All posts tagged: yokai watch

Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Fleshy Souls – Review

Published by Frank Inglese

Think back to your Primary School days; it was a time in each of our lives wherein which making friends was as easy as sharing the same lunchbox contents. Perhaps you and your pal at the time had the same flavour of juice box which, for a pair of seven year olds, was more than enough to start what could grow to become a life-long friendship. One of my oldest friends and I have a relationship built upon what class we happened to be assigned to, and what desk it was that we were told to sit at. There was no preconceived notion of one-another’s character, there was no prejudice based on personal beliefs, it didn’t even matter that we came from vastly different home lives, all that mattered was our physical placement in the classroom and an inexplainable need for friendship. As a twenty-two year old, making friends is…much harder. Between my somewhat cynical outlook on life, and my constant quest for an easily-maintainable lifestyle, making friends as an adult doesn’t come easy. Now, …

Yo-Kai Watch 2 Hits Australia And New Zealand This October!

Published by Frank Inglese

Yo-Kai Watch is one hell of a divisive franchise: You’re either unaware of it, or a die-hard fan. It’s quite rare to find someone who sits in-between. Not only has it taken over it’s country of birth, Japan, but it has now captivated the hearts and minds of many people from around the entire world. Despite the fact that many Western audiences negatively compared it to pioneering franchise Pokemon, the Nintendo 3DS video game and all it’s merchandise sold incredibly well in Western regions, especially SnapThirty’s home of Australia. Alongside great reviews, and even better sales, the Yo-Kai Watch Anime series, which airs on free-to-air TV, has also been quite well-received. Fans across the world still cannot get enough of Yo-Kai Watch, and being an audience dedicated to this franchise, many know that Japan is up to it’s third main Yo-Kai Watch game, not to mention it’s off-shoots. This is why Nintendo are excited to announce that Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Fleshy Souls will be released across Australia and New Zealand on the 15th …

Level-5 Japan Releases A Multitude Of New Yo-Kai Watch 3 Promotional Videos

Published by Frank Inglese

Would it be going to far to say that Level-5 is one of the most generous video game developers of this generation? I mean, they’re constantly updating us on their recent projects, never allowing us to wait too long without seeing what’s new. In my eyes, Level-5 cares for it’s audience, especially those of us out there that love Yo-Kai Watch! Speaking of which; Level-5 Japan has, over night, updated their official Youtube channel to now feature a set of new promotional videos, trailers, and television advertisements for their upcoming franchise addition; Yo-Kai Watch 3: Sushi and Tempura. Alongside a video showcasing the updated battle system of the new game, Level-5 have also released videos that show, in great detail, the “My Nyan” Yo-Kai creation feature of the game as well as two brand-new full-length trailers spotlighting the two title variations, and a set of three video advertisements that will now be appearing during television ad breaks across Japan. Now, you don’t want to have to sit here all day reading what I have to …

Yo-Kai Watch 2 Heads To North America This Semptember

Published by Frank Inglese

When you co-run a website dedicated to Japanese Pop Culture, you tend to be somewhat ahead of the curve when it comes to localised releases of video games that have, for all intents and purposes, been released for quite some time. Prior to the first Yo-Kai Watch game being made available in the West, us here at SnapThirty were already very much into the game’s sequel which, thanks to Nintendo who released this information today, will be making it’s way to North America on the 30th of September with a yet undisclosed release elsewhere to come sometime after that.  Yo-Kai Watch 2 will hit local shores alongside the second Anime season which should, once again, air on Disney X D much like that of the prior season. Reminiscent of Pokemon, the sequel will come in two different versions; Boney Spirits, and Fleshy Souls. Each of the different versions will come with over one hundred new Yo-Kai to befriend, with certain Yo-Kai only being available on one of two of the different versions. Hasbro, already having …

Level-5 Reveals Yo-kai Watch 3: Sushi And Tempura Versions Alongside Official Release Date

