Tag Archives: Fan Service

With remakes, remasters, and ports comprise a significant portion of the game industry’s output, it’s natural to be a bit skeptical of the whole practice. Although a number of these reiterations are born from genuine ...

Not long ago, message boards were proclaiming that the death of the Japanese role-playing game was imminent. Stagnancy seemed to be the genre’s unassailable final boss, and developers had run out of creativity-restoring potions. But ...

Often it’s the attractive full-screen images known as CGs (for Computer Graphics) which attracts an audience toward a visual novel. But arguably, it’s the narrative that faces a tougher job- with exposition and dialog tasked ...

Just a few years ago, enjoyment of Japanese role-playing and action games meant a compulsory console or portable purchase. But gradually, publishers like SEGA, Nippon Ichi Software, Koei-Tecmo, and Bandai-Namco began porting their titles to ...

With over a thousand characters spread across 120 chapters, Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms is one of East Asia’s essential epics. Beyond inspiring cinematic works like Red Cliff or The Assassins, as well ...

Mirroring the moniker of their parent company, Idea Factory, developer Compile Heart has been consistently proficient when it comes to conceptualization. Record of Agarest War introduced an intriguing “Soul Breed” system into the SRPG genre, ...

On console, the Hyperdimension Neptunia series has provided a consistently engaging experience, blending amusing allegory, comical banter, and engaging play mechanics that are rooted in role-playing convention. But far more remarkable are the Console Patron ...

Critics assail Michael Bay’s films for their daft dialog and preference for bombastic special effects over subtle storytelling. But there’s no debating the director’s talent for visual sophistication. Bay’s known for dynamic shots that keep ...

For many, “fan service” is shorthand for titillating elements- whether it’s the inclusion of revealing attire or an instance of racy dialog. But it the broadest sense, the term refers to the presence of any ...

Not long ago, message boards were proclaiming that the death of the Japanese role-playing game was imminent. Stagnancy seemed to be the genre’s unassailable final boss, and developers had run out of creativity-restoring potions. But ...