Atlus continues its streak of Persona for the PSP with the announcement that they will be publishing Persona 3 Portable for the PSP. While Persona 3 for the PS2 was a huge hit and introduced many people to the Persona series, Persona 3 Portable looks to enhance the original game and add mechanics that were introduced in Persona 4. In addition players will be able to play a new female protagonist.

As the female protagonist there will be new social links to experience and unique romantic experiences. Players will also be able to control their teammates players, use skill cards, get a part-time job, and be able to chose from five difficulty settings.

Atlus claims that with all the new content, Persona 3 Portable will add dozens of hours of play to the original 100+ hour Persona 3 game.

Persona 3 Portable will be available on UMD and PSN July 6, 2010. You can check out the official Persona 3 Portable site here.

Hot off the heels of the announcement that Atlus will be publishing 3D Dot Game Heroes comes the launch trailer of the game. It looks very familiar to the some old school action-adventure games; Zelda comes to mind. The graphics and music of the video already make me want to have this in my PS3 now. Check out the retro, nostalgia-inducing video.

Atlus usually has great taste when it comes to what games they publish. With Demon’s Soul being their first PS3 game, they have now chosen their next game to publish.  3D Dot Game Heroes, which they have already announced will be available for the PS3 in May 2010, will cost only $39.99!

A long, long time ago, the Dark King Onyx brought an age of darkness upon Dotnia Kingdom.  Only by the bravery of a hero with a legendary sword was Onyx sealed in an orb, restoring peace to the world.  But Fuelle, a powerful Dark Bishop, has stolen the orb, and with it, peace.  Dotnia requires a hero once more!  Can you live up to the legend?

I don’t know about you, but that sounds awfully similar to some action-adventure games I played when I was young.

Key Features

Ultimate retro love letter — Seamlessly fusing new and old, the golden era of gaming is felt in every detail of this lovingly-crafted adventure. Eye-popping visuals capture the nostalgic charm of pixel graphics in cutting edge 3D. Simple, but deep action-adventure gameplay is a throwback to the 8-bit era. Veterans will find references and jokes that pay homage to the great games of yore.

Awe and adventure live again — Embark on the next generation of classic exploration and discovery in a grand story-based quest. A hero sets out to gain the power of the six sages and the six orbs that protected the kingdom of Dotnia, which now stands on the verge of destruction.

Customize your hero — When pixels are your building blocks, the possibilities are unlimited. Freely edit the look of your character, or design one completely from scratch, and then trade designs with friends via a compatible USB storage device. Your hero’s blade is also upgradeable, letting you add length and width to create a sword that fills the whole screen!

You can also check out the official 3D Dot Game Heroes website here.

Demon’s Souls will be available to kick your ass on the PS3 October 6 for $59.99. There will also be a “Deluxe Edition” available for an extra $10 that will also include a 160-page strategy guide and collectible slipcase.

Oh, and make sure you check out the awesome new music and graphics for the opening of the game.

Interface

There is a lot to keep your eyes on during this game. The first time I turned it on I was met with New Game, Continue, and Teaching Options at the main menu. Thinking “aw, this should be pretty self-explanatory, I bet they introduce all the rules during the intro gameplay” I started a new game right off the bat.

After a brilliant cutscene intro, I was asked to select my weapons from a vast list containing a flood of statistics, icons, and various unidentified numbers. I picked some random weapons and moved on to the actual gameplay, none of which contained any instructional dialogue whatsoever. As it turns out, the Teaching Options menu contains an hour or so worth of tutorial videos that I advise you to view in order to understand the game fully. After becoming fully schooled, there are still a lot of bars, numbers, and icons to keep your attention on at any given time during a round.

