Tag: Famitsu
News Pokémon Sword And Shield Dethrones Diamond & Pearl In New Famitsu Sales Chart Record
The ninth week in first
Since the release of Pokémon Sword and Shield on the Nintendo Switch last November, both games have appeared at the top of the Japanese charts every single week. The latest chart data from 6th - 12th January, was no different. Pokémon took out the top spot for the ninth week in a row. If that wasn't already impressive...
News 2019 Was Nintendo's Best Year In Japan For Two Decades
76% of Japanese hardware sales were Switch last year
Japan has traditionally been a something of a stronghold for Nintendo, but the latest 2019 sales data from Famitsu shows just how dominant the company has become in its homeland. The stats – pulled together by Twitter user Oscar Lemaire – show that a staggering 76% of Japanese hardware sales...
News Sakurai Discusses "Drawing Light, Not Objects" In Final Famitsu Column of 2019
In-depth thoughts on graphic development
Masahiro Sakurai's latest Famitsu column has been released, and it happens to be his last for 2019. In the article, titled "Draw light, not objects." Sakurai discusses various graphical development techniques and thoughts. We've gone ahead and translated the article for you. Please note, this is a general...
News Sakurai Praises Death Stranding In Latest Famitsu Column
A summary of his thoughts on Kojima's latest hit
The next issue of Famitsu releases tonight, but we've already received a general summary of Masahiro Sakurai's latest column. While the Smash Bros. director's writing often focuses on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, sometimes he likes to write about general musings or other video games entirely. This...
News Famitsu Reveals New Details About Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore
New screenshots also shared
After the troubled Wii U generation, Nintendo seemingly decided to port all of its major titles from this console across to the Switch. It started out with games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and followed on with titles such as Pokkén Tournament DX and eventually New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe. One of its next releases to...
News Sakurai On Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Becoming Best-Selling Fighting Game of All Time
His thoughts on Terry's inclusion, plus more
The latest issue of Weekly Famitsu has been released, and once again we are treated to a column written by Masahiro Sakurai. This is a summary of the column, as translated by Nintendo Life. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has exceeded the lifetime sales of Street Fighter II to become the best-selling...
News Weekly Famitsu Drops The 3DS From Its Release Schedule Section
A sign of the times
One noticeable difference at this year's E3 was the absence of the 3DS. Although the five-in-one Atooi Collection was announced for the platform during the Limited Run presentation, Nintendo did not showcase any new games for its 3D device. If it wasn't already evident the handheld system has come to the end of
News Famitsu Shares New Screenshot Of The Battle System In Game Freak's Upcoming Switch RPG
Lovely stuff
Yesterday, we found out how Game Freak is attempting to create something "more exciting" than Pokémon in its upcoming Switch RPG, tentatively titled Town. Unfortunately, there's been little to no information about this new project since its
News Sega Ages Line Struggling To Appeal In Japan, Interest Overseas Better Than Expected
"Japanese sales need to be better"
Although the west has had to wait much longer for each release in the Sega Ages line on the Nintendo Switch, the demand for this retro-inspired series has been better than anticipated – with games such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Out Run and Alex Kidd in Miracle World selling particularly well in Eu
News Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Wins Famitsu Game Of The Year Award
Alongside Monster Hunter: World
If Super Smash Bros. Ultimate hasn't already received enough praise, it's now taken out Famitsu's 2018 Game of the Year Award alongside Monster Hunter: World. It's a similar situation to the previous year when The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Dragon Quest XI both won. The game's creator Masahiro Sakurai...
News Famitsu Report Reveals Japan's Highest-Selling Games And Top-Selling Hardware In 2018
Nintendo dominates the competition
2018 was a big year for Nintendo, with the Switch and the system's library of the games dominating the charts for many months of the year worldwide. Famitsu has now published its own report, revealing the top 10 highest-selling video games and top-selling hardware in Japan last year. According to the estimates...
News Famitsu Teasing "Possible Revival" For A Cancelled Level-5 Game
What could it be?
The Japan-based developer and publisher Level-5 is best known by Nintendo fans for charming series like Professor Layton, Inazuma Eleven and in more recent times Yo-Kai Watch. Originally established in 1998, the company is now 20-years old. In celebration of Level-5's 20th anniversary, Famitsu is teasing an interview with the...
Random NieR: Automata Game Director Explains How He Was Inspired By Ikaruga
Total respect for Treasure's shmup
In celebration of the recent re-release of Ikaruga on multiple platforms including the Switch eShop, the Japanese publication Famitsu sat down with Yoko Taro - the director of the highly praised NieR: Automata - to discuss how exactly Treasure's sublime shmup has influenced his own work over the years...
"This game is so hard to stop playing!"
Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai is a busy man, but he still makes time for a little gaming when he needs to unwind and according to his latest Famitsu column (as translated by Source Gaming), he is currently quite partial to playing a bit of Stardew Valley on Nintendo Switch after a hard day...
News Famitsu Interview Hints That Masahiro Sakurai Could Step Back From Directing Games
"It might be good to take on more of a consulting role"
Masahiro Sakurai has created some incredible games, but he's most commonly connected with the Super Smash Bros. series. Sakurai is forever hinting that he can't be in charge of Smash forever, and in a recent interview with Japanese magazine Famitsu - which is in the process of being...
News Yoshiaki Koizumi Says Non-Traditional Nintendo IPs Are Bound For Switch Next Year
Take your bets...
The Switch has had a storming first year on sale, with the likes of Zelda, Mario and Fire Emblem all contributing to a bumper 2017. Naturally, Switch owners will also be thinking about the games they'll be playing over the next 12 months, and Nintendo's Yoshiaki Koizumi wants us to expect the unexpected. In an interview with...
News Japanese Gaming Magazine Famitsu Celebrates 1500 Issues
Long live the king of game magazines!
The 14 September issue of Famitsu is one for the record books. The iconic magazine, which is the longest running gaming publication in Japan, reached its 1500th issue. Though Famitsu celebrated its 30th anniversary last year, 1500 issues is quite a big round number and also worthy of recognition. The...
News Sales Data For 2017 Reveals Nintendo Is Killing It In Japan
8 out of the 10 best-sellers are for Nintendo systems
Nintendo has always done well in Japan traditionally; even during the rather dismal Wii U years, the Japanese software and hardware sales charts were dominated by the 3DS. However, with the Switch now available the company is attacking Japanese retail on two fronts, and the latest sales data for...
News Famitsu Readers Choose Super Mario Kart as the Best Racing Game of All Time
Crosses the line ahead of all its rivals
Whenever a conversation turns to the 'best of all time' in anything, there's sure to be some feisty opinions. Now that the Famitsu Weekly readers have chosen their best racing game of all time, that's sure to get fans talking. The winner was Super Mario Kart, which saw off various rivals including...
News Famitsu Charts Show Strong Debut for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in Japan
Boosts Nintendo Switch hardware sales, too
We've been awaiting the usual Media Create Japanese chart results, but due to Golden Week in Japan the data hasn't been forthcoming as yet. As we've had requests for what information is available, we've picked up the Famitsu magazine charts from earlier in the week to tide us over. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe,...
News Famitsu Will Be Holding A Special Switch Report Following Nintendo's Broadcast
An hour long, but what will it show?
Japanese publication Famitsu will be holding its own Nintendo Switch video report after Nintendo's full reveal tomorrow, it has been revealed. The broadcast - which will be around an hour long - will air on the NicoNico channel around 9 to 10PM Japanese time. This will be a few hours before the Nintendo...
News Pokémon Sun and Moon, Along With 3DS, Led 2016 Sales in Japan
Both also did well in the Holiday period
As we head into 2017 facts and figures are starting to emerge for sales over the festive period, which are always valuable in the gaming industry. As we skipped a week of Media Create results in Japan during the break, this time we're going for a bumper post with two weeks of results, along with some end of...
News Nintendo Confirms Switch Isn't Physically Backwards Compatible With 3DS And Wii U Software
In other news: water is wet
Nintendo's Switch preview gave us a massive helping of information regarding the new console - what it looks like, what control options it has and the kind of games we'll be playing - but it also left some unanswered questions. Does it have a touchscreen? Can you add more memory via SD cards? What kind of battery life...
News The Alliance Alive Is A "New Classic RPG" From The Studio Behind The Legend of Legacy
Coming early next year on 3DS
FuRyu is publishing a new 3DS RPG from Cattle Call - the studio behind the 3DS title The Legend of Legacy - in Spring 2017 in Japan. A teaser site has just gone live. Named The Alliance Alive, the title follows nine protagonists and takes place in a land divided into different regions with unique cultures. Weekly...
News There's A New Attack On Titan Game Coming To The Nintendo 3DS
It's got a really jolly title, too
The 3DS already has a pretty decent giant-slaying title in the shape of Attack on Titan: Humanity in Chains, and according to Famitsu magazine, it's about to get a second called Attack on Titan: Escape from Certain Death, courtesy of Koei Tecmo studio Ruby Party. Staff members who worked on the anime TV show will...
News The Nintendo 3DS Is Getting A New RPG Maker Game
85 percent complete, online features promised
Famitsu has revealed that the popular RPG Maker series is finally coming to the Nintendo 3DS. RPG Maker Festival is apparently 85 percent complete and should see release later this year in Japan. The series can chart its history all the way back to the late '80s, and has appeared on a wide range of...
