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‘I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World Too’ Dub Cast Announced

Jacob Airey
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‘I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World Too’ Dub Cast Announced

‘I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World Too’ is an isekai light novel series written by the author known as Miku, illustrated by Rein Kuwashima, and published by Fujimi Shobo since 2018. The Japanese animation studio Millepensee released an anime adaption in April 2023 with Shin Itagaki and Shingo Tanabe directing. Crunchyroll announced that they would debut it in North America on their streaming service and will also produce an English dubbed version.

They announced the cast on their website:

  • Yuuya voiced by Lee George (Love After World Domination, The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague)
  • Kaori voiced by Kelsey Maher (A Galaxy Next Door, The Aristocrat’s Otherworldly Adventure: Serving Gods Who Go Too Far)
  • Lexia voiced by Kelly Greenshield (My Home Hero, Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, So I’ll Max Out My Defense)

Shawn Gann works on the project as the ADR Director with Sara Ragsdale, Michael Stimac, and Marcus Stimac acting as the Assistant ADR Director. Clayton Browning joins as the ADR scriptwriter.

You can watch the trailer below:

 

MyAnimeList describes the synopsis as follows,

“A chance to come back! A mysterious door stands open, inviting a boy who’s been brutally bullied all his life to take a courageous step forward into the unknown. On the other side, he finds a hoard of priceless artifacts and a world as filled with magic as it is with monsters. The most shocking revelation, however, is that he can bring whatever he wants back with him when he returns to Earth. It won’t be long before this double life changes him forever…”

Japanese publishing company ASCII Media Works releases a manga version of the series that is illustrated by Kazuomi Minatogawa. Yen Press publishes an English version of both the manga and light novel publications.

Review: Ghosted – A Romantic Comedy with Spies

Jakejames Lugo
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Review: Ghosted – A Romantic Comedy with Spies

There’s a certain level of ridiculousness within romantic comedies that require an element of suspension of disbelief. You often need to just roll with it when the situations are so over-the-top and goofy, otherwise, it’s difficult to enjoy the more loving moments. Ghosted on Apple TV+ really asks the audience to accept a high level of ridiculousness and camp in order to follow a story of love at first sight, mixed with an action-packed world of spies. Much of this love story is predictable, only the stakes of lying and misunderstanding involve putting the world in danger, which may or may not work for some viewers. But some good action might be enough to keep others around for what Ghosted is bringing to the table.

Ghosted stars Chris Evans and Ana De Armas as Cole and Sadie, two people who meet by chance at a farmers’ market, instantly connecting with each other after a few awkward exchanges. The two of them go on a date that leads to a one-night stand, which sticks with Cole and causes him to fall in love with Sadie. After reaching out to her again for a while with no response, Cole realizes he left his inhaler in Sadie’s purse and tracks it to London. He hops on a plane to go meet her in hopes of a romantic gesture, only to find out Sadie is an agent who works for the CIA, thrusting him into a world of spies and global danger in pursuit of the girl of his dreams.

The setup for Ghosted seems innocent and fair enough to get things moving but quickly kicks into high gear once Cole makes his way to Europe on a whim. The idea that someone can track their inhaler with an app across continents comes off as silly and borderline unbelievable but also feels like a weird thing to do for someone Cole just met. A lot of things that Cole does is played off for comedic effect, with the movie quickly establishing he has a problem with being needy in relationships and borderline creepy. The same is shown for Sadie at various parts of the movie, with the two of them calling each other creeps and stalkers at various times. In some moments it can be funny, but eventually, it becomes a worn-out joke that loses its effect. Sadie herself is made to look like a person who is closed off from others following a tragic event but slowly opens up to Cole when the two of them get closer. The reveals about each of them later in the film are very much predictable, as is the conflict that inevitably pops up at the worst of times.

But do Ana de Armas and Chris Evans have good chemistry with each other to make this couple believable in these extreme circumstances? Yes, they do look cute as a couple. More often than not the two of them do a great job, but not without a few stumbles along the way. When they’re on the big date they have and when they’re intimate the two of them appear to be very much in love. The moments throughout the movie when they’re arguing or at odds with each other do feel a bit forced in some cases, with some of the banter back and forth not always sounding the best.

