April Issue 2014
SA's biggest Online Otaku Magazine
OTAKU CULTURE:
Wanna be an OTAKU? See what we do...
REBOOTS & SEQUALS: Is the gaming market stagnating?
COSPLAY IN SA: The community is growing!
MAKE YOUR OWN RAMEN! WITCHCRAFT WORKS ZX IGN ITION Assassin Classroom G2C2 Convention DAYZ: Standalone Black Butler And more...
All Otaku Magazine
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CONTENTS: Owner: Joannah Stewart
Main: Page 4
Letter from the Editor
Page 5
Reboots and Sequels
Page 8
Otaku Culture
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Debate: Strongest anime char Golden Oldie : Minecraft
Editor: Leena Swarts (Beleran) (llswarts@gmail.com)
Contributors:
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Gareth Duff (UraharaSensei)
Grant Wilson Bill Salazar Masuku
Movies:
Nina Lewis
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Captain America 2
Allotakumagazine.co.za
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Black Butler
Subscription:
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Witchcraft works
info@allotakumagazine.co.za
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ZX Ignition
Charne Banger Sahil Lala Douw Kotze (D.K.)
Anime:
Website:
Copyright Information: Copyright Š 2014 All Otaku Magazine reserves all rights to this E-Zine. All articles and any content featured here are subject to copyright by either All Otaku Magazine or any respective Studios, manufacturers, artists and/or creators. The content within this magazine may not be copied, edited or manipulated in any form without written permission by All Otaku Magazine.
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Manga: Page 23
Country of the cherry blossoms
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Assassination Classroom
Page 25
Anti -Magia
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Gaming: Page 27
Funniest Gaming mods of 2013
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Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
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FF XIII: Lightning Returns
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Bayonetta II
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DAYZ: Standalone
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FF XIV: A Realm Reborn
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Elder Scrolls Online
Cosplay and Art:
All Otaku Magazine
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G2C2 Convention
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Cosplay in SA
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How to make Ramen
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Letter from the Editor: As many of you know by now, All Otaku has not been releasing for a couple of months now. I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to our avid readers and fans for the issues that we missed. Our Editor and founder, Joannah Stewart, has run into, well let's just say RL. As such, she cannot continue editing for All Otaku Magazine. Hopefully, this will change in the future and she can return to the wonderful community that is Otaku! In the meantime, I have assumed the temp role of Editor in order to get us back on track. By no means do I wish to take the magazine over from Ms Stewart, but in the same breath I also by no means wish to abandon the readers, fans, creativity and freedom of speech that is AOM. To this point, I have reassembled the team and put together a release for you, our readers. We aim to continue releasing editions on a bi-monthly basis as usual. We are however planning a few changes, not only to keep up with the times, but also to keep the culture in SA growing and happy. To that end we probably need to recruit some new blood into the mag, so expect to see us scouting at events! Until we can get the talent we need, I apologize if the quality of the magazine took a little dip. I am not a graphics designer, nor do I have the proper software for editing in this sense. I will however do my best with what I have and together with my team, hopefully put something out to you, our readers, which is both satisfying and informative. I would like to thank the loyal fans that stuck with us through this rough patch. Sincerely, Leena Swarts (Beleran)
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REBOOTS AND SEQUELS:
Is the gaming market stagnating?
When I read Nina’s recent article on the state of remakes and sequels in the video game industry I had to admit that I was a little bit surprised at her optimism about the future of gaming - while I live and hope, I am as always a cynic on this issue, especially after E3. Please understand that the current generation of consoles have completely evaded me, while I occasionally look wistfully at the Wii in the same way a small boy attaches his nose to cold glass, I have not owned a console since the PS2 and only recently obtained a PC good enough for more than Solitaire. And yet, I feel I’ve missed very little. In the last 10 years or so, we have seen a dramatic increase in remakes, reboots and sequels flood the gaming media and the reasons behind it are both insidious and simple, the reasons are fear and greed. Firstly let’s look at fear. It’s a recession market out there and makers of entertainment media must compete with people’s basic human needs for cash in a way they didn’t 10 years ago when the industry was in its heyday. You want a product that sells, not a product that can potentially bomb horribly and result in your company self-destructing. In times of hardship, publishers are far keener to have established licenses than try something risky. Why do you think Nintendo keeps resurrecting Zelda every time they make a console? Of course the second part makes it worse, greed. If you are a publisher like Activision or EA you want to make the most money you can from your product, which means that you have to tap as many different markets as possible rather than appeal to the niche markets pioneered by earlier teams. In order to deal with the rapid advancement in technology throughout the sector, developers need a larger cash investment to deliver appropriate system quality this has lead to some companies ballooning in size. Back in the day to make a game you needed 5 guys 6 months and a back room. To make a game in today’s AAA environment you need 200 million dollars and a dev team the size of Micronesia and even then, games like Tomb raider and Dead space 3 still can’t sell enough copies at launch to hold back their cavernous development budgets. This means that Publishers don’t want to take the risk on new IP when they can have guaranteed money from the sale of a franchise. If “Too Human” taught us anything, (Other than Silicon Knights haven’t done good work since they left Nintendo) it’s that some developers abuse this system to create a subpar experience and use the “New IP doesn’t sell” excuse to cover their asses. My usual response is to point at FFXIII and say “Neither did that!” All Otaku Magazine
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This is evident as even those scant new IPs such as Uncharted that dared to show their heads feel more like rip offs of established franchise materials (In the case of Uncharted it’s a rip-off of Tomb Raider, itself a rip-off of the “Indiana Jones” films). It's funny, after I wrote this article I found out another reason and had to add it, it's a reason I hadn't even thought of. As the AAA games industry started to recruit executives from other fields to fill in the administrative side, these executives, mostly with a history in packaged goods, have become reliant on their marketing departments. The problem is... the marketers also come from packaged goods and can't understand the rapidly changing face of gaming. In fact these Dinosaurs only see 3 games existing at all "Call of Duty, Clash of Clans and Candy Crush," which is a slogan actually used to describe the Publisher's requirements. They don't WANT that GTA 5 or Age of Empires or hell even SKYRIM money, all they want is the market share of those mega hits. There is a solution to this problem and it’s one that at least some smaller publishers have embraced while EA, Ubisoft and Activision duke it out for the coveted “Best Call Of Duty clone” award and that is the AA game. A AA game is a game that uses existing technology to build a new experience in a niche genre without breaking the bank. For examples of AA take “Xcom Enemy unknown” a game that, despite being less than a year old at time of writing and honestly looks pretty bad by today’s standards, is a critical and financial success because it sold in its market. Or “Dark Souls”, the insane semi multiplayer RPG that is so hard it breaks diamonds, yet still sold over 2 million copies. Many PC indie games do the same thing every day on Steam and GoG. These games succeeded by reading the market and using that unutilized space. In the economic climate of today, as consoles head towards the next major turning point in design and features. It will be interesting to note if we will see another move towards integrative gaming, as we did on the PS2 or if it’s another “More of the same” generation as the one that killed the Atari 2600. I personally can’t wait, but I’m still on the lookout for the proverbial mountain of ET cartridges.
