VideogameVagabond.com

I’d have to say that my most anticipated game of the summer - that hasn’t been released yet, at any rate - is Hot Shots Tennis. Sure, it’s not next-gen but a PS2 title. Yes, there are a lot of RPGs on several platforms that I’m looking forward to.

But to set the Hot Shots Golf team loose on an all-new sport? That has me intrigued. It’s the kind of thing that stays long-term in your IBM memory until it actually comes out.

Sure, seeing the series make its debut on PS3 would have been sweet, but the series doesn’t really need to be next-gen to be impressive, given its cartoon style, and the combination of humor and depth could really be the birth of a sports game that will finally help capture my interest in the sport of tennis - which isn’t that high when it comes to more sim-style ol’ standbys like Virtua Tennis or Top Spin.

It could be a breath of fresh air.

If you’re out for practicality, buy some financial reporting software. But even the busiest, most productive accountant needs a bit of a break now and then, right? And what would accountants do without the occasional round of golf to de-stress them?

That’s where Wolverine Studios’ Total Pro Golf 2 comes in; while it’s 2D and more of a text-based sports management sim than a graphical 3D golf romp like the average Tiger Woods or Hot Shots Golf game, Total Pro Golf 2 has garnered a loyal following that is growing every day.

Developer Gary Gorski has refined the original game in every way, adding in new features, an optional three-click shot control scheme, loads of deeper stats and much more. It’s the only version anyone should consider buying.

Anyone interest in playing a videogame focused on fixed asset accounting? I didn’t think so, so it’s fortunate that Touch the Dead, the latest in Nintendo DS action/survival horror, is exactly the opposite of such a boring concept.

If you think Touch the Dead is a porn video, you’d be wrong… and sick. Nope, it’s your basic zombie-killing shooter only instead of shooting a fun, you touch the screen to off the nasty brain-starved buggers. While it lacks the storyline appeal of Silent Hill, Fatal Frame or Resident Evil, Touch the Dead does incorporate solid use of the DS touch-screen into the mix.

It’s not as chilling as the best survival horror franchises out there, but at least Touch the Dead points the way on how to bring the genre to a handheld platform.

While it might not last as long or be as valuable as NC waterfront property, Odin Sphere is a fun little PS2 game that proves that the PS2 still has plenty to offer while the PS3 is getting its bearings.

Certainly, in a year or so, PS3 will be where all the cool games are hanging out; but with the surge of PS3 titles still a few months off, at least Sony is supporting the PS2 in the meantime better than Microsoft did following the 360 launch.

Odin Sphere, the latest offering from Atlus, the little RPG company that could, if sort of a poor man’s version of Valkyrie Profile - in the best sense. The game is relatively sharp looking, though just shy of SquareEnix greatness, and the game offered a modified and modernized realization of the side-scrolling, 2D action RPG with plenty of fun, solid gameplay and a bit of humor.

Filled with cute girls and big monsters to fight, there are different strategies that work better with some bosses than others, making for the right kind of challenge to the game.

One early boss has tornado-style breath that sucks you into his mouth where he can chew you up and spit you out, making short work of your character; but if you learn the timing of his attacks, you can use the side-scrolling world to run away, around and come up on him from behind to lay down some serious damage before he can get turned around.

Other bosses have different approaches, forcing you as the player to modify your attack and defend styles, too. This one’s worth your time while waiting out the PS3’s summer of the long wait.

It doesn’t take a Disney vacation home to have a good time at home. All that’s really required is to experience Sony’s new PS3 online experience, Home, set to debut later this year.

Home goes beyond the convenient design of Xbox Live to become a Second Life-style of online avatar community, only with more of a gamer-intensive focus. The design looks appropriately powerful, high-def, and next-gen. The character models are quite versatile and the whole thing takes the concept of “online community” to the next level.

While few have seen it yet, other than in video form, Sony has to be congratulated for thinking beyond what Xbox Live is doing, to offer something far more robust and forward-thinking. Well done!

Just when you thought the series might need to consider funeral insurance, SquareEnix has confirmed that a remake of the original PSone underground hit, Final Fantasy Tactics, has been confirmed to be headed for Sony’s PSP handheld videogame system.

The PSP-bound remake, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Lion War, will add some new content and cutscenes, as well as a cameo by at least one FFXII character, is a welcome revival to longtime fans who fell in love with the Tactics-style game play back when the game was first released on PSone in 1997, just over 10 years ago.

But the good news doesn’t end there: SquareEnix also announced Final Fantasy Tactics A2: The Sealed Grimoire. By nature of the title, specifically the “A2″ designation, this one is believed to be a Nintendo DS-bound sequel to the legendary Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, still the best title ever to appear on GameBoy Advance, for my money. Welcome news!

Someone quite naughty thought up the latest PSP billiards game, Pocket Pool. The idea is fairly simple: spice up a deep billiards sim by offering plenty of scantily clad gals into the mix, including some unlockable naughty pictures and videos of said women. It’s called Pocket Pool and if you went to grade school in the 1970s, there was a fairly crude reference for that turn of phrase: it’s employed intentionally here.

While the models are quite fetching, what all the “bra and panties” action may distract one from is the fairly obvious conclusion that Pocket Pool actually offers up a fairly substantial billiards sim with plenty of depth, decent table physics and load times that thankfully aren’t as bad as many PSP titles.

Offering a more festive tone than The Hustle: Detroit Streets, Pocket Pool should appeal to more than just folks of prurient gaming interests. It’s a decent billiards game and stands toe-to-toe with the aging The Hustle: Detroit Streets as a fun pool game for PSP.

But if this “dames and sports” trend continues, instead of a fresh Callaway golf title on PSP, we may be faced with the likes of Hot Shots Golf: Going Commando! Yikes!

While in some ways it may be old-school to a fault, the forthcoming Dungeon Maker: Hunting Grounds from XSeed Games is looking just fine. The game combines the appeal of the “build your own RPG” type games that were somewhat appealing on PSone and PS2, but without the need to, like, do everything from the ground up.

Instead of building EVERY aspect of an RPG, Dungeon Maker: Hunting Ground offers up a frame story and a cast of characters to interact with, while challenging the gamer to design their own ultimate dungeon to not only explore and conquer, but to create as well.

You must purchase everything from basic building blocks like hallway and room segments to the design and decor of each area. You can even purchase an energy supplement to refresh your character and keep him hacking his way through your dungeon as you both explore it and build it out and down.

New building elements are spaced apart in their availability to keep the game interesting as you go, and while the game is rather narrow in scope compared to sweeping epics like Final Fantasy XII or Dragon Quest VII, it still comes across quite well for the scale of the game.

The main goal is to build the dungeon deep enough and interestingly enough to really draw in major monsters that award you more funds to keep building and building and building, like Lady Winchester in the Winchester mansion, until finally you capture the attention of the game’s Big Bad Boss, the final encounter that helps you ultimately win the game.

You’ll encounter various characters along the way who give you advice and side-quests to complete, and generally the game is action-RPG-style fun that will entertain without bogging you down too much in a morose and lengthy storyline.

The game looks promising at this point. We’re certainly anticipating seeing how the final product looks when the code goes gold and is released on store shelves later this month.