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Bayonetta Book Opens Wide
The pistol-heel-wearing heroine of self-titled action game Bayonetta is getting an art book. It’s on sale! Let’s have a look. Titled The Eyes of Bayonetta, the book is a collection of designs, illustrations and artwork the developers created while working on the game. The weapons vary from weapons to costumes. Some of the illustrations are…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2010 -
Mobile Phones Get Wireless Controller
Enjoy mobile phone gaming? Don’t mind looking like a goob? Have I got something for you. Mobile phone gaming is certainly a healthy alternative to portable consoles and even the iPhone. But cell phones aren’t typically designed for gaming. They’re designed for calling people on the mobile — hence, why they are mobile phones. Japanese…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2010 -
Where Isn’t StarCraft II Launching?
On July 27, 2010, real-time strategy game StarCraft II is going on sale in over fifteen countries. There are more than fifteen countries on Earth. According to the game’s developer, StarCraft II will hit stores in the United States, Canada, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Mexico, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, countries in…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2010 -
Are You Proud To Be A Gamer?
Guess whose computer died this morning. Guessssssssssssssss. Never mind that! That is about me. This? This is about you. This is Tell Us Dammit. Here’s how it works: We ask a question, you answer it. Simple and no strings attached! This isn’t some marketing survey or whatever. It’s an emotional investment in you. Yes, we’re…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 17, 2010 -
I Did Not Burn Down The House Today
To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Germany, Booked! Phew! Mrs. Bashcraft and Mini-Bash boarded a plane for Texas today, leaving me and Micro together. This morning was spent outside, playing baseball and walking to the drugstore. We then went to a playground. The idea is to go outside in the morning and exercise so the kid…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
Cave Reveals New Shooter, Invites You To Test It
Arcade shmup developer Cave is making a new…arcade shmup. The new game is called “Akai Katana”. “Akai” means “red”, and “katana” means, well, “katana”. Set around 1950, the game is a retro military-style scrolling shooter with each ship having unique bullet patterns. The game will be tested later this month at Tokyo arcade Akihabara Hey.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
EVO Fighting Tournament Makes The Evening News In Taiwan
Justin Wong, the famed Street Fighter player, lost at this year’s EVO 2010 fighting tournament. The guy who beat him is now a hero in his native Taiwan. Taiwanese player GamerBee was one of two players from Taiwan. Using character Adon, GamerBee defeated favorite Wong, knocking him out of the semi-finals. While GamerBee ended up…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
Sengoku Basara, The Licensed Theme Park Attraction
Capcom’s Sengoku Basara is popular in Japan. So popular that it has its own theme park attraction at the base of Mount Fuji. How many games can say that? Spawning a series of successful sequels, a stage play and an anime, Sengoku Basara has captured the imagination of many young female gamers. To mark the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
A Great Day For The Skies Over Japan
Today, the Gundam Boeing 777-300 made its maiden voyage, leaving from Tokyo’s Haneda airport for Osaka. But that’s not all. Parked on the tarmac next to ANA’s Gundam airplane was…ANA’s Pokémon jet. Both planes took flight today, making the skies over Japan not just friendly, but awesome. The Gundam plane will service Japan through next…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
I Love Zelda, In Painting Form
As seen on Tiny Cartridge
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
Poll: More Than Half Of Real Girls Cannot Compete With Game Females
An online survey of over 300 Japanese women revealed that more than 50 percent of them do not think they can compete with females characters in dating simulators. Buck, up ladies! Responding to a question as to whether they were confident could win over their dating game playing boyfriend from virtual girl in a dating…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
Does Final Fantasy Need A Reboot?
Final Fantasy XIII was released last year, and Final Fantasy Versus XIII is forthcoming. Now might be as good a time as any to clean the slate and start over. Final Fantasy XIII was hardly a failure, selling a whopping 5 million copies plus. “But when it comes to the customers’ reaction to the quality…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
Did You Think Fable II Had A Bunch Of Bugs?
Then you have no idea how many didn’t make it into finished product. According to Fable II designer Peter Molyneux, there were 67,000 bugs in Fable II that the development team needed to squash. That’s…a lot. “At one point we had 67,000 bugs,” he said, “and when the Xbox test team tested the game they…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
ReviewsDeathSmiles Review: Shmup Complex
Little girls. In frilly dresses. Shooting things. Yep, you’re about to read a DeathSmiles review. The game’s developer Cave is no stranger to shooters, specifically of the manic side-scrolling type. Cave is to shooters what Square Enix is to role-playing games — an icon of the industry. The rigor, dedication and love puts in its…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 16, 2010 -
I Have Two Weeks Of Dinner!
To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Over the Hump Tomorrow morning, Mrs. Bashcraft and Mini-Bash board a plane for the U.S. They’ll be gone a little over two weeks, leaving me and Micro-Bash back in Japan. As I’ve previously mentioned, the purpose of the trip is for both of them to pick up some English and…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010 -
No More Heroes Gets Heroic Box Set In Japan
Wii game No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle was released this past January in North America. The game is *finally* coming out in Japan in October. Wait, shouldn’t that be backwards? No! While many Japanese games get released first in Japan and then localized into English eons later, No More Heroes 2 is doing things…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010 -
Calling Activision Boss “A Total Prick” Was A Total Accident
Game designer Tim Schafer called Activision honcho Robert Kotick a “total prick” yesterday. Activision then replied to his claim that Kotick was a “total prick”. Schafer now says calling Kotick “a total prick” was an “accident”. “That was an accident,” Schafer told website Eurogamer. “I was going to change the title of my talk to…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010 -
The Duck Hunt Dog Found In Sweden
As seen on a local Swedish newspaper by Spell of Play
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010 -
So Many Square Enix Toys, So Little Time
At this year’s Tokyo Toy Show, Square Enix showed off…toys. There are loads of Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts figures and knick-knacks. Makes sense, because there are loads of Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts games. I like the inflatable Slimes. Have a look for yourself. ［東京おもちゃショー2010］スクウェア・エニックスでフィギュア三昧 [Gizmodo Japan]
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010 -
Poll: The Most Interesting Games Of 2010 So Far…
Japanese game publication Dengeki Online has released the results of a poll it conducted regarding the most interesting games so far of 2010. Let’s dive in. Here are the top twenty most interesting games according to Dengeki’s online poll: 20. Heavy Rain 19. Resonance of Fate 18. Dragon Quest IV 17. Valkyria 2 16. Love…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 15, 2010
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