Tag: Japan - Page 12
Random Nintendo Shows Switch Owners How To Delete Games, Uses Super Mario Bros. 35 As An Example
"Never forget what they took from us"
As you might recall, Nintendo released a "limited-time" battle royale title called Super Mario Bros. 35 on the Switch eShop in 2020. Although the game could still be active, the company decided to take it offline when Mario's anniversary celebrations ended. If it wasn't already hard enough for fans of this...
Review Cotton Fantasy (Switch) - A Joyful, Mischievous, And Incredibly Varied Shmup
Any Witch Way
When it comes to the cute-’em-up sub-genre, the characterful witch Cotton and the series to which she lends her name are effectively royalty. There are other games that have been important in defining a niche where shmups’ staple fighter craft, tanks and laser turrets are replaced with kittens, candy canes and cuddly toys, of...
But it needs to know what you think...
Right before the end of 2021, during one of Hamster's Arcade Archives streams, Hori revealed a special "retro game controller" designed for old-school gaming and Arcade Archives titles. So far they've come up with a bunch of concepts - including a modular one, which would allow plays to change the controller...
Japanese Charts Mario Party Superstars Knocks Pokémon Diamond And Pearl Off Top Spot
Switch dominates software and hardware charts
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the week ending 9th January, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have lost their position at the top of the charts for the first time since launch. This week, that honour instead goes to Mario Party Superstars, which is up from...
News Among Us Is Getting Turned Into A Manga
Amanga Us
Among Us' cultural saturation has reached new highs, as it was announced today that the social deduction game would be getting a one-off manga adaptation in the February edition of Bessatsu Corocoro, a monthly Japanese manga magazine. "How on earth," you might ask, "can they turn Among Us into a manga?" Well, it wouldn't be the first...
News Sega Has Established A New Development Studio In Japan
Will be led by Takaya Segawa
Sega, the video game company behind Sonic the Hedgehog and the Yakuza series, has established a new studio in Sapporo, Japan. It's been set up in response to the rapid expansion of the games industry and will be Sega's second development base in the country. According to the official website, 'Sega Sapporo' is made up...
News The Pokémon Company Is Sponsoring Sumo Wrestling Again
Snorlax used Wrestle!
Following the success of The Pokémon Company's partnership with sumo wrestling tournaments last year, the collaboration is continuing, with The Pokémon Company sponsoring themed banners and kimonos. You'll notice that the Pokémon featured are specifically those from Sinnoh, referencing the recent release of Brilliant...
Video Pokémon Legends: Arceus Gets Three New Commercials
Gotta watch 'em all
Nintendo yesterday uploaded a brand new six-minute trailer of Pokémon Legends: Arceus, a Switch release that arrives later this month on January 28th. To go with it, it's also shared three new commercials - showcasing the game's environments, mechanics and all of the Pokémon trainers can expect to encounter in the region of...
Japanese Charts Pokémon And Nintendo Switch Dominate The Holiday Period
Sales data arrives for two weeks over Christmas
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the two weeks spanning 20th December to 2nd January, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are still performing very strongly indeed at the top of the pile. The two games sold a further 231,275 retail copies combined in Japan over...
News Switch Sold More Units Than Every Other Console Combined In Japan Last Year
In line with its 2020 results
While Switch proved to be a major hit in the heavily disrupted 2020, production and distribution challenges nevertheless meant some sales were left behind. It seems that 2021, with some improvements in supply levels, was another strong selling year for Nintendo; now there are Japanese sales figures to reinforce that...
News Golf Story Is The Next Free Trial For Nintendo Switch Online In Japan
A hole-in-one
If you're a subscriber of Nintendo's Switch Online service and happen to be based in Japan, the next free game trial you'll be given access to is the RPG sports title, Golf Story. It'll be made available in this region from 7th January (tomorrow) and will be playable until the following Friday on January 14th. You can also...
Random Pokémon Piplup Aims To Get Real Swole In This New Fitness Video
Don't worry, it's only the "Beginner's Edition" if you want to join in
It's not enough for Piplup to have its own ASMR videos and social media accounts – this adorable Pokémon now has its own series of fitness videos, too. The Pokémon Company has just released a video that shows Piplup training in a Gold's Gym fitness club, with the ultimate...
Bring it
Video game companies around the globe have been preparing for 2022 for some time now, and it includes Koei Tecmo. In an end-of-year 4Gamer feature, the Japanese company teased what's to come in the new year. Apparently, it intends to reveal a number of projects that have been in development for several years and will pave the way for the...
