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Category Archives: review

Café Enchanté Review

5 / 23 / 215 / 24 / 21

Café Enchanté is the latest in a growing list of otome game localizations for the Nintendo Switch by Aksys Games, and right off the bat, it had me hook, line, and sinker. Coffee? Check. Monster boys? Check. Stellar development team? Check. With gorgeous art by Yuuya (Cupid Parasite), a scenario by staff who also worked on Code Realize, and a narrative centering around a quaint cafe with other-worldly patrons, I had high hopes for this one right off the bat. Read on for my full, spoiler-free review!

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DRAMAtical Murder Review

4 / 8 / 214 / 8 / 21

DRAMAtical Murder may very well be the most well-known BL (boys’ love) game in Japan – it’s even inspired an anime adaptation and stage play! The third game from developer Nitro+CHiRAL, DRAMAtical Murder was originally released in 2012 and received a fan disc as well as a PS Vita port that removed the graphic 18+ content. Now, the game is finally available to purchase in English thanks to JAST BLUE as part of their ongoing endeavor to localize Nitro+CHiRAL’s complete game catalog.

Since I’d never played the Japanese release beyond the first few hours of the PS Vita version, I couldn’t wait to see if DRAMAtical Murder lived up to all of the praise! 

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Monster Hunter Illustrations 3 Review

11 / 23 / 2011 / 23 / 20

If there’s one thing I like nearly as much as playing Monster Hunter, it’s looking at the series’ amazing art! The Monster Hunter Illustrations books are gorgeous artbooks for people like me who can’t get enough of exactly that. As of this October, Udon Entertainment has localized the third book in the series, Monster Hunter Illustrations 3.

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The Wonderful 101 Remastered Review

10 / 8 / 2010 / 8 / 20

The Wonderful 101 is among the company of Pikmin 3 as one of a handful of Wii U games that actually attempted to utilize the gamepad in different ways. That made them seem like they couldn’t be translated to single-screen systems, but the developers have managed! And that’s a great thing, because now with The Wonderful 101 Remastered, more players have the chance to pick up one of PlatinumGames’ most unique titles.

Developed by PlatinumGames and originally released in 2013, The Wonderful 101 is an action-adventure game where you control a slew of superheroes called Wonderful Ones (of which there are, unsurprisingly, 100) to fight aliens. With its cartoony art style and isometric view, it looks and feels a bit like Viewtiful Joe plus Pikmin, which makes sense considering both Viewtiful Joe and The Wonderful 101 were directed by Hideki Kamiya and produced by Atsushi Inaba.

There’s also an additional multiplayer mode, if that’s your jam!

In addition to standard attacks for the main Wonderful One you’re currently controlling and a group attack to direct your current minions, The Wonderful 101 Remastered‘s gameplay consists of drawing various symbols with the right analog stick, mouse, or on the Switch touch screen or Dualshock touchpad depending on the system you’re playing on (the remaster is available for PC, Switch, and PS4). This initiates different Unite Morphs, which are Power Rangers/tokusatsu-style weapons created by assembling all of the Wonderful Ones.

For the most part, these symbols can be drawn relatively easily with the analog stick or the touch screen – in my case, I played on the Switch, usually in handheld mode, but I found it too cumbersome to do the touch screen input in the heat of battle. In fact, The Wonderful 101 Remastered has a pretty high learning curve, and I pretty quickly found things surprisingly tough on the normal difficulty despite being familiar with the “Platinum standard.”

It doesn’t help that when playing on the Switch on portable mode – one of my favorite ways to play games these days – everything is much too small, from the characters to the text as well the popup menu that has replaced the Wii U’s second screen. The Wonderful 101 is definitely built for the big screen, which makes sense since it originally came out on the Wii U. Plus, it has the perfect Saturday morning cartoon feel!

Adding to the Saturday morning cartoon feel is the game’s levels, which are divided into operations. You’re scored on each operation, encouraging replays, and between each operation, you can purchase upgrades and new abilities. There are some new additions to the menu such icons that indicate upgrades that are recommended to purchase, but the remaster wouldn’t suffer by having a better introduction to the surprisingly complex gameplay mechanics.

Unfortunately, after a handful of hours with The Wonderful 101 Remastered, I still didn’t really feel like I had my head around the gameplay, unlike PlatinumGames titles such as Bayonetta or Nier Automata where I quickly clicked with the combat. The characters and dialogue, however, are humorous and endearing, and each new antic brought a smile to my face.

If you have the patience to stick with it long enough to get the hang of the fast-paced gameplay, you’ll be rewarded with a lighthearted, arcade-style experience. It may take me a while to chip away at it, but as a fan of PlatinumGames’ unabashed style and dedication to creating unique experiences, I’m going to do my best to see The Wonderful 101 Remasteredthrough!

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Hello, I am a Witch and My Crush Wants Me to Make a Love Potion! Review

9 / 21 / 209 / 21 / 20

Here it is, my very first light novel review! You may have guessed as much from the trademark surprisingly long light novel title, Hello, I am a Witch and My Crush Wants Me to Make a Love Potion! (どうも、好きな人に惚れ薬を依頼された魔女です。). The English translation was released by Cross Infinite World earlier this year, and when I saw it was a heartwarming fantasy romance featuring a witch, I had a feeling it would be exactly the kind of cozy read I’ve been looking for this year.