All of the supporting cast around these two lovebirds are exactly as you would expect in a romantic comedy. You have those overly enthusiastic parents in Cole’s family that want him to get together with Sadie, as well as the edgy sibling that takes jabs at Cole whenever she can. Other people Cole and Sadie come across are just as over-the-top and ridiculous as well, with many making it painfully obvious that the two of them should just get a room and hook up already. It’s possibly a bit too ridiculous in some cases, especially when the film tries to be more serious. The humor in these moments may break up the tension for a romantic comedy, but it does feel jarring. For the most part, the film is consistent with its tone, opting to stay more comedic than serious, but there are those few moments of whiplash with what’s happening in the story.

The action in Ghosted is surprisingly good. Many of the action set pieces involving car chases, shoot-outs, and hand-to-hand combat are very well done. Ana de Armas looks like a deadly yet sexy femme fatale in every one of her action sequences, whether she’s firing guns at everyone or taking down bad guys with her bare hands. She gets multiple spots to show off her skills throughout the movie, being given an almost James Bond level of class mixed with the violence.

At the same time, Chris Evans gets to flex his acting abilities by playing the displaced guy who at first doesn’t know what he’s doing, bumbling around and dodging gunfire while his girlfriend fights to protect him. In the context of the film, this works out great and has a gradual buildup to when Cole finally is able to help Sadie out on her mission. By the end, Chris Evan’s character isn’t a CIA agent but is more confident and capable in a fight than before. Arguably Ana de Armas’ character doesn’t change much by the end but her change is to become more open to another person. She just happens to still be a badass throughout.

Ghosted won’t change the minds of anyone who isn’t into romantic comedies, but it will still offer a fun time if you decide to watch it. It’s cheesy and awkward at times but still has enough bite to deliver a solid action sequence at the right time. The mixture of genres might work for some and just be weird for others, so not everyone will be on board with what Ghosted is offering. But if you just roll with what the movie gives to you, then you’ll have a decently fun time with this love-at-first-sight story.

Will you be checking out Ghosted on Apply TV+ any time soon? Are you a fan of Ana de Armas or Chris Evans? Leave a comment down below and let us know your thoughts!

Fan Favorite Lili Joins Tekken 8 Roster in New Trailer

Jakejames Lugo
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Fan Favorite Lili Joins Tekken 8 Roster in New Trailer

Bandai Namco has been periodically releasing new trailers featuring a lineup of fighters for Tekken 8. Up to now, a number of returning characters from throughout the series have been added to the roster, including fan favorites like Marshal Law, Jun Kazama, and newcomers like Leroy Smith and Asuka Kazama. If you were hoping for another female fighter to get added to the Tekken 8 roster, then you’re in luck. Lili is making her grand return to the eighth entry of the ongoing 3D fighting series.

While her full name is Emilie De Rochefort, most Tekken players know her simply as Lili. Unveiled on the official Tekken series page and by series creator Katsuhiro Harada on his own Twitter page, a new trailer announcing Lili’s return showcases the sophisticated fighter in all her next-gen glory. The trailer shows Lili sporting a brand new outfit, something that every new fighter revealed for Tekken 8 has been getting, and many of the devastating moves that she’ll have at her disposal in the new game.

The new look for Lili was designed by artist Jasmine Darnell, which was highlighted by Harada in a follow-up Twitter post. The Tekken community was very receptive to the announcement and reacted very positively to Jasmine’s work, voicing their enthusiasm for the artist on Twitter.

She responded to the praise on Twitter following the announcement. “So my dream came true today… I’m literally crying from the supportive comments… Every time I look at my notifications I start tearing up, thank you so much…”

Anyone who has been playing the series for a long time will remember that Lili made her first appearance in Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection and was a known rival to Asuka Kazama. Her style of combat blends together a mixture of gymnastics and street fighting and is often known to give a number of classy insults to opponents she defeats in the Tekken games. Since her first appearance in the series, Lili has been included in every Tekken game to come out, leading up to her announcement for Tekken 8 now. In the new trailer, Lili is shown picking up and cuddling a cat that appears when she wins a match.

It’s likely we’ll be seeing more fighters announced for Tekken 8 in the nearby future. Tekken fans can expect more returning fighters to appear, but there’s also a high chance for more new faces to get added to the roster as well. Maybe there will be more announcements toward the summer and before the game comes out. While there is no set release date, Tekken 8 is still slated to release in 2023 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.

