Twinworld Game Reviews

Posts Tagged ‘ININ Games’

Stuttgart, Germany – June 4th 2020 – Strictly Limited Games and ININ Games are very excited to announce that the colorful game Clockwork Aquario will be released in 2020 – after being lost for 27 years.

The game will be published for current gaming platforms and will be available in limited physical editions, as well as digital. The release date is planned for later this year.

The development of Clockwork Aquario started in 1992 and is the last arcade game ever developed by the legendary company Westone. With its beautiful 2D graphics it was created to push the SEGA System 18 arcade hardware to its limits. Unfortunately, fighting games and 3D games were dominating the arcades at that time which led to the cancellation of Clockwork Aquario.

Originally designed by the chief publisher, and co-founder, of Westone, Ryuichi Nishizawa, Clockwork Aquario can be described as the swan song of a company that was part of an era with historic milestones such as the Wonder Boy / Monster World series.

As a company that is striving for the preservation of video games, it has also become a part of Strictly Limited Games’ mission to unearth unreleased games that are an essential part of the cultural video game heritage.

So, three years ago, Strictly Limited Games set out to find the whereabouts of “Tokeijikake no Aquario”, the Japanese title of Clockwork Aquario, and to bring the game back to life.

ININ Games then joined in the endeavours to convince SEGA/LAT that Clockwork Aquario will finally see the light of day, by signing to create a digital release and making the game accessible to a wider audience.

Some parts (including sound, music and several graphics) were not recoverable from the source code, so the particular emphasis is placed on involving as many members of the original Westone team as possible in the project to be true to the game – from the chief programmer, Takanori Kurihara, to the musical genius, Shinichi Sakamoto, to Mr Wonder Boy himself, Ryuichi Nishizawa, who expressed his joy and excitement about seeing the title screen again after 27 years on Twitter.

Ryuichi Nishizawa also said: “Clockwork Aquario is a great piece of 2D art, into which the pixel artists put their hearts and souls. I would like to express my heartfelt respect and gratitude to those who have worked so hard to restore it.”

Source: PR Email

Umihara Kawase BaZooKa will be available in three fast-paced physical editions. The limited SteelBook  and Collector’s Editions can now be pre-ordered and will be released in September. The physical versions of the Standard Edition can be pre-ordered at Amazon in some countries starting now. Also, the physical Standard edition will be available at more retailers and in more countries soon. The digital versions of the Standard Edition can also be pre-ordered soon. The release date for all Standard Editions will be in July.

All editions will be localized into English, French, German and Spanish. The game will be available in Europe, America and Australia.

Umihara Kawase BaZooka! Standard Edition

• The physical retail version for PS4  will be available for € 29.99 / 24.99 GBP / $29.99 US

• The physical retail version for Nintendo Switch will be available for € 29.99 / 24.99 GBP / $29.99 US

• The digital versions can be found in the PlayStation Store and the Nintendo eShop for € 29.99 / 24,99 GBP / $29.99 US

Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! SteelBook Edition

The limited Umihara Kawase BaZooka! SteelBook Edition for Nintendo Switch and PS4 features:

• Manual

• Variant cover art

• Original Steelbook

The SteelBook Edition is exclusively available at the Strictly Limited Games Partner Shop for €39.99. The PlayStation 4 SteelBook edition is limited to only 1,500 copies worldwide. The Nintendo Switch edition is limited to 2,500 copies worldwide.

Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! Collector’s Edition

The limited Umihara Kawase BaZooka! Collector’s Edition for Nintendo Switch and PS4 features:

• Manual

• Variant cover art

• Original Steelbook

• Hardcover CE box with magnetic lock

• Original Soundtrack

• Hardcover Art Book

• 4 Stickers

• 2-sided large Poster

• 22 Character Cards

The Collector’s Edition is exclusively available at the Strictly Limited Games Partner Shop for €59.99. The PlayStation 4 SteelBook edition is limited to 700 copies worldwide. The Nintendo Switch edition is limited to 1,500 copies worldwide.

About Umihara Kawase BaZooKa!

Fast-Paced Battles with Party Appeal

Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! is a fast-paced action game where the player’s goal is to clear the screen of enemies by performing skilful combos with their Bazooka and an extraordinary fishing rod. Screens feature moving platforms, perilous obstacles and quirky enemy sea life. Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! offers multiplayer action at its very best and competitive gamers are bestowed with fast-paced battles.

Umihara Kawase Bazooka! features:

• 22  iconic characters from Japanese cult games to choose from

• Challenge Mode with 40 Stages to be cleared just like back in the good old days of arcade games (1 to 4 players)

• Multiplayer Battle Modes (2 to 4 players)

• Local Offline Play and Online Modes

• Co-op and Competitive Modes (up to 4 players)

• Competitive Bazooka-Action in Battle Royale Mode (players fight until only one remains) and Star Match (Timed battle mode where players fight to take stars from each other) will offer hundreds of hours of competitive Bazooka-fun.

