It’s been a long time since my last appearance on the PlayStation Blog so I hope you’ve all been keeping well. We’ve just released the third game in the Agarest: Generations of War series, entitled (confusingly enough!) Agarest: Generations of War 2.

As with all the other games in the Agarest series, gamers can expect a role playing game with a deeply tactical combat system, an epic storyline spanning three generations and the ability to influence the characteristics of the next protagonist through your choice of bride in the game’s Soul Breeding system. However, beyond that the game has undergone some fairly radical changes.

Graphically, this new instalment in the series has been given a major facelift, so now you can enjoy all the characters, environments and CGs in glorious high definition. Similarly the combat system has been completely overhauled and is now much faster paced, while still offering great depth for those who want to really delve into the tactics of combat.
(more…)

Score:

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

Hi everyone. Today I’m here to talk to you about Ghostlight’s latest JRPG release, Fate/EXTRA. Developed by Imagepooch and TYPE-MOON, Fate/EXTRA is an epic PSP title set in a parallel universe to that of the hugely popular Japanese visual novel Fate/Stay Night.

At first glance, Fate/EXTRA appears to be set inside a Japanese high school. However, it soon becomes clear that something far stranger is at work, as the school itself is in fact an elaborate computer simulation designed as a battleground in the fight for the Holy Grail, a powerful artefact which will grant the victor’s desire. The students themselves are either mages seeking the grail, or merely NPCs created to ensure the smooth running of the tournament.

Summoning legendary heroes from the depths of the past (called ‘Servants’) to battle alongside them, the mages must battle each other to be the one to claim the Grail. But the stakes are high and only death awaits those who fall in battle.

Fate/EXTRA also features a truly original battle system, which, despite being simple to learn, has real depth and rewards those with the ability to think several moves ahead. Knowledge really is power, as the more you know about an enemy the more of their moves you’ll be able to see in advance. The ability to find out more about your upcoming opponent and learn an enemy’s favoured moves is crucial, and having to input six attacks at a time means that knowing when to use a skill to break an enemy’s combo, or working out which slot would be best accompanied by a healing item, separates the victorious from the vanquished.

Fate/EXTRA’s unique combat system, strong characterisation and clever plot twists make for a PSP JRPG that should not be missed. The Collector’s Edition of the game includes a stunning hardback digibook featuring the Official Soundtrack CD and artbooklet all housed in a special collector’s box. It will be released on PSP on 4th May priced at just £39.99 and what’s more, if you buy through the Ghostlight Store you’ll also receive a highly collectible Fate/The Facts magazine as well as an exclusive gigantic A1 poster featuring the box art in all its glory.

You can get all the news from Ghostlight over on the weekly Ghostlight Blog. You can also find us @GhostlightGames on Twitter, as GhostlightGames on Facebook and on our Ghostlight Google+ account.

Score:

• 15 Comments 7 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

I’m delighted to reveal that Ghostlight will be working with the wonderful people over at Idea Factory and Aksys to release the magnificent Agarest: Generations of War 2 in Europe, as part of one of fabulous Collector’s Editions.

The Story:

One day, the world was enveloped by a mysterious blinding light. The destruction it caused was terrible, even as the light itself was sublime in its beauty, and it made those who witnessed the awesome display think of the unrestrained rage and fury of the divine.

The central continent, from where the light is believed to have originated from, went silent, while at the same time demons began to spread throughout the world like a plague. Amongst the survivors of the catastrophe, that fateful day became known as the “Day of Light.”

Sometime after the events of the Day of Light, a young man by the name of Weiss, who had lost all memory of himself, encounters an enigmatic woman named Eva, who introduces herself as an Agent of the Divine. It is from her that Weiss learns that he has committed the grievous sin of deicide, and that in order for him to atone for his crime he is to become the “Vessel” in which the power of the divinity he had slaughtered will be stored. For it will be that power that will be used to resurrect the one whose life he stole.

For those who betray the divine will pay for their sins in the space which separates salvation and damnation, as will their progeny…

Agarest 2 features:

• Revamped Battle System: Unlike the first two games of the series, Agarest 2 battles are fought with an engaging active grid-based battle system.
• HD graphics: Enjoy your favorite characters, environments and CGs in high-definition!
• Mini-games: Engage in PlayStation Move compatible Bathtub, Shiatsu, and Massage mini-games.
• New Agarest Universe: Roam freely in the newly designed world of Agarest

Agarest: Generations of War 2 is due out in 2012.

Speaking of Agarest, I’m also glad to tell you that the final three pieces of Agarest: Generations of War Zero DLC – Voice Open, Face Gallery Open and Movie Gallery Open – are now available on the PlayStation Store. So, if you haven’t already, why not head over to the Agarest: Generations of War Zero section of the PlayStation Store and check out all our DLC, both free and paid.

You can get all the news from Ghostlight over on the weekly Ghostlight Blog. You can also find us as @GhostlightGames on Twitter, GhostlightGames Facebook and our brand new, shiny Ghostlight Google+ account.

Score:

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

Hi. As the observant among you noticed, both Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky and Persona 2: Innocent Sin are out on the 4th November 2011. Here at Ghostlight we realise that this may put undue strain on all you PSP owners’ wallets. That’s why we’ve created a fantastic deal for you over on the Ghostlight Webstore: the Trails of Innocence Combo Pack, which features the Collector’s Editions of both games, plus a stylish Persona 2 T-Shirt and a rolled A1 Trails in the Sky poster, all for £69.98, saving you a cool £10.

In my last blog I mentioned that there had been a few changes to Persona 2: Innocent Sin since coming to the PlayStation Portable and so I thought I’d tell you a bit more about the improvements that have been made to this classic JRPG. Persona 2: Innocent Sin now features:

• Improved visuals
• A new soundtrack in addition to the original’s soundtrack
• A new intro in addition to the original intro

• The interface has been improved to take advantage of the PSP’s wider display space

You now have the ability to switch between difficulty settings freely within the game.
The new Climax Theatre which includes lots of new optional dungeons and events for players to enjoy.

Of course we can’t forget about the other part of this amazing package

The North American release of Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky has been receiving rave reviews and, at the time of writing, has a rating of 80 on MetaCritic.

Trails in the Sky also features in 1UP.com’s Top 10 PSP games of 2011, with the site commenting that: “Trails in the Sky has a reputation among importers for being a huge, well told tale full of meaty combat and great characters” and on Joystiq Jason Schreier called it the best JRPG you haven’t played yet.

One of the more enjoyable systems in the game is the orbment system which, as well as improving your character’s abilities, is what controls which spells you have access to. Each character has a certain number of slots which are divided into rows, with each character having a different formation. In exchange for quartz you can get orbment fitted in an open slot where the most obvious effect for that an orbment will be listed. These effects range from an improvement to your stats, to gaining special abilities or gaining addition bonuses in battle. However, each orbment also has an elemental value. To decide your spell list, the game works out the total elemental value for an element on each line before using the highest value to decide which spells you can use. To make things slightly more complex, some slots are only able to hold certain types of orbment. I had a lot of fun playing around with various combinations to try and get the bonuses and skills I wanted, while trying to give myself access to the best spells as well.

There’s a lot of gameplay in Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky and my completed save time the first time I played through it was 54 hours 30 minutes and 29 seconds, however I did manage to miss out a few areas and sidequests in that playthrough, so you could easily spend more time in the game than that.

Please head over to our website to find out more about both of these fantastic games.

Score:

• 7 Comments 7 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook