Ico: Castle in the Mist by Miyuki Miyabe

Last year's release of Ico & Shadow of the Colossus HD on PlayStation 3 turned the spotlight back on to Fumito Ueda's classic titles, illuminating them in glorious high definition and banishing the shadowy rough edges which marred the games upon their original release.

Around the same time as the double pack edged its way on to store shelves, Miyuki Miyabe's long-awaited book based on Ico finally arrived on Western shores. Although released in Japan seven years previously, the novel was translated into English by author Alexander O. Smith, giving Western readers their first opportunity to delve into this wonderful tale of rejection, hope, bravery and triumph.

Miyabe was given free reign by Ico's creators to interpret the story in her own way and she's done a fabulous job, making Castle in the Mist an essential companion to young Ico's heroic adventure.

The story focuses on Ico, a boy born with horns who is destined to be sacrificed to a dark queen who resides in a haunting castle as soon as he turns 13 years of age. Within moments of his imprisonment, Ico finds himself free of his shackles and soon discovers Yorda - a mysterious girl who has also been locked up in the castle.

Constantly stalked by shadowy creatures - who are intent on snatching Yorda and taking her back to their nocturnal world - the two make their way through stone-lined corridors, expansive courtyards and sun-drenched plateaus in the hope of eventually escaping the hulking stone citadel and its powerful queen.

Rather than solely focus on Ico and Yorda's plight from the game - which could have turned into a rather repetitive and stale yarn in novel form - Miyabe has given much of the book over to the pair's background stories, which manages to fit snuggly with the digital product.

Ico's young life in Toksa village makes up the opening segment of the book, with family and his best friend Toto playing important parts in his life before he is carted off to the castle by a masked priest.

Incidental details from the game - such as the tunic Ico wears - are given special meaning, with Miyabe delving deep into her imagination to bring to light fresh ideas and twists which will delight fans of Fumito Ueda's debut offering.

The book gets a little dry when explaining Ico's initial journey and subsequent imprisonment but just when you think Miyabe is playing it safe by sticking too closely to the familiar confines of the game, she allows her creativity to shine in the book's spellbinding third chapter.

Taking up almost a third of the 370 page novel, we get a wonderful insight into Yorda's troubled past, the tempestuous relationship with her mother, joyful memories of her father and details of the castle, its people and its landmarks. Brave knights come and go, handmaidens toil with daily duties, great warriors mysteriously disappear and an ever inquisitive Yorda begins to wonder why no one ever seems to leave the castle.

The queen plays a central part to the story and we see the devastating results of her fearsome power, which is only ever hinted at in the game. Whisps of darkness build and swirl out of control with tumultuous results as the queen’s hideous persona is unleashed. Just why she has done this and what she hopes to gain are detailed within the pages and her brooding evil intentions add another remarkable layer to what is already a gripping novel.

All of these experiences culminate and explain why Yorda - who was once a bright girl with a zest for life - becomes the melancholic waif-like figure young Ico finds on his travels.

It's beautifully written with Miyabe making delightful connections with the game which encourages the player to grab a controller and explore Ico with renewed curiosity.

Miyabe successfully manages to keep the game's haunting atmosphere intact, despite meandering away from the core subject matter, while Smith's translation is meticulous making for a real page turner.

Miyabe's passion for the videogame is clear but aside from the foundations laid out by Fumito Ueda and his team, it would appear she has taken influences from other sources to weave her fascinating tale. Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy springs to mind in the way she describes the stronghold's grandiose architecture, the rituals, and bustling life in the castle before the terrible events which left the citadel empty, save for Yorda, the queen and its shadowy inhabitants.

There are also nods to the work of C.S. Lewis here, particularly the Narnia novel The Magician's Nephew. There are direct parallels here with the desolate city of Charn from that book, where a malevolent queen has laid waste to a city and its people by turning them to stone.

Although the novel doesn't follow the game exactly, there are some minor spoilers woven into the text, so it's best to read Castle in the Mist after completing the game, while those looking for a link between Ico and Shadow of the Colossus might be disappointed to learn that a connection never materialises.

Ico: Castle in the Mist is a wonderful novel which avoids the traps that so many games-related books usually fall into. It's well written, entertaining, detailed and actually enhances the game by fleshing out the characters and the world they inhabit.

After tearing through the novel, you'll look upon Ico from a fresh new angle and gaze at the castle in the mist with new found wonder.

Densha De Go! Showa Yamanote Line - DS

The latest title in the long-running arcade train driving series arrives next month in Japan. Titled Densha De Go! Showa Yamanote Line, it’s the first game in the series to arrive on the DS.

