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DS

Lufia II Remake Coming to North America

by Neal Ronaghan - May 28, 2010, 10:39 am EDT
Total comments: 26 Source: Press Release

Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals is coming out this fall on DS courtesy of Natsume.

Natsume recently announced that they are bringing Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals to North Ameirca in fall 2010.

Curse of the Sinistrals, a DS remake of the Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals, originally came out in Japan in February 2010. It is a prequel to the original Lufia game, and follows the story of the ancestors of the first game's main character and the origins of the war between mankind and the Sinistrals, who are the four legendary harbingers of doom.

Originally, Lufia II was a turn-based role-playing game, but in the remake of the 1996 Super Nintendo version, the game is being changed into an action RPG. Additionally, the remake will feature 3D graphics and voice acting.

Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals will make an appearance at E3 in June, and will retail for $29.99 when it comes out in the fall.

RETURN TO THE WORLD OF LUFIA THIS FALL WITH NATSUME'S LUFIA: CURSE OF THE SINISTRALS FOR NINTENDO DS™

Highly-Anticipated Game To Appear At E3 In June

Burlingame, Calif., May 26, 2010 - Natsume, a worldwide developer and publisher of family-oriented video games, announced today that Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals will be released for the Nintendo DS™ this Fall. The game will retail at an MSRP of $29.99.

"We're elated that the beloved Lufia series will be making its triumphant return with Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals later this year" said Hiro Maekawa, President and CEO of Natsume. "We know players are going to be excited about this title when they get their first peek at it at E3 next month."

The Sinistrals, the four legendary harbingers of doom, are out to resurrect the ultimate evil and bring the world to its knees. It's up to the fiery monster hunter Maxim and his eclectic band of adventurers

to put a stop to them once and for all. Their adventures will take them across an expansive world packed with dangerous enemies, powerful items, and diabolical puzzles!

This action RPG features six playable characters to choose from, each with their own special abilities and attacks. Players will need to master them all if they want to stand a chance against the game's fierce enemies and towering bosses that fill both screens!

For more information on Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals, please visit www.natsume.com. You can also follow all of the latest Natsume news at www.natsume.com/facebook and www.twitter.com/natsume_inc.

Talkback

CalibanMay 28, 2010

Hey Lufia, can you see my back log pile? Yup, that's where you're going.

UltimatePartyBearMay 28, 2010

I froth.  I missed out on the original release because those were the days of the $70 SNES RPG.  This one will be skipping ahead of the backlog pile, possibly getting dirty looks from my other games.

broodwarsMay 28, 2010

Whatever.  All I want is Lufia II on the VC, and thanks to this remake that's not going to happen.  :'(

I know I'm this game's biggest fan on site. What I heard from import reviews is troubling.

StratosMay 28, 2010

Quote from: broodwars

Whatever.  All I want is Lufia II on the VC, and thanks to this remake that's not going to happen.  :'(

Personally I take it as a sign that we get a better chance of the SNES games coming to VC. This game proves they still want to profit from the series so once the DS game sales drop off they could release the VC versions in hopes of snagging hold out purchasers, purists and double-dippers.

We finally got Final Fantasy on the service after a number of years.

BeautifulShyMay 28, 2010

Also Broodwars we do have the remake of Kirby's Super Star on the DS and the game was released on the VC a few weeks ago so it isn't out of the realm of possiblity that we get the VC game.

broodwarsMay 28, 2010

Quote from: Maxi

Also Broodwars we do have the remake of Kirby's Super Star on the DS and the game was released on the VC a few weeks ago so it isn't out of the realm of possiblity that we get the VC game.

True, but that's Nintendo being Nintendo.  Square-Enix, on the other hand, has so far been fairly reticent (or at least Nintendo has been to allow them) to put many of their titles on the VC.  I just don't have a good feeling about the remake or the chances of a VC release, just as I have a pretty fair feeling that the DS port of Chrono Trigger is why we probably won't see a VC release on that title, either.

Mop it upMay 29, 2010

We haven't seen any Dragon Warrior games on the Virtual Console...

KDR_11kMay 29, 2010

The only Lufia I played was the GBC one and let's just say it didn't make a good first impression.

RABicleMay 30, 2010

Screenshots look filthy. Why not just port is Chrono Trigger style? geez.

I love the original version, even though I got stuck in one of the dungeons. Chris Kohler had nothing good to say about the Japanese version of the remake.

I'll echo the VC sentiments from this thread, but maybe Natsume will release the original Lufia on VC to help promote their release of this DS remake?

TJ SpykeMay 30, 2010

I think the game will end up on the VC eventually, but not for a few years (after they stop printing the remake).

I wish the Dragon Quest/Warrior games would appear on the VC, one of the NES ones (I don't remember which) was the first RPG I ever player, I was spending the night at a friends house and his older brother had a copy of the game.

Mop it upMay 30, 2010

Quote from: TJ

I wish the Dragon Quest/Warrior games would appear on the VC, one of the NES ones (I don't remember which) was the first RPG I ever player, I was spending the night at a friends house and his older brother had a copy of the game.

