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Category Archives: box art

We Love Katamari PAL Box Art Appreciation Post (with Giveaway!)

11 / 24 / 144 / 18 / 15
We Love Katamari is the sequel to one of the most unique games on the PlayStation 2 and among my favorite titles for the system, but the garish North American box art did not do it any favors. Apparently I wasn’t the only one offended by MS Paint-esque art style and atrocious purple and green color scheme, either. Little did I know until just the other day, however, that PAL regions lucked out and actually got a very fun cover befitting of the game’s quirky style!

A recent trip to my local second hand shop netted me this near perfect copy of the Australian version of We Heart Katamari! Back in 2005 I didn’t usually go out of my way to look at game box art on the internet, so I had no idea the PAL box was so nice until I saw this in person. 

The back is equally fun, too, aside from that giant Australian PEGI rating sticker in the middle. At least they matched up the green with the green of everyone’s favorite other worldly-prince.

The manual is virtually the same as We Heart Katamari‘s North American counterpart aside from the lack of text, but the disc art sports a bunch of animals and princes instead of the King of All Cosmos. I really like the crayon art style, and the decision to use it on both the front and back cover of the box as well as the disc makes it so much more cohesive than the North American version!

I imagine the contents of the manual are pretty similar between versions, but just in case you haven’t seen it before, here are a couple of my favorite pages. Just flipping through this makes me wistful for when games always came with some kind of manual to look at…

Even a guitar can roll a katamari!

The Katamari games all have such great art! Now I want to go dig up one of my games and roll up some innocent children…

Oh, wait! Before I do that, I’d like to share with you some exciting news: this month’s Chic Pixel supporter-exclusive giveaway is going to be this PAL copy of We Love Katamari! All you have to do is donate $5 or more by clicking the Paypal donate button at my supporter page to be in the running. Not only do you have the chance to win a super cool game, but your donation goes a long way to help expand the content on Chic Pixel! Giveaway closes on November 30th at 10 pm EST.

Next month I’ll be back at the ranch (which is in no way an actual ranch, but that seems like a pretty cool way to refer to the house I grew up in), and I need to go through a lot of games, anime, manga, and more that I haven’t had the chance to bring over to Australia. I’m planning on getting rid of a lot of things through giveaways and quick-fire auctions on Twitter to help raise money for the site, so please keep an eye out for that if you’re interested!

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Judging a Game by its Box: Harvest Moon 3D: A New Beginning

12 / 3 / 134 / 18 / 15

The other day, I happened to be browsing the shelves of my local game store (as one does), and I happened upon a curious sight. See, when you’re as obsessive about stopping by the game store every time you go out as I am, you generally know what to expect, so a box that looks out of the ordinary usually jumps out right away. Well, in this case, I was blown away by how appealing a certain game cover looked…

Why, it’s Harvest Moon 3D: A New Beginning! But instead of the ugly anime boy and girl on the Japanese and North American covers, this one’s covered in an adorable farm animal pattern! I must admit, I’m a little disappointed at the fact that I already own the North American version, as I totally would buy this one for the cover alone! Yes, the Harvest Moon logo itself is still garish and horrible, but I definitely think the European cover of Harveset Moon 3D: A New Beginning is a major step up. Here’s the North American version:

Oh look, some farmers and animals. Something really irks me about this illustration style! The animals themselves are cute and all, but their pastel shading style (which I prefer, actually) totally clashes with the darker colors used on the boy and girl in the foreground. Though the Japanese cover uses much of the same assets, it’s a definite improvement:

The logo still isn’t the greatest game logo I’ve ever seen, but it’s still a huge step up from the English Harvest Moon logo. The characters also look like they fit into the overall image more, which has me convinced that they decided to amp up the saturation for the North American cover for whatever reason. My favorite part about the Japanese cover, though, is that the logo is located at the bottom and is surrounded by all sorts of lovely flowers and vegetables!

