RipTen Videogame Blog » Namco-Bandai

Ridge Racer Unbounded – Behind the Game Trailer #1: Deal with it

Garrett Hartman — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:30:44 +0000

Namco Bandai today released the first of a series of behind the scenes videos for Ridge Racer: Unbounded.

The video features words from a few of the members of the Unbounded team, some gameplay footage and real life drifting. Check it out below.

The first Making Of video for RIDGE RACER™ Unbounded focuses on the changes made in the new branch of the legendary franchise and includes never seen before footage of the game.

Ridge Racer: Unbounded launches this March on PS3, PC and 360.

Namco Bandai Delays Inversion to Ensure Quality

Justin Carter — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:06 +0000

Namco Bandai’s Inversion was originally announced to come out this February 7. That’s no longer the case. The publisher has pushed the game back to a later date. Here’s why:

This additional development time will allow the team to polish several key aspects of the game ensuring Inversion is of the highest quality.”

Typical response, yeah? As soon as the game has a release date, we’ll let you know.

via [Game Informer]

Soul Calibur Coming to iOS 19th January

Sam Naylor — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 23:20:20 +0000

More fighting game news, this time on the iPhone and iPod Touch- and the fact that the original Soul Calibur is coming to them. Soon.

The original Soul Calibur will be coming to iPhone 4, iPod Touch 4 and iPad 2 on the 19th of January, though a price point hasn’t been released yet.

The modes included in the port are “arcade battle, time attack, survival, extra survival, practice and museum,” of which time attack, survival and extra survival are compatible with Game Center’s leaderboard feature.

Andriasang via Joystiq

Shinobido 2 Trailer Shows Off Killer Ninja Techniques and Gameplay Features

Garrett Hartman — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:30:13 +0000

Namco-Bandai released a new trailer for Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen that shows off killer ninja techniques and gameplay features.

And no, it is not a sequel to SEGA’s Shinobi series but it does have much in common with the Tenchu series with which it shares many stealth gameplay elements and developer Acquire.

Shinobido 2 is a PS Vita release title and will be available February 22. Check out the trailer below.

Are You a Bad Enough Dude to be the UK’s Top Soul Calibur V Player?

Sam Naylor — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 17:44:32 +0000

With the launch of Soul Calibur V imminent, Namco Bandai are looking for players who hope to become the best in the UK.

You heard me correctly, there are people out there who not only play Soul Calibur, but also get good at it. It might sound odd to us “normals,” but it certainly seems that there are people out there buying Soul Calibur games for more than just looking at Ivy’s chest.

The first 200 gamers to get to the Chapel Bar in Islington from 12-6pm on Saturday 4th February will get themselves in to the game’s UK launch party, “where some of the world’s biggest fighting game champions will be in attendance.”

There are more details to follow, but the fights that take place at this even will lead on to the UK finals on March 16th “at a so far secret location with a whole host of exciting prizes up for grabs.”

So put down your good, proper 2D fighting games and try out this new 3D one. What’s the worst that could happen?

Dark Souls PC Petition Gets Namco-Bandai’s Attention

Catherine Cai — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:46:09 +0000

Just about a week ago, Namco-Bandai community manager Shoupinou told Dark Souls fans via the Namco-Bandai forum that if they wanted Dark Souls to be ported over to the PC, the best way to get Namco-Bandai’s attention would be to petition.

Sure enough, Dark Souls fans united and put together a petition with the Bureau of Petitions. The results were amazing.

In just a week, the petition has gained over 65,000 signatures. According to Shoupinou, who instigated the petition:

“I honestly wasn’t expecting such massive support. My boss(es) even came to talk to me about this after it exploded all around the world. If you wanted to have the attention of Namco Bandai Games, now you have it.

“The future is in your hands and I hope you will keep supporting this. I will make a personal objective to make sure every relevant person at Namco Bandai Games is in touch with this formidable effort.”

