Hi all, little personal introduction from me. My name is Andi I go by the avatar name of Ruki Riot (Lead singer of The GazettE & favourite GazettE song $ocial Riot Machine$). I have been playing JRPG's & quirky games for as long as I can remember. I have a huge interest in Japanese gaming and culture, my favourite music types are Punk, metal & J-Rock I also do enjoy a fair bit of 90's Gangster rap!. My favourite anime is Cowboy Bebop I could re-watch it daily and I'm currently working my way through One Piece which I have an on off relationship with!. Ps3/PC/3DS gamer and I also write reviews for DIY punk bands which get hosted on www.punx.co.uk. I am helping my good friend Geoff out every now and again with articles and information, I can't post as much as I would like due to work/family & reviewing commitments but I am 100% committed to helping this blog as much as I can & I hope to be able to post for years to come!.

This article is about a game I am currently playing, Killer Is Dead. Created by Grasshopper Studios featuring the powerhouse of Japanese gaming Suda 51!. Those not familiar with the Japanese Quentin Tarantino here is a quick history lesson. 

Suda 51 named as such because his real name is Goichi Suda (Go for 5 Ichi for 1). Often described at adding a punk rock spin on gaming has been around since the SNES days and continues to gather fans through his games which tend to make points & digs at the modern world & gaming in general. Be it gaming glorifying boring tasks or the over sexualisation in gaming Suda has touched upon this over his career!.

Originally starting with SPIKE the first work you can play is Super Fire Pro Wrestling Speical snes (find actual name) this is the first time Suda would create a unique gaming experience in which -SPOILERS- you would play a wrestler whom would eventually go on to commit suicide due not being happy even after he has won all the major titles and become a superstar!.

Skip ahead a few years and we come to the next title I played and I believe the first one to reach Jolly 'ol blighty!. KILLER 7 I would imagine you already have of least heard of this masterpiece but if not ill explain. Created as part of a partnership with Capcom 5 AAA titles were planned. Viewtiful Joe, Resi 4, Killer 7, PN 03 & another which never released. As of today only PN 03 remains an exclusive but 'cube certainly had the best versions of VJ & K7!. Suda firmly at the helm brought you a semi cell shaded title with his unique take on graphics and story telling. Playing an old man who changes into one of 7 persona’s when viewed for a camera creates a memorable tale coupled with a unique on the rails control system, it blurred the lines between game & art long before Ico & SOTC started. 

Since Killer 7 anything his name has been attached to has gathered a following (I myself will play anything he puts out). From point and click adventure Flower, Sun & Rain, to the unique but excellent Contact one of the first RPG's released on DS and even went onto work on the 4th Fatal Frame game!. Suda once again became known through this next title and another favourite of mine No More Heroes!

Meet Travis Touchdown, Otaku Wrestling fan pervert who is a part time assassin after buying a beam sword (light sabre) off of the Internet and killing an assassin. Now to get fame, money & to get into the underwear of a female he must rise through the rankings to become the #1 assassin. 

The catch? You need to stump up big money to fight each assassin. How do you do this? Mundane daily tasks like gardening and Hunting for land mines.

Despite the quirky nature of this title and it being a wii exclusive (at the time it later hit 360 & ps3) it was the first and so far only Suda title released outside of Japan to get a sequel! No More Heroes 2 – Desperate Struggle. 

I know there is a few titles I have missed either due to them not releasing over here (silver case) or the fact iv yet to play them. This example is Michigan report from hell, a first person horror where you record supernatural going ons ala fatal frame but without any way to fight back. As this game is quite rare and had a limited print I have yet to play it, along side the fact Suda had no idea it has released in Europe thus maybe lacking some translation. 

Suda's next appearance came in a collaboration effort and was his most high profile and biggest budgeted game yet Shadows Of The Damned!.

Working along side Shinji Mikami of Resident Evil fame and Akria Yamaoka of Silent hill fame, they created the survival horror comedy mash up published by EA! (plus a title track by punk legends The Damned). 

Garcia F**king Hotspur goes to hell to save his damned girlfriend alongside floating skull/gun Jonathan. With some superb writing and very tense moments SotD won a cult fan base but unfortunately didn't sell too well and EA seemed let down by its sales performance. 

