Visual Novel News:
Since time immemorial, warriors called musha have ruled the battlefield, granted supernatural power by their enchanted suits of armor – tsurugi. Minato Kageaki is one such musha, driven by duty to don his crimson armor and challenge the greatest evils of an age. But though madmen and tyrants fall to his blade, never will he claim that his battle is right. For the tsurugi he wields is cursed Muramasa, which five centuries ago brought ruin to the land, and innocent blood is the price it demands in exchange for its terrible might. “Where there are demons, I slay them. Where there are saints, I slay them.”
JAST USA announced that it will be releasing Full Metal Daemon Muramasa, a visual novel game by the lNitroplus, on August 24, 2021. The game will be released as a digital download for PC at the JAST USA Store. J-List will accept pre-orders for a physical Limited Edition, at a later date.
Your grandfather has recently passed away and you end up inheriting his café and house. You intend to keep the café running as a tribute to your grandfather, but you have no idea as to where to start. That’s when a school gets in touch with you and asks if you are willing to host some trainees who have some experience in running a café. You take the offer without much hesitation. To your surprise, however, the trainees are not four humans but four humanoid cats!
Nekopara – Catboys Paradise has released as a free visual novel. It can be found on Steam, Android and iOS. As the title implies, unlike the rest of the Nekopara series, this follows your adventure of running a café with catboys to assist you.
Live this ’90s teen drama as Stella, who moves to a small town only to discover it’s populated with hot Cryptid teens. In her last year of high school she’s determined to try to fit in, make new friends and find romance.
Raptor Boyfriend: A High School Romance has released on Steam. It’s a coming of age story, where you can romance a magical Fairy, a sensitive Sasquatch and a bold Velociraptor.
Gaming News:
Only one week after Nintendo’s announcement of the new Switch OLED model, Valve literally came out of nowhere to announce their own plans for a portable gaming system. It’s called the Steam Deck and promises to let you play your Steam library on the go. A bold claim, though they also mentioned it can act as a portable PC, with the option to install Microsoft Windows on the system. The handheld comes in three different varieties, with each one having different internal memory sizes from 64GB to 512GB, with the option to expand it further using microSD cards.
The Steam Deck is set to launch in December 2021.
On September 20th, the critically acclaimed Persona franchise celebrates its 25th anniversary! Atlus have big plans for the celebration, with them planning to reveal seven Persona-related announcements, though it isn’t clear if all of them will be game announcements. The first will be announced this September, with the last one planned for Autumn 2022.
Genshin Impact may have been released almost a year ago, but it’s still going strong with regular updates and tons of new characters and content. The biggest update is just on the horizon though, as we’ll be getting the long-awaited 2.0 update for the game! It will be adding a brand new location: the Japanese-inspired land of Inazuma, along with brand new characters, quests, and the continuation of the Traveller’s story.
Watch the announcement trailer for Genshin Impact‘s 2.0 update
Any mecha fans out there will be over the moon to hear this: the latest entry in the Super Robot Wars series is being released in the west! Bringing together both classic and modern mecha anime series together into a strategy RPG, this long-lasting series had its start on the Nintendo Game Boy and is now celebrating its 30th anniversary with this latest title.
Super Robot Wars 30 arrives exclusively on PC via Steam on October 28th.
Watch the announcement trailer for Super Robot Wars 30
From the creator of The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince, the next game from Sayaka Oda has been announced: The Cruel King and the Great Hero. We don’t know too much about the title other than the general premise, but it brings back the charming storybook art style and will be published by NIS America.
The Cruel King and the Great Hero releases for PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch in early 2022.
Watch the announcement trailer for The Cruel King and the Great Hero
Ignis Universia is a world full of wonder, magic, random encounters, and suspiciously handily placed equipment, imperiled (yes, that is a word, we checked) by a rising darkness far, well, darker, than Galgatax and her undead unicorns.
Ignis Universia: Awakening of the Erudite Empress is a JRPG/Visual Novel hybrid that parodies the genre. Making full use of the tropes for humor, it promises to bring a lot of comedy to the player. It is currently on Kickstarter and is planned to release on December 2022.
Anime News:
One of the most popular isekai series is finally getting a continuation! It has been confirmed that the KonoSuba series has a new animated project in the works! Not much was revealed about it, though the official KonoSuba Twitter account posted some brand new art along with the announcement.
After the massive success of the recent Demon Slayer film, Ufotable is striking when the iron’s hot with a new look into the second season of the series! In a short teaser, the key visual for the season was unveiled and is set to start with the Entertainment District arc.
Season 2 of Demon Slayer will premiere sometime in 2021.
While we’re still waiting on news for the sixth part of the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure anime adaptation, the original manga is still going strong. That being said, the most recent part of this long-running series is coming to an end very soon. Starting back in 2011, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 8: JoJolion is ending its ten-year run, with the final chapter releasing on August 19th. With the manga now being published in the monthly Ultra Jump magazine, who knows what the future holds for the Joestar family?
Upcoming Releases:
The west is finally getting the first entry in the Akiba’s Trip series! Akiba’s Trip: Hellbound & Debriefed is a remaster of the PSP original, which was released back in Japan back in 2011. In this action game, the main goal is to fight and strip down your opponent’s clothing… it’s a unique premise, to be sure.
Akiba’s Trip: Hellbound & Debriefed launches for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam on July 20th.
It’s been a long road for this next game, but it will finally be releasing this week. Cris Tales is an RPG that takes inspiration from the Final Fantasy and Persona series, all while incorporating a colorful and striking art style.
Cris Tales releases PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, and Stadia on July 20th.
Nintendo is entering the MOBA market with Pokemon Unite! This multiplayer game revolves around two teams of five Pokemon and sees you fighting wild Pokemon and completing objectives, all on a battlefield split into two halves.
Pokemon Unite launches for Nintendo Switch on July 21st, with a mobile version planned for September 2021.
An anime/gaming aficionado, experienced content creator and lovable goofball. Name a game genre and Seamus has likely played it… yes, even that one. Follow him @TrueStorySeamus
