Tag: Japan

Square Enix drops a game-changer with ‘Kingdom Hearts 2.5 HD Remix’

Oh, nostalgia. So long are the days where controllers had wires extending to the console and games weren’t running in high definition. Sometimes gamers yearn for a little nostalgia every now and then. “Kingdom Heart 2.5 HD Remix” is the perfect remedy for any gamer wanting that feeling without having to dust off the old Playstation 2 and all while taking advantage of the glorious HD consoles we have today.

Square Enix’s final mix of the fan favorite series is the perfect blend of the dark undertones of the “Final Fantasy” universe and the colorful world of Disney — all in pristine high definition with added cut scenes, redone musical scores and brand new boss fights that keep players on their toes.

“Kingdom Hearts 2.5 HD ReMix” is broken up into two games — “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix” and “Birth by Sleep Final Mix” and exclusive high definition cut scenes from the Nintendo DS game “Kingdom Hearts Re:coded.” The final mix versions of both “Kingdom Hearts 2” and “Birth by Sleep” were never released outside of Japan — until now — and it was the best decision that game director Tetsuya Nomura and the folks at Square Enix ever made.

“Kingdom Hearts 2” has always been a really good roleplaying game (RPG) that has always stood the test of time. “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix” doesn’t fall short to its predecessor and when played on HD consoles like the PS3 or PS4 enhances the experience.

Taking place one year of years after the events of the first “Kingdom Hearts” game, “Kingdom Hearts 2” sees main characters Sora, Donald and Goofy reunited after Sora awakens from basically a coma. This time around the trio are on a mission to find King Mickey and Sora’s best friend Riku, who, after the events of the first game, are both wandering in the Realm of Darkness.

The twists and turns start right as the player begins the game. Instead of playing as the fan favorite and main character Sora, the player starts out playing as a new character named Roxas. There’s more than meets the eye with Roxas, as everything and everyone is not what they seem. The connection between Roxas and Sora runs deeper than just being able to wield the keyblade, which makes playing through the introduction a very interesting — albeit long — experience.

Traveling from one Disney-themed world to another on Chip n’ Dale’s Gummi Ship, Sora and company reunite with characters such as Beast from “Beauty and the Beast” and a grown-up Simba from “The Lion King” from Disney and Leon and Yuffie from the “Final Fantasy” universe.

The mixture of characters may not look good on paper but the roles each one takes on in their respective worlds give Sora, Donald Duck and Goofy an advantage when fighting off enemies and leveling the characters up.

Fighting off enemies such as the Maleficent-controlled Heartless from the first “Kingdom Hearts” game and the newly introduced Nobodies is child’s play compared to the games main antagonists — the infamous Organization XIII. Made up of 13 incredibly powerful Nobodies, the organization members serve as the boss fights for the different worlds in the game.

During specific boss fights if the player’s health gets down to zero then the player has the chance to play as King Mickey and wield the Kingdom Key D, the keyblade of the Realm of Darkness. This moment is one of the few times that dying in a game can actually give you an advantage.

The reason why “Kingdom Hearts 2” is such a timeless play through is that there is a ton of replay ability opportunities including going and collecting items, leveling up to 99 and challenging optional bosses like the ever menacing sephiroth. The “Final Mix” takes that to the next level, especially with the newly added critical mode, which can test even the most veteran of players.

A really cool bonus for fans of the longtime series is two exclusive HD cut scenes from the highly anticipated “Kingdom Hearts 3,” rumored to be released next year.

With the count down to “Kingdom Hearts 3” already in full force, gamers can get both their nostalgic and “Kingdom Hearts” fix by turning on the Playstation and playing through “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix.” After all, a little nostalgia every now and then never hurt anybody.

Originally published in City Times, December 2014.

‘Kawaii’ metal goes viral

When most people think of typical Japanese pop music they think of cute outfits and sugary sweet pop songs. At first glance, BABYMETAL fits that description perfectly. Then you put on their debut, self-titled album and boy, are you in for a surprise. The group’s sound is unlike anything you’ve ever heard, in the best possible way.

Not only has BABYMETAL been gaining worldwide recognition through their music videos on YouTube but they have even been featured on the Internet clip show “RightThis Minute” on CNN’s sister network HLN. They are also the youngest group to grace the stage at the world famous Nippon Budokan arena in Tokyo.

BABYMETAL is made up of vocalists Su-metal, Moaetal, Yuimetal – real names Suzuka Nakamoto, Moa Kikuchi and Yui Mizuno respectively — and their supporting band Full Metal Band. The group started off a sub unit of the popular idol group Sakura Gakuin but quickly rose up as one of Japan’s best new artists.

The album is a mixture of varying genres including pop, rock, heavy metal, electronic dance music, industrial and symphonic death metal. On paper there is no way that these genres can work together and have it sound good. BABYMETAL mixes these genres to create a unique genre of their own, called “kawaii metal” or cute metal.

“Megitsune” (translation: female fox or vixen) is undoubtedly the best song on the album. It perfectly captures the aesthetic that is BABYMETAL, a killer mix of high-energy idol pop music and melodic power metal. Lyrically, it’s an analogy between the Japanese folklore that surround women in society today.

“The song relates women and foxes. People think that foxes deceive or disguise. People also think that women wear makeup to disguise themselves and people think ill of foxes as they disguise themselves,” said lead singer Su Metal in an interview on the Japanese TV show “Hot Wave.”

The vocals are another major focal point. It’s not everyday that you find a young vocalist like Su-metal with a strong vocal range. Her vocals combined with Moametal and Yuimetal’s idol vocal style and the growls and screams from the backing band make for an interesting listening experience.

The flow from track to track is seamless. Each song has its own unique sound, changing from genre to genre in an instant giving the listener a whole new experience with each passing song.

Highlights on the album include the cute hip-hop influenced “Ii ne!!,” the dark and heavy intro to the album “BABYMETAL DEATH,” the upbeat synth pop driven “Doki Doki Morning,” the high energy power pop influenced “Headbanger” and the melodic album closer “Ijime, Dame, Zettai.”

BABYMETAL’s self-titled debut is a testament of just how far you take music and experiment with it. Metal is versatile; it isn’t just brutal, hard in-your-face rhythms and melodic guitar riffs. It can be cute, fun and youthful too.

Originally published in City Times, March 2014.

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