Online retailer CD Japan announced yesterday that Avex Pictures has banned the majority of all exports of their CD, DVD and Blu-ray titles. This ban affects all online retailers in Japan. Avex Pictures publishes the popular anime series Yuri!!! on Ice and Osomatsu-san (Mr. Osomatsu), among other things. This ban does not affect figurine sales or other character goods. CD Japan’s statement does not contain any explanation regarding the reason behind Avex Pictures’ export ban.
The ban begins at 6:00pm Japan Time (UTC+9) tonight (15/02/2017). All orders and pre-orders made before this time will ship as per normal. The recent anime adaptation of Mr. Osomatsu was released on DVD with English subtitles in Australia by Madman Entertainment last December.
FUNimation Entertainment announced just a few hours ago that they have acquired the rights to distribute the first season of The Seven Deadly Sins on home video in the U.S.A. and Canada. They will release it sometime this year.
There are 24 volumes of the ongoing manga version, which is written by Nakaba Suzuki. The 25th volume of the manga is scheduled for release in Japan in just over a month. Kodansha Comics USA is translating the manga into English and publishing it in North America. The anime adaptation premiered on Japanese television in October 2014 and ran for 24 episodes. In Japan, an OVA episode was bundled with the releases of the 15th and 16th volumes of the manga. A second season of four original episodes premiered in Japan last year.
YouTube’s biggest star PewDiePie has been dropped by Maker Studios, Disney’s online network, and from YouTube’s premiere advertising program. Rolfe Winkler, Jack Nicas, and Ben Fritz of the Wall Street Journal conducted an investigation of PewDiePie’s videos since August 2016 and found nine videos containing Nazi imagery, anti-Semetic jokes, and images of Hitler. When asked for comment by the Wall Street Journal, Disney opted to drop PewDiePie from Maker Studios and said “Although [PewDiePie] has created a following by being provocative and irreverent, he clearly went too far in this case and the resulting videos are inappropriate.” YouTube followed suit by pulling ads from the nine videos, cancelling the second season of Scare PewDiePie, and dropping him from YouTube’s premiere advertising program.
PewDiePie responded by taking down some of the videos and posting a statement on Tumblr. He argues that he was not supporting anti-Semtism but rather trying to point out the extremes people are willing to go to make money on the freelancer service Fiverr. The video in question showed two Indian men holding a sign reading “Death to All Jews” after being paid five dollars by PewDiePie. To finish his Tumblr announcement, PewDiePie stated that he understood that the jokes were offensive and that he did not support hate-based groups in any way.
The reaction to the situation is nearly impossible to categorize into neat little boxes as the response from the public have covered the entire spectrum. There have been some common themes appearing in response to the news. We have compiled four of them below:
Disney and YouTube are Private Companies and Can Do as They Please
At the end of the day, Disney and YouTube are private companies and can do whatever they please as long as they keep their shareholders happy and do not break the law. Twitch recently found themselves in a similar bind when the developer of Yandere Simulator made a very public demand to know why his game was banned from the streaming service without explanation for over a year. Twitch had every right as a private company to ban any content they found objectionable from their service without providing a reason. The right to free speech does not mean a private company must provide a platform for that right.
Considering Disney needs to maintain a child-friendly reputation, it is little surprise why the company would rather error on the side of caution by dropping PewDiePie and his 50 million plus subscribers. It is likely a drop in the bucket compared to the money kid-friendly franchises like Frozen and Cars bring in for Disney. YouTube, and by extension Google, is in a slightly more interesting position as they are not under the same level of pressure to maintain a squeaky clean PG-13 reputation. This may have resulted in YouTube’s slightly more restrained response to the situation which involved dropping PewDiePie from YouTube Red and the premiere advertising program, and removing the advertising from the videos in question. YouTube could have easily shut down PewDiePie’s channel or remove advertising from all his videos as punishment. Of course, YouTube also has a financial incentive to keep PewDiePie around as much as possible, considering he is the only channel on YouTube to have netted the Ruby Play Button with over 50 million subscribers.
