A visual novel
Thursday, January 7, 2010
A visual novel (ビジュアルノベル, bijuaru noberu) is an interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics, usually with anime-style art. As the name might suggest, they resemble mixed-media novels or tableau vivant stage plays. Visual novels are commonly called dating sims in English[by whom], a misnomer as visual novels are classified as a sub-genre of adventure games and not simulation games. This has led to confusion with the other genre known as dating sims, which often shares a similar visual format with visual novels, but has gameplay based on statistics.
In Japanese, a distinction is often made between visual novels proper (abbreviated NVL) and adventure games (abbreviated AVG or ADV). This distinction is normally lost in the West, since both are streamlined compared to Western adventure games. Visual novels and ADVs are especially prevalent in Japan, where they make up nearly 70% of PC games released. They are rarely produced for video game consoles, but the more popular games are sometimes ported to systems such as the Dreamcast or the PlayStation 2. The market for visual novels outside of Japan, however, is small.
Mixture Vocaloid Fan Book
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Mixture, produced by Kaori Minakami (水上カオリ) is a gorgeous collection of Vocaloid illustrations inspired by the Vocaloid original songs themselves. This doujinshi was released during Comiket 76, is 24 pages long and entirely in color.As I mentioned, all the pictures are inspired by the music and the art work in the songs, so links to the inspiration Niconico Douga videos are provided next to each of the illustrations. I've always been more into the art work than the music for Vocaloid, so some of these were new to me ^^; The cover illustration of Hatsune Miku is featured in full inside of the book, and is the one illustration that was not associated with a song.
The second illustration is the opening for this post, featuring the "Test Tube Princess" from the song of the same title, which you can watch here. I love Kaori Minakami's rendition, it's hauntingly beautiful. I'm really not a fan of the song though ^^
The second illustration is the opening for this post, featuring the "Test Tube Princess" from the song of the same title, which you can watch here. I love Kaori Minakami's rendition, it's hauntingly beautiful. I'm really not a fan of the song though ^^
The next one is a very sexy picture of Kaito and Hatsune Miku, influenced by the カンタレラ (Kantarera) song. This one is sung by Kaito and Miku, and the video though in black and white, has them dressed in much the same way as the Minakami illustration.
There are also three guest artists included in the book, the first being Yuhsa Nitoh. Yuhsa Nitoh was inspired by the amusing Popipo (ぽっぴっぽ) Vegetable Juice song and video.
The second is for "Stardust Utopia" (星屑ユートピア) sung solely by Megurine Luka. And the final one is of "Toeto"; who from what I've read is supposed to be Megurine Luka as a child. Either way, that song is adorable, and so is the illustration for it. This is a great collection of art work that really lets you explore the music of Vocaloid at the same time!
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3, released in Japan as Persona 3
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3, released in Japan as Persona 3 (ペルソナ3, Perusona 3), is the the fourth video game in the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona series of console role-playing games developed by Atlus. The game is also part of the larger Megami Tensei series of video games. Persona 3 was originally published in 2006 on the PlayStation 2 by Atlus in Japan; the North American release of the game was delayed due to issues with the publication of the official art book. An add-on disc entitled Persona 3 FES, containing a "director's cut" of the original game, as well as a new epilogue, was released alongside Persona 3 in Japan in 2007, and in 2008 in other territories. A PlayStation Portable version of Persona 3, titled Persona 3 Portable was released in Japan on November 1, 2009. The remake adds the ability to play as a female protagonist, new story elements and music, and a new interface designed for the PSP.In Persona 3, the player takes the role of a male high-school student who joins the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES), a group of students investigating the "Dark Hour," a time period between one day and the next that few people are aware of. During the Dark Hour, the player enters Tartarus, a large tower containing Shadows, creatures that feed on the minds of humans. To fight the Shadows, each member of SEES is able to summon a Persona, a manifestation of a person's inner self. The game's most iconic feature is the method by which the members of SEES release their Personas: by firing a gun-like object called an Evoker at their head. In addition to the standard elements of role-playing games, Persona 3 includes elements of simulation games, as the game's protagonist progresses day by day through a school year, making friends and forming relationships that improve the strength of his Personas in battle. The North American release of Persona 3 includes the aforementioned art book, along with a selection of music from the official soundtrack.
There are official soundtracks for Persona 3, Persona 3 FES, and Persona 3 Portable, as well as an arrangement album containing music from multiple games in the Persona series. Music from the game has also been performed live at two concerts dedicated to the Persona series. Persona 3 has seen a manga adaption, multiple radio dramas, an anime sequel entitled Persona: Trinity Soul, and its own line of character action figures. Critical reception of Persona 3 was mainly positive; reviewers enjoyed the game's social elements, while some found its combat and environments repetitive. Persona 3 FES was said to give narrative closure to the original game, although it was criticized for not featuring the simulation aspect of Persona 3. The sequel to Persona 3, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4, was released in 2008
Death Note is a Japanese manga series created by writer Tsugumi Ohba and manga artist Takeshi Obata.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Death Note (デスノート, Desu Nōto) is a Japanese manga series created by writer Tsugumi Ohba and manga artist Takeshi Obata. The series centers on Light Yagami, a university student who discovers a supernatural notebook, the "Death Note", dropped on Earth by a shinigami (death god) named Ryuk. The Death Note grants its user the ability to kill anyone whose face they have seen, by writing the victim's name in the notebook. The story follows Light's attempt to create and rule a world cleansed of evil using the notebook, and the complex conflict between him, his opponents and a mysterious detective known to the world only as L.
Death Note was first serialized in 108 chapters by Shueisha in the Japanese manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from December 2003 to May 2006. The series was also published in tankōbon format in Japan starting in May 2004 and ending in October 2006 with a total of twelve volumes. The series was adapted into live-action films released in Japan on June 17, 2006, on November 3, 2006, and on February 2, 2008. The anime series aired in Japan from October 3, 2006, to June 26, 2007. Composed of 37 episodes, the anime was developed by Madhouse and directed by Tetsuro Araki. A light novel based on the series, written by Nisio Isin, was released in Japan. Additionally, various video games have been published by Konami for Nintendo DS.
Viz Media licensed the Death Note manga in North America and has published all the twelve volumes from the series as well as the light novel. The episodes from the anime first appeared in North America as downloadable by IGN. Viz later licensed the anime series and it aired on Bionix. The live-actions briefly played in certain North American theaters since 2008. However, none of the video games titles have thus far been published in North America.
Several publications for manga, anime and other media have added praise and criticism on the Death Note series. The plot and violence from the story have been praised, noting it to be very entertaining. However, the series was banned in China due to various problems people had with children altering their notebooks to resemble a Death Note.
