This is a rather packed week for game releases across the Western territories, where the pre-Thanksgiving blitz appears to be in full swing, in terms of both quantity and quality. However, the Japanese release schedule still remains agreeably steady.
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Games released in the United States:
PlayStation 2: ShellShock: Nam '67, Gradius V, Demon Stone, Sly 2: Band of Thieves, Gungrave: Overdose, Vietcong: Purple Haze, Bad Boys: Miami Takedown, Power Rangers: Dino Thunder, Jimmy Neutron: Attack of the Twonkies, Dog's Life, Asterix and Obelix: Kick Buttix
Xbox: Fable, Guilty Gear X2#, ShellShock: Nam '67, Vietcong: Purple Haze, Carmen Sandiego: Secret Of The Stolen Drums, Bad Boys: Miami Takedown, Power Rangers: Dino Thunder, Jimmy Neutron: Attack of the Twonkies
GameCube: Phantasy Star Online I and II Plus, Zoids: Battle Legends, Jimmy Neutron: Attack of the Twonkies, Carmen Sandiego: Secret Of The Stolen Drums, Bad Boys: Miami Takedown, Power Rangers: Dino Thunder
PC: ShellShock: Nam '67, The Sims 2, NHL 2005, Madden 2005, EverQuest: Omens of War, Call of Duty: United Offensive
Game Boy Advance: Zoids Advance, kill.switch
The U.S. explodes this month, with masses of releases on all fronts. The long-awaited, Peter Molyneux-associated Xbox RPG
Fable finally ships, and Sucker Punch's
Sly 2, a sequel to an arguably under-rated PS2 game, slinks out to retail. Also noticeable on PC is
The Sims 2, the sequel to Will Wright's giganto-selling
Little Computer People-a-like phenomenon. Meanwhile, Treasure/Konami's
Gradius V, Sega's
Phantasy Star Online I and II Plus, and the Mastiff-published, Red-developed budget release
Gungrave: Overdose keep the hardcore happy. As the spending season ramps up, there are plenty of titles for kids, too, with new
Jimmy Neutron and
Power Rangers games hitting the consoles.
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Games released in Europe:
PlayStation 2: Silent Hill 4: The Room, Resident Evil Outbreak, Crisis Zone, Madden NFL 2005, Dangerous Hunts, Dynasty Warriors 4 Platinum
Xbox: Madden NFL 2005, Silent Hill 4: The Room
GameCube: Madden NFL 2005, WWE Day of Reckoning
PC: , The Sims 2, Final Fantasy XI, Kohan 2: Kings of War
Game Boy Advance: Mario Golf: Advance Tour
European consumers will be delighted to get Konami's
Silent Hill 4, and perhaps slightly less so for Capcom's
Resident Evil Outbreak (not online-enabled in Europe) and
Madden 2005 (not the right kind of football), though they are likely to be enthused by the big-everywhere
The Sims 2. Square Enix's
Final Fantasy XI also makes its European debut on PC this week as well, but the PS2 version has yet to surface.
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Games released in Japan
PlayStation 2: Angelique Etoile, Final Fantasy XI: Chains of Promathia, Kowloon Youma Gakuenki, Sengoku Musou: Moushouden, Spectral Force: Radical Elements, Pro Yakyuu Spirits 2004 Climax, Tennis no Oji-Sama: Form The Strongest Team, Usagi: Yasei no Topai - THE ARCADE, Yamashiro Mahjong-Hen
PC: Final Fantasy XI: Chains of Promathia
Game Boy Advance: Pokemon Emerald
The Japan list is more for specialized tastes this week, apart from Nintendo's still-massive
Pokemon Emerald GBA franchise-extension, with the girls’ dating simulator
Angelique Etoile releasing, along with a few sports and mahjong titles. The other big news is probably simultaneous PS2 and PC debuts for
Final Fantasy XI: Chains of Promathia, the new expansion for the Final Fantasy online world.
Sources:
NCSX,
Play Asia,
GAME,
EB Games