Next up we have Kinect only Diabolic Pitch, a baseball/demon killing game which unfortunately I have yet to play. Looking at game play and reviews it doesn't seem have made waves even with fans of Suda 51. 

Following this Lollipop Chainsaw hit the scene, a Warner Brothers produced grind-house B movie horror comedy starring Juliet Starling monster hunting cheerleader. Along side her is her family & the head of her incredibly understanding boyfriend Nick (He steals the show!). Mixed reviews and a short game-play time held this gem back but certainly one for people fond the old Dreamcast score attack style games. I personally really enjoyed this one and would love to one day see another Lollipop Chainsaw my only issue was that Suda played it very safe in terms of writing on this one. Despite the Cheer-leading Zombie hunting antics a lot of the story and characters were more comedy and easier to swallow than that of some of his past creations!.

ENOUGH with the history lesson we are now at present day with one of Suda's more hyped works Killer Is Dead!. Hailed as the spiritual successor set within the lines of No More Heroes and Killer 7 we have Assassin (I see a trend here!) Mondo Zappa fighting the hordes of Wires (Monsters!) that have been turning from the dark side of the moon.........yeah you gotta bare with me here!.

A 3^rd person hack & slash is how this tale is presented, the main cast sadly aren't the most original designs barring Mondo himself. Mondo Zappa looks like a mix between James Bond & MegaMan!, suit wearing, sunglasses wielding hitman badass with a robotic arm which changes from gun to drill to human at the touch of a button! Topping this off he has a dark pair of Red eyes, this leads to a lot of speculation as to Zappa's origins and I'm sure it will be explained later on during the game. Vivenne Squall female assassin and looks just like Eva from Metal Gear Solid 3 even to the point she has a very similar bike!.

Bryan Roses the boss! Here we have pretty much the character design for Cyborg/Turrican half man, half mechanical power house. Sits in his chair smoking cigars and arranging your “Hits”.

Finally we have Mika Takekawa Japanese school girl who acts a lot like a Mondo fan girl & is kept around because of her egg making abilities!.

This brings us to our main villain David! He lives on the dark side of the moon and is a powerful foe for Mondo!. He plans to take over the earth from his mansion on the moon & you originally come across him when a female called “Moon River” apparent Goddess of the moon hires Mondo to kill him after he “stole” the moon from her!.

Other hits include a Yakuza boss with spiritual tiger powers & an alien like being who plans to take over the world using sound!. While we are on about characters it's time to mention the controversial crew known as the Mondo Girls!.

For anyone who has stayed away from anything to do with KiD basically the Mondo Girls are a collection of females (bet you never guessed ;)) whom Mondo meets in a bar “seduces” and then sleeps with for bonus abilities for his robot arm!. This motley crew include a geisha, a vampire & Scarlett the needle riding nurse who hides in levels and offers you combat challenges and blood when found!. I quoted seduces because these levels consist of Mondo silently leering at certain parts of the female body before providing her with a gift to raise affection levels!. If you have the DLC or are far enough into it you get a pair of sunglasses with X Ray powers, this speeds these levels up a lot as it also tells you what the girl wants!.

That is the low point of the game, the gigolo missions though not compulsory for a play through you do need to do them a few times to 100% the game. Another point is the “Limited” edition DLC! This includes police outfits for the females, above sunglasses & mission 51!. I have to state there are not 50 missions in the game this is because it's an “extra” mission thus given the name after Suda himself.

I point this out as it seems this mission was pulled from the main game (In between mission 6 & 7) in a bid to get more day 1 buyers. It involves Mondo vampire hunting and is actually one of the better missions of the game (It even has a hidden Juliet Starling!).

Combat is quite a simple two button system for melee with shoulder buttons for his gun/drill arm. He can dodge at the speed of light and does make for a few decent scraps especially if you dodge at the last second and he unleashes a barrage of fast hard hitting slashes!. Nothing too in depth but it serves it's purpose and works well!. Another point to make is the robot arm, to stop people abusing it's shooting nature or the over powered Drill arm it is run on Blood!, yes you heard me right the arm runs on the blood of the enemies you smite!

