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Top 10 most anticipated DS games for 2010: Dementium II, Okami Chronicles, Dragon Quest IX...

The double screen line-up looks doubly good for the first double figure decade of the century

Top 10 most anticipated DS games for 2010: Dementium II, Okami Chronicles, Dragon Quest IX...
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DS + DSi

The last push for Christmas is just about done, and any developer with rockets in his pockets is probably going to wait until the New Year now. So what are 2010’s most exciting DS releases going to be?

History has told us that the DS is a Christmas favourite no matter what the line-up, so you can bet there's going to be a legion of brand new pocket gamers just itching to put their new toy through its paces after all the other festive distractions have been exhausted.

We’ve compiled a top 10 list of the games coming out in 2010 that more than validate the gift of a DS this Christmas. Many of them are already available in Japan, so you’ll have to excuse the incomprehensible trailers - we know you won’t mind, it is the season of good will to all men after all.

Top 10 most anticipated DS games for 2010

The Another World
Publisher: -
Developer:
Level 5/Studio Ghibli

Let’s all just be completely honest for a second. Studio Ghibli is completely bonkers. In the best possible way, it ventures into the sort of deeply imaginative territory that Lewis Carrol would marvel at and that Disney has long since abandoned. So will such unhinged conjuring make for good gaming fodder?

This trailer doesn't give much away gameplay-wise, but we’d be surprised if Level-5’s mastery of the RPG genre doesn’t end up steering this ambitious project to a sublime conclusion.

Whether or not there's enough Ghibli love, or even awareness, this side of the globe to ensure healthy sales, remains to be seen.

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Dementium 2

Publisher: SouthPeak Interactive
Developer: Renegade Kid

The first game was a flawed but accomplished effort that suffered a near crippling delay for the European release. With publisher SouthPeak Interactive at the helm this time, a smooth worldwide release seems assured, but what of the game itself?

Well the much maligned save system has been fixed and Renegade Kid has listened carefully to other criticisms. You can now wield a torch and a weapon simultaneously and the map is dynamic, side-lining any fumbling your way around and keeping the terse, atmospherics centre stage.

The first game proved that the DS, at the very least, is capable of a decent FPS. Here’s hoping the sequel proves the platform is capable of a great one.

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Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Level-5

This one’s been available in Japan since the summer and has been adorned with some truly gushing reviews. The notoriously conservative Famitsu gave the game an exuberant 40/40 perfect score.

Fans have been less enthusiastic, with hardcore followers of the series disappointed at just how much Level-5 has opted to tweak for the ninth game in the series.

At any rate, local multiplayer is a big part of the game, which is new, but the single player quest is still the heart and soul of the experience. We can all make our own minds up in 2010. Exactly when is still unknown, but hopefully before the end of spring.

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Ghostwire: Link to the Paranormal

Publisher: Majesco
Developer: A Different Game

The DSi hasn’t had an awful lot in the way of boxed retail releases that make specific use of its interfaces, but developer A Different Game is looking to take a chance both on the DSi and on the much discussed augmented reality concept.

The idea is that you wander around using your DSi’s screen as a viewfinder for the world. As you progress, ghostly apparitions are superimposed onto the real world backdrop, which you then have to research in an investigative stylee.

It’s the least gimmicky and most rounded augmented reality concept we’ve seen on a handheld so far, and so long as there’s plenty to do it could turn out to be a sleeper hit. It might make us scared to wander around in our own houses, mind.

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Infinite Space
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Nude Maker, Platinum Games

Platinum Games has been garnering some incredibly positive attention for its Devil May Cry in a catsuit effort, Bayonetta. Hopefully, the developer has spared none of that talent on the forthcoming sci-fi RPG, Infinite Space.

The game is already out in Japan, and is said to feature extensive customisation options and extremely difficult battles.

One for hardcore gamers, then, especially seeing as the story spans two galaxies and has a traversable gameworld that’s similarly vast. The real-time combat may well appeal to western tastes, so we have high hopes for this being a hit when it lands in 2010.

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Last Window: Midnight Promise

Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Cing

Besides Brain Training, the sombre and decidedly adult hit Hotel Dusk was one of the key titles responsible for boosting the DS’s image as more than just a child’s toy. It’s no surprise, then, that a sequel is in the works.

What's curious is that the game’s title doesn’t contain the words 'Hotel Dusk', which may cause it to lose potential stylus swipers who enjoyed the last game but aren’t necessarily wise to the arrival of its sequel.

It's set a year after the events of Hotel Dusk, and protagonist Kyle Hyde once again takes the lead, this time in Los Angeles in 1980.

The investigative gameplay will remain largely intact but the game is set to include a full novel, too. Entitled Last Window, the novel will be revealed on chapter at a time between levels.

It’s an interesting merging of content, all very clearly aimed at the more mature player. The first game remains one of the most enduring early DS memories so we can’t wait to get our hands on this one.

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Okami Chronicles: Tiny Sun

Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom

Like the PS2/Gamecube/Wii game Okami, but cuter. Okami Chronicles: Tiny Sun, or Okamiden as it is known in Japan, is shaping up very nicely indeed.

The game’s trademark painterly visuals have survived surprisingly undamaged in their transition to the DS. Early trailers indicate a sense of running momentum that suggest just traversing the verdant cliff tops and bridge ways will be a joy.

Of course, if the original game is anything to go by, Okami Chronicles: Tiny Sun will feature a top notch RPG storyline, too.

The celestial brush is making a welcome return, which will be perfect for the DS’s touchscreen. We wished for this game on DS way back in 2007, so it’s gratifying to see it finally happen - 2010 can’t come soon enough.

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Ghost Trick
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom We could have included the next Ace Attorney game in this list, but this slickly animated effort from the man responsible for everyone’s favourite courtroom finger pointer, Shu Takumi, looks much more intriguing.

Unfortunately, it’s hard to pin-down exactly what the game is at the moment given that the only available trailer is in Japanese.

We’re guessing that some sort of investigative style gameplay will feature along with the trademark drama the developer is famed for. It’s an extremely stylish looking effort and is apparently 60 per cent complete.

Here’s hoping the proposed Japanese 2010 release will be followed by a European localisation shortly thereafter.

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Pokemon HeartGold/SoulSilver

Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Game Freak

We just couldn’t have a list like this without including a Pokemon game. Pokemon HeartGold and its counterpart Pokemon SoulSilver are set to make the journey from GBA to DS in 2010, bringing with them, well, more of the same from what we can tell.

There’s no hiding from the fact that the Pokemon series has become something of a cash cow for Nintendo, so we’re not expecting much in the way of updates over the GBA version, besides some nice new 2.5D visuals.

That said, for many another opportunity to herd insane quantities of mythical creatures will be a welcome one and there’s every indication this will be a dependable monster seller in 2010.

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WarioWare: DIY
Publisher:
Nintendo
Developer: Intelligent Systems

Warioware DIY might be a bit late to the user-generated content party, but if anyone can extract the untapped creativity residing among its players, it’s Nintendo. The game promises to allow gamers to make complex games of their own, making use of a broad range of templates and assets provided on the cart.

The real sweetener is that players will then be able to share their creations with other players, making for a brave step into an area of social gaming that Nintendo so far hasn’t gone near.

We’re not sure if this game would be better suited to losing the Wario license and going it alone on its own steam.

Despite its many victories, it seems Nintendo still doesn’t always have the confidence to let its ideas speak for themselves, preferring instead to adorn them with characters that will guarantee market recognition.

But that’s a pedantic reservation and we still can’t wait to get our mitts on this potentially magical little title.

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