Published by Frank Inglese

It seems as though Level-5 have remained somewhat silent for quite a while now. With the release of the first Yo-kai Watch video game in the West way behind us at this point in time, everything went dark, even on the Japanese front. After a few months of nothing but radio silence, Level-5 have revealed through the pages of the latest CoroCor0 magazine issue that the upcoming addition to the series, Yo-kai Watch 3, will come in two different versions; Sushi and Tempura. Despite the fact that the latest game will take place in a fictional American town populated by overtly American Yo-kai, the third in the series of Yo-kai Watch games will still remain inherently Japanese. Alongside the announcement of the two different versions, the magazine also revealed that the game will be released across Japan for the Nintendo 3DS on the 16th of July this year; only a few months away. The most exciting thing about this, in my humble opinion, are the images of some of the new Yo-kai that have accompanied …

Japanese Video Game of the Year Awards 2015

Published by Luke Halliday

Welcome to SnapThirty’s inaugural ‘Japanese Video Game of the Year Awards’ for the Year of 2015. It has been a hell of a year for Japanese video game fans with long awaited games hitting our shelves and some doing what they do best and remaining unreleased (I’m looking at you Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III). We have been enchanted by the wonderful worlds we have visited and the incredible journeys these games have taken us on. So in honor of this year in Japanese video games we present the awards for the best of the best and even a look at some of the most memorable moments in gaming this year. Without further adieu, these are the winners for SnapThirty’s 2015 ‘Japanese Video Game of the Year Awards’: Japanese Video Game of the Year 2015 – Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain In an era where open world epics have become almost commonplace for both role playing games and action games, none rose to the occasion quite like Metal Gear Solid V: The …

Breaking News: Yo-Kai Watch Isn’t Pokemon, So Let’s Stop Comparing Them

Published by Frank Inglese

As many of you long-time readers would know; us here at SnapThirty set our sights on Level-5 and Nintendo’s “next big thing” Yo-Kai Watch for as far back as we can remember. Ever since it first hit the big time over in Japan, we’ve kept a close eye on it, making sure to keep tabs on the “goings on” of this, at the time, exciting new franchise. It’s now been something along the lines of a year and a half, since the beginning of the website, and only now after all this time has the first of a series of many Yo-Kai Watch video games hit the West. North America is the first Western continent to get their hands on a localised version of Yo-Kai Watch and, like any die-hard fans, us here at SnapThirty have scoured the web in the hopes that the North American gamers who’re currently playing through the new game are enjoying it. Yo-Kai Watch is a Japanese role-playing game that revolves around battling and befriending quirky creatures, and it seems as though many …

Yo-Kai Watch Dubbed Episodes Heading to Youtube, Oh My Swirls!

Published by Luke Halliday

Gera Gera Po! It is the battle cry that has captured the hearts and minds of millions of Yo-kai maniacs worldwide who are hungry for anything Yo-kai Watch related! (Maybe Hungramps is about?) Now fans of the series will be able to watch full episodes of the series for absolutely free on the official Youtube channel for the series. Until now it has been exclusive to Disney XD in North America, but it looks like Level-5 Abby have decided to spread the Yo-kai love with episodes beginning to be uploaded onto the channel in full English dub format starting November 5th. You can check out the official Youtube channel for Yo-kai Watch here and jump right on into the wacky world of Yo-kai Watch. We recently interviewed David H. Steinberg, the writer behind the English languge dub of the series. You can check out interview with him here for a bit of extra insight into the series and what you can expect from these mischievous Yo-kai. -30-

Cracka-lacka Boom Boom! – Level-5 To Release The Yo-Kai Watch Demo Very Soon

Published by Frank Inglese

You seriously cannot wait to play Yo-Kai Watch, can you? Yeah, me neither. I’d give my soul to be able to have a full copy of the upcoming game early but unfortunately no otherworldly entity has appear to fulfil my wish. We can’t all be as lucky as Luke Halliday and Kane Bugeja who attended this years EB Expo and were given the chance to play the game long before it gets a release down here in Australia, but Level-5 and Nintendo are doing something pretty awesome; they’re planning on releasing the Yo-Kai Watch demo across North America during the new 3DS update which is to come on the 22nd of the month. This means anyone with a 3DS living in the USA can download their very own demo copy of the game and play to their hearts content. Nothing has been said regarding when a demo will be released outside of North America but, chances are, it will come around the same time. Unfortunately nothing has been confirmed by either of the two companies …

