Those looking forward to Ys: Memories of Celceta will be happy to hear that XSEED Games has released some of the first English screenshots for the game and you can check them out below. As for the game itself, it is currently set to be released sometime this holiday season in North America on the PlayStation Vita.
As for the characters in the game, XSEED provided some details for each of the main characters which you can read below:
Adol Christin
The Ys series’ stalwart protagonist, Adol Christin is perhaps the most famous adventurer ever to have lived. Adol is a young man brimming with curiosity who constantly seeks the thrill of discovery and the wonders of new lands. This time around, however, the challenge is quite different – Adol is seeking to solve the mysteries of his own past.
Duren
Duren is an information dealer whom Adol encounters at a bar in Casnan. He claims to have met Adol before – though with no memory, Adol remains skeptical. An extremely kind-hearted man (though he’d never admit it), Duren can’t bring himself to walk away from someone in need, making him a perfect travel companion.
Karna
Karna is a cheerful, honest young girl who lives in the treetop village of Comodo. An extremely skilled huntress, she puts most of the other hunters in the village to shame with her accuracy and cunning talent. Her weapon of choice is the throwing knife, though she has an unfortunate habit of throwing first and asking questions later…
Ozma
A resident of the village of Selray, and the sole remaining member of the tribe which cares for the sacred beasts known as Spardas. Though young, Ozma acts as the village’s leader and has managed to uphold its peaceful ways for as long as he’s been in charge. Reliable, level-headed and dedicated, he is loved and respected by all of the village’s residents. While extremely stubborn and inflexible when it comes to the laws of his tribe, he is also extremely loyal to the people in his charge.
Calilica
Calilica is an energetic, curious young girl who is mature beyond her years in many regards. She harbors something of a complex about her age and youthful appearance, and is constantly seeking to be recognized as an adult by those around her. She looks up to Leeza as an older sister, and has been with her since they were both children. As such, she will hold back at nothing if she can be of assistance to her.
The 5th generation iPad called the iPad Air was announced today. The new iPads are 20% thinner and 28% lighter compared to the previous 4th generation iPads. The new iPad Air also contains a 64-bit A7 chip that has helped cut the bulky iPad 3/4 batteries down by 24%. Additionally, Apple announced the iPad Mini refresh. For the first time, the iPad Mini will boast a Retina display. The smaller Minis now boast a 326 pixel per inch screen with a 2048 x 1536 resolution screen.
Both devices feature MIMO wireless technology and compatibility with LTE networks. The front facing cameras have been updated to FaceTime HD cameras while the rear cameras are iSight 5MP models. The iPad Air WiFi will go on sale on November 1st in the US at a starting price of $499 USD for 16GB WiFi model while the updated Minis will be released in late November starting at $399 USD for 16 GB Wifi model. Both devices will be available in either silver or space gray.
DICE and EA must be pretty pumped for Battlefield 4 coming out next week, so they are focusing more on the story this week with the release of a new trailer. Showing off the two main characters meeting up with a new squad mate that may or may not be trustworthy.
There is more than just the trust issues in the trailer with plenty of action set pieces from throughout the story of Battlefield 4. From a wide variety of things exploding, to punching a dog in the face, there looks to be a lot of crazy things going down as they try and save the day.
Those wanting to watch the story trailer for themselves can find the trailer embedded below to see what can be expected from the story this time through. Battlefield 4 is set to release October 29th, 2013 for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC, with Xbox One and PS4 when they release.
We are now one week away from the release of the next game in the Assassin’s Creed saga, but that doesn’t mean that it is too soon to put out a launch trailer, seeing as Ubisoft just has. From sailing the high seas, to defying the crown Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is looking to give the ultimate pirate experience that one can get from a virtual Caribbean.
The trailer itself is narrated not by Edward Kenway himself, but one of his pirate lady friends apparently sending a letter on the eve of her hanging, for being a pirate and all. Then of course focusing on Edward as he goes about making a killing at piracy throughout Assassin’s Creed IV. Needless to say it all looks very exciting.
Those wanting to see the launch trailer for themselves can find it embedded below. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is set to release next week, October 29th, 2013 for Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U, PC, and as a launch title for both Xbox One and PS4. Though the Season Pass is already available for those that want to make sure they’re ready in advance.
