Gamasutra's regular round-up of worldwide video game releases, "Release This!", takes a look at every game title we know to be shipping to stores this week, in an exclusively compiled list.
This week brings the U.S. release of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and Castle of Shikigami III. Gamers in the UK can expect to see Doctor Who and Silent Hill: Origins, while Japan prepares for Luminous Arc 2: Will and Totsugeki!! Famicom Wars VS.
The following list covers all of the game software we know to be available -- across all platforms and regions -- for the week ending May 17th, 2008.
Games Released in the United States:
The license-based The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian makes its way to all consoles in the United States this week. Multiplatform offerings are otherwise slim, with the majority of this week's releases debuting on Nintendo's platforms.
DS owners can expect to see the sci-fi strategy title Drone Tactics and a port of the classic PC adventure title Myst. The Nintendo Wii boasts the largest release lineup of the week, with featured titles including localized shooter sequel Castle of Shikigami III, olympic-styled sports competition Deca Sports, and the Wii Fit Balance Board-compatible skiing simulator We Ski.
This Monday will additionally mark the debut of the WiiWare downloadable software service, which is expected to bring several more releases to Nintendo's console in the coming week.
Games Released in Europe:
A budget-priced rerelease of the Xbox 360 version of Gears of War highlights Europe's limited release lineup for the week, as the title has yet to see a similar rerelease in North America. Also premiering in the UK this week are the PSP to PS2 port of Konami's Silent Hill: Origins and the multiplatform and Europe-exclusive Doctor Who.
Games Released in Japan:
Business is back to a slow start in Japan after the Golden Week holiday period, with only a small handful of new releases set to debut this week. Console gamers can expect to see Japanese localizations of Totsugeki!! Famicom Wars VS (Battalion Wars 2) and The Darkness, as the adventure title Aoishiro and Slotter Up Core 10: Mach Go Go Go 2 premiere on the PlayStation 2.
Portables see a more varied spread of new releases, with the Nintendo DS receiving the RPG sequel Luminous Arc 2: Will and roguelike Dungeon of Windaria, while PSP owners can expect to find Bleach: Heat the Soul 5 and the Hammerin' Harry remake Ikuze! Gen-San: Yuuyake Daiku Monogatari.
Nintendo Wii: - Castle of Shikigami III - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - Deca Sports - We Ski Xbox 360: - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian PlayStation 3: - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian | PlayStation 2: - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian Nintendo DS: - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - Drone Tactics - Myst PC: - Baseball Mogul 2009 - Ford Racing: Off Road |
Nintendo Wii: - Dream Pinball 3D - Pop! PlayStation 2: - Doctor Who - Silent Hill: Origins Nintendo DS: - Doctor Who - Draglade - Street Football | PC: - Doctor Who - Iron Man - Painkiller Universe - Sword of the Stars: Collector's Edition - Warhammer: Mark of Chaos - Battle March |
Nintendo Wii: - Totsugeki!! Famicom Wars VS Xbox 360: - The Darkness PlayStation 2: - Aoishiro - Slotter Up Core 10: Mach Go Go Go 2 Nintendo DS: - 1500 DS Spirits Vol.10: Igo - Dungeon of Windaria - Luminous Arc 2: Will - Mahjong Navi DS - Nanatsuiro * Drops: Touch de Hajimaru Hatsukoi Monogatari | PlayStation Portable: - Bleach: Heat the Soul 5 - Ikuze! Gen-San: Yuuyake Daiku Monogatari - Keibatsuu Portable PC: - Alice in Deep Forest: Fukai Mori no Kuni no Alice |