The Blog

Capcom showed off a series of items that are available in a Monster Hunter Ichiban Kuji lottery, and everything has been designed in a chibi style by illustrator Amelicart. This lottery is only open to those in Japan and it’s officially opened to participants today.

For those who don’t know, Ichiban Kuji is a popular lottery prize series that is held at participating convenience stores and specialty shops. You’ll be able to buy tickets for this Monster Hunter lottery via the Cap Kuji Online website.

The lineup of prizes in this lottery is as follows:

• S tier prize: Boxed set of pins
• A tier prize: B2-sized hanging tapestries
• B-tier prize: Full-color tote bag
• C-tier prize: Ringed notebook
• D-tier prize: Big sticker
• E-tier prize: Tin badge

Ever since Nintendo announced that a live-action Legend of Zelda movie was in the works, there has been both excitement and trepidation. While fans think the potential is there for a fantastic adaptation, there’s also plenty of worry about the story, actors, and approach. While we’ve yet learn the finer details of the film, we can rest easy knowing Nintendo’s brightest star is deeply involved.

Wes Ball is handling the directorial duties on the Legend of Zelda movie, and he’s recently assuaged fears with his comments on the film and franchise that clearly paint him as an honest-to-goodness fan. For those still worried the movie might not come together, you can now rest a bit easier, as Ball is also going to have the best person possible at his side for the film.

According to a Deadline interview with Sony Motion Pictures Group chairman Tom Rothman, fans needn’t worry about the adaptation being anything other than stellar, as Shigeru Miyamoto is in the trenches with this project as well.

To celebrate the launch of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door game for Switch, a brave band of streamers will be adventuring along with Mario and friends during the launch weekend on Twitch. Watch as some of your favorite Twitch stars journey through a colorful world of paper to collect the Crystal Stars before the nefarious X-Nauts do. Let’s meet the streamers!

TeaWithMandy (@TeaWithMandy)

• Sponsored stream: Friday, May 24, 4:00 am - 6:00 am EST
• Full stream time: 2:00 am - 6:00 am EST

TeaWithMandy primarily focuses on playing a variety of single-player games and loves nothing more than to immerse herself and her community, the Cutea Club, in the most beautiful experiences that the gaming world has to offer.

Le Jeu C’est Sérieux (@JeuSerieux)

• Sponsored stream: Saturday, May 25, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm EST

Le Jeu C’est Sérieux is a duo of video game enthusiasts made up of Guiz and Laurent. Nostalgia is a recurring theme for these partners in crime, specifically Guiz with his huge collection of NES games, while Laurent collects VHS recordings in search of artifacts of the video game past. They have shared their love of video games for over 10 years, both on YouTube and Twitch.

Thedragonfeeney (@thedragonfeeney)

• Sponsored stream: Sunday, May 26, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm EST
• Full stream time: 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm EST

Thedragonfeeney captivates audiences with her boundless enthusiasm and friendly demeanor. Feen delivers engaging gameplay, nostalgic trips down memory lane, and an infectious passion for gaming. Thedragonfeeney continues to inspire and entertain, leaving a lasting mark in the gaming community.

thatgamecompany invites fans of the award-winning studio’s globally renowned social adventure game Sky: Children of the Light to experience an extraordinary visual odyssey with the upcoming release of “The Art of Sky”, a beautifully curated art book featuring over 250 pages of thatgamecompany’s trademark artistic excellence. The bewitching art book, now available for pre-order, compiles concept art illustrations spanning the game’s earliest days, heartfelt behind-the-scenes commentary, and never-before-seen imagery in a beautifully crafted, timeless first-edition hardcover volume perfect for devoted players and collectors alike.

Sky: Children of the Light is beloved for its beautifully animated landscapes, touching storytelling, and the lasting bonds the game facilitates between players around the world. The art book is destined to bring fans into the magical world of Sky, with features such as:

● Early Prototypes – Go behind the scenes and discover more than a dozen different Sky child prototypes, early sketches of Sky’s social hub Aviary, and fantastic never-before-seen creatures.

