Tag: Japan - Page 68
News Dragon Quest X Advert is a Call to Arms
In Japanese
Dragon Quest X will no doubt storm the Japanese charts with or without any advertising, but that hasn't stopped Square Enix putting together a cutesy trailer showing off the enemies and action in store. Japanese players can pick up the MMO from 2nd August, with a particularly snazzy black Wii Dragon Quest X bundle on sale too. The game...
News Nintendo Direct Next Week Focused on Demon Training
10 minutes in hell with Demon Kawashima
Get out your diaries and Japanese dictionaries, as Nintendo will be hosting a 'mini' Nintendo Direct conference on 18th July, next week. The broadcast will only be ten minutes long and will centre entirely around the upcoming 3DS game, Dr Kawashima's Demon Training, a sequel to the hugely successful Dr...
News Mega Man is Going to Blast 3DS Virtual Console
In Japan at least
NES classic Mega Man is coming to the 3DS Virtual Console in Japan next week. The Blue Bomber's legendary 8-bit adventure lands in Japan on 18th July for 500 Yen — around £3.99 or $6.30 — but expect the pricing to be slightly different when it reaches the West. If you're interested in playing some Mega Man on the go but...
News Escape! Zombie City Set to Infest Japanese eShop
The latest from Tom Create
Tom Create is a Japanese developer that may be familiar to gamers who enjoy a lot of download titles from the GO series. The studio has produced DSiWare titles such as GO Series: Earth Saver and GO Series: Tower of Deus, with many being thoroughly decent downloads at a budget price. It now seems that the developer is...
News What Do You Make of this Hello Kitty Sonic Crossover?
Straw poll
Two of the world's most recognisable animals combined today in what scientists are probably calling "disgusting". This Hello Kitty and Sonic the Hedgehog plush toy — officially called the Sonic x Hello Kitty Super Jumbo Plushy — is heading to Japan this weekend to commemorate the reopening of SEGA's flagship Joypolis arcade. It's...
News Time Travelers Live Action Advert is All Tears
Why so serious?
Level-5 has been very cryptic so far with information about its upcoming release of Time Travelers in Japan this week, and things aren't about to get any clearer with these two latest trailers. Even with only three days before its launch on Nintendo 3DS and PS Vita, and ten days until Time Travelers releases on PSP, Level-5 are...
News Monster Hunter 4 Director Says It's All About 'Adventure'
As opposed to 'grinding', perhaps?
Plenty of gamers, including various members of the Nintendo Life team, thoroughly enjoyed Monster Hunter Tri, not least because it was a terrific Wii title that had the impressive scale and online functionality often reserved for its HD rivals. There was a nagging feeling amongst some, however, that the story in...
News Project X Zone Trailer is 10 Minutes of Chaos
And thirty seconds of clarity
Capcom-Namco-SEGA strategy RPG Project X Zone might not make sense just yet — we blame all that pesky Japanese writing and dialogue — but its blend of tactical turns-based battles and all-out chaos makes it fun to watch. The trailer below shows what the game looks like in action (though you'd probably already...
News Here's the Monster Hunter 4 Trailer You Wanted
Beastly
Yesterday we told you about Monster Hunter 4's spring release in Japan, announced yesterday alongside a new trailer. This is that trailer. Like last year's Monster Hunter 4 concept video, this trailer shows off new terrain features, the ability to climb on monsters and destructible surroundings. It also teases new monsters alongside...
News Monster Hunter 4 Attacks Japan in Spring 2013
Take cover
Capcom's Summer Jam event has revealed a Spring 2013 release window for the much anticipated Monster Hunter 4. The 3DS-exclusive game includes brand new monsters as well as series mainstays Tigrex, Rathalos and Rathian, according to Andriasang. Capcom showed off a new trailer for the game but, as of the time of writing, it hasn't made it...
News 3DS Leads Japanese Market to Year-on-Year Gains
Nintendo dominates home country
Strong performances from 3DS software and hardware saw the Japanese games market grow for the first time in two years. Between 26th December and 24th June, the Japanese market was worth 193.4 billion Yen, a 0.07% increase from 191.98bn over the same period last year. 63% of that figure came from software sales, up...
News Masahiro Sakurai Steps Up as Keynote Speaker at CEDEC
Talking about video games, presumably
Masahiro Sakurai has gained a reputation as the go-to man for some of Nintendo's key franchises that don't necessarily have Mario in the title. As a young employee at Nintendo he created Kirby, and has also masterminded the three entries in the Super Smash Bros. series, while also taking on the upcoming Wii U...
News Project X Zone Hits Japan on 11th October
Now, about that worldwide release...