PewDiePie is a Comedian Making a Joke, Context is Important
Some, including PewDiePie himself, have argued that context matters. In this case, the offensive content in question was made in jest. PewDiePie is not the first comedian to made incredibly off-coloured jokes that has caused someone serious offence and will not be the last either. Comedians like Jimmy Carr and shows like South Park have built their careers on making incredibly offensive jokes.
Much like King Lear’s court jester who used jokes to force people to confront the truth, comedy has been a way for people to grapple or confront taboo or difficult subjects. Olga Khazan wrote in The Atlantic that one of the best issues of The Onion was the one about 9/11, released two weeks after the attacks. Although PewDiePie said in his Tumblr statement that he is not trying to make a political statement, he may have inadvertently done so anyways in the tradition of the court jester considering the current political climate. Like it or not, people are discussing when do jokes cross the line into anti-Semitism because of the controversy.
Jokes can be Offensive, but There are Limits
Of course, as Joel Warner and Peter McGraw observe in the book The Humor Code, good jokes cannot be too light or too offensive. Much like the tale of Goldilocks, the best jokes are just right. For some, PewDiePie’s actions have pushed too far. The Wall Street Journal article noted that the neo-Nazi website Daily Stormer praised PewDiePie’s videos for helping bring neo-Nazi views to the mainstream. Psychology Today pointed to studies which show that people who held sexist views tended to find sexist jokes funny, meaning the content of jokes do matter.
Further complicating the matter is PewDiePie’s video where he paid the two Indian men to hold the “Death to all Jews” sign for five dollars on Fiverr. The two men released a statement that said they did not understand the severity of the message. Thus, the ethical implications of paying people money to hold a banner with an offensive slogan they do not understand for someone else’s entertainment must be considered.
Things are Being Blown Way out of Proportion
Some have argued that in the greater scheme of things, the controversy being stirred up over nine of PewDiePie’s videos out of the thousands he has made is just a tempest in a tea cup. If it wasn’t for the Wall Street Journals investigation, things may have mirrored the events when PewDiePie landed himself in trouble over rape jokes. He publicly apologized, pledged to stop making them in future videos, and the controversy died a quiet death in comparison to the current situation. Now that the news has made headlines in mainstream media, Disney and YouTube’s hands have been forced. PewDiePie and the public will be working through the consequences for weeks to come.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided – Breach on all platforms and Deus Ex: Breach on Steam to receive new content
MONTRÉAL, CANADA – 14 February 2017 – Today, Square Enix® and Eidos®-Montréal announced that Deus Ex: Breach™ and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided® – Breach will receive a free update. The new content included in this update is listed below:
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New Networks
Ghost Networks – Randomly generated server networks are made available each day. Players can complete them for extra rewards.
New Corporate Server
Picus – Scattered throughout the Palisade Networks are 11 all-new Picus Corporation server maps for players to master.
New Darknet Files*
A new conspiracy, targeting Picus, is waiting to be solved.
New Weapons and items
*All previous cases must be solved before you can access this content.
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A trailer recap with all the content made available so far can be viewed here.
Deus Ex: Breach allows new players to experience Deus Ex®’s gameplay style, providing them with a glimpse of the vast realm of choices and possibilities that the Deus Ex Universe® has to offer. Originally released as a Deus Ex: Mankind Divided game mode, Deus Ex: Breach is an innovative game that offers an arcade approach on the gameplay of the Deus Ex series, providing players with a unique connected puzzle shooter experience. As a Ripper in the year 2029, your objective is to obtain and sell classified corporate data by hacking into some of the world’s most secure servers, using the funds you acquire to upgrade both your skills and arsenal. By obtaining this data, you will be able to unveil and expose the deepest, darkest secrets of the corporations in the Deus Ex Universe, with your efforts potentially unmasking some of the most dangerous individuals in the world. Join the fight. Extract the data. Expose the truth.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is available for PlayStation®4, Xbox One, Windows PC, and Linux. Deus Ex: Breach is available for download on Steam®.