● Rich History and Lore – Each section of “The Art of Sky” contains fascinating descriptions and backstories woven into Sky’s realms and details the extensive creative processes behind each decision made by thatgamecompany’s art team.

● Premium Design – Copies of “The Art of Sky” are printed on premium paper and come individually numbered for authenticity.

● Fan Art – Sky’s dedicated fanbase makes the community what it is, and “The Art of Sky” features a beautiful epilogue containing some of the pieces shared over the years by fans around the world.

● Pre-order Bonuses – Pre-ordering “The Art of Sky” grants bonus gifts of eight enchanting Sky postcards and three classic Sky posters while supplies last.

STAR Feature Bonus

Expanding players’ journey within Sky even further, a special STAR chip is embedded in every copy, which can be scanned on Nintendo Switch or compatible iOS and Android devices to obtain an in-game book. Placing and interacting with the book in Sky: Children of the Light cues a special cutscene with evocative visuals that grants a look inside the technical art that went into building the game’s whimsical lands.

“The Art of Sky” can be pre-ordered for $125 USD on thatskyshop.com and more information can be found on Sky’s official blog. The anticipated book will release later this year.

If you live in the Los Angeles Area, pre-order today for a chance to pick up your copy of the book and have it signed by the artist at thatgamecompany’s exhibition at Gallery Nucleus on June 15th, 2024. You can get full details on that event here.

It looks like the start of the middle of the month is the perfect time for developers and publishers to share updates on how well their games are doing, and today brings us sales data for another wave of titles! Thankfully, all of them appear to be doing quite well.

Another Crab’s Treasure

• over 250,000 units sold worldwide across all platforms combined
• Switch accounts for 20% of all units sold, as does PS5, while PC accounts for 60%

Ninjala

• has now been downloaded over 11 million times since launch
• the last download update was back in Feb. 2023, when the game hit 10 million downloads

Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side 4th Heart

• has sold over 190,000 units since launch, an impressive figure since the game is only available in Japan

Animal Crossing: New Horizons has sold 45.36 million units, making it not just the best-selling Animal Crossing titles, but one of the biggest games on Switch in general. That makes it no surprise that merch associated with the franchise is quick to sell out, but those in Japan will soon have a chance to snag some goodies that have been out-of-stock for awhile now.

Nintendo has confirmed that the Animal Crossing: New Horizons “The Roost” café tumbler glass is getting a restock in Japan, and it’s set to return to bookstores and online storefronts come May 27th, 2024. Just like last time, the tumbler will be priced at $19.

As for other items set for a restock, Nintendo’s line of Animal Crossing: New Horizons “Dodo Airlines” travel accessories are also coming back. These will be available through Family Mart locations across Japan, as well as through Takarashima’s official website. The exact date for the return of these goodies hasn’t been share.

When it comes to painstakingly chronicling world records in videogames, no one does it better than Summoning Salt. The gaming world record aficionado puts an absolute mountain of work and effort into breaking down the history of those records, and this time he’s turned his focus to Tetris on the NES.

As usual, there’s more than just one world record for Tetris on the NES. Depending on the methodology and approach, players can virtually compete to be the best in the world in numerous areas. You might think Tetris to be a rather straightforward affair, but as this documentary shows, there are all sorts of attempts, approaches and innovations that lead to the entire world record scene being flipped on its head.

The world record scene for Tetris has been active pretty much since the game launched, yet players are still pushing to be the best literal decades after this title first hit the scene. The ways in which players have not only discovered for speeding up gameplay, but pushing the game beyond its limits is downright staggering. If you haven’t been following the Tetris world record scene, you’re in for an absolute treat with this doc.