I have one of the previous titles for PSP, while I also own two PS2 versions: Densha De Go! Final and Densha Do Go! Shinkansen.

Both are excellent, but Final is the superior product, boasting the most comprehensive number of trains and tracks, while it also sports ‘linking’ a system where the player can link together set objectives to earn a bigger score.

This latest game looks great, and controlling the game should be a breeze thanks to touch screen controls.

Densha De Go! Showa Yamanote Line is being released to celebrate 100 years of Tokyo’s Yamanote Line. Players will be able to experience the line as it is today, and also go back in time to see the tracks as they were in the 50s and 60s.

Densha De Go! Showa Yamanote Line is released in Japan by Square Enix on July 22.

Digital Soaps

Looking for a gift for your gaming obsessed partner? Can't decide what to buy? Well, why not hop over to Digitalsoaps for a perfect present?

From classic controllers to keyboards and monitors, Digitalsoaps is packed with fun gaming-related soaps.

My wife bought me the 360 controller below and it looks so good, I really don't want to destroy it by using it.

So head on over to their website...you never know, it might just help you clean up your high scores...

Soul Nomad and the World Eaters - PS2

Nippon Ichi, the company behind the magnificent Disgaea series, released this gem back in June last year in the UK. Without any publicity and what seems to have been a small production run on PlayStation 2, getting your hands on a copy now might be a challenge, but it's definitely worth tracking down.

With Soul Nomad, Nippon Ichi took elements from Disgaea and added a dash of Nintendo’s Advance Wars to create something a little bit different.

The story focuses on events from the past, when three colossal World Eaters, led by a dark and mysterious figure, almost destroyed your world. Fortunately, these behemoths were stopped in their tracks when their leader was imprisoned by the forces of good in a black onyx sword.

Now that your character has come of age, it has been decided your soul is to be fused with the soul of this dark being, in the hope that a mixture of good and evil will finally destroy the remaining World Eaters.

The game is strictly turn-based, but rather than the pleasing isometric view from their previous titles, Nippon Ichi resorted to a flattened view. Although the battle screens fizz with colour and charm, the world map is devoid of any such sparkle, making certain elements of the game less than appealing.

Thankfully, though, the gameplay shines, and give it a few hours and you'll discover that Soul Nomad is an absorbing and deeply tactical experience.

There are 26 classes at your disposal, from Soldiers and Knights, to Bards and Bandits and this flexible mix allows the player to tailor their squads to their liking.

Each character on screen represents a whole battle squad made up of multiple characters. Each squad can be tinkered with, and you can arrange party members into slots, such as front, middle or back.

Unusually when in battle, you don’t directly issue orders to these team members, the game decides on what attacks to use instead. While this is initially jarring, it actually works quite well in the heat of battle.

The real challenge is figuring out where to place each team member for maximum advantage. Add in the ability to create new teams, characters and implement special moves, and Soul Nomad reveals itself to be far more complex than you initially imagine.

Fans of Disgaea will definitely get their money’s worth from Soul Nomad, although those new to the SRPG genre might struggle due to the lack of explanations and slightly bland visuals. However, it is still well worth tracking down as it offers a rich and rewarding experience.

Images courtesy of Nippon Ichi

Densha de Go!

Taito's Densha de Go! is a series that has always fascinated me. It's a name that kept cropping up as I explored the world of Japanese videogames.

All I knew about it was it was a game featuring train driving. Deciding to explore further, I imported Densha de Go! Pocket: Osaka Kanjousen Hen on PSP from Japan around three years ago to see for myself what the game was about. Since then, I've become something of a Densha de Go! nerd...and I'm not even vaguely interested in trains!

The common misconception is that Densha de Go! is a strict train driving simulation. In actual fact, it's more of an arcade game with simulation aspects.

Basically, the aim of the game is to get passengers to their destination on time. When you are driving, you must obey speed limits and ensure the passengers are safe and happy.

As you journey along the route, marker points are set out. These require you either reach a certain speed or pass the marker point at a certain time on the clock.

When you approach a station, you must bring the train to a gradual and gentle stop within a set zone. Failure to do so will anger passengers and you'll be docked points for sloppy driving. At the end of the route you are given a score and graded, and the aim is to get a gold star rating.

Not only does the series feature different trains, the game also takes place at various times of the day and night. Densha de Go! also features weather conditions such as rain and snow, which affects how quickly you can stop the train.

Densha de Go! has been released on various platforms, including the Game Boy Colour, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 and even in Japanese arcades. However, it has never - as far as I'm aware - been released in the West.

