Posts Tagged ‘japan’

6 Dec

A Shot in the Eyes – New 3DS XL Review

Posted by vagrantesque in 3DS, Console, Games. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Here we go with my second and final new hardware review of 2014 – this time, amazingly, for a timed western exclusive to Australia and New Zealand!

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The XL model, in glossy yet understated metallic blue.

 

A few months ago Nintendo “did a Nintendo” and announced yet another hardware revision to its successful line of handhelds. Met initially with confusion, as these things often are, followed by a wave of alternating anger and desire from videogame fans, the totally-not-badly-named New Nintendo 3DS is the result. As an Australian, I was one of the first in the western world to get my hands on one, and I’ve got to say I’m pretty glad that I did. The New 3DS, and its “XL” brother (which I chose), is better than its predecessor in dozens of tiny ways and a handful of big ones, even if some of its most impressive technological advances are wasted on the current Australian market. It may represent a tempting, if currently unnecessary, proposition for current 3DS owners, but it’s an absolute no-brainer for curious newcomers to Nintendo’s latest family of handhelds. Read on to find out why.

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22 Jan

Movie Review: 47 Ronin

Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: , , , , , , .

I saw this the same day as Saving Mr Banks. I struggle to think of a greater contrast.

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Starring: Keanu Reeves, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rinko Kikuchi
Director: Carl Rinsch (Newcomer)
Rating: M
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When I was in Tokyo late last year, I was understandably surrounded by more larger-than-life advertising than I could shake a Pocky stick at. Though anime, J-Pop and fashion billboards dominated the urban landscape, the one Western film that seemed to be getting enough coverage to register amongst the madness was 47 Ronin. Such a presence is understandable, as the film claims to present a fresh, more visually appealing and more fantastical interpretation of one of Japan’s most well known and highly celebrated historical legends than has ever gone before (many, many times, mind you). Yet this latest take on the beloved Japanese tale ends up disappointingly flat despite some cool moments.

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27 Nov

Mega Ultra Blast Cast Ep.12

Posted by vagrantesque in MUBC. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .

It’s all coming together, slowly… Sorry for the massive delay in getting this up.


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The Mega Ultra Blast Cast comes to you from Japan, sort of, for Episode Twelve. This episode was recorded at about one in the morning on the third-last day of our Japan trip, over a week ago, from our hotel room while we were consuming alcohol. Shane, Delaney and I discuss our impressions and highlights from the trip, including all our wonderful food and drink experiences, before we move on to discussing our favourite Japanese game franchises. So, so sorry about the poor general quality of this episode.

If you feel so inclined, go for a run, take a scenic drive or just curl up on the couch and play some games while you listen to the slightly intoxicated opinions of three tired but happy Australian tourists in the land of the rising sun.

You can play the whole thing right off this page if that floats your boat:


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Or you can go to the Soundcloud site/app and listen from there:
https://soundcloud.com/mega-ultra-blast-cast/mubc-12-japanese-drunk-edition

(Follow the link and then click the download tab)

As always if you enjoy what you hear please share the cast with your friends – Cheers!

29 Jul

Movie Review: The Wolverine

Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

Well this is by far the most movie reviews I’ve written in a single month.

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Starring: Hugh Jackman, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima
Director: James Mangold (Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma)
Rating: M
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So let’s talk about how terrible X-men Origins: Wolverine was. It told a largely made-up story that cobbled together as many mutants as possible (apparently X-Men: The Last Stand didn’t teach the producers any lessons about that mistake), though most of those mutants were far from fan favourites and the ones that were (e.g. Gambit, Deadpool) were either barely in the movie or horribly mishandled in more ways than one. The CGI was notoriously terrible, which hampered its overly ambitious action sequences and admittedly kinda cool early treatment of Wolverine’s near-agelessness. I gave it a pass when it was first released because it could never actually have been quite as terrible as people were making it out to be at the time, but my opinion of it has deteriorated rapidly over the years nonetheless. It has few redeeming qualities and I cannot bear to watch it again. I mean, just watch this Honest Trailer from ScreenJunkies. It sums things up pretty well.

Glad we got that out of the way, because The Wolverine is a much, much better film than that travesty. Let’s just ignore the fact that such a feat should not be difficult and read on to find out why.

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