College is a pretty amazing time in a young adult’s life. It’s when kids leave the nest to find themselves, live away from home, experience life, and of course, take all kinds of college courses. Landing on a major is one of the many decisions college students have to make, but Nintendo fans might have things a tad easier if they go to one university in particular.

Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is offering up a student-taught class that specifically focuses on the Fire Emblem franchise. “Fire Emblem Design and Analysis” says it will help students “gain a deeper understanding of the game design, mechanics and writing of the Fire Emblem series.” If you’re already a fan of the franchise or are eager to learn more, it sounds like there’s no better way to do so than picking up this class!

It’s important to note that this course is offered alongside the university’s degrees instead of being a part of them. Still, these courses do count towards final degrees, so there’s more to them just taking the class for fun. A study of all things Fire Emblem that can also lift your grades a bit?! I mean, how could any self-respecting Nintendo fan say no?!

The Glass Staircase, a short-form old-school psychological horror game from the terror experts at Puppet Combo arrives on Switch Friday, May 24.

Experience the game that Bloody Disgusting has called “Puppet Combo’s most ambitious effort to date.” You take control of four girls as they navigate the horrors of a dilapidated orphanage. Each day, they’re given tasks to complete but it quickly becomes clear that it is anything but routine for them.

Rather than focusing on grotesque slasher horror, The Glass Staircase is a surreal and atmospheric game. Taking place sometime after 1922, The Glass Staircase is inspired by PS2 survival horror titles like Silent Hill 2 and the GameCube classic Eternal Darkness, as well as classic ‘80s Italian Giallo horror movies, such as The Beyond, House by the Cemetery, and Suspiria.

Key Features

• Fixed camera angles to escalate the dread—you never know what you’ll find waiting just around the corner…
• Nostalgic PlayStation 2 graphics, with thematic and mechanical nods to classic survival horror games.
• Eldritch secrets lurk in the bowels of this house… drag them into the light.
• Put together the pieces of a haunting story by collecting letters from the past, unraveling the mystery of the mansion and its dark history.
• Remember: Good girls take their medicine. Good girls do their chores. Good girls go home.

The king of crossover content is expanding its universe once more.

The official Fortnite X account has shared the above image, which fans of the Fallout series will recognize instantly. This image was shared with a wink and thumbs up emoji and that’s it, but Epic knows they don’t have to say anything else. Fallout is bigger than ever right now, and the artwork features enough iconic Fallout imagery for fans to know that collaborative content will be heading to the battle royale in the near future.

While there’s no specific date for this content to drop, there’s a good chance it could arrive as early as next week, as Chapter 5 season 3 of Fortnite kicks off May 24th, 2024. Once we have a release date and full details on this collaboration, we’ll make sure to fill you in.

Arc System Works America, Inc. previously announced that the physical package release of DAVE THE DIVER Anniversary Edition would arrive on Switch in North America on May 30th. Unfortunately that is no longer the case “due to production issues.” The new date now sits at June 28th, 2024 and Arc System Works has apologized for the inconvenience.

As players dive even deeper into this aquatic world, they may recognize a familiar look as the evening sushi bar welcomes customers cosplaying as fan favorite Guilty Gear Strive characters. This unique offering, exclusive to the Nintendo Switch package, lets players engage in a Guilty Gear Strive themed boat skin and “The Disaster Of Passion” rhythm game. Additionally, players can enjoy a digital art book that showcases DAVE THE DIVER’s memorable, pixelated characters and locations. These exclusive features are only available in the physical package.

Since debuting last year, DAVE THE DIVER has been praised for its unique hybrid underwater gameplay, earning a Metacritic score of 90 and selling over 3 million copies globally. The 2023 Steam Award-winning game takes players deeper into the mysterious Blue Hole ocean, home to over 200 species of fish, perfect for hunting and, by night, serving up fresh sushi at a seaside sushi bar. Players can generate income by serving customers sushi to use to upgrade diving gear. DAVE THE DIVER submerges players into its charming story and addictive gameplay, expanding through exploring of the mysterious Blue Hole.

