Gaming in Japan. Reviews, Walkthroughs, News

My Hero Academia returns this Saturday with the highly anticipated premiere of its seventh season. The latest season of the mega-popular superhero action anime is set to adapt the “Star and Stripe” arc of Kōhei Horikoshi’s original manga. That means the arrival of America’s No. 1 Hero, Star and Stripe, in Japan to aid Izuku Midoriya and his classmates in their battle against Tomura Shigaraki and the Paranormal Liberation Front.

I didn't have a Game Boy Camera as a lad, partly because I couldn't afford one, and partly because my "friends" used to troll me ("bullying", I think we called it back then) about my Game Boy. Amongst other things, they'd reach over and flick the power off while I was playing The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. I didn't finish that game for 15 years. I'd flown the family nest before I braved the Eagle's Tower. Can you imagine what my friends would have done if I'd owned a Game Boy Camera? Probably, they'd have taken photos of... bottoms with it, and such.

The Apple Vision Pro might not be a hit in the consumer market as updated shipment estimates have dropped to 400,000 to 450,000 units for 2024, but the $3,499 head-mounted wearable is a success in the enterprise division, with companies thoroughly impressed with what has been crammed into the device. During Apple’s Q2 2024 earnings, CEO Tim Cook revealed that half of Fortune 100 companies have purchased the AR headset, and it has proven itself to deliver immense utility in various applications.

The producer of the upcoming Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP remaster has confirmed the game will be getting a physical version alongside a digital release. The remaster of this cult classic Xbox 360 and PS3 hack-and-slash game was originally announced for release in 2023, before it was later delayed to 2024. Dragami Games producer, Yoshimi Yasuda, has been providing fans with steady updates about the progress on Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP, including its projected release window of Summer 2024. Yasuda has now confirmed the game won't be saddled with a digital-only re-release, but a boxed copy as well.

Special promo cards from the will be available outside of Japan for the first time ever, breaking a 26-year-long tradition. The new expansion box from the series is hitting shelves later this month and fans are already excited about the cards they will be seeing. News of which Pokémon will get Secret Illustration Rares in has already come out, and other potential cards have been leaked, leaving fans hoping the leaks are accurate.

Level-5 founder and CEO Akihiro Hino has said he wants to make erotic and violent games one day, something his studio certainly isn’t known for.

Fans of the Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong Country franchises have finally gotten official details revealed in a new trailer for the upcoming Super Nintendo World theme park land at Universal Epic Universe. The brand-new theme park, expected to open in 2025, will feature a fully-immersive land themed to two of Nintendo's classic IPs and will include rides based on Donkey Kong mine cart levels and a Mario Kart AR experience.

Major convenience store chain 7-Eleven has announced a surprising merch collaboration with Tetris, which includes the brand's very own handheld gaming device featuring the iconic '80s video game. Fashion and video game collaborations, like the many Pokemon merch partnerships with known brands, are no longer anything new in 2024, but Tetris may have been one of the last titles anyone expected to have merch of.

New rumors suggest that the Nintendo Switch 2 will have an improved performance while docked, but perhaps not so much in handheld mode.

Huawei was reported to have attained a new milestone as its Pura 70 lineup was said to be comprised of 90 percent components sourced from Chinese partners. This approach would have meant that shortly, the company would be even less dependent on foreign suppliers that are strongly influenced by the U.S., assuming the claim turned out true. The report mentioned that the Japanese electronics consultancy firm Fomalhaut Techno Solutions analyzed the latest smartphones, but the Chief Executive has denied this information.

The boss of Level-5, the developer behind family friendly titles such as Professor Layton, Ni No Kuni, and Yokai Watch, wants to create a violent and erotic video game one day.

Runaway waifu horse racing sensation Umamusume: Pretty Derby will make its PlayStation debut on 30th August, when minigame spin-off Party Dash gallops to PS4 in Japan and around the world. Unlike the main mobile game – which isn’t available in the west yet – this console outing centres on the Slapdash Grand Prix, which features four different sporting events, each with unique gameplay mechanics.

Stellar Blade was the best-selling physical game in the UK last week, with its launch sales on PS5 being enough to see it top sales charts in the region. Sony and Shift Up haven't shared any official sales data just yet, but this marks a good start for the title, which holds the potential to sell well long-term. TopSpin 2K25 was another new entry in the UK sales chart last week, debuting in third place.

