PlatinumGames / Clover Studio

[Rosalinas Spare Wand]

Okay, I am seriously considering just importing Anarchy Reigns now. I've been playing the demo non-stop and I'm absolutely in love with the 2 multiplayer modes it offers. I really don't think I can wait until January for an NTSC copy because I really want to try out the bigger roster and the more expanded multiplayer modes.

[Foggle]

Got my copy of Anarchy Reigns! It's at least 10x better than the demo. Battle Royale and Death Ball =  Need to play single-player soon to unlock more characters! I also need to practice a lot, because I'm extremely bad at the game.

As expected, it's very hard to find a match. The multiplayer is actually implemented quite well, and lets people play cross-region as long as no serious lag is detected. There's also no North American servers (yet?). This means that most of the time I either have to create a match (which means waiting at least ten minutes) or play simulator mode (which is still really fun as the bots are actually fun to fight in this game, but doesn't get you XP).

This probably has the best main menu in any game. The camera pans around a bar where all of the characters (sans Bayonetta, who is relegated to a video screen) are hanging out and plays some sweet acid jazz in the background. Very nice. I haven't really had much of a chance to play the game yet, but I can already tell that I'm satisfied with my purchase. I'll post my opinion on the OST in the VGM thread!

[Foggle]

Hey guys, just wanted to say, don't buy this game if you aren't interested in the multiplayer aspect. I'm including simulator in with multiplayer, btw, as the bots are surprisingly fun to fight. But yeah, the story mode is easily the weakest thing Platinum's ever done. It's not exactly bad, and it's certainly far better than the Adventure modes in Smash Bros., but it's not up to P*'s usual level of quality. The cutscenes and plot are actually pretty damn good for what they are, though.

But like I said earlier, the multiplayer stuff is phenomenal. Strictly from the multiplayer brawler/party fighter POV, this might actually be Platinum's finest work since God Hand. Everything about it is utterly fantastic.

[Foggle]

Playing the campaign again to get the rest of the unlockables. It's actually a lot better than I thought at first. It's more of a score attack mode than anything. Once you actually gain some skills at the game (I'm getting there ), it becomes pretty great. I'd still say that it's probably Platinum's worst single-player experience, but it's definitely a step above the majority of 3D action games, let alone brawlers.

All y'all better get this once Sega stops fucking around and releases it.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'd get it if you had the XBOX360 version, but since I'm sure you have it for the PS3, I'll pretty much have no friends to play against if I do get it (being that my own friends have never even heard of Platinum, let alone this game ). I'm sure the online is great, but the only reason I'm hesitant to get a game like this is just because I don't know how long the online community will thrive for. I'm sure hardcore Platinum fans will always be willing to play it, but I feel as though I'd have to actually know a good number of fans who have this game for the XBOX360 just in order to be ensured that I'd have a couple of people to have a match with on any given day that I had the opportunity to play.

Well, at any rate, I still need to get around to finally buying and playing Bayonetta and Vanquish in full before I can get around to this game.

[Foggle]

Yeah, I bought it for PS3 since the online is free and because my only IRL friend willing to play it doesn't own an Xbox. The Japanese community seems to be pretty big, though I can rarely play with anyone in Asia due to Platinum's lag prevention measures. It's not that hard to find a game with other western fans though, you just have to hang around the PlatinumGames forum and/or /vg/ a bit to meet other players to party up with. This seems like one of those games where, in the long run, the community will be small but dedicated, so I doubt it'll ever be impossible to find a game. But we'll have to see how Sega handles the NA/EU release...

If you have doubts about playing online, consider buying it once it hits the bargain bit for $10-20. You'll get enough mileage out of the simulator and campaign to make it worth at least that.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Will do.

I do really want to buy the game at full price when it comes out to support a great developer like Platinum, but unfortunately times have been rough on me and my family for the past few years, so like usual I'm going to have to wait to buy this game when it drops down in price. I'll still try to buy it new rather than used, though. I tend to do that if its for a developer that I actually like.

[Foggle]

Oh god, here's my one major complaint about this game's story mode...

Near the end of Leo's campaign, there's an awful gimmick boss that's extremely cheap/annoying and handled very poorly. At the end of the fight is a quick time event that's actually kind of difficult, and if you mess it up, you die and have to restart the level. Seriously fucking terrible. I thought Platinum knew better than to do something like that.

[Foggle]

"The sad thing about Anarchy Reigns is that it's exactly the kind of game that 'gamers' say they want: original, high-octane action with bags of depth, plenty of modes, and multiplayer. It's all game, all of the time, and is even region-free and defaults to English - a sign, perhaps, that Platinum foresaw Sega's reticence to publish it in the west (a suggestion of Q1 2013 is all you're getting). Anarchy Reigns has sold pretty badly thus far, and over the weekend the American release saw its pre-order price slashed to $30.

The games industry loves nostalgia, particularly when it involves something underappreciated in its own time. The Dreamcast's posthumous valorisation is like this. And so, criminally, is much of Clover Studio's finest work - and especially God Hand, the daddy of 3D brawlers, and a total sales flop. Anarchy Reigns already has this whiff about it, the smell of critical success, commercial failure and subsequent cult status. That's a damn shame, and much less than this deserves. But the only thing Platinum Games can control is the quality of its product. In Anarchy Reigns, as ever, it is exceptional."

Hooray for Eurogamer! http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-07-16-anarchy-reigns-review

[Rosalinas Spare Wand]

Wait, its gonna be 30 bucks when it gets here?

Holy shit, that is a great fucking deal. Time to start viraling the shit out of this because I really want this game to succeed. The demo alone has made it my favorite multiplayer game this generation.

[Foggle]

Wait, its gonna be 30 bucks when it gets here?

Probably. The rumor is that it'll be so cheap because there won't actually be a retail release, though...

The demo alone has made it my favorite multiplayer game of all time.

Changed that to reflect my personal opinion.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Then I'd probably grab the PS3 version for easier access to multiplayer.

[Rynnec]

Damn, looks like Sega is flagging the Anarchy Reigns soundtrack on youtube. Anyone know if the soundtrack will get an official US release?

[gunswordfist]

Kamiya is God.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Bayonetta 2 is being published by Nintendo as a Wii-U exclusive.

Discuss.