If you can recall anything specific about the game, I might be able to tell you which one it was.

Kytim89May 30, 2010

I would prefer to have this game on the virtual console. Call me a purist if you want, but I prefer these older games on the service any way.

TJ SpykeMay 30, 2010

Quote from: Mop

Quote from: TJ

I wish the Dragon Quest/Warrior games would appear on the VC, one of the NES ones (I don't remember which) was the first RPG I ever player, I was spending the night at a friends house and his older brother had a copy of the game.

If you can recall anything specific about the game, I might be able to tell you which one it was.

I wish I could, all I remember is walking through grass and scenes of battling monsters to get experience. When I did a Google search awhile ago I found that the Dragon Warrior series matches the graphics I remember.

broodwarsMay 30, 2010

Quote from: Jonnyboy117

I'll echo the VC sentiments from this thread, but maybe Natsume will release the original Lufia on VC to help promote their release of this DS remake?

Meh, I'd rather that not happen.  Granted, I only played about an hour or so of the original Lufia, but it's incredibly basic and I didn't find it very fun.  Its successor just outclasses it in every conceivable way.  Besides, I'd have to feel sorry for anyone who played that game in advance of playing the Lufia II remake (assuming the basic plot remains the same), because Lufia I spoils the **** out of the ending to Lufia II.

TJ SpykeMay 30, 2010

Even if it's not very good, I would still want it to be released on the VC (I want every possible game that could be released on the VC to be released). Besides, it's not the first games fault that the developers decided to make Lufia II a prequel.

broodwarsMay 30, 2010

Quote from: TJ

Besides, it's not the first games fault that the developers decided to make Lufia II a prequel.

I'm not saying it is the first game's fault, but that it's a really bad idea to play Lufia I in anticipation of playing Lufia II.  The first 10 minutes of Lufia I are literally the last 10 minutes of Lufia II.

This is true, Lufia spoils Lufia II. Then again I think one of the Breath of Fire games does the same.

While I agree Lufia is hard to play after playing Lufia II, I still love it for what it is.

Crap, now I want to play the SNES BoF games. Are they on the VC?

TJ SpykeJune 01, 2010

Just Breathe of Fire II.

...But BoF II is missing out without having played BoF.

TJ SpykeJune 01, 2010

How so? I have never played any BoF games, but Wikipedia says the second game takes place 500 years after the first. It seems that you wouldn't be missing anything, at least story wise.

Ian SaneJune 01, 2010

Isn't saying Lufia I spoils Lufia II like saying that the original Star Wars trilogy spoils the prequels?  "What?!  Anakin becomes a bad guy?!  Thanks for spoiling that for me, movie that is 20 years older!"

I'm assuming that the developer planned for people to play the Lufia games in the order they were released.  I haven't played the game before but is it obvious playing Lufia II that it is a prequel to Lufia I.?  Or is the fact that the ending is the Lufia I ending itself a twist, and that it's an intentional reveal?  "Oh this is the beginning of the Lufia I!  The stories connect!"  If that's the case then congratulations to everyone for spoiling the game!  It may only in fact be a spoiler if you know ahead of time that Lufia II's ending is Lufia I's intro.

broodwarsJune 01, 2010

Quote from: Ian

Isn't saying Lufia I spoils Lufia II like saying that the original Star Wars trilogy spoils the prequels?  "What?!  Anakin becomes a bad guy?!  Thanks for spoiling that for me, movie that is 20 years older!"

I'm assuming that the developer planned for people to play the Lufia games in the order they were released.  I haven't played the game before but is it obvious playing Lufia II that it is a prequel to Lufia I.?  Or is the fact that the ending is the Lufia I ending itself a twist, and that it's an intentional reveal?  "Oh this is the beginning of the Lufia I!  The stories connect!"  If that's the case then congratulations to everyone for spoiling the game!  It may only in fact be a spoiler if you know ahead of time that Lufia II's ending is Lufia I's intro.


You'd only know that Lufia II is a prequel to Lufia I if you've played the first game, because Lufia II plays its story extremely straight-forward (it's not like it starts with a flash-forward to the events of Lufia I and then flashes back to Lufia II).  While the Lufia II ending is indeed a twist, I don't think the twist is meant to be that you're playing the beginning of Lufia I.  If you've played Lufia I, you already know that because the character names and sprites are the same.

I think it just comes down to Lufia II being an infinitely better game than its predecessor, and it's the Lufia game that most people who have played the franchise have experienced.  Lufia II has one of the best endings of any RPG from the SNES era, and I enjoyed it having never played the first game.  I just think knowing the ending ahead of time really takes away from the emotional impact you should otherwise be having.

Look, if you want to play Lufia I, play Lufia I.  But if you want to play both games in a way where both stories have their best emotional impact, I just suggest you play them in chronological order: Lufia II, and then Lufia I.

When I say "spoil" you need to recognize that the tongue is firmly planted in my cheek. It does reveal the ending.

And to be clear BoF and BoF II have calbacks that make the game better for their presence.

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