Brian Ashcraft

This Is It, The Michael Jackson PS3 Bundle

This is, ahem, it. Sony Computer Entertainment Japan is releasing a new bundle with the Michael Jackson documentary This Is It. Don’t be that surprised — Sony Pictures is releasing This Is It on Blu-ray and DVD. Priced at ¥33,500 (US$366), the bundle includes a 120GB Hard Disk Drive “Charcoal Black” PS3, a Blu-ray copy…

This Is What I Ate For New Year’s

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Adventures in Zoonosis Gah — sorry to hear about all the hardships this past week. Extreme close-ups of Japanese food! This is the osechi ryori we ate during the New Years holidays, and all the food was split between the entire Ashcraft family. Osechi is eaten over the course of…

World of Nintendo, The Room

This Colorado collection of gaming goodness is Brett’s. It’s the Video Game Memorabilia Museum. It consists of Mario, Zelda, Mega Man, Kirby, Square Enix, Donkey Kong and Pac-Man. There’s a chair, too. Video Game Memorabilia Museum [Figure.fm via DannyChoo]

Japanese Hardware Sales Tally

Tally ho! So to speak. Famitsu publisher Enterbrain has released hardware sales figures for Japan. The data was collected between December 29, 2008 and December 27, 2009, and the data is for Japan. The numbers for the DS include all variations — the same for the PSP and the PS3. Nintendo DS 2009 estimated sales:…

Kenka Bancho, The Badass Nationwide Dominating Movie

School tough guys, punching and kicking. The tongue-planted-firmly-in-cheek fighting game Kenka Bancho isn’t only getting a new PSP game in Japan this February, but a feature length motion picture. This March, Kenka Bancho ~ Zenkoku Seiha (Nationwide Domination) gets a theatrical release. Hero Takashi Sakamoto gets in, well, a fight during a school trip after…

2009’s Top Five Selling Games in Japan

Last year is so…last year. This being January, it is time to look back at some numbers Famitsu publisher Enterbrain has crunched. The data, just released today, was collected between December 29, 2008 and December 27, 2009. 5. Final Fantasy XIII Launch: December 17, 2009 Estimated Sales Tally: 1,698,256 copies 4. Tomodachi Collection Launch: June…

In 2009, Japanese Game Market Shrinkage Continued

In the West, the video game market is growing. In Japan, it is not. As with 2008, the domestic Japanese market size has been on a downward slide, getting smaller and smaller. In data collected by Famitsu publisher Enterbrain between December 12, 2008 and December 27, 2009, both hardware and software sales were down. Software…

D3 Publisher Spelling Mistake Explained

Japanese game company D3 Publisher chalked up one of the most embarrassing misspellings of 2009: That of the company’s own name, D3 Publisher, in a game trailer. There is a reason for that, says the company. According to a spokesperson, “It was supposed to be ‘PURLISHER’ with a ‘R’ there and not a ‘P’.” The…

This Final Fantasy XIII Bug Jumps For Joy

Since first being shown at the 2006 E3 gaming expo in Los Angeles, gamers have been eagerly looking forward to Final Fantasy XIII. They have not been looking forward to the in-game bugs. Add this interminable jumping bug to the list of bugs that, like the LSD bug, apparently slipped past Square Enix quality control.…

Modern Warfare 2 Soundtrack Album Oscar Mike!

Hans Zimmer, who has composed movie soundtracks for Hollywood flicks like Rain Man and Crimson Tide, scored Infinity Ward‘s blockbuster shooter Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Zimmer’s Facebook fan page announces that an MW2 original soundtrack is in the works — no word yet on a release date or release formats. Last fall, Zimmer…

A Week In Comments

OnLive Boss Gives Live (And Long) OnLive Presentation Comment by: Evdor Nominated by: (Starman) NONAME I have no investment in the thing’s current success—hell, if it somehow makes it, it does, and he could be fooling all of us. With that said: What they’re really looking for right now is money, investments. If you’re that…

When The Jonas Bros. Came To the Shopping Mall

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft I don’t even know who the Jonas Brothers are! But apparently, American teenage girls like them. Sorry, Disney bubble gum idols aren’t exactly on my radar. Japanese idols, on the other hand… Wait. Take that back. I do know who the Jonas Bros. are. Sorta. One of them did that horrible…

Hospital With Convicted Killers Gets 22 Wii Consoles

Broadmoor Hospital, previously known as the Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum, has been outfitted with £5,000 worth of Nintendo Wii gaming thanks to UK tax payer money. The high security institution, which is not a prison, treats the likes of rapist and murderer Robert Napper and the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Stucliffe — both of which are…

Perhaps This Bridget Is An Actual Girl

Yes, *another* Comiket cosplay gallery. Comic Market, or Comiket, ended on December 31, but Japanese website Moeyo.com has recently posted a few more galleries of costume playing players. Have a gander. Characters from titles ranging like Bayonetta, Dead or Alive, Fate/stay night, Fate/unlimited codes, Sengoku Musou 3, Monster Hunter and Guilty Gear — you know,…

Is This The Xbox 360’s Retail Retreat In Japan?

2008 was a strong year for the Xbox 360 in Japan. With timed exclusives like Tales of Vesperia, Microsoft was able to drawn both long lines and new gamers to its platform. 2009 was another story altogether. Spring 2009 looked promising with otaku heroine and Japanese popstar Shoko Nakagawa getting her own Xbox 360. But…

EA Shutters Online For Selected Games, Including Madden 09

Game company EA has announced that it will be shutting down online service for “some older EA titles”. Included in the list is football game Madden NFL 09 (PS3 and Xbox 360), which was released in August 2008. EA, it seems, has a different definition of “old”. 2009 just ended, days ago! Here is the…

This Is One Crazy Final Fantasy XIII Bug

At 50 to 60 hours long, Final Fantasy XIII is an enormous game. But with as long as Square Enix worked on the title and with all the money spent, that still hasn’t stopped a few bugs from slipping through. While there aren’t many bugs and the bugs that have been reported seem to be…

The Biggest News of 2009 According To Famitsu Readers Is…

Japan’s biggest gaming publication, Famitsu, has polled a handful of readers (and retailers) about what news they thought made the most substantial impact during last year. Only a small number of the millions of Famitsu readers participated in this poll — the few, the proud, the dedicated. It would be a stretch to call those…

Twilight Freakout, Guido Names and Fist Bumps

It’s 2010, and we’re off and running. Ditto for gaming’s Twitterati. Microsoft cleared out its Christmas decorations, Gears of War designer Cliff Bleszinski got a new name and Twilight caused a teenage girl freakout. Robert Bowling from Modern Warfare 2 developer Infinity Ward ponders fist bump etiquette. Teenage girls do not freak out over Brutal…

Tim Rogers Is Everyone’s Friend

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: R.I.P. Hello! I have returned from America. Finally! Sorry to hear about the dog’s passing. I don’t have any pets now, but had dogs as a kid. Remember when we had to put them to sleep, because they were very sick and in pain. It was quite sad. Long, long…