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Final Fantasy XV: Episode Gladiolus – Reinventing and Refining
For all the criticisms it’s possible to level at Final Fantasy XV, post-launch support isn’t one of them. Square Enix has not only been preparing for the release of character-centric DLC packages...
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Ne no Kami: Inspiration and Intent
With visual novels having a lot more in common with conventional, non-interactive fiction than many other types of video games, it’s eminently possible for individual authors to give their work a clear...
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From the Archives: A Fine Romance
The terms “visual novel” and “dating sim” are used somewhat interchangeably in the West — even by those who publish them — but in actuality, this isn’t particularly accurate. Visual novels often...
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Shmup Essentials: Dariusburst Chronicle Saviours
A common criticism of arcade-style shoot ’em ups by people who don’t understand that the main “point” of them is to replay them over and over for high scores is that they’re “too short” or “don’t have...
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The MoeGamer GameCast – Episode 9: Garden of Memories, Part 2
In this week’s GameCast, Midori, Yumi and I continue our exploration of the Garden of Memories, and I share some further recollections that are important to me. Original music, as ever, is the work of...
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From the Archives: Bonds of People are the True Power
One of my favorite things about Japanese role-playing games is their focus on camaraderie and friendship. In fact, you can extend this outwards to a large amount of Japanese media in general — take a...
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Nier Automata: Introduction and History
Nier: Automata is a fascinating game in its own right, but it becomes even more of an interesting story when you take it in context of everything that led to its creation. In order to understand Nier:...
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Wii U Essentials: Star Fox Zero
Star Fox Zero, a return to Star Fox’s standard formula after numerous games exploring alternative game styles, was met with a somewhat mixed reception on its original release. Developed as a...
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From the Archives: It’s Not What It Looks Like
The discerning visual novel fan who decides to “go public” with his or her love for the medium faces a challenge that you tend not to encounter in the more “mainstream” parts of gaming — the gaming...
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Shmup Essentials: Raiden IV: Overkill
The Raiden series is a venerable one in the world of video games, albeit one that is not quite as prolific as some series of similar age. Originally appearing in arcades in 1990, the original Raiden...
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The MoeGamer GameCast: Episode 10 – Season 1 Finale
In this week’s GameCast… the truth about Penelope! If you can prove your worth, that is… This episode features a quiz that you need to beat in order to get the best ending. Rather than having to get...
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From the Archives: Capitalism, Ho!
It’s strange to think that just a few years ago, Japanese games on PC were a very unusual sight, being largely limited to adults-only visual novels and occasional localisations of doujin (indie)...
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School of Talent – Suzu Route: A Song of Joy
MyDearest’s visual novel School of Talent is in a similar situation to minori’s beautiful Supipara in that it’s the first in a series that doesn’t quite exist as yet. In the case of both Supipara and...
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Japanese Games Didn’t Just Suddenly “Get Good”
MoeGamer’s mission statement, which you’ll find over on the right, is “to provide comprehensive, interesting, positive and well-researched coverage of niche-interest and overlooked, underappreciated...
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Nier Automata: Creating a Game That is “Unexpected”, That “Keeps Changing Form”
Nier creator Taro Yoko has some strong opinions about how to keep games interesting. Last time, we heard how he felt that modern triple-A games were often fun for the first twenty minutes, but that he...
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Shmup Essentials: Astebreed
There’s an assumption among certain parts of the gaming community that you need a big budget and a massive team to make something that looks amazing. This is nonsense, of course, and nowhere is this...
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From the Archives: On the “Idiocy” of Interactive Storytelling
Back at the end of November 2012, this article appeared over on community-led games writing site Bitmob (now folded into VentureBeat’s GamesBeat). For those too lazy to follow the link and/or read the...
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Puzzler Essentials: Purino Party
With the rise in free-to-play mobile games, the humble standalone puzzle game has become something of a rarity. That’s not to say that they don’t exist at all any more, however, and, more to the point,...
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From the Archives: Secret of the Elemental Stone
I’m a big fan of unconventional JRPGs that buck the trends of the genre. That’s not to say I don’t have any love for good old “ATTACK, MAGIC, ITEM” — quite the opposite, in fact — but when something...
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Games & Girls: Embracing the Stereotype
Among the denizens of the Internet, particularly those who are interested in video games, anime and other such nerdy things — especially those nerdy things that are a little outside the mainstream —...
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