It’s not usually the case, but I think this time the European cover steals the show for having the best design, with the Japanese cover coming in at a close second. I have a feeling I may be in the minority, though, especially since there are definitely some weird things about it, but basically it comes down to the fact that I just adore patterns and cute animals. Now, this reminds me that I should finally dig into my copy of the game…

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My Game Boy Advance Game Collection (or, my miserable start in the world of handheld gaming)

8 / 1 / 114 / 18 / 15
Happy Monday! Or Sunday evening, for those of you located in other parts of the world (enjoy your freedom while it lasts, eh?). Without further ado or fanfare, I present to you my most coveted collection in my gaming library: 

Ok, ok, you’ve got to know I’m kidding, but seriously: this is my complete GBA library. Sad, huh? It’s especially surprising considering what a fiend I am when it comes to the Nintendo DS/3DS (ok not so much 3DS at the moment, but I do like my Nintendo handhelds these days). So, how is it that I’ve pretty much completely skipped a game console with a library that is, on the whole, completely in-tune with my gaming tastes?

Well, I’m not going to go the whole nine yards and detail my complete gaming history (that’ll take more than one post, I believe), but I can delve into a bit of my past when it comes to handhelds in particular.

As far as I can remember, my first glimpse into the world of handheld gaming was thanks to my grandparents, who had a Game Boy (Maybe 2? Perhaps each of them had one so they could play at the same time). I remember visiting them in Florida during spring break, watching them play Super Mario Land and Tetris 2, and being awed at their skill (My grandfather was particularly good at Tetris 2, while my grandmother could clear Super Mario Land).

I got my own Game Boy at some point and have lots of fond memories playing alongside them, trying my hardest to get as far as they did (to this day I still haven’t beaten Super Mario Land). For whatever reason, though, I never really got so into the Game Boy games that I would play them even when I wasn’t visiting them in Florida. If my memory serves me right, I’d usually play for a few days after returning home, only to set them down soon after in my frustration of not being able to advance, moving on to other things until the next trip reminded me of how much fun I had.

So was my relationship with handheld gaming until a few years later, when a Game Boy Advance advantageously presented itself to me. Actually, the method by which I acquired it wasn’t quite that mystical–a well-meaning relative had gifted my grandfather with a clear purple Game Boy Advance for Christmas one year, but unfortunately he found the colors too difficult to see, so the console was passed down to me.

Honestly, I don’t really remember what I did with the thing. I bought a number of games for it, and then traded almost all of them in (There were a few dark years where I traded games in to fund buying more games, but I almost always regretted doing so. Kids, take note: always seriously reconsider before trading in your games). My most regretted GBA trade-in was Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance (oh, it hurts to remember! I still have the instruction booklet, even), but I also sold Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories more recently because I just couldn’t get into the battle system. The only other game I’m sure I had that is no longer with me was Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2, which I eventually passed on to a friend’s younger sister along with the console in my junior or senior year of high school.

I still can’t believe I got rid of this game! What was I thinking

So, even though I’m sure a got a bit of enjoyment out of the console, all-in-all, the whole thing was pretty short-lived. I guess at the time I was too focused on the Playstation 2 to care much about anything else. Good thing I still had the sense to not to toss 2 of my Game Boy Advance games, even though I didn’t have the means to play them at the time. Well, one of them I couldn’t get rid of no matter how hard I tried–which do you think it was?

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams’s Japanese box art is adorable
US box art? Not so hot… Why 3 Klonoas? 

Luckily, I didn’t get rid of my GBA pride and joy: Klonoa: Empire of Dreams. I’m a pretty big Klonoa fan, and Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil is one of my favorite PS2 games. With Klonoa: Empire of Dreams being a rather rare title that was released the same year as the system, I consider myself pretty lucky to have snagged a used cartridge at my local game shop. Unfortunately, I’ve never really played too much of it, but from what I have played, it’s been great. The art style is adorable, the music is catchy (Even though some of the music and sounds seem to be taken straight from Klonoa 2), and the gameplay is fun and not too difficult. This title is one that I’m definitely going to be playing more of in the next few weeks–I picked it up for the first time in years last night and restarted my game, and am determined to finish it.

I’m really digging the long Japanese GBA boxes… 

Have you guessed which game I want to get rid of, yet? If you were thinking Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, then you were right! Why would I want to get rid of such a super game, you ask? Well, if you look closely at the picture, it’s actually the Japanese version of the game. In my excitement at seeing it for sale used in Japan during my first trip there many years ago, I decided to purchase it, even though I had next to no Japanese language skills at the time. Needless to say, I never really played it because I couldn’t understand it, and though I tried to sell it online multiple times, no one really wanted it since it was such an easy game to get in English. I could definitely pick up the game now and play through it no problem… The question is whether or not I really want to. Right now it’s not very high on my list.

