Popular series Drakengard will see it’s 3rd installment release this year on the PS3, and information on four new characters have been revealed. The game will continue from the past installments of the franchise, and the main character Zero, a young girl, will be playable as an utautai, a spell caster that specializes in casting through songs. Information on her four disciples who will act as a personal guard has been released. Of course, because of they are her guard, they will hold a close relationship with her throughout the game. Initially though, the player will start off fighting alone, but the newly revealed characters will join in to help you. The four characters revealed are Dito, Decad, Octa and Cent.

Dito will be one of the main apostles and feature as a young hero. He will specialize in sword play, and is described as having a brutal nature despite his appearance.

Decad, despite being a middle aged character, is extremely muscular and strong. Like Dito, his personality is just the opposite of his appearance and is a loyal character. This is from a bitter past he had, and he seems to be aiming for a reward of some sort in the future. He is described as being a masochist.

Octa uses rings weapons that are unique to his character. Despite his bizarre appearance he is there to help the player. Out of all the disciples, he is described as being the most prideful, so much so that if he can make a profit he’ll do it without question.

Cent is the strong-willed character that believes in himself more than anything else. During time in the military, he had a disappointing experience, which has led him to be this way. He often makes mistakes, though, and as a result often finds himself in trouble.

 Drakengard 3 is set to release this summer, with no official date listed yet.

Source: Dengeki News

The manga adaptation of Yume Nikki is finally available online for free, and it looks freakishly demented, which is good news for fans of the game.

Yume Nikki is an unusual game. For one thing, it’s not meant to be enjoyable. In fact, it seems like it’s designed to make you feel extremely uncomfortable, yet the game is a cult hit with many fans who find it fascinating.

Yume Nikki was first released as a free doujin game for the PC in 2004. You control a girl named Madotsuki who does nothing but sleep. When you sleep, you enter a dream world full of surreal environments, where you walk around and collect power-ups called “Effects”, most of which are useless. At any time, you can pinch your cheeks to wake up.

Yes, that sounds boring. In case you’re wondering what makes the game so special, here are some pictures:

Hopefully, you don’t have dreams like these! The images and symbolism in Madotsuki’s dreams are so bizarre and disturbing, you have to wonder what kind of psychological trauma she has gone through.

That brings us to the new Yume Nikki manga, written by the Vocaloid composer Machigerita and drawn by Hitoshi Tomizawa. You can read the first chapter right now on the Manga Life Win+ website. Although it’s in Japanese, you don’t need very high reading skills to understand the story.

Tomizawa has done the art justice, as all of the locations look brilliant now that they aren’t 32-bit. His two-page spread of the “Door Room” at the start of the chapter especially blows the game’s depiction out of the water. Just so you can compare for yourself, this is what it looks like in the game:

As for the story, the plot isn’t really elaborate. Madotsuki behaves ilke an ordinary girl, although a bit spacey, as indicated by lines like, “It’s a forest. Forest door. Dark forest. I like forests. But what should I do here? I don’t know. Anyway, I should walk, walk, walk.” This may be okay for newcomers, but if you’re a fan who imagined Madotsuki as an emotionally scarred girl, you might not like this portrayal.

Overall, the first chapter feels kind of like Alice in Wonderland drawn by Salvador Dali. There are several locations from the game, as well as one Effect and the Toriningen (Bird Human), which looks absolutely terrifying.

A new chapter of the Yume Nikki manga will be published on Manga Life Win+ on the 20th of each month, so you better bookmark that site if you like the first chapter.

Yume Nikki fans, do you have your own favorite events, locations, or characters that you want to see?

As part of Project Yume Nikki, the game is also being adapted into a novel and earlier received an image song album performed by the Vocaloid Aoki Lapis. If you’re new to Yume Nikki, you can download the game for free (or search for “Let’s Play” videos on YouTube) today.

Source: Project Yume Nikki

In the Batman: Arkham Origins teaser trailer, it is revealed that Batman will be facing Deathstroke, otherwise known as Slade in some comic and television story lines. If you pre-order Arkham Origins, then you will be able to play as Deathstroke as part of accessible downloadable content.

Contrary to earlier statements, voice actor Kevin Conroy will continue to voice Batman in Arkham Origins, despite the fact that it follows the story of a younger Batman. UK company Rocksteady, who worked on the first two Arkham games, will not be developing Arkham Origins.

If this newest installment in the Arkham series is anything like its predecessors Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City, then October 25 will undoubtedly be a wonderful day for Batman fans. For now, satisfy your craving for the Dark Knight with the full, official trailer of Batman: Arkham Origins below.

Sources: Gamespot

Earlier today, X-Japan held a press conference at Madame Tussauds in Tokyo where they revealed plans for a new tour in South East Asia and Latin America. Although the tour will begin this September with five dates in Latin America, the dates and cities have not yet been scheduled. However, for the South East Asian half of the tour, X-Japan will rock Seoul first on October 28 before moving onto Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Taipei, and finishing up with Bangkok on November 8.

