Now that 2015 is coming to a close, it is time to focus on what I have played this year, which has been very busy.
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Year in Review – Thoughts on What Japanese Games I Played This Year
Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 11- Sakurako Finds a Breakthrough in Finding the Mastermind
It seems that Sakurako might be on to something about the case that her uncle gave to her. From this, what actually happened to Futaba after finding Hitoe alive in the cabin?
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 11 – Akari’s Secret Ability Against Kyochikutou
Now that Akari got over her depression quickly thanks to her friends and Aria’s support, who is recovering, will Akari be able to arrest Kyochikutou without killing her?
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 10 – Sharo and Rize goes Club Hopping Together
It seems that Sharo is having a fun time with Rize this time.
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Site Updates, 12 Days of Anime and Thoughts about Muse’s Decision to Disband
Now that Thanksgiving is over, 2015 is almost coming to a close. With that, it’s time to focus on the plans I have in store along with my thoughts on the recent announcement regarding Love Live.
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Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 10 – Mysterious Disappearance and the Butterfly Painter
As it seems, this might be the mystery that Sakurako wants to solve which will reveal something about those butterflies along with her younger brother’s death.
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 10 – Overcoming the Terror and Confronting Akari’s Arch Enemy
After Akari becomes depressed after realizing the skills she has along with Aria’s sudden decision to possibly stop being her Amica, things are about to get worse with a certain girl after her.
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 9 – Tippy Off to Battle Against an Old Rival and Chiya’s Dream
Believe it or not, it seems that Rabbit House does have rival against Ama Usa An, but for silly reasons.
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The iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls – Final Review
Back in 2011, Namco Bandai decided to make an anime of a popular idol video game called The Idolmaster. It is basically an idol raising game where the player manages and produce idols for a talent agency named 765 Productions. The show was well received although it had some flaws.
Since then, Namco has been expanding the franchise by expanding in the mobile space with Cinderella Girls and the other being Million Live, which has yet to receive an adaptation. Cinderella Girls features a new and growing cast of idols with a small percentage of those receiving voices from idol elections. When an anime adaptation has been announced, it makes me wonder how they will make a show with such a huge cast aside from the thirteen girls in the main group. Let’s find out.
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Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 9 – The Tale of Two Grandmothers
It seems that more hints on Sakurako’s past got revealed as Yuriko and Shoutarou find out more about their grandmothers.
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 9 – Akari’s Dark Secret
As it seems, things finally get serious as a mysterious girl named Kyo with multicolored nails executes her master plan with the help of Riko. In the meantime, Akari’s dark secret is finally revealed during the diversion they caused.
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 8 – Chiya’s Big Upset
The new school year is about to start and it seems that Chiya is upset for some reason. I wonder why.
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Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 8 – Uncovering Dark and Tragic Family Secrets
After discovering human bones in one of the prep rooms, Shoutarou wants to finds out why Sasaki left it there.
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 8 – Water Park Shenanigans
The swimsuit episode is finally here as Shino and Urara obviously have something up their sleeves this time to win over Akari’s heart.
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 7 – The Joys of Handwashing Clothes Together
Oh no, it looks like the washing machine broke and Cocoa dirtied her uniform. What would she do? Hand wash them of course!
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The Dark Side Behind the Glamor or Why Being a Voice Actor in Japan is Difficult
Earlier this year, I have focused on how being an animator is tough given the poor working conditions, salary and being overworked in general. However, I have not covered the other aspect of anime production, voice acting. As seen with Shizuka in Shirobako having extreme difficulty in landing in a role, there are a good number of people who want to become a voice actor or rather, a seiyuu (声優), but they do not realize how difficult it is to gain a role.
Like I did with my analysis on how much animators make, I will focus on some of the basic aspects in regards to how people become voice actors, how much they are paid, how roles are determined and issues they face.
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Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 7 – Unsolved Mystery Remains in a Haunted Prep Room
It’s time for the culture festival and Shoutaro have Sakurako to keep him company. However, what mysteries lies in a science prep room containing boxes of bones along with a dubious locked chest.
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 7 – Urara’s Rescue Crush on Akari, Shino’s Worst Fear
It seems that Shino is not the only one who is interested in Akari anymore now that Urara have feelings for her too.
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 6 – The Sisters Face Off
Oh no! It seems that Cocoa is now being cold towards her older sister now that her older sister clout got taken away.
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Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon – Final Review
I have to admit that the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon spinoffs are very enjoyable to play. While they are Pokémon themed versions of Spike Chunsoft’s Mysterious Dungeon games, which is a roguelike roleplaying game that consists of randomly generated dungeons, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon is the most known franchise out of the various licensed Mystery Dungeon games given how popular it is. The main basis of the game is that the player plays as a human who turned into a Pokémon with his/her memories lost and go on an adventure with a partner Pokémon.
While Blue and Red Rescue Team and Explorers of Time are geared to a young audience, it does not mean that the games are watered down. As you progress, the dungeons get progressively difficult, especially in the end game. Not to mention, there is a lot of nightmare fuel since the stories are a bit darker compared to the main series.
As mentioned in 2013, I find Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Gates to Infinity a very disappointing game. Not only they limited the amount of Pokémon that are in the games, but they made the game too easy while removing some things like hunger, personality test and genders along with adding DLC, which some fans are against. Given the backlash they received, Spike Chunsoft has listened and made Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon (ポケモン超不思議のダンジョン), a new installment to the series which contains all the Pokémon while mostly going back to the original formula with some changes and new additions. Does this game live up to the title? Let’s find out as I review the Japanese version.
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Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru – Episode 6 – The Mysterious Ring at a Summer Festival
It’s the summer festival and Yuriko found a mysterious envelope. She is afraid that a woman committed suicide. Then again, was it really one?
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Hidan no Aria AA – Episode 6 – Raika Admits her True Feelings, Reluctantly…
After Akari’s big win from last time as her friends throw a party for her, it seems that Kirin and Raika feel uneasy about each other, especially when it comes to admitting their true feelings.
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Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? (Second Season) – Episode 5 – Mocha Arrives, Did She Outdid Cocoa as an Older Sister?
At last, Mocha, Cocoa’s older sister has finally arrived. Will Cocoa completely lose her big sister status as she feared?
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Anime Scoring – Has it Outlived Its Usefulness?
As you recall, I have shared my thoughts on scoring in the past. Sure, everyone has their own way of scoring things when it come to writing reviews. However, as time goes on and our opinion changes through experiences, you might look back at the list and wonder to yourself, why you gave a show a certain score. Moreover, scores usually do not tell whole story since it is just an arbitrary number. This makes me wonder why bother with them?
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