With the impending release of Pokémon X and Pokémon Y for 3DS this October, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Nintendo's got the 'find, collect and battle a menagerie of outlandish creatures' genre all sewn up. Not so! Or at least that's what Sony hopes, as it's bringing Invizimals to both PS3 and PS Vita this year.
It may seem to have appeared out of nowhere, much like the mysterious creatures themselves, but the Invizimals series has actually been reasonably successful on Sony's PSP over the last few years, particularly with younger players, and has already seen several sequels. While it does share some similarities with the blockbuster Pokémon franchise though, there are enough differences to warrant a second look.
Invizimals: The Alliance for PS Vita follows in the footsteps of its PSP predecessors and incorporates Augmented Reality (AR), much like 3DS title The Denpa Men: They Came By Wave. This means you'll have to use the Vita's camera and special cards to scan your living room for the elusive Invizimals and then try to capture them by playing one of twenty different mini-games. There's a fair bit of depth on offer, as different Invizimals will be available at different times of the day and some will only show up against certain colours. While this sounds like a fun idea on its own (and something Nintendo has experimented with in 3DS' bundled AR Games and Pokémon Dream Radar), it's only part of the package as once you've recruited a fearsome selection of critters it's time to put them to work by training up your team and pitting them against other players using a combination of button controls, touch pad and the Vita's gyro sensor.
This table ain't big enough for the both of them
The real hook of these upcoming games however, is that thanks to Cross-Play, Vita monster hunters will be able to link up with and play against their PS3-owning friends as the series is making its first home console appearance with Invizimals: The Lost Kingdom. This title offers a slightly different game experience to the handheld versions though, and from what we've seen of it so far, it's more of a traditional third-person 3D action adventure, taking place in the Invizimals' own world (in which you're the outsider). Playing as a young boy named Hiro, you'll be able to transform into 16 different Invizimals, and use their unique skills and attacks to make your way through a puzzle-filled environment while battling a robotic army. While it looks suitably bright and colourful, it's likely that the connectivity between it and the Vita game will be what sets it apart. According to Sony's press release, Invizimals: The Alliance players will be able to link up with The Lost Kingdom to stage multiplayer battles and trade items back and forth. Of course, you'll be able to import your favourite creatures from the Vita to PS3 too. This sounds like fun to us and could well help to boost the series' popularity, particularly with families who already own a PS3 and a Vita.
Running would be a good idea right about now...
Sony's definitely putting a lot of weight behind the Invizimals brand this year. 2012 saw the announcement of an Invizimals CG cartoon series set to premiere in 2013 but while the brief teaser looked impressive (and very much in keeping with the games' style) we've heard nothing of it since. It's quite possible Sony is planning to make the episodes available over PlayStation Network in the future, as Sony Pictures is apparently preparing a host of exclusive content for the service. In addition to the cartoon and two new games, an Invizimals mobile app for phones and tablets is also incoming which, when combined with the special AR trading cards, will allow for even more miniature battles on kitchen tables the world over. While it's easy to see where the inspiration for many of these elements lies (don't forget that Nintendo's Kid Icarus: Uprising also featured a set of collectable AR trading cards, and of course the ever-popular Pokémon cartoon is still running), there is an appealing world on offer here, and we're looking forward to checking out the Invizimals in a bit more depth. If we can find them that is.
Invizimals: The Lost Kingdom (PS3) and Invizimals: The Alliance (PS Vita) will be released this October.
