Ok, wow, yeah, definitely play it nickfil, it's extremely short. I finished it, and I wasn't playing continuously today. In fact I hope you have all three, because it ends on a cliffhanger. I actually put...maybe 5 or 6 hours of actual gameplay in it.
Also, it really wasn't that difficult. There were a couple of sections that got me, but after I figured out some nasty tricks for handling the critters(I cheesed the game a bit), it wasn't too much trouble. There were some genuinely creepy moments, and some moments where I just had to shake my head and wonder what sick bastard came up with this idea(the underground lake, for instance), but I enjoyed it. My biggest complaint would be that I didn't feel the game was long enough for real character development, especially with Philip's attitude towards Red at the end. Oh well, definitely worth a play through in my opinion.
october means a month of horror games
Re: october means a month of horror games
Nanashi no Game
Yep, it's a survival horror on a handheld. Though portable horror has been attempted since the Game Boy Color days(and usually with little success), the DS and PSP have had some interesting titles come out for them, including this Japan-only pseudo-RPG from Square Enix. Here's a very brief plot outline:
"Rumors have been circulating about a cursed role-playing game; anyone who plays it dies seven days after starting if they have not completed it by then."
Sounds a lot like Ringu, doesn't it? That's ok, it's still a far better game than the other Ring-themed survival horror, The Ring: Terror's Realm. Anyway, Nanashi no Game(which means Nameless Game), splits between a first person mode and an 8-bit RPG. In the first person sections, you must wonder around, solving puzzles while avoiding evil spirits that will attempt to kill you if they grab hold. You can move around using the touchscreen and stylus, talk to folks, and generally explore the "real" world. In the 8-bit RPG, you're playing a game within a game...only the curse takes hold, causing the RPG to glitch.
You remember when you were young, playing an old NES game, and you'd start seeing bugs? Visual artifacts would appear, the sound gets distorted, and so on? Well in those games it was usually a bug. In this one, Square Enix is using it as an intentional means of unsettling the player. As an added bonus, you even have to navigate through a faux-DS menu to play the RPG, which you are doing on a DS in a game which you are playing on a DS. If you're confused, good, that's the point.
The biggest complaint in the game seems to be movement in the "real" world: you're slow, and you sometimes have ghosts chasing you. Interestingly enough, you also don't hold the DS in the typical fashion to play. You'll notice in the screenshots that the handheld is turned on its side like a book. That's how you play the "real" world sections. The RPG sections play like this:
So will we see a release outside of Japan? I honestly don't know. The game managed to sell 60,000 units in its homeland, so maybe. There's also a sequel already out, this time featuring a cursed platformer.
Just check out this trailer for it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bFyk6Cl-gY
Yep, it's a survival horror on a handheld. Though portable horror has been attempted since the Game Boy Color days(and usually with little success), the DS and PSP have had some interesting titles come out for them, including this Japan-only pseudo-RPG from Square Enix. Here's a very brief plot outline:
"Rumors have been circulating about a cursed role-playing game; anyone who plays it dies seven days after starting if they have not completed it by then."
Sounds a lot like Ringu, doesn't it? That's ok, it's still a far better game than the other Ring-themed survival horror, The Ring: Terror's Realm. Anyway, Nanashi no Game(which means Nameless Game), splits between a first person mode and an 8-bit RPG. In the first person sections, you must wonder around, solving puzzles while avoiding evil spirits that will attempt to kill you if they grab hold. You can move around using the touchscreen and stylus, talk to folks, and generally explore the "real" world. In the 8-bit RPG, you're playing a game within a game...only the curse takes hold, causing the RPG to glitch.
You remember when you were young, playing an old NES game, and you'd start seeing bugs? Visual artifacts would appear, the sound gets distorted, and so on? Well in those games it was usually a bug. In this one, Square Enix is using it as an intentional means of unsettling the player. As an added bonus, you even have to navigate through a faux-DS menu to play the RPG, which you are doing on a DS in a game which you are playing on a DS. If you're confused, good, that's the point.
The biggest complaint in the game seems to be movement in the "real" world: you're slow, and you sometimes have ghosts chasing you. Interestingly enough, you also don't hold the DS in the typical fashion to play. You'll notice in the screenshots that the handheld is turned on its side like a book. That's how you play the "real" world sections. The RPG sections play like this:
So will we see a release outside of Japan? I honestly don't know. The game managed to sell 60,000 units in its homeland, so maybe. There's also a sequel already out, this time featuring a cursed platformer.
