2D side-scroller beat 'em up fans, where you at? Right here, dawg. Doesn't take much for me to be enamored with 2D action, usually swords, guns, and/or magic is enough to get me riled up in that realm. What happens if you add in some delicious art of thick-thighed amazon warriors and testosterone oozing man's men? Vanillaware's Dragon's Crown.
The Odin Sphere and Muramasa developer has taken their signature art style into the world of Dungeons and Dragons (without quite treading on AD&D) to create a lovely beat 'em up overflowing with swords, shields, arrows, magic, pectorals, thighs, and cleavage. The art is may be just a tad over the top, but it looks so damn good in motion! How has it taken these guys so long to put out an HD title? Dragon's Crown will be their first.
The question is, will the gameplay of Dragon's Crown be on par with the art? Why the hell not? There looks to be a rudimentary combo system in place, with the impact of each meaty blow holding a good amount of weight. Rightfully so, look at those huge.. Weapons! Four-player cooperative online beat 'em ups don't often disappoint. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is no different. Dragon's Crown will be available for PS3 and PlayStation Vita in Spring of 2012. Such a long time to wait for something so beautiful. What a tease.