After eight weeks on top, Nintendo's Mario Kart Wii was ousted from the top spot in Media Create's software chart list by Sega's Pro Yakyuu Team o Tsukurou! On the flip side, the PlayStation Portable is still enjoying a comfortable lead against its other hardware rivals. You can read the hard numbers to both the hardware and software charts in Japan by clicking on the "read more" link found below.

It seems Atlus is really eager to show everyone what Spectral Force 3 is all about by releasing a lot of screenshots from the game. This turn-based strategy RPG for the Microsoft Xbox 360, developed by Idea Factory, is shaping up to be a desirable title for fans of anime-esque characters swinging swords and casting magic spells. Find screenshots of those at the full article.

In a few weeks, Atlus will finally ship Spectral Force 3 to North America. If you've got a Microsoft Xbox 360 yet that doesn't ring a bell, you have some catching up to do. Fortunately, assets have been released so you'll know what the turn-based strategy RPG by Idea Factory is all about. Find all the goodies at the full article.

In case you didn't know, Atlus will soon unleash a combo of strategy RPGs on the Microsoft Xbox 360. Long after the announcement of becoming a third-party publisher for the console, two new titles are finally coming from same company that brought us cult hits Disgaea (before NIS America began publishing its own games in the west) and the Shin Megami Tensei series. This time, we get to see a trailer of developer Idea Factory's Spectral Force 3 which is slated for release this spring. Hit that jump to see it in action!

Atlus, the Japanese video game developer and publisher who brought us the Trauma Center franchise, has announced that they have officially become a licensed Xbox 360 publisher.

Along with this announcement Atlus also announced two new Xbox 360 games added to their publishing portfolio: Spectral Force 3 and Operation Darkness.

So you think there's nothing more on Idea Factory's Spectral Force 3: Innocent Rage, eh? Well you thought wrong, my friends. Because we have here for you today three character trailers for Kirrat, Folt, and Cassius. Now, the game's been out in Japan for quite a while now, although there's still no news as to when it will be shipped to the U.S. or other territories.

To refresh your memories, Spectral Force 3 is a strategy RPG title set in Neverland where you take on the role of a young soldier sent off to the first Neverland war. On to the characters now, Kirrat is armed with a magical staff with which she casts spells on her enemies to defeat them. Folt, meanwhile, can build up a storm of energy that he can unleash upon his foes. And as for Cassius, he is able to call forth the power of a mystical dragon to help him out in his quests.

A formidable team, shall we say? Anyway, keep those fingers crossed for a U.S. release date soon, and enjoy the trailers.

Kirrat

Get to know Folt and Cassius after the jump!

The 360 will always have more than enough room for RPG games, and every RPG title that'll come out for the 360 will definitely be a welcome addition to their line up - especially if they want to jump up the console's popularity in Asia.

And so, not wanting to miss a beat, Idea Factory is coming out with yet another tactical-RPG title for next year.

Based on their Blazing Souls title for the PS2, Absolute Blazing Infinity is scheduled for a March 29 release in Japan. As for North America and UK, no specific release date has been announced.

There's not much info yet on this, but if we look at the success of the Spectral Souls series (Spectral Souls is out across various platforms), this new RPG could be yet another smash hit for Idea Factory.

For those who are lucky enough to have plane tickets to Japan just for the Tokyo Game Show 2006, here's some bit of info for you.

Microsoft, following it's pre-show press conference, gave us a bit of info about the games you'll be seeing at their booth this TGS 2006.

If you look at the list below you'll see some bad news. Yeah, no playable Gears of War. Bad. Don't worry though, we do get playables for Tenchu Senran, DOA Xtreme 2, Blue Dragon, Gundam Operation Troy and Lost Odyssey, so that's all good. Idol Master sounds umm... never mind.

We'll give you more TGS updates when they come.

GAME	PUBLISHER	GENRE	FORMAT
Blue Dragon	Microsoft	RPG	Playable/Trailer
Lost Odyssey	Microsoft	RPG	Playable/Trailer
Forza Motorsport 2	Microsoft	Racing	Trailer
Atsumare! Pinata	Microsoft	Simulation	Playable/Trailer
Riot Act	Microsoft	Action	Playable/Trailer
Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis	Microsoft	Sports	Playable/Trailer
Gears of War	Microsoft	Action	Trailer
A Ressha De Ikou HX	Artdink	Simluation	Trailer
Diario Rebirth Moon Legend	Idea Factory	RPG	Trailer
Need for Speed Carbon	Electronic Arts	Racing	Trailer
Dead Rising	Capcom	Action	Playable/Trailer
Lost Planet Extreme Condition	Capcom	Action	Playable/Trailer
Winning Eleven Series	Konami	Sports	Trailer
Operation Darkness	Success	Simulation	Playable/Trailer
Project Sylpheed	Square Enix	Shooting	Playable/Trailer
X-Men the Official Game	Spike	Action	Trailer
Prey	Spike	Action	Trailer
Tomb Raider: Legend	Spike	Action	Playable/Trailer
Full Auto	Sega	Racing	Trailer
Phantasy Star Universe: Illuminous no Yabou	Sega	RPG	Trailer
Sonic the Hedgehog	Sega	Action	Playable/Trailer
Dead or Alive Xtreme 2	Tecmo	Sports	Playable/Trailer
Moto GP '06	THQ Japan	Racing	Playable/Trailer
WWE 2007 Smackdown vs Raw	THQ Japan	Wrestling	Playable/Trailer
The Outfit	THQ Japan	Action	Trailer
Earth Self Defense Force 3	D3 Publisher	Action	Playable/Trailer
Fusion Frenzy 2	Hudson	Family	Playable/Trailer
Culdecept Saga	Bandai Namco Games	Board Game	Playable/Trailer
Trusty Bell: Chopan no Yume	Bandai Namco Games	RPG	Playable/Trailer
Gundam Operation Troy	Bandai Namco Games	Action	Playable/Trailer
Idol Master	Bandai Namco Games	Simulation	Playable/Trailer
Super Robot Taisen XO	Banpresto	Simulation	Playable/Trailer
Tenchu Senran	From Software	Action	Playable/Trailer

Spectral Diario for Xbox 360 is a new next-gen project from Japanese developer Idea Factory. Last sighted at the Tokyo Game Show last 2005, Spectral Diario is one of those upcoming games that seem to avoid any kind of publicity like a plague. It falls under the RPG category and is expected to hit stores sometime in 2007. Other than that and these screenshots, Spectral Diario will remain a spectre of a game for now.

In the meantime, for those who need to recall, Idea Factory is the Japanese development and publishing company which is headed by company president Koichi Ota and VP Shingo Kuwana. Idea Factory was founded on October 26, 1994 and employs more than 40 people. They currently have numerous PS1 and PS2 game titles under their belt, as well as Spectral Souls II  for the PSP, Gamecube and Xbox 360 which were released only in Japan. Some of their titles include Spectal Force Zero and Fushigi Yuugi Genbu Kaiden.

Spectral Force 3: Innocent Rage will be hitting the 360 in Japan on June 29th and the team over at Xboxyde have posted some more screenshots from the game. Spectral Force 3 is a strategy-RPG by Idea Factory where you play as a young soldier, fighting in the first Neverland War, who is in a mercenary group that's not affiliated with any particular government, instead opting to take on jobs from any of the 10 countries that divide Neverland. The game presents the Neverland story from a new perspective. Hopefully it will someday make it over here to the States, but until then go ahead and check out the screenshots by clicking the thumbnails below.