Gareth Uraharasensei is an English teacher by profession and a cynic by genetics. He’d be glad to help you out once he finishes his tinfoil helmet. All Otaku Magazine
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Date: End of August (TBA) TBA
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Want to be an Otaku? Here is what we do: To start off, for those of you who are a little newer to the anime scene, “Otaku” is a term used by the Japanese to signify a person who has obsessive interests, normally leaning to anime, games, manga etc. There are several things that Otaku’s do, some of it fun, others just downright weird. But then again, who wants to be normal? (throws hands in the air) If you’re reading this, then I’m sorry to inform you that you are either on your way to being an Otaku, or you are already a hardcore member and there is no turning back. Not that most of us care to turn back in any case. So, down to the things that identifies us as Otaku to the rest of the world:
1. Anime:
This is without a doubt the most important and common thing that defines an Otaku. If you do not watch anime, then you will probably not know what most of us are ranting on about whenever we bump into each other. We love discussing and often arguing about the most inconsequential things regarding out favorite anime shows. Everyone is welcome to jump in and give their two cents, as long as it does not crush our perception of an anime, in which case I hope you can run pretty fast to get out of reach. Yes folks, Otaku can sometimes be so obsessive over their shows that they can turn violent. Our blood boils when people insult our hobbies, so don’t do it. Well maybe it won’t go that far, but still, you get the idea. There are tons of good anime out there and it doesn’t take long to find out what they are when talking to any anime fan. If you are looking to get into the Otaku culture, this is an excellent place to get started. Ask someone to recommend some good shows, get them from a buddy, don’t look back and start on your slippery slope down the Otaku Mountain!
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2. Gaming:
Probably the fastest growing industry world-wide, gaming is not to be underestimated in any culture or society. With Universities nowadays giving courses on game design/programming etc, it has evolved from a simple way of entertainment to a thriving and cutting edge competitive environment. As such, players are always on the lookout for the next game and sheesh, our expectations are high. We love our games just as much as we do our anime, and more than once I’ve been with friends chatting over this game or that, pleasantly passing hours without notice. Games, hardware, next gen ideas, they all form part of the gaming industry, and we can never get enough. If you want in on being Otaku, get a console/pc and get playing!
3. Manga:
Manga is the lifeblood of all anime. Some anime end prematurely, the entirety of their stories untold. Manga comes to the rescue with everything the anime left out. Consider some real life movies that were based on books. The books were always more comprehensive, told the stories better, conveyed the feelings of the writer better. The same concept applies here. Whilst most anime follows their manga counterpart to the letter, it sometimes happens that they deviate, and sometimes those deviations can be quite confusing. Of course, with the longer anime shows like Naruto, filler eps are needed to stop the anime from catching up to the manga series. For the newbies, filler eps are episodes that have no manga counterpart. A side story made up to compensate for the slower release of the manga. Sometimes they are good, most oft they are bad. Everybody hates filler. Meh, I went a little off topic. If your favourite anime ends too soon for your liking, check if it has manga. I guarantee you will not be disappointed. Oh, they are released in English, so do not worry that you will only find Japanese manga.
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4. Trading card games: Well, this is a little less common among Otaku. There is definitely a large portion of the otaku culture that enjoys a card game or two, from MTG, pokemon or Yu-gi-oh to Beyblade and Dragonball Z. These are highly strategic and good fun to play, and of course gives you a perfectly valid excuse to get out of the house and spend time with some like-minded people! The variety of games available out there is amazing, so get off your butt, find something that suits your fancy, and join in on the HUGE community in SA!
5. Cosplay: The ultimate way for an Otaku to express their love for their favourite game/anime! The idea is to dress up as your favourite character from a game or anime show, and try to represent them as best you can at a convention. There are several of these events throughout South Africa every year, if you know where to look. I will list a couple to get the newer people going and maybe get a couple of people who want to break into this a place to have a look. There you will find people like you who wish to express their love for anime/gaming, designers who make the clothing/props needed and often a competition or two to see who did the best job. It’s enjoyable to go, and fun to meet these people, so I highly recommend it! Here are a couple of places where you can find Cosplay events: These are in the Johannesburg/Pretoria region: G2C2 - Start of April (http://greatgeekcollective.co.za/upcon/) ICON - Mid July KINCON - TBA (https://www.facebook.com/kinconSA) RAGE - Start October (http://www.rageexpo.co.za/) These are in the Cape Town region: Japan Day - Mid Feb (http://www.animatedmeanderings.com/index.php/general/japan-cultural-day/) Suki love-love Picnic (https://www.facebook.com/events/747279091951951/) Otaku are weird people at best, fun people at worst. Yes, that was not said incorrectly. Unlike the super weird things you sometimes hear the other countries' otaku do, here in SA it's good clean fun, and the society is very friendly and pleasant. Here is to hoping that the community keeps growing exponentially! Beleran.
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’ -
In this vast world full of awesome Anime, we are touched and inspired by the characters within every Anime series. There is a lot we can learn and appreciate, but in the end…one question remains. (A dramatic pause, a drum roll and then the jazzy casino music comes out of nowhere while someone narrates the following words) “Who is Anime’s most powerful Character?” There are tons of candidates for this prestigious title of “Anime’s most powerful Character” and let me tell you, it’s not easy to decide a winner. We are talking about Anime, not animated series from Marvel or DC and such. Sorry Batman… When you’re thinking about who is the most powerful, you’re probably thinking about some muscled-up character that can pound someone’s face into squashed potatoes…but sometimes the mind is powerful too.
All Otaku Magazine
By Douw “D.K” Kotzé
1. Monkey D. Luffy 2. Uzumaki Naruto 3. Roronoa Zoro 4. Goku 5. Nagami Light
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After eliminating a series of names from the most powerful candidates list, I’m left with only a few Anime series’ characters. As exhausting as the search was, it’s time to finish my opinionative quest. Throw me some senzu beans! Dracule “Hawkeye” Mihawk once defeated Roronoa Zoro in the Anime “One Piece”, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that Zoro is out of the picture, but still… Mihawk was able to split a whole ship in half with one strike from a distance. That is indeed, one badass sword technique he’s got there. Swords are usually claimed to be made of steel or such nature and Roronoa Zoro’s “3-sword” fighting style is very unique. His attacks such as the Tiger-style, being able to cut through steel like butter and “Kiki Kyutoryu: Asura” –literally meaning “Demon Spirit Nine Sword Style: Asura” are beyond awesome and will leave most of us in awe (or squealing with inner and outer voices). Sadly, he’s not the most powerful Anime character. Alright, let’s get down to the finalists… Light Yagami, Goku (Kakarot), Monkey D. Luffy and Naruto Uzumaki!
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Not only is this common knowledge, but this is how we are going to prove who exactly “Anime’s most powerful character” is. Between the four, Light Yagami is at a huge disadvantage. Goku, Naruto and Luffy have speed, strength and more or less the same attention span. They eat more, weigh more, punch harder and have awesome techniques. Sadly, Luffy has the one disadvantage which even Light Yagami can take advantage of… water. Goku has been known to hit the water several times. With the ability to swim, he has been able to get out of the water while not losing a beat in battle. Having eaten the “Gum-Gum devil fruit”, Luffy has lost the ability to swim and that leaves him in a huge disadvantage…depending on the battle terrain. As for Naruto, not only can he swim, but he can use his chakra to help him walk or run on water. Okay, just to clear the air here about Light Yagami. He is pretty powerful as long as he has the “Death Note”. He could eliminate every Anime character if he felt like it, but he won’t be of much use when it comes to a battle…unless he can make time slowdown and take his time writing down each of their names. If it was to be between young Goku and young Naruto, things might go Naruto’s way, but then there’s the question about the older Naruto and adult Goku. Yes, Goku might have the power to blow up a planet if he so wished to, but it takes even greater strength not to blow up a planet accidently while you’re in a battle. With Goku’s even more awesome strength and power found within him, I would say that “Anime’s most powerful character” is indeed Goku as the Super Saiyan god.
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- By Douw “D.K” Kotzé
First of all, I know there are those who haven’t heard of it or played it before ~gasp~, but don’t be discouraged. Just take a look further here and all will come clear as day. For those who aren’t familiar with Minecraft, it’s that indie building game that exploded onto the scene in 2011. It’s a sandbox indie game which was originally created by Markus “Notch” Persson and was later developed and published by Mojang. So, I went around and asked some Minecraft players some questions. Some of the answers were similar to others, but most of them were positive towards the Minecraft world.
