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PS2
Lupin III: Lupin ni wa Shi o, Zenigata ni wa Koi o
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NCS Game Synopsis
«©NCS»
When Fujiko is abducted by fiendish thugs, Lupin
and Jigen rush off to the rescue while Goemon
waits in the wings. Although Lupin plays the hero
at the outset of the game, he quickly becomes the
victim when he's afflicted with a life threatening
internal injury. With only three days to live,
Lupin and friends rush off to find clues that will
cure Lupin of his ails.
Taking a departure from previous Lupin III games, the latest PS2
offering features an engaging 3D action-adventure
that's peppered with quick one-button-press
interaction challenges as well as more involved
gaming sequences that last a few minutes each. The
games are linked together by cut scenes between
Lupin and crew as well as 3D exploration and
discovery sessions. In an early level of the game,
Lupin beats up a member of the police corps and
takes his uniform. He may then skulk around the
grounds partially disguised while collecting clues
and hints. However, since Lupin's face and manner
is so distinctive, the other cops are sharp enough
to discern him from one of their own if they get
close enough to examine him. Once the jig is up,
Lupin will have to do some running and Dual Shock
wagging to knock cops off his limber frame.
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NCS Game Notes
» Developed by Nex Entertainment.
» Intro to the game features Lupin straggling home
and groaning while clutching his chest. Jigen and
Goemon drive up and Lupin drops into the back seat
of the convertible. Familiar Lupin music starts
and a red screen appears where Lupin faces off
against an adversary in a gun duel while grass
wavers below. Lupin strikes a gun shooting action
pose and is mimicked by Jigen and Goemon in
similar poses. In the next sequence, the enemy is
shown walking away whereas Lupin is shown lying
face down on the grass. Next, Kasumi zooms in on a
motorcycle and takes off her pink glasses while
slowly unzipping her leather jacket to almost
reveal her breasts. Cut to more scenes of Lupin
and cohorts in action sequences followed with a
scene of Lupin being blown back by a gunshot. His
three friends are shown in front of a grave amidst
the red grassy field.
After a short pause, Zenigata is shown skulking into a building and
reaching for his identification which he shows to
a woman behind curtains. When he sees her, he is
taken aback by her beauty. Cut to a scene of Lupin
vs Zenigata where Lupin getting the best of him
and his men once again. Cut back to the original
scene and the girl walks towards Zenigata but he
pulls out hand cuffs. She levels a gun at him and
shoots but it's for naught. In the next scene,
Zenigata and the girl are tied together with
handcuffs. He draws her closer is seemingly is
about to kiss her when the screen fades to white
and the title screen pops into view accompanied by
jazzy Lupin music.
» Press START and the following selections appear:
NEW GAME
LOAD GAME
OPTIONS
» Start a NEW GAME and Fujiko is driving along in
Lupin's classic red car. She steps out in a micro
skirt and tight white top. She walks gratuitously
for the viewers before she's interrupted by three
menacing men.
» In the next scene, Lupin and friends are walking
in an airport concourse with people milling about
when they're approached by a woman - they see a
beauty contest poster and they talk for a little
bit. Voice actors provide their dialogue amidst
the echoing atmospheric of the high-ceilinged
inner area. There's a big circular rug on the
floor. Goemon takes an escalator down and as Lupin
and Jigen are standing around, they're approached
by someone who throws a handkerchief at Lupin who
catches it. The guy walks away and Lupin is about
to put a hand on him but the guy spins and kicks
which Lupin deftly avoids.
» Jigen and Lupin run down the escalator to give
chase. When they reach their target, a baggage
handler pushes a cart full of luggage in front of
the dude. He kicks and sends the luggage flying.
To help Lupin avoid the missiles, press the O
button at opportune times as indicated on the
screen to dodge the flying luggage. When Lupin
runs outside, he sees Fujiko in a car which passes
them with Fujiko looking up dolefully. Lupin
immediately hops into his car which Fujiko left on
the road and speeds to chase the car that Fujiko
is in.
» As Lupin gives chase with Jigen by his side, a
driving simulation starts up where the car is
controlled by the L-analog and you'll have to
swerve through three lanes of traffic to avoid
cars. Do well and you'll reach the next part of
the driving stage where black low-to-the-ground
Hummer-like trucks try to ram you by swerving into
your lane as you approach from behind. You're
helped by a speed booster which is activated by
pressing the SQUARE button to scurry up ahead of
them before they can ram you. The booster is
limited however and will need to recharge when it
drops to zero. It's a herky-jerky driving action
sequence that's not bad at all and enjoyable due
to the quirkiness of the Lupin characters and the
unlikely themes.
