No doubt as a result of the brand’s meteoric rise to fame, Guitar Hero has evolved into a bit of a video-game industry octopus. Bear with us here. While the core gameplay mechanics in Guitar Hero haven’t changed much between iterations, the financial juggernaut unleashed by its upward spiral in popularity has necessitated its evolution from an amorphous blob into something sprouting several distinctive sub-franchise limbs. Firstly, there’s the guitar-only brand that launched the game, and the format we last saw with Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Then there’s the mobile version, Guitar Hero: On Tour, which has been specifically designed for the Nintendo DS handheld and takes advantage of a GBA slot peripheral. Next up is the multiplayer-focused band experience of Guitar Hero: World Tour, which launched late last year. The latter took the basic GH solo formula and added drums and vocals to the mix. Lastly, there’s the track-pack expansion arm of the Guitar Hero family with GH: Aerosmith, the recently launched GH: Metallica, and the freshly announced Van Halen game, all of which are built around showcasing individual super acts.

(more…)

Korean MMORPG gets a portable offshoot for North American release this winter, courtesy of Xseed.

Mark those calenders. The end of the world is coming this winter, and import house Xseed Games is to blame.

Destroying the world, one loathsome beetle at a time.

The publisher today announced that it is prepping Ragnarok Online DS for release later this year in North America. Based on the Korean massively multiplayer online role-playing game Ragnarok Online, the Nintendo DS spin-off will allow up to three players to journey together through randomly generated levels in search of loot.

As in the PC edition of the game, player customization will be a point of emphasis in Ragnarok Online DS, with players able to upgrade armor and weapons either by paying a blacksmith to work on them or by attaching “effect cards” that can be picked up from defeated enemies. Players also earn points for defeating enemies, which can be used to pump up their stats in a variety of job classes, including swordsman, thief, and merchant.

Ragnarok Online DS is being developed by GungHo, maker of PSP games Zero Choaniki and Lunar: Harmony of Silver Star.

Check out the source at GameSpot