Yesterday Atlus announced suddenly that it will be releasing Eternal Poison (known as Poison Pink in Japan) for the PS2. I admit that I hadn’t even heard of the game, so I was a bit intrigued. The game’s main site just opened, but the video featured on the site is pretty short and doesn’t show much of the gameplay. I found this extended Japanese trailer which has a lot more to show:

Aside from my lack of knowledge, I was further intrigued by the game’s unique gothic-lolita character design. In Japan the goth style doesn’t have quite the same connotations that it does here in the States–Japan interpreting the style as more of a nostalgia for a romantic past that never existed, whereas in the States the style is associated with antisocial misfits. Hopefully the cultural difference won’t deter  people who will be interested in it. Here is a screenshot of two of the game’s main characters, Teiji (left) and Rutica (right):

Another positive quality the game has in my eyes is its tactical battle system. This screen in particular reminds me the of Atlus’ Stella Deus. While Stella Deus was visually stunning, I thought the game’s story and repetition made for an overall bad game.

What I know of Eternal Poison’s story lead me to believe it won’t suffer the same fate as Stella Deus. Here is a brief preview of the game’s story:

On the outskirts of the kingdom of Valdia, the demonic realm of Besek has mysteriously appeared. Besek is home to creatures known as Majin, who have been a constant terror to the men and women of Alea.

Not long after the announcement that the young Valdian commander, Olifen, would marry Princess Lenarshe, the princess disappeared, kidnapped by the fiendish Majin.

The King issued a decree that he will grant the wish of anyone who is brave enough to enter Besek and rescue his daughter.

Kings and Princesses are a little overplayed, but I think the game’s darker twist will make it stand out.

All these elements combined with the later half of the video make Eternal Poison look pretty promising to me. I will keep my eye out for more updates on the game’s story and characters. You can look forward to the game’s release (complete with OST) this November 11th.

Roy atlus, preview, ps2 1 comment

Everyone’s favorite Devil Summoner is returning for another adventure in Japan’s Taisho Era. Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou Vs The Abadon King is being released October 23rd in Japan as both a stand-alone game and bundled with a reprint of Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, which is now dubbed Maniacs Chronicles Edition. It is also believed that Kuzunoha Raidou will be a secret character that is unlockable in the new version of Nocturne.

	In Raidou’s second game, he, Goto, Narumi and Asakura travel to a isolated village in the Japanese countryside to investigate a missing person. The name of the village is still unknown, but there are some images from the game showing Raidou exploring it. In the one to the left, he is examining a door which “appears to have an image of a watermelon on it.”
	In addition to the mysterious watermelon-doors, every house seems to have smoke coming from their chimneys–further proof that all is not quite right with this small town.

Raidou is suddenly attacked by several men in black masks, with one wearing a red mask. It appears the man with the red mask is the leader, but their motives and goals are entirely unknown.

To help Raidou deal with the unknown foes, he is getting some new abilities which should make the gameplay a lot more interesting for the sequel. Here are some of the new features:

• Up to 2 demons may be summoned in battle
• There are about twice as many demons that Raidou can tame
• Talking to demons has returned, but swaying them to join you is more complex
• Two demons may join forces in order to convince enemy demons to join Raidou
• Raidou can now perform some magic skills instead of just sword and gun skills

Kuzunoha Raidou Vs. Abadon King already has an official Japanese website which you can check out here. Aside from a small bit of content, the site features a pretty cool song which you should give a listen to.

I really enjoyed the first Kuzunoha Raidou game, although I admit at a certain point I lost interest in it and never beat it. The battles just became more awkward than hard as the game progressed. Hopefully the second game will be more polished and provide that which the first may have lacked.

Roy atlus, preview, ps2 1 comment

So Persona 4 is officially on sale in Japan. If you absolutely cannot wait to get your hands on the game, or know a bit of casual Japanese, you can buy a copy from Play-Asia.com here for $68.90.

If owning the regular version is too pedestrian for you, Play-Asia also has the Konamistyle Special Edition here for $129.90. The below table explains the contents to the two different special editions. So far only the Konamistyle one is available on Play-Asia. Please note that Play-Asia only carries the bundle which comes with the XL t-shirt, good if you are a big fan of the series. Pun slightly intended.

Since the game’s release in Japan, some image rips have already surfaced on the web. The link to this rip was given to me by a person from 4chan’s video game message board. All the characters have bizarre eyes and some feature different outfits.

It also does seem to suggest that Naoto may be a girl. Although Kanji appears as a cross-dressed version of Marilyn Monroe suggesting that perhaps these images are not set in the reality of the game.

I am in the process of interviewing at several jobs, and if I manage to get one of them I may go crazy and buy a Japanese copy of the game. If I do I’ll be sure to tell you guys how it is! Too bad Play-Asia charges so much for the Konamistyle Special Edition… it’s like an extra $30 for a Kuma Plush and a shirt that will never fit me.

Related Entries:
All other Kotowari entries on Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 can be found here

Roy atlus, merchandise, persona, ps2 2 comments

It’s official guys, we now have a date we can put on our calenders. Atlus made the announcement at a recent anime expo. They had the following to say of the game’s contents:

Persona 4 is coming to North America.

It will be in stores THIS holiday season, December 9th, in a deluxe 2-disc release. Each and every copy of Persona 4 will include a soundtrack CD with select music from the game.

Persona 4. December 9th. Only $39.99. Mark your calendars.

Related Entries:
All other Kotowari entries on Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 can be found here

Roy atlus, persona, ps2 0 comments

My girlfriend is selling some video games on eBay. They are pretty cheap with free shipping which is a nice deal so check it out:

Final Fantasy X
La Pucelle Tactics
Phantom Brave + OST
Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Okage: Shadow King
Magic Pengel

Normally I am not all about making money, but I think this really is a good opportunity to get some cheap classics.
Sold to the highest bidders

Roy merchandise, ps2 0 comments