You may remember Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure. It was a critcally acclaimed Nintendo DS platformer/puzzle hybrid that became something of a cult hit. Upon completing the game, the lead designers left EA Tiburon to form DreamRift, a new independent games studio. It has been revealed that the first game to come from this new studio will be another Nintendo DS title, Monster Tale.
The game will be similar to Henry Hatsworth in that it features a combination of two previously separate game genres, this time platforming and pet-simulation. Monster Tale will feature a platform game on the top-screen, that will see Ellie, Monster Tale’s heroine, traversing the environment collecting things for her pet monster Chomp. This is where the bottom-screen comes in, as this is where players take care of Chomp, who can be summoned to aid the player on the top-screen.
Monster Tale is being published by Majesco and has no known estimated release date at this stage.
Sounds good!
Actually, I read an article about this in Nintendo Power and it sounds really good now!
One of the more interesting revelations is that it’s got the Metroid structure, instead of being a linear platformer. Also, the lead designer talked about how the switching between platforming and puzzling in Henry Hatsworth was too jarring and took players out of the game (which I agree with) and how in Monster Tale they’ve worked hard to ensure that the modes gel really well and there’s no awkward switching between the two.
Another thing is, Chomp doesn’t have to be summoned to affect the top screen. Chomp can use items such as the catapult to attack enemies from the bottom screen!
Also, it’s on track for an American release in December! Hooray!