I don’t think you can ignore 65,000 signatures, much less 65,000 signatures in a week. That can hardly be shrugged off as a few individuals who want the PC port. Hopefully, if all goes well, Namco-Bandai gets its head screwed on straight and we’ll see plans for a Dark Souls PC port in a few months.

Petition to Have Dark Souls Ported to PC

Catherine Cai — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:00:18 +0000

When asked about a Dark Souls PC port, Namco Bandai employee and forum administrstor shoupinou responded that fans should petition:

“There is always possibilities to have games adapted on PC and the good news is that Dark Souls is not a 100% typical Console game so the adaptation is possible. Now to make things happen, let’s say the demand has to be properly done. someone to make a successful petition?”

Upon hearing this, Dark Souls fans immediately gathered together a petition with the Bureau of Petitions. At the time this article was written, the petition already has 39,157 signatures. Even if you’re not a PC gamer, add your signature to the list and help them out. It’s not like signing such a petition is going to hurt you.

[Via Joystiq]

RipTen Review: Ace Combat Assault Horizon (Xbox 360)

Stephanie Gutowski — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 22:30:57 +0000

The earliest dream I can remember is of flying. I’m soaring over rooftops, climbing above the collected chaos of city life. Every time I awoke from these moments, an intense sense of deflation immobilized me. I was, and always would be, earthbound. Sadly, this is how I was made and this was how it would stay. But man and his ingenuity outsmarted nature and forged machines to defy gravity. Those like me, sky-starved, but unable to sate that hunger for flight find solace in the safety of commercial airlines, and through windows to that world we imagined, like Namco Bandai’s Ace Combat series . If you don’t understand this need to be airborne, then you have no business in Assault Horizon. Now sit down and shut up while I tell you about how amazing it was.

"I want my callsign to be 'Spaghetti.'" "... What?!" "SPAGHETTI!"

I fell in love with Ace Combat 4 during the glory days of the Playstation 2 and sunk hours into it, challenging my friends to dogfights and losing myself in the convoluted, Japanese plot. I didn’t care much for what was going on. Frankly, I thought there was a great disconnect between the still cut scenes and hectic radio banter blasting in my ears during missions. This is not the case in Assault Horizon. American author Jim DeFelice who wrote Rogue Warrior (the great book not the shitty game) is behind the story on this one, delivering a good ole fashion tale of Americans versus Russians. No fictitious Eurasian nations or impossibly dramatic wars. There’s something about these Cold War-esque plots that appeal to me. Perhaps it’s my intense love of “Hunt for the Red October,” but any movie or game that involves some kind of conflict with the Russians immediately has my attention. You play primarily as Colonel William Bishop, leader of Warwolf Squadron, a U.N. task force comprised of international unit. Bishop is a damn good pilot, but when a Russian crime syndicate mobilizes and reveals its deadliest asset, Andrei Markov, Bishop must face his greatest adversary yet. Worst of all? Markov has a super-powered warhead called “Trinity” and he’s dead set on using it. Players will alternate between multiple mission types. Jet combat puts you in control of Bishop, while helicopter missions will have you playing Captain Doug “D-Ray” Robinson and his gunners. Lastly, you’ll actually have a chance to carry out bombing and fire support missions from larger aircraft, like Nighthawks and AC-130′s as Major Janice Rehl, ~~the coolest pilot ever.~~

I don’t want a ridiculous Japanese plot standing between me and my aerial combat experience. Perhaps that’s what the franchise was known and lovingly mocked for in the past, but what was the point? Key story elements were delivered in the heat of combat, leaving me completely confused as I was too busy fighting for my life to listen to some wingman try to feed me exposition. This story was refreshingly simple and, while not entirely original, provided me with all the fuel needed to spur me on, to make me understand why I fought. I knew better than ever the consequence of failure. If I don’t stop this man, he will destroy me and my home. Kill him and his supporters, or everything I love will cease to exist. It incites emotion on the basest of levels. You are threatened. You must defend yourself. Why would you want a ridiculous plot to get in the way of that?

