#koei

[acquired-stardust]

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Playstation 2 2003

[retroscifiart]

Bandit Kings of Ancient China (video game by Koei, 1989). Box art by Noriyoshi Ohrai

[superfamiblog]

Inindo: Way of the Ninja (Koei, 1991)

[mellowwillowy]

Olympus

You can't possibly just come here just for fun and leave everyone be once you're bored right?

Credit 🥂 (Ares, Loki, Hades by Starlxxd)

[ GN Reader but stuck with them instead of the the mystics ]

Hades

Hades = Gaslighting

The underworld may be damp but with your pressence alone, the underworld seems to be the best place Hades could ever find

Sure, 'Mistress/Lover of Olympians', but how about changing it into 'Mistress/Master of the Underworld' now?

See? Cerberus will be upset if you leave the underworld for well, the Mystics, Mortals or just play around with the other Olympians

Don't worry, Hades has made sure that Cerberus will always be there to block the way out either by having them roll around begging for your attention or just, making you ride them (hey, you have always enjoyed riding them at full speed)

"It's fun riding them right? Faster, boys!"

And you being the dense, naive one will not realize Hades' true intentions at all

You'll be sat on a throne just like him, well, except of sitting on each other's respective throne, Hades will sit on the floor with his head resting on your lap

You are his sunshine in this damp world, you are his fresh air in this damp world, you are his sweet flower in this damp world

Now now, where are you going to? Hm? Leave? You are going to leave the underworld to see Zeus again? How about a game with Cerberus and him?

Surely that King of the Gods is not worth your time so better spend it wisely on the King of the Underworld instead, hm?

"Mmh, how about a trip in the Underworld?"

"But I've explored all the places here?"

"Nuh uh, there's still more love~ come on"

Yeah he definitely did not just create something for this

If the pom is effective, he'll trick you into eating it when you are drunk from the alcohol he made you drink

If not then he'll just have to find another way to trap you here

Koei : God, if Yang Jian is the one who's gon escort you back then he'll 100% go feral once you leave lmaoo

Loki

Honestly idk much about him but he'll just be a persistent one

Will do few tricks to trick you into staying

Ah, you've seen that one? Fine how about this one? And this one?

Mmh, have you ever seen this? It's one of his many weapons. Ah, you have? How about this? And this?

"Let's play this game, shall we?"

"But we've been playing this for the whole week, Loki"

"Ah... how about this game then, here's how.."

He'll do whatever it takes to make you stay with him

Ares

Angy baby who'll bite everyone if you tell him you are going to leave

He just turns into a ticking bomb, someone greeted him and they'll have to hear him curses non stop

What do you mean by you are bored? Is he not enough as a companion for you to kill your boredom?

The mystics? Phah! Screw them, you are coming with him to this banquet

You just nod along while tailing him behind, completely oblivious with his attempts in not letting you leave

How about you join him to this one war? It'll be a nice change of scenery for you no? You won't be bored watching him fight, he promises

"Ares, I just wanna go see Hundun and have a tea with him-"

"Hmph, that ugly arrogant four-handed monster? If you want a companion for your tea party then you can just have me!"

If he won then he'll puff himself with pride and boast non stop on your face, making you sing praises to him while tending him

If he lost then you'll also still sing praises for him, just gotta make sure your wordings won't hurt him. Also since you'll give him extra special treatment whenever he lost, he won't sulk that long

You? And Aphrodite? He'll choose you over her silly

Remember how easily flustered he is when you just approached him without warning? Yeah he's still the same

"Let's ride together into the battlefield hm? Just... don't leave"

Well, it's really rare for him to be this soft considering how he just started another war to distract you

Zeus will have to give him a few words again after this

[doamarierose-honoka]

👻 Happy Halloween!🎃

Credit: Marie Rose and Honoka photo pic made by @Cano92v

[fuck-yeah-intro-movies]

Dynasty Warriors 5 (2005)

[retrocgads]

USA 1993

[romance-of-three-memes]

Dynasty Warriors is known for its wide range of weapons, and despite the series having nearly 100 playable characters and almost all of them having had their own unique weapon at some point or another, it's extremely rare for the devs to make stuff up out of thin air, and in fact, most of that happened during dw8. So I figured hey, why not make a chart for the weapons that may seem too outlandish to be real. The devs do a lot of research, actually. It's easier to see if you click/tap on it. I found the specific tiermaker page here and I kind of owe this person my life because GOD I can't imagine how tedious this was to put together.

If you were hoping that Xiahou Ba's silly little rocket spear has a real world equivalent, then I'm sorry to disappoint you. If anyone has proof that one of the weapons I classified as fictional is in fact real, or that the ones I say are exaggerated have close real world equivalents, I would love to see them. Before doing some more research for this post, I was absolutely convinced that there was nothing like Cao Pi's double-bladed sword in the world, but it turns out that there's a weapon from south Asia known as the haladie that's a similarly two-pointed dagger, albeit much smaller than his weapon. Talking about these all individually would be neat but then I'd be here forever and the post would be long as hell even with a read more cut, but I'd be happy to answer questions.

[jitsauce]

5. Gitaroo Man!!

[necromancy-enthusiast]

This is very much the type of poll where I want to hear opinions in the comments, reblogs, and tags. Imagine you are in battle and must defend your favorite game's honor with your life. Reblogs are greatly appreciated to help reach a wider audience, especially if you voted, and even moreso if you chose the semi-obligatory see results option.

