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Do you like airplanes? Do you like anime stereotypes? Then The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces is what you've been waiting for! XSEED released the above trailer, featuring lots of awesome planes, and lots of inexplicably young people flying them. Well, not inexplicably -- though the details may constitute a spoiler, there is a really weird explanation for everyone's age. Beyond "it's anime."

The Sky Crawlers will be one of the first Wii releases of 2010 -- it's due out on January 5.

Namco Bandai declined to publish The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces in North America, licensing the game out to XSEED instead. However, the company is handling the game itself for the European release, due in February. The game is a flight action game developed by Ace Combat dev Project Aces, and based on both the novel and the Mamoru Ishii-directed anime film of the same name.

In addition to the game, the movie is planned for a DVD and Blu-Ray release in PAL territories at an unspecified future date ("coming soon"). That seems like a good idea -- licensed games probably work better when people know what the source material is.

Finally! XSEED is bringing the long-awaited Sky Crawlers to American shores. We've been eying this game for quite some time, and having gotten some hands-on time, we'd have to say it was (almost) worth the wait. Sky Crawlers expands upon the thought-provoking Mamoru Oshii film, exploring a world that perpetuates war for the entertainment (and comfort) of its docile citizens. With Namco's esteemed Ace Combat team at the helm, quality seems assured.

The controls are both the game's strongest and weakest aspect. Project Aces takes advantage of the Wii Remote to simulate the feel of having cockpit controls. The Wii Remote and Nunchuk are meant to represent the throttle and the thrust -- to some success. The idea is certainly innovative, but for those unaccustomed to plane simulators, the learning curve can be quite high. There are, however, some concessions made to make the experience a bit more accommodating for newcomers.

If you have a comprehensive knowledge of Japanese literature or flight combat games that never saw an American release, you probably already know about The Sky Crawlers. We fell in love with Namco-Bandai's book-to-game adaptation when we were teased with tons of gameplay footage last year -- sadly, the game was never visited by the localization fairy, and never made it to the States. Since then, we've been sad all over.

Fortunately, a recent XSEED press release has turned our melancholy into melan-jolly (ugh) -- the capitalized company has purchased the North American publishing rights for The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces, due out this holiday season on the Wii. The game, which was developed by Ace Combat veterans Project Aces, will have players using the Wiimote and Nunchuck to simulate actual flight controls. It's a bit overdue, but we're thrilled about the Americanization of this aeronautical gem nonetheless.

We've been in love with The Sky Crawlers since we first caught a glimpse of the upcoming game's gorgeous art style, but since we've started seeing bits of the gameplay, we've grown even more excited. Not only is the game a real visual gem, but it looks exhilarating. The latest trailer, courtesy of TGS, has a few tantalizing moments of action, but most of it is focused on the story ... which would probably be a lot more interesting if we could understand what was going on. As it is, we've got dramatic music, some emphatic expressions, and saluting. Oh, and bad-ass airplanes. Sold!

It's been some time since we've seen anything from The Sky Crawlers, but guess what? It's still drop-dead gorgeous, though that's not particularly surprising, considering the source. There may be hope for the film -- and thus the game -- for Western audiences, too, as the film of the same name is being screened at the Venice Film Festival this week, and is sharing the spotlight (and a lot of fanfare) with Hayao Miyazaki's latest. So cross those fingers, and in the meantime, check out the lush new screens. You'll be glad you did.

One of the most important aspects of a flight-sim game is, of course, what you're piloting. If we're going to take part in virtual flying, we're going to do it in style. That's why we were pleased to see Famitsu post some screens of the airware in Sky Crawlers, a title that we've been keeping our eyes on.

The game is just so pretty that this plane looks equally so, whether you like ones with propellers or not. Granted, though, we're not aircraft experts, so we have nothing but the drool coming out of our mouths to judge it by.

What about you, flight simulator aficionados? Do these images (more after the break) bring out feelings of woot, or meh?

According to Game|Life and Dengeki Online, Namco Bandai is bringing Ghost in the Shell director Mamoru Oshii's latest film, "The Sky Crawlers," to the Wii in the form of a flight combat sim. The genre (not to mention Namco's Ace Combat team) makes for a perfect fit given the movie's focus on a group of fighter pilots, albeit in an alternate setting.