Q: “Why do people play and love Minecraft?” A: “It is a very fun and creative game. You can build almost anything out of everything on the game. I was very against playing Minecraft when I first learned about it, but after being forced (More of a push into the right direction I hope) to play it by my friends, I got addicted. The game’s graphics takes some getting used to, but once you are in there, trying to survive, learning how to make things from a pickaxe to a bed, you completely forget that the graphics aren’t that good and realize that it is perfect for the game, and when you create your first little bunker to hide in at night when the mobs come out, you must jump up in joy.” All Otaku Magazine
A Digimon on Minecraft! Take me there now!
This was posted on a Minecraft forum.
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Q: “What’s the best thing about it?” A: “Freedom is the best thing about Minecraft… it’s the game that never ends. The best thing about Minecraft is the fact that you are literally only limited by your imagination, if you can think it up, you can make it.”
This was posted on tumblr.com by Sandra who runs under the name of “sickyouth” in “minecraftia”
Q: “How much time do you spend on it?” A: “Well, it depends. When I am creating pixel art, it takes up quite some time and other days the whole day, especially in survival mode. The time depends on what I want to build, the longest I ever spent building was 1 week. I built a 100X100 block stadium”
I wasn’t surprised to hear that at all. Well, okay…I was surprised by some of the answers I have received, but nonetheless it’s Minecraft. I have looked around for some examples of creations made by Minecrafters (As some call themselves). Some creations shown below are from the inter-webs and then there are those creations that were shared by the Minecrafters who were kind enough to answer some of my questions. The creations I’ve seen from Minecraft were from pretty detailed and amazing to being really awesome. Check it out.
A giant SpongeBob Squarepants that would make so much sense about where he really comes from…
This was posted by “Luubox” on planetminecraft.com
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Here are some creations by local Minecrafters:
- by Ivan Wiehahn
- by JP Pretorius .The plot thickens…
- by Farron Pretorius
Q: “Why do people make the like of such creations?” A: “Because it is fun and I just love being creative and Minecraft gives me that freedom” “To express my creativity whether it’s making a house or creating pixel art” “I made them to challenge myself and see what I was capable of making” So, it’s become clear as day. The reason why people play it and love it, is because of the open space, the freedom to do whatever you want with whatever you want. People love to display their artistic side on a game. A lot of them love being able to recreate events from movies to games on Minecraft. They create their own paths and obstacles to challenge themselves. Minecraft truly is amazing. All Otaku Magazine
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n all honesty, Captain America was never really one of my favourite heroes. Sure, he has a kickazz shield and above human strength, but other than that? No psychic powers? No flight, no laser beams... Yes, yes, ok. I have since revised my opinion of our stars and stripes covered hero. I mean, after seeing him in action in "Avengers", who wouldn't? Sure, he is still one of the less powerful heroes out there, but he has more than made up for it with proven combat ability and superior leadership skills. Plus, he gained a huge improvement in my opinion when he showed me just how much of a ninja he can be. *huge grin* In the latest instalment: "Captain America: Winter Soldier", Rogers is back with a big piece of the Avengers crew to stop the resurgence of his age old nemesis: "Hydra". Thought he stopped those buggers? What was their credo? "Cut off one head", something-something... Very inspirational. Living proof that cockroaches are hard to get rid of. Ok, so I kind of stole that line from the movie "Epic", but it is such a good line. No my friends, Hydra is back. Not in a small sense either. They have been biding their time, ingratiating themselves into everything that has access to power. Military, government, SHIELD. You name it, there is probably a Hydra agent in there somewhere. They are planning all sorts of evilness, and the time has finally come to make themselves known to the world at large. Given that, trust is hard to come by. Your closest friends could be your oldest enemies. Nick Fury himself is suspicious of everyone. Oh, wait... that would be normal for him. Figuring out who to trust felt like trying to traverse a nebulous conflux based in an inter-dimensional pocket compressed in a black hole, wrapped up inside a Rubik's-cube, which would probably be easier. Confused? So was I. The movie has a wonderful flow to it, and if you were watching the series: "Marvel: Agents of SHIELD", the movie made a whole lot more sense. I love the fact that it tied in so nicely with the series, and that the series is currently continuing based on the events of not only the Avengers, but the second Captain America movie as well. I always feel good when people take the time to tell a story like it should be told. Rushing through it *cough* Twilight *cough* leaves you feeling empty and dissatisfied.
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Directors Anthony and Joe Russo have done an absolutely fantastic job at composing a masterpiece. Of course, with acting talent like Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Evans and everyone's favourite, Scarlett Johansson, who wouldn't make a mind-blowingly good movie? Sure, there have been loads of previous attempts at making superhero movies in the past. Plus, some of them were downright bad. The movie industry has come a long way however, and scripts, special effects, CG etc has developed in leaps and bounds. My apologies, I got a little off track there. Anyhow, the movie revolves around both the take-over by Hydra, the trust and bonds built between the agents of SHIELD, and we are also introduced to a new hero, Hawkman, which does his butt-whipping with mechanical expertise, not superpowers. Mind you, the main antagonist, the winter soldier, is also using a whole bunch of technological goodies to do his evil deeds. I will not spoil just who the winter soldier is, for the few of you who have not seen the movie just yet. Let's just say, Ironman has proven quite nicely that technology can bridge the gap for us humans to compete on the demi-god arena. Action packed from start to finish, it had me gripping my seat in anticipation for most of the movie. I was thrilled by both the story-line development as well as the twists and turns in said story to keep things ever changing and intriguing. If you have not had the pleasure of sampling this fantastic movie, I highly recommend it, giving it at least a 9/10 rating and thus far, my best movie of the year! - By Beleran
A little funny I found online for your enjoyment :D
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intermixed. In the "Black Butler" saga, the human protagonist is a boy named Ciel Phantomhive. This film introduces a new protagonist, a girl named Shiori Genpo/Kiyoharu Phantom. Despite these obvious changes to the story the film was well received.
Production Companies C&I Entertainment - By Bill Salazar Masuku
Black Butler In Victorian era London, there lies the manor house located in the outskirts of the town of the illustrious Phantomhive earldom and its young master, Ciel Phantomhive. On the night of Ciel Phantomhive's tenth birthday, a fire engulfed his manor, his parents murdered, and he was captured by a mysterious organization. After a month of enduring excruciating torture, Ciel returns to the Phantomhive household with an enigmatic black clad butler, Sebastian Michaelis. To others, it seems that the butler is simply the best at his craft, from anticipating his young master's needs to carrying them out to the best of his abilities. Little do they know, Sebastian is actually a demon that had entered into a contract with Ciel, promising the boy to help him achieve revenge on the arsonists in exchange for his soul. As the Queen's Watchdog and standing at the top of the British underworld, Ciel solves the crimes plaguing London while waiting for the day he will exact his revenge.
Distributors Encore Films (2014) (Singapore) (theatrical) Warner Bros. (2013) (Japan) (theatrical)
It was announced in January 18, 2013 that the manga would be made into a live-action film starring Ayame Goriki as Genpou Shiori, Hiro Mizushima as Sebastian Michaelis. Filming began in April 2013 and the film was released on January 18, 2014. The live-action film differs a bit from the manga, as it has been set in an unspecified Asian city in the year 2020 where western and eastern cultures have
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There are quite a couple of highly comedic situations commonly found amongst teen romance, much to my delight. Apart from the fantasy aspect of the anime, it is highly reminiscent for me of another of my favourite anime, Kotoura. As one of the best releases of the Winter season it has already concluded with a fantastic twelve episodes for its first season.
- By Beleran
Written by
: Ryu Mizunagi
Directed by
: Tsutomo Mizushima
Witchcraft Works
There is also an expected OVA release.
