Using AI To Turn Real People Into Anime Art

Nijigenka (二次元化) is Japanese for “2D-ification.” It’s a term for when artists take photos of people and turn them into anime characters. But now researchers are starting to have AI do the image-to-image translation. At a recent workshop about deep learning in Tokyo, a researcher from Fudan University gave a presentation on creating anime characters…

The Soccer Anime That Andrés Iniesta Loves 

Late last month, it was announced that Andrés Iniesta was leaving F.C. Barcelona for a three-year deal with Vissel Kobe. That’s exciting for J League fans, but what must have been cool for Iniesta was meeting the man responsible for his favorite anime. Again. Yoichi Takahashi debuted his manga Captain Tsubasa back in 1981, a…

At This Capsule Hotel, There’s Free Beer

In the past few years, there has been a capsule hotel revival in Japan. Th lodgings are more plush and comfortable than ever. One new chain is offering more than slick interiors- it has free beer on tap. Free drink services are nothing new to capsule hotels, but they typically provide soft drinks But at…

LeBron James Is NBA 2K19’s Cover Star

NBA 2K19 has a long way to go to make good on 2K18’s many missteps. One area it looks to have already improved on, though, is the game’s cover. For the second year running, a Cleveland Cavalier will be on the front of the biggest basketball game on the planet. But this time, you can’t…

Overwatch Is Getting A Looking For Group Tool

For pretty much the entirety of Overwatch’s two-year existence, players have been clamoring for a role queue or some other way to simplify character selection. Now Blizzard’s taking a stab at doing something about it. Game director Jeff Kaplan, Our Hallowed Gamefather, announced a series of new social features that’ll be released as part of…

Dark Souls Mod Makes Everything Darker

Dark Souls not dark enough for you? Try this. Via PC Gamer, Pure Darkness is a mod for the PC version of the game that takes the Tomb of the Giants’ lighting effects and applies them to the entire game. Made by Notaprofi, it might seem like it makes the game—especially boss fights—impossible to beat,…

COD: WWII’s ‘Infected’ Mode Was Fun, But Unbalanced

Zombies have invaded Call of Duty: WWII multiplayer for the month of June. Week one’s Infected mode was fun, even if it didn’t always feel balanced. The Attack of the Undead event arrived on May 29 with an eerie update to the game’s Headquarters social space, adding fire and caged zombies. The event brings new…

Deaf Overwatch League Fan Comes Up With Custom Signs For Heroes

In Overwatch, sound is key. Aural cues tell you when enemies and allies are using their ultimates, and (good) teams regularly coordinate over voice chat. For deaf fans, those are some pretty big hurdles to get over whether they’re playing or watching. 14-year-old Danik Soudakoff is a deaf Overwatch League fan who was recently spotlighted…

BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle Is Dead Simple By Design

Since its debut in 2008, the BlazBlue franchise has enjoyed a decade of serious growth, with four mainline installments, various revisions, and an expansive cast that rivals even its Arc System Works cousin Guilty Gear. The latest game, BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle, is a two-on-two crossover fighter that landed in North America today. With characters…

Better Stealth Can’t Save Far Cry 5‘s Disappointing Vietnam DLC

The only part of my two-and-a-half-hour jaunt through Far Cry 5’s new Hours of Darkness DLC that really stuck out to me was when a Vietnamese woman taunted me over loudspeakers telling me the jungle was not my friend and would swallow me up whole. I was supposed to be destroying the propaganda machines playing…

The Mario 64 Trick That Takes Three Days To Complete

The Super Mario 64 A Button Challenge asks players to collect stars without ever pressing the A button, meaning Mario can’t jump. Instead, challengers use a variety of glitches and tricks. One recently discovered glitch involves waiting for three days to get a platform to the right height, allowing players to complete the game without…

We’re playing Vampyr live on YouTube. Come join!

Games That We Feel Guilty For Not Liking

There are so many games and just never enough time. Sometimes I’ll put a game on ice so I can return to it later, especially if it doesn’t click for me at first. But a certain kind of guilt can bubble up inside me if the urge to pick a certain game back up doesn’t…

Buying Video Games Should Not Always Be Such A Mind Game

The problem is bigger than just GameStop, but let’s start with GameStop. On a sweltering early evening last Friday, as I finished up work, I went to a GameStop to buy an extra PlayStation 4 controller. Few gaming purchases should be as simple. Just pay for the piece of plastic and be done. Yet as…