Oh wow, here we go: news I’m excited about. During the Konami press conference at gamescom, a new WiiWare title from Hudson was announced called Tower of Shadow. Gameskyo posted the trailer and some screens from the game, and right off the bat I’m completely fascinated — something that doesn’t happen with new game announcements enough these days.
In the game, you control a shadow that has one goal: to reach the top of a tower. You can interact with the world meeting shadows, changing light conditions and more. We’re not 100 percent sure yet, but it could be puzzle based rather than RPG grinding (we have Persona 3‘s Tartarus to cover all our endless tower needs).
You can see the screenshots over at the official site or check out the trailer and press release after the break. Doesn’t it kind of remind you of Ico a bit?
Hudson casts a Shadow on WiiTMKonami illuminated by Hudson Soft’s innovative platform titleKonami Digital Entertainment GmbH has announced it will release Hudson Soft’s innovative Wii title, The Tower of Shadow (working title), in Spring 2010.
At the heart of The Tower of Shadow (working title) lies a mystery. The player controls the shadow of a young boy. The shadow has one purpose in life: to scale the colossal tower that dominates the game’s skyline. He does not speak. Nobody knows who he is or how he came to be. He just climbs. And climbs.
But even a shadow must abide by certain rules, and thus the player must fulfill certain criteria as they help the shadow to climb the tower. First, the shadow can only walk on the thin line between shadow and light. While he is not affected by height or distance, he must always have a shadow foothold, and he will disappear if he is fully engulfed by either the dark or the light.
The Tower of Shadow (working title) introduces a number of new concepts to its platform game basis. Gravity, for instance, does not apply in normal ways. Instead, when the source of light in a stage is parallel to the ground, the shadow is pulled towards the light. Similarly, if the angle of the light changes, so the gravity also shifts as the shadow is extended or reduced.
The mysterious shadow is also accompanied by a winged sylph known as a ‘Spangle’, which can be used to manipulate physical items that the shadow boy cannot. As such, The Tower of Shadow (working title) mixes unique platform elements with a level of puzzling, with the Spangle giving support to the player. The combination of light and shadow creates a unique blend of game styles, with the shadow boy altering the shape of shadows so he can create walkways to previously inaccessible areas.
Along the way, The Tower of Shadow (working title) introduces a giant shadow that is in pursuit of shadow boy, and patrols the tower, alongside other assailants. With a number of tortuous levels to negotiate, The Tower of Shadow (working title) demonstrates Hudson Soft at its creative best. The sprawling levels are full of clever problems that force the player to challenge conventional ways to explore, and to use the varied abilities of the shadow boy and Spangle.
About KONAMI CORPORATION
KONAMI CORPORATION was established in 1973, and became a holding company on March 31, 2006. KONAMI CORPORATION covers the fields of “Digital Entertainment Business”, “Health & Fitness Business” and “Gaming & System Business”. KONAMI CORPORATION went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in 1988, the Singapore Stock Exchange in 1997, the London Stock Exchange in 1999, and the New York Stock Exchange in 2002. Home Page URL: www.konami.co.jp. Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH is a wholly-owned subsidiary, responsible for popular franchises like Metal Gear Solid®, Silent Hill® and Pro Evolution Soccer™ amongst other top sellers. For more information concerning Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH and its products, please visit www.konami-europe.com/games
About HUDSON SOFT COMPANY, LIMITED
HUDSON SOFT CO. LTD., was established in 1973, and creates and provides various own brand games for home-use video game consoles, as well as aggressively promoting digital download content. Additionally HUDSON conducts wide range of other businesses, including provision of mobile contents, PC games, music, visuals and e-commerce. For more information, please visit: http://www.hudson.co.jp/index_e.html©2010 HUDSON SOFT
Published by Hudson Soft Co., Ltd.
Distributed by Konami Digital Entertainment GmbHThe Tower of Shadow (working title) will be released for Wii in the Spring of 2010. For more information, please contact Steve Merrett at Voltage PR on 020 7903 5122 or email steve@voltagepr.com.
