Trio of Pokemon games coming to DS

Three new Pokemon games are in development for the Nintendo DS, reports the latest issue of Comic Korokoro. Two others are scheduled for release this year, with one being a puzzle game and one a dungeon role player. Not much is known about the third, except that it will be an action-oriented role-playing game.

The DS Pokemon puzzle game will be titled Pokemon Torouze, which roughly translates into English as "Get Pokemon." The game seems near completion, as its release date for Japan is currently October 20. This won't be the first time the publisher pushed a Pokemon puzzler. Nintendo previously released Pokemon Puzzle League for the Nintendo 64 in 2000.

Pokemon Torouze's rules are simple: The player's objective in the game is to erase puzzle pieces on the screen by aligning four of the same kind together, either vertically or horizontally. Judging from images shown in the magazine, it appears the puzzle pieces will fall from the top of the screen, much like in Sega's Puyo Pop series.

In the game, all the puzzle pieces are shaped in the form of pocket monster faces. There are more than 380 Pokemons from the Game Boy Advance series that will appear as puzzle pieces, and players can collect them in their "Torouze list" by erasing them. The game uses both the upper screen and lower screen to display the game's field of play, and the player will slide around the pieces with the stylus. To clear each stage, the player will need to erase a given number of Pokemon pieces as indicated on the screen.

Pokemon Torouze will feature a story mode where the player takes the role of a main character named Lucy Lightfoot. Lucy's objective will be to save various Pokemon from an evil organization by battling against them in puzzle games.

The second Pokemon spin-off is titled Pokemon: Fushigi no Dungeon Blue, and it is slated for release in Japan this winter. A GBA version, titled Pokemon: Fushigi no Dungeon Red, is also scheduled for release in the same period. Specific details on both Fushigi no Dungeon Blue and Red haven't been disclosed yet, but their titles suggest they will be Pokemon editions of Chunsoft's popular Fushigi no Dungeon RPG series. The Fushigi no Dungeon series is known for its randomly generated dungeon maps, which was a stunning system for its time back when it made its debut in 1993.

Comic Korokoro also unveiled first details on Pokemon Rangers, which the magazine announced last month without citing any game information or release platform. As it turns out, Pokemon Rangers will be an action RPG for the DS. The player will take the role of a Pokemon Ranger, a person that fights to preserve nature and wildlife by using Pokemon. Pokemon Rangers will be released next year, just prior to Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, and it will feature some form of interaction with the other two Pokemon games. Pokemon Rangers is also said to have some connection to next year's Pokemon movie and anime series in Japan.