Are you going to pick up Tekken 8 when it finally comes out? Will you be using Lili in the game or picking another character as your main? Let us know your thoughts down below in the comment section!

Unrecord Police Bodycam Realistic FPS Causes Controversy

Jakejames Lugo
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Unrecord Police Bodycam Realistic FPS Causes Controversy

It’s no secret that the games industry and any topic related to the police have often been a volatile mixture. Whether it’s real-world events dictating the opinions of games industry figures or various game releases depicting police officers in various contexts, there’s always a controversy that pops up one way or another. This appears to be the case with a new game being made by developer Alexandre Spindler for Steam. Many discussing the game on social media appear to be split on how they feel about it.

The game in question is a hyper-realistic first-person shooter called Unrecord. At first glance, anyone would believe that this is either a very elaborate hoax or some kind of virtual reality game that puts you in the shoes of a police officer trying to solve a case. But what Unrecord actually is according to its developer is a realistic FPS being made in Unreal Engine 5. The first footage of the game was shared by Alexandre on his Twitter back in 2022, with a glance at the very detailed graphics and tense gameplay.

Alexandre later shared new footage of the game, prompting many responses from the gaming community. The game’s Steam page gives a solid description of what the game is for curious players. “Unrecord is a single-player FPS that tells the story of a tactical police officer from the perspective of his body camera. As you work to solve a complex case, you’ll need to use your tactical and detective skills to succeed.” The studio publishing the game is DRAMA, a French independent game studio that is made up of three people. Unrecord is their only game listed on Steam. Unrecord also has no announced release date as of yet according to a post shared on Twitter from the studio.

But despite the shocking reception to the game’s visuals, many are very apprehensive about the concept and subject matter of Unrecord. DRAMA describes the game as a mixture of first-person experiences like Firewatch and tactical shooter elements of Read or Not, along with a narrative to follow. For some people online, a game about the police is an instant red flag and has been the cause of heated discussion. One user on Twitter responded to footage of the game with major concern. “This is strictly my opinion, but a cop simulator…really?? All this talent and ingenuity and impressive tech with no creative spark to do something far cooler kinda sucks. Like this hyper-realism would escalate horror to the next level, but instead we get a cop simulator…” Many others on social media and forums echoed similar views about the game.

In response to a lot of the scrutiny about Unrecord, the studio released a statement addressing many of the concerns brought up. The post touched on the validity of Unrecord being an actual game they plan to release, as well as their stance about tackling the subjects related to the police and criminal acts.

“As a French studio addressing a global audience, the game does not engage in any foreign policy and is not inspired by any real-life events… The game will obviously avoid any undesirable topics such as discrimination, racism, violence against women and minorities… The public generally trusts film, series, and novel writers on the intelligence of the point of view when it comes to detective, gangster, or police stories… Why not for a video game? If the game presents political messages, they will be made consciously or in your interpretation. If the game aims to be subversive in certain countries, we will assume the label…”

Additional footage of the game was shared on Twitter by Alexandre and the official Unrecord Twitter account, showcasing more gameplay and even clips of the Unreal application as Alexandre tweaked certain aspects. For some, it’s unbelievable how close to reality video game visuals have gotten over the years. Gamers that were interested in Unrecord continue to debate online whether this is a real game or not, but one thing is for certain. Unrecord definitely has a lot more attention on it now. We’ll know if it can deliver a solid experience or not when DRAMA is finally able to release it for everyone to play.

What do you think of the gameplay footage of Unrecord? Do you think this is a real game or an elaborate hoax by some clever developers? And do you think it’ll tackle the police subject matter with class? Share your thoughts about everything in the comments down below!

Crash Team Rumble Beta Impressions – Know Your Role Crash!

Jakejames Lugo
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Crash Team Rumble Beta Impressions – Know Your Role Crash!

Crash Bandicoot is a series with a lot of versatility, being one of the big mascot franchises from the early PlayStation era. We’ve seen Crash in action-adventure games, kart racing games, and chaotic party games that can be played with friends. But now we’re going to see Crash Bandicoot and the rest of his companions in a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game, something very different for the orange bandicoot. To get a taste of what’s to come, developer Toys for Bob had a closed multiplayer beta for the game that allowed players to dive into the arena and scramble to collect wumpa fruit. And even with a small portion of the game available to play, there’s a lot to say about this new outing for Crash and friends.