» Succeed through the Hummer action, and one of
the thugs in the car ahead will lean out of the
passenger side window and shoot. Jigen won't have
any of that so he hikes himself up to return fire.
In this portion of the game, Lupin drives while
Jigen shoots (press the O button). To reload,
press the TRIANGLE button. After shooting down 5
cars which have HP bars that drop with each hit,
you'll face off against a massive truck that
you'll have to blow out by shooting at the tires
to weaken it. When it's damaged significantly,
it'll belch out black smoke and careen around the
highway which makes it difficult to finish off.
Once it flips over, you'll have to press the O
button to dodge it (by riding up against the wall)
and then proceed to the next stage.
» After the action, you're ranked on your
performance and handling with five letter grades.
» A cut scene plays later which moves the story
along and offers some background. You'll be
prompted to save your progress to memory card
after the animation which requires 160KB,
» After the save, you'll be able to replay the
entire first level if so desired or proceed to the
second stage.
» The SECOND STAGE opens up with a busy highway
where Lupin and Jigen motor along. In the next
scene, two thugs drag Fujiko from a car and into a
side street followed by the guy from the airport.
Lupin and Jigen drive up in the nick of time to
spot Fujiko's abductors. They run after them but
there's no sign of the thugs or Fujiko. The two
stand around and discuss their plan of attack.
Jigen walks away to do some sleuthing and the
player is able to guide Lupin through the streets
to look for clues.
» Control is handled through the L-analog while
the camera is controlled with the R-Analog. An
overhead map of the local area is shown on the
upper right corner of the screen. To enlarge the
map so that key people on the street are viewable
as blue arrows, press the R2 trigger. The movement
of Lupin is stuttered but stylized. Talk to people
on the street by walking up to them and then
pressing the O button. You'll have to perform a
little simple retrieval mission in this area to
advance further. Talk to the old man to the SE
portion of the map and then talk to the guy
sitting in the north section of the map. Once you
obtain the item, give it to the old man in the SE
and he'll get up from his chair. Wander around
talking to peole until your cellphone rings. Jigen
has caught up to Fujiko and the three thugs and
has them under the barrel of a gun. He's
apparently gotten the upper hand until the master
from the airport clicks a gun from behind him and
tells him to drop his gun and cellphone. Now both
Jigen and Fujiko have been caught. Lupin listens
in on the bad news with wonderment and ponders his
next move. To follow the trail of the thugs, head
into the dank hallway to the west of the city and
then spy Jigen's phone and gun on the ground. At
this point, Lupin runs off into the distance and
into an indoor arena where Jigen and Fujiko are
standing on a plank platform with their necks held
by nooses and their hands tied behind their backs.
Lupin pulls his gun and is about to shoot when the
thugs appear from behind him. The lead guy calls
forth some chakra and runs towards Lupin,
imparting a shiny-fisted blow at his chest which
blows him backwards. At first Lupin jumps up none
the worse for wear but then it hits him, His heart
is hurting and he clutches his chest.
Lead thug walks to Fujiko and looks like he's
about to do the same when Goemon cuts a hole from
above and drops the wood which almost hits the
lead instigator. Goemon also slices the ropes from
Fujiko and Jigen as he descends. After some fancy
footwork against the lead thug, Goemon's in a
tight spot and about ot be hit with the
lighted-fist when Lupin saves the day by throwing
a flash bomb between them and the whole Lupin gang
makes their escape.
» In the THIRD STAGE, Lupin is resting on a sofa
while the crew is waiting in the room. Fujiko
notices him waking up and she hands him a scroll
that looks pretty old. Lupin goes to investigate a
temple where he's chased by law enforcement. To
break free of their clutches, wag the L-analog
briskly left and right. Your target is the
blinking door located on the southern portion of
the map. Once you reach it while being pursued
thisclose by officers, press the O button and
Lupin will open the doors and then ditch the
pursuers.
» Voice actors provide all of the dialogue in the
game but note that there is no accompanying
dialogue text to read. Tricky for readers who
haven't quite mastered spoken Japanese.
» Lupin mixes genres for an engaging
action-adventure game that is broken up into
bite-sized episodes.
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This document and photos are ©NCSX 2007. All rights
reserved. No reproduction in whole or in part of
this document may be made without express written
consent of National Console Support, Inc. |
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