It's much cooler in cockpit view. Trust me.

These pilots bring with them three distinct types of gameplay. Bishop will put you in the cockpit of a standard fighter, attacker, or multirole plane. I personally stuck with the Typhoon unless the mission called for anti-ground measures, but I was able to quickly pinpoint my preferred style. This is where things are going to feel vastly different from previous Ace Combat games, but I assure you, it’s all for the best. The left stick controls all your plane’s movements. Pitch and yaw are determined by the degree of your turn and your speed. Decelerate for sharper, more accurate turns. Right thumb stick lets you look around the cockpit and get a better idea of what’s in your peripheral. Roll control is virtually nonexistent unless you’re playing on Expert difficulty (which then allows you to roll rather than turn harder), but seems to have been assimilated into Assault Horizon’s newest feature, CRA (close range assault). Players press LB and RB simultaneously to change attack perspectives and begin close-range combat. CRA is broken down to two variations. DFM (dogfight mode) can be activated when the player is within range of an enemy. A green assault circle appears, signaling the player to press the bumpers. The game then becomes semi-on-rails and the player must focus on keeping the plane within the target reticule. Missiles become deadlier and machine gun firer packs a much greater punch at close range. When an adversary is defeated, a mini, slow-mo cut scene plays, and Bishop zooms through the wreckage. It’s an incredibly satisfying system that also works on the defensive. Players can perform a reversal when pursued by enemies. Decelerate until the red and green arrow overlap, then tap the shoulder buttons. You’ll either barrel roll, cobra, or do a complete 360 degree vertical loop until the hunter becomes the prey. You can chain several enemies while in DFM and it provides a satisfying means to properly decimate your foes. Rather than watch your 4AAMs detonate from far, you can get right up their aft and shred’m. I found myself tailing three bandits through Dubai, weaving between skyscrapers while trying to track down the last remaining bomber on an impact course. It gets intense, I mean intense. You’ve got five things to do and five minutes to do it, but the sensation of getting it done is wholly rewarding.

Mmm, jet carngae.

CRA has another mode, ASM (air strike mode) that you won’t use nearly as frequently as DFM, but it offers a very different combat experience. Players target the triangular entry point for the bombing track and trigger ASM similarly to DFM with a bumper tap. Your aircraft decelerates and descends as you attempt to eliminate all ground targets in as few attack runs as possible. Think Death Star trench run, except slower. While ASM isn’t nearly as exciting, it does have a few poignant moments during some naval missions later in the game. The helicopter scenarios are perhaps the grittiest, thrusting you into the heart of combat as you provide aerial support to the ground forces. A lot of the time, you’ll be gunning down poorly-armed men with machine guns, which takes little to no effort. When the situation escalates, you’ll find yourself blowing Hinds out of the sky and turning Howitzers into scrap metal. Major Rehl’s air support missions are probably the least exciting, but offer the best weaponry. It gets a little ridiculous when you’re suddenly packed inside a stealth bomber at night, weaving between radar cones en route to the facility you’re supposed to carpet bomb, but the end result is always the same: “Holy crap, I just owned everything.”

For those of you who absolutely must have your classic Ace Combat controls intact, rest assured. The kind devs at Project Aces have included an”Original” control scheme in addition to “Optimum,” the default setting. Original puts roll control back in your hands, giving you the ability to fly sideways, upside down, or just… whatever you want to do. While it’s great to see that there’s still some Ace Combat inside this otherwise realistic spinoff, Optimum really starts to sing its siren song when you realize just how difficult it is to initiate CRA while using the original controls. It’s not impossible- I managed to snare a couple of bandits, but keeping them in my sights was incredibly frustrating.