Visual style of the game is a nice mixture between NMH & Killer 7 but unfortunately looks rather bland in some places & on the Ps3 version (the one I’m playing not sure if it's happening on 360) there is quite a lot of screen tearing!.

The story if you can't tell from the characters is pretty off the wall and includes but isn't limited to a guardian angel in the form of a talking unicorn with a sparkly aura to boot!. I have yet to finish it but I am quite close to the end, there are 12 main missions (13 if you count the DLC) and a fair few side missions which use previous environments and sets you different challenges. Unfortunately some of the missions are only a matter of minutes long, missions 1 & 2 are mostly cut scene & run at around 10 min combined. Further on you have a few dream missions which don't hit higher than the 15 minute mark.

Overall I am really enjoying the game & the story of Killer Is Dead, the characters could have been better & some missions a little longer but overall I don't regret playing this game. I think it's a Suda game for Suda fans, it isn't going to gain a new fan base & doesn't have the budget or power behind it like SoTD did but it does a serviceable job of reminding the fans why we play these games!.

I will post a final note when I finish the game but as of now I hope you have enjoyed the read and anyone new to this hopefully I have taught you something new! Any questions Suda or Killer is Dead related feel free to drop into the comment box or tweet me @andicpunx

TTFN! 

Retrospective: Sony PSX

With all this talk lately of the PsVita TV and the whining at Shuhei Yoshida on Twitter over a lack of a release date so far for the west, It deos stir the old memories for one of Sonys previous endeavours. Remember the PSX? Sony's DVD-R & HDD recorder that also contained a Playstation 2 in its shell? NO? Well lets have a retrospective look then!

Welcoming a fellow Otaku to the fore...

No gaming news today. Sumimasen! Instead Ill be focusing on Blog related news with some other small tidbits. Ive been at a work meeting for the past couple of hours so my brains frazzled (I work at an Estate Agents. Funnily enough I know absaloutly nothing about the industry! Thats why my brains frazzled)

First off, the Bosman signing of the season. Well, if we was talking football anyway. After some not-so-tense discussions this week, my good friend Andi Camac has joined the blog and will be posting some juicy Otaku news & reviews as an Author. Understandably due to his family commitments and also his work reviewing for Punx, there wont be daily posts like I do. Still, it'll be good to have something different to read plus Andi's reviews should be a treat. If they end up anything like his Punx ones (Here's one to have a peek at), You'll know by the end of it exactly whats good/bad. He's no pandering Yes man. That kind of integrity is hard to come by these days in reviewers as they tend to feel obliged to pander to big publishers. We dont want any of that here, so Andi's involvement should go down a treat. I know if I buy a game n pass it to Andi to review, if its bad he'll just tell me straight that its doggers n Ive just wasted my money. Looking forward to seeing what he has in store for the Blog. Pass the Sake!!

If you remember my first post I stated that it'd be good for everyone getting their news from a singular viewpoint? With Andi joining, that still applies. Our taste in games is very similar, although his knowledge of JRPG's far exceeds my own (I tend to look to him for guidance of JRPG purchases) The last 3 posts Ive done have been gruelling. It takes at least a good few hours to research the content and write it up before posting. This blog is more work than I realised so the extra post by someone else every now n again means I can ease up a little too. Im also not against adding more Authors in the future too If I meet people interested enough with an Otaku taste in games.

Due to this development Ive changed the url for the blog so it is no longer otakugamergeoff.blogspot.co.uk, its now - http://otakugamersuk.blogspot.co.uk/

So what else is there? Well Andi was kind enough to tweet me a trailer for Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai 2 for the 3DS during the meeting this morning. Im sure I looked a sight trying to contain such a huge burst of instantaneous HYPE! The grin on my face while checking twitter on my concealed phone probably had people thinking I was looking at something else. Ive had a quick look into the game and it seems pretty much the same as Project Diva except for the ChiBi styling of the characters. The song roster and Module count isn't as high either. Still, Id buy it day one! Due for release on 28th November in Japan theres still no word on a release in the west by SEGA. As Andi tweeted afterwards "Its SEGA, more chance of the WiiU becoming popular" and he's probably right......