NEXON KOREA CELEBRATES MEDAL MASTERS AND MABINOGI DUEL WITH NEW EVENTS AND UPDATES
Seoul– Feb. 14, 2017 – NEXON Korea Corporation, subsidiary of NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO), a worldwide leader in free-to-play online and mobile games, is rolling out special events to celebrate the first anniversary of the real-time, party-based role playing game (RPG), Medal Masters and unveiling a new content update for the addictive strategic mobile trading card game (TCG), Mabinogi Duel. Mabinogi Duel is available to download in the App Store and on Google Play. In addition, Medal Masters is available for iOS and for Android.
Mabinogi Duel, based on the acclaimed massively multiplayer online (MMO) game Mabinogi, lets fans of TCG games rise to be a champion through battles with duelists from all over the world. The latest update gives players a new home menu, special edition booster, and more.
The new update includes:
New home menu: allows players to easily view multiple in-game content in one glance;
Forrest of the Dead generation and new boosters: players will celebrate Valentine’s day with Miri, the Mage and her special edition booster as well as experience the lover’s delight through the latest cards featuring Dante, the Scholar and Beatrice of Salvation;
Special updates: duelists may use new Special Tickets to enter arenas and unlock card boosters as well as choose the BGM of their liking;
Limited time events:
From now to Feb. 20, to celebrate the official release of the Forest of the Dead, players will have access to new event arenas;
From now through Feb. 22, fans have a chance to acquire a new hero, Belphegor and a new card, Chocolate Bouquet by clearing missions and participating in events.
Medal Masters gives players dynamic battles in the real-time, party-based RPG, with character designs reminiscent of retro gaming. To celebrate Medal Masters’ first anniversary since launch, Nexon Korea is rolling out a series of events to thank fans around the world.
One-year anniversary event:
From now to Feb. 21, players will have access to the special event dungeon featuring enemies and special one-year anniversary coins;
From now to March 1, the event shop will allow players to purchase special gift boxes for a variety of content;
From now to Feb. 21, 20 new special Achievement Quests will be added to earn one-year anniversary coins as rewards;
From now to Feb. 21, two limited packages will be available to access a variety of content;
Log-in event:
From now to Feb. 15, players who log-in to Medal Masters will receive a variety of rewards including gems and coins;
Developer’s choice event:
From now to Feb. 21, a Premium Gacha, only available for a limited time, will give players a higher chance to obtain special heroes.
About NEXON Co. Ltd.
NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO) is a worldwide leader in free-to-play online and mobile games. Founded in Korea in 1994, Nexon developed one of the world’s first graphics-based massively multiplayer online games. Nexon also pioneered the concept of microtransactions and the free-to-play business model, setting a new standard in which play is free, and users have the option to purchase in-game items to enhance their experience. Nexon currently
services nearly 100 titles in more than 190 countries. The Company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and its shares are listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Koei Tecmo is continuing to introduce the various characters in Blue Reflection: Sword of the Girl Dancing in Illusion through a series of videos and this latest one happens to introduce the prim and proper looking girl Yuri Saiki. Described as a a girl with high intelligence, she often placed learning and intelligence ahead of her own emotions, making it difficult for her to properly express her emotions or read the emotions of others.
With Zero Escape: The Nonary Games set to be released in the West next month, Aksys Games has released a little over eight minutes of gameplay footage showing off the remastered high-def version of Zero Escape: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors and how the updated graphics look. During the game players will be able to switch between the “Adventure” and “Novel” modes with the novel mode displaying both dialogue and narration while the adventure mode will only display dialogue.
You can check out the video below and as for the release of the game, Zero Escape: The Nonary Games is currently slated to be released on the PlayStation 4, PS Vita, and PC in North America on March 24th with the European release being a bit more complicated as the PlayStation 4 version will still launch on March 24th but the PS Vita version is now set for Q4 2017.