If you’re not familiar with the Playdate, it’s the dinky yellow handheld with a crank that’s actively coveting a hobbyist, indie game development crowd. It’s home to a number of unique experiences already, but for PlayStation fans, this may be the most intriguing outing yet: Psygnosis’ legendary PS1 racer WipEout, rendered in beautiful black-and-white polygons.

Koei Tecmo has shared a brief sales update for recent PS5 exclusive Rise of the Ronin, revealing «sales are surpassing the Nioh series». Without posting any hard numbers, it goes on to say the game has a «high valuation» amongst players and the company is now looking at «mid to long-term growth» for the title.

D3 has confirmed it'll be bringing Earth Defense Force 6 to Western shores on PS5, PS4 from 24th July 2024, just shy of two years after its original Japanese release. A tongue-in-cheek news bulletin trailer has been posted online to mark the update and pre-orders are live on the PS Store now. The release date means EDF fans are in for quite the summer since Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 is also slated to arrive on PS5, PS4 on 26th September 2024.

American convenience store chain 7-Eleven is partnering with Tetris on a line of merchandise, including a handheld.

Universal has released a video showing off the upcoming Super Nintendo World in Orlando.

Rainbow Cotton, a poorly remembered 3D offshoot of one of the definitive entries in the cutesy shooter canon, is somehow making a comeback in English 24 years after its original launch, and the devs have provided a helpful explainer on the differences between emulation, remakes, and remasters. The catch is that they might've gotten it wrong.

, “Piece of Trash,” was anticipated to be released on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. However, although the last issue of the manga did not announce a break for the upcoming week, Kodansha’s K Manga X (formerly Twitter) account announced that the. Instead, .

Yesterday, Meta announced Batman: Arkham Shadow, a VR-only game coming exclusively to the Meta Quest 3. Batman: Arkham Shadow is in development at Camouflaj, a developer with offices in Bellevue, Washington, and Kamakura, Japan. Camouflaj was founded in 2011 by Ryan Payton, who had previously worked at KONAMI as Assistant Producer on Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

Konami has released the opening movie for Powerful Pro Baseball 2024-2025, featuring the theme song “RELAY” sung by Mikei Fujiwara with music and arrangement by Naoyuki Sato.

Inti Creates has released the story trailer for side-scrolling action game Umbraclaw, which features the theme song “A Partner’s Promise” sung by Tsukumo voice actor Yuko Natsuyoshi.

A Pokemon player has successfully managed to transfer the rare Mew from Space World 1997 into the modern-day Pokemon Scarlet and Violet games. The Pokemonuniverse contains many rare and legendary creatures, and the powerful Psychic feline Mew may very well be one of the most elusive of all. Despite playing a major role in the lore of the original Pokemon Red and Blue games, Mew could not be encountered or captured in the base game without glitches or datamining. This would be the case for every mainline Pokemon game until Generation 4’s Diamond and Pearl, which allowed players to import it from the Wii My Pokemon Ranch spin-off.

Che Lingo, the U.K.-based rapper and musician, is an avid anime enthusiast. In addition to collaborating with Crunchyroll on its fall 2023 anime trailer, Che Lingo also composed and performed several songs for Jujutsu Kaisen’s first season.

The Nintendo Switch 2 may be clocked higher than expected in docked mode but "crazy low" in handheld mode to achieve better battery life, according to rumors circulating online.

Entergram will release Cabbage Soft-developed romance visual novel Jewelry Hearts Academia: We Will Wing Wonder World for PlayStation 4 and Switch on October 24 in Japan for 8,228 yen, listing at retailers such as Biccamera and Neowing reveal.

The Earth Defense Force franchise might not be the most pristine or mainstream gaming property around, but it’s picked up a sizeable and dedicated fanbase over the years, one that’s filled with players who’re all too happy to get fresh doses of its pulpy bug-shooting action once every few years. If you’re in that group, you’ll soon be getting another helping of the series’ offerings.

Japan’s most popular indie games expo, BitSummit, has opened ticket sales for its 2024 event, which will return to Kyoto on Friday, July 19.

fans might be wondering about where they can read the about Levi. While the series has ended, we’re lucky enough to have AoT content rolling out this year. Here’s a guide on where to read the Attack on Titan Levi Bad Boy manga and if it’s available online.

