Well we’re a few months into our new venture and we’ve put out a lot of gaming in that time. Dezaemon Plus! and Blockids will mark the fifth and sixth additions to the MonkeyPaw classic European game portfolio on the PlayStation Network. And we have a lot more surprises planned for our retro-gaming fans.

But we’d like to ask your assistance. We need you to tell your friends about what we’re doing and get the word out. We know our core fans are dedicated gamers and that you’ve picked up some titles already. But we need a bigger response so that we can influence more Japanese companies. We need to show them there is a viable market in Europe and that licensing is worth their effort. It is like voting with Euros. Spend more on the candidates of your choice!

Here’s a good choice for shooting fans. Dezaemon Plus! is a chance to play game god. You get to create a game using a robust game editor that allows you to form sprites, level designs, boss characters, music and more. Use parallax scrolling and other game design techniques to create a completely original game. Then play or trade with friends using a memory stick on the PlayStation 3 and PSP (PlayStation Portable) systems.

For puzzle fans, we have a new title as well. It is hard to put a premium on a game mechanic that keeps on giving but surely the Breakout mechanic (to give it a name) is one of the most enduring in all gaming. There is something so retro to sliding your paddle along that horizontal plane. Just about anyone could pick up a joystick and play.

So how can you improve on the mechanic? Gather some great game minds, throw in a little Japanese spice and you can actually pull it off. Japanese industry has a penchant for copying (does your Lexus look like a BMW?). But they manage to make improvements so that the copy becomes better than the original. So two games might look similar but the play of the new and improved version is quite remarkable when you sit down and play. And that is what you get when you play Blockids.

Dezaemon Plus! and Blockids are now both available for the low price of €4.99/£3.99 on the PlayStation Network under the Import banner. Pick them up today and support our efforts to bring you the best lost treasures from the Land of the Rising Yen.

Score:

• 19 Comments 9 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Japanese retro lovers have a special attachment to the shooting genre. Remember the days when shooters ruled the skies? So many great games came from that era but not all were shared with the West. Here’s one you might enjoy.

GaiaSeed is for the pure shooter enthusiast. When you get your hands on this one, you’ll be taken back to that era. Supremely smooth with a silky techo backbeat, GaiaSeed is one of those lost gems that should have become a classic. The game is guaranteed to satisfy, again and again.
(more…)

Score:

• 20 Comments 8 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Well, the Import Section is now up and running. We hope you’ve had a taste and are looking for more Japanese fun. Our next game from the land of the rising yen is Arcade Hits: Shienryu. Shooter fans will have a blast with this emphatic display of early bullet hell. The game happens to be one of our office favorites so I can tell you that you’ll be satisfied and rewarded by such shooting splendor.

Arcade Hits: Shienryu is the kind of shooter that exemplified the class of firepower that came out of the great shoot’em-up era in Japan. If your eyes could bleed they would after an intense hour with Shienryu. Sure, there were bigger hits in the era, but Shienryu is a standout for its outstanding attention to detail and silky-smooth controls. Allow yourself to immerse in the cockpit of your tactical fighter and watch the full trajectory of shrapnel after you blast it into a thousand pieces.

MonkeyPaw will continue to bring you closer to your Japanese gaming roots. We want to deliver all those lost classics from a far-away land that you never thought you’d get your trigger finger on. Experience this gem and place your mind in Eastern thought.

Score:

• 76 Comments 20 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Japanese retro fans, get ready! You are about to be immersed in a sea of PS one Japanese gems that never made it to European shores. MonkeyPaw Games is proud to announce the release of the first three titles to the all new PlayStation Network Import section. We will feature direct-from-Japan PS one imports and Classics, including infamous shooter Cho Aniki and the super smooth Arcade Hits: Sonic Wings Special. These shooters have been imported in their original Japanese form. Help can be found at www.monkeypawgames.com

MonkeyPaw Games is also proud to release the first game in the Arc the Lad series, one of the longest-selling RPGs of the PS one era. This classic is in English only and will be the start of many RPGs to come to the PlayStation Network Classic section. Join us as we bring you a taste of Japanese gaming that you’ve never experienced.

Relive the Origins of Tactical RPGs with Arc the Lad.

Japanese RPGs are on a level by themselves. One that is sure to steal your sleep is Arc the Lad. The game stormed onto the RPG scene with a compelling world that served as a prologue to one of the longest-running tactical RPG series in history. Arc the Lad, Arc the Lad II, Arc Arena: Monster Tournament and Arc the Lad III will all be coming to the PlayStation Network.

(more…)

Score:

• 146 Comments
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook