Gaming in Japan. Reviews, Walkthroughs, News

Square Enix has formally unveiled a moogle-themed board game based off of characters from the acclaimed PS2 title Final Fantasy 12. This certainly isn't thebombastic Final Fantasy 12 remake announcement some fans may have been hoping for. However, it's at least a nice reminder that Square Enix hasn't entirely forgotten about the world of Ivalice and the games that take place within it.

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One gamer has discovered a bag of officially licensed PlayStation-branded pasta from Italy, each piece of which is shaped like the four iconic sacred symbols. This pasta is quite the novelty, to say the least, and it's surely going to go down as one of the weirder bits of merchandising in PlayStation history.

Universal Studios Japan announced that the opening of Super Nintendo World's upcoming Donkey Kong Country-themed expansion has been delayed. Nintendo officially opened the theme park in 2021, recreating the experience of the Super Mario Bros. video games in real-life. A few years later, Universal Studios announced a new Donkey Kong Country-themed expansion, with it being the second Nintendo IP to be represented at the park.

As many fans know, Assassin's Creed Red has been the codename for the franchise's open-world RPG set in Feudal Japan. Sometimes these code names carry implications about a title, such as Assassin's Creed Valhalla's codename being Kingdoms, representing the game's structure. Unfortunately, all that can really be derived from Assassin's Creed Red is its setting in Japan. However, now a leaker has claimed that the real title of Assassin's Creed Red is Assassin's Creed Shadows, which does carry some interesting implications for the title.

Kaiju No. 8, the new sci-fi action anime based on Naoya Matsumoto’s ongoing Shōnen Jump Plus manga, premiered its first episode last Saturday.

Sonic x Shadow Generations has already received age classifications in several jurisdictions, with its latest rating emerging on April 19. This turn of events is a promising sign for Sega's fandom, as it indicates that Sonic x Shadow Generations is on course to hit the store shelves without any delays.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth could have rolled credits much sooner in the story if the game's writer stuck to his original idea.

Atlus has announced that a new wave of merchandise items themed after its hit RPG Persona 3 Reload will have a practical purpose, namely disaster preparation and first aid. The special Persona 3 Reload kits will be sold in Japan through merchandise company Movic and launch in mid-2024.

Just a month since its premiere, X-Men '97 is receiving enthusiastic reviews, pleasing Marvel fans everywhere. The creators of the animated series recently discussed some of their anime inspirations that shaped the show.

The upcoming Donkey Kong Country-themed expansion to Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan has been struck by a delay.

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Belka Games is about to immerse itself in the enchanting world of Eastern culture. Clockmaker, the much loved match-three puzzler from the developer, is about to embark on a season of events and giveaways set in Japan.

Persona 3 Aigis: The First Mission is coming to Steam and the Nintendo Switch. However, this long-forgotten Persona 3 spin-off will not be treated to an official English localization.

Microsoft has announced that the Xbox Mastercard is now available for everyone in the continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii. The Xbox Mastercard launched back in September 2023 as an exclusive perk for Xbox Insiders.

K-pop singer Bibi has released a new song for the upcoming PS5 exclusive Stellar Blade.

The Donkey Kong Country expansion for Universal Studios Japan’s Super Nintendo World has been delayed.

Bosses worried about turnover or wondering how long a new hire will stick around can now turn to AI for a heads-up on who might be next out the door.

Publisher dramatic create and developer MAGES. will release otome visual novel Meiji Tokyo Renka: Full Moon for Switch and PC via Steam in 2024 worldwide with Japanese audio and English, Japanese, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles, the companies announced.

Everybody's Golf developer Clap Hanz will continue to broaden its horizons now it no longer has any formal partnership with Sony, as its next golf game will enter the virtual reality space, but it's only launching on Meta Quest headsets. The game, named Ultimate Swing Golf, releases next month on 16th May 2024 only on Meta Quest 2, 3, and the Pro variant.

Stellar Blade developer Shift Up quite clearly took a lot of inspiration from PS4 great NieR: Automata during the making of its soon-to-be-released PS5 exclusive, but in the case of Automata director Yoko Taro, he thinks that the student has already become the master. In an interview with IGN Japan (via Eurogamer), Taro says Stellar Blade «is a really amazing game. I'd say that it's much better than NieR: Automata.»

In case you'd forgotten, EA and its studio Cliffhanger Games is working on a Black Panther game. The announcement was one of those that's more of a recruitment drive than anything else, so it's likely still years away from release. In fact, the team is still growing; interestingly, one recent job opening confirms the game's structure will be that of an open world title.

The first quarter of 2024 has been crazy, especially if you're a fan of Japanese games. The release schedule has been pretty much non-stop since January, and so earlier in the week, we asked the Push Square community to vote on their favourite titles of the last four months.

Square Enix has released a new Japan-only trailer for upcoming action RPG Visions of Mana — and it's specifically designed to play on the nostalgia of longtime Mana fans. The video depicts the life of a man who's grown up with the franchise, from grabbing his first Mana title as a kid, to watching the games evolve over the course of entire console generations. Finally, he sees a billboard for Visions of Mana, and the cycle is complete.

Japanese studios ALTERCIWS and Lobstudio have announced mystery adventure game Zombie Police: Christmas Dancing with Police Zombies for PC (Steam). It will launch this summer with English, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese language support.

Since the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 era, Japanese developers have struggled to keep up with their Western colleagues, as, according to the NieR series creator, they are not good at adapting technology from overseas for multiple reasons.

The second wave of closed beta testing for large-scale multiplayer mech action game Mecha BREAK for PC will run from April 26 at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET to April 28 at 10:00 p.m. PT / 1:00 a.m. ET, Seasun Games announced. Users can register here.

Pokemon GO has officially teased the addition of Heat Rotom to the game for the upcoming GO Fest. Pokemon GO Players will be able to encounter and catch the Pokemon in the near future.

A Pokemon fan has shared a design for a hypothetical third version of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, calling it Pokemon Viridian. The design has an interesting backstory and the concept has led to Pokemon fans missing third versions of Pokemon games.

A Nintendo modder has created a tiny version of the Wii that actually works. The miniature build is impressive from a technical standpoint, and for fans who enjoy such projects, the pocket-sized Wii creator has shared how it was built so others can recreate it.

Eivor's Raven Clan outfit from Assassin's Creed Valhalla has become available for Assassin's Creed Mirage players to redeem and equip with Basim. Assassin's Creed Valhalla, which was released back in 2020, was Ubisoft's latest large-scaled RPG-style Assassin's Creed game. Set during the Viking age of Anglo-Saxon England, Valhalla introduced a new assassin, named Eivor, who was part of the Raven Clan.

L’Abysse Project has begun its beta test, allowing players to dive into a world of espionage and thrilling card battles. You’ll collect cards to build your deck and battle through the story. The beta testers report a simple but fun battle system, so strategic gameplay shouldn’t overshadow the engaging narrative. L’Abysse Project injects some humor into the classic spy story. It is a highlight to watch your character switch between their goofy reporter cover and their cool secret agent persona.

We are living in a second golden age for console gaming. Active communities, open developer tools and easy distribution have given new life to many once-dead systems. If there's one company who deserves the most thanks for bringing a love for '80s and '90s cartridge-based console gaming back to the semi-mainstream, it's Analogue.

Isekai Dispatcher is a new title that’s a tad different on the horizon. It’s a Pixel art RPG created by Ignition M. In case you remember, I covered another quirky casual title dropped by them recently, PreCats! -Idle Cat Raising.

Playdate maker Panic has revealed that over 150,000 games have been sold since the launch of its storefront, Catalog, in March 2023.

If you were unable to catch this week’s Nintendo IndieWorld showcase, then you missed a surprisingly loaded show. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes got a May release date, WayForward showed off its Yars’ Revenge revival, and Steamworld Heist 2 got an exciting reveal. In the midst of all those headlines, two smaller games were surprise released on the platform: Stitch and Sticky Business. Don’t sleep on either of them, as they’re both worth a purchase.

Nier Automata's director believes Japanese game developers have had difficulty implementing "Western systems" because it was hard for them to move away from Japanese-made game engines.

Famitsu has published its estimated physical game software data for Japan for the week of April 8, 2024 to April 14, 2024.

G-MODE will release ATLUS-developed RPG Persona 3 Aigis: The First Mission as a G-MODE Archives+ title for Switch via Nintendo eShop and PC via Steam in Japan, the company announced. A release date was not announced.

The second wave of closed beta testing for large-scale multiplayer mech action game Mecha BREAK for PC will run from April 26 at 3:00 a.m. PT / 6:00 a.m. ET to April 28 at 9:00 a.m. PT / 12:00 p.m. ET, Seasun Games announced. Users can register here.

The second closed beta test for Kingdom Hearts: Missing Link (which is the first chance for Android users to play the game) has been delayed from the end of April to the start of May.

The latest issue of V-Jump has confirmed that Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero will feature Beerus, Whis, Gohan, Future Gohan, and Videl as playable characters.

Octopath Traveler was abruptly delisted from the Nintendo Switch eShop last month, though amid confusing surrounding why the RPG was no longer available for digital purchase on the system, Square Enix provided assurances that the delisting was only temporary.

Publisher One or EIGHT and developer Team EARTH WARS will release physical standard and Deluxe editions of LOST EPIC for PlayStation 5 and Switch on August 8 in Japan, the companies announced.

Publisher Nintendo and developer ARIKA have released a five-minute overview trailer for Endless Ocean Luminous.

Last year's enjoyable back-to-basics Assassin's Creed entry is now available to play for free, thanks to a limited-time trial.

Lionsgate Television announced on Wednesday that the studio is set to produce an English-language television adaptation of Park-chan Wook’s 2003 thriller Oldboy. The movie, one of the most mesmerizing, memorable dark action movies of the 2000s, started a new wave of Korean action cinema when it was first released. It’s since spawned endless copycats and homages — particularly its grim, bloody single-take hammer-in-a-hallway fight sequence, which filmmakers still frequently cite as an inspiration for their own battle scenes in constricted spaces. A 4K restoration was released in American theaters in 2023, and came in second at the box office in its first week, beaten only by Barbie. Spike Lee remade the movie as an English-language thriller in 2013, but it’s never been adapted for television before.

My Favorite Anime is a column dedicated to collecting the stories of the biggest celebrity anime fans in the world, charting a path from their earliest introductions to Japanese animation to the series and films they love today with two questions: What was your first favorite anime, and what’s your favorite anime now?

The penultimate episode of Shōgun is a big one, in the way only great TV can build to.It binds together everything the past eight hours of the show has built, then punctures the plotlines like daisy chains. And the result is explosive, even before the final moments blow up everything we understand about where this story might be headed. Episode 9, “Crimson Sky,” brings the whole conflict to a fiery head — so it’s no wonder it prominently features the plotline the show’s creators, by their own admission, struggled with the most.

Nintendo’s latest Indie World showcase featured more than a dozen indie games coming to Nintendo Switch in 2024, with some of those titles dropping on the eShop today.

SCHiM will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC via Steam on July 18 for $24.99, publishers Exta Nice and PLAYISM, and developers Ewoud van der Werf and Nils Slijkerman announced.

After the massive success of Stray, the world has been crying out for another big game about cats. Well, our pleas have been answered. The cozy cat sim Little Kitty, Big City will be available for download on May 9 for multiple platforms, including the Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC via Steam. It costs $25 and preorders are available now, with Switch owners getting 10 percent off for the time being. It’s also a Game Pass day one release.

Ubisoft has released a free trial for Assassin’s Creed Mirage on PC and consoles.

The PC version of Ghost of Tsushima will have trophy support, a first for PlayStation‘s PC titles.

Anime-inspired fast-paced first-person shooter Mullet Mad Jack will launch for PC via Steam on May 15, developer Hammer95 announced. It will support English, Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, Russian, and Japanese language options.

Microsoft’s rollout of first-party titles on non-Xbox consoles is continuing. Hi-Fi Rush and Pentiment have been made available on rival platforms in recent weeks, and the next to join that list is Grounded. Obsidian Entertainment’s survival game has now launched for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4, bringing with it support for full cross-platform multiplayer, as well as a host of new content and features.

The Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero character roster continues to grow, as new magazine scans from Japan indicate characters like Beerus, Whis, Gohan, Videl, and Trunks will be playable in-game. Though not yet officially announced worldwide by Bandai Namco, the scans suggest that Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero will draw both from popular and recent major characters as well as from the deep well of story arcs present in the Dragon Ball multiverse.

Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree will release in June 2024, but even if you buy it day one, you might not be able to access the Elden Ring DLC expansion’s new overworld areas and dungeons right away. This is an add-on aimed squarely at those in the later stages of the game, as FromSoftware’s own Elden Lord Hidetaki Miyazaki has revealed in a new Famitsu interview – to gain access, you must first defeat two of the main game’s nastier bosses. Yes, I know that all Elden Ring bosses are nasty, but these two are among the worst, in my experience.

So-net Entertainment Taiwan Limited is all set to release the highly awaited global version of Assault Lily Last Bullet W. Yes, finally, after years of waiting! You can now pre-register for the game and even grab some pretty awesome goodies while doing so!