Project X Zone, the RPG mash-up featuring well-known characters from Capcom, SEGA and Namco Bandai franchises, has been generating a lot of hype in Japan. Teasing details about battle mechanics, featured characters and even the in-game music have been coming thick and fast, with the most important reveal so far...
News Pokémon Black & White 2 Sells 1.6m in Two Days
Still big in Japan
Pokémon Black & White 2 landed in Japan on Saturday 23rd June and racked up an astonishing 1,618,621 sales across the country in its first weekend. It's the fastest-selling game of the year, the first 2012 game on any platform to pass 1m sales and the third fastest-selling DS game of all time. It's a big drop-off in sales...
News Official 3DS XL Japanese Website Launches
No blue in Nintendo's homeland
Now that the new 3DS XL has been announced, Nintendo has wasted little time in launching an official website in Japan. Interestingly, Japan has red + black and silver + black models, like Europe and North America, but doesn't have the blue + black version, opting instead for an all-white console. The all-white version...
News New Animal Crossing 3DS Trailer Straight from Japan
Serene mode engaged
Angry that Animal Crossing won't reach Europe until 2013 and North America until... well, who knows when? Watch this new Japanese trailer for the game and all your stress might just melt away or, perhaps, become more strongly amplified. The video shows tonnes of new touches like solar panels to install outside, new shops and...
News Japan Gets New Skyward Sword Link Figure in October
Go Figma
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's interpretation of Link gets immortalised in resin later this year, when Japanese manufacturer Max Factory puts out its Master Sword Link figurine. The ¥3,800 statue — that's about £30 or $47 — comes with Link, a Master Sword and Hylian Shield (of course), as well as an effects piece for his sword...
News Yoshinori Ono Still Overworked Despite Health Scare
Strong arm tactics
On a press tour of Asia earlier this year, Yoshinori Ono was admitted to hospital and stepped down from his role as Street Fighter producer following the health scare. While you might have expected Ono's hectic work schedule to slow down after the incident, a new interview with Eurogamer.net reveals that's not the case. Ono...
News Dragon Quest 3D Smashes 500k Sales in Its First Week
Terry's wonderful
3DS remake Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry's Wonderland 3D has shot to the top of the Japanese charts with an incredible 513,183 units sold in its first week. The much-anticipated release sent 3DS hardware sales over 100,000 units, shifting 101,075 in a week, a near-90% increase on the previous week's 55,212 sales. Thanks to Dragon...
News We'll Learn New Monster Hunter 4 Details Next Month
Get ready for a tail spin
Last year's revelation of 3DS exclusive Monster Hunter 4 was a big moment, but since then we haven't heard much more about Capcom's inevitably monstrous hit. Well, that'll end at the end of June, when the publisher releases more details at a Japanese event. Capcom Summer Jam takes place in Tokyo from 30th June to 1st July...
News DS Car Navigation Arrives in Japan
Courtesy of Toyota
A lot of modern cars have satellite navigation and as many buttons as Apollo 11, but Toyota has decided that perhaps the whole experience can be a bit more easy-going in the Japanese market, if a bit of Nintendo is thrown into the mix. The car manufacturer has created the Smart Navi car navigational system that uses a DS — and...
News Japanese 3DS Television Service To Be Cancelled
Itsu no Ma ni Terebi no more
Since June last year 3DS owners in Japan have had access to Itsu no Ma ni Terebi, a video service that has produced regular and exclusive content via SpotPass. Like the former Wii service Wii no Ma, Nintendo has decided to take the service off the air. In the past year the channel has offered content from Fuji Television...
News Nintendo Japan Discontinues Aqua Blue 3DS
Cobalt from the blue
Nintendo of Japan will soon end production of the Aqua Blue 3DS console. The company's 3DS page lists the currently available colours, with Aqua Blue bearing the note "scheduled to end production shortly" (近日生産終了予定). In March, Nintendo released the Cobalt Blue 3DS for Japan, so it makes sense to stick...
News Dynasty Warriors VS Won't Come Westward
Region locked
Dynasty Warriors VS won't leave Japan. Tecmo Koei community manager Chin Soon Sun made the pronouncement on Twitter: Dynasty Warriors VS (for the Nintendo 3DS) - This title is for Japan only & will not be localized and released for / in overseas. Shame — we wanted to enjoy some feudal fighting dressed as Link and Samus.
News Level-5 CEO Raises Possibility of Inazuma Eleven MMORPG
Possible, but strange
The Inazuma Eleven series is still relatively unknown outside of Japan. The first two DS titles have arrived in Europe, though only after a fair bit of waiting, while the third for the system, the series debut on 3DS and two Wii spin-offs are yet to arrive outside of Nintendo's homeland. We can safely assume, due to the volume...