Think You’re Good At Dark Souls? This 90 Minute Speed Run Will Make You Look Silly

Chris Carlson — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:30:03 +0000

Everyone loves to say they’re the best at their favorite video game, and how they can kick all their friends asses. So you may think you’re pretty pro at Dark Souls, but Youtube user SexyShoiko‘s seed run will have you crying like a new born baby.

I myself have spent over 50 hours with Dark Souls and only managed to complete the game once and am currently half way through New Game+. SexShoiko however has managed to complete the entire game in less than an hour and a half. Un-friggin-believable. Next time you’re bragging to your friends about how good you are at Dark Souls, remember these videos and realize you actually suck.

For more on Dark Souls be sure to check out the RipTen Review.

Four More Planes Revealed for Ace Combat: Assault Horizon

Stephanie Gutowski — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 00:01:14 +0000

Last week, we showed off five of the new aircraft in Namco Bandai’s arcade flight sim, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon. Now we’ve got four new planes to add to the list and screenshots to boot. Three fighters and an attacker are coming your way!

Su-24MP Fencer: Large-scale, armored fighter with electronic warfare capabilities
Su-33 Flanker-D: Carrier-based fighter, makes up in maneuverability what it lacks in speed
Su-35 Flanker-E: Exceptional air-to-air fighter, highly capable on long or short distance missions
Su-25TM Frogfoot: Older attacker created by the former Soviet Union, withstands all weather and sports on-board radar

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon is still cleared to land on your Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 by October 11, 2011.

Dark Souls – All Saints Day Trailer

Garrett Hartman — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 19:10:12 +0000

Namco-Bandai has released a new trailer for Dark Souls titled “All Saints Day” in preparation for the game’s launch next week. The video showcases boss battles and quotes from major websites that trumpet Dark Souls’ difficulty and graphics to the tune of “All Saints Day” by The Silent Comedy.

Watch it below.

Katamari Amore, Coming to an iDevice Near You

Stephanie Gutowski — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 22:30:57 +0000

It’s been a while since i Love Katamari first hit the iPhone in 2008, and it looks like we’ve got another rainbow fest from Namco Bandai in the works.

On September 29, the King of All Cosmos will return to the iOS with a brand new adventure for fans of this quirky little series. Play as the Prince once more, rolling up the world in the hopes of creating the largest possible katamari because… that’s just what you do. Katamari Amore features 24 missions, four modes (Story, Time Attack, Exact Size Challenge, Eternal Mode), and an extra Pac-Man level. Amore will be available as a “fremium” title on iPad and iPhone, but players will be able to unlock the full version for $3.99, a discounted launch price.

Players will have multiple controller options, including a virtual control pad (double or single depending on the user’s preference) or Accelerometer. Content packs and additional stages are confirmed for future release, but dates and details have yet to be revealed.

This pleases us.

Getting Dark Souls Early, Punk? Prepare To Be Slaughtered by the Devs

Chris Carlson — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 00:30:50 +0000

For those of you planning to get a legitimate copy of Dark Souls early, you just may want to reconsider. According to Japanese blog Esuteru, From Software has a nice little surprise waiting for gamers who manage to obtain a copy of the game early.

Dark Souls offers a feature that enables players to invade each others world. Instead, From Software is delivering max-level Black Phantoms into the game for anyone playing early.

The screenshot above shows just how horrific these creatures really are. Level 145, 1900HP and all abilities set to the maximum, making these furious creatures practically impossible to defeat. You should already know going in you will die a lot, but this will make your experience downright terrible. Best thing is to wait for the street date like every other normal gamer out there.

Dark Souls is set to release on October 4th for Xbox 360 and PS3.

via [IGN]

Dark Souls Gets Third Prologue Trailer

Chris Carlson — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 11:45:53 +0000

Namco Bandai has released its third part of their ongoing series of prologue trailers for Dark Souls. Dragons, Witches and mighty bolts of fire? Yeah, it’s awesome.