News Here Are Japan's Top 30 Best-Selling Switch eShop Games For 2021
Monster Hunter Rise takes out top spot
It's that time of year where companies reveal all sorts of data about consumer spending habits, and on the Switch front, Nintendo has shared the top 30 best-selling games on the Japanese eShop in 2021. Capcom's latest entry in the Monster Hunter series took out the top spot and following this were all sorts of...
Random Shigeru Miyamoto Hijacks Nintendo's Twitter Account
To thank fans for voting Nintendo in Japan's TV poll
Nintendo fans on Twitter got quite the surprise yesterday when a tweet by the official company account sent out a message from the creator of Mario, Shigeru Miyamoto. Yes, in a short tweet - Miyamoto took control of the company's Twitter account (don't worry, we're sure he had permission) to...
"Leave it to the big companies to overwhelm the players... let's do what only we can do!"
Here at Nintendo Life we're huge fans of Ancient, the company set up by composer Yuzo Koshiro and his family which has worked on some absolute brilliant games over the last three decades — including Mega Drive classics Streets of Rage 2 and Beyond Oasis, and...
News Japan's Top 100 Console Games Of All Time Revealed, According To A Nationwide TV Network Poll
50,000 players voted
The Japanese television network TV Asahi ran a special broadcast yesterday where 50,000 players around the nation voted for their favorite console (and handheld) video games in a poll. The votes were there compiled into a "Top 100" list and Nintendo took out the top position - with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild...
News Dragon Quest X Offline Has Been Delayed Until Summer 2022
The team wants it to be the best experience possible
Dragon Quest X Offline for Nintendo Switch was due to arrive in Japan on 26th February next year, but it's now the latest game to delayed. The title will now launch in Summer 2022, and the DLC expansion content has also been postponed. The reason behind this tough decision is to improve the...
News M2 Is Bringing Yet Another Classic Shmup To Switch Next Year
Update: Release date and trailer revealed
Update: M2 has revealed that Toaplan Arcade Garage: Hishou Same! Same! Same! will launch in Japan on April 28th, 2022 (thanks, Gematsu). The collection will come in both digital and physical forms, with the latter shipping with a download code for Sennou Game Teki Paki. Players will also have access
News More Klonoa Trademarks Have Surfaced Online
Is Bandai Namco up to something?
Update [Thu 23rd Dec, 2021 02:30 GMT]: Following on from last week, trademarks have now been filed in Canada on 17th December and Europe on 20th December for 'Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series' (via Gematsu). Update [Sat 18th Dec, 2021
Where's our diploma in slime-slicing?
Ancient — the family company of VGM composer Yuzo Koshiro and developers of everything from Sonic The Hedgehog’s debut Game Gear outing to Gotta Protectors for the 3DS — released Royal Anapoko Academy in Japan on 16th December 2021. Like much of its output in recent years, this light-hearted RPG is an...
Welcome to episode 74,651 of 'Japan Gets All The Best Stuff'
The idea that Japan gets all the best stuff is a long-established and indisputable fact. In the West we tend to either get cheap tat on the level of a McDonald's toy or super premium figures and statues costing thousands — but Japan seems to get a ton of quality everyday video game merch...
Random Who Needs The Mother Games When You Can Have This Watch Instead
But seriously, can we have the games now?
Mother and EarthBound fans located in Japan might not be able to enjoy the older entries in the series on the current generation Nintendo hardware, but at least they'll be able to tell the time with this themed digital watch made by Casio. Hobonichi has announced a collaboration with the Japanese...
An "original episode" awaits
Dragon Quest X Offline is scheduled to arrive in Japan on 26th February 2022, and in the lead-up to its release, Square Enix has shared some new details about the game. For those who have played DQX before, there will still be some new content to enjoy and a new character to meet in the offline version. Here's the scoop...
News AAA Clock's 'Squid Game'-Inspired DLC Is Coming To The West In Time For New Year
"What better way to measure New Year's Eve until midnight than by AAA Clock?"
Update: RedDeerGames has confirmed that AAA Clock's new 'deluxe' version and its accompanying DLC will be coming to the west: AAA Clock has just been ranked alongside Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl and Shin Megami Tensei V in the new, "Most Played" section...
News Deathsmiles Collection Gets A Western eShop Release At The End Of The Month
The shoot 'em up of gothic horrors is back
Update [Sat 18th Dec, 2021 06:55 GMT]: It's official, Deathsmiles I.II is coming to the Switch eShop here in the West on 30th December 2021. It'll be available for $39.99 USD or your regional equivalent. It'll require 3.5 GB of space and supports up to two players. Our review for the Japanese version of the...
