140°

PS3 Review: Ni no Kuni Wrath of the White Witch | RPG Land

"It turns on the charm, the entertainment, and the fun from the first hours, and doesn’t turn them off throughout the entire duration of the sixty hours you’ll probably spend finishing it. Exploring the world map never gets old, the battle system stays thrilling, and the characters are lovable. Nothing about this game is phoned in. It contains the same elements and same spirit that made so many of us fall in love with the genre in the first place. It doesn’t have a complicated, emotional, life-changing message or story, but it doesn’t have to. It touches a deep vein of nostalgia and childlike wonder." -Janelle Hindman's review

knifefight4196d ago

Fantastic RPG.

Also, the image is a reference to the RPGLand front-page quote about the review, which says, "We don’t use numbers for reviews anymore, but this is our equivalent of the famed '10 out of 10,' and only the fourth game to get the rating at RPGLand."

Sev4196d ago

Wow. That's definitely impressive. I'll have to take a look. Now I know why my friend Nick was so smitten by this game.

guitarded774196d ago

I'm so excited for this game to come to the States. Since Final Fantasy has deviated from what I loved about the series, I'm putting all of my hope for a great JRPG into Ni no Kuni.

izumo_lee4196d ago (Edited 4196d ago )

Did some checking & the games that has received this 'legendary' score are:

Final Fantasy 7
Valkyria Chronicles
Legend of Zelda - Wind Waker
Ni No Kuni

Though Mass Effect 1 did get a 10 also.

raWfodog4195d ago

This is the only game that I am looking forward to this holiday season (Jan 23 still counts, right?) and the only one in many years that I will be picking up on day 1. It is so important to show our support for this level of quality in an RPG so that we can keep them coming to the US.

Seriously, any RPG fan who complains that the genre is dying and no longer innovative should have this game on their must-buy list. If not, you should never have the right to complain again :)

DivineAssault 4196d ago (Edited 4196d ago )

Thats awesome.. Theres plenty of extras & hidden areas to discover.. Side quests included makes it 60+hrs to complete so im happy.. Cant wait to get my hands on this one... It looks beautiful & ive been waiting on a jrpg like this since i bought my PS3.. Xiliia im sure will be awesome too

GribbleGrunger4196d ago (Edited 4196d ago )

100 hours if you do everything! That's what I love about Level-5

' Even after the main game is finished, there are still 100 hidden treasure chests, seven pirate memorials, and sixteen hidden villages on the world map to discover; an Imajinn battle league to conquer; a magic spell book to complete; a casino with slots, minigames and a cutscene theater; postgame quests and bounties to hunt down; alchemy recipes to find; and Golden Imajinns to catch. Full completion of the game will require at least 100 hours from most people.'

Acquiescence4196d ago

I've got the Collector's Edition pre-ordered already, now it's just the waiting game. I'm hoping this is the JRPG that brings me back to the glory days of the PS1 era.

belac094196d ago

Ni No Kuni and Tales of Xillia are going to be my masters for a long time.

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130°

Where the Heck is Ni No Kuni 3, Mun?

Matt from We Game Daily writes: "Cross Worlds isn’t going away. It’s making a small fortune, particularly in Asian markets, so there’s no reason for Level-5 to pull the plug. That said, there’s no real reason why a full PC/console sequel can’t be developed alongside efforts to support Cross Worlds."

Read Full Story >>
wegamedaily.com
Relientk77100d ago

While Ni no Kuni 3 would be cool, if it was like the first game, where is Dark Cloud 3 and Rogue Galaxy 2?

phoenixwing99d ago

I thought the dev recently went mobile and Japan only. They shut down their American offices. So don't expect anything for consoles

shinoff218399d ago (Edited 99d ago )

I swear they just announced a few new games.

https://www.nintendolife.co...

phoenixwing99d ago

I stand corrected then. Never heard about these games and also i just remember ni no kuni online being mobile only.

Michiel198998d ago

they said a loooooong time ago that Level 5 was working on a new installment but there has been no news since afaik. I just hope that they take more inspiration from 1 than 2, especially when it comes to the story.

thorstein98d ago

Ni No Kuni Cross Worlds is the mobile game you're thinking of.

It looks amazing but I don't like to play mobile games.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 98d ago
-Foxtrot99d ago

Yeah the sequel was okay but had nothing on the first game, especially the battle system.

The story just didn't have that charm and even the twist at the end of the game wasn't really anything cool like Wrath of the White Witch.