Blood-C: The Last Dark Studios:Production I.G Publisher:FUNimation Format: DVD / Blu-Ray Combo Release Date: October 22th, 2013 Price: $34.98 – Available Here
Overview
The series Blood-C saw the return of sword swinging monster slayer Saya, though not necessarily the same Saya from the Blood+ series, but some version of the character none the less. The series itself was a fairly interesting affair, amid confusion on whether or not this was the same universe as Blood+ or just a similar one. The only other problem it had was the lack of a completely satisfying ending, which more or less pointed straight to the movie as a means of closure to the story. But, the movie is now here, so let’s see if it can rectify those issues and wrap everything up.
Story
When the series left off, Saya was looking for revenge after finding out everything she knew was a lie, failing to save the countless townspeople that were hopelessly murdered by Elder Bairns, and being shot in the face. Luckily, these were all acts committed by the same person, so that makes revenge a one stop shop. The Last Dark itself opens up 6 months after the end of the series, with Saya searching Tokyo for traces of the man she wants to kill, Fumito. The only leads for her really to go on though are more Elder Bairn attacks that have been happening within the city. It is during one of these attacks that Saya is finally able to catch a break, both literally as her sword shatters and figuratively as she ends up saving a girl named Mana whose friends are part of a secret internet hacking group called SIRRUT.
Since both Saya and SIRRUT have similar goals, Saya wants to murder Fumito and SIRRUT is looking for the location of Fumito’s secret organization The Tower they decide to work together. From here the story begins to settle in, as Saya focuses on preparing for the confrontation and Mana tries to figure out why she is so interested in Saya. It’s during this time that a better understanding of the universe this takes place in as Saya has to go get a new sword and Mana tags along to discover a certain magical shop that deals in wishes, indicating that Blood-C occurs in the same universe as xxxHolic adding a nice depth previously only hinted at.
The characters throughout the movie are well done, while the series had some interesting characters they were under-minded by the fact that they were all actors, which convoluted the situation. Here Mana and her group are thankfully straight forward and outside Saya, Fumito, and a more cameo appearance by Yuka everyone is completely new. Saya is much darker in the movie than the series being more consumed by her quest for revenge, but really acts as more of a means to get to know Mana and her group. Even after finally wrapping everything up, the focus is more on SIRRUT with Saya simply still being out there somewhere as the group goes on with their lives, but this works great as Saya has gone where she could as a character and it would be unfulfilling to just leave them behind to focus on her.
Visuals
Being a movie, the extra effort being put into the visual look of the anime is great to see. CGI is utilized for many of the vehicles and a few of the monsters, but it never stands out enough to seem out of place. While it is fairly dark overall, with a majority taking place at night, this does an excellent job to reflect the much much darker tone of this movie than the vast majority of the Blood-C series, while contrasted against the brighter daylight scenes that surround SIRRUT.
The look of the characters and Elder Bairns is well designed, though more so for the Elder Bairns as they are the more unique of the two groups. Saya has a somewhat different outfit than the series, though much closer to what her previous incarnations looked like. While there are only about 4 Elder Bairns that Saya faces off against, they are all vastly different from each other, continuing to do what the series did so well with the monster designs.
Audio
With quite a few all new characters it is good to see that both the Japanese and English language versions are able to fill all the new roles without characters sounding too much the same from series to movie. The voice actresses for Saya herself are able to match the much darker tone of the character, more so than even the ending of the series. The voice work for Mana is also well done as she experiences her own character arc over the course of the story, while the rest of SIRRUT don’t change as much as Mana they are still able to match up to each other in performance.
While there aren’t really any stand out pieces of music outside of the song over the credits, the music is able to to fit the feeling of the dark world and sinister motives that haunt the city. Throughout the movie the music is only orchestral, which works great for matching the movie feel as Saya faces off against enemies and as they all discover more of the truth. The ending theme itself, “Metro Baroque” by Nana Mizuki, the Japanese voice actress of Saya, matches the themes of Saya’s loss of herself and fighting to find it again.
Extras
The release of Blood-C: The Last Dark has many of the standard extras from commentary, promotional videos, trailers for the movie and other releases, but it also contains the NoNeNoNe Theater. Those that remember the twins in Blood-C, Nono and Nene, will recall they weren’t all that sweet when their true identity was revealed, but in their Theater they give a nice little outline of different characters and events that occurred during the series, making a nice refresher to those that may not of seen Blood-C in a while.
