Brian Ashcraft

SEGA Making 20 Player Mecha Arcade Game

Border Break: SEGA NETWORK ROBOT WARS is an upcoming, well, networked robot wars arcade game from, yes, SEGA. There’s not an official image of the game yet, but rather, a large question mark placeholder. The game will be unveiled at the upcoming AOU Show in Japan. What we do know: Border Break supports up to…

Here Are Good Ways To Study English Says Japan

In Japan, there’s a great interest in learning the English language. It’s big business. Japanese speakers have several options to learn the King’s lingo. These are the most popular. Based on data from internet information sharing company iSHARE INC., 413 individuals answered a poll covering how they studied English. Out of the sample group, 52.3…

Golly, Pie With Cheese Is Good

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Somewhere Between RZA And Margaritas Busy night. I’m blotto. So, so, so exhausted. For a job that requires one to sit in front of a computer, I feel knackered after posting all the news that broke last night. The solution? You guessed it, apple pie with a slice of cheese.…

XEVIOUS Resurrected In PlayStation Home

Namco Bandai is ready to roll out NamcoMuseum.comm in PlayStation Home. Included in it is a new version of classic shooter XEVIOUS called XEVIOUS Resurrection. The game looks 3D, but it’s an absolutely gorgeous HD version of the 2D scroller. And yes, it’ll be playable in Home. Also included are Pac-Man, Galaga, DigDug, Dragon Spirit…

Ryu Ga Gotoku 3 Has Mandatory Install

Word has it that upcoming PS3 exclusive Ryu Ga Gotoku 3 requires, like a lot of PS3 games do these days, a mandatory install. Sign of the times! Apparently, the install will be 5120 MB (5GB). So those living in Japan who plan on buying the game next month, make sure you’ve got the extra…

Are People Still Buying The Game Boy Advance?

Not really. But that doesn’t stop Nintendo from releasing Game Boy Advance hardware and software sales data. No surprise that Game Boy hardware and software sales are tanking. Here’s the raw data: Hardware • Japan Apr. – Dec. ’07: 110,000 units Apr. – Dec. ’08: 60,000 units Life-to-date: 16,950,000 units • The Americas Apr. –…

Total Wii And DS Software Sales Are Up

In addition to the hardware sales info, Nintendo also released software sales data for the Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. DS software sales are down domestically, but Wii software sales are up in Japan. What’s more, Wii software experienced significant sales spikes outside Japan. Total software sales are up as well. Let’s have a look…

Wii/DS Sales Down In Japan, DS Approaching 100 Million In Lifetime Sales

Nintendo also released the hardware sales for the April 1, 2008 to December 31, 2008 as well as life-to-date totals. Wii and DS hardware sales are down domestically in Japan, but up internationally. Good news: The handheld is approaching the 100 million sales mark. Nintendo DS • Japan Apr. – Dec. ’07: 5,640,000 units Apr.…

PS3 Sales Drop Slightly

PS3 sales are down 9 percent. Sony announced today that the company sold 4.46 million PS3s from October-December of last year. In the same October-December period in 2007, Sony shifted 4.9 million PS3 consoles. PSP sales also dipped a bit with 5.08 million PSPs sold during the same period compared to 5.76 million sold during…

Nintendo Sales Up, Profits Down, Financial Forecast Revised

Nintendo has just released its financial statement for the nine-month period ending December 31, 2008. In short, sales were up, but profits down. Compared to the same period last year, net sales were up 16.7 percent to the equivalent of US$17.07 billion. Net profit, however, dropped 17.9 percent to the equivalent of $2.36 billion. According…

Does This Pop Singer Look Like A Final Fantasy XIII Character?

Morning Musume singer Mari Yaguchi did an interview with Famitsu. She learned something very exciting — about herself, of course. In a recent blog update, Yaguchi writes that she discovered during the Famitsu interview that there have been comments that she totally looks like a character in Final Fantasy XIII. (We’re thinking more pigtailed Oerba…

Daniel Radcliffe Aided By Gaming

Harry Potter‘s Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe (aka Harry Potter), currently showing his dong in Broadway’s Equus in an effort to break character, suffers from dyspraxia. The actor explains how he overcame it. I have a very mild form of it. I’ve gotten it mostly under control now. I played a lot of video games…

So Far, The Most Amazing Japanese Wii Game of 2009

DOALA is the mascot character for Japanese baseball team Chunichi Dragon. The cute koala is getting a Wii title called DOALA de Wii, complete with mini-games, ass play and a whole lotta what-the-fuck. 任天堂Wii、ドアラのゲームが登場 [my game news flash]

Pop-Up Books Rule

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Oh, The Games We Play Reversible shirts sound awesome. Sign me up. A huge package came from my parents in Texas today. Recently, Mini-Bash has said he wants me to read new English books to him before bedtime. He’s sick of Cat In The Hat and Curious George! Asked my…

SEGA Arcade Game Trades Joysticks For Blocks [Update]

Forget joysticks! SEGA’s making a block controlled arcade game called Block Pipo. It a co-op game that has players use blocks to control the on-screen characters. Cabinets can also be linked for some head-to-head action. Block Pipo is expected to be out this summer in Japan. Update: Arcade Heroes let us know that SEGA demonstrated…

Some Euro Developer Is Down On PSP

The PSP does big business in Japan. Outside of Japan? Not as big. Hence, why some folks get down on the portable. Here’s the latest gloomy PSP chatter. Laurent Benadiba, CEO of Lyon-based dev Smack Down Productions, worked on a canned PSP title that never saw the light of day. “I worked for two years…

Former Sony Boss Says Nice Things About Nintendo

Nobuyuki Idei helmed Sony from 1999 to 2005. He was named one of the “Worst Managers of 2005” by Business Week. (Congrats!) But today, he’s not talking about that, but Nintendo. In a Financial Times piece about consolation in the electronics industry, Idei gave high marks to the Nintendo Wii and its motion controls for…

Tomb Raider Films Getting Reboot

Warner Brothers producer Dan Lin (Sherlock Holmes) wants to do a “reboot” of the Tomb Raider film franchise, even though the last big screen Lara Croft outing was only about six years ago. That, and the games aren’t exactly tearing up the sales chart. So what gives? While the previous Tomb Raider flicks were made…

What Is Tetsuya Mizuguchi Doing These Days?

Well, not much with N3: Ninety-Nine Nights II, apparently! According to the upcoming issue of Famitsu, Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Rez, Lumines) isn’t that involved in the game. Makes sense as the previous title was co-developed with Korean dev Phantagram doing most of the heavy lifting — and with Mizuguchi doing the interviews. Announced last year at…

Asashi Shimbun Report Sexual Predators Now Using “Game Sites”

Tokyo police say that sex crimes against underage females via gaming and social networking websites more than doubled in 2008. According to a 2008 Metropolitan Police Department Survey of 130 sexual abused girls under 18 years of age, 82 of them were victimized via such sites. In contrast, however, the percentage of girls violated through…