“Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds” (rated T, $60 for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3): I got a look at this colorful, slick fighting game last week at a launch event in San Francisco and promptly requested a review copy and ordered myself an arcade-style fight stick and strategy guide. I haven’t dived into a fighting game since “Street Fighter II” all those years ago on the Super Nintendo, but “MvC3’s” three-on-three battles, where each player dukes it out in a tag-team match using three fighters of his or her choosing, will suck me in. I’m looking forward to honing my skills with one or two characters, then learning the others gradually as I shift them in and out of the lineup.
“Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together” (rated T, $40 for PlayStation Portable): “Let Us Cling Together” is a modern remake of the strategy role-playing game that eventually gave rise to “Final Fantasy Tactics.” This new one’s been prettied up for the PSP, with new characters, scenarios and music. It’s also, according to the reviews, much less glitchy and unstable than the previous U.S. release of “Tactics Ogre.” If you dig strategy RPGs like the “Valkyria Chronicles” and “Final Fantasy Tactics” games, this is probably a no-brainer buy. $40 is a bit spendy for a handheld remake, but this is one of those games where if you love micromanaging and tricking out your troops and sending them into battles, it’s a no-brainer buy at some point.
“Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation” (rated T, $35 for DS): The sixth game in Enix’s long-running role-playing franchise finally gets a U.S. release, more than 15 years after it first came out in Japan. Unlike “Tactics Ogre,” “Realms of Revelation” hasn’t been modernized and streamlined, so its level of difficulty and clunkiness will probably require some adjustments to anyone coming at it fresh off of finishing “Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies.”
“Back to the Future: The Game” (rated T, $20 for full series of five episodes, available on PS3 and iPad; already out on PC): The first episode of San Rafael-based Telltale Games’ video game sequel to the “Back to the Future” movies is ready for download on the PS3 and iPad. $20 nets the whole series, which, true to the Telltale model, will be released in chunks over the next few months. The game follows the typical Telltale adventure game format, and includes voice work and input from several folks involved with the “Back to the Future” movies.
“Hyperdimension Neptunia” (rated T, $60 on PS3): Judging from the reviews already on Metacritic, “Hyperdimension Neptunia” isn’t going to make anyone’s Game of 2011 lists. Narratively, though, it’s one of the year’s strangest games. The heroes in the Japanese-style role-playing game are all personifications of video game consoles and companies, giving new meaning to the term “console wars.” The main hero is Neptune, named after a Sega prototype that never saw the market. Though characters based on the PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360 all appear, the game’s main villain is Arfoire, who takes her name from the R4 cartridge used by hackers to pirate DS games. Initial copies of the game come in a box with an art book.