X-Japan is currently working on an album that features their most popular songs re-recorded in English. This will be their first album sold outside of Japan, so be sure to show some support! The album will also include newly produced songs, such as the recent hit  ’JADE’.

After the press conference, founder Yoshiki uploaded some pictures on his Facebook to celebrate . Here he is with the newest addition to X-Japan, lead guitarist Sugizo (left), and other founder Toshi (right).

If anyone wants to thank X-Japan for their brilliant heavy metal music, these would be the men to thank:

Keep a lookout for full tour details!

Sources: Jpopasia

We usually see anime characters drawn on either paper or PC. But lately, it seems that cups of coffee – cafe latte, in particular – are becoming the new medium for showcasing such fictional characters in Japan.

A Japanese Twitter user by the name of Sugi (@Nowtoo) has shared some of her works via the popular SNS.  The latte artist has been practicing on anime characters and one of her latest projects features the Sailor Warriors.

Check them all out:

The recreation of Sailor Moon characters on cups of latte is truly a fascinating feat for an anime-slash-coffee enthusiast. But what’s more impressive is the fact that Sugi only started taking latte art classes last April.

Anime-inspired cafe latte artworks are such lovely things, don’t you agree? So lovely, you wouldn’t want to take a sip immediately after a cup has been served.

Just recently, Japanese barista Kazuki Yamamoto shared these photos of 3D latte artworks on Twitter.

Sources: RocketNews24 and はちま起稿

Ranma 1/2, InuYasha and Urusei Yatsura… What do these three have in common?

Yes, all three are classic anime and manga, but what else? If you are thinking Takahashi Rumiko, then you are correct!

It’s the manga author named Takahashi Rumiko who gave life to beloved characters like Lum Invader, Muroboshi Ataru, Saotome Ranma, Tendo Akane, Shampoo, Inuyasha, Higurashi Kagome, and many others. And now, 35 whole years since she made her manga debut with a manga featuring a certain female alien invader, Weekly Shonen Sunday is celebrating her milestone with her classic characters right on the cover!

Takahashi Rumiko is one of Japan’s most beloved Manga artists and has her work translated into different languages all around the world.

She made her debut in 1978 with Urusei Yatsura which was serialized in Shonen Sunday, introducing us to the very sweet and very lovable Lum Invader. She then followed up with Maison Ikkokku in 1980 and Mermaid Saga in 1984. As Urusei Yatsura’s run ended in 1987, she followed it with her next big hit, Ranma 1/2 where we get introduced to a boy who turns into a girl when wet and has a lot of fiances.

Ranma 1/2 is easily her best selling work selling more than 50 million copies in Japan alone. It also had an anime and a live action special as well. As Ranma 1/2 ended in 1996, she followed it with her next hit; InuYasha. Like Urusei Yatsura and Ranma 1/2 before it, InuYasha became a smash hit with an anime adaptation and various merchandise like anime figures, T-Shirts, bags among others.

Takahashi Rumiko’s latest work is Rin-ne and like InuYasha, Ranma 1/2 and Urusei Yatsura, it is also serialized in Shonen Sunday. It started its run in October 2009. It has been 35 years since her debut and since then she has moved from making one classic to the next and hopefully, many more in years to come.

Source: Mantan Web and Shogakukan official

Renowned Japanese mobile phone company, au has just announced in their 2013 summer press conference that Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Ayame Goriki to be their spokesperson for their upcoming summer commercial.

 From left: Ayame Goriki, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and au’s representative director Takashi Tanaka

A talk session for the both of them was held at this press conference along with representative director, Takashi Tanaka. Some details regarding the commercial was revealed in this talk session. The filming merely ended a few days ago and it is said that Kyary will be acting as a artiste introducing her song while Ayame acts as a host for a music program.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu introducing ‘Nori Kaeru’, a frog mascot character used in the commercial

Kyary recalled moments of filming this commercial and said that she is happy that she got to work with the fans in this commercial and to be able to join in as a part of the au family. Ayame commented that she finds Kyary really cute singing and dancing and is looking forward to viewing the final product. A frog mascot character which, will also be shown in the commercial, was introduced by Kyary herself. The name of this character is called, Nori Kaeru. Thus, making a pun on the concept of the commercial, “au ni norikaeru (translated as ‘Switch to au’)”

Of course, one of the most exciting parts of this announcement is that Kyary will be releasing a new song to be used in this commercial campaign! The song will be titled as ‘Noriko to norio’ and will be composed by Yasukata Nakata. Yasukata has also worked with Kyary for her other hit songs such as ‘Invader Invader’ and ‘PONPONPON’.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (left) and Ayame Goriki (right)

 Kyary graced the press conference in a dress with puffy pants on the left, and a skirt on the right. This will be the dress that she is wearing in the commercial itself, she then explained that the side with the skirt represents “Noriko” while the side with the pants represent “Norio”. Ayame also looks stunning in her electric blue dress, which interestingly matches Kyary’s bright pink and yellow get-up.