Japan Weekly Famitsu Reveals the Ultra-Kawaii Puyo Puyo Chronicle
Metroid Prime: Federation Force earns praise
Last week, the Japanese Buddhist holiday of Obon interrupted Famitsu's regular schedule, so this week is a special combined issue to make up for it. As a result, this issue is packed full of guides, previews and reviews. As usual with Famitsu, some content lagged behind internet reveals, but the reveal of...
Japan Weekly Level-5 Ensures This Week's Famitsu is a Memorable One
Lady Layton and The Snack World impress in previews
This week Level-5 did what it does best and made us excited for upcoming Japanese-made games. While there wasn't exactly a lot of information on the two Nintendo 3DS titles, Lady Layton and The Snack World, we got just enough of a glimpse of both to make owning a 3DS a sound investment well into...
Japan Weekly Famitsu Fuses Dragon Ball Fusion and Etrian Odyssey V Into a Worthwhile Issue
Also goes in-depth with Etrian Odyssey's races and classes
While last week was packed full of Nintendo news, Famitsu took a step back this week with only a handful of Nintendo games featured. However, they're some big ones; an in-depth preview and a review for Etrian Odyssey V and a review for Dragon Ball Fusion on the 3DS make this week's edition...
Japan Weekly Puzzle & Dragons X Reviews Are In, And It's Good
A series of unusual visual novels also gets a reveal
Famitsu has finally picked up the pace after an E3 hangover. This week features an impressive amount of previews, although most of them are for games we've already gotten in the West or for titles already released in Japan. However, a new game reveal and the review for Puzzle & Dragons X more...
Japan Weekly Famitsu Sheds Light on Monster Hunter Stories
Elsewhere the post-E3 hangover continues
We keep hoping we'll see more quirky Japan-only titles and reviews of upcoming Nintendo games each week a new Famitsu rolls out, but since E3 every subsequent issue has held less and less Nintendo information for us. This week is an all time low, but there is some information for 3DS-owning Capcom fans to...
Japan Weekly Previews and Reviews as Famitsu Continues to Play Catch-Up with E3
Puzzle & Dragons X sees more coverage as well
With so much news coming out of E3 a few weeks ago and only so many pages in a magazine, Famitsu has struggled to keep up with it all. Like last week, ample E3 news buried a few shining gems of information about upcoming Nintendo games, along with a couple obscure titles that will likely never see the...
Japan Weekly Shovel Knight Impresses Famitsu as Puzzle & Dragons X Follows in Pokemon's Footsteps
Zero Time Dilemma's review and a ninja brawler also make an appearance
It's been a while since Nintendo Life covered Famitsu magazine, but because it consistently features world-first previews and reviews of many Japanese Nintendo titles, we decided to bring it back for your reading pleasure. This week's magazine featured a double-page spread on...
News Etrian Odyssey V Finally Has A Release Date, And Yes, It's Coming To 3DS
August in Japan
Atlus has been somewhat quiet on Etrian Odyssey V since teasing that the game was in development. However, the company has now broken that silence to not only give us a solid Japanese release date of August, but to also confirm what we all hoped was the case - the game is indeed coming to the 3DS. An upcoming issue of Japanese...
News Famitsu Reveals New Rival for Ace Attorney 6
The "Funeral Prosecutor"
The latest issue of Famitsu magazine will have new information on Capcom's upcoming Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney 6, including a first look at Wright and Co.'s main courtroom rival. According to translating fans over at Court Records, the new prosecutor is named Nayuta Sadmadhi, although this name might of course change when...
News Were It Not For Google's Love Of April Fools' Day, Pokémon Go Might Not Have Happened
"I think that kind of culture is one of Google’s assets"
Nintendo's smartphone drive doesn't just include the titles it is developing with DeNA - the company has already dipped a toe into mobile gaming waters with the Pokémon franchise, and with the forthcoming release of Pokémon Go, could make quite a large splash in the smart device arena. In...
News Platinum Is Working On Collaborations That Have Yet To Be Announced
"We never thought we’d get lent IPs from other companies"
Platinum turns 10 this year, and to mark this occasion Famitsu has conducted interviews with several key staff members - including Hideki Kamiya, arguably the studio's most famous (and outspoken) employee. Kamiya admits that his directorial style is quite abrasive, and that after finishing...
News Japanese Games Market Falls To Lowest Point In 26 Years, But Full Picture Remains Elusive
Down 13 percent year-on-year, but digital data isn't included
According to data supplied by Famitsu, the Japanese games market has hit its lowest point since 1989. In 2015, games in Japan generated ¥321bn - a 13 percent decline on 2014's total of ¥368.55bn. Sales of games dropped 16 percent to ¥191bn, while games hardware was down to to ¥130bn...
