Let's Play: 'Which Box Art is Better?' (Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward edition)

A little disclaimer before I continue on with this post: I'm really happy--ecstatic, even--that someone (Aksys) decided to bring Chunsoft's Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die to the North American market.

That said, I'm not as happy with the name they chose for this particular localization: Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward. (Pre-order the 3DS version here and the Vita version here.) A much more appealing one, in my humble opinion, would have been something like Zero Escape: Good People Die.

Another aspect of this localization that I'm far from ecstatic about: Its cover art. Why? Well, take a look at the game's North American box art:

And then compare it to the art that graced the cover of the Japanese iteration, which was released on Feb. 16:

As I said in this previous post, I consider the latter to be one of the best examples of 3DS cover art. The former? Not even in the same league--thanks in part to its scrunching of Kinu Nishimura's beautiful illustration and thanks in part to its use of, as the guys at tinycartridge.com call it, "the TurboGrafx-16 font."

All of the above is just my opinion, of course. What's yours?

See also: Previous 'Which Box Art is Better?' posts

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.

Hubba hubba, part trois

It's been almost a year since I last wrote about the guys I consider to be gaming's hottest hunks, so I think it's about time I chimed in on this steamy subject once again, don't you?

The five studs below have been placed in alphabetical order, by the way. If I were to organize them from hottest to hot-but-not-quite-the-hottest, I'd probably put either Garcia Hotspur or Sigma in the pole position.

Chuck Greene (Dead Rising 2)--I included this series' dark-and-scruffily handsome Frank West in my first "Hubba Hubba" post, so why not include the blond-and-scruffily handsome protagonist of its second entry in this one? It helps, of course, that Greene looks more than a bit like actor Aaron Eckhart. Sure, he shows up as a psychopath in Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, but nobody's perfect, right?

Dunban (Xenoblade Chronicles)--Dunban is a special guy. Not only is he one of the few people capable of wielding the Monado, the legendary "energy blade" that serves as the centerpiece of this long-awaited Wii RPG, but he has a jaw so square it would make even Viggo Mortenson jealous. And then, of course, there's his flowing locks and muscular, tattooed torso. The only strike against this studly solider, as far as I can tell: He has a rather questionable sense of fashion. Oh, well, who wants to see him clothed anyway?

Enoch (El Shaddai)--To be completely honest, Enoch, the protagonist of this PS3/Xbox 360 action title, isn't my type. Oh, he's easy enough on the eyes, but he's just a bit too ... pretty for me. (I mean, look at that hair! Is Fabio his role model or something?) His guardian angel, Lucifel, on the other hand, is much more my cup of tea, if you get my drift. Still, I thought I should include a blond or two on this list, so there you go. (Pointless aside: Go here if you'd like to see some fan art that depicts Enoch and Lucifel "in flagrante delicto.")

Garcia Hotspur (Shadows of the Damned)--On the surface, Hotspur is your typical bad boy: He's covered in tattoos, he's got a facial scar, he has an affinity for leather (jackets, especially), his hair is dark and unkempt ... you get the picture, right? Dig a little deeper, though, and you discover that this questionably-named hunk has a softer side, too. (During the course of this Grasshopper Manufacture-made game, he goes to hell in order to save his true love.) Can I get an "awwwwwwwww"?

Sigma (Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die)--The Wikipedia entry for this upcoming Chunsoft-developed 3DS/Vita title says that Sigma, its main character, enjoys making risque jokes. In other words, he's pretty much the perfect guy. After all, it suggests he has a (crass) sense of humor as well as model good looks and a penchant for wearing what looks like a (form-fitting) mechanic's get-up. Be still my heart.

Honorable mentions: Hawke (Dragon Age II), Lucifel (El Shaddai), Reyn (Xenoblade Chronicles) and Skyrim's "Nude Muscle Bears" (link NSFW).

See also: 'Hubba hubba' and 'Hubba hubba, part deux'

Chunsoft's Extreme Escape Adventure (3DS/Vita) has some sexy cover art

I don't usually get all hot and bothered over game characters (despite what I've said in posts like this one and this one), but I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel at least a little tingle "down there" after catching my first glimpse of the cover art that was produced for Chunsoft's Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die (aka Kyokugen Dasshutsu Adv: Zennin Shibō Desu, due out in Japan on Feb. 16).

That's chiefly, if not completely, due to this 3DS and Vita game's main character, Sigma, who takes up the right half of said cover, of course. (Speaking of whom, more shots of Sigma can be ogled, I mean seen, on the game's official site.)

As nice as this game's cover art is, it's all for naught if it never leaves Japan, right? After all, Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die, like its predecessor--the DS-based sleeper hit, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors--is an "adventure game," which means lots and lots of text.

Unfortunately, no one has admitted to working on an English translation of the game at this point. That doesn't mean one isn't in the works, though; in fact, I'll be pretty shocked if Aksys Games doesn't lay claim to it sooner rather than later thanks to success the company had with the aforementioned 999.

So, I was all set to say that the Vita had moved up a few spots on my gaming wish list thanks to the announcement of a Little King's Story sequel ...

... and then I read (last night, via andriasang.com) that the game--whose Japanese name translates to something like, The King, The Demon King and the Seven Princesses: New Little King's Story--will feature "new visual stylings for its characters."

OK, I immediately thought to myself, maybe that just means the game will be even prettier than its Wii-based predecessor. Like, maybe it'll be in HD or something.

                       Don't expect to see such cute characters in New Little King's Story.

Then I read another post (this morning) on andrisang.com that said: "While the Wii version had cute 'super deformed' style characters, the Vita characters have more realistic proportions."

As if that weren't bad enough, it's currently unknown as to whether or not Yasuhiro Wada or Yoshiro Kimura, executive producer and producer/ director of the original Little King's Story, respectively, are at all involved in the development of the sequel.

Don't worry, Sony fanboys and fangirls, even if New Little King's Story ends up being the gaming equivalent of a steaming pile of dog poo, I'll probably still get a Vita at some point in the future--especially since the folks who made last year's critically acclaimed DS title, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, are working on a similar game for the Sony's PSP successor (as well as the 3DS).

                              The cast of Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die.

The game, called Gyokugen Dasshutsu Adv: Zennin Shiboudes (aka Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die), will be a "game of betrayal," according to developer Chunsoft, and will feature nine people who must escape from a warehouse in which they're trapped.

For more information about Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die, check out this post over at andriasang.com.