Sofubi Invades Brisbane! Soft Vinyl Mayhem Event Recap

9 / 14 / 159 / 14 / 15

This past Friday, Australia saw its first ever sofubi exhibit right in my home of Brisbane! It’s not often that I get to attend a first of anything in Australia, let alone something related to Japanese pop culture, so of course I had to go. The event, titled Soft Vinyl Mayhem, was all about showcasing the bizarre world of sofubi, or soft vinyl toys. Before Friday, my knowledge of sofubi began and ended with Negora, but I’ve studied up and am ready to share what I’ve learned! But first, here’s a peek at what awaited me at the Soft Vinyl Mayhem show:

Introducing Kyoukai no Shirayuki, Gatchaman Crowds Artist Kinako’s First Otome Game

8 / 19 / 158 / 27 / 15

Among the many announcements at Otomate Party 2015 this past weekend, Kyoukai no Shirayuki (officially subtitled as Nämlich Shirayuki), an otome game coming to the PS Vita in 2016, may very well be the most exciting. Well, if you’re as big a fan of Kinako, an artist best known for her work on Gatchaman Crowds, as I am, that is! It’s the first otome game with Kinako providing her illustration prowess and is partially based off of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. So far, it looks simply gorgeous. Check out the teaser trailer below and read on for a full translation and rundown of the characters!

The Odin Sphere: Leifdrasir Famitsu DX Limited Edition is Utterly Amazing

8 / 15 / 152 / 27 / 16

Odin Sphere is one of those games that, while I think extremely highly of it, I’ve never actually finished it. Unlike my usual excuse of “well, I just got sidetracked…,” I can actually pinpoint the terrible slowdown the original PlayStation 2 version of the game experienced as the reason for my inability to complete the game. As you can imagine, I was thrilled when the HD remaster Odin Sphere: Leifdrasir was announced for a January 2016 release on PS3, PS4, and PS Vita in Japan. Not only will the game look gorgeous, but the new version should totally fix the slowdown problems of the original!

Though preorders for the Japanese version have been up since shortly after the announcement last month, the official website has only just unveiled the store-exclusive preorder bonuses for the game. Now, normally I am not a fan of these kinds of deals, but for my beloved Odin Sphere, I’ll make an exception. I may even make an exception and preorder my first Famitsu DX limited edition… I mean, just look at some of the amazing stuff you get:

Coasters?! A a Kitchen Pooka mug?! Not only that, but the extra special limited edition, exclusive to the Japanese store Ebten, will also include an A2 size tapestry, a desktop calendar, and a 3D LED crystal featuring the adorable Alice and Socrates (preview images not yet available). All preorders of the game also come with a special art book, and the Famitsu DX limited edition is no exception.

The Odin Sphere: Leifdrasir Famitsu DX limited edition will set you back ¥14,615 regardless of system for everything, or ¥11,534 for everything but the 3D crystal. I… may have already ordered the crystal-less PS Vita version. The game itself is retailing at¥7,980, clocking in the cost to get the additional tapestry, calendar, coasters, and mug at ¥3,554. That’s not so bad for all those neat goodies, in my opinion!

If you’re desperate to get your hands on this limited edition, keep in mind that the game has already been announced for an English release sometime in the future. However, I’d say it’s highly unlikely that items such as the mug, coasters, or 3D crystal will be made available elsewhere. If you’re ready to spring for this amazing set like me, you can either the preorder version with the crystal or without the crystal using a forwarding service such as Tenso to order from Ebten. I have a guide that walks you through the whole process. Happy shopping!

The Best of the PS Store Summer Sale: Week 2

8 / 6 / 158 / 6 / 15

Who doesn’t love a good sale? While some companies are dragging their feet more on the digital sale front than others (I’m looking at you, Nintendo), Sony has been doing a great job of offering a lot of great deals for PS3, PS4, and PS Vita on the PlayStation Store (aka PSN). The North American PS store yearly summer sale is generally no different, but unfortunately the first week was not the thrilling kickoff I was hoping for. Luckily, they’ve turned it around with week two, which is chock full of super discounts on some great titles! But money doesn’t grow on trees, so I’ve narrowed it down to five games I think are most worth picking up this week.

YouTube Roundup: Sailor Moon Gummies and… Vegemite Chocolate?

7 / 22 / 15

Most of you probably know I have a YouTube channel by now, but if you don’t, I’m here to politely to remind you that it’s a thing you can check out! Just like Chic Pixel Plus, I’m determined to get on a regular updating schedule. Over the past week, I’ve managed to upload two whole episodes! Yay me.

The videos are pretty self explanatory, but let me quickly reiterate: the Sailor Moon Crystal mango yogurt gummies I tried in the video above were amazing. I wish they were still available online!

The second video is a bit different than my usual fare… This Vegemite Cadbury bar is what I guess you could call an Australian limited edition delicacy. Vegemite, chocolate, and caramel, though? Sounds fishy to me…

Believe it or not, I’ve been making videos for just over a year now, but it’s hard work! If you like them, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a comment, subscribe, or share my videos to your friends! As always, if you want to go the extra mile to support Chic Pixel, you can head to my support page, which is full of information on how to donate to the site or buy an item on my Amazon Japan wishlist.

Kickstarter Spotlight: Purrfectly Ever After

7 / 21 / 157 / 21 / 15

With the wealth of games launching Kickstarter campaigns every day, it can be very difficult to sift through and find titles worth supporting. Purrfectly Ever After, a English language otome game by new developer Weeev, however, is one title I firmly believe deserves some recognition, which is why I’m writing about it here today!

Winning Costume Design Coming to Splatoon as Sushi Chef DLC

6 / 25 / 156 / 25 / 15

Famitsu Splatoon Squid Fashion Contest — via the official Japanese Splatoon Twitter account

In a collaboration with Nintendo’s new ink-based shooter Splatoon, Japanese magazine Famitsu recently held a Squid Fashion Contest to design a new outfit for the game. After going through over 800 submissions, the winning design has been revealed! It will be made available as free costume DLC in August in Japan.

Isn’t it awesome!? There has been so much detail put into this sushi chef design, right down to the shape of the apron knot. And take a look at what kind of sushi that Inkling girl is serving up… Here’s hoping this also comes to North America and Europe!

A number of other finalists were posted, but while they will be receiving prizes for their interesting designs, unfortunately only the one will be making it into the game. You can see the full list over at Famitsu, but here are a couple of my favorites:

Raincoat! This makes total sense – I’d definitely want to wear a trendy neon raincoat if I was constantly getting shot with ink. I suppose it’s a little basic design-wise, but it would be fun if the color of the coat, boots, and glasses changed depending on your current ink color like some of the other clothing in the game.

Now this!! This is adorable. If you’re familiar with Japanese bento, you’ve probably seen miniature hot dogs cut into the shape of octopi before. I absolutely love the idea of turning that into a dress, and the slightly morbid implication of an inkling wearing an Octarian’s skin that the outfit implies. Also, that squid-shaped thing on her head? A toothpick! How neat.

Unfortunately, I imagine some of the runners-up weren’t selected for the DLC due to the fact that they’re designed exclusively for the female inklings. I guess it goes to show that pretty much everyone likes the girl design better!