Overall
The ending of the Blood-C series left a lot of things in the air, the story of Saya trying to find out who she is was over, but left a lot to be resolved with the main antagonist. The Last Dark however is able to bring it all to a very nice conclusion and offer more time with the awesome version of Saya, while leaving enough unsaid about where Saya, as well as SIRRUT, will go from there for the viewer to draw their own ideas. The movie still mostly requires the viewer to have seen Blood-C to get the full depth, but at least it is able to give the satisfactory ending that the series missed out on having. Those that have seen and enjoyed Blood-C should also enjoy what The Last Dark has to offer.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
The Nintendo 2DS has had its share of detractors, with many people thinking that the console is unwieldy, unnecessary would be better served as a door stop. Well I recently picked up Nintendo’s new cost-effective entry to the 3DS family, and while those who already own a 3DS or a 3DS XL wont find any reason to rush out and purchase this one, for those who are looking to pick up the system for themselves or for their children, there is definitely a lot to like.
The console drew a lot of criticism when it was first announced due to its angular shape, making it look a lot like a doorstop. However, picking up and holding the console shows that this shape actually works to its advantage, and allows the device to sit snugly in your hands. The frame is completely solid and unable to bend, so this gives it an overall sturdier feel. Since the console is designed for children, this rigidity and sturdiness in the frame is really appreciated as there is less of a chance of them accidentally breaking the console.
Since this is a cost-effective alternative to the 3DS, some features that are present on the 3DS and the XL are notably not present. The first of these is (obviously) the lack of 3D functionality. If you use the 3D for every game you play then this will probably detract you from wanting to purchase the 2DS, but I find myself using the 3D functionality on games sparingly at best, so the removal doesn’t impact me too much. However, it is interesting to note that while there is no 3D capability, the rear camera on the console is still able to take pictures in stereoscopic 3D, so you can transfer your snaps to a different 3DS model later.
Another absent feature is stereo sound. Only mono audio is exported by the console itself, which can cause a bit of a dip in the overall audio quality. However, the system does support stereo sound, and simply plugging in a pair of headphones will allow you to hear games the way they were meant to be heard.
Aside from that, the device has all the bells and whistles of the 3DS, and boasts a slightly better battery life. While you still can’t play for 10 hours on end without having to stop and recharge, you do get a little more time to find your charging cable without the system flashing its blinking red light at you. Since the 2DS can’t close, there is a switch down the bottom, which allows you to put it into sleep mode. The switch is study enough so that you wont accidentally trigger it during gameplay, which is always a plus.
Also, both of the 2DS’ top and bottom screens are actually the same piece of material, just framed by the console’s shell to separate the two. Another cost-cutting measure for sure, but honestly when you are playing you wont even notice. The screen size and clarity is just the same as it is on the original 3DS system, sometimes even outshining its XL bigger brother.
Now we come to button placement. I was initially skeptical of the buttons on the 2DS as they were a lot higher than any of the previous DS systems. Where buttons were normally placed towards the bottom of the device, due to the different design, they had to be placed higher up to allow players to press the L and R buttons on top of the console. This makes you wrap your hand around the top half of the system, which causes it to snugly fit into your palms. The buttons themselves are all very responsive, and make the device feel good to use. One thing of note however is that players with smaller hands (such as children) may have some trouble reaching their thumbs over to the bottom touch-screen without removing their hands completely off the system.
Overall there is a lot to like about the Nintendo 2DS, and while there is no reason for owners of either the 3DS or the 3DS XL to rush out and buy one, in the lead up to Christmas, it should definitely be considered for anyone adult or child who is wanting to get a 3DS console. It’s size, sturdiness and wallet-friendliness all make the 2DS a worthwhile addition to the 3DS family.
As an extra treat for you guys, we have done a very quick unboxing video which you can check out below. I say quick because I didn’t want to harp on about things I was already covering here, but it is still enjoyable and you can see the console and how it compares to the 3DS and the 3DS XL. As always, remember that for all the Nintendo News as it becomes available to stay tuned to Capsule Computers
Developed by Eutechnyx, the game will feature all official teams and tracks and new online support. Check out the official list below:
NASCAR Highlights: Take advantage of “NASCAR Highlights” to determine the outcome of the biggest race thrills from the season. Eutechnyx recreates the action where the condition of the cars is exact, weather the same, track positions identical – the only difference is you!