In the beta for Crash Team Rumble, there’s access to five characters to play with, most of which need to be unlocked at first by playing and winning matches. You can play as Crash Bandicoot, Coco Bandicoot, Tawna Bandicoot, Neo Cortex, and Dingodile. Each character has their own role and perks for that role to help contribute to a match, by either scoring or affecting other aspects of the match. Characters like Crash and Tanwa are Scorers, whose biggest goal is to collect as much wumpa fruit and score in the goal. They are able to capture Gem points easier and multiply the score for the team faster. Coco and Neo Cortex are Boosters, characters who can gather more relics on the map are gain access to various perks that either boost the team or affect the opposing team. And Dingodile is a Blocker, whose only concern is being a menace to opponents and protecting key points to ensure victory.

Matches are 4-on-4 skirmishes on a variety of maps based on different parts of the Crash Bandicoot series. It’s very important that the whole team works together in their given roles to win a match. Collecting wumpa fruit is everyone’s concern, but not the only thing they should do when roaming around. Deviating from a character’s role can be a major issue for the team and almost guarantee a loss, especially if you play characters in the opposite way they’re intended. Dingodile is strong but moves slower than most other characters, so he’s not ideal for gathering wumpa fruit fast. In the same way, Crash can move fast but can’t take a lot of hits or deal a lot of damage against other characters. So you shouldn’t really be using him to get into a lot of fights. Finding out the pros and cons of each playable character will take some trial and error, which comes with time as you play more.

Matchmaking in the beta can be sluggish at first, but once you’re put into a match things pick up to a faster pace. Matches can either last a short while or end very quickly, depending on how well your team works together with their given roles. The biggest factor to winning quickly is getting control of the multipliers on the map, with each multiplier stacking upon one another. Fighting for points like this is where most of the skirmishes between teams will happen, which is why Blockers and Scorers need to work together well to gain the upper hand. Once a team has that, gathering wumpa fruit is the main goal to gaining a massive lead.

At the same time, everyone can pick up relics to use the various utility platforms, or Relic Stations, that are on the map. For Booster characters, this is very important because they can gather more relics faster than everyone else. You don’t need to have the exact amount of relics right away to open a platform up, you can gather and stack them up between everyone on the team. Once you have enough, getting big relic boosts can be devastating to the other team. Some of the perks include having a UFO comb the map and damage enemies, while another will unlock Uka Uka invincibility for your entire team and allow you to run through everything. By the time things like this begin to happen, matches might already be on the verge of finishing, especially if one team has been proactive in getting multipliers and wumpa fruit.

Characters also have other perks that they can use occasionally over time, such as dropping enemies to harass the opposite team or a health boost for allies. These come after an ability bar fills up over time as you play. It’s possible that some characters in the final release will have perks to make this fill up faster and drop more things on the map, but that’s not the case in the beta. Most of the abilities between characters affect gathering items on the map and how much damage they do to enemies.

When it comes to balance, the beta shows that there is a lot that still needs to be adjusted. One of the biggest issues is when a team has no answer to the opposing side camps their scoring ring using someone like Dingodile. Because a blocker can take a lot of damage and push back everyone far with ease, a group of scorers or boosters will have a lot of trouble. You can’t win a match when the team is unable to score. While it’s a good strategy to hinder a team from doing so, it shouldn’t be a nearly game-breaking option. Possibly having some of the enemies that are laid on the map adjusted to do more damage or knock characters back will help with this, giving the defending team some sort of option to prevent their score ring from being camped out constantly. But the other option would be to adjust the attributes of Blockers like Dingodile, to still allow them to be tough but not untouchable in such scenarios.

In addition to matches, players can unlock various cosmetic gear that can be equipped to characters. These are only for looks, but allow for some flair to be added to every character, giving some visual variety. New items can be unlocked by completing challenges and leveling up the Battle Pass that Crash Team Rumble has. Higher levels open up the better-looking gear, but you can also unlock more items by playing with specific characters and leveling up their rank. Luckily, items you unlock can be mixed and matched between everyone, so you’re never locked out from one item on any given character. After playing just a few matches the unlocks pop up more often, which may or may not change in the final release. Everyone on the roster looks goofy, but adding different items can give them an even more outlandish look.