News Sega's Astro City Mini Is Getting A 'TATE' Version Packed With Shmup Goodness
Batsugun! Battle Bakraid! Armed Police Batrider!
Sega's Astro City Mini is getting a new version that features a vertically-oriented screen, it has been revealed. The Astro City Mini V looks much like the original, but its screen is tilted 90 degrees to accommodate 'TATE' games. Taito is taking a similar route with its similar Egret II Mini, which...
News Cave Story's Secret Santa Is Available Now On Switch, But Only In Japan
Available for a limited time only
If you're looking for something to help get you in the festive mood, then Cave Story's Secret Santa might be just the ticket. Developed by Nicalis in cooperation with Cave Story creator Studio Pixel, Cave Story's Secret Santa is “a bite-sized side story of stealth and puzzle-solving, with familiar characters and...
News Bub Is Back! Taito Is Developing A New Puzzle Bobble Game
Get ready to Bust-A-Move
Taito's Bubble Bobble series is currently celebrating its 35th anniversary and as part of this, the Japanese company has announced a new entry in the spin-off series Puzzle Bobble (Bust-A-Move) is currently in development. Puzzle Bobble game director Tsuyoshi Tozaki said the new entry would "of course include its trademark...
Japanese Charts Nintendo Switch And Pokémon Diamond And Pearl Remakes Continue To Dominate
Pokémon's latest releases pass 2 million boxed sales in the country
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the week ending 12th December, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have remained on top for a fourth consecutive week, in the process passing two million physical copy sales. It was a quiet week overall with...
Round Up Every Game Featured In Japan's Indie World Showcase - December 2021
Including some exclusive announcements
Whenever Nintendo hosts a special presentation, it normally does one for Japan and one for fans in the West. The latest Indie World showcase was no different - with Nintendo uploading a very different video in its homeland. If you didn't happen to catch it live, there's no need to worry as we've rounded up all...
News Nintendo Is Removing Credit Card Support From The 3DS And Wii U eShop Next Month (Japan)
A timely reminder
Nintendo's customer service Twitter account for Japan has issued a reminder that it will be ending credit card and prepaid card support for the 3DS and Wii U next month on 18th January 2022, 9 AM JST. The company previously announced these changes for 3DS and Wii U users in Europe, Australia and New Zealand back in 2019. Here's a...
News Super Nintendo World's Getting Adorable Limited-Edition Holiday Merch
And we want it all
If you're lucky enough to be visiting Japan's Super Nintendo World over the holidays, you'll be pleased to know that you'll be able to get your hands on some lovely limited-edition merch. If you're not lucky enough to be visiting – like us – then these images showing what you could have had will sadly have to do. Visitors...
News Nintendo Is Investing In Office Space In Japan To House More Game Development
Nintendo HQ 2: HQ Reloaded
Once upon a time, Nintendo was a little playing card company, located in a regular-sized office building in Kyoto, Japan. They're a bit bigger now, and you may have seen their boring-but-iconic Kyoto headquarters before: It's a big white cube covered in windows. But it looks like there's about to be a second big cube...
Random Ace Attorney Says OBJECTION! To Drugs In Japanese Anti-Marijuana Campaign
Hold it, but don't pass it
6,000 posters and 4,000 leaflets featuring the characters from The Great Ace Attorney have been printed in Japan in an attempt to combat "cannabis abuse", Capcom announced today. The partnership between Capcom and the government has been going on since 2009, and has been aimed towards "crime prevention enlightenment" as...
Japanese Charts Pokémon Diamond And Pearl Remakes Stay Top, Big Brain Academy Lands In Top Three
As Switch locks out the entire top ten
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the week ending 5th December, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have remained on top for a third consecutive week. The two games sold another 164,580 physical copies combined in Japan last week, taking their total physical sales count to...
News Level-5's Mech RPG Megaton Musashi Gets A Free DLC Update
But it's still exclusive to Japan...
Update [Thu 9th Dec, 2021 02:00 GMT]: This new free update is now available. Level-5 has also released a roadmap for the game, which includes the anime series and a "large-scale" paid update coming in Fall 2022 (thanks, Gematsu): December 9, 2021 Free Update Vol. 1: Counterattack Boost Patch Superdreadnought...
News Fantasy Life Online Comes Out In English On iOS And Android Today
It's not Fantasy Life 2, but we'll take it!
After Level-5's wonderful cult classic Fantasy Life came out on 3DS, and blew us all away with its depth, heart, and charm, it was a little disappointing to find out that the sequel would be a mobile-only game called Fantasy Life Online. It was even more disappointing to find out that it was only destined...
