When it comes to Japan-related subscription services, there is no shortage of options in the candy/snack department, but if you want to venture into the realm of collectables and other knickknacks, there are considerably fewer services available. Luckily, the folks at Betoyo Bento seek to fill that void by offering monthly boxes of toys, candies, and any other “Japanese pop culture items” they come across!
When deciding October’s Community Game-Along, I’ll admit I was a little selfish. Halloween is up there with my very favorite holidays, and I love nothing more than an excuse to cover my apartment in creepy cute bats, pumpkins, and ghosts. How, then, could I turn up the chance to tie the October Game-Along in with the holiday festivities?
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| Corpse Party |
As such, October is going to be all about horror games! Japanese games, western games, console games, freeware PC games – everything’s included, as long as it falls under the horror umbrella. Now, I understand that not everyone can handle a good scare (including yours truly on most occasions), so in the interest of getting anyone and everyone to participate, games with Halloween-related themes and aesthetics are also acceptable!
The “rules” of the Horror Community Game-Along are the same as always: pick a game (or games) that fit the theme to play, and share your experiences however you see fit. On social media, please use #horrorgemonth to tag your posts so everyone can see! For the curious, “horrogemonth” is what you get when you take “horror geemu” (Japanese pronunciation of “game”) and smash “month” on the end. Do you know how difficult it is to create a unique horror-themed hashtag to use during the month of October?
Here are a few titles to get you started if you’re stumped with what to play:
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| Corpse Party |
Corpse Party series (PSP, iOS) – I had to include Corpse Party on the list, as it’s the series that really got me into horror games after I told myself I couldn’t handle playing them for many years. The visual novel style of much of the game, combined with some pretty brutal puzzles that almost necessitate using a guide, may mean that the original Corpse Party might not be for everyone. I’ll be the first to tell you, though, that the game’s story and sound design is more than worth the game’s lack of polish in other areas. I suggest playing the original on the Vita, but if you don’t own a Vita or a PSP, there is also an iOS port of the game (that unfortunately had its fair share of technical issues which may or may not be resolved at the time of posting). XSEED Games announced earlier this year that they would be bringing over the original PC version, so hopefully that comes out in time for the October Game-Along for those who want it!
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| Ib |
Japanese freeware indie games (PC) – Okay, this isn’t one suggestion, but I really wanted to highlight a category of horror games many people overlook. Not only are they free (legally) and available in English thanks to fan translators, but I have it on good authority that many of them are actually quite good! Definitely check out Memories of Fear and the horror section of Games vgperson Translated for a whopping 24 games to play for the wonderful price of nothing. My sources tell me Ib and The Witch’s House are two standout picks, but if you want to check out some Corpse Party spinoffs or the infamous Ao Oni, Memories of Fear has you covered. Be warned – while many of these games have a “cute” graphical style, that doesn’t mean they don’t tackle some pretty brutal themes!
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| Penumbra |
Penumbra (PC, Mac, Linux) – Almost everyone who calls themselves a horror fan has played Amnesia, but what about Frictional Games’ episodic horror title Penumbra? All three episodes are available together for only $10 on Steam, and while it suffers from the kinds of control issues that tend to bring down a lot of horror games with combat, Penumbra stands out among fans for its tension, Lovecraftian premise, and focus on stealth to survive.
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| Cursed Mountain |
Cursed Mountain (Wii, PC) – Cursed Mountain shares some similarities with Penumbra: both take place in snowy settings (cold locations are always good for a spook), and both feature a protagonist who is searching for a relative. Cursed Mountain sets itself apart from other horror games, however, by its focus on Buddhist Culture and desolate Himalayan setting. The game was panned by many for its waggle controls on the Wii, but considering it can almost always be found in bargain bins at game stores, it’s definitely worth checking out. The PC version is available for $10 on GamersGate and should satisfy those allergic to Wii motion controls.
Of course, there are many classics that I haven’t mentioned here, such as Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Fatal Frame, Siren… or even more recent offerings such as Dead Space and the Silent Hills teaser PT (I know, I have a bit of a Japanese horror bias). The possibilities are nearly endless, though the horror genre often gets a bad rap for having poor quality games, so be sure to choose wisely!
“Off the hook” is what all the cool kids say these days, right? Regardless of whether or not I have ability to lure in the masses, it looks like Nintendo has found the key to widespread appeal: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu collaborations. The latest new (remember, this is the NEW new 3DS) 3DS commercial features the internationally-known pop sensation taking over iconic Nintendo characters’ wardrobes, and to very humorous effect:
The new 3DS comes out on October 11th in Japan, and the above commercial is intent on selling one feature and one feature only: the changeable faceplates, or “kisekae plates.” Kyary’s catchphrase throughout the commercial is “Kisekae chaou!” or “Let’s change!” which makes a fun kind of sense – the phrase is generally reserved for changing clothes, so of course that’s Kyary’s chance to go in and make over Mario and co. after some of the new 3DS changeable faceplate designs.
There’s a lot going on in the 31 second commercial, so let’s take a closer look at some of the adorable details:
Happy Zettai Zetsubou Shoujo: Danganronpa Another Episode Day! As always, Japan is one step ahead of the rest of the world – while Dananronpa 2: Goodbye Despair just debuted in English earlier this month, Japanese-speaking fans are likely already gobbling up the third entry in the series that goes on shelves today.
After just finishing Danganronpa 2 earlier this week (review coming soon!), I am on a total Danganronpa high at the moment. Though my copy of Another Episode likely won’t be in my hands until late next week, Namja Town has a new Danganronpa event with special themed food items that I can tantalize myself with in the meantime….
