2K‘s TheBureau: XCOM Declassified live-action web series is coming to a crescendo as the release of the game draws ever closer. Before that day – August 23rd – we must find out the fate of Agent Ennis Cole and discover the results of Agent Carter’s interrogation session, as well as exactly how he plans to#EraseTheTruth of the ‘Battle of Pima, New Mexico’.
The video embedded at the bottom of this article, entitled ‘The Aftermath’, gives us those answers. Orbit the Clown even makes a re-appearance…man I hate clowns! But, I love how well done this web series is. Has it influenced you to pick up the title when you may not have been too interested beforehand? Let us know in the comments below and remember to check out the trailer! You can pre-order The Bureau: XCOM Declassified for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.
Overview Anytime a franchise becomes popular, various spin-offs or adaptations of the franchise into other entertainment mediums occur. Video games are made into books, books into movies, etc. Nowhere is this more prominent than in the anime industry, where original series are uncommon and most anime adapt a light novel series, a manga, or a video game.
For over two decades, Sega has been releasing the Shining series in Japan with a couple of the titles making it to North America and since then, only two anime adaptations have been created. Now that Sentai Filmworks has brought the second anime series, Shining Hearts, to North America. Being the first product related to the Shining franchise released in English in over six years does the Shining series make a triumphant return to the West?
Story In the land of Windaria, all kinds of people have gathered together in one place. While populated primarily by humans, Elves live in a nearby forest, members of the beast race work throughout the city and even a dwarf lives in the town. This assortment of random elements can be attributed to the fact that the Windaria has seen quite a number of oddities wash up on its shores over the years, including a man named Rick.
Rick is one of many “Drifters” who have washed up on the beach but unlike many others, he has recollection of his past. Lacking any memory, he is taken in by the three girls, Amil, Airy, and Neris who found him that day. While these three girls may have found him washed up with armor and a sword, he has since become a baker working with the three girls at Le Couer. After finding out that he is actually quite a talented baker, he learns more techniques from an elderly woman named Madera who is well known in the land and also talented at baking.
Rick has grown accustomed to his new life as a baker and is more than happy to live out his days with the three girls and interact with the rest of the townsfolk, not caring about his former life. However when another Drifter appears, this time a woman named Kaguya, shades of what Rick’s past life begin to appear. Or at least they would if Shining Hearts had much in the way of an actual story.
Shining Hearts is a perfect example of what can happen when someone attempts to adapt something into an anime which ultimately goes nowhere, serving as something of a terrible commercial for the original product in hopes viewers buy the product after seeing the series. I say this because there is a lot of potential to be found in Shining Hearts and much of it is presented to viewers throughout the series’ runtime.
Thanks to the nature of the bakery and the popularity of Rick and the girls, the four of them spend quite some time interacting with other townsfolk, including clearly special characters in the form of a catgirl named Xiao-Mei, the dwarven smith Hank and his mysterious female Automaton he tries to keep under wraps, members of the palace staff including the rulers of the island, and even a familiar face in the form of Elwyn from past Shining series.
However despite spending quite a bit of time introducing us to each of these characters and exploring their characters a bit, nothing is ever delved further than skin deep until the series attempts to find some sort of conclusion in the last couple of episodes, however it fails even then. While the first half of the series serves as a way to introduce everything in the world and also reveal some details about each of the main cast, it at least saw the characters interacting with one another in a slice-of-life fashion as they tackle the minor obstacles placed in front of them.
If Shining Hearts continued in this form, it might have been somewhat passible as a simple and relaxing slice-of-life anime involving an amnesiac baker interacting with various fantasy races and living his life with three women. However by adding numerous mysteries to the mix, spending time on superfluous characters that serve no purpose in the series’ running time, there is little time to actually try and resolve anything or answer any of the questions brought up throughout the series.
Even when the series then tries to force the answers to these various questions on the viewer, it is done so poorly that when everything is said and done, the whole experience feels superfluous. By trying to cash in on both the fans of slice-of-life series and those who prefer mystery and action, Shining Hearts ultimately ends up being a hodgepodge of ideas that will please no one. While the aforementioned slice-of-life aspect is done in a decent enough manner to be enjoyable as the characters meet each other and interact with one another, not developing any character, even the main cast, beyond surface level and barely looking into any story detail will leave viewers scratching their heads as the final episode airs, wondering what the entire series was supposed to be about.
