I just got an email from Kenichi Nishi (Giftpia, Chibi-Robo, Archime-DS/LOL), letting me know about his new game, and linking me to its website. As you can read for yourself, it’s called Newtonica, it’s coming out on July 11, and it’s for the freakin’ iPhone! Oh, and the publisher is ‘Field System’, whoever they are.

That’s it. I know as much as you do, at this point! But July 11 is not far off, so we will all know more very soon.

Followers of Kenichi’s blog will know that he is a Mac devotee, so his choice of platform is not a big surprise, but as someone who doesn’t own an iPhone and likely never will, I’m inclined to do a little pouty face. But maybe Newtonica will follow the same path as, for example, Lumines, and eventually make its way to as many systems as possible. I hope so!

Speaking of Lumines, I wonder if Newtonica will be some sort of music game. Kenichi told me in person, with some passion, that he wants to make a music game one day – maybe this is it? Then again, he has a lot of ideas...

Anyway! News! How about that; we’re a proper website after all.

SUDDEN EDIT: I just realised! The name Archime-DS was a pun on 'Archimedes', and now we have 'Newton' in Newtonica. Will Route 24's next game be called Einstein-something? STAY FUCKING TUNED!

ANOTHER EDIT: Maybe I guessed right about it being a music game! In his blog entry announcing Newtonica, Kenichi describes it with the phrase "visual & sound", and I think he also calls it addictive. Actually, I think he says something like, "Please get addicted to..." but honestly my Japanese is just awful so take all this with a grain of salt.

HOORAY EDIT: Designated Friend of Eegra Rebecca Clements kindly provides this rough translation of the blog entry mentioned above:

New Game Announcement!

The title is ‘newtonica’. A big little title with the participation of that person. [I don't know what he means here. – Rebecca]
Please imagine a game with minimalist concept visuals and sound.
By the way, I came up with the original concept, and also did the planning and directing.
Details will be officially released bit by bit on the newtonica website so make sure to check there.
There are banners available too, so feel free to help us advertise!
For details and so on, contact us [here].

Yours truly.

Make of that what you will. Personally, the phrase ‘minimalist concept visuals and sound’ makes me think of the ‘bit Generations’ series. Also, Rebecca is perplexed by the phrase literally translated as “with the participation of that person”, but we think the intended meaning might – might – be something like, “This is a title for everybody.”

Yes! You can meet the creator of Giftpia, Chibi-Robo and Archime-DS/LOL/Bakushow, if you happen to be in Tokyo. Golly!

Remember how I met Kenichi Nishi at Design Festa, almost by chance? Well now YOU can meet Kenichi Nishi at Design Festa, not by chance! He will be at this weekend's event, promoting Archime-DS once again. He would love to meet you, and you would love to meet him.

That's this weekend, May 17th and 18th, at Tokyo Big Sight. More details at Ken's blog.

At long last, I am very, very happy to present the first half of my interview with Kenichi Nishi, the designer of LOL: Lack Of Love, Giftpia, Chibi-Robo, and most recently Archime-DS, soon to be released in Europe and Australia as LOL.

I also interviewed Fumihiro Kanaya, the programmer of Archime-DS, and Miki Tashiro of Skip, the game's publisher. This is because I am an interviewing machine that cannot be stopped.

Click the linky bit to read words -- words about Archime-DS, Skip and Nintendo's bit Generations games; words about Nishi's approach to game design; about his philosophies and dog. Meet a living treasure of the world of videogames.

We received an email from a nice man called Ash, who has started a blog dedicated to awesome and defunct indie game company Lovedelic, and Lovedelic-related companies such as Skip (Chibi-Robo) and Vanpool (Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland), and generally anything or anyone connected in any way with Kenichi Nishi (who you will remember from our Archime-DS review). Needless to say, this blog is right up our alley, and here it is: Lovedelic Life. Go there an' things!

AND! From Lovedelic Life comes the happy news that Archime-DS will be released in the UK in May! Good gracious! KEN-CHAN YOU GOTTA TELL ME THESE THINGS, MAN. Anyway -- good time to be a pom! Or in May it will be, at least. Provided you're not too busy WALLOWING IN MISERY. Oh isn't the weather terrible. It's shocking the things these days.

Second update of the year and I'm already late. It's not my fault! There were monsters.

This is a long, long review of Archime-DS, the latest game from Kenichi Nishi, the creator of Chibi-Robo, Giftpia, and other, similarly unique and neato games. This review is so long that most of it isn't even a review. What is it, instead? Who knows. Not me! I already forgot! It is so amazing and cool and good that my brain just couldn't hold on to it.

I need a cup of tea.