While preparing for the spectacle that is Tokyo Games Show, we were able to visit Bandai Namco Games’ HQ to have a look at some of their latest titles, away from the hustle and bustle of the show floor.
Surrounded by a few unassuming buildings in Shinagawa Seaside, the Large glass and metal pyramid that is the Namco Bandai Headquarters immediately catches your attention (A quick glance around the area also revealed that Konami’s offices were also nearby). Inside revealed a large open area with grass, trees/shrubs , motivational/inspirational slogans and a faux river, giving a really serene feeling for an office building.
Before long, we were straight into their specially prepared demo area, where we were able to try out several titles coming out this near and next year, including Tales of Zestiria.
Colin also checked out some of the available demos to get some first impressions on these new games:
“Project Cars is a stunning car simulation game which i find is a bit similar to Gran Turismo series. The demo I played was running on the PS4, which showed really detailed graphics for the cars, the environments and even the weather, which can change from sunny to heavy rain during the course of a race.
Fans of car simulation games should give this game a try as it is very similar to Gran Turismo. I personally found the game challenging just like GT.”
“The first thing I noticed when playing the Dragon ball Xenoverse is the improved graphics, since it is the first Dragon ball that’s coming for current generation consoles. The gameplay has changed slightly from how I remember, though I haven’t played the most recent Dragon ball games, like Battle of Z.
Following the tradition, the controls are straightforward; Normal attack, Ki attack, Fly, dash, block etc. Pressing L2 or R2 also give you access to your character’s special moves such as the Kamehameha Wave for Goku. One thing that catches my attention is the facial expression and animation of the fighting scenes. They have shown detail of the character’s pain and expression when taking hits which is a nice feature which is usually lost in fighting games. Sadly the game demo was only for the VS mode and I wasn’t able to give the story mode a try. If you’re a fan of the Dragon Ball series, Xenoverse could be worth looking out for.
The Free-to-play PC game, Rise of Incarnates, was also on show, since Bandai Namco announced several new features and a new character for the game. Fans of 2 v 2 arena battle games, like Gundam Extreme Vs, may be interested in taking a look at this one when it’s available on Steam Early Access in the coming weeks as it’s looking like a solid battle experience so far.
A range of characters, all with the ability to summon the power of various deities and transform, fight in these 2 man teams with close quarters melee weapon attacks and projectile attacks.
The the developers also mentioned that the game will only use micro-transactions for cosmetic add-ons, which should be a good move to prevent people from feeling that they have to pay more to be competitive.
Throught the day, we managed to get a close look at several interesting titles coming out from Bandai Namco and we’re looking forward to being able to get our hands on the final releases! After we were done with the demo sessions, we couldn’t help but wander around the HQ lobby a bit more do a a little bit of exploring and even found some exclusive and rare merchandise on display from Bandai Namco’s franchises.
