The events in this unaired episode takes place a few months after the anime series when Kurisu goes back to America. Feyris invited the laboratory members to America and they took the opportunity to find Kurisu. What Hououin Kyouma have up his sleeves this time around? We will only find out when the 9th volume of the Bluray/DVD releases on 22 February 2012. This will help set up the events taking place in the movie which is probably well into it’s production stage.

Source(s): ANN

I enjoyed what little the OVA showed of the BRS universe, so I am definitely looking forward to a full fledged series!

The ending song “Bokura no Ashiato” was featured in the second half of the trailer. The band behind the music is supercell and for those who have been following them closely, they got two new female vocalists: Koeda and Chelly. I am not sure if Chelly is the one sing the ending song, but the voice sounded like Koeda’s. If you have heard Guilty Crown’s opening song “My Dearest” then you should already know how she sound like, which is totally different from the gentle and soothing voice of Nagi, supercell’s previous vocalist.

Source(s): Official Page | ANN

In terms of features it seems similar to the PSP Project Diva games, like how you can change costumes and customize your Diva room. Even the gameplay is pretty much the same. The most notable difference is of course the nendoroid look. It looks like the game will be packaged with an augmented reality (AR) card which allows you to see Miku dancing on it through the 3DS’s camera.

This trailer served more like an introduction to Vocaloid as it is a brand new addition to the Nintendo game world. Spreading the Vocaloid love is always a good thing… Well at least to me it is.

Game to be released on 8 March 2012. Do note that 3DS games are region-locked.

Game Title: [3DS] Hatsune Miku and Future Stars: Project Mirai
Catalog Number: CTR-P-AM9J
Release Date: 8 March 2012
Retail Price: 6,090 yen
Preorder at: CDJapan, Play-Asia

Source(s): andriasang

Known as Disaster Report in the west, this series was non-existent to me as I do not own a PS2. It was the news on the cancellation of Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 4 that I started looking into it. The fourth game was supposed to be released on the PS3, but due to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in March the developer had no choice but to cancel it.

I can’t comment on the first two games or do any form of comparison as I have not played them, but from what I’ve experienced in the third game this is quite an… interesting title. Although you are generally just travelling from Point A to Point B the set pieces, random events and story help to prevent this game from being a snore and the gameplay is different from the many games that I have played before.

You play as a university student who is trying to survive in the aftermath of a huge earthquake that left Central Island in a very bad state. Before I started, I was pretty skeptical and wasn’t quite sure how Irem is able to develop a game like this without making it boring. However after playing it, I was impressed and rather intrigued by some of the game design choices that they make. So instead of holding the R button for a shield attack or hitting the square button to slash some dude like what I’m used to, you can crouch/crawl during random aftershocks to prevent the character from falling down and getting injured, or shout to locate survivors.

There is a health bar that is shared with the stress bar which I thought was neat and also really fitting to the type of game this is. The stress bar increases through certain factors and overrides the health bar from the right. Some of the factors that affect the character’s stress level include witnessing a traumatic scene, getting drenched in the rain, and hanging from an edge. You can use items that you have picked up to lower the stress level (but does not recover any health), or rest on allocated benches to fully restore both stress and health.

Some of these are probably common features that can be found in many games but when they are put together here, they make sense and are very suitable.

Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 3 also features unique set of dialogue choices and multiple endings for each of the two characters (a guy and a girl) that you can choose from at the start of the game. This also mean pre-rendered FMVs for each of them so if you are a completionist then you will have a lot of replaying to do. The dialogue choices affects the protagonist’s relationship with other characters which changes how they interact with each other during cutscenes. The choices are not deep and the developer definitely didn’t try to blur the line between good and evil, so it is easy to aim for the ending that you want.

Earthquake is a large scale disaster, which means the environment should be reasonably big in order to evoke that sense of scale. However with the PSP’s current hardware it is difficult to achieve that and at the same time ensure that the visuals hold up. Other than the main characters, most of the assets in the game are really blocky looking. At a distance, the environment look okay but when you get closer (which you are often doing) everything looks quite bad.