On the subject of Project Diva (My Review is standing at 1,870 views. Mind Blowing!), Ive recently taken a liking to Kagamine Rin. Her songs on the game are easily the best. They tend to fall more in line with Jrock than Jpop. With Miku its the same. I tend to favour her Jrock styled songs than the poppier ones. Saying that Rin & Len's Remote Controller is probably the catchiest song on the game and thats more pop than rock lol Make sure to check out 2 of her songs in Tengaku and Tokyo Teddy Bear to see what I mean with regards to Kagamine Rin. Actually its probably due to her using a modified Dreamcast controller in the Remote Controller video............

Theres not really much news at the moment to pass on, A new trailer showing the improvements for Atelier Rorona+ has gone Live (Youtube) and Puyo Puyo Tetris is in development (due on Ps3 & Vita but no western release date yet) being about it from what Ive seen today so I guess we'll have to wait for the Tokyo Game Show to kick off properly on September 19th. Its back to buisness as usual tomorrow with regards to the blog. Ill have a think later of what game to cover. I have had a review planned for release before the weekend but Im goin to delay it till monday to give myself more time with the game.

Dont forget to follow my Twitter @MadchesterManc & also Andi's too @andicpunx for updates on the blog for you Otaku's

Come on you apes! You wanna live forever!

When I do these write-ups for games, Im not previewing the game. I just thought Id put that out there just in case. What Im doing is gathering up as much info as I can, drafting it all into a blog post and then editing it before posting it here for you guys to feast on. While this information is available elsewhere, I hope the fact Ive brought it all together into one place is helpful enough. Theres no need for thanks, a bowl of Ramen would do instead!

Today's game is going to be Earth Defense Force 2025, so before I begin I know there's something we all need to get outta our system -

EDF! EDF! EDF!

All done? Good. Since D3 came along and announced that an EDF game was in the works for the Ps4, Ive gone into a low-level hype mode. The unusual thing there is that I dont usually get hyped at all. What about GTAV? pffft. While Im interested in giving it a go Im not hyped whereby I have it preordered or Im gonna camp outside a store at midnight to buy a copy at launch. EDF on Ps4? OMG! OMG! SO FRAKKIN AWESOME! Yep, that's my gaming habits in a nut-shell. Since the annoncement Ive been playing EDF: Insect Arnageddon again on Steam (bought it for £3.49 in the summer Steam sale!) and itching at the thought of buying EDF 2017 Portable on the Vita (I hope enough content has been added seen as its still £23.99) I decided last night after gunning down a huge robotic daddy long legs that Id have a look into EDF 2025 for the blog seen as its still a few months away from release. SO here geos....

EDF has always had a paper thin story. This tidbit from 2025's Wikipedia page is pretty much it, literally -
The Earth Defense Force, a unified multinational military sponsored by nearly every country, is founded after detecting an impending alien visit in case the aliens prove to be hostile. In the year 2017, that proved to be true and the EDF fought against the Ravagers, an alien race that attacked Earth with giant insect-like creatures, UFOs, robots, and gigantic, 120 foot tall lizard-like creatures. Eight years after defeating the last Ravager in Arizona, they attack again with new creatures, evolved from their underground nest. Among them is the Retiarius, a spider-like creature which makes gigantic spider-webs, and giant bees. In the year 2025, the EDF must protect the Earth again from the alien invaders.