Densha de Go! Final on PS2 - in my mind the best version of the series - introduced a new scoring mechanism where you would accumulate ‘chains’ depending on how well you had driven the train. Final also features the most comprehensive amount of routes and really is the definitive version of the series.

Despite the fact the graphics are looking slightly dated, driving at dusk in the rain is very atmospheric and some of the lighting effects are very nice, too.

The other version I have on PS2 is Densha de Go! Shinkansen, which gives you control over the famous Japanese bullet train. Unfortunately, due to the high speed and space between stations, it can get a little boring - although you can unlock pictures of Japanese landmarks, sweets and what Japanese train drivers eat for their lunch!

When the PS3 launched in Japan, one of the first games you could get was Railfan. It uses Blu-Ray footage of actual train lines in Japan and Chicago. While it's fun, it doesn't really capture the charm of Final on PS2. In fact, I haven't played it recently, so I should really dust my copy off and take another tour around Chicago.

Densha de Go! is definitely something of an acquired taste, but it's pretty straightforward to play, and the language barrier shouldn't throw up many problems. It's great fun, strangely compelling, and has become one of my favourite series from the Far East.

For people interested in importing, the Densha de Go! Pocket series on PSP is the best place to start. As the PSP is region free, it's probably the most accesible way for Western gamers to experience the series.

Chulip - PS2

After I rediscovered Chibi-Robo a few months ago, I decided to do a bit of digging about and find out more about Skip Ltd, the team that created this classic Gamecube title. I already knew about their involvement in Gamecube title Giftpia, but my knowledge after that was limited.

As far as I can tell, Skip are a spin-off of Japanese developer Lovedelic, who created three games during there brief existence - Moon (PS1), UFO: A Day in the Life (PS1) and L.O.L.: Lack of Love (Dreamcast). So far, I've had no joy in tracking any of these titles down, but I'm hopeful that Moon and UFO will eventually appear on the Japanese PSN store at some point in the future.

Another spin off from Lovedelic was Punchline. They created Chulip on PS2 and, although I couldn't track down an American copy (it was never released in the UK) I managed to locate a Japanese copy and I've been playing through it over the last few nights.


The aim of the game is to kiss the girl of your dreams. However, she isn't going to let that happen until you raise your reputation about town. How are you going to achieve this? By kissing all of the town's residents, of course!

Now, you can't just wander up to a random stranger and plant a smacker on their lips...well, you can, but you'll get a slap for your trouble. To get people to pucker up you have to fulfil certain requirements. This means helping people and running errands etc.

In a strange way it reminds me of classic ZX Spectrum titles Pyjamarama and Everyone's a Wally, as you have to have certain objects and items in your inventory for events to unfold.


Obviously the language barrier is throwing a few problems my way, but I'm loathe to use a walkthrough as I don't want to spoil the overall experience. So if anyone knows where I can get a US copy, please let me know.

Although Chulip was never going to win any awards for is looks, I personally think they're great. The isometric viewpoint and the art design are perfectly suited to the quirky gameplay. The town's residents are full of character and they have the same garbled voice style that was used in Chibi-Robo. You'll also come across some very strange creations, too - your first kiss is from an onion!


The mood of the game is set by the game's brilliant musical score. Chibi-Robo, Giftpia and Chulip all have wonderful music, so I can't wait to hear more from the Lovedelic camp.

While there's no chance of Chulip appearing over here on PS2, I would love to see Nintendo pick this up and release it on Wii. With Chibi-Robo about to be re-released on Wii, there's no excuse.

edit: I've managed to order a US version, which should be here by next week.

Tori no Hoshi: Aerial Planet - PS2

When Japanese software company Nippon Ichi release a game, it's always worth taking a closer look. After all, they are the team who brought us the excellent strategy RPGs Disgaea: Hour of Darkness and Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories on PS2. Not only that, but they released Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness on PSP earlier this year, while Disgaea 3 is set for an autumn release Stateside on PS3.

Tori no Hoshi on PlayStation 2 doesn't seem to have anything in common with their turn-based RPGs, instead it focusses of the beauty of flight. Taking contol of Hugo, you make your way over a watery planet courtesy of your glider, and explore a variety of islands. It looks as though there are plenty of places to discover and stormy conditions to avoid as you hop from island to island.

It certainly has shades of the Nintendo classic Pilotwings, and in the absence of any next-gen version of that particular franchise, this could well fill a gap in the market. However, there is no word yet if Nippon Ichi will release the game in the west, so importing it from Japan is your only current option. Look out for more information in the coming weeks.