News Play As A Dog With A Machine Gun In 'Metal Dogs', Coming To Switch In Japan
"Bow Wow" and "Woof-Woof-Woof" versions available
Top-down roguelike action game Metal Dogs is coming to Switch next year, but only in Japan, publisher Kadokawa and developer 24Frame have announced. The game is all about three dogs — Pochi the Shiba Inu, Bell the Doberman, and Bonanza the Bulldog — who live in a post-apocalyptic world in which...
Not a bad launch, then
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the week ending 28th November, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are still leading the pack by a supremely comfortable margin. In their second week on sale, the two games shifted another 355,046 physical copies in Pokémon's home region of Japan. That...
Video Square Enix Shares First Triangle Strategy 'Character & Story' Trailer
Get to know Roland Glenbrook
One game we've been keeping a close eye on for some time now is Square Enix's upcoming turn-based tactical RPG, Triangle Strategy. It's due out at some point in 2022, exclusively on the Nintendo Switch. While we've already seen quite a bit of it - and even played an early demo of the game, Square Enix has now released...
News The Danganronpa Team Is Working On A New "Dark Fantasy Mystery" Game
Introducing Enigma Archives: Rain Code
Update [Tue 30th Nov, 2021 05:30 GMT]: Spike Chunsoft has now released an official trailer on its English YouTube channel. Original story [Sun 28th Nov, 2021 07:05 GMT]: Spike Chunsoft and Tookyo Games have announced a new "dark fantasy mystery" game titled Enigma Archives: Rain Code. It brings together the...
News Tokyo Police Arrest Man For Re-Selling Around 200 Consoles And Games
Was entrusted with deliveries of Switch and PS5 units
With demand outstripping supply in the gaming space it's led to increases in scalping and thefts, with another example appearing in the Japanese media (via Sankei and Kotaku). With Switch systems and the PS5s in particular being hard to find in Japan, one man entrusted with a significant amount...
Video Hands-On With The 3DS Dragon Quest The West Never Got To Play
Twas an Elusive Age, indeed
Dragon Quest XI is a fantastic game that you can play on Switch right now, but it's worth remembering that back when it originally launched, it was on another Nintendo system: the 3DS. When Dragon Quest XI hit Japanese store shelves in 2017, it was released on the PS4 and 3DS. The 3DS version is fascinating because it's...
Review Toaplan Arcade Garage (Switch) - Two Historic Shmups Archived By Arcade Port Masters M2
Easy, tiger
In recent years fans of the 2D shooter form have had to adjust their expectation of what a port can be, largely thanks to the sublime M2 ShotTriggers series. Indeed, we’ve been rather spoiled by that particular run of games. A long-established convention across gaming’s history states that console ports never quite meet the quality...
Gallery Square Enix Shares New Screenshots Of Dragon Quest X Offline, Coming To Switch In 2022
It's Japan only, for now
Earlier this year, Square Enix celebrated the Dragon Quest 35th anniversary with multiple announcements, and one of them was Dragon Quest X Offline. As the title reveals, this is a completely "offline" version of the MMO Dragon Quest X featuring updated chibi visuals. At the moment, it's locked in for a Japan release on...
The 3DS titles are still out in front
Yesterday, Famitsu released its latest game charts - revealing Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl for Nintendo Switch got off to an amazing start in Japan, shifting 1,395,642 copies in just the first three days. This figure was based on in-store purchases alone and means these titles are now...
Japanese Charts Pokémon Diamond And Pearl Remakes Go Top In Tremendous Opening Weekend
Sinn-oh my goodness...
Famitsu's Japanese chart figures are now in for the week ending 21st November, revealing that Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have absolutely destroyed the competition with a cracking opening weekend. As was actually revealed early this morning, the games managed to sell a combined total of 1,395,642 physical...
News NES Classic Battletoads Is Getting A Physical Re-Release, But Only In Japan
Columbus Circle is launching a new version today
Battletoads is one of Rare's most beloved games from the NES era. An attempt to create a media brand that could rival the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Battletoads mixed platforming with side-scrolling combat, and is famous for its unforgiving difficulty level. It spawned several sequels (including a...
News Pokémon's Diamond & Pearl Remakes Become The Second Biggest Switch Game Launch In Japan
And have surpassed Sword and Shield's debut sales
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl for Nintendo Switch appear to have experienced a strong start in Japan. According to early sales data from Famitsu, the remakes have sold an estimated combined total of 1,395,642 million copies in just the first three days. This figure includes standard...
