Review by Matt S. Root Double is a visual novel that I wish I had have written. There are parts of its narrative that frustrate me, but those pale in comparison to the fact that this game is a taut, intense survival thriller, with the kind of narrative that explores…
Read MoreReview by Harvard L. Remedy Entertainment is best described as a purveyor of experimental blockbusters. Not only do its games push the boundaries of gameplay and narrative, but they often literally feature experimentation as a plot theme. This could not be more true for Control, the newest in line to…
Read MoreReview by Lindsay M. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I love a surprise game drop. And that’s just what Sony did with Erica, premiering the launch trailer and releasing the game at the same time (during the opening of Gamescom early last week). The game is…
Read MoreBook review by Matt S. Nakamura Fuminori rocketed to international literary superstardom with The Thief, and with very good reason. This book is a masterpiece. In general terms, it’s a crime thriller, but that’s underselling and simplifying it. Combining the dense reflection on the human condition of something with a…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. I find FMV games to be an oddly uncomfortable experience. It’s one thing to take control of and manipulate digital characters through an experience. It’s quite another to feel that sense of control over actual people. Especially now, when FMV games are of a standard equivalent…
Read MoreReview by Clark A. Though it aired recently, Magical Girl Raising Project seems poised and to be fade into the background and dismissed in most corners as derivative. It openly shares commonalities with popular works that even some mainstream audiences will be wise to. Viewers undeterred by the theme of…
Read MoreVideo game adaptations of films don’t have the greatest reputation, and that’s for a good reason – they’re often limited in budget and struggle to capture what made the film so popular for audiences. Film adaptations of manga or anime is much the same. Trying to recreate what tend to…
Read MoreTakashi Miike is one of the most prolific and transgressive of Japan’s modern cinema directors. Best known for 13 Assassins, Dead or Alive (no, it has nothing to do with the games), and Ichi the Killer, Miike likes indulging in a spot of the old ultraviolence and in-out (I do…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Naoki Urasawa‘s Monster is rarely out of print, and for good reason; if anyone needs proof that the manga form has artistic legitimacy, it is this landmark example of crime fiction. But in the off chance that you haven’t had the chance to check Monster out…
Read MorePreview by Harvard L. Note: This preview describes an anime which deals with controversial and potentially offensive subject matter. While Terror in Resonance does not contain overt gore, violence or sexually explicit scenes, the first episode depicts a highly realistic terrorist attack from the perspective of the perpetrators, in which…
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