Visuals Anime viewers who are familiar with a certain artist may feel like they recognize the art style used to design the various main characters, especially the female cast, of Shining Hearts and for good reason. Many of the main characters have been created by Tony Taka, a well-known artist. His designs are superb and the various characters viewers encounter throughout the series are all noteworthy for their appearance.
This impressive artwork transfers over to the world itself since, while numerous backgrounds and scenes are re-used, the land of Windaria is gorgeous. Thanks to a wide-ranging color palette everything feels natural and nothing in the series feels simplistic or an easy cash-in. If there is anything to complain about, it may be that some of Tony’s character designs may be a bit out of place considering the roles the three girls play in the series, something which is highlighted in an accompanying special feature.
Audio Interestingly enough, Sentai Filmworks has given Shining Hearts an English dub to accompany the original Japanese voice work. The English cast is suitable enough for the roles, though there are numerous times throughout the series that the dialogue feels stiffly delivered by nearly everyone involved, making some of the character interactions rough to watch in English.
As far as the soundtrack goes, the background tracks are your standard fare for a series in a fantasy setting, though there are a couple of noteworthy insert songs. The opening theme for Shining Hearts is “Toki Sekai” while the ending is “Fuwaffuwa no Mahou.” Both of these songs are sung by the Japanese voice actresses of Airy, Amil and Neris and while the opening is generic, the ending theme is very happy-go-lucky and cheerful.
Extras Alongside the standard bonus features of a clean version of the anime’s opening and ending theme as well as trailers for other Sentai Filmworks releases, Shining Hearts also comes with two extra bonus feature collections, both of which give viewers a chance to spend more time with the characters.
The first collection is the “Le Coeur Travelogue” which is surprisingly dubbed in English, I say surprisingly since usually bonus features are not presented with an English dub. This set of extras offers viewers some short mini-episodes which mostly involve the cast getting involved in humorous situations while in mostly in chibi form, though some mild fan-service can be found here. The second is the ‘Expressing my Heart Shining Hearts Picture Dramas’ set which is only offered in Japanese and gives viewers a short time with each of the female characters as they expand a bit upon their feelings throughout the series.
Overall Shining Hearts had a lot of potential from the start thanks to some amazing looking character designs and an entertaining cast of characters. However this potential is squandered due to the fact that the writers seeming to believe that they had at least twice as many episodes to work with than what is found in Shining Hearts. While the slice-of-life events in the first half may have been rather plain, they at least felt relaxing and provided a nice change of pace. Unfortunately these disappear once the tangle of plot points is introduced and left abandoned like stale bread.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Pokemon fans have a lot of news to chew on, as first up comes the results of the results of the 2013 Pokémon Championship Series, covering the DS video game franchise as well as the Trading Card Game. After a heated night in Vancouver, Canada, your winners are as follows:
2013 Pokémon TCG Junior Division World Champion, Ondrej Kujal from Czech Republic.
2013 Pokémon Video Game Junior Division World Champion, Brendan Zheng from United States.
2013 Pokémon TCG Senior Division World Champion, Kaiwen Cabbabe from Australia.
2013 Pokémon Video Game Senior Division World Champion, Hayden McTavish from United States.
2013 Pokémon TCG Masters Division World Champion, Jason Klaczynski from United States.
2013 Pokémon Video Game Masters Division World Champion, Arash Ommati from Italy.
Here is an official statement on the event, which will take place in Washington DC – as well as some news on what the winners went home with.
Winners of the invitation-only tournament earned the title of Pokémon World Champion, received a special World Championships trophy featuring Pikachu, won a trip to next year’s World Championships in Washington, DC, and collected scholarship money. The Pokémon Company International has awarded more than $2 million in scholarships since it began running the tournaments.
“The Pokémon World Championships celebrate an international community that is unified by the fun, friendship, and mutual respect that the Pokémon spirit embodies,” said J.C. Smith, director of Consumer Marketing for The Pokémon Company International. “We are incredibly proud of all the players who competed this weekend and want to extend a big congratulations to the 2013 Pokémon World Champions who represented their nations proudly.”