Source: PR Email

Stuttgart, Germany – May 4th 2020 –  ININ Games, who recently published Taito’s The Ninja Saviors and Bubble Bobble 4 Friends in Europe and the Americas, is pleased to announce the challenging and addictive Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! The game will be released on Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation 4 in North and South America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand in July 2020.

Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! is a fast-paced action game where the player’s goal is to clear the screen of enemies by performing skilful combos with their Bazooka and an extraordinary fishing rod. Screens feature moving platforms, perilous obstacles and quirky enemy sea life. Not forgetting the other players, all eager to secure their victory.

Umihara Kawase – Umihara Kawase is an iconic series of platform games from Japan that feature a young sushi chef named Umihara Kawase, who lives in a world of strange and mysterious seawater creatures.

Hooking Up –  Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! presents challenging platforming cavorting, where the players can use the environment to their advantage. Using a fishing line to hook an enemy or another player and banish it, is one of the most important techniques to be mastered. The multifunctional fishing rod can also be used as a magical grappling hook to overcome obstacles and to quickly travel across the stage. But that’s not all, you can also shoot gigantic balls with your enchanted Bazooka. If you run out of ammo, simply catch one of the mysterious creatures, use it to recharge the magical weapon and you are back in Bazooka-Action.

Fast-paced Competitive Multiplayer Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! offers multiplayer action at its very best and competitive gamers are bestowed with fast-paced battles. Fire up your skills to be the last one standing in Battle Royale Mode!

In the Mode – In single-player mode you have to clear the screens of all enemies. With up to 4 players, the multiplayer mode can be played in competitive mode or in co-op mode. Online and offline battle modes are available, so you can seek contestants at home on the couch, but also from around the world.

Casting – The cast includes characters from legendary Japanese game universes like Umihara Kawase, the Cotton Shoot ‘Em Up series and the PlayStation RPG classic Doki Doki Poyacchio.

Have you ever wanted to use a herd of sheep in a battle? We got you covered! Or would you rather prefer to summon a fire dragon? No problem! Each of the 22 in-game characters uses a unique special attack that can decide the tide of the fight. Other attacks consist of multi bombs, sword dance, space-time dash, homing bullets and many more.

Helmut Schmitz CEO at ININ Games concludes, “Umihara Kawase is a well-known and famous brand. There have been many successful renditions going right back to the Nintendo Super Famicom release. Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! not only offers great single-player options, but also multiplayer with 4 players and E-sports opportunities that will open up the game to a wider fanbase. Innovative skills, new challenges, infinite possibilities, superb mechanics, pixel-perfect physics and a cool cast, what more can you ask for? It’s one of those games that will keep you coming back for more.”

Umihara Kawase Bazooka! includes:

• Challenge Mode with 40 Stages to be cleared just like back in the good old days of arcade games (1 to 4 players)
• Multiplayer Battle Modes (2 to 4 players)
• Local Offline Play and Online Modes
• Co-op and Competitive Modes (up to 4 players)
• Competitive Bazooka-Action in Battle Royale Mode (players fight until only one remains) and Star Match (Timed battle mode where players fight to take stars from each other) will offer hundreds of hours of competitive Bazooka-fun.

The physical version will be available from July 2020, in all major retail stores throughout Europe, America and Australia. The digital versions will be available in the Nintendo eShop and the PlayStation Store. The game will be localized into English, French, German and Spanish.

Source: PR Email

ININ and Taito are pleased to announce some exciting news that fans of Bubble Bobble, as well as those new to the franchise, should not miss.

Bubble Bobble 4 Friends, developed by the original studio, TAITO Corporation, and exclusively released on Nintendo Switch, is released today in North and South America. All gamers worldwide will be excited to know that those who purchase the game will be able to download later in the year new must-have content, for free, and that includes European or Australian Nintendo gamers who got their fix of Bubble Bobble 4 Friends since the end of 2019.

Expanding Bubbles being created

Taito are currently developing and expanding the game’s content to deliver everything fans’ wish for, including new stages and the return of a fan-favourite enemy character – “Baron von Blubba’. More news on this, and additional upcoming features, will be revealed in the coming weeks and months.

Taito’s latest instalment of this all-time classic since their return to the home console market has been warmly received by fans and critics worldwide. The development team wanted to create something that can be enjoyed not only by fans of the IP who grew up with the two cute Bubble Dragon Twins Bub and Bob but also with their family and friends. It was important to capture the spirit of the colourful original and to bring it to Switch.