Honoka Takamiya is an average student with average looks and average grades. Like any boy his age, he has a crush on a girl. The girl he has his eyes on however, is known as the school's "Princess". A position voted on by both grading and popularity. The Princess even has her very own fan club, which b.t.w. is highly possessive of her time and attention.
Network
: Tokyo MX, TVA, AT-X, BS11, ABC
Honoka finds himself in a tight spot with another girl who for no apparent reason wishes to kill him. He has no idea what he did or why she wants to dispose of him, but she is determined. Upon almost succeeding, he is rescued by Kagari Ayaka (a.k.a the Princess). But instead of her simply coming to his rescue, she is draped in flames and wearing a witch costume. The flames apparently have no harmful effect on her, and she wields them as if born to it. Honoka's life takes a change for the strange when Kagari tells him that she no longer wants to protect him from the shadows and decides to take an active role in his life. Apparently there is an ongoing war between two factions of witches that have been duking it out for millennia - the Tower witches and the Workshop Witches, with Kagari and her mother from the workshop side. From dangerous witches, very bad familiars and scary fan club members, Honoka is almost constantly either on the run or in trouble. The story is quite amusing to watch and the series has a pleasant flow to it that is rare in most anime today.
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- By Beleran
ZX Ignition Inter-dimensional bubbles... Oi, since when have inter-dimensional bubbles ever had any good news? Even if I was extremely pleased to have one appear in the anime IN Pretoria, (yes, we are officially on the anime map!) I still wish it would deliver lots of cookies and cake instead of bloodthirsty warriors, creatures, robots, angels or monsters that are pretty much all about killing and/or dominating everything in sight. Asuka Tennoji plays the main protagonist, a kind and helpful guy that, despite the harsh conditions that the world has deteriorated to, still wants to believe that everyone and everything is inherently good. One day on the way back from work, he stumbles across a battle between a huge black panther and an angel. The angel was hurt and he decided to trust his instincts and try to help her. This led to him using his ZX card, acquired from a shrine priestess - a device that allows you to essentially "tame" a being from one of the inter-dimensional portals. The angel "Fierte" allows herself to be bonded in order to use her host's energy to heal her wounds.
Azumi is a little girl that was diagnosed with an incurable disease. She bonds a ZX called Rigel, from the blue portal. The blue portal's denizens are an extremely evolved civilization that took technology to heights we could only dream of. As a result, an incurable disease for us, is a trifle for them. Rigel supplies Azumi with treatment from the Blue world, in exchange she uses Azumi to hide from her world, due to having betrayed her superiors. Azumi seems frail, but has a strong will to live and she is far from giving up the fight. Together with Rigel she sees all other opponents as fair odds. These three characters form the basis around which the story unfolds. It is a little confusing at the start, due to the initial scene being a couple of days ahead of the actual storyline, and subsequently the anime reverts back to the earlier timeline to show how everything got started, building up to the first scene in the first episode. I heard that this anime was based off a card game, but I have never heard of, or encountered it. As an anime though, it is packed with action, is often humorous and totally had me hooked from episode 1. Written by
: Broccoli
Published by
: Shueisha
Directed by
: Yuji Yamaguchi
Network
: TV Tokyo
The owner of the panther "Sieger" is a German woman named "Ayase Kamiyugi". Her parents were murdered by the white portals denizens, and consequently she has sworn to rid the word of every single angel. Sieger is quite happy to go along with this as long as he can continue to fight. He is brutally strong, if a bit of a pervert (for a cat) and his personality blends in perfectly with Ayase. The combination creates an unstable, but highly effective duo that other ZX owners need to be wary of.
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Country of Cherry Blossoms Set in Hiroshima in 1955, ten years after the atomic bomb was dropped, "Town of Evening Calm" is the story of a young woman, Minami Hirano, who survived the bomb when she was in her early teens. She lives with her mother, Fujimi, in a shanty-town near downtown, having lost her father and two sisters to the bomb; her younger brother, Asahi, was evacuated to Mito, Ibaraki, where he was adopted by his aunt. Fujimi is a seamstress while Minami, who is "all thumbs" as her mother puts it, works as a clerk in an office, and together they are saving money for the trip to Mito to visit Asahi. One of her co-workers, Yutaka Uchikoshi, cares for Minami and visits her shanty when she misses work because her mother is sick. He later gives her a pair of sandals made by his mother and a handkerchief, but when he tries to kiss her, she has a flashback where she sees the victims of the bombing where they now stand and pushes him away. She runs off, still reliving the horrors of the attack, including finding her little sister's blackened body and watching her older sister die of radiation poisoning two months later. The next day at the office, she apologizes to Uchikoshi, saying she wants to somehow put the past behind her. She spends the day exhausted, however, and the next day becomes bedridden from the long-term effects of radiation poisoning. As Minami's condition worsens, she is visited by Uchikoshi and other coworkers, and dies just as her brother and aunt arrive. Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms has been adapted into a live-action film directed by Kiyoshi Sasabe, which is called Yunagi City, Sakura Country in English. The outdoor sets were filmed in Kawaguchi, Saitama, including a recreation of part of the Hiroshima's shantytown c. 1958. The story of "Country of Cherry Blossoms", filmed in every place in Hiroshima. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2007, then released in theaters in Japan on 28 July 2007. It was released on DVD in Japan on 28 March 2008. The film is accompanied by a beautiful musical score that emotes every scene brilliantly, having a original sound track released separately. The delivery of the story is nothing short of impressive and managed to win many awards, including the 17th Japanese Film Critics Award for Best Picture, placing sixth in the top ten films list of the 3rd Osaka Cinema Festival, and placing ninth in the top ten domestic films list of 2007 by Kinema Junpo. The Blue Ribbon Awards also named the film one of the top ten films of the year. Kumiko Aso won several "Best Actress" awards for her portrayal of Minami Hirano in the film, including that of the 32nd Hochi Film Awards, the 62nd Mainichi Film Awards, and the 50th Blue Ribbon Awards. - By Bill Salazar Masuku
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Assassination Classroom The story is about class 3-E of Kunugigaoka Middle School where every morning they greet their sensei with a massive firing squad. The sensei is a weird combination of an alien and an octopus that moves at speeds of mach-20. It turns out this creature was responsible for the destruction of the moon, rendering it forever in a crescent shape. He has announced that he will destroy the world in one year. The creature will teach class 3-E how to assassinate him before the year is over. Although the Korosensei, aka the Unkillable Teacher, is currently the most powerful and most dangerous being on the planet, capable of mass destruction, he is a teacher first and foremost devoted to helping his class with their grades and even personal issues. Assassination Classroom was the seventh best-selling manga series in Japan of 2013 with 4.5 million copies sold. It was number one on the 2014 Kono Manga gaSugoi! Top 20 Manga for Male Readers survey by Takarajimasha.
Manga Written by
Yūsei Matsui
Published by
Shueisha
Demographic Shōnen Magazine
Weekly Shōnen Jump
Original run
July 2012 – ongoing
Volumes
7 - By Bill Salazar Masuku
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Antimagia
In a kingdom lost of its true king, ruled by a tyrannical leader who slaughters anyone and anything be it for humour or out of anger. The blood thirsty tyrant lusts for some entertainment to quench his boredom. He slashes down tricksters and illusionists in search of a magical act to impress himself and the princess by his side. It is only when he summons an audience with the prisoners in his castle to either entertain him or die that one hooded prisoner reveals what true magic is and what shocking face is under the hood. This new series, of only 9 chapters and slow releases, has already conjured up massive appeal amongst the avid manga readers’ collective hearts, with a public online rating of 4.72 out of 5 gold stars. It is easily one of the most anticipated manga titles outside of the waterfall of mainstream titles.