Sony is said to be readying a Pro version of the PlayStation 5, a more powerful variant of its current-generation console. While the Japanese electronics giant has not yet confirmed the existence of the PS5 Pro, multiple leaks from credible sources have detailed the improvements coming to the console. Newly leaked documents have outlined the specifications for PS5 Pro, suggesting an upgraded console with vastly improved ray-tracing performance in demanding titles.

New characters for upcoming arena fighter Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero have been revealed. Spotted by X (formerly Twitter) user @SLOplays, the characters were shown off through an issue of Japanese publication V-jump magazine.

Take-Two Interactive Software will lay off about 5% of its workforce, or around 600 employees, the publisher of the "Grand Theft Auto" franchise said on Tuesday, as the video-gaming industry extends its more than two-year long job cuts.

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Quest of Memories will launch for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC via Steam on June 20 worldwide, publisher Bushiroad Games and developer Lancarse announced.

Publisher CFK and developer PUMPKIN will release puzzle adventure game SOWON: The Toy Wonderland for Switch on May 2, the companies announced.

Stellar Blade has invited quite a lot of comparisons to other titles in recent weeks, ever since the game's demo officially dropped. First thought to be a Devil May Cry/Bayonetta inspired hack-and-slash, fans jumped into the game to see that developer Shift Up has actually taken a lot of inspiration from the likes of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and Nier Automata.

Fans of Ubisoft’s long-running stealth series can now sample Assassin’s Creed: Mirage for free. For the next two weeks, gamers can download a free trial of Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, giving them two hours to try out the latest installment of the franchise.

Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe recently shared an image of a Palworld clone being developed by Tencent and gave his opinion on potential competitors in the survival genre. Despite a few controversies leading into the game's launch,Palworld became one of the most successful games in 2024 with millions of players around the world.

GameStop is currently offering a buy two, get one free sale on its entire catalog of pre-owned titles. Add three eligible games to your cart, and the cheapest one will be free. The pre-owned prices on most of these games aren’t much lower than what you’d pay for a new copy, but the inclusion of a free game and plenty of new releases to choose from makes this worth checking out.

A new adaptation of Isuna Hasekura's beloved Japanese light novel series Spice and Wolf has arrived – and with two of the original voice actors from the English dub of the 2008 anime.

If you’re a PlayStation fan, you’ve probably heard about Days Gone. And if you’ve played the open-world survival game, you’re probably wondering why there hasn’t been a Days Gone 2 yet. Well, you’re not alone. A petition for a sequel launched in 2021 now has close to 250,000 signatures. Sadly, Sony still hasn’t greenlit Days Gone 2.

's much anticipated DLC, titled, has made its players wait for its release. 2022's Game of the Year was released two years ago, and in the time since, FromSoftware remained relatively quiet about its expansion until recently. Since the drop of the latest trailer for the DLC, it has many fans counting down the days until they are able to once again delve into the Lands Between, but is this something that the community will regret?

Ahead of Stellar Blade's official release, Nier: Automata director Yoko Taro is sharing his thoughts, deeming it «better» than his own game. Taro recently sat down to discuss Stellar Blade with the game's director, Kim Hyung-tae, revealing why he enjoys the game so much.

A new Pokemon arcade game is coming out this summer — but only in Japan. In addition to the mainline Pokemon games, Nintendo’s long-running, monster-collecting JRPG series has spawned numerous spin-offs in a variety of different genres. These run the gamut from less-remembered one-offs like Hey You, Pikachu to more successful ventures like Detective Pikachu and Pokemon GO, the latter of which continues to be a global sensation thanks to new events and content being released regularly.

Nier: Automata remains one of the most beloved RPGs of the past decade. Released by PlatinumGames in 2017, Yoko Taro’s masterpiece has been adapted into everything from novels to stage plays. Despite its staying power and influence, however, the series creator has even higher praise for the upcoming PlayStation 5 title Stellar Blade.

Nier director Yoko Taro says that the upcoming action RPG Stellar Blade makes him "quite jealous" as he reckons it's "much better" than Automata itself – strong words of praise, if not a tad self-deprecating from Taro. 

Shift Up’s Stellar Blade is just ten days away, meaning the time is right for a new trailer. On top of highlighting the visual fidelity and fast-paced action, perhaps most noteworthy is that it showcases the game’s Japanese voice acting. Check it out below.

Yoko Taro, the director of the Nier series, says he thinks upcoming PS5 exclusive Stellar Blade is “much better” than his own game, Nier: Automata.

We have some new early details for Pokemon Legends ZA, thanks to Japanese magazine CoroCoro.

Stellar Blade is better than NieR: Automata, according to the latter's esteemed director Yoko Taro.