TGS: Where Do Babies Come From? Hands-On

Where do babies come from? It’s a question that every human being is trained to answer, especially when part of the outcome is one of the greatest things in the world. But moving onto more virtual things, AMN was able to try out the newest DS title in the Feel the Magic series, with a game name posing that very exact question: Where Do Babies Come From?

Intriguingly named after a question, the DS title is the sequel to Japan’s I Would Die For You, better known as Feel the Magic XX/XY in the United States. Instantly a cult classic upon its release on Nintendo DS launch day, the series brings back the warm, welcome, and always crazy actions our fellow hero is engaged in to complete his quest for the perfect romance.

Anyway, the gameplay structure for this sequel remains exactly the same as the original, including the split-panel storytelling leading up to one bizarre mini-game to get the girl’s attention. Based on the demo at TGS, the romance begins when our young bachelor sees this beautiful girl while riding an escalator with his familiar Rub Rabbits crew. Wearing tight jeans and a yellow bikini, our hero’s future queen makes life hard to win her heart. In an attempt to present her with a flower, our hero has to dodge around regular people and even sumo wrestlers to make the encounter. The next thing we knew, our hero was on the beach with his new female hottie. Suddenly, a huge sea monster comes out of nowhere to prevent our romantic time with the love of our life once again, forcing our hero to throw the girl into a nearby palm tree to prevent the both of them getting eaten. Suddenly, we’re forced to run up to the tree and shake off our hero’s friends – at the very least – a safe alternative to your future love getting hurt.

Gameplay-wise, the sequel will be very familiar to fans of the original. The control pad and the face buttons are still not used in the game, forcing players to rely on the numerous innovations of the touch-screen and stylus control. One instance required us to turn the DS upside down [crab monster at beach mini-game], giving players a better view of the monster at the bottom, while you’re trying to prevent the tragedy from happening on the touch screen. Another addition to the game’s plot was the appearance of another love interest – a girl that has the hots for our hero, despite him recently finding the love of his life. This mini-game required us to block off kisses by this jealous girl and continue our hero’s quest towards finding his dream woman.

Sure, the game’s still crazy, but Where Do Babies Come From (most likely to be changed for U.S. release) continues a working gaming formula that newbies need to try to believe. The game ships in Japan this October, with a U.S. release planned by the end of the year.aaaaaaaaa