Metaphor: ReFantazio Director Explains Lack of Romance
The name may still be kinda clunky, butMetaphor: ReFantazio is shaping up to be something distinct from thePersona andShin Megami Tensei games Atlus are known for, while still sharing some of the same JRPG conventions. One notable difference we reported earlier was the lack of the ability to romance other characters, somethingPersona in particular is infamous for. Now the game's director has shed some light on why Atlus decided to leave it out.Katsura ...
Pokémon Company Disqualifies AI Creations in Art Competition
Since 2019, ThePokémon Company has held an annual competition for artists and fans in Japan to provide illustrations forPokémoncards in thePokémon Trading Card Game Illustration Contest. ThePokémon Trading Card Game Illustration Contest 2022 allowed contestants based in the US to participate as well as Japanese artists, and the 2024 edition is the first to also include submissions from Canada, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. Naturally, this ...
Could We Actually See a Stellar Blade x Nier Automata Crossover?
We already know thatStellar Blade was a hit, and Shift Uphave started to consider future plans for the title, including DLC, a PC port and even a sequel.At a recent press conference, Shift Up went into a bit more detail regarding what's coming toStellar Blade. First of all, a photo mode is scheduled to drop in August, which I'm surprised they didn't have already, but better late than never. There's also a new skin for Eve coming in October, but after ...
Xbox Boxes Back WIth Showcase
A mere few weeks ago I came at Xbox for relying so much on the Game Pass system that it appeared to have directly impacted their ability to put out solid games. And as is typical, that means they immediately course corrected with their latest showcase and actually ended up earning more praise from gamers than Sony or those attending the Summer Games Fest thereby forcing my last article into irrelevance. I'm not an Xbox fan myself but from the lineup ...
Evangelion Singer Quits Concert After AI Controversy
Generative art programs are available to pretty much anyone now, so it's natural that AI-generated images are becoming more common. Unfortunately, in most cases it's used to either scam or decieve people or plagiarize an artist's work, so opinions on AI art are mixed to say the least.A recent high-profile case of AI art involved theIkebukuro Anime Philharmonic, an orchestra that cosplays while performing music from anime. They were supposed to hold ...
Streaming Service U-Next Drops Western Credit Cards For Adult Content
The credit card restrictions are still coming strong, and the latest Japanese content-sharing site to follow FANZA, Fantia, Niconico, Getchu, DLsite and others in imposing restrictions on how overseas users can purchase content is streaming service U-Next.If you haven't heard of it, U-Next has been around since 2007 and isn't an art-sharing or explicitly lewd-oriented website like some of the aforementioned sites. It's a streaming service that features ...
What Does Shin Megami Tensei Have in Common with Slipknot?
Heads up: if you're expecting an answer to the question poised in the headline here, I'm afraid you're in the wrong place. That wasn't rhetorical at all, and I am genuinely baffled as to what made Sega partner with popular Iowa nu metal band Slipknot, of all people.Video games and musicians have been collabing with each other for decades, with one of the more recent examples being Metallica themselves appearing inFortnite. That I can kinda understand, ...
Elden Ring Receives... A Comedy Manga?
When it comes to FromSoft games, they knocked it out of the park with Elden Ring. I've never played the title myself, but from a marketing and success standpoint I don't think I've ever seen the company reach so many people and have such a cultural impact. "No maidens?" was everywhere for weeks on end. The game is back in the spotlight once again thanks to the upcoming DLC Shadow of the Erdtree set to release on June 21st. But what you may not have ...
FANZA is the Next Japanese Site to Restrict Credit Cards
Another week, another Japanese content sharing website imposes restrictions on purchasing content using major western credit cards. At this rate it's getting hard to keep track of how many sites have done something similar, but here's the story so far.FANZA, a subsidiary of Japanese e-commerce site DMM.com that specializes in h-games and other lewd content, recently issued a post declaring they'll no longer be accepting Visa payments. The post said:"Thank ...
B. Jenet Brings More Sex Appeal To Fatal Fury
Summer Games Fest was last week and we saw a good bit of announcements popping off, especially if you include the Xbox showcase that followed suit shortly afterwards. Fighting game players saw some nice treatment with the arrival of M. Bison in Street Fighter 6, an announced crossover between Fatal Fury and Street Fighter, and some subsequent character trailers for Fatal Fury itself. One such character that caught my attention was B. Jenet, not necessarily ...