Switch on to Bub & Bob

As the Bubble Bobble IP is something very dear to Taito, they listened closely to the feedback they were given so far.  It was only natural that the team would not rest on their laurels and to make sure that players would be able to enjoy Bubble Bobble for many weeks to come. They are working hard to develop deeper and more challenging content that will definitely be going to please gamers all around the globe.

Play alone or with up to 3 friends in couch co-op mode and jump your bubble dragons through 100 levels to defy the wicked wizard Bonner and his henchmen. The bubbles don’t just let you trap your opponents, either – your dragons can also jump on them to reach higher platforms.

Collect E-X-T-E-N-D bubbles to activate and upgrade skills, such as lightning and bomb bubbles. Develop countless new strategies to travel through the worlds and take advantage of air currents.

The original Bubble Bobble arcade game from 1986 is also included, which captured the hearts of players around the world and still has fans humming its title melody today.

A celebration for fans and fun for the whole family!

Soure: PR Email

Stuttgart, Germany – February 25, 2020 – Bubble Bobble 4 Friends by ININ GAMES, including the legendary original Bubble Bobble, will be released digitally and physically exclusively for Nintendo Switch in North and South America on March 31, 2020.

Bubble Bobble is still an absolute cult game today and is considered the most popular and innovative platformer of the ’80s. The twins, Bub and Bob, set out to free their friends from the hands of the evil Bonner, who also enchanted them in Bubble Dragons. As such, the brothers hop through the differently arranged platforms of the 100 colourful levels and shoot bubbles at numerous enemies. In the ’80s and ’90s, players bounced through the levels solo or in two-player co-op mode. The success of Bubble Bobble has led to it being ported to more than 20 different platforms over the past decades, including the PlayStation, Sega Mega Drive and NES Classic Mini.

Bubble Bobble 4 Friends, the latest game in the popular Bubble Bobble series, includes a 4-player co-op mode for even more fun with friends. Players can also acquire special skills by collecting letter bubbles that form the word “extend” to add strategic depth and increase replayability. Players will have plenty to discover and craft as they journey through the all-new worlds of Bubble Bobble 4 Friends.

About ININ Games:

ININ Games, the new publishing label of United Games Entertainment GmbH, focuses on the classic digital and physical marketing of high-quality retro, indie and arcade titles. Along with undisputed classics, numerous other milestones of gaming culture are in the planning and will be announced in the coming months.

About TAITO Corporation:

TAITO Corporation (TAITO) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. With headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, TAITO operates core businesses such as game arcade operations, coin-operated game machines, and mobile phone content services. A seminal part of gaming history, TAITO caused a worldwide sensation with its arcade legend, SPACE INVADERS, and developed such fan favourites as PUZZLE BOBBLE (BUST-A-MOVE) and ARKANOID. Today, TAITO continues to thrill game lovers of all generations by offering both classic and new family-oriented titles on the latest gaming platforms. TAITO delivers a wide range of entertainment experiences with the goal of providing consumers with fresh surprises and new discoveries.

About Bubble Bobble:

Bubble Bobble is an action game planned, developed, and released by TAITO CORPORATION (TAITO) in 1986.

The game centres around Bubby and Bobby, two boys who were cursed by a wizard and turned into the bubble-blowing dragons, Bub and Bob, who are on a quest to rescue their kidnapped girlfriends. To do this, they must brave all 100 floors of the cave of monsters, defeating their enemies by catching them in bubbles, then bursting them.

The lovable Bub and Bob were a big hit and went on to star in numerous sequels and the original has since been ported to countless home platforms. Puzzle Bobble (a.k.a. Bust-A-Move), a puzzle game spin-off, became a huge hit, going on to personify the franchise.

TAITO is the exclusive owner of the global intellectual property rights, including copyrights and trademarks, for Bubble Bobble and its characters, and takes an active role regarding new Bubble Bobble-related enterprises.

Source: PR Email

Stuttgart, Germany; 2nd October 2019 – ININ Games, a publishing label of United Games Entertainment GmbH, is pleased to announce The Ninja Saviors – Return of the Warriors, Taito’s iconic and classic beat ‘em up arcade hit is only two weeks away from North and South America release. Already highly acclaimed in Europe from its earlier release, the long wait for American gamers is nearly over. The Ninja Saviors – Return of the Warriors will be released digitally on PSN and eShop for 19.99 USD.

There will also be a special day 1 physical edition available in stores for both, Sony PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch for 29.99 USD. The first print physical release will come with a printed manual, stickers, as well as a poster. In addition, there will be a special compensation gift for the delayed launch in the form of two-character cards depicting the new characters Raiden and Yaksha. The cards will be exclusive to North America.