Just check out this trailer for it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bFyk6Cl-gY
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Hobie-wan
- Next-Gen
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- Contact:
Re: october means a month of horror games
That sounds pretty interesting, a bit like Sanity's Requiem which I'd like to get hold of and try at some point.Ack wrote:Nanashi no Game
I've never met a pun I didn't like. - Stark
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
Re: october means a month of horror games
Man, this sounds good. The glitching stuff sounds like it could be creepy. I really hope they release it here some time.
It seems that most of the games that I want to play never see release outside of Japan. One example is Retro Game Challenge 2... It looks sooo good and apparently it will never make it here.
It seems that most of the games that I want to play never see release outside of Japan. One example is Retro Game Challenge 2... It looks sooo good and apparently it will never make it here.
Re: october means a month of horror games
If I'm not mistake, that's the first town in Dragon Quest III.
Blizzard Entertainment Software Developer - All comments and views are my own and not representative of the company.
Re: october means a month of horror games
I'd play the hell out of that cursed platformer
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NintendoRobot
- 16-bit
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- Joined: Sun Jun 07, 2009 7:12 pm
Re: october means a month of horror games
no more reviews Ack? 
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Re: october means a month of horror games
Yeah, sorry, had to go out of town over the weekend to see my girlfriend at a Halloween party her roommate was throwing. I've got one review left to do here, sorry I missed it. But I will be continuing these things over at RFGeneration.com on my blog, so look for it(link's in the signature)!
Give me a few minutes to write it up.
Give me a few minutes to write it up.
Re: october means a month of horror games
Ju-On: The Grudge
Yep, it's a "survival horror" game for the Wii based on a major Japanese horror property, the Ju-On series. The Wii has been getting quite a few horror-themed titles(somewhat surprising I suppose), though they've generally been a mixed bag. And staying true to the plot of the films, Ju-On sticks to the meowing ghost-boy and freaky crawling ghost-woman. Here's the plot rundown:
"It is said that when a person dies with a deep and burning grudge, a curse is born. When an average housewife in Nerima, Japan, was murdered in a grisly fashion, it gave rise to a curse so powerful that it threatens to kill at a pace thought unimaginable before. The curse manifests on those who encounter the curse by any means, such as entering the house or being in contact with somebody who was already cursed. Once Erika Yamada is exposed to the curse while searching for her dog in an abandoned warehouse, the entire Yamada family is put in grave danger as soon as she reunites with them at home. They must now face their individual challenges alone, and only by overcoming the curse together will their family truly be free again."
The game takes place in first-person, with the Wiimote operating as your flashlight. Movement's done with the D-pad, allowing you to walk in the direction you're facing. While there is no specified time limit, the player has until the batteries die on their flashlight to make it through a specific area. And don't dawdle either, as sitting in one spot will cause the ghosts to come after you.
Now, it is possible to extend your time by using batteries found throughout the levels, though they're placed randomly each time you start. There are five levels to run through, ranging from an empty hospital to a mannequin factory. And the flashlight is usually the only source of lighting you'll have, so expect to be in the dark a lot.
Ju-On labels itself a "haunted house simulator," while keeping within the trappings of a video game, so you're rated on each level, based on how often you flinch(the Wii tracks the movement of the Wiimote). There's also no combat: all you can do is run from the ghosts. And if you get caught, you can shake the Wiimote rapidly to break the ghost's grip, but there is no defeating these enemies. Your only hope is to push on through. And it will take a little bit, as the game developers have claimed the game takes just under ten hours to beat.
The game even features multiplayer, through it's not quite what you think. Instead of letting the second player help the first, they actually control the ghosts: you hit a button and the ghosts attack, depending on the scenario. The first player must then escape, and the second player must wait for so many seconds before they can instigate a new encounter.
Sounds nifty, doesn't it? Unfortunately the game's been universally panned by critics(its Metacritic rating is 43). In general, the player moves too slow, control is a little awkward, and the game isn't very short...not that you'd really want to continue playing after dying in the middle of a level, as you must basically restart: there's no saving in a level. Critics have also called out its gameplay, graphics, and just about everything as poor(especially IGN's review).
It's unfortunate that the game getting called on these issues(I've been looking forward to it since I heard about it last spring), but hopefully that means those of us who want to play it anyway will be able to find it at bargain bin prices relatively soon.
