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Nintendo has announced a new title this week, Kurikin Nano Island Story for the Nintendo DS. This game will be another step in the creature capture genre Nintendo has created, only this time you won't be capturing lovable monsters, you'll be scooping up bacteria.

You play the game as a young inhabitant of Nano Island home to one hundred different types of bacteria. As the game progresses you'll be exploring the island, and be able to both capture and train new types of bacteria. The game's story mode is mission based, and will be 24 chapters long. Of course, to succeed in your missions you're going to have to engage in some germ warfare. That's right, you'll be fighting other teams of bacteria.

In battles players will control an army of germs that first appear as a single pixel on the DS's touch screen. You'll be able to instruct your troops by circling part of the group and then drawing a line, instructing them to go there. You'll also be able to disperse the group you've circled by blowing into the DS microphone. When your germs engage the enemy in combat the top screen will show a zoomed in view, allowing you a nice view of the germ combat. Bacteria of course, will divide and multiply the entire time, keeping your troops with a steady stream of combatants.

Each battle will feature a different requirement from winning, going from things like simply wiping out the enemy, to having the most remaining bacteria.

Kurikin Nano Island Story will release May 24 in Japan, a US launch date has not yet been announced, and it is unknown whether the game will make it here.

Source: RPGamer

Good news for those gamers who haven't grabbed one of the FF1/FF2 remakes yet and who own a PSP: Final Fantasy I and II are heading your way this summer.

Originally announced only for Japan, the remastered versions of the first two games in our favourite series will mark the twentieth anniversary of Final Fantasy. The original Final Fantasy will appear on 26 June 2007, followed shortly by Final Fantasy II on 24 July. Both games will go for $29.99.

Source: Gamespot

Honestly, I have a hard time getting excited over this. You can already buy these games together on the original Playstation for far less than the combined price of $60, and can't you rip PS1 games onto memory sticks if you just have to make them portable?

I just don't see the appeal. Square is releasing two of the weaker games in the series separately at an expensive price for a handheld no one can afford to own. Why bother?

According to Famitsu, the main character from Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (the DS sequel to FF Tactics Advance) is going to make an appeareance in the PSP remake of Tactics, Final Fantasy Tactics: Shisho Sensou. This new character, Russo (or possibly Luso or something similar, depending on how it's localized in English), encounters and takes on Ramza while he's on the way to rescuing Alma; it isn't clear exactly where in the game this takes place.

This marks the second character from a recent FF game announced to have a supporting role in the FF Tactics remake, after Balthier from FF XII was announced as playable a few months ago. Is Square-Enix taking this cross-promotion a bit too far, or do we want even more? Depends on the person, I guess.

Source:
RPGFan

There's been a Lord of the Rings MMORPG in the works for a long while now, and the game will be releasing to the public soon. In honor of this the game creators have announced a MASSIVE open beta event, offering one million slots to the beta. It's a first come first serve sort of deal, but it's open to anyone. (I imagine you need to be 18, though, honestly) This, world tour as they're calling it begins in about three days.

If you're a fan of Lord of the Rings, or are just curious about the new kid on the MMORPG block, you should check this out.

Lord of the Rings World Tour site

Just go to the site and follow the instructions and you'll be ready to go.

The full game will launch April 24th and will allow you to experience Middle Earth in all its glory. The game will feature classic characters from the novel as NPCs, such as Gandalf, Gimli, Aragorn, and Frodo. The game seems to be set during the events of the Lord of the Rings novels, even, and as such you'll be able to fight against the forces of Sauron and perhaps help the Fellowship rid Middle Earth of his scourge. In addition you'll be able to create one of four races (Human, Dwarf, Elf, or Hobbit) with customizable features, and then choose one of seven classes (Champion, Guardian, Captain, Burglar, Hunter, Minstrel, Lore-Master)

This game really possesses a lot of potential, but whether it lives up to it is yet to be seen. So if you're curious, like me, why not sign up for the World Tour? Do it quick though, spots are definitely going fast.

It still isn't $40 and bundled with Final Fantasy Tactics, but gamers critical of Sony's expensive handheld can now confirm what they've been saying all along: the PlayStation Portable was just too expensive.

Originally sold as a $249.99 "Value Pack" bundle, the PSP received it's first price drop when the package was cut down to the $199.99 "Core Pack" containing only the PSP, a battery, and an AC adapter. This move was criticized by those who noted that the price of the handheld itself remained virtually the same, as a memory stick still needed to be purchased in order to use most of its functions.

Finally, Sony seems to have realized what the rest of the world has always known: if they want the PSP to compete with the $129.99 Nintendo DS and it's massive developer support, they were going to have to do something about the price. Effective immediately, the PSP Core Pack will retail for $169.99, but, this time, without a hit to features or accessories.

Industry analysts have greeted this news happily, generally affirming what seemed like common sense to the rest of us... Things sell better when people can afford them.

Source: GameSpot

I've toyed with the idea of getting a used PSP somewhere along the line, but now I'm wondering if this will dry up the supply even more. Currently, a PSP trades in at Game Stop/EB Games for something in the neighborhood of $40, and we just don't see very many people who wouldn't rather just keep the darn thing. Since the new price is now less than Game Stop's preowned price, the trade-in value is going to have to dip even lower... You'd have to be an idiot to put up with it when eBay is right there.

Square-Enix's official website for Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII recently updated, giving us a great deal of new information. The game takes places seven years before Final Fantasy VII, when Shinra is gaining influence in the world by controlling the planet's supply of Mako energy. Sephiroth, Zack, and a third SOLDIER named Angeal Hewley are dispatched to Wutai in order to investigate the mysterious disappearance of another SOLDIER unit and also to resolve the military situation taking place there. Many other characters from Final Fantasy VII, including Cloud, Tifa, and Aeris, are confirmed to be in the game, but their role in the plot is unclear as of yet.

So that's all. Crisis Core does not have a confirmed release date, but is slated to be released in Japan later this year.

Sources:
Crisis Core's official website
RPGfan