-
Kotaku East
The Up All Night Stream Plays OneChanbara Z2: Chaos [Game Complete]
While the last time I played OneChanbara Z2: Chaos, I had my head inside a giant breast (no, really), I enjoyed it enough to be excited to try it again. So now join me now as I control a team of bikini clad girls with giant swords and brutally kill hordes of zombies. Update: Well,…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published November 2, 2014 -
Kotaku East
The Guardians of the Galaxy in Anime Gifs
In Japan, there is currently an anime airing where the Avengers have basically been trapped in Poké Balls by Loki. To tie in with the recent movie, the Guardians of the Galaxy showed up in all their anime glory. And even though the anime isn’t available outside of Japan, there’s no need to worry: I…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 31, 2014 -
Kotaku EastValkyria Chronicles is My First and Only SRPG Love
This week, Sega announced that formerly PS3-exclusive Valkyria Chronicles would be coming to PC November 11, 2014. Just the idea that more people will get to experience this game makes me giddy. Why? Because the Valkyria Chronicles series is my first and only SRPG love. From the beginning, I’ve never really liked SRPGs. This is…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 31, 2014 -
Kotaku East
The Irregular at Magic High School Tells an Entertaining Story Poorly
With its complex magic system, excellent setting, and entertaining adventures, The Irregular at Magic High School is an anime I very much wanted to like. Unfortunately, it has several major problems in how it is constructed that hurt the anime overall. Good – A Futuristic World of Magic and Adventure The Irregular at Magic High…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 31, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Barakamon is Touching, Heartfelt, and Utterly Wonderful
Every season, there is one anime that stands above the rest. And for this past summer season, that anime is Barakamon Good – A Loss of Self Worth Barakamon is the modern day story of Handa, a young professional calligrapher who punches an aged gallery owner in the face for criticizing his work. Because he…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
When Japanese Game Titles Go From English to …English?
The Evil Within was released across the world in the past few weeks. However, in Japan, its country of origin, it has a different English title: Psycho Break. Of course, this is far from the first time a Japanese game with an English title has been renamed after it has left Japan. Perhaps the most…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
This App Will Help You Improve Your Japanese
I’ve mentioned a few games in the past to help you improve your Japanese language ability. However, when it comes to learning all aspects of Japanese, KanjiBox is the best study tool I have found. KanjiBox is an iOS app designed to teach Japanese Kanji and Kana (letters) as well as vocabulary. Moreover, it is…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 28, 2014 -
Dreamfall Chapters: Book One Builds A World and Little Else
I am a huge fan of The Longest Journey franchise, so you can bet the moment the Kickstarter for Dreamfall Chapters went online I threw my money at it. And now that the first chapter is out, let me say that it’s not the most exciting opening, but it does do some serious world building.…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 24, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Tokyo Ghoul Builds an Emotional World of Horror and Violence
This past summer’s anime Tokyo Ghoul may ostensibly be a dark and twisted horror story about superpowered monsters who feed upon humanity; but beneath its surface, it’s so much more. Good – Ghoul Society Tokyo Ghoul takes place in a world quite similar to our own but with one major difference: Humanity is not at…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 24, 2014 -
Kotaku EastLet’s Rank Fatal Frame, Best to Worst
The Fatal Frame series is one of the creepiest survival-horror game series out there and certainly my personal favorite of the genre. But as with all series, some games are better than others. So let’s rank them, shall we? A few notes before we start. These are not Kotaku‘s picks for the pecking order of…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 24, 2014 -
Kotaku EastWhy You Should Play The Longest Journey and Dreamfall
With the first episode of Dreamfall Chapters coming out today, now is the perfect time for me to inform you why you should play The Longest Journey and Dreamfall. (Spoiler: it’s because they are awesome.) In the time before I discovered JRPGs, point-and-click adventure games were my favorites. From Space Quest and King’s Quest to…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 21, 2014 -
Kotaku EastFatal Frame V is a Solid Survival Horror Game
I am a long-timefanof the Fatal Frame survival horror series—despite my aversion to scary things. And while I’ll be the first to agree the franchise has had its ups and downs, the series’ Wii U debut, Fatal Frame V, is a solid outing for the series. Good – A Decent Fatal Frame Story Fatal Frame…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 21, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Anime Hilariously Explores What Makes Something “Romantic”
You’ve seen the same romantic scene a thousand times in a thousand different movies and, yet, every time it still gets you right in the heart. But what exactly makes it romantic and what would happen if you changed one little detail? In Monthly Girls Nozaki-Kun, the answer is hilarity. Good – Shakespeare in Love…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 21, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Terror in Resonance Starts Strong But Falls Apart Midway
Terror in Resonance, the latest from the acclaimed director of Cowboy Bebop and Space Dandy, had one of the strongest starts of any anime of the summer season. Sadly, it is an anime that completely falls apart into a contrived mess halfway through. Good – The Soundtrack Before we dive into the plot, let’s look…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 17, 2014 -
Kotaku EastHere’s the First Nine Minutes of the Bayonetta Anime in English
Bayonetta 2 isn’t the only thing Bayonetta hitting store shelves next week: The awesomely over-the-top anime Bayonetta: Bloody Fate will be released as well—and we at Kotaku have an exclusive look at the film’s first nine minutes in English. Bayonetta: Bloody Fate is a theatrical retelling of the first game’s plot and is pretty much…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 17, 2014 -
Kotaku East
You Got Your Dead or Alive in My Fatal Frame
Other than being made by the same company, survival horror series Fatal Frame and fighting game series Dead or Alive have had little in common—until now that is. Upon beating, Zero: Nuregarasu no Miko, the fifth and newest game in the Fatal Frame series, you unlock a series of four bonus chapters following DoA‘s ninja…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 17, 2014 -
Kotaku EastThe Long Development of Korea’s Next Big MMORPG
The first time we covered MMO-RTS Kingdom Under Fire II was way back in 2009. So last month, I sat down with the game’s director, Sang Youn Lee, during last month’s Tokyo Game Show to talk about what the game was, is, and how it’s changed over its seven years of development. In its original…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 17, 2014 -
Reviews
The Fatal Frame Movie is an Atmospheric Masterpiece
Japanese horror game series Fatal Frame is one of my personal favorites. So despite disliking horror movies in general, I went to see the new Fatal Frame live-action theatrical film. And while never scream-inducingly scary, its amazing atmosphere makes it one of the creepiest movies I have ever seen. [Note: this review contains minor spoilers…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 14, 2014 -
Kotaku East
How To Import Japanese Games
Across the ocean there is a magical land where some games debut months or even years before they do in the West—or sometimes never at all. But how do you get your hands on one of these mythical games from the Land of the Rising Sun? Kotaku East is here to help. [Note: While this…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 14, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Yamato 2199 is the Worst Recap Movie I Have Ever Seen
These days, anime seems to follow a set pattern. If you have a successful series, you follow it up with a recap film. Most of the time, these films have something new in them—new footage, new characters, a new side story—but not Yamato 2199. It is completely unnecessary in every conceivable way. Last year I…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published October 14, 2014
Richard Eisenbeis
Richard Eisenbeis's posts