Princess Debut roll call

[Jedah Doma]

Yea, so who's getting this odd Cave game? Any impressions?

It looks like the least fun thing imaginable, but it's Cave so maybe there's some cool hidden shooter mini-game.

I picked it up last night just for the fact it was a Cave game. I felt dirty and ashamed. I haven't opened it up.

I'm thinking of returning it.

 

[dark penguin]

I don't think I'd ever be able to bring myself to buy this.

 

[Gameoz]

I thought about picking it up for my daughter.

I read a review of the Japanese version and it sounded pretty good.

 

[bokmeow]

I bought it. Played it. My enthusiasm before its release was like 150%, then when I started playing it, its dating simulation mechanic seemed to be rather rudimentary, like late 80's early 90's fare in Japan, so it sank to 80%, then I got to play a lot of the ballroom dancing and collected 3 accessories, and it's good again, so my score for the title so far is 95%. When I have some more time tomorrow, I'll post a more thorough review. I think this title is best for young girls, but I found quite a bit to like, the rolling markers are kind of like Ouendan, but it's a bit more forgiving and laid back, kind of a zen experience to slide your stylus along with the rhythm of the music, and the camera work is pretty nice too. Character models are much like those from Kuru Kuru Princess (AKA Imaginez: Figure Skater), I find them acceptable, I would have preferred maybe cel-shading, but since the camera roams 1080 around the character models, that would have required far more processing power than the DS offers.

If you go into video mode to watch the dances you performed, there is even a toggle option that allows you to show the steps of the dance --- that was an unexpected nice bonus.

I like it.

 

[Gameoz]

I bought it. Played it. My enthusiasm before its release was like 150%, then when I started playing it, its dating simulation mechanic seemed to be rather rudimentary, like late 80's early 90's fare in Japan, so it sank to 80%, then I got to play a lot of the ballroom dancing and collected 3 accessories, and it's good again, so my score for the title so far is 95%. When I have some more time tomorrow, I'll post a more thorough review. I think this title is best for young girls, but I found quite a bit to like, the rolling markers are kind of like Ouendan, but it's a bit more forgiving and laid back, kind of a zen experience to slide your stylus along with the rhythm of the music, and the camera work is pretty nice too. Character models are much like those from Kuru Kuru Princess (AKA Imaginez: Figure Skater), I find them acceptable, I would have preferred maybe cel-shading, but since the camera roams 1080 around the character models, that would have required far more processing power than the DS offers.

If you go into video mode to watch the dances you performed, there is even a toggle option that allows you to show the steps of the dance --- that was an unexpected nice bonus.

I like it.

I would be interested in reading some more impressions when you get the chance. Do you have any idea how long this game is? Also, if you played the figure skater game as well, which was the better game in your opinion?

 

[bokmeow]

OK, I've gotten through the 30 days of Princess Debut, which is in-game, not 30 days in real time. Here's what I feel about this game:

Princess Debut is a dating simulation entry on the Nintendo DS platform, but a rather outdated one at that --- totally ignoring more than 20 years of progress in this genre. You're placed in the shoes of a princess from a parallel world, who has escaped from hers because she has 2 left feet when it comes to dancing. Now the princess of this parallel world, you have 30 days to train for the big ball at Saint Lyons with a partner of your choosing. Usually dating simulations with RPG elements have a plethora of stats to tweak with certain commands (usually displayed in nothing more than words like 'study,' 'exercise,' 'rest,' etc.), but in Princess Debut, there are only Stamina (determines how often one may practice dancing) and Levels (advanced through acquisition of experience points --- stars in this case). There are as many as 13 locations to visit in the overworld map where you may meet different characters, but the characters tend to be a bit light on dialogue --- a real let down for dating simulations but I guess the game is targeted at little girls that may not have much more patience than little mice do. The meat of the game is in the dancing/training sequences, in which one taps and rolls with the markers on the touch screen. While exciting at first, when you consider that you will have to repeat these sequences as many times as you have stamina points, then you can see how this could get tedious quickly for 30 days in game time. As you gain levels, you earn more songs for a total of 10, and accessories which have no effects other than change the appearance of your character model.

Rent, or buy from a bargain bin, if you are a fan of dancing --- the video mode has camera angle options and dance steps to toggle on and off.

 

[Poison Sama]

Thanks for the impressions. I'll probably pick up the import when it's cheaper.

Did you ever pick up the figure skating game btw?