Earth Defense Force 6 will launch for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store on July 25 in the west for $59.99, D3 Publisher and developer Sandlot announced.

Japanese developer Arika has enjoyed a close relationship with Nintendo over the years.

A new Guinness World Record was set during a recent Yu-Gi-Oh card game tournament in Tokyo, Japan. While the original Yu-Gi-Oh manga wasn’t always centered around the Duel Monsters card game, it has become one of the most recognizable elements of the franchise. Konami started producing a physical Yu-Gi-Oh card game back in 1999, with Upper Deck bringing it to the US in 2002. Since then, Yu-Gi-Oh has become one of the highest-selling card games in the world, spawning several video games in the process.

We’ve all heard of Persona — it’s one the undisputed kings of the RPG right now, each game pitting one unwitting school kid against an evil adult, using an army of angels and demons to achieve the insurmountable odds stacked against them. But how many people have played a Shin Megami Tensei game, the franchise from which Persona was born? We’d guess comparatively few people. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is the latest opportunity to change that.

It’s been more than a year since the Nintendo 3DS eShop shut down, but players will soon be able to access their library of 3DS games from their iPhone thanks to a new emulator. Mimicking the 3DS's iconic design, it will offer a split-screen view for players to dive into the Nintendo games on the go, putting well-loved games like on Apple's smart devices.

Longtime Tekken character Eddy Gordo has always been a little polarizing, particularly in Tekken 8, and one streamer has found a way to make him even more of a pain to fight, rising through ranked mode using a script that spams one button.

An incredibly rare Nintendo DS is being auctioned off, and it could sell for over £15,000. The Nintendo DS was first released in 2004 as the successor to the Nintendo Game Boy Advance and evolved the Big N's classic handheld formula by including a second touchscreen that players could use for hit titles like The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks and Pokemon Black and White. While it was eventually phased out in favor of the upgraded Nintendo 3DS in 2011, the original Nintendo DS remains one of gaming’s most well-remembered portable systems, with several of its past exclusives being released on current hardware to this day.

A teaser trailer has showcased the two new 6v6 maps arriving on May 1 with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's Season 3 Reloaded update. The maps, called Checkpoint and Grime, will be joined by other new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 features.

PQube will release MAGES.-developed otome visual novel Genso Manege, also known as Rever d’un Manege, for Switch and PC via Steam in the west, the publisher announced. A release date was not announced.

Just when you think a game likeShin Megami Tensei V can’t get any darker, a new version comes for blood.

Publisher Bandai Namco and developer Spike Chunsoft have released a new trailer and screenshots for Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO dubbed “Master and Apprentice,” which introduces 10 more playable characters.

If you missed seeing Hayao Miyazaki’s final* film, The Boy and the Heron, in theaters, GKIDS is bringing the enigmatic animated masterpiece to Blu-ray and DVD July 9.

Yu-Gi-Oh! just broke the Guinness World Record for the most entrants in a trading card game tournament, shattering its own record. This year, 7,443 people took part in the 10th Yu-Gi-Oh! Champion Series Japan tournament held at the Tokyo Big Sight.

Square Enix has announced that it “expects to recognize extraordinary losses” for the fiscal year that ended on March 31, attributing them as “content abandonment losses”. The Japanese company has, in other words, cancelled undisclosed projects, owing to which it will incur losses amounting to ¥22.1 billion (roughly $140.4 million).

A Dragon’s Dogma 2 player has encountered a Pawn resembling Samuel L Jackson’s character, Jules, from Pulp Fiction. Pawns form a useful part of Dragon’s Dogma 2, joining the player’s adventure to assist in defeating tough enemies and finding rare items.

Kaizen Game Works, the studio behind the bangin' 2020 detective game Paradise Killer, has revealed its next game, and it sounds absolutely wild in a way that seems meticulously catered to my precise tastes.

Square Enix has revised its approach to PC and console game development, and absorbed ¥22.1 billion (approx $140.9 million) in what it calls “content abandonment losses.”

Huawei achieved another milestone with its Pura 70 series launch and that is sourcing 90 percent of smartphone components from Chinese suppliers. With the U.S. export control barring foreign companies from shipping parts to the company to use in various products, Huawei was adamant about cutting off overseas manufacturers and relying on local firms to get the job done. So far, the progress has been impressive, and only a few components remain to completely eliminate dependency on supply chain partners outside of China.