Now, for even better news, the Mega Evolutions that were revealed the other day now have more weight, as Mega Ampharos, Mega Absol, and Mega Mawile have been revealed in a new trailer. Check that out below, and stay tuned as more Pokemon X & Y news is sure to come as we get closer to a release date.
A new anime about an agricultural highschool will soon be on our screens and no I’m not talking about Silver Spoon 2. Adapted from a popular light novel, No-Rin is planned to be premiered next year in January which coincidently is around the same time as the premier of Silver Spoon 2.
No-Rin is a romantic comedy set in the Tamo Agricultural High school and focuses on Kosaku Hata who is devastated to hear his favourite idol is retiring from singing. Luck happens to be on his side when he discovers that she is the newest transfer student going under the name Kinoshita Ringo. The ongoing light novel began in 2011 and is written by Shiratori Shirow and illustrated by Kippu.
The anime will be directed by Shin Oonuma, who is also the director for the currently airing show Watamote, and will feature all of the original voice over cast members from the No-Rin Drama CD. A promotional video for the anime was added to the official website last Saturday, and regular updates can be found on the official twitter page. Check out the PV below which is narrated by the main character Kosaku Hata.
Here’s a little piece of anime merchandise just for the ladies. Online retail shop 2PM WORKS have released new merchandise based around the very popular Madoka Magica; these items include fake nails and tattoo stockings, allowing female fans to fully express their love for the anime.
Apart from the usual IPhone cases and mini figurines, seven sets of false nails and eight pairs of tattoo stockings are also available and each set has a specific theme related to the anime. Such themes include the soul gems, ultimate Madoka and enemy witches and their minions. Featured witches include the Elsa Maria, Oktavia and the candy witch Charlotte (before and after transformation). Each set of nails cost 1,890 yen ($18.90USD) and the stockings will have you paying 3,780 yen ($37.80USD) for each pair.
Other products on the site include Madoka themed shoes; however the sale for them appears to have ended. Check out the full display of the merchandise by clicking here.
Overview
Since the announcement of the Wii U, Pikmin 3 has been one of the main topics when it comes to software – but for good reason. Back in 2001, Pikmin provided us with one of the freshest experiences seen in years from the famed publisher, delivering a large dose of strategic gameplay that was hidden by an endearing plot and lovable characters. After 12 years, one sequel, and a ton of teasing, we finally have a proper follow-up for the franchise, along with three new protagonists and a bit of a new direction so to speak. While fans are certainly already going to be drooling over this release, is Pikmin 3 the first all out blockbuster title for the Wii U, or just another safe move by Nintendo in order to make more first party fare come available? Let’s find out.
Story
If you haven’t played either of the Pikmin releases seen back on the GameCube (or their Wii counterparts), you should know that this sequel is from a series that has never been strong on narrative. In the past, we have had Olimar racing to get off a strange planet and Louie joining in to help pay off a large debt, and while those tales were suitable – they certainly don’t come to mind when thinking about some of Nintendo’s releases that have grand storytelling. Pikmin 3 is no different in that sense, but still manages to hold its own with charm and clever dialogue sequences in order to keep the player thoroughly entertained throughout.
Pikmin 3 introduces us to three new characters that come from the planet Koppai. Back on their home planet, food sources are running low and the survival of an entire race depends on their findings and research. It wouldn’t be Pikmin without a disaster however, which means of course that landing on the Pikmin-inhabited world comes in the form of a crash with all sorts of danger running a muck on the surface. With a shortage of food and other hardships rearing their head, our new heroes must work together to overcome the odds, and with new, undiscovered species of enemy and Pikmin alike joining in, the player is sure to find this journey to be one grand adventure.
Brittany, Alph, and Charlie bring a new flavor to the franchise compared to Olimar and Louie, as this trio is far more talkative. Sure, Olimar’s own journal entries did a lot to give his character some depth, but Pikmin 3 goes the extra mile and includes that old format of recording thoughts of the lead character – while still delivering a good number of clever and genuinely humorous dialogue sequences in order to bring out the best in three all new faces. I could even go out and say that after finishing the campaign, I feel that Pikmin 3 is the strongest release this humble little franchise has seen thus far, as it has a hidden depth in underneath what seems to be a general, quirky plot – where three survivors don’t panic, yet band together to find a solution to every threat they encounter. While it isn’t a all out epic piece of storytelling, Pikmin 3 proves that Nintendo still know how to implant heart into a game without pasting the underlying message in front of our faces while we try to enjoy the experience. In my opinion, that is a special quality that many western developers need to start capitalizing on – but then again that whole argument is for another article entirely.
