Toshi Nakamura

Kingdom Hearts II.5 HD Remix is Just Like I.5 HD Remix, In a Good Way

Much like the previous HD upgrade collection, Kingdom Hearts I.5 HD Remix, Kingdom Hearts II.5 HD Remix takes 3 previous Kingdom Hearts games and gives them an HD bump-up. Square Enix had a playable demo available at this year’s Jump Festa 2014, and Kotaku East was there to experience some HD goodness. There were two…

Freedom Wars Makes You Work Off a Million-Year Sentence

I’ve been quite curious about Freedom Wars ever since I completely misjudged what sort of game it would be. So when I discovered that Sony had a playable demo booth set up at this year’s Jump Festa, I had to try it out. For the demo, I was treated to a tutorial video explaining the…

Sony is hiring developers for “人喰いの大鷲トリコ”—which is the Japanese title for The Last Guardian Interestingly, the job listing says it’s forPlayStation 3 game development …

Look at Awesome Japanese Toys from Jump Festa. Look at Them!

Every year, Japanese publisher, Shueisha, hosts Jump Festa – a convention celebrating its most popular publication, Shonen Jump as a thank you to fans and to give people a little taste of things to come in terms of games, anime, and other assorted media. Also on display (and for sale) are some pretty awesome toys…

Mario Kart 8 Drove Me Up The Walls… In a Good Way

The original Mario Kart on the Super Nintendo was a game that quite literally ended friendships back in the day. Now, over two decades later, the latest addition to the series, Mario Kart 8 is headed for the Wii U next spring, and I got a chance for a little hands-on time at this year’s…

God Eater 2 is a Fun Hunting Game, if That’s What You’re Looking For

“Monster Hunter with plot” is how God Eater was once described to me. Well, after the runaway hit that the Monster Hunter series has turned out to be, it’s no surprise that everyone and their grandmother is out to catch lightning in a bottle twice with the same formula. So how does the third God…

PlayStation Exec Owns Two Wii Us, Loves the New Mario

We already knew he had one, but Shuhei Yoshida, president of Sony Computer Entertainment’s Worldwide Studios, actually owns two Wii Us. Last month, Yoshida appeared as a guest on the Japanese multi-media internet talk show, Kurokawa Juku. After general talks, the host opened the floor to questions from the audience, and that’s where a reporter…

At Least Someone Wants a PlayStation Vita for Christmas

Japan got the short straw this holiday season with the PS4 coming out in February and no specific release date for the Xbox One. So what gaming console IS on people’s Christmas wish lists in the Japan? Japanese gaming mag Weekly Famitsu conducted a poll asking gamers what they plan on getting for the holiday…

For 47 Ronin, Keanu Reeves Said His Lines in English And Japanese

Did you know Keanu Reeves can speak Japanese? Okay, he can’t. But he certainly made an earnest effort with his latest movie. Most of which we probably won’t get to see. Reeves is well known to be a hard working actor – say what you will about his acting quality, the man takes his preparation…

The Game Creators You Love Won’t Be Making Games Forever, You Know

Game creator Masahiro Sakurai has been in the game (so to speak) for a long time now. He’s currently working on Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. But how long will he continue developing games? This week in Weekly Famitsu, Sakurai talked about how long a developer can…

Japan’s Nerd Heroine Has Amazing Criteria For a Boyfriend

Japan’squeen of Pokémon is looking for a boyfriend. Can you meet her standards? Got a set of nunchucks? Shoko Nakagawa is Japan’s nerd heroine – an open geek who proudly displays her love of Pokémon, cats, and anime wherever she goes. She is currently the Pokémon captain for the weekly children’s TV show, Pokémon Smash!,…

South Park‘s Japanese is Truly Horrible, Yet Hilarious

This week’s episode of South Park contained scenes of un-subtitled Japanese. I can’t tell if it’s intentional or not, but the Japanese was hilariously bad. Take a look and see for yourself. Note: If you haven’t seen the latest three episodes of South Park, turn back now because minor spoilers ahead. –Spoiler territory– In last…

Why Bayonetta‘s Creator Isn’t Doing the Sequel

He brought us many memorable games like Devil May Cry and Bayonetta, but Hideki Kamiya doesn’t usually do sequels (though he did work on sequels before, including Viewtiful Joe 2). That’s not to say he doesn’t want to; he just has a greater calling. From early on in his life, Kamiya wanted to be a…

Stop-Motion Animator Spent Four Years Making His Dream Come True

White collar worker from by day, stop motion animator by night. Takahide Hori – also known as YAMIKEN – successfully created his first part of his underground opus, Junk Head 1. It only took him four years. And he never gave up. I discovered Junk Head 1 a month ago and had a chance to…

Expect The Phantom Pain When Lots of People Have PS4s

Excited about Metal Gear Solid V? Wondering when the main part, The Phantom Pain, is coming out? Game creator Hideo Kojima recently named a launch window for the game. It’s incredibly vague. Hideo Kojima was in New York for the release of the PlayStation 4 earlier this month and was approached by Weekly Famitsu about…

Smash Bros. Director’s Job Would Kill Me

You’ve heard the stories of games where famous producers are involved in name only. Such is definitely not the case with the upcoming Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Smash Bros. for Wii U Series creator Masahiro Sakurai is nothing if not a hard worker, but as his column in Weekly Famitsu reveals, his involvement…

Sega Promises Not to Screw Up Atlus

It wasn’t long ago that we got the news that Persona series developer Atlus had become part of Sega. But if you’re worried that Sega’s involvement might dilute the potential greatness that will be Persona 5, fear not. “[Game development] will be the same as it’s been before.” Sega head honcho – and now Atlus…

Street Fighter’s Producer Doubts Capcom Would Hire Him Today

If you’re a fan of Capcom’s Street Fighter series, you’ve probably heard of Yoshinori Ono: he’s been the series’ executive producer since Street Fighter IV, which was released back in 2009. But he didn’t start out that way. “At the time, I liked games and was more interested in composing music for them rather than…

One Man’s Quest To Prove How Far Laser Pointers Reach

I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who did this, but the first thing I did when I got my first laser pointer was go outside and point it at the moon. I’d stare and wonder if someone was up there, would they be able to see the little red light shining from the…

Smash Bros. Creator Is Always Being Recorded At Work and He Hates It

You wanna see video of Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai in his day to day work overseeing game development? Apparently, there’s tons. Sakurai is hard at work on the upcoming Smash Bros. games for the 3DS and Wii U. According to his column in Weekly Famitsu, generally whenever he talks about editing and changes at…