(When I wrote this I realized I had written thousands of words more than I expected; if you're wondering where I've been for a couple weeks it's been this. Breaking this up into pieces was the only way to make this not just a
The dealer's room hasn't significantly changed in the last few years, and as such I already know who my dealers are. They’re Discotek for their best-in-class blu-rays of classic anime, and Retro Saikou for their affordable, well-curated random treasures from across the years. These are
At the start of the convention proper… I slept a little more. I always think I'm gonna be up at 9 to check out fan panels and stuff, and I have been in the past. But y'know lately I have a couple drinks and watch videos
(Due to the sheer unexpected length of this convention report, I will be posting it in multiple parts, with some of those parts paywalled to subscribers. Barring any hiccups, this should come out daily on weekdays. I'm posting the first one on a Friday because I think my
fgc
In this video you can see what Arc has in mind for the 3v3 mode, ideally. It’s not what happens when you play it for the very first time with a bunch of randos. The other weekend Arc System Works beta tested a new 6-player, 3vs3 game mode in
The first event of Train to the End of The World is the activation of 7G internet exploding the world. Things get significantly weirder from there. Train to the End of the World is a mellow travelogue in a comical, surreal post-apocalypse, like if the Yurucamp girls were trapped in
Now I wasn’t at Evo– for those of you not in the know, the biggest fighting game tournament in the world and something of a Super Bowl/Anime Expo at the same time for our subculture— but I did spend my entire weekend holed up watching the tournament final
Nothing has ever burned out my brain quite like playing competitive riichi mahjong. To play the game at a high level in person (as opposed to in an online game), you need to maintain a state of intense concentration for a long, sustained period. You’re not just struggling to
anime
"(Oshii's) thinking about everything we make... human attempts to build a purer, better form of ourselves without all the original sin. Something innocent."
Nobody likes battle passes, but they’re tremendously psychologically effective. Players in a battle pass game are dished out a cookie-crumb trail of little tiny in-game prizes the more they play the game. The “premium”, as in paid, battle pass hits players with FOMO over some attractive grand prize; if
anime
(Just as a heads-up: I’ve kept things relatively non-graphic, but very late in this piece I describe a sexual assault in the manga in question. I'll also be talking about a comic that only exists in English in fan scans, and which for reasons we will get
video games
In its nearly decade-long run, Tekken 7 left behind a complete package that left nowhere to go next. The gameplay is that unique Tekken blend; it works because it works, and you don’t mess with it. The graphics are already pretty high-end ten years later. The cast– adding enough