Gameplay
When I first heard Pikmin 3 was going to be arriving on the Wii U, my mind lit up with possibilities. The Gamepad controller has proven in other first-party fare that touchscreen controls can be introduced subtly and still provide a brand new experience – and while playing the Pikmin romp on Nintendo Land, we got a first taste of what could have been utilized for this release with the device. Getting the bad news out of the way first, I was a bit saddened to learn that the Gamepad is far more limited in this installment. Players can use the method of control we seen in the re-release for Pikmin 2 on the Wii, use the Wii U Pro, or settle for the Gamepad to control their squad. Even with that extra layer the screened controller brings to this installment, you won’t be touching the screen to control anything other than the “KopPad” – which is essentially an in-game device that handles all communication between squad-mates, as well as maps and statistics that display performance. Did we want something more? Sure, but these controls are still highly polished, and for a game that has been in development for years – I guess the lack of Wii U specialty features could be expected for a game that was developed during the time of the Wii.
With that out of the way, we can now talk about what is different. Pikmin 3 allows the player to control three party members at once. Yes, we did see this utilized a bit in Pikmin 2 with Olimar and Louie, but the role of alternating protagonists serves a greater purpose that makes this title very distinct from its predecessors. Aside from the glaring fact that you can now separate your team of 100 Pikmin into three individual parties for exploration purposes, the player can also take advantage of many pieces of the world in order to progress further. This means that not only is teamwork critical for getting your daily tasks finished in time – but literally mandatory if you want to get that coveted 100% completion mark.
There is no AI control over Brittany, Alph, or Charlie – only for the Pikmin themselves, who must be thrown into battle or at a target that needs to be collected. This means that multitasking will be a good part of each in-game day – where each character has their own chores to partake in. For instance, say a wall needs to be demolished- but there are two fruits in the area and pieces of a bridge can be found in a cave across the level. Since we are on a timer, this means that the best way to go about the situation would be to have Alph rally a small squad to hammer out the wall, while Brittany takes a team to finish that bridge and Charlie handles the fruit. That is just a minor example that doesn’t carry many of the elements such as enemy encounters and so on with it, but was used mainly to show how much strategy is actually needed to beat the clock. Just because there is a timer doesn’t mean you need to come out of a state of relaxation that the game’s world offers however, as if you don’t complete a task, you can always go back to a previous day or onto the next. If the player exhausts their fruit juice, well – it will be a grim end, but in true Nintendo style, that end does not come too easily as long as a little effort is applied by the player.
Since this is Pikmin 3, it would definitely be wise to talk about the Pikmin themselves. Returning to the party this time around is the rather standard yet still flame-resistant red Pikmin, the waterproof blue, and electric inducing yellow. That does mean that the white and purple species introduced in Pikmin 2 have been left out of the main campaign, but they do find suitable replacements. The rock Pikmin are the first new breed that the player will discover among the lush campaign, and as their name implies, they’re indeed able to pack a punch. These little guys (or big compared to the rest) awkwardly walk and are not built for speed, but are able to lunge their bodies at enemies for a great deal of damage and smash through both glass walls and shards of crystal. The winged Pikmin are very weak, but are able to gracefully flutter over water and other obstacles which makes them one of the preferred groups for the player to obtain. This advantage over land comes at the cost of strength, but with the right balance on a squad – having this flying breed makes life much easier for our heroes.
As with the entire game, strategy is the main focal point when choosing which creatures to come with you. The wrong Pikmin can lead the player to wasting an entire day or to massive extinction if disaster strikes, so keeping that balance and a bit of planning must be utilized in order to taste the sweet victory of fruit and the other goods that are up for grabs. Going back to controls for a moment, the methods are still the same, but some features have been removed in order to let the game’s more basic offerings shine through. No longer can the player actually control where the Pikmin go, as now everything is much more manual. As a bit of a trade-off, the player can now use a dodge whistle to have the hero and their squad quickly roll out of danger if needed – which works at its finest during the hectic boss battles found within the game. Aiming is one of the only problems I have really had on the control front to be honest. Sure, there is plenty of polish to be found, but aiming with the left stick and controlling the camera while figuring out which squad-mate goes where can be a tricky motif to master. The right stick is used, but serves as a supplement to the left stick rather than an entirely new option of control. I would imagine this was done to make all control methods fair across the board, but it actually makes the much more precise WiiMote & Nunchuck setup stand out as the most adequate scheme.
