It's been a while since I've posted some scans (mostly because I haven't been able to find them online much anymore), but I recently ran across some N3II scans, so here they are!The scans cover several gameplay points, including character specific abilities and learnable skills, as well as different types of soldiers that can be added to your army. However, the main topic of interest in the scans is the characters.Three of the game's main characters are shown, one of which is confirmed to be playable: Zaji the dark elf, who fights alongside the game's hero, Glen, and is also the elven queen Sephia's cousin. Additionally, Lyn, the little girl from the TGS trailer has been revealed to be a survivor from the destroyed village of Tramont, saved by Glen and Zaji. Finally, apparently one of the game's antagonists, Galdo is a grand sorcerer who has shown great talent in leading troops, and fights on the side of the Army of Night.
Ninety-Nine Nights II still has yet to receive a solid release date, but is still planned for a 'Spring 2010' release in Japan and North America for Xbox 360.
Well, maybe "dominate" is a strong word. But given the limited number of JRPGs present at this year's event (especially on HD consoles), 4 separate hack-n-slash RPGs at one conference is enough to feel like a significant portion.Hack-n-Slash RPGs are sort of a mixed bag. On one hand, mindless slaughter of even more mindless enemies definitely has its perks, but on the other, hack-n-slash RPGs tend to be light on interesting subject matter and heavy on pressing X repeatedly. A tight-rope walk, to be sure.Anyways, this year's show has hands-on demos and new trailers for Square Enix and Cavia's NieR (both Gestalt and Replicant), Microsoft, feelplus, and Konami's Ninety-Nine Nights II, and Koei Tecmo's Trinity: Zill O'll Zero (known as Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll in North America). Let's take a look!NieR Gestalt / NieR ReplicantXbox 360 / PlayStation 3Cavia, Square EnixNieR is an interesting position of being both a multiplatform and an exclusive title all at once. Originally announced as multiplatform, Square Enix recently revealed that the game would be altered and released separately on Microsoft and Sony's platforms.The original concept of a middle-aged father searching for the cure to a deadly disease for his daughter will be called Nier Gestalt, and reportedly be exclusive to Xbox 360 sometime next year.Conversely, NieR Replicant will follow the same basic storyline, but has Nier (the main character) as a young man searching for the cure for his sister (who appears to be the same girl as in Gestalt), and will be exclusive to PlayStation 3 sometime next year.Quite why Cavia or Square Enix (whoever made the decision) felt the need to alter only the main character's age and relationship to the girl needing saving, then release them "exclusively" on 360 and PS3 is beyond me.
Anyway, Cavia is a developer with a shaky history. I disliked Drakengard, but really enjoyed Drakengard 2. Also, I liked the concept of Bullet Witch, but thought the execution needed some polish. Altogether, this is a hard game to judge for me right now. It could be great, mediocre, or crappy, and I have no way of telling right now.Ninety-Nine Nights IIXbox 360feelplus, Microsoft, KonamiThe follow-up to one of Microsoft's first attempts to appeal to the Japanese market, N3II is clearly going for a darker, more mature feel than its predecessor, and seems to be going for a more coherent story as well (though that's only a guess from watching the trailers).Employing the development talents of Lost Odyssey's feelplus, and with the publishing cooperation of Konami, N3II touts bloodier combat, darker heroes, simultaneous co-op play, and more varied gameplay. Check it out below.I personally enjoyed the original N3, despite its glaring flaws. I'm not sure if I like the change in style for this one, but I am interested to see if they manage to improve on the things that I disliked about the original.Also, I have no idea why Konami is publishing this instead of Microsoft.Trinity: Zill O'll ZeroPlayStation 3Omega-Force, Koei TecmoZill O'll is an obscure RPG series that has never seen the light of day outside of Japan. With 3 previous iterations, Trinity breaks away from the series' previous traditions and goes for a hack-n-slash fest on the PS3 that has been confirmed for North American release someday.Giving you control over 3 unique characters (a swordsman, a barbarian, and an elf girl), Trinity looks otherwise fairly generic, especially considering its obscure roots. Nevertheless, hack-n-slash fans will likely enjoy the hordes of monsters waiting to die by their hands.So, a lot of hack-n-slash, right? Hack-n-slash RPGs tend to be pretty polarizing. Either you really enjoy them, or you swear you will never touch them. I always end up buying them if I own the system they're on, but Drakengard 2 is the only one I can ever remember seeing through to the end. (Though I did come close to finishing N3.)Any of these catching your eye?
UPDATE: Famitsu.com has the article up in legible format with nicely sized screens HERE. Open for translation requests in the comments.
As announced by Microsoft at their pre-TGS press conference last year, their hack-n-slash action/RPG hybrid Ninety-Nine Nights will be making a reappearance on the Xbox 360 sometime this year.Details have not exactly been forthcoming, but Famitsu had the first scoop on the game this week.As with the first title, the game's main focus will be on battle, with swarms of enemies to defeat at once (along the lines of Drakengard or Dynasty Warriors). Q? Entertainment will again be taking the game's reins, but the development will be handled by feelplus (of Lost Odyssey reputation) rather than Phantagram.N3-II, in contrast with its brightly-colored predecessor, will take a much darker tone both in design and in-game. In accordance with this, the game's main character, Glen, is a much more mature looking character, with dark armor and two blood-stained blades.A second character, an elven woman named Sephia, was also revealed in this article, but it is currently unknown if she will be playable or not, as Glen is the only one who appears in the currently revealed screens.The scan is unfortunately too blur to read well, so I will postpone further details until I can read it properly.
I enjoyed the first N3, if only for the hacking and slashing, but felt that it fell short in a lot of areas. I'm hoping the developers focus more on the game's story this time around, and add a bit more interaction besides just killing everything. Oh, and no more "protect the villagers" quests. I hate those.Ninety-Nine Nights II is scheduled for release on Xbox 360 sometime this year in Japan.
This is all we have for media of this game right now.If this image is anything to go by, it looks like this game is going to be a lot darker than it's predecessor. Intriguing...
During Microsoft's TGS press conference, they announced a sequel to one of the Xbox 360's first RPG offerings, Ninety-Nine Nights. Tentatively dubbed Ninety-Nine Nights II (or N3II), the game's planning will again be handled by Q? Entertainment, but development is being undertaken by feelplus (of Lost Odyssey fame).I felt that the original N3 had a lot of interesting ideas, but failed to execute them in any kind of interesting way. However, feelplus did a great job with Lost Odyssey, so I am staying optimistic about this sequel.No gameplay was shown, but according to Microsoft's official press release, the game will keep the large-scale battle feel of the original. Here's hoping that the game plays a little more interestingly this time and has a more coherent story.There is currently no offical release date for N3II, but it is pretty safe to assume it will be sometime in 2009. For those playing Bingo, you can strike off Microsoft under Xbox 360.
It's been a while since I've posted some scans (mostly because I haven't been able to find them online much anymore), but I recently ran across some N3II scans, so here they are!
