Japanese mobile company DeNA has announced two new games for the Japanese market via its new-fangled social platform called “Mobage.” The names of the games should ring a bell: Infinity Blade X and Professor Layton Royale.
Professor Layton Royale is the product of an actual partnership with Level-5, the original creators of the series. Yet, I don’t think it’d be wise to expect Royale to be a full-fledged entry in the Nintendo DS franchise — it’s a crossover between Layton and Kaito Royale.
In a press conference the other afternoon, it was announced that users would be tasked with taking on the role of detective, as well as a thief and a citizen. That doesn’t sound too Layton-y to me, at least, but I suppose we’ll see for sure later this fall when it hits.
Infinity Blade X, on the other hand, is the Infinity Blade [$5.99 / HD] we all know and love — minus the whole “free to play” part. In a nutshell, on Mobage virtual items will serve as the way the game makes money; there will be no initial cost. I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you won’t be able to earn extravagant weapons and armor with in-game gold. You’ll just be forced to buy them.
DeNA seeks to be a world leader in the mobile / social realm and it’s making huge strides by being aggressive and creative in the space. These two games are just the latest in a string of other moves that has made Mobage enticing in the East has us scratching our chins in the West.
[Via Pocket Gamer]