Throughout the game, players will explore, fight off enemies, and gather fruit while utilizing the abilities of their Pikmin to progress onward. The boss battles in Pikmin 3 are brilliant as they take all of the life lessons learned and apply them into one grand battle, where the player must stay on their toes while coming up with a strategic gameplan for victory. Not one boss feels like the next, as each have a unique weak point that has to be revealed with your current squad. For instance, the first boss has a hard outer layer on its body, and the player must bash and break the shell with rock Pikmin in order to start tossing those red workers to go in and do the dirty work. There is a lot of cleverness going on during these battles, and the intelligence of the player’s skills is only tested to provide great rewards after one of these large foes goes down. Boss Rush Mode acts as a brand new way to experience these epic fights, with the inclusion of co-op to get a friend in on the action.
Other co-op centric modes include exploration based romps that will have players seeking a particular treasure or going on an all out hunt for monsters. Bingo Battle is the finest of the multiplayer fare however, as much like Pikmin 2, this mode allows players to choose one of five maps and go after an opposing player, with an option to fight in a two on two format. Making these modes more special is the re-inclusion of the white and purple species, as well as some exclusive beasts and scenery that can only be found in the multiplayer. With all of the secrets, multiplayer modes, and lengthy campaign, Pikmin 3 is not a game that will be put away after a week, and that is what makes this sequel feel like the fullest experience we have seen from the franchise to date.
Visuals and Audio
Pikmin 3 is a beautiful game. Sure, it doesn’t really change a lot of scenery that we are used to with the franchise, but it improves upon every aspect with HD visuals that make these worlds pop with color and life. Everything – and I do mean everything looks better this time around – as the fauna is more detailed, the water is more realistic, and our Pikmin friends are more animated than ever before. Nintendo didn’t need to change the gameplay mechanics to cement Pikmin 3 as one of the greatest installments, but they did need to make sure it stood out visually – and that was accomplished with the large variety of dazzling characters and environments that the player is left to encounter and explore for hours on end.
The soundtrack is equally as inviting as it is in quality, with tunes that can instantly calm the nerves during the most frantic situation. It kind of ties together with what I said earlier in a way. When you are at your worst, sit tight and think of a solution – and that theme of the game has been capitalized on with the many melodies found in Pikmin 3. That doesn’t mean that there are not a fair share of beats that up in tempo during boss fights – as the game definitely can make the player doubt their own skills to set up a chaotic boss battle with its music, but it does mean that no matter which way the tide turns, you will always have some peaceful and quaint earworms to go back to if that day needs to be restarted.
Overall
When I first started playing Pikmin 3, I was blown away by the character and life found in the game, but I felt as if something was missing. That feeling continued on for around ten hours before I realized it was only being caused due to my own selfish expectations of what a new console could deliver. Pikmin 3 doesn’t try to make new fans with some kind of tacked on gimmick. It is a Pikmin game through and through, and cares to do nothing more than improve upon the attributes of its predecessors. The experience is a better one as a result, as this installment is the finest example of the concept to date, and one of the most enjoyable and strategic releases the platform has seen thus far. Nintendo have made a bold statement with Pikmin 3, proving you don’t have to make a game that follows the route of success, but instead lay the bricks of that road in order to keep the franchise fresh and entertaining. Pikmin 3 continues its franchise’s legacy well by effortlessly delivering a wonderful experience, while leaving plenty of growing room for future installments on the Wii U and beyond.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
The Australian Anime distributor Madman Entertainment are extremely excited to announce the final dates and the cinema screening details for it’s successful REEL ANIME 2013 theatrical festival! Adelaide will be a place full of lucky people this time around because REEL ANIME 2013 is hitting them on the 26th of September while the rest of us (everywhere else) will be getting some sweet anime action on the 3rd of October. The New Zealand leg of the festival are even luckier with the program opening up in Christchurch on the 19th of September with Auckland and Wellington getting it on the 26th of September.
