Friday, November 22, 2024

Music News

Music

Kenshi Yonezu Announces First-Ever Tour Across Europe, Asia, and the U.S.

Japanese singer-songwriter Kenshi Yonezu has announced his first-ever U.S., Asia, and European tour dates. His world tour kicks off with two performances in Shanghai on March 8 and 9, 2025...

Theodore Mak - 09-10-2024

Music

NCT DREAM US Tour Starts this Month

South Korean boy group NCT DREAM, formed by SM Entertainment, will be kicking off the first leg of their US tour this month in Los Angeles, California on September 12...

Theodore Mak - 05-09-2024

Music

Lovebites US Tour Begins Soon

We are almost to the beginning of Lovebites' US tour. This is a long-awaited series of performances, and in a way, it's surprising that it took this long. One of...

Brian Lee - 03-09-2024

Music

SiM PLAYDEAD World Tour in America Begins Soon

SiM, who we last saw live at Crunchyroll Expo in 2022, is embarking on a world tour in support of their latest album, the PLAYDEAD World Tour.  They'll be spanning...

Brian Lee - 10-04-2024

Anime News

Anime News

BEYBLADE X at San Diego Padres Games

BEYBLADE X is going to San Diego, offering fans an opportunity to battle at Petco Park during two San Diego Padres home games. The event will take place on August...

Theodore Mak - 18-08-2024

Anime News

Shion Wakayama AVIOT Talk Show @ Anime Expo 2024

Anime Expo 2024 was brimming with excitement, and one of the standout moments was the talk session at the audio company AVIOT’s booth in the Entertainment Hall featuring the talented...

Administrator - 18-07-2024

Anime News

Warner Bros Anime Expo Panel - Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League and Suicide Squad Isekai

Warner Bros. Animation unveiled the Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League trailer at their recent panel at Anime Expo. This highly anticipated sequel to the 2018 film Batman Ninja gave fans a glimpse of what to look...

Salvador Mateos - 16-07-2024

Anime News

FAKKU Guest Spotlight Q&A: Karasu Chan

NOTE: This article is meant for those 18+. Discretion is advised. For this year, FAKKU's guest is none other than Karasu Chan, an artist from Taiwan. Karasu Chan is well known...

Brian Lee - 14-07-2024

Anime News

Studio Bones Gachiakuta Panel @ Anime Expo 2024 Report

Studio BONES held a panel on July 4th, 2024 at Anime Expo. Hosted by Joey Bizinger (aka The Anime Man), fans got to hear about the upcoming anime adaptation of...

Theodore Mak - 12-07-2024

Gaming News

Gaming News

Dying Light: The Beast Announced - Gamescom 2024

It's been some time since we have heard anything from masterminds over at Techland and what is in store for the Dying Light franchise. During Opening Night Live at Gamescom, Techland...

Ken Dubois - 20-08-2024

Gaming News

Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage Ai Furihata and Mayu Yoshioka Talk About Being Idols In a Game - Anime Expo 2024

I have always been obsessed with rhythm games and Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage has been at the top of my list. At this year's Anime Expo, Sega brought a playable...

Ken Dubois - 04-07-2024

Gaming News

XSEED Games Announces Anime Expo 2024 Lineup and Hidden Title

XSEED Games has unveiled its plans for this upcoming Anime Expo during the 4th of July weekend.

Ken Dubois - 28-06-2024

Gaming News

Life is Strange: Double Exposure Gets a New Trailer Showing Off Gameplay and New Details

Square Enix has released a new Life is Strange: Double Exposure Trailer revealing everything players want to know about its latest entry in the Life is Strange universe.

Ken Dubois - 13-06-2024

During the demo, the main protagonist, Lightning, from FFXIII was nowhere to be seen. Instead, two possible new main characters were shown: Noel Kreiss and Serah Farron, Lightning’s younger sister. Serah was present in the original game FFXIII, but there’s not much known about Noel besides he’s young and dual-wields. I expect there are probably other main characters like the ones shown in the trailers that have not been announced yet. The demo mainly focused on the improved battle system and what’s a better way to illustrate the battle system than with a boss fight. An invisible giant revealing only its left arm has appeared in an excavation ruin and is attacking the locals. Luckily, Noel and Serah were exploring the ruins when the attack was happening and the boss battle begins.

The battle system of FFXIII-2 still uses the Paradigm Shift (PS) and Command Synergy Battle (CSB) systems. Improvements have been spotted with the PS, but not a whole lot with the CSB. In Final Fantasy games, there are usually three-four main characters in a party. FFXIII-2 has a flying moogle that follows the party around while exploring, but I haven’t the slightest clue on what it does. During battle, I’ve noticed there were two characters and a monster in a party. Yes, you’ve read it, a monster.

Players are now allowed to tame monsters throughout the game and have them fight on your side. Monsters have a function similar to the gestalt gauge called feral link. Every attack during battle will increase the feral link gauge. When the feral link is maxed, your tamed monster can perform chain attacks if players successfully press certain commands at certain times or also known as quick time events. Quick time events are a new addition to the game; they allow the users to do more damage to enemies.