DAVE THE DIVER Anniversary Edition for Nintendo Switch will be available as a physical package for $39.99 MSRP and is rated E 10+ by the ESRB.

Masahiro Sakurai is back with yet another installment in his game development video series, and today brings us an episode that falls into the “Programming & Tech” category.

Sakurai says that he and his team implement a variety of debug features during a game’s development, and today, he introduces what he considers to me one of the more useful tools; transparency.

You might be surprised at just how much transparency features are used in a game. The visual trick is apparent in some areas, but there are plenty of other places where the approach is used where you might not even expect it. Implementing transparency elements in the right place and at the right time can lead to some truly impressive results!

You might think of Devolver Digital as a new(er) kid on the block, but that’s not really the case. While they’re a comparatively young company when looking at the greater industry, they’re no Spring chicken either. Devolver has been publishing hit after hit for 15 years now, and they’ve got a library that is pretty much second to none in the indie space.

To celebrate their 15th anniversary, Devolver has put together a special video that looks back on the many, many games they’ve released over the years, but there’s more to it than that. This video shares comments from fans around the world who were more than happy to share their thoughts on some of Devolver’s fantastic output over the years.

Devolver has been a staunch supporter of the Switch since very early on, and you can find tons of their amazing games on the eShop right now. This trailer is littered with Switch titles, and the comments in this video will no doubt inspire you to check some of them out!

Night Slashers: Remake is heading to Switch, but a release date and price point are yet to be shared. What we do have is a new trailer that showcases Hong Hua Zhao, and you can check it out above.

Hong Hua Zhao is a whirlwind of fists and fury! A martial arts expert known for her deadly agility, she’s a nightmare for any monster foolish enough to cross her path.

Night Slashers is a pulse-pounding, horror-themed beat ‘em up game, in a nightmarish world filled with bloodthirsty creatures and unspeakable horrors. Prepare to step into the shoes of the unlikely heroes, as they battle hordes of supernatural foes and terrifying monsters.

In Night Slashers, you’re not just fighting for survival: you’re battling to save the world from a supernatural apocalypse. Join the fight, experience the adrenaline, and embrace the horror. Your darkest nightmares await…

Night Slashers, a classic arcade game originally developed by DATA EAST in 1994, still stands as one of the best titles in the beat ‘em up genre to this day! The gameplay consists of seven distinct stages, each subdivided into multiple sections. You can advance by navigating from left to right within each stage, combating waves of enemies to progress.

Attempting to proceed further without eliminating foes halts the screen’s scroll until all the threats are dealt with. Upon reaching the end of each level, a climactic showdown with a formidable boss awaits. Achieve victory over the boss to advance.

ATLUS has started off what will be a very lengthy video series for Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance. This series is going to offer up a video a day to showcase every single monster you’ll find in the game. Today starts up the line of videos with a look at Nahobeeho. You can learn all about the monster above, and we’ll keep updating this post with subsequent videos as the series continues.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance delivers a full-fledged RPG that can be enjoyed by existing and new fans. At the start of the game, players will choose between two paths: the story told in the original Shin Megami Tensei V, the Canon of Creation, or the brand-new Canon of Vengeance. This dramatic new tale of revenge introduces brand-new characters, an enigmatic cohort of demons called the Qadištu, a new dungeon and a new map to explore. Additionally, the original Shin Megami Tensei V battle system, demon merging and field exploration have been evolved and expanded in this newest entry in the series.

UPDATE: The second video in this series has been released and you can check out the latest monster profile below. Today’s video spotlights Glasya-Labolas.

UPDATE: The third video in this series has been released and you can check out the latest monster profile below. Today’s video spotlights Pellaidh.

UPDATE: The fourth video in this series has been released and you can check out the latest monster profile below. Today’s video spotlights Amabie.