Don't know if anyone but me will have the cojones to post in this thread.
SAKURA WARS: SO LONG, MY LOVE is the fifth installment in the Sakura Taisen video game series (not counting the various spin-offs), and the first one to be localized for the US! This is something I genuinely thought would never, ever happen!
This series is a strategy RPG/adventure/anime sim hybrid which first began on the Sega Saturn all the way back in the mid-'90s. The first two games had fairly simple strategy sections, but the meat of the game was always in the adventure sections of the game, where the story progressed in a way designed to make you feel like you were playing through an anime TV show, right down to the eyecatches in the middle of episodes and "coming next episode" previews. No game replicates the experience of sort of being in the middle of the action in an anime show, better.
The folks responsible for the Sakura Taisen series are:
Hiroi Ouji: The series' creator, also worked as the head of Red Company and one of the creative minds behind a number of Japanese-only video game series like Tengai Makyo and Kita E.
Kosuke Fujishima: The character concept designer, probably most famous as the creator of the Oh My Goddess! and You're Under Arrest manga series.
Hidenori Matsubara: The character designer, in charge of all the in-game artwork and all the secondary character designs aside from the playable characters. Probably best known for his work on Gankutsuou (The Count of Monte Cristo anime) as well as the new Evangelion movies.
Satoru Akahori: The scriptwriter, popular for his work in manga and animation and known for his offbeat, somewhat perverted sense of humor. His works include Bakuretsu Hunters (Sorcerer Hunters in the US), Saber Marionette J, and Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi.
The Story:The games' setting is an alternate early 20th century. Steam technology rules the day, and the Japanese government has gathered together a top-secret group of spiritually powerful warriors from all over the world who pilot steam-powered mecha to fight against demons. Of course, since this special team is 'top secret', all the members have cover identities...working as popular actors in a theater which doubles as their secret base.
This is part of the fun of the series, as it is a ridiculously entertaining mishmash of various aspects of Japanese culture: the all-female Takarazuka theatrical troupes, sentai shows, shonen anime...even early silent films and other forms of nostalgic popular culture get constantly referenced throughout the games.
where steampunk mecha piloted by spiritually powerful people fight against demons. And the game really is a ridiculous mish-mash of Japanese culture, so it's not surprising the series has never gotten localized here.
Sakura Taisen 1, 2 and 4 took place in Tokyo, ST3 took place in Paris, and with ST5, which takes place in New York, an entire new cast is introduced, including a new main character, making it easier for anyone who's not familiar with the series to get into the game without having to worry about knowing anything regarding the continuity.
The Gameplay:While ST1 & 2 were both fairly simple, isometrically-based strat. RPGs (so simple that they didn't even used leveling - your troops' strength was determined by how you interacted with them during the games' adventure sections), the battle system was drastically changed from ST3 onwards. The ARMS (Active & Real-time Machine System) battle system resembles that of Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (in fact, I'm pretty sure DQ's battle system was influenced by ST3's, which was released a couple of years earlier). You have action points and can perform as many actions as your points allow, whether it be moving, attacking repeatedly, replenishing your energy, etc. A simple example would be that you could use all your action points for movement, or, if you are near an enemy, you can attack him multiple times until your action points are depleted and not move at all.
A new feature in ST5 is the ability to switch between 'ground' and 'air' during battles.
Outside of battle, you adventure segments use a system called LIPS (Live & Interactive Picture System). You move around a map and interact with the various characters, and often have the opportunity to answer their questions or make statements to them. Depending on your actions during the adventure segments, your crew will perform better or worse on the battlefield and new story sequences may open up in future episodes.
The Release Date:The game is scheduled to come out in March for PlayStation 2 and the Wii. If you buy the game through NIS America's online shop, you can get a special "Unforgettable Memories" collector's edition which includes a hardbound artbook and poster!
The PlayStation 2 version is 2 discs, and you're essentially getting two copies of the game - one disc has the game with Japanese voice-overs, while the other has the game in dubbed form. The ST games have so much voice acting that it was impossible to fit both languages in one disc. The Wii version is dub-only, and is priced ten dollars cheaper because of it.
PS2 version - $39.99
Wii version - $29.99
The website:http://www.sakurawars.us/The pre-order site:
http://rosenqueen.com/_search.php?page=1&q=sakura+wars+memories