Interview on ‘Yo-kai Watch’ with David H. Steinberg

Published by Luke Halliday

With the recent debut of the English dub of Yo-kai Watch on Disney XD in North America, the global takeover of the Yo-kai Watch franchise has begun. We were fortunate enough to ask some questions of David H. Steinberg the writer behind the English localization of the anime series and get the inside scoop on the Western take on the Japanese phenomenon. Read on for the full interview: Yo-kai Watch has officially debuted in the West with the anime now airing on Disney XD in America. Can you tell us a little bit about your role and involvement in the series localization? Early last year, the Executive Producer Mark Risley was hired to head up the localization team. I had worked with Mark on several other projects in the past and he brought me and my writing partner Keetgi Kogan onboard. What we do is more than translating but less than pure writing since we’re adhering to the original story. We take the translation of the Japanese and then conform it to the Western speaking …

Level-5 Announces Yo-Kai Watch Busters: Moon Rabbit Team

Published by Frank Inglese

Video game franchises like Pokemon have taught us that most games coming with two different versions will, eventually, spawn a third. We saw this originally with Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow, and we’re beginning to see it in other franchises too, most notably is that of Yo-Kai Watch who’s second game has more than one version, each with differentiating Yokai to befriend. You may have heard of Yo-Kai Watch Busters; it’s the pair of spin-off titles that introduce the world of Yo-Kai Watch to the gameplay mechanics of an old-school beat em’ up title that has you beating enemies, meeting friends, levelling up, and everything in between. At first, as mentioned, there were just the two games; Red Cat Team, and White Dog Corps, but now Level-5, through the pages of CoroCoro magazine, have announced that there is going to be a third game in the Yo-Kai Watch Busters series with it’s main Yokai being USApyon, and it’s called Moon Rabbit Team. The new game will launch in December of this year alongside a free …

First Look at Hasbro’s Yo-Kai Watch Toys

Published by Luke Halliday

EB Games Expo 2015 was a big day for Yo-Kai Watch fans with the world premiere of the English dub screening at the event and the game showcased for thousands of attendees to get their hands on. But that wasn’t all that was on show however. Hasbro’s line of Yo-Kai Watch toys were shown for the first time ever at the event and they look every bit as good as their Japanese counterparts. On show were plushies, watches and even medals. First of all I must say that these plushies looked to be of great quality and utterly adorable. There was Jibanyan, Komasan, Robonyan and even Whisper plush toys. They were a medium size and were rather similar to the Japanese plushies but a bit more rounded and shapely compared to the Japanese plushies for the series which were more often toy heavy. As for the Yo-Kai Watch itself, it looks a little bit bigger than the Japanese equivalent and looks to come bundled with 2 medals, one for Jibanyan and one for Whisper. Rather …

Yo-Kai Watch Preview

Published by Luke Halliday

It is a good time to be a Yo-Kai Watch fan. What with the English dub of the anime just days away from release at the time of posting and the game just over a month away, the Yo-Kai invasion is set to take the rest of the world by absolute storm. However it all must begin somewhere and this past weekend it began at EB Games Expo 2015. Nintendo Australia had the Yo-Kai Watch game available at Australia’s biggest gaming expo alongside the first ever look at Hasbro’s toys and merchandise based upon the series. Not only that but the world premiere of the English dub took place at the event to boot. As a huge fan of the series and seeing just how crazy Yo-Kai fever really was in Japan, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the game at the expo. When I finally got my hands on it after a mad dash to Nintendo’s booth it was like Christmas had just come early for me. We played a demo of …

‘Yo-Kai Watch’ English Dub Footage Released, Featuring ‘Gera Gera Po’ English Version!

