411mania talks about this week's game releases. Highlights include Phantom Brave, C.O.R.E, Fossil Fighters, and Madden.

On Phantom Brave, 411mania writes: "We Meet Again is an update to the original Phantom Brave for the PS2. As it was the game that immediately followed Disgaea, it had a lot to live up to when it was first released back in 2004. Though the SRPG contained many similarities to its predecessor, many fans felt that it strayed a little too much from what made Disgaea a hit. Detractors cite the more serious story as well as the various gameplay changes as their main complaints. However, those who actually gave the game a chance found a lot of the changes to their liking. The absence of the grid system, for example, allowed for more freedom when positioning characters. In addition, the Confine system, whereby the souls of the playable characters must be "confined" to objects on the field in order to take physical form, forced players to put more thought into when and where to use each character. It's not an exact clone of Disgaea, but in this case, that isn't such a bad thing."
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DarkZero: "It seems the world of Pokemon has invaded Twitter, with multiple characters and Pokemon from the games and TV show now having Twitter accounts. Some are a bit pointless, some are really bloody pointless, but some are very funny.

Koffing managed to get a laugh out of us, as it seems he just exploded. He also revealed that his trainer James loves ABBA."
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The Amazon deal of the day for today is Pokemon Ranger and Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia for $19.98 each. Deal is good until 12:00 AM PST or when stock is depleted.
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January 11 - Nintendo claims eight of the top ten selling games of 2007 in Japan, looking at the latest figures from Enterbrain, publisher of the Famitsu magazine.

Only Capcom's PSP title Monster Hunter Portable 2 and Square Enix's Dragon Quest IV manage to break Nintendo's hold on the top ten.

The list of Japan's Top 10 software of 2007, with their units sold, is posted at MCV.
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Xbox Live's Castle of secrets? Okay. We're not promising that Microsoft is going to release a version of the original PlayStation masterpiece Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for Xbox Live Arcade this week. However, what we are saying is that it's the Tokyo Game Show and Microsoft is begging 360 owners to check out exclusive coverage of both TGS and the Euro-centric X06 event, via Xbox Live. And we're also saying that Microsoft's press release today promised two new Xbox Live Arcade titles ... » Read More

In the ultimate example of cooperative gameplay, new DS game Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team - due out next month - will let your pals link up with your game to bring you back to life. And all the while you'll be playing as one of your favorite Pokemon. The game's Rescue mode produces a password whenever you fail to complete a dungeon. This password can then be given to a friend who can enter your game using DS' wireless connectivity and rescue you from the dungeon, so allowing you ... » Read More

Nintendo has confirmed that its upcoming Pokemon titles will both launch in Europe on 10th November 2006. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team for the DS and Pokemon Red Rescue Team on the GBA will allow you to become Pokemon for a great adventure.
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Under normal circumstances, the hundreds of super-powered critters that make up the Pokemon universe need a human trainer to order them around. Not so with Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Resue Team, a floor-by-floor dungeon crawler that has you duking it out with the cutest monsters in existence. You start with just one little guy (in our case, it was the fire-breathing Charmander), but by exploring various caves, holes and bits of wilderness, your party can grow to four. Hidden amidst the mobs ... » Read More