VERACITY IN GAMING
VERACITY IN GAMING
Hideaki Fujiwara
JP AUTOMATON writer
New Monster Hunter mobile game being jointly developed with Tencent subsidiary
TiMi Studio Group and Capcom have announced that they are jointly developing a new mobile game in the Monster Hunter series. Like the majority of Monster Hunter games, it will be a hunting action game where you take on powerful monsters.
Ukraine War Stories global player count is led by Japan. We asked the developer how this came about
Ukraine War Stories is a free visual novel that was released last month on Steam. The game supports a wide range of languages, including Japanese, and Japan actually boasts the highest number of players out of all countries where the game is available. We talked to the game’s developer, Starni Games, and asked about the reason behind Japan’s high player count.
Is Raoh too raunchy for Twitter? Fitness Boxing Fist of the North Star account suspended for unknown reason
Imagineer has announced that Raoh will be joining Fitness Boxing Fist of the North Star as a boss and instructor character. To commemorate the news, a giveaway campaign was launched on the game’s official Twitter account, but shortly after, the account was mysteriously suspended.
The Callisto Protocol gets cancelled in Japan after failing to receive a rating
Publisher Krafton has announced that The Callisto Protocol has been cancelled in Japan. The official Twitter account explains that the game was unable to pass through its rating review from CERO. As an aside, Dead Space has also been removed from the PlayStation Store in Japan.
The Dark Souls Camera app sees a resurgence in Japan
Despite six years having passed since Bandai Namco Entertainment and FromSoftware released the Dark Souls Camera mobile app in 2016, it has seen a recent surge in popularity here in Japan. Dark Souls Camera is an app for iOS and Android that lets users create Dark Souls themed photos.
Japanese ice cream brand Pino releases an official otome dating sim
Pino are bite-sized pieces of vanilla ice cream covered in a chocolate coating. In Pino Koi, there’s a character with a giant Pino for a head that looks to be a male high school student. Players talk to the Pino guy to raise their affection levels with the goal of falling in love.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak update brings back gesture spamming to some extent
Capcom has released Ver.12.0.1 of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, an update that includes a change to gestures and pose sets. Despite recently being reduced to one gesture input per second a few days earlier, the game now accepts up to 4 inputs per second while maintaining the stability of its Lobbies.
SD Gundam Battle Alliance ver. 1.30 addresses many issues that players had with the game
Bandai Namco Entertainment has released update data ver. 1.30 for SD Gundam Battle Alliance. What is particularly notable about this new update is the fact that it addresses a multitude of issues that players had with the game.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: The disturbing implications of the new trailer’s “Litleo Tuft” item
The Pokémon Company released a new gameplay footage video for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, with footage showing a “Litleo Tuft” item drawing attention from fans around the globe. Given the context of the scene, it seems as if Quaxly ripped off Litleo’s tuft of red hair after defeating it.
CHAOS;HEAD NOAH will launch on Steam after all despite being canceled a few days ago
Steam version of CHAOS;HEAD NOAH will be releasing as originally planned, despite an announcement that it was canceled only a few days ago. ""Valve's content review team, the group that made the original decision, has re-examined CHAOS;HEAD NOAH and decided to reverse course and allow the game to ship on Steam, as is."
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak players can no longer spam gestures after the latest update
Capcom has announced that the recently released free Title Update 2 for Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak has limited the ability to rapidly repeat gestures and pose sets. In order to reduce the load on the game’s Lobby, inputs have been limited to one per second.
Splatoon 3’s QR codes on in-game illustrations cause concern among players
Splatoon 3’s QR codes on in-game illustrations cause concern among players. As for why there’s been concern over these messages with QR codes, there was a message gaining attention in Japan the other day that contained an image of a famous actor with a QR code next to it, although the link appears to not have been dangerous.
Splatoon 3’s Museum d’Alfonsino map to be temporarily excluded from official competitions
The official Japanese Splatoon 3 Twitter account released an announcement stating that Museum d'Alfonsino will be excluded from the selection of maps at the Start Dash Cup, an officially sanctioned event. The reason given was due to consideration of fairness.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak’s free Title Update 2 will make Fugen safer to hunt with
Capcom has released the patch notes for Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak’s free Title Update 2. Among the additional content, bug fixes, and balance adjustments, players seem especially pleased about a line that says, “Fugen's endemic life traps will no longer hit the player.”
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak developer draws praise for Flaming Espinas solo hunt
A new gameplay video of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak shows a member of the game’s development team taking on the Flaming Espinas, a monster being added in free Title Update 2, in a solo hunt. The impressive skills that are on display in the video have drawn praise from many players.
One Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin player decided to grow an actual rice field
One Twitter user’s love of Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin inspired them to grow their own rice field, and they’ve now posted their current progress to social media. The tweets from the user have drawn a big reaction with one of the developers of the game even taking notice.
Suspicious Twitter accounts offering PS5 and Nintendo Switch giveaways are increasing in Japan
There’s been a recent increase on social media in Japan of accounts claiming to be video game retailers that are closing soon and offering suspicious PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch giveaways. The tweets ask that users share their LINE messaging app information for the purpose of contacting the winner which social media users have been wary of.
Masahiro Sakurai’s YouTube videos are being used in game development lessons
The videos on Masahiro Sakurai’s YouTube channel, “Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games,” have drawn even more attention after it was discovered that they are being used to teach students in game development lectures.
Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion Collector’s Edition in Japan includes “Aerith’s Letter” and fans are conflicted
Square Enix has announced that Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion (CCFF7R) is set to release on December 13. Square Enix has also posted information regarding the Collector’s Edition and Hero Edition releases for the game in Japan. These editions each include an “Aerith’s Letter” item that was quick to grab the attention of fans.
Babylon’s Fall to end service in February of 2023 after just one year
Square Enix has announced that service for the action RPG Babylon’s Fall will be coming to an end at the end of February 2023. Babylon’s Fall initially released in March of this year for PC (Steam), PS4, and PS5.
Capcom warns players of illegal mods in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak [UPDATE]
Capcom has released a notice warning players about illegally modified game data in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak. It asks players to avoid creating or using illegally modified Anomaly Investigations. These modified Anomaly Investigations have become such a big deal that they even started trending on Twitter in Japan.
A video game that can assist in early detection of glaucoma developed by Japanese university
Meteor Blaster is a mobile game that can assist in the early detection of glaucoma. A demo version is currently available as a browser game for iOS and Android.