Published by Luke Halliday

Do you like Yo-Kai Watch? Well, of course you do! It is after all just about the greatest thing Japan has made since they invented that toilet that cleans your butt for you. For those out of the know, Yo-Kai Watch is the most popular thing in Japan of the last few years, eclipsing even Pokemon in many’s hearts. Now it is set to make lots of money and make some people at Hasbro and Disney very rich because Yo-Kai Watch is about to begin its all out possession of the West with and English language release. Ahead of its October 5th television premiere several clips and footage of the English version of the series has come out of nowhere and hit the tube of videos that we know as Youtube. Most incredible of them all is the full English language version of the iconic ‘Gera Gera Po’ theme song of the series. Many fans were concerned that the theme would be lost in translation but seeing the full English version is some kind of …

Save The Date – Yo-Kai Watch Hits North America This November

Published by Frank Inglese

The West has been waiting for Yo-Kai Watch to hit local shelves ever since it first became popular over in Japan, so you’ll excuse me for skipping the formalities of an informational article, going straight to the news at hand which is…Level-5 announced an official North American released date for the very first Yo-Kai Watch Nintendo 3DS title, and it’s the 6th of November. Nintendo and Level-5 have only just revealed that the game will be getting a full release short of the Christmas holidays this year, which works for me seeing as I’d actually sell my soul to the devil to get my hands on this game even sooner than that. Originally Yo-Kai Watch was set to be released “Holiday” of this year but thankfully the powers at be have decided that the general public are in need of some specificity right about now. Thank the S-Rank Yo-Kai that they did because I don’t think I could have handled another month of mystery. The game’s release comes at a perfect time too: Not only …

Bullet Train, Yokai Watch Snacks and Nagoya Travelogue

Published by Luke Halliday

SnapThirty’s Luke Halliday recorded his journey over a span of two weeks time as he traveled from East to West of Japan. His trip begins in current capital city Tokyo and his final destination is the former capital of Kyoto. This is his Journey to the West… of Japan. Welcome one and all to my Journey to the West (Of Japan), a video series which will cover my travels across Japan from East to West. Luke and Suz are heading out of Tokyo on a bullet train but not before reflecting on the wonderful city of tokyo, catching some Japanese TV and taste testing some Yokai Watch snacks. On the stop over to Takayama, the duo have lunch at Soup Stock and check out a Japanese French Bakery. It is a wild ride on the bullet train to Takayama. Check out all of these adventures and more in the episodes below: #17 Tokyo Reflections, Japanese TV and the Bullet Train BONUS: Yokai Watch Snacks, Sweet to Eat #18 Nagoya, Soup Stock and a Japanese French Bakery …

Robonyan And Schwarzenegger Come Face-To-Face At Terminator: Genisys Japanese Premiere

Published by Frank Inglese

Though you probably wouldn’t know it at first glance, the Terminator T-800 and Yo-Kai Watch’s Robonyan have quite a lot in common: Not only are they both mechanised warriors from the future, they’re both incredibly powerful, they’re both practically indestructible, and they share a catchphrase…”I’ll be back“. Legendary action star Arnold Schwarzenegger has hit Japan for the premiere of his latest explosion-heavy masterpiece Terminator: Genisys and to celebrate not only his arrival in the country but the arrival of the robot-on-robot shoot-fest it has been organised for the original time-traveling automaton to meet a robot soldier of the new age: Robonyan. Akihiro Hino, president and CEO of Level-5, had this to say about the meeting of these two pop culture icons both new and old:  “The Terminator T-800, who comes to protect those in need no matter what trouble they’re in, is still my hero. I never would’ve thought that Robonyan would be able to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger. I think Robonyan is also quite happy.” The cat-mech himself, Robonyan also made a statement regarding his …

Yo-Kai Watch To Air On Disney XD Later This Year, Celebrate With English Theme Song