Earth Defense Force has always been about its gameplay. Its B-Movie charm married to gameplay mechanics that get the basics spot on equals a game thats just fun to play. At times the intensity was cranked to 11 on Insect Armageddon (same with 2017 at times) when you have about 20 ants clambering over a building, a dozen spiders shooting web and pouncing, Bomber spiders spawning ticks, a few wasps spewing acid and a giant Hector smashing its way through skyscrapers. Its your job to kill all that too. Its reall good fun. So what about 2025? More of the same? It looks to be. Although development was put back into the hands of Sandlot so the game will no doubt feel more like 2017 to play than Vicious Cycle's Insect Armageddon (deosn't bother me as I like both IA & 2017) The class system has been kept from the previous release though, makes me happy for sure. They are now labelled as Ranger (typical Jack-of-all-trades foot soldier) Wing Diver (Female airborne unit using high tech weapons) Air Raider (Support specialist) and a Fencer (Heavy armoured class). Ive found no mention of the ranking system from the previous release as of yet but Im sure there info somewhere on it. Theres also vehicles to drive around in as usual. Theres a Motorcycle (with a side car), Armoured Ambulance, APC, MRL, Tanks, Helicopters and Mecha suits. Im sure the Motorcycle is going to be a hoot. Certain vehicles can only be used by certain classes too, which comes into play especially in co-op. During a short playthrough via Co-Optimus at E3, there was a small part of the article regarding the co-op that sounded really good - Miki suggested I hop into a nearby APC. She took the wheel and drove me to the next firefight. (Fencers can't drive APCs, so you'll need a buddy to drive your cumbersome bulk to the battle.) She could also paint targets for my heavier weapons. There was a real feeling of cooperation with two players. I can't wait to take on the Ravager hordes with with three other players. Sounds to me like each class has abilities that no doubt can be used to boost teammates, a nice expansion on the class system and should hopefully entice people to teamwork instead of the point-whoreing that plagued Insect armageddon online. You'll also be glad to know that the loot system from 2017 appears to be back, so no predetermined loot drops like in Insect Armageddon. I remember that being one of the most controversial design choices taken up by Vicious Cycle but it didn't bother me as much as it did everyone else. Multiple difficulties are also available too, including the 'inferno' difficulty. As with 2017, better loot drops appear on higher difficulties and health/armour is dropped by enemies to boost your characters stats.

Graphically it looks to be a marked improvement. The drab colour palette of Insect armageddon is gone in favour of 2017's colourful art style. The 'skinny' Ants & 'Hairy' Spiders are back! The art style is firmly back in 2017 style so Id say this is a true sequel to that cult classic. To be honest Id say Sandlot seem to have the more menacing character design. The spider in the screenshot below would give anyone the shivers. Seen as the game is already readily available in Japan the internet is awash with gameplay videos so its easy to see how things are looking. The effects work looks solid, framerate seemed to be pretty stable, Animations seemed much improved over Sandlot's previous effort and detail levels seem higher than both releases this generation, especially in the Ravager designs. I quite like the return to Sandlot's design style for the series

So in Summary:

• Improved graphics engine
• Offline co-op (2) Online co-op (4)
• 4 Character classes with unique abilities & weapons
• 13 Vehicles in total to use
• 19 different ravager types
• Random Loot system
• Destructible enviroments
• 5 Difficulty levels
• 50+ levels to complete.

So you haven't played EDF before? Then check this Gameplay footage and have a peek at an E3 interview by Co-Optimus and then return here suitably hyped! Personally I cant wait for its release in the west on the 4th February. I could import & play the Japanese version on Ps3 right now (Ive played EDF Portable 2 on PsP in Japanese, so it is doable) but I think Ill wait as Ive a few games I need to finish up as it is. I find the EDF series to be one of the most enjoyable Japanese niche series on the market and when 2025 arrives n the west next year, I hope you'll be joining me for a bug-hunt!

Intrigued by Senran Kagura 3DS?

To show this a genuine blog for all Otaku's, Ive decided to do a snippet on Senran Kagura Burst for the 3DS. Unlike most places that would give you a few words on the game n then hope it geos away due to its somewhat blatant fan-service, Im still gonna cover these type of games. Personally I dont hate or love fan-service myself. It deosn't effect my buying habits and on the odd occasion it will make me grin in amusement (teh hunni's!) But, yeah. Who cares? These games have an audience after all, just like CoD deos with its fan-service every year for those fervent gamers that salivitate over the killing orgys that ensue when they go online. Just 2 sides of the same coin to me, one is anime girls n the other is Guns, If you dont see it then you have to revamp your perspective on society and just what Fan-service actually means. BUT this isn't a blog on philosophy or anything as such so lets crack on with the game.

 Just in case theres people out there who aren't into fan-service but are interested in the game then Ill be using this banner to warn of any impending fan-service a game contains. If a blog post deosn't have this banner, then you can breathe easy as it will contain no blatant fan-service (but may still have not-so-blatant fan-service here n there) If you like fan-service, you'll be happy earlier then!


