We already know that Date A Live is getting a second anime season thanks to an announcement made immediately after the final episode of the first anime season wrapped up. However until now we did not know when the second season would begin.
Today the official websitefor the anime has been updated and the second season will be airing during the Spring 2014 broadcast, an exact year after the first season. For those who don’t know, Date A Live follows the story of Itsuka Shido who possesses a unique ability to suppress the powers of dangerous spirits after making them fall in love with him. FUNimation picked up the streaming rights to the first season but have yet to announce any home release plans.
This month’s issue of V-Jump has announced that two new characters will be joining the J-Stars Victory VS roster. Korosensei from Ansatsu Kyoshitsu will be joining the game as a playable character while Neuro Nogami from Neuro: Supernatural Detective will be joining the game as a support character.
Namco Bandai also released a new trailer for the game which can be seen below. The trailer highlights a number of dream match-ups that can now happen within the game, a preview of the Japanese voice work for the title, and also give us a few seconds of gameplay footage showing Korosensei in action.
Thanks to the latest issue of Famitsu not only do we have a release date for Namco Bandai‘s next Idolmaster game but some additional details have been released as well. The Idolmaster: One for All will be released for the PlayStation 3 in Japan on May 15th and it will be avialable both at retail and as a digital download, with a special limited edition that comes with a number of bonuses for those who go the retail route.
Anyone who pre-orders the game will be given codes that will unlock exclusive idols for The Idolmaster: Cinderella Girls and The Idolmaster: Million Live mobile games. The additional details for the game include the fact that while players will still play as the producer for 765 Production, players will be able to witness the idols’ private lives as well as their work lives.
Overview What if you could tell the future? It’s an idea that humans have pondered upon for centuries. We are creatures of desire and the desire for some foresight is one that many have had at one point or another. Will you ace your exam? Will your crush return your feelings? Will you win the lottery? When will you die?
Future Diary embodies this desire in its high stakes battle of survival. What would happen if God gave you the power to see the future? How would you use that knowledge. That is the fulcrum of Future Diary, a compelling survival game anime with one hell of a hook.
Story In a game of life and death, the power to tell the future can be game changing. Such is the case with the survival game at the centre of Future Diary. Each player in this game is given a ‘Future Diary’ which provides them with reports of future events, at times even report of their death.
It is a tense tale to say the least and Future Diary wrings out every ounce of suspense it can. Each episode in this first collection by and large revolves around a villain of the week structure, but it works well at introducing the premise and crafting engaging insular story lines within the grander story at hand.
A real highlight in Future Diary is the superb cast of characters it features. Characters like Yuno and even our ‘hero’ Yuki are multi-layered characters with a surprising amount of depth to them. There in lies a great deal of intrigue, as the story unravels so too do these characters true selves. It is truly a thrill to watch.
The interactions between the characters is just as much of an interesting experience. They develop together as the series progresses and make for what is one of the bet ensemble casts in anime for quite some time. The chemistry between these characters is simply electric, making these insane situations they find themselves in feel very genuine, something that is really no easy accomplishment especially in a series with such a high death toll.
While there is some pacing issues in some points, giving a feeling that some steps were skipped over in the story telling process, Future Diary never ceases to be interesting. It just keeps throwing curve ball after curve ball at viewers and treats them with a relative amount of intelligence, taking a light-handed approach rather than a heavy-handed one. It doesn’t hold your hand through everything and trusts viewers to understand and following its story even at its most perplexing.
What really stands out about Future Diary however is that despite how dark and brutal it may be, there is an underlying playfulness to it that gives it a genuine sense of fun to proceedings. Because of this Future Diary transcends being just another action anime and becomes something truly memorable.
Visuals and Audio In terms of aesthetics, studio Asread have done a great job in giving the series a unique look. It borders between grim and light-hearted in a strange mash-up that manages to work wonders here. The character designs are very memorable and often betray their true selves in superb juxtaposition. Yuno for example appears to be a sweet wholesome girl, but her looks betray her personality. It is that contrast that makes this such a visually stimulating experience. What we see isn’t always what it seems and Asread studio capture that brilliantly.
As for the score, Future Diary hits all the right notes, reaching great heights in the big moments and remaining consistent even in the quieter moments. Consistency is a valuable asset to any anime series and Future Diary is all the more stronger because of it.
This release also happens to feature an English dub alongside the Japanese audio track. The English dub comes from Funimation and it must be said, they have done a great job with it. The casting is spot on and brings this series into English in a big way. Each performance echoes the original Japanese while also transitioning it into English superbly.
Extras In terms of extras and bonus features, Madman Entertainment have done a solid job in bringing this anime down under. They have included a multitude of special features that prove to be great value for money for this release. Included are insightful episode commentaries, textless opening and ending themes, TV spots and trailers. The real highlight though has to be the bonus ‘omake’ shorts. They provide further depth to the characters as well as being worth a real laugh, they are well worth the watch for what they bring to the table. All in all this is a great all around release for Madman Entertainment.
Overall Future Diary is one of the most must-see anime releases of the year. The central survival game at the core of Future Diary is half Battle Royale half Eden of the East, a mash-up for the ages no doubt. It is a compelling thrill ride that shocks as much as it excites. With the first collection concluding in a way that leaves you begging for more, you’ll undoubtedly be left hanging on the edge of your seat after this one.
Despite its minor pacing issues, it proves to be a pulse-pounding action anime the likes of which don’t come by often. The series has a killer hook that will keep you engaged from start to finish. Whether its brutal battles or explosive confrontations, you won’t be able to look away from Future Diary.