A Pokemon fan has baked a pan full of cinnamon rolls based off of Poliwag, its evolutions, and one special guest. The adorable recreations of the Pokemon have a strong resemblance, and definitely look good enough for Pokemon fans to eat.

Hatsune Miku and her flowing twin pigtails are about to grace the art of some gorgeous collectible trading cards. The globally famous virtual pop star is the subject of several upcoming Secret Lair drops for Magic: The Gathering. The best part? She’s going on a year-long print-fueled tour with four Secret Lair drops in all. Polygon has a preview of the first six cards in the series, which go up for sale in May.

Pokemon GO players searching for shiny Pokemon are being tricked by one of the game's latest updates, which introduced the Rediscover GO campaign earlier this month. The Rediscover GO campaign includes visual and quality-of-life updates that aim to encourage Pokemon GO players to try out existing features that were greatly improved.

The franchise features an incredible variety of antagonists, but one particularly strange detail regarding a group of villains has gone mostly unremarked upon for decades. Although recent titles have tended towards having more individual true villains, a trend that has produced some of ’s most terrifying characters, the traditional «Team» still has a role to play in any given region. However, while all Teams have their own unique aesthetic, one also has a much more subtle, and ironic, quirk visible on close examination.

Publisher Enhance and developer tha ltd. will release puzzle game HUMANITY for Xbox Series and Xbox One, as well as PC via Microsoft Store on May 30, the companies announced.

During the 2024 ID@Xbox Showcase, Pocket Pair pulled back the curtain on an upcoming Palworld update introducing at least four new Pals and a new island for players to explore. The new Palworld update is slated to launch in the summer of 2024, and Pocket Pair shared a short teaser video of the new Pals that players will encounter in the update.

DanMachi – Memoria Freese, the RPG inspired by the hit anime Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? is counting down to its final days. In Japan, that is, since the rest of us already saw it shut down on February 28th, 2024.

Pocketpair is working on adding PvP to Palworld via the Arena. However, in the meantime, it’s preparing a sizable Summer update. In a new trailer revealed during the ID@Xbox Showcase, the developer revealed the new island, Pals and weapons included in the update. Check it out below.

On the anniversary of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Hideo Kojima has revealed the «one regret» he holds about the original PlayStation Portable game. Interestingly, this concern isn't related to Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker's gameplay or story but another key immersive aspect.

Hypergryph just dropped some big news for Arknights China players. A crossover with the beloved ‘cooking’ anime, Dungeon Meshi will soon be out! The announcement came during Arknights CN’s 5th Anniversary Livestream on Bilibili. So, what’s in store for the Arknights x Dungeon Meshi crossover? Keep reading to find out!

All existing and future pre-orders for Gundam Breaker 4 in the Americas will receive a free upgrade to the newly announced Launch Edition, publisher Bandai Namco and developer Crafts & Meister announced.

Street Fighter 6 downloadable content character Akuma will launch on May 22, Capcom announced. Akuma will be unlocked for owners of the Deluxe Edition, Ultimate Edition, or Year 1 Character Pass.

The first installment in the iconic Konami rhythm game series, Dance Dance Revolution, is making a comeback in the form of a mini emulator console that just went on sale. The release of this tiny arcade cabinet replica is coming just in time for fans to celebrate the 25th anniversary of one of the best-selling Konami franchises.

Street Fighter 6’s final Year 1 DLC character, Akuma, is one that fans have been looking forward to for some time. The fan-favourite series veteran is set to close out the game’s first wave of DLC fighters sometime this spring, and Capcom has now announced a specific release date for his arrival.

Japanese publishing giant Capcom has increased its financial outlook for the financial year ending March 31st, 2024.

Guilty Gear: Strive downloadable content character Slayer will launch on May 30 for $6.99 / 880 yen or as part of Season Pass 3 for $24.99 / 2,750 yen, Arc System Works announced. He is the final additional character for Season 3.

Tekken 8 downloadable content character Lidia Sobieska will launch this summer as part of the game’s Season 1, Bandai Namco announced.