 So what is Senran Kagura about then? Well basically Im gonna paste a tidbit from its wikipedia page and eloborate:  Kept secret from the rest of the world, high school girls are secretly trained in the art of ninjitsu. Skirting Shadows revolves around the trainee shinobi of Hanzō Academy; Asuka, Ikaruga, Katsuragi, Yagyuu and Hibari, as they complete missions and battle against rival ninjas. Crimson Girls on the other hand follows the students of the dark academy, Hiritsu Hebi Girl's Academy; Homura, Yomi, Hikage, Mirai and Haruka.

So, its about Ninja Schoolgirls then. What stuck out the most from what Ive been reading on this game is that it contains 2 story modes, effectively doubling its content. The second story is apparently equal in length & scope to the original so its the original n a sequel on the same cart! Not too bad content-wise then I suppose. Now I dont know much about the Senran Kagura story arc or its characters, so Im not going to sit here spouting lies about how awesome characters are or how much I hate a paticular one as that would be unfair on you guys. I was considering trying the anime for catching up with the story this morning but Im not sure how it fits into the overall story of these games, Plus if the fan-service in it is anything like High School DxD's: It'll last about 7 minutes. Maybe Ill try the 1st episode later.

So what about gameplay? A huge suprise to me as It wasn't what I was expecting. From what I read a couple of months back it came across as a 3D fighter similar to the likes of DoA, but instead its a Side-Scrolling Beat em Up akin to the likes of Streets of Rage. Consider my interest officially piqued! Im not really a fan of fighters so it was only on my radar due to it being a niche title, but the revelation of the type of gameplay it has does leave me interested. I watched a playthrough of the tutorial stage on Youtube by a user called zedamax to see how it played out while I was researching info on the game. I would recommend you give it a watch if the game interests you. It looks to have a farily decent combat system and the ariel aspect of the combo system looks really cool plus theres 'special' moves ill make a note of later. When the level was finished it appeared to have a levelling system too which can only mean unlocks! No doubt extra moves but I wouldn't rule out the likes of costumes either. With the video being in Japanese n my Japanese being rusty at the minute I couldn't tell you what was unlocked unfortunately. So how well deos it play? Well I dont know. It looked fluid enough in the video but I wont know myself till its release date. Id suggest you see a few gameplay videos to see if its combat system will interest you.

So what about the aforementioned Fan-service? Indeed. When you consider the game producer, Kenichiro Takaki, has gone on record as stating one of the main design points for production on 3DS was seeing breasts in 3D (reason for Vita was breasts in HD!) then obviously the game will feature it. What this means is that Character design is your usual Moe styling but the girls all have exaggerated breast sizes. Honestly, It puts Vert to shame from Hyperdimension Neptunia. Aside from that the fan-service didn't seem to come into play much during actual gameplay in the video I watched until special moves were completed. During these boobs would jiggle (DoA style) and there would be the occasional upskirt panty shot (No Miku green shimapan tho unfortunately lol) that you'd typically get. Apparently the game also features cloth damage so your characters clothes tear n rip depending on how much damage you take but I didn't see any of that during the gameplay video I watched. So if you take a lot of damage I guess there'll be a lot of 'flesh' on show. From what Ive come across so far it deosn't seem to be on the level of something like High School DxD, but it most defintely is there. Maybe with the likes of inter-changeable costumes n damage to clothes it depends on how much fan-service YOU want. I guess I'll know more of just how bad the fan-service is closer to release.

Im intrigued by the game n Im not ashamed to admit that either The game looks to have some decent Beat-em-Up gameplay for old-skool fans! I just hope the fan-service stays at the level Ive viewed so far. If it gets excessive, Like High School DxD, then even me n my open-mindedness will be drawing the line somewhere. I hope not as it deos look to be good fun. Another amusing point before I end this post is the fact that we in the EU will get both Digital & Retail release while North America will only have Digital. It most certainly makes a change! Then again release is set for Q1 2014 in the EU and Fall 2013 in the US.

I hope Youve enjoyed this short write-up and dont forget to follow my Twitter for updates @MadchesterManc

Sony had a Conference this morning!?