Just look at this!! How could you not be compelled to buy a game like this

Mr. Driller A: Mysterious Pacteria and Golden Sun are my most recent GBA game acquisitions. Mr. Driller A I bought in 2009, the last time I was in Japan, at a used game shop in Osaka for a very fine price, and it came complete with booklet and box! Mr. Driller is yet another series I’m very interested in, but Mr. Driller A was actually the first game I ever bought. It’s great to pick up and do a few rounds, and, just like Klonoa, it has great music, adorable graphics, and fun gameplay. I consider it and Klonoa to be the stars of my GBA library.

Finally, there’s Golden Sun. This one I actually bought just this year online for very cheap, and I’m happy to finally have a copy. I borrowed it a long time ago from a friend and found it to be quite fun, so it’s always been at the back of my mind as something I wanted to play eventually. When the DS sequel was released, it renewed my interest in the series… But I still haven’t played it. Oh, I’ll probably never complete all the games on my “must play” list!

So there you have it, the story of my GBA game library. Are there any GBA “must-haves” that you’d recommend? One I’d like to get my hands on is Rhythm Heaven, since my husband and I enjoyed the DS version. My library will grow, slowly but surely!

Oh, and for those of you who must know: I did in fact own copies of both Pokemon Blue and Gold (I remember playing a lot of Blue but never really got far in Gold). Sadly, they were misplaced or lost. Who knows where they are now…

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BlazBlue Continuum Shift II Box Art Censored in US

5 / 19 / 114 / 18 / 15

Since this has been nagging me for a while now, I figured I might as well post about it. Back when I heard BlazBlue Continuum Shift II was coming out for the 3DS, contrary to some skeptics (aka my husband), I was actually quite excited about it. See, we played the original BlazBlue Calamity Trigger together in the arcades when we were living in Japan, and the series brings back lots of fond memories for me, even though we never ended up purchasing Continuum Shift for the PS3 when it came out. With Continuum Shift II coming out for the 3DS, I figure it’d be killing two birds with one stone since I don’t have any particularly enjoyable games for my 3DS yet and I’m long overdue for a new BlazBlue game.

Honestly, I haven’t really been keeping track of BlazBlue. I know they added a couple of characters for Continuum Shift, and figured they’d probably add one or two more for this release. Now that I’ve seen the Japanese box art for the game, I dare say I’ve seen a little too much of the game’s new characters.

Japanese box art with a lovely sleek black logo bar and…

Hm, well, I guess that’s cute? I think she’s supposed to be a squirrel. I really am not impressed with her clothing design and whoever decided to make her breasts larger than the other characters on the cover. I’d like to see more of the old guy with the seriously pointy beard–I seem to remember he was a vampire buddy of Rachel’s in the first game. I have a feeling he’ll probably be similar to Guilty Gear’s Slayer.

It seems as though I wasn’t the only one who was a little displeased by the Japanese cover choice, as the US box art is much more covered up (hah, I can’t help it, the bad puns just make themselves).

US box art is a little more tasteful

I have to admit, though I do like the positioning of the characters so that the one girl’s barely covered breasts are no longer a focal point of the image, but I actually dislike the American cover as a whole because it seems too cluttered (and I’ve gotta say, that black 3DS logo is nice). I think I also preferred the BlazBlue logo in the center, rather than to the side. But we can’t have everything, right? Which one do you prefer?

BlazBlue Continuum Shift II is coming to the 3DS and PSP on May 31st (pushed back from the 24th) in both Japan and North America

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Welcome!


Name: Anne Lee
Birthday: December 13
Fav food: Mochi

Chic Pixel is where I write about my favorite aspects of Japanese pop culture, with a focus on the cute and nerdy! Read More >

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blerdyotome Naja B. | Can't spell Blerdy without BL @blerdyotome ·
21h

Enter for a chance to win one of two digital copies of Norn9 Var Commons for the Nintendo Switch!

