NewsBit: Week of November 19

Uncharted spin off Fight for Fortune announced for Vita, Project GODUS to reinvent Populous series, Wii U turns a profit with one game sale, and more.

Click through for the biggest stories of the week of November 19:

Uncharted trading card game announced for Vita

The PlayStation Blog Monday announced Uncharted: Fight for Fortune, a downloadable trading card game spin off of the popular series to be released for the Vita in December.

Player Attack first reported the title's development earlier this month after receiving a tip about listings for the game appearing at international ratings board websites. Now official, the title is said to be an action-adventure card game in which players battle teams of cards featuring Uncharted series heroes and villains. With Resource and Fortune cards, players may enhance character cards with improved stats and special abilities. A video with more information about gameplay is posted to the blog.

Fight for Fortune also ties into Uncharted: Golden Abyss (also developed by SCE Bend). Artifacts found in the latter game may be used in the former, although Fight for Fortune may also be played as a standalone title. A new patch for Golden Abyss will link the games together and add new trophies to acquire.

Fight for Fortune will be available December 4 for $4.99, with additional DLC planned for launch day.

22cans to reinvent Populous with Project GODUS

Populous, the classic series of god-simulator games, will be reinvented with a project by its creator's new studio pending a successful Kickstarter campaign.

22cans announced Project GODUS Wednesday. According to the Kickstarter project description, the game will be a multiplayer simulation title in which the player is a god who builds a cult to battle with other gods/cults. GODUS will draw gameplay inspiration from designer Peter Molyneux's earlier titles Dungeon Keeper, Black & White, and Populous.

In addition to those titles, Molyneux is known for developing the Fable series with Lionhead Studios. He began to work with 22cans after departing Lionhead earlier this year. 22cans' first project was this month's Curiosity – What's Inside the Cube?

The studio plans to develop GODUS for Android, iOS, and PC platforms within 7–9 months.

Wii U profitable with only one game purchase

While the Wii was the only console to be sold for a profit last generation, the Wii U is being sold for a loss—but only a small one, according to Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime.

Speaking to Mercury News, Fils-Aime said a single Wii U game purchased in addition to the console turns a loss into a profit.

“As soon as we get the consumer to buy one piece of software, then that entire transaction becomes profit positive,” he said.

Gamasutra last week issued a report indicating GameStop pre-orders of Wii U games were at 1.2 million, more than double the software pre-orders leading up to the original Wii's launch. Meanwhile, the company received 500,000 console pre-orders—which means an average of 2.4 games were expected to be purchased for every console.

Speaking of the original Wii, Nintendo this week also indicated to GameSpot it isn't currently developing any projects for the outgoing hardware.

Etrian Odyssey IV to include art book, CD

Launch copies of upcoming 3DS RPG Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan will include a bonus art book and CD while supplies last, according to the game's official website.

The art book will feature exclusive art by Alexandra Douglass and staff commentary. A sample of the art book is available here. Meanwhile, the CD will be titled “Rough Drafts & Outtakes” and will feature an “alternative take on some of the game’s musical themes.”

Etrian Odyssey IV was confirmed for U.S. release in early October, with the first English screenshots available later in the month. The game is scheduled for retail and eShop release February 26, 2013.

XSEED describes strong sales, second print for The Last Story

A second print of Wii RPG The Last Story is coming soon following strong sales, U.S. publisher XSEED announced Thursday via press release.

Although the company didn't include sales figures, it called The Last Story its most successful game ever. XSEED picked up the title for U.S. distribution after Nintendo of America declined to publish it. The Last Story received mostly positive critical reviews as well, with PixlBit's Jon Lewis awarding it 3.5 of 5 stars.

Released in August, the original print was issued only as a premium edition and was bundled with an art book and exclusive case. The second print will be a standard release without the extras and will sell for $29.99. The premium edition is still available from some retailers. Although quantities are limited, the MSRP is now $39.99, down $10 from the original price.

The Last Story is known for being one of the three games fan campaign Operation Rainfall petitioned for North American release after U.S. publishers appeared reluctant to pick them up.

Press Release

XSEED Games Releases New Standalone Version of The Last Story to replace the sold-out Premium Launch Edition

Highly Acclaimed Action RPG Title from Legendary Game Creator Hironobu Sakaguchi Most Successful Title in Publisher's History

Torrance, Calif., (November 20, 2012) – XSEED Games, an independent-minded publisher, is pleased to celebrate the success of its hit action RPG, The Last Story, by announcing that it is releasing an all-new standalone version of the Wii™ exclusive, which started shipping today to select retailers throughout North America at an MSRP of $29.99. In addition to this new standalone game package, any remaining copies of the premium launch units at retailers, which included a bonus 44-page softcover art book packaged together with the game in a custom outer box, are now available for $39.99.

"The Last Story has been an amazing title for XSEED Games and it has become our most successful title to date," said Ken Berry, Executive Vice President at XSEED Games. "This is a must have title for RPG fans, and we're looking forward to more players discovering the magic that lies in Lazulis Island."

Developed by legendary game creator Hironobu Sakaguchi and his studio MISTWALKER in conjunction with Nintendo, The Last Story has enjoyed global praise from critics and fans for its brilliance in storytelling, character interaction, immersive audio and music, cover-based action combat and mystical setting.

The Last Story centers on a band of mercenaries and follows them on their journey to gain wealth and notoriety. Throughout the adventure, players will experience an engaging story with an emphasis on immersion and environmental interaction. Gameplay is action-oriented, utilizing a cover system and both ranged and melee combat, but also includes strategic elements such as a battle command system which players can use to issue orders to party members on-the-fly, expertly blending classic turn-based mechanics with real-time action combat.

The Last Story follows Zael and his band of fellow adventurers as they begin a journey to Lazulis Island – the only region prospering as the mainland of the Empire slowly rots away – in their search for work, opportunity and a better future. After securing employment with the ruler of the island, Count Arganan, Zael dreams of finally achieving a secure life as a knight and putting his unstable mercenary past behind him, but things don't exactly go to plan when events during their first mission change his life forever...

The Last Story was developed by MISTWALKER and Nintendo, exclusively for Wii. The game is published by XSEED Games and is available at select retailers across North America. More information can be found on the product website at www.thelaststorywii.com

#Uncharted #Populous #Wii u #Etrian odyssey #The last story

Travis Hawks Senior Editor

11/25/2012 at 09:57 PM

That EO IV bonus soundtrack disc is mighty appealing. I guess I'll have to buy it at launch after all... Oh, I would have anyway but now I have additional incentive.