They most certainly did. It started at approximately 7AM over here so I wasn't able to stream it and view it myself (I was asleep! Had to prepare for a day at work. Although my bro was quick to ask who/what Nepuchūn is when I awoke as I was talking in my sleep this morning. Must've been a good dream) so Ive spent the past few hours scouring the internet and as many gaming websites as possible for tidbits of information to share. Apparently there was quite a few game announcements alongside the conference, but Im having trouble finding up-to-date information on these. I suppose only the ones of interest to mainstream sites will be picked up n shown in the west. Lets crack on with what Ive got so far then. I can always post again when I get more news.

Vita! Vita! Vita!
  In the wake of Nintendo's recent 2DS announcement, we now have a remodeled Vita to think of too. Its probably not due to the 2DS but I bet Sony are looking at stealing some of Nintendo's thunder this christmas in the East with an announcement like this. It Features all the same things as the original Vita except for 2, notable, changes. The screen is now LCD. Yes, LCD. Not OLED or even LED. It doesn't bother me as much as I thought at first, but then that all depends on what type of panel Sony intend to use. For the new remodel to even come close to the OLED on the original then Sony MUST use IPS. There is no side-stepping of the fact that if anything other than IPS is used, the new LCD screened Vita is going to look noticeably inferior to the original with regards to colour reproduction especially. At least the screen has stayed at 5". I guess we'll have to wait n see what it turns out to be at a later date though with regards to panel type. The other aspect is that it now comes with 1GB of memory built in. Sure, its not big by any means (I survive with a 4GB though due to buying retail mainly) but at least it gives adopters of the new Vita a bit of extra time without having to go out and purchase a card straight away. Its actually not bad as long as you stick with retail as it should take a while to fill up the 1GB with saves n the like. Ok, Im probably trying to put as positive a spin as possible on the built in memory. You've caught me out. But while 1GB is paltry when you start to factor in the likes of PS+, DLC and patches its fine for the casual user to use for a while till the need for more memory sets in.

There was also an announcement of PSVita TV! Yep, its basically an Apple/Android style box you hook up to your TV with using HDMI. Except, you can play Vita games on it. And remote play your Ps4 games. Its basically a Vita you plug into a TV. The only issue Im seeing at the moment is for playing games on it you need to hook up a Dualshock3. The Dualshock3 doesn't have any touch interface whatsoever so it will only be usuable for games that have touch controls you can disable (Fifa) or have none at all (Persona 4 Golden). At the moment there isnt really any info on compatible titles, except for a Japanese  list, so again its another we'll have to wait and see about. Pricing, Once converted, falls at around $95 which would put it in direct competition with the likes of Ouya on our shores.

Also, a 64GB memory card will be releasing alongside the new Vita.

No announcement of a western release for any of these yet obviously, so we'll have to wait n see but the remodeled Vita and 64GB card are a cert Id say. The PsVita TV could end up going the way of the PSX though (If you remember that)

Ps4 & Games
(Ive linked games to trailers where possible. Just click the game titles)
   Well the suprise of the conference Id say would be the launch date of the Ps4 being February 22nd 2014. When you think about it, its a pretty shrewd move by Sony. The western territories will no doubt be as hotly contested as it has been this generation between Xbox360 & Ps3. With Japan being a nation of handheld gamers, why not ensure things go well in the west and release the Ps4 a few months later back home? The Xbone One will no doubt tank in Japan anyway so Sony doesn't have much to worry about, except maybe a resurgent WiiU this christmas? Maybe. Who knows?

• The Ps4 will be launching alongside the latest Yakuza: Ishin , which oddly enough will also be released on Ps3 (distinctly remember Nagoshi was 'finished' with Ps3 after Yakuza 5 though) and also on Vita! Still no word on a western release, and with Yakuza 5 still having no localisation announced by SEGA it leaves the Yakuza fans here in the west uneasy about its future.

• Phantasy Star Nova is the latest Phantasy Star game by SEGA and its being developed by tri-ace for release on Vita. It will be set in the same universe as Phantasy Star Online 2, so if your a fan of that you may be interested. Its due for release in Japan next year with a western release yet to be confirmed

• D3 has announced a new Earth Defense Force is in development for the Ps4! Great news for me personally, Still waiting on EDF 2025 here in the west though on Ps3 (February 2014 release) Also a certain Dream Club: Host Girls on Stage game was announced too for Ps4 release day. Never played the series myself but if you have, a Ps4 release is on the way.

