Finally, another reason to pull out my PSP

I hate to admit it, but my PSP hasn't received much love since I picked it up earlier this year. In fact, I've bought just one game in the past five months: Patchwork Heroes.

That PSN-only title is about to have some company thanks to the impending release of Cladun: This is an RPG.



Don't worry if the name Cladun doesn't ring any bells; in Japan, the game was called Classic Dungeon.

Why am I going to buy this game, which will hit the PS Store on Sept. 7? Well, one gamer who played through the Japanese version described it as a mash-up of Disgaea, Shiren the Wanderer and Ys, three of my all-time-favorite titles.

(Via gamepro.com and rpgfan.com)

The gayest (Dragon Quest IX) party ever

The only way my Dragon Quest IX party (below) could be any gayer is if it included Babs, Cher, Judy or Lady Gaga.

My diva-licious Dragon Quest IX party (clockwise from the upper-left corner):
Madonna, Utada, Beyonce and Janet.

Actually, I would have included the first three if I had thought of it--as any of them would be a worthwhile replacement for Utada, who I adore but who really isn't a gay icon.

I thought of including Lady Gaga but decided against it because without the ability to give her a big schnoz she'd look just like Madonna--and that ain't right.

I'll be back ...

... to normal next week.

I wasn't able to post as often as I would have liked this week due to having a lot on my plate professionally. (A blogger has to pay the bills, you know.) Next week should be much better, though, so expect things to get back to normal then.

Normally I'd post once or twice over the weekend, but I just got my copy of Dragon Quest IX (booyah!) and, honestly, I'd rather spend some quality time with it than with all of you. (Please don't take that personally.)

Actually, I've got portable RPGs on the brain

Once my obsessions with Dragon Quest IX and Etrian Odyssey have ended--and they will, sooner rather than later--I think I'll turn my obsessive energies toward Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light.

I'm going to pre-order the game well before its Oct. 5 release date, however, since Amazon.com is offering a $10 credit to all who do so between now and then.

If you're still on the fence about this Final Fantasy spin-off, check out this trailer (from the recent E3 event) or the title's official site.

See also: 'Let's play: Which box art is better? (The 4 Heroes of Light edition)'

I've got Dragon Quest on the brain

I know that's probably hard to believe considering two of my last three posts have been about Etrian Odyssey and not the latest entry in Yuji Horii's Dragon Quest saga.

The fact is, I am a bit obsessed with Etrian Odyssey these days. (You would be, too, if you gave it a go.) At the same time, though, I'm eagerly (and impatiently) awaiting my copy of Dragon Quest IX. It's going to be quite interesting to see which game ends up winning the battle for my affection and attention.

Anyway, in an attempt to make this post about more than my boring blatherings, here's a compilation Japanese Dragon Quest TV commercials:



I'm particularly fond of the Dragon Quest IV ads that show up around the 1:00 mark. The second one, featuring the guy with the Flock of Seagulls 'do, is my hands-down favorite, despite the fact that it doesn't make a lick of sense.

(Via tinycartridge.com/post)