TENGO PROJECT, the original development team, has elevated THE NINJA SAVIORS – Return of the Warriors to new heights with a re-mastered reboot, plus even better audio and visuals with the 16-bit pixel art of the classic SNES version being retained, but significantly revised, along with cool new animations.

In THE NINJA SAVIORS – Return of the Warriors, players assume the role of one of five android ninjas to take on the tyrant Banglar, and his henchmen, with a variety of individual moves in a dystopian future. Along with two completely new characters, the fully revised side-scrolling arcade brawler also finally offers fans the eagerly awaited two-player co-op mode and an online ranking system so that you can measure yourself against fighters from all over the world. In a total of eight levels, players will brawl their way through waves of enemy hordes, either alone or in pairs.

Source: PR Email

Stuttgart, Germany; August 22, 2019 – ININ Games, publishing label of United Games GmbH, today released a new extra-large trailer for THE NINJA SAVIORS – Return of the Warriors and confirmed the launch dates for Europe and North America.

The highly anticipated sequel to the arcade hit will be released in Europe on August 30, and in North America on October 15 on Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation 4. The game was originally planned to be released simultaneously in both markets. The reason for the short-term postponement in North America are unforeseen logistical challenges, which could not be solved in time despite intensive efforts. ININ would like to apologize formally to the many fans who are already eagerly waiting to play this masterpiece. As small compensation for a longer wait time, the physical release will contain some extra items that will be revealed later.

There is more good news: The game will be released as a completely uncut experience in Europe and the US, including the option to change the color of the hit effects to red. It will also include enemies which were not included in the Western Super Nintendo version at that time. An extensive insight into the features and characters is provided by the six-minute XXL trailer which was released today.

The fully revised side-scrolling arcade brawler THE NINJA SAVIORS – Return of the Warriors features a strong cast of five playable characters and a plethora of individual moves, with two completely new faces joining the team: The small woman-shaped android Yaksha, with telescopic arms performing unpredictable moves and Raiden, a colossal android weighing a whopping 32000 kilograms / 70548 lbs.

Armed with diamond sharp steel, the Ninjas turn their bodies into raging cyclones – leaping, kicking, and slashing through wave after wave of enemies. Over a total of eight levels, you’ll take on the tyrant Banglar and his henchmen either alone or with a friend. So settle in for a night on the couch with your friends, and reminisce about the golden era of 90s co-op game evenings you know and love.

The original developers, TENGO PROJECT, have improved the audio-visuals in every respect, making an already outstanding game even better! Along with 2-player co-op play, TAITO’s latest arcade action masterpiece also offers fans new 16-bit pixel art graphics and animations, the revamped sound of TAITO’s legendary house band ZUNTATA, as well as an online ranking system so that you can compare your skills to fighters from all over the world.

PRE-ORDER ITEMS:

Pre-orders of the physical edition of THE NINJA SAVIORS – Return of the Warriors will receive a limited NINJA SAVIORS keychain with a throwing knife look.

In addition to the poster and sticker set, a manual will also be included, just like back in the 1990s. More information on pre-orders can be found here.

Source: PR Email

Stuttgart, Germany – August 14, 2019 – After more than 10 years, Nintendo Switch players can look forward to a sequel of the cult 80’s game series Bubble Bobble by TAITO. The new Bubble Bobble 4 Friends was developed by the original studio TAITO Corporation and will include a brand new local 4-player mode. The sequel will be released both digitally and physically exclusively for Nintendo Switch in Europe on November 19, 2019, with the release in the USA to follow in the first quarter of 2020.

As in the previous highly popular series, the thrilling and epic bubble fight starts again!

One night, a child’s room became enfolded by a miraculous light and every object under its rays suddenly came to life – including the child’s most favourite toy, the little dragon called Bub. Full of jealousy, the wicked magician Baron von Blubba challenges the friendly dragon to battle.

In the ’80s and ’90s, the players jumped through the levels either solo or in the two-player mode. In the new part of the popular Bubble Bobble series, a 4-player cooperative mode is integrated, providing even more fun with friends.

“Bubble Bobble is an extremely popular title in Europe, so we decided to implement a pre-sale in Europe in conjunction with ININ Games and Strictly Limited Games. It is also the first internally developed title since Taito has re-entered the consumer market, and the development team is thrilled to be working on this famous IP. I deeply hope that many people will enjoy it” says Hiroshi Uemura, Executive Officer, Division Manager of Development, TAITO CORPORATION.

Collectors can look forward to the Collector’s Edition of Bubble Bobble 4 Friends, distributed exclusively by Strictly Limited Games. The ININ publishing label markets the retail versions and digital releases on the Nintendo eShop.

Source: PR Email