In the predecessor, preemptive strike occurs when attacks on the enemy are from behind.   Monsters in the game now spawn randomly nearby, but the battle doesn’t start immediately. Players have the option of avoiding or attacking the enemy with a preemptive strike before the time runs out. If the time runs out while the player is within the enemies range, players are forced into battle with a disadvantage. Although the monsters spawn randomly, I’ve noticed that they spawn in the similar locations most of the time, which allows players an advantage to avoid them.

Certain NPCs now have a bubble icon over their heads to help players find out more interesting information. Other NPCs are fully voicedd without cut scenes, which is similar to the first game. Other party members in the game now have more lifelike personality. They no longer follow you brainlessly; instead, they will occasionally idle and talk to the other NPCs. It’s a small feature added, but it adds a whole new meaning for some players.

All in all, the improvements on the game are better than FFXIII. But it seems they improved mainly on the features that were decent and they didn’t address whether there will be cities to explore or the complexity of the game (though it appears in a later update in Famitsu Magazine that there will be cities). Hopefully the finished game will have more improvements than the demo at E3. FFXIII-2 is expected to be released some time next winter on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 entertainment systems.

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Oct.15

Convention News

Bay Area Anime Impulse/K-Play! Fest/Collectors Expo 2024 Impressions

Returning for its second year in the San Francisco Bay Area, Anime Impulse arrived at the San Mateo County Event Center on October 12-13. If you're unfamiliar with Anime Impulse...

Oct.09

Music

Kenshi Yonezu Announces First-Ever Tour Across Europe, Asia, and the U.S.

Japanese singer-songwriter Kenshi Yonezu has announced his first-ever U.S., Asia, and European tour dates. His world tour kicks off with two performances in Shanghai on March 8 and 9, 2025...

Sep.05

Music

NCT DREAM US Tour Starts this Month

South Korean boy group NCT DREAM, formed by SM Entertainment, will be kicking off the first leg of their US tour this month in Los Angeles, California on September 12...

Sep.03

Music

Lovebites US Tour Begins Soon

We are almost to the beginning of Lovebites' US tour. This is a long-awaited series of performances, and in a way, it's surprising that it took this long. One of...

Aug.20

Gaming News

Dying Light: The Beast Announced - Gamescom 2024

It's been some time since we have heard anything from masterminds over at Techland and what is in store for the Dying Light franchise. During Opening Night Live at Gamescom, Techland...

Aug.18

Anime News

BEYBLADE X at San Diego Padres Games

BEYBLADE X is going to San Diego, offering fans an opportunity to battle at Petco Park during two San Diego Padres home games. The event will take place on August...

Aug.14

Game Reviews

Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse (PS5) Review

Everyone’s favorite crime-fighting lagomorph and canine duo are back! Originally released in 2010 by Telltale Games, this remaster brings the graphic adventure to the latest generation of consoles/PCs. This release...

Jul.18

Anime News

Shion Wakayama AVIOT Talk Show @ Anime Expo 2024

Anime Expo 2024 was brimming with excitement, and one of the standout moments was the talk session at the audio company AVIOT’s booth in the Entertainment Hall featuring the talented...

Jul.17

K-pop

EVERGLOW Returns to the US for their 2024 Tour - Pulse & Heart

K-pop powerhouse EVERGLOW is set to embark on their 2024 "Pulse & Heart" tour, marking their return to the international stage after a series of successful releases and promotions. The...

Jul.16

Event Reports

Hololive Night at Dodger Stadium Report

The Hololive Night at Dodgers Stadium was a unique collaboration between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Hololive Productions. Popular VTubers Usada Pekora, Hoshimachi Suisei, and Gawr Gura participated in baseball...

Jul.16

Anime News

Warner Bros Anime Expo Panel - Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League and Suicide Squad Isekai

Warner Bros. Animation unveiled the Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League trailer at their recent panel at Anime Expo. This highly anticipated sequel to the 2018 film Batman Ninja gave fans a glimpse of what to look...

Jul.14

Anime News

FAKKU Guest Spotlight Q&A: Karasu Chan

NOTE: This article is meant for those 18+. Discretion is advised. For this year, FAKKU's guest is none other than Karasu Chan, an artist from Taiwan. Karasu Chan is well known...

Jul.12

Anime News

Studio Bones Gachiakuta Panel @ Anime Expo 2024 Report

Studio BONES held a panel on July 4th, 2024 at Anime Expo. Hosted by Joey Bizinger (aka The Anime Man), fans got to hear about the upcoming anime adaptation of...

Jul.10

Anime News

2.5D Seduction Premiere at Anime Expo 2024

As mentioned previously, 2.5D Seduction is a series near and dear to my heart.  There's just something that resonated with me.  It might have been the cosplay bit, maybe the...

Jul.09

Anime News

Oshi no Ko at Anime Expo 2024 - Anniversary Screening and Season Two Premiere

Oshi no Ko should not need any introduction. The white-hot anime has taken both Japan and the world by storm. I happened to read all of the manga's available chapters...