This release from Madman Entertainment is one that you don’t want to miss out on. Future Diary is all kinds of fun and an anime you won’t soon forget. If your future doesn’t have you watching Future Diary it is time for some serious course correction. Future Diary is bloody good fun.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Today PopCap Games has released a new six minute gameplay walkthrough for Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare which highlights the game’s “Gardens & Graveyards” mode which will play similar to Battlefield’s Rush and Conquest gameplay modes if they were blended together.
The gameplay mode will allow for twenty four players, twelve on the zombie team and twelve on the plant team with the zombies attempting to conquer the plant team’s bases. Check out the full video below and the game itself when it is released on the Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC on February 18 in North America and February 20 in Europe.
Online developer Joymax is set to deliver a new, cute Digimon to all Tamers in their worldwide MMO sensation: Digimon Masters. With two new Digimon arriving in the next month, it’s the season of celebration again in the Digital World, and there’s plenty of prizes for all the good boys, girls, and Digimon!
Some Digimon, made of code, are digitized in a different way: as colorful, plastic blocks! ToyAgumon was created by an innocent child’s mind with bright blocks; unlike regular Agumon who tend to be stubborn, the ToyAgumon is startled easily and falls apart into bricks when frightened. Despite its timidity, it deeply values justice and challenges evil wherever it can. Its innocent origins means it can communicate with children easily, but don’t take its Toy Flame as anything innocent – it’s decidedly dangerous!
It’s a Christmas miracle!
From now until the end of January, players who purchase and hatch a ToyAgumon will also receive a special New Year Coin. These coins can be collecting in a variety of ways over the next three weeks and are used to purchase a variety of items, including: Tyrant Crown, Holy Spear, Gungnir, Z’d-Hou, Duo Solar Spear, or the limited edition Christmas Reinforced Mercenary DigiEgg!
Reinforced Mercenary DigiEgg are also available from the cash shop starting December 24th, otherwise known as Christmas Eve. Within these special DigiEggs exist one of twenty six rare Digimon, including but not limited to, DemiDevimon, Arcadimon and Veemon (each at Level 4 or 5).
For more information, visit the official site and Facebook page. Enjoy the festive season and may many presents come your Digi-way. Happy Holidays Tamers!
Today Atlus has announced that anyone who picks up Conception II at launch for either the 3DS or the Vita will be getting some special bonuses with their purchase. Both versions will come with a special box that will also include a ten track CD featuring in-game music from composer Masato Kouda.
Alongside this reveal come a few new details about the game and a handful of new screenshots. In Conception II players will encounter various heroines that can help them in dungeons and by successfully talking with them players will raise their “Bond Points” which will result in stronger Star Children. However since each girl has a different personality, you will need to watch what you say.
Currently Conception II is set to be released sometime in Spring 2014 for $39.99 and anyone who pre-orders the game is guaranteed the aforementioned bonuses with their purchase.
Today a new teaser website has been launched by Compile Heart and it just so happens to be a countdown website. At the moment the site simply features a wrapped present with a countdown timer that is surrounded by various holiday images as well as bananas.
The text next to the bag roughly reads as “From Compile Heart, for every man: a hot present that will warm the heart and body.” It is also interesting to note that a few characters on the present’s tag have been revealed so far and they currently are pointing towards Agarest Senki, the Japanese name for the Record of Agarest War RPG series which has been quiet for a couple of years. The countdown is set to finish on Christmas Eve but there is always the possibility that more information will be revealed before that so stay tuned.
It’s been a long time coming since the announcement in June but a demo for Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Z is now available on the PSN for PS3 and PS Vita and on the Xbox Live Marketplace for Xbox 360. The new brawler which allows for 8 players to battle it out at once promises an all new battle style with unique actions such as synchro rush and revive soul, new characters that will be playable for the first time such as Bills and Whis and new game modes such as Dragonball hunt.
While the demo is confirmed to be out for the Japanese and North American markets, the European and Oceania market releases should be coming in sometime today, hopefully before midday, so keep checking the PlayStation Store every hour or so if you are keen to give it ago. Unfortunately PSN release times are always a bit up in the air so we can’t say an official release time. For those waiting for the demo to release or finish downloading, Namco Bandai have also released a couple of videos of their developers playing through the demo in both the single player missions as well as online. You can check out both of these videos below.
The demo includes the first four missions of the games mission mode, four playable characters in Goku, Kid Gohan, Krillin and Piccolo, a multiplayer mission against Great Ape Vegeta in which an online team can be formed to help you take down the fearsome Saiyan and finally the battle mode where two teams of four compete in an online battle. If you purchase the full game, you can transfer all progress made in the game such as points, cards, log data and mission progress across at that time.
The demo for Battle of Z released yesterday on the Japanese PlayStation Store and both native gamers and eager foreign fans alike took to the message boards to discuss their opinions on the game and reaction so far has been mixed with a heap of positive and negative opinions. Check back very soon for our full review of the demo and leave your opinion below if you have played it for yourself. Be careful not to download the Vita version by accident if you are on the PS3… as I embarassingly did.
When Warner Bros. and Techland first showed off Dying Light‘s contrasting gameplay, they only briefly showed off the heart pounding suspense of nighttime. With just a glimpse of the change that comes over the undead in the night, there isn’t much to go on for what waits in the darkness of night. The newest gameplay video they’ve just released however shows off more of it.
Coming in a little under 10 minutes, the Dying Light nighttime gameplay video gives a better idea of what to expect when the sun comes down, but unfortunately doesn’t have another extreme chase sequence leaving that still a bit unknown. It does give an idea of what other things the player will be doing besides just gathering supplies, as electricity is pretty important to day to day life.
Those wanting to see what Techland is cooking up can find the gameplay video embedded below. Dying Light is currently set to release some time in 2014 for Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
We already know that Date A Live is getting a second anime season thanks to an announcement made immediately after the final episode of the first anime season wrapped up. However until now we did not know when the second season would begin.