Entries open @ 12pm ET today and close March 30 @ 11:59PM ET Good luck! 💖 #otometwt

✨https://gleam.io/0H70l/blerdy-otome-norn9-var-commons-giveaway

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blerdyotome Naja B. | Can't spell Blerdy without BL @blerdyotome ·
21h

In this latest Behind the Games interview, I had the privilege of talking with the amazing Anne Lee @apricotsushi about their work as consultant & proofreader on the new Norn9 Switch localizations & so much more! #otome #otometwt https://blerdyotome.com/2023/03/26/behind-the-games-interview-with-anne-lee/

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apricotsushi Anne Lee @apricotsushi ·
11h

Thanks for having me, @BlerdyOtome! If you want to learn more about the process behind the Norn9 VC script update, check out my interview!

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chlorokitty Otome Kitten~♡ @chlorokitty ·
25 Mar

NORN9: Var Commons Review [Revised]!
https://otomekitten.com/2018/12/17/norn9-var-commons-review

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meltyimp 🎀 mel 🎀 @ Wondercon D-51 @meltyimp ·
19 Mar

no comment

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apricotsushi

No reason for this photo aside from the fact that No reason for this photo aside from the fact that the UCI anteater is super cute 😝 and I'm loving my pink shirt, which was thrifted in Portland!
Come explore the Eco Town in Fountain Valley with Come explore the Eco Town in Fountain Valley with me and @marquisdegame! There were so many neat finds, from Reboot figures (anyone remember that show??) to merch featuring my fav Touken Ranbu sword boy! 🗡️ 
It was a lot of fun getting out of my comfort zone to film this when I was out the other day. I'd love to share more locations near my new home in California - let me know if you'd like to see more reels like this! 
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#ecotown #exploreoc #orangecountyca #vintageshopping #vintageshoppingdestination #secondhandfinds #thriftstorefinds #thriftingfinds #retrotoys #toukenranbu #geekgirl #geeklifestyle #otakugirl #otakulifestyle #kawaiiness #kawaiilifestyle #retrogaming
Sketch ▶️ final of a Lil Judd fanart I recentl Sketch ▶️ final of a Lil Judd fanart I recently drew! Who’s excited for Splatoon 3? I can’t believe how many exciting games are coming out, I can’t keep up lol 💦💦 I’m still slowly making my way through Elden Ring! 
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#splatoon3 #splatoon #splatoonart #nintendoart #procreate #digitalart #digitalartist #digitalartwork #procreateart #procreatedrawing #nintendogame #nintendogamer #splatoonfanart #splatoon2 #splatoon2fanart #splatoon2art #liljudd #ladygamer #gamersofaus #kawaiiart
Doesn’t this bowl from @thepresentcondition remi Doesn’t this bowl from @thepresentcondition remind you of Ranking of Kings?! 👑👑 It’s a secondhand Japanese melamine bowl my good friend in Brisbane found for his new market stall and online shop! The Present Condition sells second-hand retro kitchenwares, vintage linens, and kitschy bric-a-brac. If you’re in Brisbane, they’re at Kelvin Grove Village Markets every second Saturday. Check out their page for some really cool second-hand finds! #gifted
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#anime #animeaesthetic #kawaiioftheday #otakugirl #otakulife #crunchyroll #rankingofkings #animekawaii #animeaesthetic #animeislife #animelifestyle #thriftedfinds #cuteanime #cutelife #aestheticpics #aestheticlifestyle #japanesedishes #melamineware
Aki and I are not feeling this return to work afte Aki and I are not feeling this return to work after a 1.5 week vacation! Ms Aki is @jessjhs’s lovely shiba inu who we’ve been pet sitting for a few weeks☺️ mug is by Keane Ng, creator of upcoming game A Shiba Story! 
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How cute is this Keroppi water bottle?! 🐸 You'r How cute is this Keroppi water bottle?! 🐸 You're meant to color on it with markers but I love the black and white look so I'm keeping it as is. Thank you so much for sending it and the Sanrio puzzle to me, @cozynamie! It came at a really tough time when I was going through separating with my husband of 12 years and it really lifted my spirits. I'm really grateful for all of the wonderful people I've met here on IG and am happy to have energy/motivation to post more again 💕
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