Also the fact there was like ZERO mention of Oliver or his adventures in the game, no references, nothing was such weird. It's set a hundred or so years after but still, I'd have expected to seen some throw backs. I think we just got like a temple with his statue in it or something.

goldwyncq98d ago

If you want more Oliver, just watch the movie.

shinoff218399d ago

Fking word. I've been hoping for this for quite some time.

melons99d ago

The premium games didn't sell amazingly, right?

shinoff218399d ago

Not to sure. They should of though. They were pretty good. I like both.

Michiel198998d ago

yeah, especially outside of japan. They should have released on pc at the same time as the ps3 version or a short time after.

Inverno99d ago

They should've worked with Ghibli to put out a proper movie. Should've also made a Pokemon-esque spin-off rather than make Yokai Watch. If they do make a third game they gotta work with Ghibli!

200°

Remembering the Best JRPGs on the PS3

Get ready to embark on a journey filled with monsters, magic, and overpowered haircuts, because this list features the best JRPGs on the PS3.

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altarofgaming.com
shinoff2183262d ago (Edited 262d ago )

There wasn't that many. Thanks to the west's criticism. It was definitely lacking compared to every other ps system. Dont get me wrong there were a few good ones i know that.

jznrpg262d ago

Nier, Valkyrie Chronciles, Tales games , Ni No Kuni, Resonance of Fate, FF13’s, Ys8 just a few off the top of my head and there were a lot more.

CrimsonWing69262d ago (Edited 262d ago )

Not nearly to the degree of PS1 and PS2.

@shinoff2183 makes a good point that around the PS3/Xbox 360 gen is when the genre wasn’t as prevalent and began to shy away from turn-based. There’s some standouts for sure, but look at the PS1 and PS2 JRPG library and then compare that to the PS3 and PS4’s.

Theres definitely a decline in a selection of titles. Even worse was the quality seemed to take a massive hit as well. I think Lost Odyssey was a huge standout for that gen when you look at production values, then you look at something like Fairy Fencer on the PS3 and it’s kind of depressing.

But by that generation there was a shift from western developed games overtaking Japanese developed games. Back from the NES to PS2 Japanese games were the cream of the crop… I don’t know what happened but like midway into the PS3/360 life-time they became less so.

shinoff2183261d ago (Edited 261d ago )

Compared to the ps1 ps2 and he'll even ps4 ps3 doesn't hold a candle to either imo. It's also when turn based damn near disappeared. Again thanks to the west's criticism

Crimson I'd put money on the west being at fault, guys like Phil phish, and numerous others at that time were attacking jrpg and Japanese games in general pretty hard.

Ni no kuni was probably my fav jrpg back then , and the blue dragon

GameBoyColor261d ago

Tales got kinda lucky here. When they took a chance and finally brought tales of graces f over west it sold like 250k lmao a lot of jrpgs did 500k or below. Disgaea was worse i think. Bamco decided to keep bringing more games over though.

Tapani261d ago (Edited 261d ago )

Demon's Souls, Dark Souls and Dark Souls II were the best RPGs on PS3 made by Japanese developers. Everything else just fell short always. Ni No Kuni was a full package, an okayish game as well. Nier and Drakengard III had superb writing, setting and voice acting, however, the performance was a real drag on the gameplay. Traditional RPG-wise I'd actually say 360 had better JRPGs, and think that Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon were the best traditional JRPGs of the era. PS3 Valkyria Chronicles was okay, but it is closer to an SRPG.

Ryu Ga Gotoku games were also solid, they were still finding their footing and breaking new ground with new cities and formats.

PS3 was the era that almost made me quit gaming and I started playing on PC because I could not find good performance nor games on the system. PS4 got me back into it, and now PS5 is a mix in and between, I just play my PS4 library on the PS5 and rest on PC, just like during the PS3 era. The only new exclusive Sony JRPG is pretty much FFXVI and it is so streamlined and simplified from the normal RPG experience that I can't fit it into the genre anymore. Dragon Quest XII hopefully remedies all of this, but it is just one game.

These new games will all be on PC (while it does take 2-3 years to wait, and 6-12 months from launch to have them patched + fixed by modders) and they perform better on it. The only point in owning a PS5 is to play games a couple of years earlier, but for a hard-working family man like me, the quality of the experience is more important than playing it as soon as possible. And I can't do modern games at 30fps 720p after playing 120fps at 4K. For older games, that's okay.