Written and Illustrated Aiya Kyu Year 2011 - onging Original Publisher Media Factory Serialized In (magazine)Comic Gene (Media Factory) Currently available chapters 9 - By Bill Salazar Masuku
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Top 10 funny Mods for
2013… For most of us it has been a transition. For us, as a culture & community to make different choices as well establish ourselves in the new year? Let’s not think about that. What made us believe? What made us enjoy & experience the year that has passed? Let us look at what Mods made us laugh. 10. SKYRIM: My Little Pony Horse by <UNKNOWN> For all the geek girl gamers out there. If you feel your horse is too masculine or just not the right colour how about you make your horse a My Little Pony Horse. I like to call my horse Miss Sparkle-Butt. She’s so cute and I actually feel bad I have to take her into dangerous situations. She’s faithful, loyal and actually lightens up the mood before I transverse into a vampire-ridden cave. You can’t not love My Little Pony, she's too hard-core. 9. SKYRIM: Zoidberg Mudcrab by Snoopey If you’re a fan of Futurama (by the same individual that made Simpsons). Like you didn’t know? You will have heaps of fun killing Zoidberg Mudcrabs. They sound exactly like the character, which is the most fun you’ll ever have! But, in respect they make a fun time to transverse the rivers of Skyrim & you tend to ask yourself “Why not, Zoidberg?” 8. SKYRIM: My Little Pony Dragon by <UNKNOWN> If you are the masculine type or you have had a bad day with your wife and 2 daughters maybe you need to blow off steam? What better way than to take down a DRAGON that’s in a shape of My Little Pony? I did & I felt masculine. But then again I felt bad because it was so pretty. So for all you gamers who dislike My Little Pony this is the mod for you. (Call your mother, she loves you.) 7. SKYRIM: Pew by <UNKNOWN> If you can stomach it. This mod uses all magical and archers in Skyrim. When you draw your arrow back or start to perform a magical attack. The sound byte will let off a sighing pew. Which if only insane, would keep the mod on. Although, when you get scared chasing after the dragon and decide to fire a sighing “pew” happens. All Otaku Magazine
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6. SKYRIM: Frost Troll with Trolllolol Song by <UNKNOWN> As more and more trolls seems to come out from under the bridge and use the World Wide Web. It would be inevitable that the Troll would actually exist in Skyrim. The trolls face in made into the 9gag or Rage comics face. Which aided by the song of their people the Trololol song. It’s been part of our culture for a while so it's appropriate it should be on this list. 5. Civilizations V: Mods by Various Modders Sid Meier's Civilizations have always been a favourite game of mine. With Civ 5, the player who has this mod may change characters in the game to appease your pop culture side. Different mods include. Beavis & Butthead, Seinfeld & Adventure Time. There is a whole myriad of civilizations you can make friends or enemies with e.g. If you take the Seinfeld mod, all your paintings will be George Costanzia naked in a provocative way. Which makes me chuckle every time. 4. GTA V: Carmageddon by ap ii intense & atk Pirate Some companies have really tried to make Carmageddon HD, although some investors don’t believe the idea of cars crashing into each other or even trying to dodge them. I mean, who doesn’t what to see a car blow up? This mod can be seen as a friendly endeavour. Just ask some friends to come around and see who lasts longest without being impaled from a car. Hours of fun will ensue.
3. SKYRIM: Randy Savage “Macho Man” Dragon by <UNKNOWN> Wrestling is quite popular in South Africa. Not entirely sure why. But, one of the great wrestlers of Yesteryear. Randy Savage is transformed into a Dragon. It’s entertaining to shoot or hit a dragon. The Dragon yelps “Oh Yeah, gimme more of that brother” If you a fan of wrestling go for it. 2. GTA V: Tsunami by <UNKNOWN> GTA V has been a popular game throughout the year so I felt it is fitting to be at least in the top 3. In this mod some parts of the city is engulfed in water due to… you guessed it a Tsunami. What makes it funny is that sharks attacks you and AI’s/NPC’s carry on with their lives and often drown or drive into the sea. 1. SKYRIM: Fart Shouts by Arheaya19
What mod can actually be better? You have run out of arrows, your sword is blunt enough make a small child chuckle while he pokes you with a stick. No, wait. You have a shout. What better way of getting out of danger is actually farting towards your opponents? Understandably this is similar to a Monty Python film. Although, farting against a rabid bear or a dangerous dragon seems very rewarding. (Which it is!) In conclusion, This is by far the best & funniest mod of 2013. - By Grant Wilson
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When Diablo 2 released it’s expansion pack, I did not even have a shred of doubt that buying it was mandatory. It was going into my collection purely because Diablo 2 was such a great and highly addictive title. However, when Diablo III’s expansion was released, I had to take a hard look at whether or not I wanted to rush to the shops to actually get it. Diablo III itself had a number of glaring issues that made late game content either too hard to be enjoyable, or felt too much like a pure grind fest to get the highest ilvl items for your character. I am happy to say though that the expansion (not in a small way due to the massive outcry by fans) has made a conscious effort to correct most of these issues to make the game both fun and playable again. First off, and this is probably the most important issue in my opinion, they got rid of the Real Money AH. While the concept was both intriguing and revolutionary, the players were just not ready for something of that magnitude. Of course, Blizzard’s idea around implementation could have used a bit of spit and polish. A fine example of “good idea, bad implementation”. So let’s have a look at some of the interesting changes and additions they brought to the game in the expansion. As expected (judging by Diablo 2), the expansion has the last act (Act V) that we have all
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been waiting for. Diablo himself has been slain, his brothers entrapped with him in the black soul stone. Job done, good work? Well, as always, not quite. Those Evils are quite the tenacious bunch. Saying that Diablo or his brothers are safely taken care of is always a bit of a stretch, so in this latest sequel, we now have to contend with the Angel of Death – Malthael. Malthael is the arch angel of wisdom that disappeared after the destruction of the Worldstone about twenty years prior at the end of events that took place in Diablo 2. He ambushes Tyrael and the Horadrim and takes the black soul stone for himself. With it, he is bent on destroying mankind which he now considers to be demons due to the fact that Nephalem are hybrid creations from both the angelic and demonic realm. As for the rest of the story, I will leave it to you to play through by yourself and savour the details. The expansion brings with it a whole bunch of features that make for both interesting additions and necessary changes. There is now bounties, nephalem rifts, a new Mystic NPC and a brand new adventure mode after you have completed the content of the expansion. Taking a closer look at some of these features,
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the adventure mode is pretty much a sort of questing system that covers all the acts. The quests highly vary from defending areas from attack, to slaughtering hellish minions. It adds another element to the game to keep it from feeling like another grind fest, one of which I highly approve. Aimlessly running outside town killing thousands of creep hoping for one of them to drop you a little titbit can get old fast. Bounties are gained in Adventure mode which, as the name suggests, involve players hunting down specific enemy/ies or even completing certain events for rewards that include gold/loot/blood shards etc. In addition, the players will receive Rift keystone fragments if you complete at least two bounties in a single act. You need these for activation of Nephalem rifts, so they are pretty important. If you complete all five of the bounties contained in an act, you will be rewarded with a Horadric cache, which is like a little happy box with all sorts of random loot contain within. The Nephalem rifts are basically the Diablo equivalent of dungeons. The areas and the encounters contained in the rifts are randomized so each rift will contain a unique experience. The tile sets for these areas are taken from all five acts, so it keeps things interesting. To open up a rift, you will need five of those rift fragments I mentioned earlier. Oh, and as a last little bonus, inside the rifts are pylons (hey… who invited the Protoss to this party?) which will, like shrines, bestow upon players some really powerful abilities to help with exploration.
The Mystic basically serves two purposes. Enchanting items, and transmogrification. Yeah, my fingers got crossed trying to spell that… It basically means changing the appearance of one item to looks like another. Both these features have obviously been taken from World of Warcraft.