News Mario Party 9 has Sales to Celebrate in the Japanese Chart
3DS still having a good time
Although it's been available in PAL regions and North America since March, Mario Party 9 has only just been released in Japan. The Media Create charts, as reported by Andriasang, report that it sold 152,883 copies in its debut week, earning it second place in the charts behind the PS3 version of Resident Evil: Operation...
News Dragon Quest X Wii Lands in Japan on 2nd August
Wii U version still a secret
Square Enix will release its online RPG Dragon Quest X in Japan this August. The Wii game lands on 2nd August in two editions: the standard game costs ¥6,980, or you can buy it with a USB memory card for ¥8,980. If you buy the solus game, you'll need to provide your own USB memory stick with at least 16GB capacity,...
News Nintendo Posts First Annual Loss in 30 Years
But lower than expected
Nintendo made a 43 billion Yen net loss in the past financial year. A straight currency conversion puts the loss at $529m USD or £327m GBP. The company had originally predicted a 65 billion Yen net loss, but clawed back some of the deficit with strong software, particularly in Japan. The Yen also devalued compared to the...
News Fire Emblem: Awakening Battles to Number One in Japanese Chart
An early victory
The latest Media Create Japanese chart results are in, and Fire Emblem: Awakening has stormed to the software number one position with an impressive 242,600 sales: more than the other nine top ten titles combined. The intriguing Code of Princess, an action-brawler on 3DS, made its debut at number two with a more modest 19,554 units...
News Animal Crossing Tobidase Reaches Japan This Fall
Come inside
Animal Crossing 3DS has an official title and release window for Japan, those lucky blighters. Its full Japanese title is Doubutsu no Mori: Tobidase. Tobidase means 'jumping out' of something, a phrase often used to describe the 3DS's 3D capabilities but which Nintendo president Satoru Iwata says also refers to the game's wireless...
News 3DS Gets Pokémon Black & White 2 AR Apps
Gotta snap 'em all
Pokémon Black & White 2 is coming to DS, but 3DS owners who want to beef up their experience can do so with the release of two new eShop applications. One is a follow-up to Pokédex 3D, updated with the new moves and information from Black and White 2. In Japan at least, the original Pokédex 3D will be removed from sale,...
News Organise Your Home Menu With New 3DS Update
All the fun of folders
If your Home Menu's looking a little cluttered these days, you might want to anticipate the new 3DS system update in a few days that adds folders to the mix. You'll be able to create folders to hold as many as 60 tiles each, which should certainly de-clutter that menu. You can name your folders too, which should make finding...
News Nintendo Direct April 2012 - Nintendo Reveals New Super Mario Bros. 2 for 3DS
Wa-ha!
We knew Nintendo is working on a new 2D Mario for 3DS, and now we know it's New Super Mario Bros. 2. Satoru Iwata revealed the game during the latest Nintendo Direct broadcast, pledging it'll see release in Japan this August. Nintendo of America has also confirmed an August release via Twitter. Iwata
News "Too Many Hurdles" to Ni No Kuni DS Translation
Magic book blamed
Level-5 and Studio Ghibli collaboration Ni No Kuni is getting an English release on PS3 in 2013, but its DS counterpart won't be leaving Japan. Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino explained to Famitsu (via Andriasang) some of the difficulties preventing the portable adventure reaching the West. The DS game comes with a large Magic Master...
News First Pokémon Black & White 2 Footage Revealed
Unova drill
Japanese show Pokémon Smash led with the first gameplay footage of Pokémon Black & White 2 this past weekend, showing the newly frosty Unova in motion. In the trailer below you can see new areas, trainers, gym leaders and much more. It's pretty exciting. Pokémon Black & White 2 is due out in Japan in June, and we'll get it a...
News New Trainers and Town in Pokémon Black & White 2
All change
Worried that Pokémon Black & White 2 is just a rehash of the original? New details from Coro Coro comics should put your mind to rest. The Japanese magazine has revealed B&W2 will feature new playable trainers, a new town and new gym leaders. Set two years after Pokémon Black and White, it's still set in Unova (Isshu in Japan)...
News Monsters Abound in Terry's Wonderland 3D Trailer
When in Rome
The very first Dragon Warrior Monsters is getting a full 3D makeover in the scaly form of Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry's Wonderland 3D to give its full title. Square Enix just released a four minute trailer of the 3DS game, and boy is it full of monsters. Of course, being a Monsters title you're not just battling against the slimy...
News Donkey Kong Jr. and Sonic Blast Head to Japan 3DS VC
G, Sonic
Two more for the 3DS Virtual Console in Japan: NES title Donkey Kong Jr. and Sonic Blast (aka G Sonic) for Game Gear. Neither title is the most fondly remembered in its respective canon, though Sonic Blast has the dubious distinction of being the last game commercially released for the Game Gear in Japan. Knuckles is playable too, which is...