Gameplay

The gameplay here is exceptionally unique and delightfully frantic. It requires the cerebral planning and character/item construction of a tactics RPG, with the fast-paced frenzy of a good shmup. During the setup phase before each round, knights are placed on the field and up to 4 weapons are selected. During the action phase the player controls a wisp, the main character of the game. It is up to the wisp to fly about the field of battle and activate each knight’s attacks against the enemies. Normal attacks can be queued up which will do damage and release crystals. These can be picked up to charge MP, which will in turn be used to activate weapon skills. Only by using weapons, however, is it possible to KILL an enemy with a special combo. The player can alternate the playfield between Chaos and Law phases, which affects the attack ranges of each knight differently. The wisp must also dodge the swarms of projectiles launched by the enemies, or the timer for each round will dwindle each time it’s hit. All of these things combine to create an experience which keeps all of the brain’s pistons firing.

Artwork

In the same vein of masterpieces like Odin Sphere and Disgaea, the game features intricately detailed and vibrant 2D sprites. Each level takes place on an isometric grid, also placed within a masterfully crafted setting. As with most shmups, the attacks thrown at you by the various enemies are all very colorful and well designed.

These are just the things which came to mind right off the top of my head. So far after a little bit of practice and some time in the tutorials, the controls are coming together for me and I’m getting used to it. Depending on what kinds of extended gameplay are involved later, this may be one of my first games from Gamefly that I decide to keep for good. For just under 30 bucks, it seems like a steal for the unique gameplay experience alone.

Developed by Vanillaware, Odin Sphere was brought stateside by RPG supergroup Atlus in 2007 for the PS2. While most games these days tend to equate fancy 3D graphics with quality, Odin Sphere stuck with a tried and true 2D sidescrolling perspective. Filled to the brim with some of the most vividly creative and unique art direction, the sidescrolling aspect fits the game perfectly and never grows stale. Multiple layers of background artwork scroll by, often depicting intriguing scenes of action or grand sprawling vistas behind the player, giving a fantastic level of depth to the experience.

The story-telling in the game is paramount, finding the player working their way through the individual storylines of five separate characters and then piecing together how each plot fits together to form the grand finale. Each tale is unveiled through cutscenes which use the in-game sprites and contain multi-lingual dialogue which can be switched between the original Japanese and English dubbed voice acting. Between the superb voice-acting, cunning plot twists, and some very flawed and tragic characters, the story in Odin Sphere rivals that of any classical prose.

In regards to gameplay, Odin Sphere is a standout title of it’s own class. The game plays out primarily like a traditional sidescrolling beat-em-up akin to the original Ninja Turtles and Streets of Rage titles. The character moves from map to map, using their uniquely powered “Psyphers” to battle enemies. What sets this game apart from the rest is the slew of RPG elements thrown into the mix. Each character’s weapon can improve in strength and power by absorbing “phozons” which are essentially spirit energy released from fallen baddies. The character’s health points can ALSO be leveled up through eating meats and fruits, which are often grown during each level by absorbing these phozons as well. Therefore it is up to the player to decide whether to spend phozons leveling up their powers, or use them to grow plants which can be used to increase their HP. This adds a whole new dimension of strategical planning, often forcing the player to replay a map several times in order to most efficiently defeat the bad guys and keep the inventory stocked with food.

A unique alchemy system is also put into place to add even more depth to the gameplay. Using a variety of ingredients and flasks gathered throughout your journey, it is possible to mix potions on the fly to do anything from heal you to give you unlimited psypher energy with which to pull off super moves. Did I mention that mixing potions will also provide you with phozons? The more complicated recipes will provide you with a massive dose of the spirits, so it’s important to keep these materials on you as well in case you’re in need of a quick phozon boost.

All in all, Odin Sphere is an incredibly unique and artistic game that is fun and challenging to boot. At just around 20 dollars, it’s easy on the pocket book as well, which is fantastic in today’s economy. If you don’t own a PS2, you could almost buy this game AND the system for the price of a new next gen title, depending on where you look. And then you would have the satisfaction of knowing you’ve experienced one of the most important 2D experiences of our generation. Enjoy!