to draw a circle.
Set for release in Japan in June, it'd be nice if this had a summer release over here, but all things considered, Christmas would probably seem more likely. Still, we can't wait to get our Pokemon painting on.
We were on the BBC!
And finally - this week has been pretty big for the team at Everybody Plays, as we were featured on BBC Click! Leading the show's Webscape segment, a look at the web's best, and most innovative sites, the segment was full of glowing praise for the site, and has left the team rather moved. It's been somewhat surreal seeing a site we've put so much hard work into being on the telly - but it's a good feeling. If you fancy seeing the segment for yourself, click here to watch the clip on YouTube! Thanks to each and every one of you for your support - and here's to more great news like this in future!
