Etrian Odyssey IV coming to 3DS in America next year

Atlus has announced that it will launch Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan - the 3DS debut of the hardcore RPG series - in North America, in early 2013.

If you've not heard of the series before, Jon Mundy gave the second instalment a rock-solid 7 out of 10, praising the 'blend of gradual, hard won progression and character development'.

However, the game's difficulty caused symptoms of 'screaming in exasperation and sobbing into my hands at the unfairness of it all'.

It seems like nothing's changed for Legends of the Titan. In a press release, Atlus claimed that Etrian Odyssey will be "built with older hardcore gamers in mind" and is "still a brutal challenge".

Perhaps controversially, there is a new Casual mode option, for those that prefer more fun and less frustration in their RPGs. No details on what that involves, but we're guessing it won't mean "pay 69p for 3000 coins".

Whatever mode you choose you'll still find some classic RPG gameplay, with the usual levelling-up, exploration and character creation here. Except this time with 3D enemies beamed directly into your eyeballs.

No news of a UK release yet, but we'll keep you posted.