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Admittedly, it does add another level of complexity to item design, so I am not really complaining too hard. Plus the fact that some of that armor and weaponry looks so bloody good and I just don’t want to lose the design when I switch for something better. The enchanting bit does not quite work like WoW though. Instead of players placing a pre-set attribute on the item, they basically re-roll for the attributes already on the item. As a result, it’s a bit of a gamble. You could potentially take a crappy item and give it pretty neat stats, or you could take a pretty decent item and change it to garbage. The joys of gambling… Since the advent of Diablo III, they have had another look at the difficulty system as well. Instead of players having to work their way through Normal to Inferno, you now have a choice of working yourself up from Normal to Torment. These can be chosen however at the start (depending on your character level) with Torment having a couple of levels in itself for the more elite players. There have been a couple of smaller changes as well, things like gems being account bound now, so no trading with other players, or drops being made far better by the game taking a look at both which character you are playing and at what level it currently is. This change alone makes the gameplay more rewarding and appealing to me. Well, at the very least, you can always count on Blizzard to listen to what their fans are saying and make the necessary changes to their games. We don’t always get what we want, but at least we get it most of the time. In conclusion, Diablo III: Reaper of Souls is worth getting if you are a Diablo fan like me. -
By Beleran
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“How will you spend your final days?” Studio: Square Enix, tri-Ace Director: Motomu Toriyama Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 Release date: February 14, 2014 Genre: Action, RPG Publisher: Square Enix
Experienced “hands-on” on PlayStation 3 Finally, Lightning has awoken from her slumber and she’s itching to kick some butt! It’s been 500 years since the world started sinking in the sea of Chaos. After centuries of slumber in crystal stasis, the chosen rose-haired hero has awoken. The god Bhunivelze has given this chosen-warrior a new purpose, a new role to play in this world which desperately needs saving. She is now on a mission to save the souls of mankind. Who is this hero? She was an officer, l’cie, a Warrior goddess who was called upon to protect the goddess Etro and now she is called “The Savior”…her name is Lightning! Lightning has been blessed with incredible strength and abilities along with an arsenal of new weapons. She’s not just a pretty face and she’ll prove it to you. Outfits that compliment her beauty, shields that protect her from greater damage and weapons which can cut down any foe (that can be damaged by weapons). It’s been a long time since everyone was thrown into all of this and only centuries since Lightning took the seat at goddess Etro’s thrown in Valhalla. Lightning was awoken from her slumber and felt the warmth of God as his words came through to her. Bhunivelze made a promise, that he would bring Serah back if Lightning would become his servant and act as his Savior. She was to become The Savior and save the souls of mankind. She wasn’t gonna be able to do this alone though. Hope Estheim was brought back by God to assist Lightning in her holy task from the Ark. “Have the others have been brought back as well?” That’s probably something you
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would ask, right? By the awakening of The Savior, there are 13 days left before the world ends. It would seem that God has given everyone one last chance to put their hearts in the right place and letting Lightning save their souls so that they can live in the new world after this one ends. Those who can’t be saved will forever dwell in the river of Chaos. Lightning clashes with a number of problems because of Chaos and one of them is Snow Villiers. Snow Villiers used to be an optimist and laughably so. People used to look up to him because of how he was. He was engaged to Lightning’s sister, Serah Farron. Lightning happily gave her blessing before she disappeared and because of Etro and Chaos, the tables turned on Serah while she tried to save the world and attempted to bring her sister back.
Don’t give me that look…geez…
Snow must have been hurting inside after such a long time and it would seem that Chaos had started to get to him as well. The girl, Lumina who looks like Lightning’s sister is pulling a lot of the strings with Chaos and she is the lack of a better word, a demon. The devious Lumina would interfere between Snow and Lightning, and that includes toying with them in their own minds. Snow already blames himself for not being able to protect Serah and looks forward to facing The Savior and ending it all. There is more to the story than Lightning having to face just Snow though. There are 4 other Chaotic threats that need attention from Lightning in 3 other lands. Yes, there are 4 lands worth exploring and so many people you can talk to, but time is money and there might be so much to do and yet there is so little time…with you starting on 6 days ‘till doomsday. Though, after each passing day, you have to give Yggdrasil your Eradia back in the Ark in order to extend the world’s life expectancy to the full 13 days. Alright, now it’s time to stop teasing you about the good-looking story and have my say in this review. So, this all started from Final Fantasy XIII. The sequel –Final Fantasy XIII-2 built the story a bit even further for those who thought the first one’s story was confusing. Lightning Returns is the direct sequel to Final Fantasy XIII-2 and this game concludes the whole story for this number in Final Fantasy. So, yeah…This story ought to make sense out of everything that has happened. Lightning is not the despised l’cie anymore and she’s not protecting Etro as the Warrior goddess anymore either. She is now The Savior. As a lot of us might have heard by now, Final Fantasy XIII was originally supposed to feature Lightning as a one-woman-army, if I may put it like that? Finally or “better late than never”, they have put that idea to the test. Oh my garbs and weapons, my kingdom for the perfect 3 schemas. What exactly is a schema? Well, do you remember Final Fantasy X-2’s dresspheres? Just in case you don’t know what it is, let me tell you. It’s way better than the dresspheres system. The garb is of course the outfit, the clothes you’re choosing Lightning to wear. In a battle, you’ll be able to use up to 3
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schemas. A schema is the garb, weapon, shield, accessories and assigned abilities. Why is it better than the previously seen dresspheres from Final Fantasy X-2? Well, it’s all about timing. Back in Final Fantasy X-2, you can get hit and defeated all while you’re busy trying to decide which dresspheres you want to choose for your character. In Lightning Returns, your schema switching is pretty fast. It’s even faster than using a “Paradigm shift” from the previous XIII titles. Oh my garb, give me those schema sets now! ~arms flail while running in circles~ The tutorials are always a good thing in the game. Without it, I wouldn’t have gotten used to the new battle system as easily as I did. You’ll be able to help Lightning traverse the battlefield with the use of the left-analog stick and control the game camera with the right-analog stick. When you’re fighting an enemy, you’ll be able to switch targets easily with the Dpad. This is one of the improvements I like. It helps switch to a different target without wasting time. In other Final Fantasy instalments, you get hit while you’re looking at the list of who you want to attack. With just the use of the D-pad, you can change your target quickly. This often helps when you need to guard with perfect timing and strike when they least expect it. What exactly is the result of this one-woman-army idea in battle? I would say that it’s not bad at all. Of course, you will always get those who wouldn’t like it…but every game has such opinions and then some years later they might say otherwise. The “staggering” system is about the same, except that you won’t be seeing a stagger-gauge. So, how exactly do you know when you’re enemy is close to being staggered? You’ll see a scope/wave thing at the healthgauge. No, not in the health-gauge, you’ll see it at the health-gauge. Wanna buy some Libra sheets? It’ll help you expose the weaknesses of some monsters. I know a merchant that’ll sell you some. Also, the battling system seems to be better in terms with timing. Press a button to guard at the precise moment you need to be on the defence. Press a different button when you wanna go all-out with an attack. Press another different button to perform the traditional magic attacks, like hitting them with thunder from yours truly, Lightning.