• Tecmo Koei have announced Dynast Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends for the Ps4 and Samurai Warriors 4 was also announced for the Vita. Looking forward to DW9 on Ps4 whenever thats to be announced. With how much the series has improved this generation it will be one to watch. Both new releases set for 2014 in Japan.

• Namco Bandai have announced a Mobile Suit Gundam & Idolmaster title are in development for Ps4 at the moment. No release date or anything else to go on, Sorry.

• GungHo Online Entertainment and Grasshopper Manufacture announce Lily Bergamo, Goichi Suda's latest, for the Ps4 which will emphasize online play. Rumoured to have some kind of Smartphone connectivity as well. Release penned for 2014.

• Arc System Work's has announced Guilty Gear Xrd: Sign is due for release in 2014 on the Ps3 & Ps4.

• Kadokawa Games has announed a new fantasy RPG for Ps4, Ps3 and Vita titled Natural Doctrine . It will launch alongside the Ps4 in 2014 in Japan and Im assuming on that same day for the other platforms too.

• 5pb. Has announced that it will be releasing a Ps4 variant of its 2D side scrolling beat-em-up entitled Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Overdrive. Offline & Online co-op/competitive multiplayer confirmed, but no solid release date as of yet (also a digital release only)

This is most of the information Ive managed to come across so far. Theres a few games, like Soul Sacrifice Delta and Deep Down, Ive not really mentioned but thats due to most mainstream sites covering the title well enough. If I find anything else that is worthy of note ill be quick to let you know! As you can see though most of these games have no release date set for outside of Japan. Im hoping that will come at a later date as theres some genuinly interesting titles here so far.

Burogu wa henshin o motte ita!

So, What do ya think? It looks ok personally. Ive been spending most of the morning scouring the net for information on Sony's conference this morning (There'll be a post later!) so I didn't really have as much time as I thought I would do with regards to sexying up the blog (although I probably could've just gotten away with putting some Shimapan somewhere n calling it quits. eh? Yeah, you know you wish I did) Ill look into a proper makeover at a later date but this should suffice for now at least. Gotta be better than before at least?

Ive also now enabled comment posts Anonymously. There will no doubt be trolls posting the usual drivel like 'weeabo' but Im hoping that there will be at least be people with a decent enough IQ who will visit and post some worthy comments. But if I start seeing a lot of this:

   Then I will be forced to apply comment moderation. I really don't want to be doing something like that though so Im hoping common sense can prevail. At the end of the day its down to you visitors how things move forward with regards to comments, so if you want them to remain open and free then at least comment with intelligence & respect for others. Thats all Im asking at the moment.

Pop back later for an update on Sony's conference (There some Vita suprises to discuss!) and as always, you can follow my Twitter for up-to-date News & Posts regarding the blog @MadchesterManc

A miniscule update of nothing.

Nothing today to report. I decided to leave any news gathering for now while the dust settles on my Project Diva F review and then crack on with a first tidbit of information tomorrow. Not fully decided what game Ill look into yet. Ill also be looking at sprucing the place up a little. The barren looking aspect of the blog can't be any good for you folks that visit so tomorrow Ill also be working on giving the place a good lick of paint.

There is a couple of things worthy of mention for today though. With there being a few notable titles being released or due for release on the 3DS I decided to pick one up last week. Ill be looking into titles for the Ps3, Vita & now the 3DS. The only issue would be if I was to review a 3DS game. Unlike PushSquare I haven't quite been enticed into joining its sister site Nintendo Life, so any reviews for 3DS games that I do I will post straight to the blog If im unable to find somewhere to post them to (maybe the 'Other Consoles' section of the PushSquare Forum will suffice?). Not really much of an issue I suppose. Also Im currently mulling over enabling comments by anonymous users so people can comment without having to register. I had a little discussion with a friend concerning it today and while it will no doubt lead to some trolling n the like, It could also benefit the Blog. Ill decide tomorrow while Im busy working on everything else to do with the blog.

For now, Im going to put my feet up and play some Valkyria Chronicles (£10! Bargain! Cheers Andi), Eterian Odyssey IV (new aquisition for my 3DS) or something else that tickles my fancy. Hopefully Ill see you tomorrow when everything looks spiffing!