Published by Frank Inglese

Yo-Kai Watch has been on the minds of the SnapThirty crew for quite some time now. We’ve kept up with it since it’s conception and have followed it through all the way to it’s almost Western release. Luke Halliday, fellow writer and good friend, recently went to Japan wherein which he spent a great deal of his money eating, sight-seeing, and buying Yo-Kai Watch merchandise much like any other smart man would. It’s safe to say that we literally cannot wait for this franchise to hit the West. I’ve begun buying and building Yo-Kai Watch figurine kits, Luke has purchased trading card game decks despite not being able to read Japanese, and a lot of what comes our of our mouthes are either the Japanese theme song from the Anime or Whisper’s very own “sou desu ne“. We’re hooked, so you can see why we’re so excited that Densetsu Entertainment USA in conjunction with Level-5 Inc. have just announced that the English version of the Anime will be airing on Disney X D sometime later …

‘Yo-Kai Watch’ Announced for English Release December 2015, Nintendo Saves Christmas

Published by Luke Halliday

As a super crazy Yo-Kai Watch fan, I have been desperately awaiting the English localization of Level-5’s smash-hit RPG game Yo-Kai Watch. For those who have been living under a rock, Yo-Kai Watch is simply the most popular anime, manga and video-game in Japan right now, it is all the rage and it’s about to save Christmas. Nintendo have announced during their E3 2015 press conference that Yo-Kai Watch is going to be bringing the funk December 2015, right in time for Christmas. Probably should get your pre-orders ready because this is the next big thing folks. Don’t believe me? Check out the trailer for the game below and see for yourself why Yo-Kai Watch has captured the imagination of the great nation of Japan and why it is soon going to take over the world. -30-

Tokyo Station Travelogue featuring Shonen Jump Shop

Published by Luke Halliday

SnapThirty’s Luke Halliday recorded his journey over a span of two weeks time as he traveled from East to West of Japan. His trip begins in current capital city Tokyo and his final destination is the former capital of Kyoto. This is his Journey to the West… of Japan. Welcome one and all to my Journey to the West (Of Japan), a video series which will cover my travels across Japan from East to West. If you read this website on a regular basis it would come as no surprise that I am a Shonen Jump fan, so it was only natural that I’d want to seek out the Shonen Jump Shop while in Japan and that desire took my to Tokyo Station’s famed Character Street and what awaited me was more than I could ever have imagined. You can check out the four episodes below covering my trip to Tokyo Station: #5 Japanese Vending Machines, Catching a Train and Tokyo Station #6 Tokyo Station Character Street, Tower Mini and Yokai Watch Store #7 Shonen Jump Shop at …

Journey to the West (Of Japan) – Akihabara Travelogue

Published by Luke Halliday

SnapThirty’s Luke Halliday recorded his journey over a span of two weeks time as he traveled from East to West of Japan. His trip begins in current capital city Tokyo and his final destination is the former capital of Kyoto. This is his Journey to the West… of Japan. Welcome one and all to my Journey to the West (Of Japan), a video series which will cover my travels across Japan from East to West. As an anime fan upon touching down in Japan I really only had one thing on my mind; going to Akihabara. So that’s what I did and over the first four episode of Journey to the West (Of Japan) I chronicle my journey to Japan and exploration of the Electric Town of Akihabara as day turns into night and my anime dreams come to life. You can check out the first four episodes below covering my trip to Akihabara: #1 Going to Japan and the Pepsi Nex Conundrum #2 Akihabara, AKB48 and the Gundam Cafe #3 Akihabara Maid Cafe and …