Career Mode: Work your way through the ranks in a comprehensive career mode; complete with custom car builds, sponsor acquisition, and R&D to get your team into victory lane.
Official Teams & Tracks: Race against the official NASCAR teams & drivers on your favorite tracks from the high banks of Daytona, to the twists & turns of Sonoma, and exhilarating speed of Talladega.
Leagues: Take competition to the next level and host online leagues with your friends, fully supported by statistics, challenges, rankings and replay.
Online Multiplayer: Take advantage of dynamic skill-based matchmaking, tournaments, and easy drop in/out server browser functionality for a fair and enjoyable experience.
Fans can also vote for their favourite driver to star on the cover of NASCAR ’14 in the “Drive for the Cover” campaign presented by Walmart. You can participate in the competition here where you can vote each week as drivers face off in matchups. The winner will be announced early December during NASCAR Champion Week in Las Vegas.
Overview Often in anime a teenage boy is suddenly given powers or thrust into a situation that will throw his life into turmoil if he was happy and peaceful or provide him with a goal in life if he were simply wasting away. This has become very common but the attitude of the protagonist is a key factor in this regard. Sure there are standard dense protagonists as well as those trying to wish their new found fortunes away for a peaceful life, but occasionally there are those willing to accept their fate and move forward. Now that Campione! has been brought to North America, what type of story and MC will we be in for?
Story Kusanagi Godou may be a relatively popular and mildly skilled high-school teenager, he has lived a rather basic life compared to his grandfather who seems to have been everywhere on the globe and has given Godou the task of returning an ancient looking stone tablet to an acquaintance in Italy. However when a blonde Italian woman by the name of Erica Brandelli approaches him and questions him about the tablet right when a gigantic creature called a rogue god appears.
To make things even stranger, after the appearance of this god a strange apparition with the appearance of a child appears in front of him and, satisfied by what he sees, allows Godou to keep the tablet. This child is far more than he appears, as it turns out to be a Persian God of War named Verethragna. After joining forces with Erica and using the tablet in his possession, Godou manages to slay the god but this act of deicide gives him the god’s powers as well, making him Campione that is called everything from a Devil King to a god slayer.
Ranked among only seven Campione in the world, Godou instantly has a target placed on his back as he not only possesses unique abilities thanks to his defeat of Verethragna, but also he is placed right at the forefront of numerous plans amongst both gods and men. However Godou is far from alone as not only has the cold and manipulative Erica become a devout lover, but the Committee for the Compilation of True History is eager to lend him a hand as he may be their only hope for putting an end to a prophecy of destruction.
While Godou attempts to deal with his newfound status of being a Campione, handling the overflowing affection of Erica, and dealing with a number of new girls moving into his life the goddess Athena begins to make her move while other Campione and gods seek out Godou in an effort to gain their powers for themselves or find themselves a true challenge.
While most harem anime are romantic comedies, Campione! finds itself solidly placed in the action-harem section thanks to the fact that whenever Godou’s harem isn’t being built and developed there is almost always action in some form, whether it be with swords or with lips. Sure there is some humor here and there, mostly revolving around the harem antics and Goudou’s increasingly jealous little sister, but Godou’s interesting power base and opponents make for an intriguing, albeit formulaic, storyline.
You see, despite facing off against numerous gods in the series, such as Athena and Perseus and fighting against others who possess powers of already defeated gods, the mythology behind these deities isn’t as simple as one may think. Campione! attempts to blend together numerous mythos and belief structures of gods, meaning that despite what you may know of Athena from lore there may be something more complicated thanks to other beliefs in the deity or their lesser known past.
This complicated blend of various mythos leads to not only some interesting and somewhat informative facts about various deities, but also the source of Godou’s ability to defeat such opponents that blends together action and romance in what may be the most passionate kissing sequences in a normal anime in some time. Whenever the anime manages to blend both romance and action together it is at its best, however when separate only the action sequences manage to shine.