Here's the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4Q6uKch ... re=related
And, for kicks, here's some video footage of the game, intermixed with footage of Japanese folks playing the game:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JT6kHL4A ... re=related
Yep, it's a "survival horror" game for the Wii based on a major Japanese horror property, the Ju-On series. The Wii has been getting quite a few horror-themed titles(somewhat surprising I suppose), though they've generally been a mixed bag. And staying true to the plot of the films, Ju-On sticks to the meowing ghost-boy and freaky crawling ghost-woman. Here's the plot rundown:
"It is said that when a person dies with a deep and burning grudge, a curse is born. When an average housewife in Nerima, Japan, was murdered in a grisly fashion, it gave rise to a curse so powerful that it threatens to kill at a pace thought unimaginable before. The curse manifests on those who encounter the curse by any means, such as entering the house or being in contact with somebody who was already cursed. Once Erika Yamada is exposed to the curse while searching for her dog in an abandoned warehouse, the entire Yamada family is put in grave danger as soon as she reunites with them at home. They must now face their individual challenges alone, and only by overcoming the curse together will their family truly be free again."
The game takes place in first-person, with the Wiimote operating as your flashlight. Movement's done with the D-pad, allowing you to walk in the direction you're facing. While there is no specified time limit, the player has until the batteries die on their flashlight to make it through a specific area. And don't dawdle either, as sitting in one spot will cause the ghosts to come after you.
Now, it is possible to extend your time by using batteries found throughout the levels, though they're placed randomly each time you start. There are five levels to run through, ranging from an empty hospital to a mannequin factory. And the flashlight is usually the only source of lighting you'll have, so expect to be in the dark a lot.
Ju-On labels itself a "haunted house simulator," while keeping within the trappings of a video game, so you're rated on each level, based on how often you flinch(the Wii tracks the movement of the Wiimote). There's also no combat: all you can do is run from the ghosts. And if you get caught, you can shake the Wiimote rapidly to break the ghost's grip, but there is no defeating these enemies. Your only hope is to push on through. And it will take a little bit, as the game developers have claimed the game takes just under ten hours to beat.
The game even features multiplayer, through it's not quite what you think. Instead of letting the second player help the first, they actually control the ghosts: you hit a button and the ghosts attack, depending on the scenario. The first player must then escape, and the second player must wait for so many seconds before they can instigate a new encounter.
Sounds nifty, doesn't it? Unfortunately the game's been universally panned by critics(its Metacritic rating is 43). In general, the player moves too slow, control is a little awkward, and the game isn't very short...not that you'd really want to continue playing after dying in the middle of a level, as you must basically restart: there's no saving in a level. Critics have also called out its gameplay, graphics, and just about everything as poor(especially IGN's review).
It's unfortunate that the game getting called on these issues(I've been looking forward to it since I heard about it last spring), but hopefully that means those of us who want to play it anyway will be able to find it at bargain bin prices relatively soon.
Here's the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4Q6uKch ... re=related
And, for kicks, here's some video footage of the game, intermixed with footage of Japanese folks playing the game:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JT6kHL4A ... re=related
Re: october means a month of horror games
And for those of you who want to take the time and play even more horror games, here's a few titles you might be interested in.
Resident Evil series
Silent Hill series
Clock Tower series
Fatal Frame series
Alone in the Dark series
The games in these series have helped create and define horror gaming for more than a decade, starting with the first Alone in the Dark. They're well worth looking into if only to know about, though they're not always the best(again, the Alone in the Dark series after the initial game is usually considered nowhere near as good).
Also, take some time and look into these. They're not all necessarily straight horror(and I can't vouch for quality), but they're worth looking into, and reveal some of the breadth of the horror game genre:
The 7th Guest
Alien Trilogy
Anchorhead
D2
Deep Fear
Dino Crisis
Echo Night: Beyond
F.E.A.R.
Fear Effect
Ghost Hunter
I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream
Juggernaut
Martian Gothic: Unification
Onimusha: Warlords (and Genma: Onimusha)
Scratches
Shadow of the Comet
Resident Evil series
Silent Hill series
Clock Tower series
Fatal Frame series
Alone in the Dark series
The games in these series have helped create and define horror gaming for more than a decade, starting with the first Alone in the Dark. They're well worth looking into if only to know about, though they're not always the best(again, the Alone in the Dark series after the initial game is usually considered nowhere near as good).
Also, take some time and look into these. They're not all necessarily straight horror(and I can't vouch for quality), but they're worth looking into, and reveal some of the breadth of the horror game genre:
The 7th Guest
Alien Trilogy
Anchorhead
D2
Deep Fear
Dino Crisis
Echo Night: Beyond
F.E.A.R.
Fear Effect
Ghost Hunter
I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream
Juggernaut
Martian Gothic: Unification
Onimusha: Warlords (and Genma: Onimusha)
Scratches
Shadow of the Comet