Attacks and spells may come in a set of five-blow combos. It’s important that you time your ATB and schema switches to take advantage of the ATB-charge (of the 2 schemas not currently in use) and for the sake of the combo hits. Some advice before you enter a battle: Striking first gives you an advantage for when you
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(whoosh) enter the battle. The game might have a sense of rushing, but don’t try to rush the game to a finish. Yes, you’re playing against time from the very point where you start moving around as Lightning, but there is a lot you can do with the time you’re given. Talk to whoever you can in whatever area you are in and help anyone you are able to help. Just remember that you might not be able to save everyone, as the time you waste to save the one soul could have been used to save many other souls. Who doesn’t like a reference to a previous Final Fantasy game or a reference to another game? I’m always looking out for references whether they are hidden or so obvious that it’s actually being used as a name for something somewhere. I like what I’ve found thus far, but the question is… What will you find? Do take notice of the handy networking features. You will of course need the internet when using the online-features. Once you’re online with this game, you’ll be able to experience the “Outerworld services”. You will be able to share your scores, post your experiences in the game, view screenshots and messages from other players by talking to certain residents of Nova Chrysalia. Your “Outerworld services” can be linked to your Facebook and Twitter accounts as well. Unlike regular characters, the Outerworld characters will have other player’s nickname above their heads in blue along with a certain icon. You can pretty much link your game to your Facebook account using the Facebook app and choose other players from your timeline to appear in the Outerworld. Now my verdict… Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is a really good game, but this is coming from a Final Fantasy fan, open-minded to new and good features. - Easter eggs anyone? The game has a good story-line. The battle-system feels good. There is a lot of emotion and suspense to support this game. Personally…I’m giving this game 8 out of 10.
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Studio: Platinum Games Platform: Wii U Genre: Action
Director: Yusuke Hashimoto Release date: TBA 2014 Publisher: Nintendo
Bayonetta II is the upcoming action-packed game that is developed by Platinum Games. In this climatic sequel for the critically acclaimed Bayonetta, players should be on the edge of their seats from start to finish. It will be a clashing, slashing, button bashing, seriously hectic, demanding, non-stop gameplay with some touchy-feely moments on the side. Bursting with jaw-dropping battles, amazing moments and gorgeous cut-scenes, this game is not gonna let up on the action. You’ll fight on top of a jet as it soars through a downtown city. Battle it out against a gigantic Cyclops, who bears a whip for an arm (ouch), and on top of a speeding train. Also take to the skies… Yes, take to the skies in a fight against one huge terrifying demonic dragon while you ascend atop of a skyscraper. It’s the sequel to the game “Bayonetta” that was released in 2009. Bayonetta, the main protagonist of the game is one of the only two surviving Umbran Witches, along with being the child of a Witch and a Lumen Sage. In this game she should be featuring a new attire and hairstyle. The game will also feature a two-player mode for those who wanna join-in on the fun. When it’s time to fight angels, a giant Cyclops and uglybackside demon dragons that want to use you as a toothpick, you better be ready to fight in style and punish them all. -
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Douw “D.K” Kotzé.
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Studio: Bohemia Interactive Director/Writer: U/A Platform: Microsoft Windows Release date: December 16, 2013 (Alpha), TBA 2014 (Beta) Genre: Survival horror Publisher: Bohemia Interactive Designers: Dean “Rocket” Hall
original MOD to a new level. You should expect a more complex, more authentic scenario, more infected character types and more fully-modelled building interiors that will throw you into the depths of this survival horror like never before. -
Douw “D.K” Kotzé
So welcome one and welcome all. This is a multiplayer open world survival horror game that was developed by Bohemia Interactive. Wait, it’s just you… Alright, but still, welcome to Chernarus – an open world, post-Soviet state and one of the areas hit by a new and presently unknown infection which of course has wiped out most of the world’s population. It’s no big deal. It’s not like you’re in danger of being killed by a mass group of zombies, right? Have you realised your current situation yet? You are one of the few who have survived and now you must explore this new wasteland and fight for your life against what is left of the indigenous population, which seems to be now infected with the disease. This game was designed on an updated version of the powerful “Arma II” engine. This stand-alone version of Day-Z takes everything that once stunned players in the
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Out of the ashes, Final Fantasy XIV has risen. Square Enix has breathed new life into the world of Eorzea. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn invites you to explore the world of Eorzea once again. You can forge friendships with those across the world, ride a Chocobo, board an airship with friends and create your own unique stories within the Final Fantasy Universe. Take on epic quests and battle those ever familiar Final Fantasy monsters alone or form as a party, enlisting the help of friends. Each player will be able to build and strengthen their own character, learn their own unique abilities and obtain equipment that will help them throughout their adventures. As an adventurer, you can seek fame and fortune. Devote yourself to seeking danger and glory wherever it may lie. It’s the endless quest where many souls have fallen and only the strong can survive together. The people of Eorzea come with their myriad pleas and requests to their local adventurers’ Guild, and indeed it is here where adventurers heed the call, if it be the task of slaying Wyrms or titans plaguing your fellow citizens, or crafting wares that are in need of a master’s touch. It is time that you heed the call and work together to forge the fate of Eorzea. What tale of adventure lies in wait for you? -
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Douw “D.K” Kotzé
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The Elder Scrolls Online is the latest chapter in the award-winning franchise. ZeniMax Online Studios brings the legendary experience online for the very first time. If it’s playing with your friends or even alone, the game’s combat system allows you to focus on action and tactics. In The Elder Scrolls Online, the time and setting will be in the continent of Tamriel, roughly a millennium before the events from The Elder Scrolls: V Skyrim, 800 years before The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. With three alliances emerging across the continent, they struggle for reigning authority over the land. These great powers engage in battle against one another for control over the Imperial City and Tamriel all along with it. There are darker forces on their way to destroy the world as usual. After all, no story is complete without dark forces wanting to destroy the world as we know it. Explore the far reaches of Skyrim, the mysterious lands of Morrowind, and beyond. Be aware that there are always things you need to do when you want to join a Guild. Also bear in mind of the three factions that exist within the race you choose to play as (The Ebonheart Pact, The Aldmeri Dominion, and The Daggerfall Covenant). Remember that the choices you make from alliances you join and the battles you fight, will guide and shape your destiny…and the world of Tamriel. -
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Douw “D.K” Kotzé
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AllOtaku takes a look at the G2C2 Convention!
It is the third year now that G2C2 has taken over the UPCON convention normally held in the University of Pretoria. This year however, was the first year that they had a hall of their own to do with as they pleased. Apart from the significant increase in space, there was a significant increase in expectation from the people who attend this convention. Being limited by space constraints can cripple creativity and often leads to several people not getting spaces, and sometime people getting cut altogether. Well not this year! This year there were all sorts of new stalls and people showing off their wares for us. Of course, we had the usual suspects lining the walls, MTG, Warhammer, PokĂŠmon, Outer Limits etc. But then we also had (not their first) appearances by SINBIN, Plushie Heaven, To-a-T T-shirt printing, HeroClicks and as I was wandering around I even saw a place where people were busy enjoying a game of Dungeons and Dragons. Of course,
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let's not forget that this is a prime place for cosplay as I am sure most people will be quick to remind me, and we were not disappointed. There were quite a couple of cosplayers and LARPers walking around showing off their hard work. I must add appreciatively, that the community is not only growing larger, it is getting better. Hold onto your hats Japan and the US, we are on our way! We might be a bit late to the party, but boy are we South Africans a hard-headed bunch. When we set our minds to something... Anyhow, the event was well organized as always, and drinks and food was easy enough to come by. I sincerely wish however, that they would make an effort to get hold of card machines. Not many people I know nowadays carry around cash anymore, and card is a much more convenient alternative. Apart from that, the con was a good environment for sharing ideas, creativity and all around geekiness.
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On the Saturday there was a Cosplay competition, and the picture above depicts the finalists on the day. I wish I could've gotten a better shot of the Jedi Lady, who eventually won first place, so unfortunately (or fortunately) you will have to be appeased by my photo of the second place winner, on the right. After the competition, there was also a workshop for cosplayers with general advice for costume design, posing for pictures, appealing to the judges etc. which was quite informative, if you missed it, go cry in your pillow. You should have been present to enjoy all the fun of G2C2. I know that there was an unlimited tournament held for PokĂŠmon players, which I sadly could not attend. Sometimes real life can be a pain in the behind. I did get to chat with my friends who were playing, as well as the organizer, which I hope to get an interview with for the next edition due in July.