Coming To America – “Yo-Kai Watch 3” And Second Anime Season Announced

Published by Frank Inglese

A fair bit of pop culture news floating around the web right now has a great deal to do with the young but gargantuan Japanese franchise “Yo-Kai Watch” and as a fan of what this series has to offer I can’t help but be over-excited by what’s to come in the near future. The franchise is heading to the West thanks to companies like Hasbro, VIZ Media and Nintendo but over in Japan it simply continues to grow. Announced only recently was the third instalment of the “Yo-Kai Watch” series of video games for the Nintendo 3DS which will now be set in the US of A! You’re darn tootin’, baby! Keita’s father up and got a job transfer to the land of the free and home of the brave, and he’s taking his family with him! Wherever Keita goes his companions Jibanyan and Whisper go which can only mean they’ll be causing some supernatural hijinks wherever they travel. Showcased alongside the announcement of the new game was the second season of the “Yo-Kai Watch” …

Yo-Kai Watch: Three Kingdoms Announced, More Warriors For Your Dynasty

Published by Luke Halliday

Just in case there wasn’t enough Dynasty Warriors style games on the market, Koei Tecmo have just announced that in conjunction with Level-5 they will be producing a new title based upon the smash-hit franchise Yo-Kai Watch. The game will be titled Yo-Kai Watch: Three Kingdoms and is likely to be a Warriors style game featuring the world of Yo-Kai Watch. While no footage has been revealed yet of the game a promotional art piece can be seen above showcasing Jibanyan and friends in warrior armour likely preparing for some manner of battle. No other details for Yo-Kai Watch: Three Kingdoms has yet been revealed but Level 5 and Koei Tecmo promise to reveal more information in the future. -30-

VIZ Media Is Bringing The “Yo-Kai Watch” Manga To The West This September

Published by Frank Inglese

There’s a new franchise that’s slowly but surely been taking over Japan and it too, like “Pokemon” and “Digimon”, has everything to do with capturing monsters, raising them and defending the world from some impending doom. This new series of video games, action figures and collectible trading cards also happens to have an Anime adaptation that is being  well-received around the world, despite the fact that it has only been released legally across Japan. Level-5’s “Yo-Kai Watch” truly is the “next big thing” and it seems as though both the young and old, according to its Japanese fanbase, can enjoy what this young franchise has to offer. Avid readers of this site and fans of the series will already know that, after a long time of waiting, “Yo-Kai Watch” will be making its way to the West sometime this year. Yes, that means the video games, Anime, toys and everything else will be hitting local shelves sooner than you could say “Gashadokuro”. Something you may not know is that the series has also spawned a …

Gera Gera What?! Level-5 Announces Two New “Yo-Kai Watch” Games

Published by Frank Inglese

Level-5, you know them; they’re the young Japanese video game developer famous for titles like “Attack Of The Friday Monsters” and “Fantasy Life”, as well as many other huge series’ like “Inazuma Eleven” and “Professor Layton”. They’re also the creators of the steamrolling monster-taming franchise “Yo-Kai Watch” which, in case you missed the news, is set to be heading to the West sometime by the end of this year or at the start of next year. Well Level-5, seemingly overnight, announced that there are two awesome additions to the small but powerful lineage of “Yo-Kai Watch” games; the first is simply titled…”Yo-Kai Watch 3″ and, as you may be able to tell, is the third instalment of the main series of games, whereas the other which is titled “Yo-Kai Watch: Busters” is an offshoot game that will feature co-op capabilities that outdo even the main titles. The new “Busters” title will feature four player co-op as well as some terrifyingly titanic bosses…”Monster Hunter”, anyone? “Yo-Kai Watch” has taken Japan by storm and, come next year, …

Thanks To Hasbro “Yo-Kai Watch” Will Finally Be Coming To The West In 2016

Published by Frank Inglese

If there’s any real good way to start off a work week it’s with news like this! Long-time readers of the site will know that my fellow write Luke Halliday and I have this odd, visceral love for the Japanese monster-taming franchise “Yo-Kai Watch”. Now if you’ve not heard of “Yo-Kai Watch” than, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to insist you never come to this website again…no, I’m kidding. Don’t leave us! “Yo-Kai Watch” is a franchise comprising of video games, action figures, trading cards and everything else you can image would come out of a highly-popular series that is now heading to the West thanks to the wonderful people over at Hasbro. “Yo-Kai Watch” has dominated Japan in every sense of the word: Both adults and children are obsessed with the video game by Level-5, the animated television show always hits a high viewership, the recent movie sold out opening weekend all across Japan…it’s a juggernaut of a franchise much like that of “Pokemon” which is still going strong even today. Fans …