Thanks to some well-choreographed battles and a variety of interesting powers on display, every fight scene between the various characters in Campione are wonderful to watch and while the various harem building sequences do work nicely on developing a few of the characters, many of these sequences slow down the series and even with the time devoted to the cast, two of the girls are barely developed by the end of the series despite one of them being introduced very early.
By the time things wrap up, it is clear that there is much more Campione! left waiting for viewers to hopefully see one day. The series managed to nicely blend action, mythology, and romance together most of the time with only a few issues here and there in what can easily be seen as an entertaining series that many can enjoy.
Visuals Campione!’s artwork is like a coin. The reason for that is because on one side there is some amazing animation used for certain segments of the series while other parts suffer from bland basic looking visuals that look third-rate even on Blu-ray. You see, any time that a battle is fought the animation quality is boosted quite nicely and various special effects are added to create some very amazing looking bouts, especially when Godou uses his special move with thousands of floating swords in a golden field of blades.
However as mentioned, the various harem building sections of the series often see the animation quality dip as the backgrounds, character details and various animation techniques are lower in quality and often suffer from various visual problems. Of course whenever a deep kiss is shared between Godou and one of the girls close to him or some fan-service is on display the quality of the scene is usually impressive looking and far above the standard fair found in normal scenes. Speaking of fan-service, while there is some mild underwear shots and a classic beach/hot spring episode, it is rarely played as a major part of the show.
Audio Sentai Filmworks has given Campione! the English dub treatment and it is hit and miss as far as the casting goes. While Monica Rial as Erica and Blake Shebard as Godou are nice fits that work well with one another, there is some odd casting decisions here. Liliana’s voice actress Genevieve Simmons only occasionally seems fitting for the role while most of the time her voice is out of place with the cast and some minor roles such as Salvatore are completely miscast sounding. It is also worth noting that there are occasional sync problems where the dub does not match the flaps of the characters.
As far as the anime’s soundtrack is concerned Campione! is actually rather impressive. There are grand orchestral pieces used for fight sequences and fitting dramatic music for tense sequences and of course some mild background music for basic scenes. The opening theme “ Brave Blade!” by Megu Sakuragawa features a nice heavy-rock tone while the ending “Raise” by Yui Ogura is more peaceful and fitting with the romance aspect of the anime.
Extras As far as bonus features go Campione! is rather barren as far as special features go. There is of course your standard inclusion of a clean opening and ending theme, though it is worth noting that the ending theme, while nice, features still images that are panned over which makes this clean version rather needless.
Also included are disc credits and some trailers for other Sentai Filmworks releases making Campione! empty of special bonuses unless you count the nice disc art as a bit of a bonus.
Overall Campione! offers a highly entertaining action-harem with a heavy dose of mythology to help make things interesting. While formulaic at times and a few of the characters suffer from being underdeveloped the intense action and nicely paced storyline keep the viewer interested while also building Godou’s harem and his powers as he faces down other Campiones and deities of legend.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
‘White Heaven’ is a new horror game created by developers Dreampainters Software, who were responsible for the popular indie game ‘Anna‘. Their new game is reported to be developed with Unreal Engine 4 for better graphics and softer gameplay.
The setup of the game is a 3D horror adventure, set in the same wintery fictional universe of Anna, in an abandoned hotel located in a cold mountain wood. A gang of criminals have kidnapped a young man from a wealthy family and held in an old abandoned hotel, the White Heaven. One morning, Eric the abducted victim, finds his cell door open. Although confused, he doesn’t want to escape without Linda, a gang member that he has fallen in love during his abduction. As such he has begun to search search the hotel to find her, but something terrible is waiting for him in the shadows. His prison will soon became his nightmare.
‘White Heaven’ looks to be promising with an ‘Amnesia‘ atmosphere and will be exclusive to PC and Mac and will have the latest next-gen graphic technologies with the use of an Epic Games engine. It is scheduled for release in early 2014.
With the PlayStation 4 set to be released in a few days and the current launch line-up growing rather slim as far as triple A exclusives go after the delay of DriveClub, fans of Sony‘s first person shooters can still look forward to Killzone Shadow Fall dropping when the console launches.
As such, those looking forward to the game will probably be interested in checking out the video below which contains roughly twenty minutes of gameplay content showing the title running on the PlayStation 4. For those looking for a bit more incite as to what this title has to offer you can read our most recent hands-on impressions of the game here.