Did you miss the previous prologue trailer? No worries, you can view part two here.

Dark Souls hits shelves October 4th for Xbox 360 and PS3.

New Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi Trailer Lets You Customize Your Character

Chris Carlson — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:00:57 +0000

NAMCO Bandai Games have release the latest trailer for their upcoming fighting game, Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi, featuring an all new “Hero Mode”.

Hero Mode will allow players to create their own avatars by customizing body, skin color, hair style, costume & voice. Fans can then train their avatars all the way up until they are ready for ultimate Super Saiyan transformation while learning super attacks and skills as they are taught by their master of choice!

Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi is set to release on October 25th for Xbox 360 and PS3.

Dark Souls Complete Achievement List Revealed

Chris Carlson — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 13:32:12 +0000

If there’s one game that will take hours upon hours to fully acquire every achievements, it’s Dark Souls. Thankfully, the entire list has been revealed. 41 achievements, 15 of which are secret achievements.All for a total of 1000G. If you want to fully completely this baby, you’re going to need to invest a ton of hours.

Happy achievement hunting when the game releases on October 4th for Xbox 360 and PS3.

The Dark Soul – All achievements completed. Congratulations! (50)
Knight’s Honor – Acquire all rare weapons (25)
Wisdom of a Sage – Acquire all sorceries (25)
Bond of a Pyromancer – Acquire all pyromancies (25)
Prayer of a Maiden – Acquire all miracles (25)
Covenant: Way of White – Discover Way of White covenant (15)
Covenant: Gravelord Servant – Discover Gravelord Servant covenant (25)
Covenant: Chaos Servant – Discover Chaos Servant covenant (25)
Strongest Weapon – Acquire best weapon through standard reinforcement (15)
Crystal Weapon – Acquire best weapon through crystal reinforcement (15)
Lightning Weapon – Acquire best weapon through lightning reinforcement (15)
Raw Weapon – Acquire best weapon through raw reinforcement (15)
Magic Weapon – Acquire best weapon through magic reinforcement (15)
Enchanted Weapon – Acquire best weapon through enchanted reinforcement (15)
Divine Weapon – Acquire best weapon through divine reinforcement (15)
Fire Weapon – Acquire best weapon through fire reinforcement (15)
Chaos Weapon – Acquire best weapon through chaos reinforcement (15)
Enkindle – Light bonfire flame (15)
Estus Flask – Acquire Estus Flask (15)
Reach Lordran – Arrive in Lordran (15)
Ring the Bell (Undead Church) – Ring Bell of Awakening at Undead Church (15)
Ring the Bell (Quelaag’s Domain) – Ring Bell of Awakening in Quelaag’s domain (15)
Rite of Kindling – Acquire the Rite of Kindling (15)
Art of Abysswalking – Acquire the Art of Abysswalking (15)
Reach Anor Londo – Arrive in Anor Londo (25)
Lordvessel – Acquire the Lordvessel (25)

NAMCO Bandai and Tecmo Koei Tease New Game With Countdown

Chris Carlson — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 15:15:51 +0000

It appears NAMCO Ba ndai and Tecmo Koei have some sort of collaboration as they tease a new game announcement with a countdown.

The website displays a simple countdown slated for a week from today. It also features a giant “Start” button in the middle of the screen with Namco Bandai Games Inc X Tecmo Koei Games Co LTD. above it.

What exactly could this mean? We’ll let you come up with the guess work.

[Source: VG247]

Prepare to Die in the New Dark Souls “Bartholomew” Trailer

Chris Carlson — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:30:43 +0000

NAMCO BANDAI and From Software have released a brand new trailer for their upcoming RPG, Dark Souls.

“With tense dungeon crawling and fearsome enemy encounters, the seamlessly intertwined world of Dark Souls is full of extreme battles, rewarding challenges, nuanced weaponry and magic, and the flexibility to customize each character to suit any desired play style”