Opinion by Matt S. Yesterday brought some great news; a selection of Studio Ghibli films would be coming to Australia (and most of the rest of the world) on Netflix. In total, 21 classic animated films will be coming across three “waves” – seven per month over three months. These…
Read MoreReview by Priscilla M. Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch first broke onto the scene in the west in 2013. The lovechild of Level-5 and world-renowned animation studio Studio Ghibli, Ni no Kuni combines traditional JRPG fare with a whimsical storyline that comes to life with the easily…
Read MoreList by Matt S. Studio Ghibli is rightfully celebrated across the world for its contributions to cinema, as “Japan’s Disney,” only with a far greater emphasis on the artistry and storytelling potential of animation than Disney’s mass-market commercialisation. As one of Japan’s greatest exports, Ghibli, helped by two of the…
Read MoreThis week on the DDNet podcast, we take a break from video games to discuss Studio Ghibli and the impact that those amazing films have had on us. And then we’re right back to games, talking about games that kids and adults can enjoy equally, and then Final Fantasy VIII…
Read MoreNews by Matt S. Isao Takahata, one of the founders of the incredible animation house, Studio Ghibli, and the producer of one of the most important war films of all time, Grave of the Fireflies, has passed away. He was 82. I’m not the only one who reveres Grave of…
Read MoreNews by Lindsay M. and Matt S. Welcome to Digitally Downloaded’s regular catch-up news feature. With each issue we will bring you the best news that you may have missed. Grab the biggest mug you’ve got, fill it with your favourite brew, and catch up with us (and our favourite…
Read MoreTourism by Matt S. Here we go. My first “real” day in Japan, and I decided to spend it visiting museums and galleries. But not in the way you might expect. This is serious otaku stuff I was getting up to; I went to an exhibition celebrating 30 years of…
Read MoreWelcome to Digitally Downloaded’s weekly news feature, Catch-up coffee Monday. Each Monday we will bring you the best news from the previous week that you may have missed. Grab the biggest mug you’ve got, fill it with your favourite brew, and catch up with us! Final Fantasy XIII hero becomes…
Read MoreWith Hayao Miyazaki now retired, it looks like Japan’s greatest animated artist’s filmography will be capped at 11 feature films. While that’s a sobering thought, those 11 films are brilliant, one and all, and any fan of Japanese art and culture should watch them all. That filmography, for the record,…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. If you haven’t seen Princess Mononoke yet, then you really should. Arguably Hayao Miyazaki’s (Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro) truest masterpiece, the 1997 film is almost more relevant now than it was even then. With such an intense debate raging around environmentalism and humanity’s impact on…
Read More