As bad as I may be commenting on the visuals, the developer is probably already pushing the limits of the PSP… though maybe a little too much because the frame rate is choppy in a number of places. This will be solved when the series finally makes its way to the next-gen consoles.

Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 3 is the first game in the series to feature a multiplayer mode and it supports up to 4 players. As you play through the game, you will unlock more missions for multiplayer. I have not tried this out yet and probably never will since there won’t be anybody who can play it with me, but I think it is safe to assume that the environment puzzles are the same as the singleplayer ones except that you are solving them with another human being instead of an NPC.

The costumes that are picked up in the singleplayer campaign can be used in multiplayer. I’m not sure if that applies to usable items like gas mask and umbrella, but I can see them helping a great deal especially if you can give and receive the items from other players too.

I like what I have seen and played so far of this game and I look forward to the next installment in the series. However, as much as I wish for a sequel, how long Irem feel that the series should take a break as a respect for the lives lost in the Tohoku earthquake is completely up to them and I’m sure everybody understands that.

Although it topped the software sales chart, the numbers are significantly lower than it’s prequel (pretty much half) which may be the result of the complaints that players had with FFXIII. Maybe sales will pick up after a while as more reviews and impressions start creeping their way onto the internet.

1. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIII-2 (Square Enix, 12/15): 525,271
2. [3DS] Monster Hunter 3G (Capcom, 12/10): 208,427 (730,386)
3. [3DS] Mario Kart 7 (Nintendo, 12/01): 182,418 (789,871)
4. [3DS] Inazuma Eleven Go (Level-5, 12/15): 135,259
5. [3DS] Super Mario 3D Land (Nintendo, 11/03): 112,533 (837,143)
6. [WII] Kirby Wii (Nintendo, 10/27): 71,028 (398,516)
7. [PSV] Hot Shots Golf 6 (Sony, 12/17): 61,412
8. [PSV] Uncharted Golden Abyss (Sony, 12/17): 48,224
9. [WII] Just Dance Wii (Nintendo, 10/13): 44,021 (323,293)
10. [WII] Poke Park 2 (Pokemon, 11/12): 43,829 (164,018)
11. [WII] Wii Party (Pokemon, 07/08/10): 42,632 (2,129,236)
12. [NDS] Magician’s Quest: The Merchant’s Store of Sorcery (Konami, 12/10): 35,068 (81,110)
13. [WII] Mario & Sonic at London Olympics (Pokemon, 11/12): 34,351 (64,573)
14. [PS3] Shin Kamaitachi no Yoru (Chunsoft, 12/17): 33,686
15. [PS3] BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend (Arc System Works, 12/17): 32,992
16. [WII] Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo, 11/11/10): 30,804 (734,046)
17. [WII] Taiko Drum Master Wii Ultimate Version (Namco Bandai, 11/23): 30,046 (100,284)
18. [PSV] Dynasty Warriors Next (Tecmo Koei, 12/17): 29,181
19. [PSV] Lord of Apocalypse (Square Enix, 12/17): 28,742
20. [NDS] One Piece Gigant Battle! 2 (Namco Bandai, 11/17): 28,406 (207,458)

Final Fantasy XIII-2 is now available in Japan, and will be available for the rest of us from 31 January 2011.

Source(s): andriasang

I’m not gonna act like I know the guy, but according to andriasang he is Edosan, one of the celebrities in Judge XIII. The first half of the video shows him playing the game a little (throwing Moogle away!! T_T) and then the second half is him visiting an FFXIII-2 event where he had a little chat with Yoshinori Kitase, producer of the game.

I personally enjoyed XIII and I see absolutely no reason for me to skip this one. I am not an experienced Final Fantasy fan by any means, but I really like what I see so far in all the trailers.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 is out today in Japan while the rest of us will have to wait until 31 January 2012.

