thrAsher
01-14-2004, 10:07 AM
January 13, 2004 - The sequel to Otogi seemingly came out of nowhere when it was first shown back at the September Tokyo Game Show. With the original being one of the Xbox's bigger titles here in Japan, and the sequel not actually being labeled "Otogi 2," we originally assumed that developer From Software had merely slapped together some new levels for hungry Otogi fans out there. How wrong we were.
For Otogi: Hiyakki Toubatsue Maki (we'll refer to it as Otogi 2 from now on), From created a brand new graphics engine. While the original looked good, this sequel has enough graphical finesse to be one of the Xbox's best looking titles. We can't recall having ever seen a game combine such blazing color with screen-filling particle and lighting effects. You'll have to pick this game up just to set your eyes upon it.
Gameplay has also seen some hefty additions over the original. While the basic control layout remains the same, you can now play the game as six characters. Each character has his own special abilities and merits. Rai Kou, from the original, is the average character, with good balance for magic, attacks and movement. Other characters are strong in some areas and lacking in others. One character has a weak attack but can link combos better. Another character, who if we're not mistaken is a tree stump attached to a ship's steering column, can jump endlessly and attack from afar, but moves slowly.
You have to decide which character to use at a given time carefully. Levels in Otogi 2 are now split into multiple stages, accessible freely via an overworld map. The first level has two stages with the second having three. In any given level, you can use a character to clear only one stage. Once used, the character cannot be used for the other stages in that level. To decide which character to use you have to look closely at the stage's information, including details on the enemies that appear, prior to the start of the level. Or, you can just use trial and error.
Read the rest over @ IGN. (http://xbox.ign.com/articles/462/462433p1.html)
http://xboxmedia.ign.com/xbox/image/otogi2_tgs_092703_07.jpg
http://xboxmedia.ign.com/xbox/image/otogi2_tgs_092703_06.jpg
For Otogi: Hiyakki Toubatsue Maki (we'll refer to it as Otogi 2 from now on), From created a brand new graphics engine. While the original looked good, this sequel has enough graphical finesse to be one of the Xbox's best looking titles. We can't recall having ever seen a game combine such blazing color with screen-filling particle and lighting effects. You'll have to pick this game up just to set your eyes upon it.
Gameplay has also seen some hefty additions over the original. While the basic control layout remains the same, you can now play the game as six characters. Each character has his own special abilities and merits. Rai Kou, from the original, is the average character, with good balance for magic, attacks and movement. Other characters are strong in some areas and lacking in others. One character has a weak attack but can link combos better. Another character, who if we're not mistaken is a tree stump attached to a ship's steering column, can jump endlessly and attack from afar, but moves slowly.
You have to decide which character to use at a given time carefully. Levels in Otogi 2 are now split into multiple stages, accessible freely via an overworld map. The first level has two stages with the second having three. In any given level, you can use a character to clear only one stage. Once used, the character cannot be used for the other stages in that level. To decide which character to use you have to look closely at the stage's information, including details on the enemies that appear, prior to the start of the level. Or, you can just use trial and error.
Read the rest over @ IGN. (http://xbox.ign.com/articles/462/462433p1.html)
http://xboxmedia.ign.com/xbox/image/otogi2_tgs_092703_07.jpg
http://xboxmedia.ign.com/xbox/image/otogi2_tgs_092703_06.jpg