Lost Dimension is a tactical RPG that initially caught my attention due to one of its biggest gameplay elements – the fact that in order to progress through the game, you have to eliminate one of your teammates. Reading the description of how you have to vote with your teammates on who is to be…
Lupin the Third is one of Japan’s most iconic manga/anime characters, loved by millions. His second live-action movie adaptation opens on Saturday, and one of the first reviews for it is brutal. Japanese movie critic Yuichi Maeda, who is a well-known yet controversial critic in Japan, recently gave the movie a piddling 3 out of…
As previously reported, the new Yakuza game, Yakuza 0, has been announced. As you can probably guess from the number, it’s a prequel. Breaking the age-old video game rule that the third game in a series is always a prequel, Yakuza 0: The Promised Place (龍が如く0 誓いの場所) is the sixth numbered Yakuza game. The story…
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax is out in stores in Japan right now, and once again, Atlus is asking that people be considerate. If you access the Japanese Persona 4 Arena Ultimax homepage right now, you’ll be greeted by an image overlay of the character of Teddy – or rather the shadow version of Teddy –…
This past weekend in Japan was the 86th official Comic Market, better known as Comiket. You don’t hold an event 86 times without some strange urban legends cropping up. Comiket is Japan’s bi-annual indie comic event held at Tokyo Big Site Sight where manga creators, amateur to professional, gather to sell privately made manga, called…
What… I don’t even… How… So… Yeah. Mr. Macho/My Classmate is a manga that got a bit of traction on the interwebs in Japan recently because of, well, just look at it. Hearing the hubbub online, I had to see it for myself, and it turned out to be a hilariously entertaining read. What It’s…
As the release date of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS fast approaches, you might take a moment to ponder why Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Wii U isn’t coming out simultaneously. Series creator, Masahiro Sakurai explains why. In his semi-weekly column in Weekly Famitsu, Sakurai noted that at the time of writing, he is…
Dating isn’t easy – just ask Dr. Nerdlove. It’s a lot easier if you’ve got common interests to break the ice with and get the conversation flowing. In Japan, there’s anime. There’s also one of Japan’s most popular games. “Machicon” is a relatively recent phenomenon in Japan. In order to help stimulate awareness and jump-start…
I’ve been reading the Attack on Titan manga for a while now, but ever since the anime came out, things have been getting out of hand. From its (relative) humble beginnings as a somewhat bizarre manga story about a world where humanity must live behind walls to protect itself from predatory giants, the success of…
So, Sony’s upcoming update feature is going to let me borrow and play my friends’ games without actually owning them? Holy crap, I’m on board. But how does it work? And what game limitations (if any) are there? “How it works is, for example, say, a friend has a game that I don’t. I ask…
When game companies Square and Enix merged in 2003, JRPG fans were on edge as to what masterpiece the new juggernaut was sure to make. They made a game. And now, 11 years later, they’ve brought it back. It’s not the game you think it is. The first game that was developed and released in…
Yokai Watch 2 (妖怪ウォッチ２), the sequel to the exceedingly popular Yokai Watch, has been selling like gangbusters in Japan. And for good reason. Not only is the TV anime going strong and related toys disappearing off of store shelves faster than they can stock them, but the game itself is a whole lot of fun.…
In Azure Striker Gunvolt, you play the role of the electricity manipulating Gunvolt. If you thought that with Keiji Inafune as producer, Gunvolt would be just another enemy power-stealing Mega Man clone, worry not – That’s your rival character. Produced by Keiji Inafune and developed by Inti Creates, Azure Striker Gunvolt is an upcoming 2D…
I previously wrote that a 3-part short novella epilogue to the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy was being released. Now that I’ve had a chance to sit down and read them all through, I actually like the game series a whole lot more. The three parts of Final Fantasy XIII Reminiscence – tracer of memories –…
Online multi-player for Freedom Wars, the PS Vita multi-player action game, is still as of yet unavailable, but vague wording in the promotional material is getting some Japanese gamers angry before it’s even out. In my import preview ofFreedom Wars, I wrote that while the game did need polish in certain areas, it was, as…
Do you have a favorite game developer? One who makes your interest in a game spike the minute you know they’re involved? Turns out a lot of Japanese gamers do too. Some might surprise you, some might not. Japanese site Freshers(フレッシャーズ) conducted a poll last month asking 500 people if they played video games. Those…
Earlier this year, From Software of Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls, as well as the upcoming Bloodborne fame was purchased by Japanese corporate giant Kadokawa with Dark Souls‘ director, Hidetaka Miyazaki, taking on the reins as president of From Software. In terms of the buyout, very little looks to change with From Software, Miyazaki assured in…
Devil’s Third, was announced as a Wii U exclusive at E3 this year. A bit of a surprise considering the game was originally slated for release on the PS3 and Xbox 360. So why the change in platforms? And what’s the game about? “It’s because [Nintendo] loves games more than anybody. It’s because they love…
Japan’s new video game museum, the Huis Ten Bosch Game Museum, opened earlier this month. Here’s a look at what’s inside. Unlike many video game museums that tend to focus on the retro and old, the Huis Ten Bosch Game Museum focuses on all of video game history up to modern day. (Note: No Xbox…
Japan recently released the trailer for the live action Kiseiju (寄生獣) aka Parasyte movie. While seeing one of my favorite manga of all time brought to life on the big screen should give me a hard-on that could be seen from space, in reality, it didn’t. In fact, it had pretty much the opposite effect.…
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