Source: andriasang

Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 (Mikupa) is a concert held at at Zepp Tokyo on 9 March 2011 and at Sapporo-shi Kyoiku Bunka Kaikan on 16 & 17 August 2011. It comes in a number of editions so pick the one that you like!

This year is definitely the year for Hatsune Miku to shine! The Miku no Hi Kanshasai 39’s Giving Day concert debuted at Zepp Tokyo on 9 March 2010. After that, another concert was held again at Zepp Tokyo exactly a year later, followed by the concert in Los Angeles during Anime Expo 2011 and then the concert in Sapporo on August. She’ll be in Singapore for a 2 hour concert on the first day of Anime Festival Asia 2011 (held on 11 November 2011)! I wanted to go SO badly, but my current lifestyle had forbid me to.

Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 comes in CD, DVD and Bluray, each with a Regular Edition and Limited Edition and bonuses. Here is a list of editions:

• CD [Regular Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Megurine Luka)
• CD [Limited Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Megurine Luka, 4 discs, 2 stickers)
• DVD [Regular Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Kagamine Rin & Len, CDJapan exclusive towel)
• DVD [Limited Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Kagamine Rin & Len, CDJapan exclusive towel, backstage footage, handphone strap)
• Blu-ray [Regular Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Hatsune Miku, CDJapan exclusive towel)
• Blu-ray [Limited Edition] first press available
  (bonus: B2-size poster featuring Hatsune Miku, CDJapan exclusive towel, backstage footage, nendoroid charm)

CD Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live CD [Regular Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPC-2001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 3,780 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

CD Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live CD [Limited Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPC-1001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 3,990 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

DVD Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live (Mikupa) [Regular Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPD-2001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 4,830 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

Blu-ray Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live (Mikupa) [Regular Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPB-2001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 5,985 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

DVD Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live (Mikupa) DVD [Limited Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPD-1001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 6,825 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

Blu-ray Title: Hatsune Miku Live Party 2011 Live (Mikupa) Blu-ray [Limited Edition]
Catalog Number: MKPB-1001
Release Date: 16 November 2011
Retail Price: 7,770 yen
Purchase at: CDJapan first press available

… owing to the game’s initial reception, subsequent staff changes, and a desire not to “release a simple conversion of the Windows version in its current state, but rather an update that includes all the improvements”, the release has been delayed.

Wikipedia

Although the PS3 version will be done, the release date is still not confirmed. The PS3 closed beta will begin in November 2012 so that means players can probably get their hands on the full game only around 2013 or maybe 2014. Of course the PS3 version will contain the game’s “full fledged” version 2.0. I wonder how many people will actually wait that long =/. PC players will be gradually eased into v2.0 with numerous updates next year.

In other FFXIV news, the free-to-play period is coming to an end between late November and early December 2011. After that players will have to decide if they want to continue their subscription, or maybe wait until the game has more of the v2.0 updates.

Source(s): IGN

During a real-life Bonbori Festival in Kanazawa City, the production committee announced that there will be something new for the series in 2012. It is not confirmed if it is a live-action movie, manga, or anime but it will be….. Something.

I wish this is will be a sequel and being a romance fan, I really hope we can see the state of Ohana and Ko’s relationship in high school or something. I don’t mind seeing Kissuiso going back to business, but I’m afraid that there may be an episode where Sui passes away seeing that her old body is beginning to be of a liability at the later parts of the anime.

Well whatever it is, I am interested to hear more about it in the future.

Source(s): ANN

It’s just a short sneak peek at the game, showing off some new additions to the game. I’ve spotted some new cutscenes and also a new character named Marie (voiced by Kana Hanazawa!). You can now use a scooter though I don’t see any use of it since you can fast travel with the square button. Maybe it is for some new areas.

Other additional features which are not shown in the trailer include more character outfits, personas, dialogues and also an online feature which allows you to call other players in for help in the dungeon. Its quite a neat idea on paper, but I wonder how often will I actually use it.