[gubey]

(2021) - day 78: GITAROO MAN LIVES

[acquired-stardust]

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Playstation 2 2003

[retrogamelovers]

Ever play this game? 🎮

[superfamiblog]

Inindo: Way of the Ninja (Koei, 1991)

[idaten-jump]

Some lineart of Team Idaten.

It's actually just the sketch, but since we're so starved for art in this fandom I felt even a sketch can be plenty for now.

[easternmind]

A compendium of references to Portugal in Japanese video games

The beginning of the historical relations between Portugal and Japan dates to the year 1541, when a Portuguese ship washed ashore at Jingujiura. Nearly sixty Japanese words are of Portuguese origin. A variety of Japanese traditions and culinary delights were introduced by Portuguese traders, sailors and missionaries. But in what way has this cultural exchange extended to the more recent phenomenon of Japanese digital games? As a portuguese devotee of Japanese culture, the topic seemed relevant enough to merit some additional exploration.

To my knowledge, the first significant reference to Portugal in Japanese video game is found in Koei's The Age of Discovery from 1990, a game published in the west under the title Uncharted Waters. The main character is a disgraced Portuguese nobleman named Leon Ferrero who resorts to maritime exploration, trade and naval warfare to restore his family's good name and prestige.

Its 1993 sequel, known in the west as New Horizons, diversifies the base game structure of the original by including multiple characters to select from, each with their own story and mission. Among them is the tale of João Franco, the son of the original episode's protagonist Leon, who sets out to discover the mysterious location of the fabled Atlantis, no less.

Another meaningful reference can be found a year later in ArtDink's 1991 strategy game The Atlas, in which the player takes on the role of a 15th century explorer with a five year contract with the King of Portugal to discover and chart lands around the Iberian Peninsula.

In 1998, ArtDink recreated the game for contemporary systems and published as Neo Atlas. The protagonist is a Portuguese trading company owner seeking business expansion opportunities in remote territories, as well as discover and chart hitherto unknown parts of the globe. A similar premise is found in a later sequel, Neo Atlas III.

Apart from nautical strategy games, a few other titles exist where mentions to the Portuguese territory, language and culture can be traced.

Galvanized by the success of Cyan's world-renowned point and click adventure CD-ROMs, Sony Computer Entertainment helped to publish The Book of Watermarks, a game designed by a miniscule Tokyo-based studio named Watermarks that is brimming with interesting first and second-hand references to Shakespeare's The Tempest. The objective of this visually impressive pre-rendered journey is to aid in the recovery of a series of ancient tomes, each including the nuclear bases of knowledge for mankind.

The very first lost volume is named the Book of Navigators, said to be owned by the historical Infante Dom Henrique from the 15th century, condensing information on shipbuilding, oceanography, geography and astronomy. While a purely fictitious book, the reference to Prince Henry is historically accurate, him being a pivotal figure in the early age of Portuguese maritime discoveries, the governor of the Order of Christ who at once built and ruined his reputation through his various campaigns in the African continent.

Atlus' futuristic vision of Earth in Maken X includes a most unexpected tour of Europe, with a mandatory stop in Lisbon. Inexplicably, the developers got its geographic location wrong and moved to all the way to the northern Spanish region of Léon. The level, itself, boasts a reasonably accurate depiction of one of the city's oldest quarters, Alfama, and the architectural styles found therein.

Although I could not discern any actual references in the game itself, the Grandia II soundtrack by the veteran composer Noriyuki Iwadare contains two themes whose lyrics are written in Portuguese: A Deus, a double-entendre that can be translated to both farewell and to God; and Canção do Povo, meaning People's Song. Also, the name of the official soundtrack is named Melodia, which translates to Melody as you'd expect. Both themes were performed by guest singer Kaori Kawasumi, who took on the composer's challenge to sing them despite her not knowing the language.

She was coached and assisted by José Álvarez and Motoi Sato from the Portuguese Arts and Culture Center in Japan, whom she thanks in the acknowledgement section. The Grandia II Special Package edition booklet contains a page with two photos of Portugal, one for the Jéronimos Monastery in Lisbon and the other, seemingly, for the Moorish Castle in the nearby town of Sintra.

The last Pomping World (a.ka. Buster Bros/Pang) that Mitchell Corporation ever produced before shutting down was the 2010 DS European exclusive Magical Michael. It includes two levels set in Portugal, one in Lisbon by the Belém tower, a nautical landmark, and the other in the Sintra National Palace. Their representation is at once pleasingly stylized and true to life.

This final reference is found in Spike Chunsoft's third installment of their successful visual novel series, Nyūdanganronpa V3 Minna No Koroshiai Shin Gakki. Among the dozens of MonoMono machine items that can be acquired, one is a weathercock styled after a traditional Portuguese folktale hero, the Galo de Barcelos, meaning the rooster of Barcelos, a town in Northern Portugal.

As per the description, this animal became famous through an age-old tale involving a man wrongly sentenced to death who seconds before his execution remarked he was as certain to be innocent as it was certain that a nearby rooster would sing. Because the bird did crow, much to everyone's amazement, he was exonerated. Thus, the black rooster became a symbol for truth.

I would like to thank @diogojira and @DanielOlimac for their assistance in making this article possible.