News Pit and Pokémon Share Strong March Sales in Japan
Not in the top spot though
Pokémon Conquest — aka Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition in Japan — was the best-selling Nintendo title in the Land of the Rising Sun last month. The strategy crossover was released on 17th March, meaning it shifted 242,192 units in two weeks. In third place was Kid Icarus: Uprising, with 144,468 sales in the ten days...
News 3DS Sales Jump in Japan Thanks to Kingdom Hearts
Another big week
Last week 3DS sales jumped 50% thanks to Kid Icarus: Uprising; this week it's Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance bringing about the rise. Square Enix's Disney crossover RPG sold 213,579 units in its first week. By comparison, Kid Icarus shifted 132,526 copies in its first seven days on sale, but this week dropped to fourth place...
News Japan Gets Customisable Club Nintendo Polo Shirts
Get Rover here
Want to be the best dressed gamer out there? These customisable polo shirts are just the thing. Club Nintendo in Japan is offering the shirts to all members for the cost of 550 points. You can choose from one of eight colours and one of six embroidered icons: Donkey Kong, a Fire Flower, Rover from Animal Crossing, Mr Game & Watch...
News Japanese Virtual Console List: April 2012
Slowing down
It's a bit of a slow month this time for Japan, as only two new games will be released. Neither are big surprises: Europe already got one a while ago and the other has already been announced for European release. Both of them are pretty nice games though, so although the offerings are slim compared to normal, at least they're of good...
News Two Code of Princess Trailers Fight to the Fore
Full of heart
3DS scrapper Code of Princess — from the same team behind SEGA Saturn classic Guardian Heroes, remember — is shaping up to be one intriguing title, as these two new trailers show off. The first video is what you'd expect: anime cut scenes, Japanese singing and a jester fighting with a guitar. The second shows off the game's chaotic...
News Kid Icarus Ignites 3DS Sales Spike in Japan
Up nearly 50%
Kid Icarus: Uprising is doing the business for Nintendo in Japan, as hardware sales following its release increased nearly 50% week-on-week. As Masahiro Sakurai's game sold 132,526 units in Japan to top the software chart, 3DS hardware sales hit 94,011, up almost exactly 30,000 on the previous week's tally of 64,017. 3DS accounted for...
News Five Glorious Minutes of Fire Emblem: Awakening Video
What more do you need to know?
It's all in Japanese, but that won't stop you enjoying this video of Fire Emblem: Kakusei (aka Fire Emblem: Awakening), will it? From dialogue and cut scenes to battles and maps, it's got all the daily Fire Emblem nutrition you need. The game's out in Japan next month. Nintendo of Europe has confirmed it'll release the...
News Wario Land 2 is Japan-Bound
Stolen treasure recovered
Japanese 3DS owners can continue their journey through Wario's wicked world next week when Wario Land II reaches the Virtual Console. While here in the West we got two versions of Wario's sophomore outing — one for Game Boy and a revamped Game Boy Color release — Japan only got the colour game, so that's the version...
News Coro Coro Comics 3DS Console Announced
Japanese gamers win again
We often tell you about limited edition 3DS consoles being released in Japan, simply because Nintendo's homeland has so many. There have been hardware exclusives dedicated to various themes, games and anniversaries, though the latest is arguably the most attractive. The console shown in this article's image is celebrating...
News Dynasty Warriors' Samus & Link Costumes Move Like This
Zero-ing in
Those Samus and Link costumes in Dynasty Warriors Vs. certainly look nice in stills, but how about in motion? Your wish is Tecmo Koei's command. The trailer below shows small snippets of Dynasty Warriors' characters clad in the garb of Nintendo's famous blond/e hero/ine, plus footage of Dead or Alive: Dimensions' Ryu Hayabusa and Ayane...
News Intelligent Systems Rejected Modern-Day Fire Emblem Idea
Gunfire Emblem?
As we prepare for Fire Emblem: Awakening to reach the Western world, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata sat down with some of the game's development staff to discuss this latest entry in the tactical fantasy series. Producer Hitoshi Yamagami and project manager Higuchi Masahiro began discussing the 3DS instalment while working on 2010's...
News New Film "100 Yen" Looks at Japan's Arcade History
Insert coin
A new documentary exploring Japan's still-thriving arcade scene is about to hit the 'net. 100 Yen: The Japanese Arcade Experience — a reference to the nationwide shortage of 100 Yen coins following the release of the original Space Invaders — investigates what's helped Japanese arcades stay alive, while those in the West have all-but...