Though it won't be measured in Japan until fall, the success of Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces will likely hinge on how well the controls are implemented -- the Wiimote functions as the throttle and the nunchuck acts as the control stick -- and how popular the film ends up being. At least the game will let us skip all the existential chatter, right?

These latest screens from The Sky Crawlers only serve to cement what we already knew: this game is absolutely gorgeous, and probably still very much out of our hands. The game is set as a tie-in to the film from Production I.G, which is based on the books by noted Japanese author Hiroshi Mori. Since we know of no plans for an English version of Mamoru Oshii's film, the game's localization seems less likely, but that doesn't mean we can't hope! And after seeing the new images, we're hoping something fierce.

We'd take the movie, too. Just sayin'.

Some scans and info from Famitsu reveal more about the ever-so-delicious Sky Crawlers, an upcoming flight-sim game for the Wii. The developers (you know, the Ace Combat team) boast about how pretty this title is, and we can't help but believe them. As for the story, it centers around a pilot in an elite fighting unit, as well as young girl named Orishina Maumi who has recently joined the squad. Playing off of that, the subtitle for the game is Innocent Aces.

Details about the controls were also revealed, with the Nunchuk being used as a joystick and the Wiimote being used for throttling (and, we gather, shooting). If you're an ace with the controls, you'll also be able to pull off acrobatic maneuvers. The last important aspect in the scans worth mentioning is that Sky Crawlers will involve squad management, which is a nice feature when it comes to flight sims.

Oh, Japan, how we envy you. Let's hope this one gets localized -- Namco Bandai isn't one to normally give us Westerners the shaft. In the meantime, hit up our updated gallery below for a handful of new screens.


[Via NeoGAF]

Should you happen to be as excited about Sky Crawlers as we are, you might be interested in this trailer -- even if it's just a total tease. We can't tell much about the game from this video, but it sure does look nice. We like the oldschool planes, too, as opposed to modern jets, but maybe that's just us. Here's hoping that more info on Sky Crawlers gets released soon!


[Via Gemaga]

If the time is just crawling for you until Sky Crawlers comes out, at least there's now an official website for the game to keep you busy. The site is in Japanese, but it's not too hard to click on buttons and hope for the best.

There's not much to see at the moment, though, except for the snazzy screens we've conveniently added to the gallery below. So, those of you who are afraid of the cold, harsh arms of the internet don't even have to leave the safety of Nintendo Wii Fanboy for now.

Reminder: Make sure to click on the "Hi Res" button when viewing the photos, or else you're just a fool.



[Via NeoGAF]

We have one word to describe Sky Crawlers: Gorgeous. Yes, looks aren't everything, but we're too busy mopping up our own drool to care about such technicalities. Also, since the game is being made by the same people behind Ace Combat, we're going to bet that the gameplay in this will be just fine. At the very least, the controls sound solid. Simply enough, you move your plane around with the Nunchuck, and then point and shoot with the Wiimote.

The best shots of the game are in our gallery (below), but some more Famitsu screens are posted after the break. So, click away if you're looking for some nice Wii eye-candy.

*Note: The pictures look best when viewed in their full resolution, so make sure to click here to see them in their glory. If you prefer, you can also click on the "Hi Res" button in the gallery.

Remove Petit Copter from the equation, and pickings are awfully slim when it comes to Wii flight sims. So what's a budding Biggles to do? Pray for a Wii update to the absolutely flawless* Pilotwings 64? Well, that's one option (and something we do on a daily basis anyway), but Bandai Namco is hoping to provide another in the form of Sky Crawlers, a flight game based on an animated film that's to be released on August 2nd in Japan.

The latest edition of Famitsu has the first shots of the title, in which the Wiimote doubles up as your throttle, and the nunchuk is used to steer. Even though the film is based on a fantastical premise -- youngsters fighting a war organized by adults as a form of entertainment -- the game features realistic visuals.

In summary, we're keen to see more of this, particularly as it's developed by the same team behind the Ace Combat series. With any luck, we'll be able to banish the craptacular likes of Wing Island from our memories forever.

* Seriously, don't argue with me here. Like, seriously. I have maimed for less.