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Genki Covert Dock Review

9 / 7 / 209 / 7 / 20

The ability to play the Nintendo Switch in both handheld mode and docked means it’s my go-to console to bring when traveling, visiting friends, or when I’m called in for last-minute entertainment at a work function. But while it’s super portable, the folks at Human Things decided to see if they could make Switch could be even more portable by shrinking the dock down to less than 10% of its original size. The result? The Genki Covert Dock!

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Room No. 9 Review

8 / 30 / 20

2020 has been a great year for boys’ love (BL) game localizations so far. First, we had Togainu no Chi ~Lost Blood~ from JAST Blue, and now MangaGamer is following with Room No. 9. Room No. 9 is significant as developer parade’s latest BL title, following No, Thank You!!!, which, when MangaGamer released the English version five years ago, it was the first major BL game localization since Enzai: Falsely Accused back in 2006. Seeing as No, Thank You!!! was a very enjoyable title, I’ve been very interested to see what parade’s next game would be like.

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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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apricotsushi
Retweet on Twitter Anne Lee Retweeted
mochiipanko Liya/mochipanko 🐰🌙 @mochiipanko ·
23 Jan

A bit late but Happy Lunar New Year!!
✨🐰🌙

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matatabimitsu MatatabiMitsu @matatabimitsu ·
18h

People are quick to blame the translators for these things but I 100% guarantee no pro translator scrubbed these lines of their own volition. This was definitely mandated possibly even by Nintendo Japan. Don't blame little guys doing their jobs, blame the corporations. https://twitter.com/Mondblut1984/status/1617857848385622018

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plantjuice ✨Kelly Pringle✨ @plantjuice ·
31 Jan

girls night! 🐱🍷🍲

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apricotsushi Anne Lee @apricotsushi ·
21h

Psyduck (and me, @marcusboi and Pai Pai) have touched down in the USA! But our plane is so early they won’t let us off until customs open at 6am 🙃

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ayusheknows ayumi shinozaki 🏳️‍🌈🇯🇵🇺🇸 篠崎あゆみ (she/they) @ayusheknows ·
1 Feb

For the first time ever in PreCure history, we will have a boy on the main team. Congrats to Cure Wing! https://twitter.com/comic_natalie/status/1620889777087340544

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apricotsushi

Opening the June @stickiiclub vintage pack! The th Opening the June @stickiiclub vintage pack! The theme is “welcome to the meow-seum” 🐱🖼 How fun! I love how Stickii Club collaborates with different indie artists every month 💕 Soon they’ll be adding washi tape and switching to a more environmental friendly storage option. Definitely recommend! 
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#stickiiclub #stickerporn #stickerart #planningaddict #stationeryaddict #stationerylove #catartwork #catlovers #museumaesthetic #cottagecoreaesthetic #cottagecoreart #stickeraddict #kawaiiart #kawaiiartwork #cutestickers
Sharing art + making a video = ANXIETY OVERLOAD 😫😅 Anywaaay, I loved this screenshot from ACPC @cozynamie took so much that I tried recreating it with two different mediums! Colored pencils were my first attempt, gouache second. It’s good practice to do the same piece a couple of times! Thanks again @cozynamie for letting me use your screenshot as a ref 💕
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#animalcrossing #animalcrossingpocketcamp #animalcrossingcommunity #acpccommunity #acpc #acpcfandom #artistsoninstagram #artpractice #traditionalart #gamingart #geekgirl #ladygamer #nintendogamer #nintendofan #nintendolife #gaminglife #gaminggirl
Happy Lunar New Year! @jessjhs took this lovely ph Happy Lunar New Year! @jessjhs took this lovely photo of me and Pai Pai to commentate our last Opera House visit. I can’t believe she and I are moving to the US on February 2! 😱 wishing you all a blessed year of the rabbit! 🐰
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#shibaholics #shibasofinstagram #sydneyoperahouse #sydneycity #kawaiioftheday #kawaiifan #kawaiiaesthetic #kawaiilife #shibalove #shibadog #shibagram #shiba_snap #shibaoftheday
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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#shibastagram #shibaholics #kawaiiness #kawaiioftheday #cutedogsofig #shibastyle #shibasofig #geekgirl #ladygamer #otakugirl #indiegamer #indiegames #cutemug #gamergirlsofinstagram #gamergirlsunite #cutevibes #aestheticposts
A super cute new desk mat from a friend was the mo A super cute new desk mat from a friend was the motivation I needed to revamp my work space! 💻 I don’t think I’ll ever fully settle in to our current rental (it’s too tiny with both my husband and me working from home now), but at least this corner is cute! 💕💕 
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#geekgirl #ladygamer #divoom #divoomditoo #animecore #bulbasaur #kawaiiaesthetic #pixelart #gudetama #nendoroiddoll #hellokitty #kawaiioftheday #kawaiiness #gamergirlsofinstagram #gamergirlsunite #kawaiilife #kawaiilifestyle #desksetup #kawaiidesk #cutelife
I love these phone cases so much, I’ve been hang I love these phone cases so much, I’ve been hanging on to them for well over a year since I upgraded my phone 😬 Any ideas of what to do with a cute phone case that doesn’t fit your phone anymore? 
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#kawaiiness #kawaiioftheday #cuteaesthetic #pokemonmerch #shelfiesunday #pochacco #sanriocore #sanriojapan #sanrioaesthetic #cutestuff #cutestyle #kawaiistyle #hatsunemiku #shelfie #ladygamer
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