Overall, the closed beta for Crash Team Rumble is very solid. The game is fun to play and can get very competitive if you get matched up with a good team. Unfortunately, the inverse can be said if you wind up with a bad group, but that is the nature of the genre that you have to expect. There will definitely be more content to explore in the final version of the game when Crash Team Rumble releases on June 20th for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, and Xbox One.

Will you be checking out Crash Team Rumble on any platform? Which character are you going to try out first or which one will you main? Let us know your thoughts about Crash Team Rumble in the comments down below!

Review: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always – Not Fully Morphed

Jakejames Lugo
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Review: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always – Not Fully Morphed

The Power Rangers series has been around for over 30 years with many spinoffs that continue bringing teenagers with attitude into cosmic adventures. The original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series remains one of the most popular in the franchise, being the foundation that helped bring about many of the staple aspects the franchise continues to this day. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always is a Netflix special that follows some of the original Rangers many years later after the ending of the original series. But while there are some fan service moments and decent action that Power Ranger fans will enjoy, a few unforgiving problems nearly ruin the fun. Some creative choices are borderline disrespectful and are glaring issues that stick out in the worst way possible.

The plot of this Power Rangers special mostly follows Billy and Zack, played once again by David Yost and Walter Emanuel Jones respectively. After a battle with a robotized Rita Repulsa that results in the death of Trini Kwan the Yellow Ranger, Zack takes in her daughter Minh and acts as her guardian. All of the original rangers move on with their lives until the Robo Rita resurfaces and attacks them. Jason, Kimberly, and Tommy are captured by Rita’s new monsters and used to power a mysterious device. Billy and Zack need to gather help from other Power Rangers to find and stop Rita before her plan can unfold and wreak havoc on Angel Groove and the rest of the world.

Anyone that has watched an episode of any Power Rangers show knows there is an element of camp and lightheartedness that is part of the franchise’s DNA. So there isn’t a lot of deep storytelling here, but Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always is a bit darker than previous Power Ranger stories. The death of Trini, once played by Thuay Trang in the original show, is addressed in the series in a fashion that fits the story being told. Having Rita as the one who kills Trini makes sense since Rita was the nemesis of the original group. At the same time, having her daughter become linked to the Rangers seems very fitting, leading to a predictable outcome that still makes sense within this universe. But while the bulk of the story uses the death of Trini as a jumping-off point, there are other outside forces that hold this special back in a significant way.

With the original team comes the unavoidable issues about the actors who played them. Kimberly, Jason, and Tommy are present in this special, but none of their actors are part of the story. It’s very jarring to have their characters appear, but be captured for the entirety of the story and never once remove their helmets like Billy and Zack. It’s very difficult to make a Mighty Morphin Power Rangers story and not have these actors reprise their roles in a significant way. This is very apparent when you see Kimberly, Jason, and Tommy at the very end through archival footage with Kimberly playing the guitar and singing for the group. However, Amy Jo Johnson who played Kimberly in the show was not included in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always whatsoever. To include her character with voice sound clips and archive footage from the original series but not have her appear at the end of the story feels a tad bit disrespectful and lazy, especially when her character is present at the beginning.

The same can be said for Austin St. John, who played Jason the Red Ranger in the original show. Unfortunately, because of the legal issues Austin faced in his personal life, he couldn’t appear in the special. And worse yet, the passing of Jason David Frank also contributed to him not reprising his role as Tommy the Green Ranger. Since these issues are unavoidable, it would have been a better creative decision to not include these Power Rangers at all, and instead go with different characters from the Power Rangers franchise.

With sound clips of all three actors being used during the fight scenes at the start, as well as an off-camera morph beforehand, it once again feels lazy and borderline disrespectful to fans and the legacy of the show. There is a dedication screen (In Loving Memory) to Jason David Frank at the very end after showing the original team during Kimberly’s song, along with Thuay Trang, but it would’ve been a better overall choice not to include Tommy or the Green Ranger in the story at all.

But what about the Rangers we do have for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always, are they good in their roles? Besides Walter and David, we also get Catherine Sutherland and Steve Cardenas, who played the second Pink and Red Rangers in the later seasons of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Both of them contribute greatly to the team when called upon by Billy to help out in the fight against Robo Rita, especially towards the end when the action revs up. Both actors bring a lot of camp with them as well, particularly Steve’s character Rocky, who plays off a lot of comedic moments.