However, this does not mark Ayame and Kyary’s first time working with au. Ayame has been working with au for various commercial campaigns since January 2012, while Kyary made her first appearance earlier this year with footage of her live performance at Zojo-ji, Tokyo featured in the “FULL CONTROL TOKYO” commercial.

From the looks of it, there is definitely much to be expected from this commercial campaign.

via Natalie

The anime Attack on Titan has become a huge hit thanks to its thrilling story, but fans who want even more will be able to play two visual novels from the makers of Steins;Gate.

Production I.G. has announced that they are working with Nitro+, the game developer responsible for Steins;Gate and Robotics;Notes, to make two visual novels of Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). These visual novels will be included with limited editions of the third and sixth Blu-ray Discs and be playable on any Blu-ray player.

The visual novels feature side stories centered around the titan hunters Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Annie, Erwin, and Levi. The original creator of Attack on Titan, Hajime Isayama, is supervising the production, while the character designs will be done by Nitro+’s Namaniku ATK, and the scenarios will be written by Gan Saaku, Jin Haganeya, and the scriptwriter of the anime, Hiroshi Seko.

Production I.G. has also revealed the names of the chapters from the visual novels. The first visual novel will be released with Blu-ray Disc volume 3 on September 18 and include these two chapters:

1. Lost in the cruel world (Mikasa side story, scenario by Hiroshi Seko)
2. A Choice Without Regrets: Preview (Kuinaki Sentaku [Yokoku]) (Levi and Erwin’s backstory, scenario by Gan Saaku)

The second visual novel is scheduled to be released with volume 6 on December 18 and will include these three chapters:

1. A Choice Without Regrets (Levi and Erwin’s backstory, scenario by Gan Saaku)
2. Untitled (Eren and Levi’s side story, scenario by Jin Haganeya)
3. Wall Sina, Goodbye (Annie’s side story, scenario by Hiroshi Seko)

Coming sooner, the first Attack on Titan Blu-ray Disc will come with a prototype manga from Isayama. In addition, a social game based on the series was released for Japanese cell phones last month and a live action movie adaptation is in the works. Of course, there’s also the anime series airing right now.

Source: Moe Otanews

In a live event held in May 19 at the Hibiya Amphitheater in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Sanrio’s iconic mascot character, Hello Kitty danced alongside all eleven current members of the idol group Morning Musume. They danced to the group’s popular song, Love Machine and thrilled the 3000 people in attendance. This would mark the very first collaboration between Hello Kitty and Morning Musume. The iconic character was called into the stage when she was asked “Kitty-Chan, will you dance with us on stage?”. The crowed roared as Hello Kitty came into the stage and danced.

Morning Musume is the main group for Hello! Project and is signed under the Up-Front group. The group made their debut in 1997 as new members join in and the older members graduate. The current eleven members are group leader Michishige Sayumi, the graduating Tanaka Reina, Fukumura Mizuki, Ikuta Erina, Sayashi Riho, Suzuki Kanon, Iikubo Haruna, Ishida Ayumi, Sato Masaki, Kudo Haruka and Oda Sakura. (Source: Hello! Project Official website )

The event showcased not only Hello! Project’s main group, Morning Musume but also other idols under the Hello! Project name. The other groups include C-ute, Berryz Kobo,  and Smileage. All 48 idols present performed with Hello Kitty at the end of the event. It is also announced at the event that one of the idol groups, Berryz Kobo will also be going to perform during Nippon Budokan.

The event which celebrates the 90th anniversary of Hibiya Field in cooperation with Tokyo FM is aimed at cervical cancer awareness and prevention as women in their 20′s and 30′s are falling victim to the disease.

source: Mantan Web

It is announced earlier that singer and voice actress Tamura Yukari as well as fellow singer and voice actress Mizuki Nana will be having nendoroids released to their likeness. King Records, who have both artists signed under them will be manufacturing the nendoroids and they will be having a production cooperation with the Good Smile Company, manufacturer of the nendoroid line. The announcement came from the respective websites of both artists.

In an announcement by Tamura Yukari’s official website, her nendoroid will be released in her Cute’n <3 Cute’n Heart live event. The ABS and PVC figure will be 100 mm in height and will be sculpted by Shichibe. Tamura Yukari is most known for voicing Nanoha in the Magical Girl lyrical Nanoha series as well as Fear Cubrick in Cube X Cursed X Curious.

Meanwhile, as announced in Mizuki Nana’s official website, her nendroid will be released in her Nana Mizuki LIVE Circus event. The ABS and PVC figure will also be approximately 100 mm in height and will be sculpted by Tsumeduka Hiroyuki. Mizuki Nana is recently experiencing success in topping the Oricon charts with her collaboration with TM revolution; the hit song Preserved Roses. She is also known for voicing Kisaragi Saya in Blood C and has worked with Tamura Yukari in the  Magical Girl lyrical Nanoha series voicing Fate.

]]> http://sgcafe.com/2013/05/nana-mizuki-tamura-yukari-nendroids/feed/ 0