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Of course, between now and July, there are a couple of interesting events that we would like to attend, both here in JHB and down in Cape Town. I only wish that all of them could be as well organized and brimming with life as G2C2 was. I was so energized when I left the hall!! However, now with G2C2 behind us, we look forward to the other big conventions later this year: ICON in July, KinCon in August and of course the big momma, rAGE in October. Get your costumes ready, start saving those moolas, and make all necessary preparations for the most epic Otaku event of the year! A big thank you goes out to Jacques de Jager and Dina Steyn for the awesome event! - By Beleran
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Cosplay in SA You've seen them at cons, you've seen them on the internet. Cosplay in South Africa is growing ever bigger by the day and pretty soon, we'll be taking over the world. (Or at least the nearest Fabric shop.)
I am a cosplayer. I understand the urge to dress up as various anime and manga character better than anyone, so I can see that to people outside the community it seems a little exclusive and small. Let me be clear that this could not be farther from the truth; provided you follow basic human etiquette. Most of us are more than happy to spend time with people who share their interests. We are not aggressive; just remember that we put a lot of passion into our props. Please do not touch the custom weapons without our permission, they are usually fragile and time intensive and we'd rather break them ourselves. The Community: The cosplay community has grown immensely in the last few years and the core of the community is stronger than ever, mostly because the efforts of groups organising cosplay events on their own. These events come in two flavours and are essentially either Competitive or casual and both are amazing opportunities to see things.
Casual Cosplay: This is where most people join the community; there are a lot of small events, mostly picnics and group meals that happen roughly on a monthly basis. These events are organised by cosplayers and is more of a social event where cosplayers connect and swap tips on props and costumes. Usually these meets are organised by members of the community and are advertised well in advance. In Gauteng these are usually either in the Pretoria or Johannesburg Botanical gardens as picnics or are meets that are set in sushi restaurants. The picnics are essentially â&#x20AC;&#x153;bring and shareâ&#x20AC;? meals and people are encouraged to interact and float between different groups. Since the community is friendly, these events are a great way to meet people and collect the occasional streetpass in both Cape All Otaku Magazine
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Town and Gauteng. These events garner between 20 and 40 people on average. In Cape Town these picnic events are becoming a nearly monthly occurrence now, while the Gauteng events tend to wander between Pretoria and Joburg on a bi-monthly schedule. Also it should be noted that while costumes are encouraged they are not mandatory, so if you're not quite brave enough to dress as the Green Ranger yet, you can just come in civilian clothes. The best way to find out when these are happening is to check social media, groups like "Rockin Cosplay SA" and most of the more well-known cosplay "celebrities" tend to share when these things are happening and are more than willing to keep others appraised. Competitive Cosplay: This is the realm of the cosplay competition and is usually found at Conventions groups and individuals who have honed they're acting and costuming skills to show off at events like rAGE and G2C2. These formal contests are the cream of the crop and often have wonderful prizes provided by the convention organisers. These events are usually organised by the more professional geek community groups (Aifest and Legion Ink in Gauteng, not sure who runs them in Cape town) and while we're not quite on the World Cosplay summit circuit yet, the desire to show off their acting and costuming skills is getting better and better. This is where the size of the cosplay scene has exploded over the last 3 years. The number of cosplayers entered at rAGE, the largest single cosplay competition nationally, has tripled. Entrants into these competitions are usually very competitive, but with the exception of a few individuals the sense of community is still there and after a competition there are often sketches and photo opportunities. All in all this growth is continuing as more people learn that the cosplay community exists and as the community gets older people start to pass it on to their children. We can only hope that in the future the community will be inspired to even greater cosplay diversity. Gareth Uraharasensei is an English teacher by profession and a cynic by genetics. He'll be sure to remind you that he is the law as soon as his prop finishes drying.
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Japanese Food: How to make real Ramen -
By Douw “D.K” Kotzé
Anime, games, movies as well as T.V series have been guilty of quite a few things that relate here. They have characters that have a signature eating style. In Save Me Lollipop, the main character is often seen at a cake shop. In One Piece, Luffy has a huge thing for meat on a bone. In Naruto and Naruto Shippuuden, Naruto (Main protagonist) is often seen eating Ramen. In short, the entertainment media along with Anime have been responsible in revealing food of Japanese culture. Every culture has a wide variety of delicious food. You won’t just be able to learn something about Japanese food here. You will also learn how to make some real Ramen. Sounds cool? Alright, so you might ask “How do you make real ramen?” There isn’t just one type of ramen, so you’ll have to decide which one you want to go with. Different recipes of ramen have also appeared on the Anime series of Naruto. If you can’t decide on which one you want to try out first, let me be of some help. Right here I’ll be giving you a recipe to make some real ramen yourself. Ramen is actually very popular in Japan. There are two main components in Ramen and they are “noodles” and “soup”. Interesting to know is that the noodles are called “Chinese style noodles” (Chuka-men 中華麺), but these aren’t really like Chinese noodles anymore. They are wheat noodles with a firm and chewy texture. The texture is of course very important. The reason for that is because the noodles are in hot soup while eating and it might absorb too much soup and become too soft. It’s been said that it’s hard to find good noodles outside Japan, but I guess we can be the judges of that. South Africa does have some restaurants that can serve-up some pretty good noodles. If you can find some dried Chuka-men or fresh Chuka-men, use that. Angel hair pasta, which you can find in grocery stores, is acceptable even though it’s said that the texture is still on the softer side. Dried thin spaghetti is also a pretty good substitute for Chuka-men. To boil the noodles in water with baking soda is the key, because that gives noodles a distinct Ramen noodle flavour. The other half would be the soup and generally speaking, there are three basic types of Ramen soups: *Shoyu (soy sauce)
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*Miso *Shio (salt) Pork, chicken or seafood broth is usually used for the base of the soup, and is then seasoned with soy sauce, miso or salt. Angel hair pasta and soy sauce was used for this specific recipe. Though, there are so many combinations of flavours for soups. If you want to play around and experiment, go ahead and give it try. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s said that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to beat Ramen at great restaurants, but it never hurts to try and make some pretty good home-made Ramen yourself.
Ramen Recipe Prep Time: 15 hours Cook Time: 15 minutes Yield: 3-4 servings
Ingredients Salted pork 1 lb. pork 1 tsp. salt Soup 6 cups water (1.5 L) 50g ginger root 3 cloves garlic 1 bunch green onions 4 Tbsp. soy sauce 2 Tbsp. sake (Japanese rice wine) 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. sesame oil Noodles 9 oz. fresh angel hair pasta (225g) 8 cups water (2L) 2 Tbsp. baking soda Topping All Otaku Magazine
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Boiled egg halves Bean sprouts, blanched briefly Green onions cut finely
Instructions 1. Rub the salt on the pork and let it sit overnight in the fridge. 2. Put water, ginger root, garlic green onions and salted pork in a pot and boil at high heat. Skim the fat and other floating scums. Then cover, reduce to low heat and let it simmer for about 1 ½ to 2 hours. Let the broth and pork cool completely in the pot. Strain and then save the pork. Slice the pork and set it aside for a topping. 3. Prepare the rest of the toppings now as well (boiled eggs, blanched bean sprouts, cut green onions), before making the soup and noodles. Once the noodles are cooked, you will need to add the soup and toppings right away or the noodles will get soft, so you won’t have time to prepare the toppings at the end. 4. Boil the broth and add soy sauce, sake, salt, and sesame oil. Lit it simmer at a very low heat until the noodles are ready. 5. When boiling water in a pot, add baking soda (be very careful though, it might boil over), then add fresh angel hair pasta. Cook the pasta for 30 seconds and then strain. Immediately divide the noodles into bowls and add soup onto the noodles. Top it with boiled eggs, bean sprouts, green onions and sliced pork.
楽しむ Tanoshimu! (Enjoy)
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