In addition, we get cameos of Johnny Yong Bosch and Karan Ashley, who played the second Black and Yellow Rangers in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Their appearance doesn’t do much for the story, other than to give reasons for some of the other rangers being unable to help. They appear a second time at the very end once everything is resolved after having traveled from space when they received Billy’s call for help.

And then there’s Charlie Kersh, who plays Trini’s daughter Minh. A lot of her scenes feel over-acted and a bit hammed up more than her costars, but her action scenes are done very well. There are moments where her line delivery feels awkward, often appearing like another take could’ve been filmed to make things a little better. Her relationship with Billy and Zack has the most emotional moments in the special, giving reason for her wanting to fight Rita and become a Power Ranger. There’s a sense of whiplash in scenes that both she and Zack share, where one-second things get serious and emotional, only to immediately get back to the camp and one-liners. For most Power Rangers fans this will be nothing new, but for everyone else, this will be very jarring.

Like the rest of the franchise, the action is a big standout. The fights with the Rangers taking on Rita’s Putties are great and arguably a bit more brutal than what the original show ever had. The Rangers get to use their weapons more and land vicious attacks on their enemies, stabbing and slashing through putties and causing them to fall apart into the dirt. For mature fans of the show, this is a natural evolution from what they grew up with. When things kick into high gear towards the end with Rita growing monsters and the Rangers calling upon their zords, it can be fun.

Unfortunately, the CG visuals with the Megazord don’t look as good as they could. Some may find similarities in the effects to the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers movie from 1995, but in 2023 things should look much better. The scenes when the original zords are called upon look better and emulate some aspects from when they appeared on the show, but what comes after doesn’t match up to that.

When all is said and done, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always is an average special that could have, and should have, been great for long-time fans. Outside forces may have dampened a lot of things and made it more difficult to put the special together, but better planning and creative choices could have compensated for that. Not having some of the actors that played roles in the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers show really drags down the impact this special could have made to celebrate the legacy of the series. And the corners that were glaring cut because of that were very poor decisions that stand on the edge of being disrespectful and lackluster. It’s great to see Billy, Zack, and some of the other Power Rangers morph once again, but hopefully, this isn’t the last special celebrating Mighty Morphin Power Rangers that everyone can go out on. Such a thing can definitely be done a whole lot better.

Are you a fan of the Power Rangers? Who is your favorite ranger of the original group? And will you be watching Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always on Netflix? Share your thoughts in the comments down below!

Discotek Media Announces Blu-Ray Release ‘Ultimate Muscle: The Kinnikuman Legacy’

Jacob Airey
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Discotek Media Announces Blu-Ray Release ‘Ultimate Muscle: The Kinnikuman Legacy’

Discotek Media is bringing all seventy-seven episodes of the sports parody anime ‘Ultimate Muscle.’ The release includes ‘The Kinnikuman Legacy’ and ‘Second Generation: Ultimate Muscle 2.’ The Blu-Ray box set will feature the visuals in standard definition as well as both the original Japanese original and the English dub from 4Kids Entertainment.

The box set has a planned release on May 30, 2023, though it is currently available for pre-order on the Right Stuf Anime website.

The anime was directed by Toshiaki Komura and produced by Toei Animation between 2002 and 2004. The series aired in Japan on TV Tokyo and on the Fox Box animation block of Fox in the United States.

It is based on the comedy manga by writer Takashi Shimada and artist Yoshinori Nakai and published by ‘Weekly Shōnen Jump’ between 1979 and 1987. Though it was relaunched in 2011 within the pages ‘Shū Play News’ magazine.

You can check out the intro for the series here:

Wikipedia describes the synopsis as follows,

“Mantaro Muscle (also known as Kid Muscle, Mantaro Kinniku in the Japanese version) is the spoiled son of superhero wrestler King Muscle (Kinnikuman in the Japanese version). After 28 years of peace, the Seigi Choujins’ (Muscle League) old enemies regroup and form the Demon Manufacturing Plant (dMp, known in the English version as Destruction, Mayhem and Pain). The Muscle League has lost its edge and are overwhelmed by the young, well-trained fighters. Recognizing their weakness, the Seigi Chojin reopen the Hercules Factory (a school for superheroes) and begin training a new generation of heroes to take on the dMp. At first unwilling, Mantaro (Kid Muscle) is one of the young heroes and defeats his father to prove his readiness to graduate.”

