Namco Hometek Inc. Announces Its Handheld Lineup (DS, GBA)

FoneBone

Member
Nothing too exciting... but this is the first real info on some of these games. Wasn't Mr. Driller 2 a GBA launch title in Japan?

http://www.namco.com/corporate/pressreleases/news_item_data.php?id=52

NAMCO HOMETEK INC. ANNOUNCES ITS HANDHELD LINEUP
Ace Combat Advance™, Pac-Man Pinball, Klonoa® 2, Mr. DRILLER® 2, Ridge Racer® DS and Mr. DRILLER® Drill Spirits Among Upcoming Releases
12/01/2004
San Jose, Ca., (Dec. 1, 2004) – Leading video games publisher and developer Namco Hometek Inc. announced today the current lineup to be released from its newly created internal handheld games division. The first releases from the division will hit the market beginning this Fall and continue through early 2005 and will include Ace Combat Advance™, Pac-Man Pinball, Klonoa® 2: Dream Champ Tournament, Mr. DRILLER® 2 for Game Boy Advance™ and Mr. DRILLER® Drill Spirits™ and Ridge Racer® DS for the Nintendo DS™.



“With the rise in popularity in handheld gaming systems, gamers are no longer forced to the confines of their living rooms,” said Jeff Lujan, Business Unit Director, Namco Hometek Inc. “We wanted to offer our fans the opportunity to play games from their favorite Namco franchises anywhere they go and our current lineup is just the beginning of the great products we’ll have to offer.”



With some of the best graphics available on Game Boy Advance, Ace Combat Advance casts the player as a pilot in the United Air Defense. As the newest recruit, you must help the UAD to destroy the Air Strike Force and bring General Resources Ltd., an evil worldwide economic superpower, to its knees. Ace Combat Advance features an overhead perspective with intense action over a variety of air-to-air and air-to-ground environments. Players can choose from 10 planes and 12 missions, and can unlock new planes and weapons based on their skill as a pilot. Ace Combat Advance will be available on Game Boy Advance in February 2005.



Pac-Man Pinball features the beloved Pac-Man in his first video pinball game, exclusively for Game Boy Advance. Pac-Man takes on the role of the pinball, and his foes Blinky, Inky, Pinky and Clyde are going to do their best to stop him from rescuing the kidnapped residents of Pac-World. Pac-Man Pinball offers multi-ball play with the aid of Ms. Pac-Man, and challenges players to mini-games to keep the action fresh. True to Pac-Man tradition, players can also collect dots and power pellets for points and upgrades. Pac-Man Pinball will be available on Game Boy Advance in 2005.





-more-

Floppy-eared hero Klonoa returns in another fast-paced, colorful side-scrolling adventure in Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament. Combining platform, puzzle and adventure elements, players must race against time and other dream travelers in the Dream Champ Tournament to collect stars, sun and moon fragments and become the ultimate Dream Champion. Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament offers five new puzzle-packed worlds where players must use boxes, bomb boxes, switches, goomies, springs and scales in their quest for glory. Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament will be available for Game Boy Advance in February 2005.



The world is being overrun by colored blocks, which are coming from deep underground in the colorful, fast-paced puzzle game Mr. DRILLER 2. In the game, MR. DRILLER meets his competition, Anna Hottenmayer, in the sequel to the critically acclaimed Mr. DRILLER. She’s bursting with attitude and determined to show MR. DRILLER just who the real hero is. Players can test their drill skills in three modes of play – Mission Driller, Endless Driller and Time Attack Driller scenarios, and can even take on their friends by connecting two Game Boy Advance consoles using a Game Boy Advance™ Game Link™ cable. Mr. DRILLER 2 will be available on Game Boy Advance in 2005.



Mr. DRILLER Drill Spirits offers the ultimate in drilling action, where players utilize the stylus and innovative dual-screen interface to avoid falling blocks and scramble for air capsules, in order to rescue their fellow Drillers, or collect power capsules to destroy the menacing Destroyer Drill! Players can play anytime, anywhere with various quick play modes or battle head-to-head with up to four other players through the Nintendo DS wireless capabilities. Mr. DRILLER Drill Spirits is now available for the Nintendo DS.



From the arcade racing series gamers know and love, Ridge Racer DS delivers a whole new experience to racing fans by offering true analog steering through the Nintendo DS touch screen, up to six-player multiplayer races, a variety of exciting single-player racing modes and much more. Ridge Racer DS offers all the fast-paced action gamers have come to expect from the Ridge Racer name – now in the palm of their hands on the Nintendo DS. Ridge Racer DS will be available for the Nintendo DS in early December 2004.
 