If it weren’t enough to see Bandai Namco announce free updates and new story content for Tekken 8 this year, it also outlined its roadmap for Season 1 DLC fighters. After Eddy Gordo, the next DLC character is one that should be familiar to Tekken 7 fans – Lidia Sobieska. Check out some teases of her power below.

Nintendo is said to have pushed the launch of its next-generation console, with reports from earlier this year claiming that the successor to the Nintendo Switch would be released in early 2025. Little is known about the Nintendo Switch 2, but the console will likely retain the hybrid design of its predecessor and is expected to come with a larger screen. Now, new details about Nintendo's upcoming console have reportedly surfaced.

During EVO Japan 2024, Bandai Namco released a new trailer showcasing upcoming updates for Tekken 8. A new balance patch will be available this Spring, but fans can expect several free post-launch updates. Check out the trailer below.

Bandai Namco has a lot in store for Tekken 8 fans this year, starting with a new balance patch this Spring. While a new stage and Photo Mode will go live this Summer, perhaps the most intriguing announcement is a new Main Story chapter launching this Autumn for free. Check out some teases from it in the Season 1 trailer.

SNK has released a new trailer forFatal: Fury: City of the Wolves, announcing the addition of Marco Rodrigues to the roster (voiced by Earl Baylon in English and Kenichirou Matsuda in Japanese). As a practitioner of Kyokugen Karate, he made his debut in Garou: Mark of the Wolves, so a return only makes sense. Check out some of his moves below.

Stellar Blade has launched to huge acclaim this weekend, but not every fan is delighted with Shift Up’s PS5 debut. Eagle-eyed players spotted some changes to a couple of costumes in the final product, prompting accusations of censorship from publisher Sony. Of course, it wouldn’t be the first time the Japanese giant has requested changes in PlayStation games, as more titillating cutscenes in titles like Devil May Cry 5 were inexplicably edited on PS4 in the past. This decision was later reversed.

Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP, an upcoming remaster of the hack-and-slash Xbox 360/PS3 title from famed game designer Suda51, might finally receive a proper reveal in the near future, according to a recent tease from the developers behind the project. The long-awaited re-release of the cult classic action game will hopefully shine a new light on this overlooked title and lead to more remasters of other hidden gems from Suda51 in the future.

Early footage of Bushiroad Games and Eighting's upcoming Hunter X Hunter: Nen X Impact has shown off its character select screen, suggesting that the game will have a rather small roster of 16 characters. Hunter X Hunter: Nen X Impact was first revealed at the start of 2024, with many fans excited about seeing a licensed 2D fighting game based on the long-running manga. The reveal trailer confirmed that a mix of fan favorite heroes and villains would be playable in the upcoming game, along with the game being a tag team fighter like some of Eighting's past works.

SNK confirmed that Marco Rodrigues is making a grand return to the roster of Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves after his last playable appearance nearly 25 years ago. Fatal Fury's comeback was welcomed, as the series hasn't had a new entry in over two decades. This Fatal Fury revival was first announced at EVO 2022, which later got a teaser trailer at the 2023 EVO tournament. SNK then fully revealed the game as Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, along with some members of its roster and a release window of 2025. With the series having been out of the spotlight for nearly 25 years, some fighters from the game's roster will be coming back, like Marco Rodrigues.

Cards for the have been printed in both English and Japanese since 1998, but not all cards are created equal. The card flipping market has always existed to some extent. But it's taken off in recent years, catapulting some of the rarest cards to astronomical prices. As a result, many collectors have looked into buying Japanese cards, which, much like their English counterparts, can become precious collectibles in their own right.

Iman Vellani is the kind of movie star whose enthusiasm, humor, and openness radiates off the screen and feels positively incandescent in person. The 21-year-old actress, best known for her role as Kamala Khan in 2022’s Ms. Marvel and 2023’s The Marvels,is unabashedly open in sharing her love of all things MCU-related, from playfully debating the finer points of canonical continuity with Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige to co-writing a Ms. Marvellimited series with Sabir Pirzada.

Party action game Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash will launch for PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC via Steam on August 30, publisher Cygames and developer Arc System Works announced.

Shōgun, the limited TV series based on the historical-fiction novel by James Clavell, quickly asserted itself as one of this year’s best new series, thanks to a captivating cast of characters and a stirring performance by lead Hiroyuki Sanada as Lord Toranaga.