News Nintendo Dominates Festive Sales in Japan as 3DS and Wii U Lead the Way
Japanese 3DS hardware passes 20 million lifetime sales
2015 has been quite a year, and it's fair to say Nintendo has had mixed fortunes. Sales of Wii U and 3DS hardware have been reasonable if not barnstorming, but the company's Kyoto HQ may ring in the New Year with renewed spirits following its end of year sales in Japan. Starting with software,...
News The 3DS Is Getting A New Medabots Game, But Don't Expect A Western Release
Coming in two versions
The Medabots series may not be as popular in the west as it is in its native Japan, but there are still plenty of fans in this part of the world who will no doubt be pleased to learn that the series is getting a new entry on the 3DS. Those very same individuals may be equally annoyed by the fact that it probably won't get a...
News Super Mario Maker DLC Confirmed, Famitsu's Mascot Necky The Fox Coming Soon
Necky the Fox to be a playable costume in Japan
Super Mario Maker hits the shops in Europe and North America tomorrow (just in case you hadn't heard!). Out of the box it supports a staggering variety of amiibo figurines; for example if you tap a Kirby amiibo against the Wii U GamePad while creating your level you can give Mario an 8-bit Kirby...
News Masahiro Sakurai Tackles Criticisms of Bonus Features in Games
"If it bothers you so much, then don’t use that feature"
Masahiro Sakurai shares regular articles in Famitsu magazine - on some occasions he discusses Smash Bros. features and updates or his personal plans, but occasionally he's happy to simply give his views on a topic that's clearly on his mind. This week he considers criticisms some level at...
News Splatoon And Nintendo Dominated Japanese Retail During June
Over 50 percent of the top 30 were 3DS titles
Japanese gaming publication Famitsu has published sales figures for the month of June, and Nintendo's online shooter Splatoon has come out on top. The Wii U release sold 368,538 copies between May 25th and June 21st - almost 20,000 of which were digital - making it one of the most impressive débuts for...
"Every now and then someone will vent their misplaced anger towards me"
With a roster as massive as that seen in Super Smash Bros., making sure each fighter is balanced can be a tricky business - hence the issues with Diddy Kong, which have recently been patched. However, there are some Smash fans who feel that creator Masahiro Sakurai has...
The two rivals talk Sonic, Mario and much more besides
Cast your mind back to the console war of the early '90s and one thing springs to mind - Sega vs Nintendo. The titanic struggle between these two Japanese giants dominated the video game industry for the best part of a decade, with the incumbent Nintendo - along with world-famous mascot Mario -...
News Fresh Monster Hunter X (Cross) Details Emerge From Japan
Beastly bonus
This week Japanese publication Famitsu has some more details on Capcom's freshly-revealed 3DS title Monster Hunter X (Cross) - which is said to be 60 percent complete and will launch in Japan in Winter 2015. We have a host of new info, starting with the return of the Felynes - obviously the Monster Hunter series would not be complete...
News Japan Is Suiting Up For Another Super Robot Wars Title On 3DS
Robot rock
Super Robot Wars is a massive series in its native Japan and brings together many classic Mecha series into one convenient package. The latest entry in this long-running franchise has just been revealed by Famitsu, and goes by the title Super Robot Wars BX. It launches in Japan on August 20th for 6,640 yen. According to the report, the...
News Famitsu Unleashes Xenoblade Chronicles X Score
Famitsu Dolls Itself Up
It's finally here guys, and we couldn't be more enthusiastic. Monolith Soft and Nintendo have been drip feeding its fans for months now, with screenshots, soundtrack teasers, and even a brand new story trailer, but as the Japanese release is fast approaching, the Famitsu Scores are in. World renowned gaming magazine Famitsu...
News Project X Zone 2's Development Made Possible By The Original's "Good Global Reputation"
"I think there will be surprising announcements in the future"
Project X Zone 2's shock announcement is welcome news for fans of the original game - and is perhaps a little unexpected, too. Following the news, Japanese magazine Famitsu caught up with Kensuke Tsukanaka (producer, Bandai Namco), Ichirou Morizumi (Monolith Soft, development director)...
Japan Weekly Bravely Second Jobs Revealed and Theatrhythm Dragon Quest Reviewed
Along with a handful of other 3DS and Wii U reviews straight from Japan
Finally — this week's Famitsu has made up for the last couple of disappointing releases when it comes to juicy Nintendo news. While we still haven't heard when Bravely Second: End Layer will make it outside of Japan, that hasn't stopped Famitsu from feeding Japanese gamers...