Note: If you’ve only just started playing the Danganronpa games, there may be some slight spoilers regarding the characters in this post, so read on at your own risk!
Namja Town is a theme park located inside the Sunshine City shopping center in Ikebukuro. While it was definitely on my radar when I was in Tokyo, I ultimately wasn’t able to give it a visit. In addition to its usual attractions, it is constantly rotating different nerdy tie-in events such as this Danganronpa one that will be held from September to November. Special foods, merchandise, and even games are part of the festivities!
The food items pictured above are all to commemorate the launch of Danganronpa Another Episode, and thus feature the main characters of the game. It’s hard to make out, but the one in the bottom right is the protagonist Komaru’s megaphone hacking gun firing a couple different types of truth bullets – but they’re gyoza!
At the top right is everyone’s favorite psycho Genocide Jill in the form of a sandwich. I love how they depict her infamous scissors! And don’t miss that crazy long red tongue sticking out of the sandwich!
In addition to celebrating Another Story, there are plenty of food items made with other characters in the series in mind. Each order comes with a special collectable card of the character the food item is based on, for 19 in total… Good thing the campaign is on for two months for those who want to collect them all!
My second favorite, though, would have to be this Gundham cake. I love how the yam(?) looks like his scarf! And they even managed to feature the Four Devas of Destruction!
Even the Namja Town mascots are dressed up as Danganronpa characters! Can you tell who’s who?
Be sure to head over to the official Danganronpa in Namja Town 2014 site to check out all the different limited edition goods available at the event! Now I’m back to waiting for my copy of Another Episode to arrive…
Back when I wrote about the Hello Kitty regional Blendy stick a few months ago, I resigned myself to never being able to try them due to their limited distribution even though I was traveling to Japan. Imagine my surprise, then, when I ran into some at a souvenir shop that specialized in food at Tokyo Solamachi! Of course, I was utterly thrilled and proceeded to buy them immediately.
Interestingly, the only flavor this particular shop stocked was the Tochiotome Au Lait from Tochigi prefecture, which is north of Tokyo. As you can probably tell from the packaging, Tochiotome is a type of strawberry that is particularly famous in Tochigi prefecture. Though I’ve eaten my fair share of Japanese strawberries, I don’t know if I’ve ever tried the Tochiotome variety, but I can say that Japanese strawberries are some of the juiciest, most flavorful berries I’ve ever had!
Each regional Hello Kitty Blendy stick box comes with 10 individually-wrapped packets for 10 cups of strawberry au lait. I believe I paid ¥600 (more or less $6), which might be a tad pricey for this sort of instant drink, but I was happy to spend a little extra for a region-exclusive item.
According to the back of the box, there is a special monkey trainer Hello Kitty design that, if you’re lucky, you’ll find on one of the packets in the box. A quick Google search tells me that Tochigi is famous for a theme park that used to have monkey troupe performances that closed in 2013, but will have a memorial hall opening this October. Unfortunately, I wasn’t lucky enough to get the special design!
I didn’t expect the box to reveal a cutout of Hello Kitty’s face when opened! It’s products like this that really showcase the amazing attention to detail and presentation you’ll find in even the most mundane items in Japan. Limited edition packaging is certainly a surefire way to get me to buy an instant drink I would normally pass over in a shop!
Unfortunately, while the strawberry Hello Kitty adorning the box and packets is all-around adorable, the drink itself wasn’t particularly impressive. The Tochiotome strawberry flavor was definitely strong and sweet, but I don’t think strawberry au lait is really my drink of choice.
Sure, it would be great if the drink itself was as thrilling as the packaging, but I’m still very happy that I was able to try one of the regional Hello Kitty Blendy stick flavors! Though I couldn’t find a seller that ships the Tochiotome au lait internationally, there is one that stocks the Hokkaido café au lait! I may have to give that a try…
This is it, folks. I’ve finally fallen into the deep, money-swallowing hole that is scale figures. I don’t know whether I should be relieved that I lasted a whole year since I bought my first Nendoroid, or if I should be disappointed that I only managed to keep myself away from them for so long. Either way, I’m in it now, and there’s no better way to celebrate the occasion than with a review!
I have been monumentally busy lately. Terribly, soul-crushingly busy to the point that I have absolutely no idea how I’m going to fit in everything I want/need to do. On top of that, my monthly Community Game-Alongs keep me acutely aware of exactly how much time I have left in the year… And it’s not a lot.
So, how can one ever hope to manage one’s time?! With a handy list, of course!
There are tons of games I want to play over the next few months, but I had to narrow things down for the sake of this post, and my sanity. Since I’m on a major otome game/visual novel kick lately, I figured that was as good a place to start as any, and I also wanted to use it as an excuse to cover some games that may not be talked about very often. And thus, I present to you: four visual novels I have to play before 2015!
Clover Toshokan no Juunin-tachi (release date: September 26)
This is one otome game that I absolutely did not have on my radar until I happened to see it pop up for preorder on Ami Ami (that site is going to be the death of me). My interest was piqued for purely superficial reasons – the game has the word “library” in the title, and the art was appealing, albeit a little generic. But this game isn’t just an otome game that features a library! The male suitors are literally books. That’s right, the books in the library have come to life, from the cutesy picture book to the wild-looking travel book. Even though this game is for PC and I generally prefer to play games on consoles, I will readily admit that the prospect of dating books completely sold me on the title.
Nekketsu Inou Bukatsu: Trigger Kiss (release date: October 2)