REEL ANIME 2013 will be bringing us incredible features straight out of Japan, films like: Rebuild of Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo, 009 Re:Cyborg, A Letter To Momo, Garden of Words and Ghost In The Shell: Arise. Cinema locations throughout Australia will be as follows: Palace Eastend (Adelaide), Cinema Nova (Melbourne), Dendy Newtown (Sydney), Luna Leederville (Perth), Dendy Portside (Brisbane), State Cinema (Hobart), Dendy Canberra and Avoca Beach Picture Theatre.
If you have the chance to get to one of the screenings I highly suggest you do, these are all incredible movies that you’ll be wanting to see as soon as you can! For more information head to the REEL ANIME 2013 site which you can findhere and also keep your eyes on this site for any and all new information to be released.
DeNA is currently hosting a special event to celebrate their successful launch of The Drowning that occurred just over a week ago. Being a first person-shooter for the iOS market, the game attained a top 5 ranking of most downloaded free apps on the iPhone in 16 countries and top 5 on the iPad in 42 countries – not too shabby. Ben Cousins of the European development team had the following to say regarding the launch event:
It’s really exciting to continue the momentum of our worldwide launch with our very first live gameplay event called the Toxic Beast Hunt. This is another real first for a mobile FPS – adding variety to the game in the form of a weeklong competition where our players worldwide get matched up to co-operate and compete to hunt and take down rare and powerful monsters hidden across our game world. The great thing about our Boss Hunt events are that they enable everyone who’s enjoying The Drowning to play together using our innovative asynchronous matchmaking system. You could get matched up to co-operate with people in your neighborhood or from the other side of the world. Time zones and schedules don’t matter – our game system organizes everything. If you fight effectively as a team with your ad hoc brothers-in-arms you can win items of real value such as rare weapons and other useful equipment. We hope everyone out there enjoys this event. See you on the hunting grounds!”
The ‘Toxic Beat Hunt’ will be occurring through August 14th, and players will have to join cooperatively as well as compete amongst themselves to gain prizes. A new foe has entered the fray as an old power plant has created more powerful, strange creatures. Defeat the toxic beats in order to claim your prize. Join the battle now by downloading the game for iOS (here). Be sure to take a look at the end of the world trailer below!
During SMASH! 2013 at the Bushiroad Card Games Room, we got a chance to sit down with Bushiroad’s Noel in order to discuss the card games craze, the tournaments and workshops on show as well as the wildly popular Cardfight!! Vanguard.
During our chat, Noel explained that the big four card games on the scene right now are Cardfight!! Vanguard, Weiss Schwartz, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokemon. Could card games be making a comeback on the waves of popularity from Cardfight!! Vanguard and Weiss Schwartz? Watch the interview to find out.
For a full rundown on the Bushiroad Card Games Room at SMASH! 2013 you can check out our coverage of that here. Be sure to check out the interview video below.
Developers Bundle Stars have unleashed an amazing deal upon Steam with their Wheels of Steel bundle for only $1. This is an amazing deal with each game costing around $0.33 each. The three games included pack a varied combination of action, racing, and strategy sure to keep gamers enthralled.
The bundle includes the action game Wasteland Angels which is a rough and tumble journey of revenge set in a dystopian future during World War III with majority of the worlds population eliminated. Gamers take control of the lead heroine, the eponymous Wasteland Angel, as she roars through the violent wasteland in her heavily armored vehicle protecting innocent civilians from a rogue military, roughneck gangs, and enemy mutants.
The second title, Crash Time II, is an intense racing title where players are tasked with patrolling the Autobahn as a member of the police force. Solving crimes as you race with fully destructible vehicles at over 500MPH taking down dangerous criminals in intense, blisteringly fast action.
Finally the bundle is rounded out by the game Tank Universal, a game packed with intense 3D tank battles. Players have access to over 20 levels to wage war on as well as long and short ranged attacks with many players at once. The game also has an intelligent AI system to give gamers a run for their money in single player modes. Action can take place in a variety of manners including long range third person views and the option to get in close first person view and take the fight to the enemy. This bundle is only available for a limited time so jump on this deal while you have the chance exclusively on Steam.