Last year when Senran Kagura: Estival Versus was released for the PlayStation 4 and PS Vita XSEED Games announced that they would try to bring the Ikki Tousen DLC crossover characters over to the West and it seems that they finally are able to. Alongside announcing that the game will be launching on PC this March the company confirmed that the Ikki Tousen characters Sun Ce, Lu Bu, and Guan Yu will be released as DLC fighters at the same time for all three platforms.
You can check out screenshots showing off the Ikki Tousen fighters above and some images of the PC version below.
XSEED GAMES REVEALS UPCOMING WINDOWS PC RELEASE OF SENRAN KAGURA ESTIVAL VERSUS
First Home Console Release in the Buxom Beat-’em-up Series Sees Windows PC Version this Spring; Long-Awaited ‘Ikki Tousen’ DLC to Release Simultaneously for all Platforms
Torrance, Calif. — February 13, 2017 — XSEED Games, the independent-minded console publishing brand of Marvelous USA, Inc., today announced that SENRAN KAGURA ESTIVAL VERSUS, the latest iteration and first home console release in its beloved busty brawler series, is headed to Windows PC via Steam®. Slated to release this March, the Windows PC version of ESTIVAL VERSUS will launch with the game’s long-awaited crossover DLC pack featuring characters from the Battle Vixens manga and anime series, also known outside of North America as Ikki Tousen.
Ikki Tousen characters Sun Ce, Lu Bu, and Guan Yu will finally become playable characters as premium DLC across all of the game’s platforms, which include the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, PlayStation®Vita handheld entertainment system, and Windows PC versions. The addition of the three battle vixens is sure to spice things up near the one-year anniversary of the game’s console debut.
In SENRAN KAGURA ESTIVAL VERSUS, a mystical phenomenon transports the nubile ninjas of the titular series to a parallel dimension to face off against their rivals in a new kind of battle. In this strange world – which resembles a sunny, sandy island paradise – the girls are thrown for another loop as they encounter departed loved ones and ultimately have to decide if they can bear to part from them a second time. The Windows PC version of ESTIVAL VERSUS follows successful Steam® releases of previous entries in the SENRAN KAGURA series, including SENRAN KAGURA SHINOVI VERSUS and SENRAN KAGURABon Appétit! – Full Course.
With over twenty-five playable characters, making this the biggest roster in the series’ history, SENRAN KAGURA ESTIVAL VERSUS boasts more moves, more story, more attitude, and more destruction online with matches that can support up to 10 players (Windows PC and PS4™ system versions only; “PSVita” system supports up to 4 players). All of the series’ previous Shinobi girls return with a host of upgraded moves to master, and new playable characters offer more challenges to conquer, along with a story that’s equal parts sexy and shocking, serious and scandalous, busty and bouncy.
The faithful adaptation to PC has been handled by the original developers at Marvelous Inc. and Tamsoft, with added Steamworks support including Steam Achievements, leaderboards, cloud saves, and trading cards. XSEED Games will be publishing SENRAN KAGURA ESTIVAL VERSUS on Windows PC via Steam® this March. The title is currently available as a limited “Endless Summer” physical release for the PS4™ and “PSVita” systems, while the digital release of the game is available on the PlayStation®Store. The Windows PC version of this title is not rated by the ESRB. The PS4™ and “PSVita” system versions have been rated “M for Mature.”
A new trailer for NieR: Automata has been released by Square Enix and Platinum Games and rather than give it a standard predictable title, they went with something a bit cryptic by calling it “Glory to Mankind 119450310.”
You can check out the video below where various story segments and bits of gameplay are shown off accompanied by some great music and as for the game itself, NieR: Automata is set to be released on the PlayStation 4, where a demo is currently available for download, in North America on March 7th and in Europe on March 10th with a PC release planned sometime this year.
