While I was away ...

I may have been tending to my dad (and mom) for the past week or so, but that doesn't mean I've been completely oblivious to the goings on in gaming world while I've "been away." Here are some of the stories that have popped onto my radar over the last few days:

* A bunch of Bravely Default demos are about to hit the Japanese eShop--If you're like me, you groaned when you read that they're only hitting the Japanese eShop for the time being. Here's hoping Square-Enix announces a western release for this 4 Heroes of Light-esque 3DS RPG soon--and pops the aforementioned demos onto the Australian, European and North American eShops tout de suite, too.

* Etrian Odyssey IV was announced--For the 3DS, of course. And, as of now, only for Japan. I have a feeling the folks at Atlus will bring Etrian Odyssey IV to North America eventually, though, and hopefully to Australia and Europe, too. Although I've yet to buy, let alone play, Etrian Odyssey II or III, I'm planning to pick up this sequel on day one--assuming it's released in my particular region, of course.

* Goodbye Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die, hello Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward--I don't know about you, but my 3DS wish list is currently about a mile long. One of the games that has been on said list for some time now: The Chunsoft-developed title, released just a few weeks ago in Japan, that's known in that territory as Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die. When it hits North America (via Aksys Games) later this year, though, its title will be changed to Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward. I prefer the Japanese name, to be perfectly honest, but I promise it won't keep me from pre-ordering this spooky successor--which is being prepped for the PS Vita, too--to the DS-based sleeper hit, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors.

* The Last Story is coming to North America this summer via Xseed Games--I have to admit, I wasn't all that shocked to read that the second of the three "Operation Rainfall" titles (Xenoblade Chronicles and Pandora's Tower being the other two), The Last Story, will be released in the States this summer (June 19, to be exact). What did shock me was the news that Xseed Games, and not Nintendo of America, will be publishing this Wii-based RPG in my neck of the woods. Now I just have to decide if I'll pick it up or not. (You can pre-order it here, if you're so inclined.)

* Mario Tennis Open finally has a North American release date--I've been waiting for this sporty 3DS title to get an official name and release date since it was announced during the most recent Tokyo Game Show. Well, both of those boxes were checked--the name can be seen in the bolded portion of this particular bullet point, while the release date is May 20--during the Nintendo Direct conference held a few days ago. I've already pre-ordered a copy for myself (via Amazon). How about you?

* Who's ready to return to the world of Pokémon Black/White?--Did you expect the folks at Game Freak to announce Pokémon Grey sometime this year? I sure did. That is the company's m.o., after all. As such, most people likely were taken aback when it announced Pokémon Black 2/ White 2 instead. (The games will hit the streets in Japan this summer and everywhere else this fall.) I'm still not sure what these sequels will bring to the table, but I'm hoping they'll bring enough to entice me into buying yet another copy of this maddeningly addictive game.

Did any of the announcements or reveals above pique your interest, too? If so, which ones--and why?