PSX and PS2 though, those were the days...Still have a massive collections of classic RPGs in CD and DVD format and a phat PS3 to play them!

FinalFantasyFanatic261d ago

It's kinda like that, the PS3 generation was a bad time for JRPGs, especially with the Japanese feeling the need to westernize their games, shooters dominating that gen, the racism from western game journalists (it was bad, between G4, Phill Fish, and a slew of others), and the higher development costs...

It really made me miss the PS1/PS2 days of JRPGs, even the quality of half of those games during the 7th gen weren't as good. The 360 tried, but Microsoft's consoles weren't popular in Japan and no body in the West bought a Xbox for JRPGs (despite Xbox having Vesperia, Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey).

on_line_forever261d ago

" It's kinda like that, the PS3 generation was a bad time for JRPGs, especially with the Japanese feeling the need to westernize their games "

This is when everything fall down and games looks not fun to play anymore except for few games like demon and dark souls for example

-Foxtrot262d ago (Edited 262d ago )

Nah. It's a bad trilogy of games

The only reason XIII-2 stands out is because XIII was so bad

When the bar is so low, anything after feels better.

goldwyncq261d ago

The monster catching mechanic was nice.

Eonjay261d ago

Don't understand the hate for it at all. Seems forced.

shinoff2183261d ago

Watching the credits roll on ff16 now it is good but , I'd really like to re try ff13 least it's turn based and would fill that gap for me.

FinalFantasyFanatic261d ago

They got better after the first one in the trilogy, not outstanding game though.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 261d ago
CS7261d ago

Honestly, I played FFXIII a few years after release and maybe because it was after the hype cycle and I knew the flaws of the game, it actually became my favorite FF after VII.

I took off the mini map and never used auto battle and the stuff that mattered to me in an FF was just so well done.

The art and graphics were insane at the time
The music is still special
The story still lingers in memory more than a decade later
The RPG systems were decent

I never really got the hate for it, still have a soft spot for that game inside me.

goldwyncq261d ago

Still better than XV and XVI.

Yui_Suzumiya262d ago

Drakengard 3 goes for a small fortune nowadays

Knightofelemia262d ago (Edited 262d ago )

Only gripe I have with Ar Tonelico 3 is that Saki is annoying as hell whether English or in Japanese. Then Saki's English voice actor became Ionasal on Ar Nosurge she was a little annoying but not as bad. Johnny Young Bosch voicing Tatsumi I thought he did a great job. And Akiko Shikata with her vocals and the music from the games just went hand and hand.

DarkZane262d ago

I wish Ar No Surge and Ar Tonelico 3 would be remastered on PS4/PS5.

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280°

Top 10 Rarest PS3 Games That Are Worth a Fortune

Twinfinite: "During the PS3’s tenure, plenty of huge games launched, but the interesting thing is, many of the system’s rarer titles are largely not amazing games. Sure, there are one or two exceptions to that rule (I’m looking at you Ni No Kuni!), but many of the more desirable and valuable games in the PS3’s library are usually rare for a reason."

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twinfinite.net
ModsDoBetter284d ago

Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Sold my Painkiller for around £3 years ago and my Asuras Wrath for even less. Managed to pick up Lollipop Chainsaw and Splatterhouse again but they cost me a fair bit more than I initially paid on release when I first bought them.

Wish I bought Godzilla, the number of times I saw it in the game store for the price of a coffee and didn't bother.

Knushwood Butt284d ago

Never knew Last Guy had a physical release.

gold_drake284d ago (Edited 284d ago )

i own nba, lolipop and nino kuni. never heard of the rest tbf xD surprised they are worth that much, for what they actually are.

roadkillers284d ago

Getting a valuable game is all luck.. I had three of these. Africa is one that people might have seen coming, but otherslike Ni No Kuni wouldn't have been.

My most valuable game I remember owning was Conkers Bad Fur Day. When the game was being re-released on Xbox (remake/ upgrade if you will), the price dropped dramatically. Once the game released and the changes were seen, the value went back up. Then it was released on Rare Replay and value dropped again. 2020 hit and all collectables shot up along with Conker. Before stopping around $110 which it currently is.

Games change all the time because their digital media that can be reproduced even in weird contract bindings (GoldenEye as an example). One day it can be worth $300 and the next $150. The shrink wrapped items in mint condition cannot be reproduced.. but that takes strength to spend, not open, and hope its worth something.

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