DS - 2007's Most Wanted

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations

• Release Date: Septemer 2007 (US - Europe TBC)
• Gamepage
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Released next week in Japan it's a pleasingly short wait for this, the third Phoenix Wright to reach the rest of the world. Capcom's inimitable adventure series has found a fond following in Europe thanks to its quirky game mechanics, endearing lead character and humorous tone. Mixing the supernatural with cold hard science the game once again casts players as Phoenix Wright, now a seasoned defence attorney with a penchant for taking on hopeless cases.

Split into five chapters, each one focuses on a different case, tied together by an over-arching narrative. The game's form and function is now well established, and players looking for new stories and puzzles rather than new mechanics should be more than happy.

As with the earlier titles, each chapter is divided into an Investigation Phase (in which Phoenix and his team gather clues and evidence) and then a Trial Phase, where the player must submit appropriate evidence, facts and contradictions to confound the prosecuting team.

With characters such as Jean Armstrong, proprietor of the French restaurant 'Tres Bien' and a defendant known only as Bikini (a plump old woman), the game's irreverent tone should provide players yearning for the next Phoenix fix with everything they desire.

Boulder Dash - Rocks!

• Release Date: Q4 2007
• Gamepage
• Screenshots

It's one of gaming's classics and a title well-suited to an update on the DS platform. Originally released on the C64 in 1984, Boulderdash was one of the few titles of the time to start life on home computers before being ported into arcades.

Lead protagonist Rockford is a prospector whom the player must guide through a network of caves while tunneling from gems and diamonds. Risk is introduced to these rewards by way of enemy creatures (such as butterflies and fireflies), falling rocks and underground explosions.

This DS remake will recreate every element of the original game that made it so beloved by gamers of a certain age (*cough* Kristan *cough*). Boulder Dash - Rocks! is being developed by First Star software, the company who has held (and milked) the rights to the Boulderdash name since 1983 and are looking to convince a new generation of the game's timeless qualities.