‘Ultimate Muscle’ is a sequel to the 1990s anime ‘Kinnikuman’ and its follow-up ‘Kinnikuman: Scramble for the Throne’ produced by Toei Animation.

Street Fighter 6 World Tour Demo Impressions – Visiting Metro City

Jakejames Lugo
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Street Fighter 6 World Tour Demo Impressions – Visiting Metro City

Street Fighter 6 is set to release in June 2023, and many fighting game fans can’t wait to get their hands on it and hop online for some multiplayer sets. Not too long ago, Capcom had an open beta for Street Fighter 6 that allowed players to check out the Battle Lobby online features and get a feel for the game. Those who got into the beta on PlayStation 5 and other platforms were treated to a great time. But what about the other modes that Street Fighter 6 will have in its full release? Luckily Capcom has given everyone a taste of what to expect with a new demo to explore on PlayStation 5.

While the open beta for Street Fighter 6 focused on multiplayer content, this new demo puts an emphasis on single-player content. The demo lets players get the World Tour mode, as well as local single matches and Extreme Battles. Because of this, the demo also doesn’t have many characters to use from the roster, only allowing Ryu and newcomer Luke as playable characters in any of the modes. The tutorials that are included for both characters are very comprehensive, detailing every aspect of a character’s playstyle and unique moves. This is very good for new players or anyone looking to try out a different character outside of their main. Every character in the full version will have a guide that can be referenced when needed.

For World Tour, however, players are able to make a custom character that can be ported over into the final version of the game. Unfortunately, any progress made in World Tour in the demo won’t carry over. Most players will spend the majority of their time in the World Tour section of the demo, which takes you through the beginning sections of World Tour, letting your character join up with Luke and his training school. There is a lot of cinematics that lay the foundation of a story that will play out through World Tour mode, giving your character a possible rival and hinting at things to come.

When the demo finally gets past the tutorial section of World Tour, you’re thrown into Metro City. In the full game, the city can be explored and offer many challenges and side quests to get lost in. For the demo however, you only get to see a very small section of Metro City and are introduced to the mechanics of getting into fights, leveling up your custom character, and some of the quest elements you’ll discover. Running into different Street Fighter characters will allow them to become your master and open up their style of fighting to you. This is interesting and can be switched up as you play through more of the final version of World Tour. There’s a lot of potential to have some neat surprises in the final game, especially if everyone in the roster for Street Fighter 6 makes an appearance during your quest.

Fighting in World Tour is similar to any fight in Street Fighter 6 but with a few minor changes specific to the mode. While you can use Classic Controls that are more traditional Street Fighter inputs, you can use Quick Combos during a match, allowing you to hit a few inputs for combos when you land an attack. Some battles also have you teaming up with an ally against a stronger opponent, which is very similar to the dramatic battle scenarios of older Street Fighter games. The full game will have more abilities and other battle scenarios, but the demo only offers a small portion of what might be.

But a few things the demo shows dampen a bit of the experience, especially in the presentation during World Tour. Although a demo, some sections of the mode experience a severe drop in frame rate and have the occasional pop-in with characters in the city. It can feel like the framerate of the game goes from 60 FPS to around 24 FPS when you enter into a fight with a character you find while roaming.

In the small area you can move around within Metro City, you can see citizens popping in and out as you move further out into a distance. This happens while you roam as well as in quick cutscenes when you’re interacting with non-playable characters. Hopefully, this is ironed out by the time Street Fighter 6 is released because it happens frequently.

Despite a few hiccups in the demo, Street Fighter 6 is looking very good so far. Many of the fighting mechanics are pushing the fighting genre forward with its competitive scene, but also offering something different for casual audiences looking to dive into the world of Street Fighter. Capcom revealed that the first batch of downloadable fighters added to the roster will be coming in 2023 and into 2024, but there may be even more surprises over the horizon. Street Fighter 6 is set to release on June 2, 2023, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.

Are you going to pick up Street Fighter 6 on release day? Which character are you going to pick up as your main for online play? And are you excited to see more of the World Tour mode? Share your thoughts about Street Fighter 6 in the comments down below!

