Preview: 3D Dot Game Heroes

Thanks to the power of WebEx (craaaak-BOOM!) and the ridiculously fun folks at Atlus USA, 3D Dot Game Heroes has jumped to the front of my must-play list for early 2010 releases. I've been interested in this PlayStation 3 exclusive ever since seeing screens from Japan last year and upon hearing Atlus wisely snapped up the US publishing rights, I was more than a little ecstatic at the localization possibilities. Based on the hour-long web demo/presentation, the guys and gals out in sunny Irvine, California have done another super job of bringing US gamers one more surefire hit. From the excellently stylized 3D "block art" to the head-boppingly nostalgic soundtrack and simple yet challenging Action/RPG gameplay, this could be one of those cool "sleepers" that hopefully wakes up a few jaded gamers from their usual purchasing patterns.

There's a nicely kooky story here that uses plenty of pages from a few well-worn handbooks, but it's all done with a neat sense of fun and love for the games the dev team obviously cut their teeth on back in the day. You've got an intrepid (and customizable) hero, a missing princess and a kingdom to save along with magic orbs to collect and so forth and so on. What's here is definitely one of those games that just needs to be played, as screen shots don't quite do what's here justice. As soon as I joined the presentation, I had a smile on my face that lasted throughout and a few hours afterward. What's here nails that nostalgic vibe without going overboard and wearing out its welcome.

The main game is a tightly focused single-player homage to classic 8-bit gaming and yes, more than a few Legend of Zelda influences abound (as do references to many other 8-bit classics). We got to see Atlus' PR Manager Aram Jabbari play a few portions of the game, guiding his created hero (which happened to be Domo-kun, the lovable NHK TV mascot and part-time Internet meme) through a few early sections in the kingdom of Dotnia that included a town, nicely sized dungeon, boss battle and a few other areas. Those looking for a direct Zelda pastiche will find more than a few similarities, no doubt. Yet the game isn't some sort of constant poke in Nintendo's eyeball for not giving Wii owners a new Link adventure in a more timely fashion. Rather, the experience is a well-made often humorous take on a particular era that will put a massive ear to ear grin on the faces of older gamers who grew up spending TV time with the original NES and a stack of carts in front of the TV.

Those under 30 lacking a sense of irony, humor or who take modern games too seriously to appreciate what's here might be scratching their scalps bloody at all this, but it's their loss. On the other hand, while you're waiting for that new Zelda game (and yes, if you happen to own a PS3), you may as well play something that's as close as you're going to get with a more wicked sense of humor, to boot. The game's huge overworld and seven dungeons should take most gamers about a dozen or so hours to complete, but that's IF you know where to go what to do and can do it as quickly as possible. 3DDGH has tons of secrets to track down, plenty of in-jokes and three mini-games to whittle away at your spare time. We were shown two of the three games, Block Defense (a Tower Defense riff) and Blockout (a Breakout-style block-buster). The final mini-game, Dash Circuit, is a racing game of sorts. If my notes are correct, expect at least two tracks and possibly some kart-style action.

In terms of the main game's play style, expect a simple pick up and play control scheme, with some of the block pushing puzzles and later bosses to be tricky in a nicely old-school manner. You'll come across a few handy (and amusingly familiar) weapons and items such as a boomerang, bombs, hook shooter and the like. I'm sure a few die-hard Nintendites will be champing at the bit and screaming while shaking their balled up fists in the general direction of Atlus' offices, but remember - Atlus didn't MAKE the game. They're just responsible for the translation, improvements and localization efforts. These efforts include a few very cool additions to the US version such as an improved user interface, bonus Block Defense maps (originally DLC from the Japanese version), the ability to use your sword in Blockout, new loading screen art for the North American version and more fun stuff. Speaking of loading, one of the main issues with the import, lengthy load times, has been addressed by allowing US gamers to load the contents of that shiny disc onto their PS3 hard drives.

Developer Silicon Studio (turn those letters sideways and it spells From Software, I think) has done a wonderful job in bringing 2D pixel art into glorious 3D block art, using some cool modern effects such as depth of field, lovely water and magic spells. That giant sword you may have seen elsewhere may be intentionally humorous (Smilin' Bob jokes were rampant during the press event), but the game isn't a one joke show at all if you know your 8-bit hits and misses. I know I'll be poring over my Famicom collection between now and the time a review copy arrives so I can crack up a bit more at the references. Still, I can see some critics and players going off the deep end to overly criticize this one for not being "innovative" in this day and age (*yawn!*). However, they'd be missing the point of the experience entirely. What's here is a fantastic little chunk of retro game bliss wrapped in a shiny PS3 candy coating and at $40, it's an absolute steal if Memory Lane is a favorite destination. Even better, you don't need to blow on the game disc to get it to run!

Speaking of Memory Lane, Jarabbi ended the presentation by showing off some hilarious loading screen art from the US version. We saw 3D pixel versions of scenes from quite a few 8-bit and PC classics and everyone was invited to guess which games the art came from. I was laughing so hard by now at the great images flashing by that I think I only typed in two or three guesses. On a related front, users will get to play around with the game's deep character editor to create their own blocky avatars (right down to the walking animations) if they desire. You can also expect a nice selection of other playable characters to choose from along with a nicer selection of in-game weapons, shields and other cool gear to discover in your travels. From Software fans will want to keep an eye peeled for a few Easter Eggs and the Atlus Faithful isn't left out of the loop either. Still, I can see a load of images of custom created characters filling up message boards all over the Internet once the game hits retail.

Overall, things are looking quite fun in the land of Dotnia and its surrounding areas, so mark down May 11, 2010 and definitely pre-order a copy of 3D Dot Game Heroes even if you've only a passing interest in diving into "classic" games. Hmmmm... I'm wondering if Atlus will drop by this year's Classic Gaming Expo in Vegas, as 3DDGH is pretty much something quite a few CGE attendees might be more than a little intrigued by... Anyway, here are a few cool screens to peek at while you're waiting. Looking good, huh? Well, don't just sit there drooling... go get your pre-order in and absolutely set your sights on exploring a bit of wistful nostalgia, controller in hand. Back with more in a bit - stay tuned...