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Over 3 Million DSi Units Sold in Japan
As of August 2, Nintendo has sold 3,062,920 DSi units domestically in Japan. The DSi went on sale in Japan last fall on November 1, 2008 for ¥18,900. The total number of DS units sold in Japan is 27 million. DSi hardware sales have been powered by the July release of DS title Dragon Quest.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
What Games Did Japan Buy In July?
July may be over, but it’s not forgotten. It lives on as the month that follows June, and at the same time the month that precedes August. July. Say it with me, July. The number crunchers at Famitsu publisher Enterbrain have crunched some numbers. Those numbers make up Japanese sales data for the month of…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
Hitman Actor Returning For Hitman 2?
The Hitman movie sequel is still very much in the early stages. Twentieth Century Fox has scribe Kyle Ward (Uncharted movie script, Kane & Lynch script) attached to the Hitman 2 script. But is actor Timothy Olyphant, who played lead Agent 47 in the first film, returning to reprise his role? “It’s not on my…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
Company Renames Rape Game Category
As the fallout from the Rapelay controversy continues, one Japanese erotic game distributor has, for better or worse, figured out a work around. PC download site BGameBox has posted a notification that the categories “ryoujoku” (rape) and “choukyou” (sexual training) have been removed from the site as of July 31. A separate email newsletter informs…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
Pirate Bay Co-Founder Jumps Ship
Another man overboard. Joining former Grokster exec Wayne Rosso, Pirate Bay’s Peter Sunde is abandoning the BitTorrent site he co-founded. “I have decided to not be the spokes person for The Pirate Bay anymore,” Sunde blogged this Monday. “The reasons are many but most importantly it takes too much of my time. I want to…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
Resident Evil 5’s Sheva Has Cheeky Pin-Up Calender
Voice and motion capture actress Karen Dyer doesn’t lend her voice to her online Sheva cosplay calendar. She lends other assets. Guns, for instance. The character of Sheva, however, was based on Australian model/TV actor Michelle Van Der Water. Sheva Calender [Official Site via Gaming Bits via Capcom]
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
80GB PLAYSTATION 3 To Be Discontinued In Japan
The 20GB, 40GB and 60GB versions of the PS3 have been discontinued. According to this, it looks like the 80GB PLAYSTATION 3 is next. This notice is apparently from retailer 7-Eleven (7-Eleven sells video games in Japan) and states that pre-orders for the Black, White and Silver 80GB PS3 will cease on Sunday, August 9…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 4, 2009 -
Japanese Voice Actress Getting Her First Trading Cards
When we were kids, we collected baseball cards. Jose Canseco, Mark Grace and Ken Griffey, Jr. In Japan, kids these days (hey, more like adults!) can collect voice actress cards. Vocal thespian Rie Tanaka (Phantasy Star Portable, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3) is releasing her first set of “trading cards” this September. One pack will…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Don’t Go Looking For A Wii Price Cut Just Yet
The DS received a price drop — ages ago. But it happened. The Wii, however, is still selling for the price it had when it launched in late 2006. Wii sales are slowing down, and at the recent Nintendo investor’s meeting, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata was asked this during the Q&A: “Tell me if you…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Don’t Interview Pretty Actresses When You Have A Runny Nose
To: Crecente From: Bashcraft Been fighting off a cold. Mustered enough energy to jet up to Tokyo recently to interview Kill Bill actress Chiaki Kuriyama for a book I’m writing about Japanese schoolgirls — I guess it’s the follow up to Arcade Mania. She was a great person to talk to, honest, friendly and so…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Dynasty Warriors PSP Game Coming To Xbox 360/PS3
PSP game Dynasty Warriors Multi Raid is coming to home consoles as Dynasty Warriors Multi Raid Special. Hitting the Xbox 360 and PS3 on October 1 in Japan, hack-and-slash Dynasty Warriors Multi Raid Special features improved graphics, full voice acting and a new co-op mode. There’s also a new character for consoles: “Moukaku.” Check out…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Sony Says Girlz Play Too
OMG! And they use the letter “z” at the end of their words, rather wordz. The website also lists PSP games, er gamez, for girlz, we mean girls. Those six games, gamez, are Patapon 2, LocoRoco 2, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Pangya, Hannah Montana and, wait for it, Petz. If those fine titles…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Man Sentenced To 2.5 Years In Prison, Fined $96,000 For DS Downloads
The Kyoto District Court has ruled against 38 year-old company employee Yoshiaki Asagiri, who was put on trial for distributing DS games online without permission and breaking Japanese copyright law. Asagiri has been sentenced to 2 and half years in prison and fined approximately US$21,000, plus an additional fine of $75,000. Late last year, Asagiri…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Final Fantasy XIII Screenshots, You’ve Changed
Time passes, things change. Me, you and that guy over there. We all change. Even Final Fantasy XIII. Above is a screenshot Square Enix released in August 2008. Below looks like the same screen, but this was released in June 2009 along with the overseas version of Advent Children Complete. The biggest difference graphic-wise appears…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Phantasy Star Portable 2 Coming This Winter
Phantasy Star Portable was a big hit and one of the biggest selling PSP games in Japan last year. So what do you think of the chances for a sequel? Pretty good. According to this notice for “The Best” budget version of Phantasy Star Portable, a special UMD will be bundled that shows off Phantasy…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Milla Jovovich On Why They’re Making Another Resident Evil Movie
Hollywood has already churned out three Resident Evil films. Three films? That’s a trilogy. Now, director Paul W.S. Anderson and his star/fiancée Milla Jovovich are making a fourth. Why? Money. “The movie makes money,” says Jovovich. “If it makes more money than the last one, you’d think that people want to see another one, so…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Kill Bill’s Gogo Yubari Actress Not In Tekken Movie
Check Chiaki Kuriyama’s Internet Movie Database page. At the time of posting, it says right at the top that the actress will be appearing in the Tekken movie. This is incorrect, she says. She won’t. While I was interviewing Chiaki for an upcoming book I’m doing on Japanese schoolgirls (second book — hooray!), I brought…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2009 -
Downloadable Games Or Retail Games – Which Have You Been Playing?
Hello you. How ya doin? Good? That’s good. Let’s talk. 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 interested in knowing you, Kotaku reader person. You probably know oodles about us –…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 1, 2009 -
A Week In Comments
The Witcher Uncensored For North America Comment by: Instant_Awesome Nominated by: Curse_Lily Remember when nudity was nonexistent in mainstream movies? Well, that changed, and so will games, eventually. One day, games will be able to have full artistic expression without being labeled as smut that’s harming our children. We’re not there yet, but it will…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 1, 2009
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