Why on earth would those morons bring over Mr Driller 2 instead of Mr Driller Ace. 2 was a day-one launch title for GBA in Japan, while the vastly improved Ace came out in 2002.

I wanna love Namco, especially after the Katamari-in-US triumph, but that's just kinda fucked! If you're gonna bring over a couple drillers, make em Drill Land and Ace please.
 
Driller 2's already been translated and boxed up for europe, so it's not surprising they'd start with that one. plus I bet it'll be $20 or something, further lowering the risk factor for them.

also do we really need another doubtlessly-lame mascot pinball game for gba?! what's next, rayman?!!? (OH SHIT SHHH)
 
bobbyconover said:
Why on earth would those morons bring over Mr Driller 2 instead of Mr Driller Ace. 2 was a day-one launch title for GBA in Japan, while the vastly improved Ace came out in 2002.

I wanna love Namco, especially after the Katamari-in-US triumph, but that's just kinda fucked! If you're gonna bring over a couple drillers, make em Drill Land and Ace please.

They might still bring them. Just be happy anything is coming, and hope they build on it.
 
Namco has released some visually impressive games on the GBA of late. Ms. Pac-Man, I-Ninja and Pac 20th Ann just to name a few. I'm sure Ace Combat Advance will deliver in this respect as well. But it seems recently the publishing duties of RRDS have turned to Namco, instead of Nintendo.
 
Maybe the reason Namco decided to bring over Driller 2 was it was previously released in Europe and has already been translated into English. Driller Ace would need to be localized(I think). But I agree, Driller Ace is a far superior game. It is the most played title on my GBA for sure. Pacteria mode RULES.
 
evilromero said:
Namco has released some visually impressive games on the GBA of late. Ms. Pac-Man, I-Ninja and Pac 20th Ann just to name a few. I'm sure Ace Combat Advance will deliver in this respect as well. But it seems recently the publishing duties of RRDS have turned to Namco, instead of Nintendo.
I'm pretty sure Namco didn't have much of anything to do with those first 2, aside from licensing -- Destination published them.
 
Soul4ger said:
Just be happy anything is coming, and hope they build on it.

That's one way of looking at it. Another is that by releasing barely-updated versions of an already poorly-received game they'll ensure negative reviews (see the Gamespot/IGN double whammy yesterday), thus poor sales, and will see no incentive to release the other (awesome, vastly improved) sequels in the US. Furthermore, they'll cause me years of pain and anguish as I feebly attempt to explain to people that really really good games in the series DO exist, but were, by some horrible twist of fate, the only ones not brought to the US! Aggghhhhh! :(

I'm really glad about the Klonoa G2 arrival, though, and I think Pac Pinball has tons of potential. Strangely enough, I have a (real) Pac-man pinball machine sitting right next to me that I've been trying to sell for months.
 
FoneBone said:
I'm pretty sure Namco didn't have much of anything to do with those first 2, aside from licensing -- Destination published them.

and anyone who thinks any of those are "visually impressive" either haven't played them or really are that insane.
 
jooey said:
and anyone who thinks any of those are "visually impressive" either haven't played them or really are that insane.

kill.switch GBA > kill.switch Xbox

YEA U HERD ME RIGHT.

And you're right, bobby, but I have to think that Namco knows the Driller games aren't going to get glowing reviews over here. There's a significant difference between the absolute whackfest the media threw over Katamari, and the general apathy with which they approach games like Mr. Driller. Especially on portables, there's a serious puzzle niche waiting to be tapped. And MD is a great series for that. Maybe I'm too positive sometimes.
 
Whoo, another Driller for America.

Of course, it's another Driller that'll get mediocre reviews because it's the it's the same thing as all the other Drillers released here, but that's beyond the point.

I'm just hoping this is all some sort of conditioning to jade reviewers and consumers alike to the Driller franchise, thus increasing the allure of Drill Land's varied gametypes when the US version (hopefully) arrives next summer.

....
 
I'm looking at gamestop and they have I-Ninja listed as 2-1-05. they also have pre-owned copies of the game available. I'm not sure how that's possible, but ok.

Has there been any media of Ace Combat Advance yet?
 
it's nice that namco's release schedule has become barren enough that they're forced to pick from their killer japanese releases, but damn, they're stupid about what they pick.
 
I lent my copy of Klonoa for the GBA last week to a friend, and I swear to God, if that thing is at all messed up or lost, there will be hell to pay!
 
ace4.jpg
ace5.jpg


this is NOT Ace Combat ;_;
 
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