Paper Mario x Pokémon anyone?

I was all set to publish a post about something else entirely this morning when I came across the following video, which includes the first footage of The Band of Thieves & 1000 Pokémon, a free-to-play 3DS title that will be made available to Japanese gamers beginning on June 5 (and ending on Sept. 30).

The main reason this game's got me feeling rather chuffed at the moment is that this first footage makes it appear as though the title combines the gameplay of my least favorite StreetPass title, Warrior’s Way, with the adorable characters of the Pokémon universe and the aesthetics of the Paper Mario series.



Sadly, I'm not sure how enjoyable it will be for Westerners to play The Band of Thieves & 1000 Pokémon should it leave Japan (and there's certainly no guarantee it will--especially since I don't believe the movie this game is tied to has been announced for European or North American release) as the only way to increase the size and strength of your party is to StreetPass with other people who are currently playing it.

Oh, well, I'm going to download the game as soon as it hits the Japanese eShop anyway, if only to see, in person, as many of the cute little Paper Pokémon characters as possible.

(Via serebii.net by way of japanese3ds.com)