Arcade1up Reveals ‘The Fast & The Furious’ Deluxe Arcade Machine

Mike Phalin
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Arcade1up Reveals ‘The Fast & The Furious’ Deluxe Arcade Machine

Arcade1Up is taking another stab at the racing game genre with a deluxe version of The Fast & The Furious arcade machine. Relive the early days of the long-running franchise … for a price.

There’s no riser required for this machine since, thankfully. But then again, I don’t think a riser with peddles would work anyway. The entire cabinet is pretty eye-catching. It’s loaded with The Fast & The Furious early 2000s flair.

The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Game includes another game: The Fast & The Furious: Drift. But what would these two games be without multiplayer?

Up to four cabinets can be linked together via a local network but not with an internet connection. That’s lame, but considering the iffy online feature we’ve experienced with the NFL Blitz cabinet, it’s probably a good thing it wasn’t incorporated for The Fast & The Furious.

Arcade1Up machines have been all over the place as far as price goes. In the past two years, we’ve seen them go from $299 to $899, depending on the retailer. Yes, even basic machines with two games were commanding high price tags. Ugh.

The Fast & The Furious isn’t going to be inexpensive. The 64.4″ tall arcade machine will cost you $599.99 and has to be pre-ordered from Best Buy. The expected release date for The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Game is May 8th.

The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Machine
Photo Credit: Arcade1UP
The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Machine
Photo Credit: Arcade1UP
The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Machine
Photo Credit: Arcade1UP
The Fast & The Furious Deluxe Arcade Machine
Photo Credit: Arcade1UP

Here’s the complete list of features:

  • Link up to 4 cabinets through local network for the ultimate arcade setup! (*cabinets need to be connected on the same local area network and will not connect over the internet.)
  • Wi-Fi Leaderboards to challenge others across the country!
  • Sleek Cabinet Design
  • Light-Up Marquee
  • Molded Faux Coin Door for Authentic Arcade Look
  • Powerful dual speaker sound system
  • Crisp 17-inch LCD Monitor
  • Racing steering wheel with rumble, gas and brake pedals, and performance 4 -speed shifter
  • Over 5 feet tall
  • 2 Classic Arcade Games
[Source: Arcade1UP]

Cartoon Network Debutes Tiny Toons Looniversity Teaser Trailer

Sarah Leone
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Cartoon Network Debutes Tiny Toons Looniversity Teaser Trailer

Cartoon Network unveiled the teaser trailer for Tiny Toons Looniversity, which is a reboot of the 90’s animated series Tiny Toon Adventures that ran from 1990 to 1995 with 98 episodes in total. The characters in this series are considered the descendants of the Looney Tunes characters. The original series took place in elementary to high school years while the new reboot will take place during college years.

Here is the trailer for Tiny Toons Looniversity:

“The series follows Babs, Buster, and the rest of the crew to Acme Looniversity,” reads the synopsis. “At the esteemed institution of higher hijinx learning, they form long-lasting friendships and perfect their cartoony craft while studying under the greatest cartoon characters in history, the Looney Tunes.”

Presumably, Buster and Babs are still going to be portrayed as siblings, whereas they clearly were not siblings in the original series. The teaser does not really give an indication as to whether they went through with this twist. The sibling revelation came out in July of last year during the SDCC panel in which a rep from WB mentioned in passing “Buster’s twin sister Babs”. This statement was confirmed by staff artist Len Kiraly Lee. Tiny Toon Adventures creator Tom Ruegger reacted to this development by responding with, “Ummm… Ew?”

Tiny Toons Looniversity is set to air on Cartoon Network and HBO Max this fall.

Tiny Toons Looniversity is executive produced by Sam Register, Justin Falvey, and Darryl Frank, with Erin Gibson as showrunner. The half-hour comedy will feature the voices of Eric Bauza as Daffy Duck, Jeff Bergman as Bugs Bunny, Ashleigh Crystal Hairston as Babs Bunny, Candi Milo as Granny, Tessa Netting as Sweetie Bird, Danny Cooksey as Montana Max, and David Errigo Jr. as Hamton J. Pig.

What do you think of the new teaser trailer? Will you watch it even if none of the original creators are involved? Will you watch it if they changed the decision to make Babs and Buster siblings? Let us know!

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