Yokai Watch Movie Makes Billions Of Yen, Nobody is Surprised

Published by Luke Halliday

So Yokai Watch is pretty huge. In fact its about a billion yen huge. Not only is the anime series the most popular anime in Japan right now, the video-game series is also the best selling in Japan right now and on top of that the Yokai Watch movie is the best selling Japanese anime movie right now. Damn Yokai Watch, give the rest of the anime a chance! That’s right, Level-5’s blockbuster smash hit franchise Yokai Watch has once again topped the charts, this time topping 5 Billion yen at the Japanese box-office with its first film ‘Yokai Watch: The Secret of Birth, Nyan!’. While it was still a bit behind the Japanese premiere of Big Hero 6 this is a major win for Level-5 and their colossal hit Yokai Watch. Now we wait until it takes of the Western World and we all become slaves to the almighty Whisper. -30-

“Yokai Watch” To Air In North America and Europe

Published by Frank Inglese

People, this is the news we’ve all been waiting for! Well, at least, this is the news Luke Halliday and I have been waiting for. If you’ve not heard of the video game/Anime series “Yokai Watch” than we’re very disappointed in you because even though it’s a young franchise, it has quickly become one of the most beloved video game and Anime series’ of Japan, and now that this announcement has been made, it will quickly come to take over the entire world. Originally, “Yokai Watch” was just a simple Nintendo 3DS game from the developers Level-5 who you may know have produced the games “Fantasy Life”, “Attack Of The Friday Monsters”, “Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch” and many other much-loved games. This simple 3DS title, which has been compared to that of the “Pokemon” series of video games, follows the story of a young boy or girl who comes into contact with an ancient ghost living in a gashapon machine that gifts him/her something called the “Yokai Watch”. This watch allows the young …

Yokai Watch 2 Ships Three Million Units In Japan Alone

Published by Frank Inglese

This game has been on my mind quite a bit as of late. I don’t exactly know what it is that’s keeping thoughts of playing this game thrashing around in my brain. It could be the cute visuals, it could be its similarities to the “Pokemon” franchise, it could even be because it’s a game that focuses on Japanese mythology. Let’s just say, as of right now, it’s a mix of all of those things and it’s driving me crazy because it’s not gotten a release in the West…yet! Level 5, the team behind the game, must be going absolutely bananas over in their development office because this game has taken Japan by storm. Already there are two titles in the series of 3DS games: “Yokai Watch” and “Yokai Watch 2” with a third on the way titled “Yokai Watch 2: Headliner” which is more of an upgrade on the previous title rather than a brand-new game in the series. Similar to how “Pokemon Yellow” is almost the same as “Pokemon Red” and “Pokemon Blue” …

‘Yokai Watch’ has taken Japan by storm, the nation-wide craze breaks sales records!

Published by Luke Halliday

It would be an understatement to say that Level 5’s Yokai Watch series is pretty popular in Japan. The franchise has spawned a video-game, manga and even an anime adaptation with the series becoming arguably Japan’s hottest commodity going right now. This past week Oricon released details of the best selling products in Japan and Yokai Watch came in at number 2 behind Disney’s Frozen. This is of course makes Yokai Watch the most successful Japanese franchise today with the series spawning dozens of related merchandise of all manner and variety. The most popular off shoot merch is undoubtedly the ‘Yokai Medals’ a toy which has sold out in nearly every reach of Japan and continues to sell out each time stock hits shelves with parents struggling to get their little ones a precious ‘Yokai Medal’. On top of that the upcoming Yokai Watch film has broken blockbuster records with a whopping 721,422 advance tickets sold ahead of the films release. This makes for an all time record for Japanese cinema and for TOHO. The film …