I don't usually 'do' Nendoroids, but that isn't keeping me from drooling over this Himouto! Umaru-chan-inspired one

Making all of this drooling even stranger is that I'd never even heard of Himouto! Umaru-chan before a couple of days ago.

Assuming some of you are in the same boat, here's the gist: it began life in 2013 as a Japanese manga series (written by Sankaku Head) and an anime adaptation of it is going to start airing in just a couple of days.

Oh, and its titular character is a teen who appears perfect at school, while at home she wears an animal hoodie and spends her time eating junk food, playing video games, reading manga and watching anime.

All of those interests are depicted in Umaru-chan's Nendoroid form (and related accessories), as you hopefully can see in the photo below. 

I especially like her little Vita-like game system. 

Speaking of the Vita, the folks at FuRyu (makers of The Legend of Legacy, among other titles) recently announced that they'll be releasing a Vita game based on Himouto! Umaru-chan this winter.

Apparently it'll be a "sister-raising simulation," which admittedly doesn't sound as appealing as, say, an RPG, or a rhythm game or even a Game Center CX ripoff based on the property would, but I'll take what I can get. 

Anyway, enough about that. Back to the Nendoroid. It'll hit Japanese store shelves this August. (You can pre-order one now via amiami.com.) Will any of you be buying one?

'Beautiful' isn't adequate when attempting to describe this brand-new Ray Gigant (Vita) trailer

You've really got to hand it to the folks at Experience, who were responsible for developing the impressive (and oddly titled) Ray Gigant for Bandai Namco; without a whole lot of fanfare, they went out and made a game that both looks and sounds as stunning as any released for the Vita so far.

Don't believe me? Check out the latest trailer for this soon-to-be-released dungeon-crawling RPG, which can be viewed below.

For all sorts of reasons, I can't get enough of Ray Gigant's battle scenes, in particular. I guess some people may think they look a bit "cheap" thanks to the stilted animations, but I even find that aspect of this Vita title appealing.



My favorite of Ray Gigant's many intriguing traits at the moment, though, is the rhythm-game element that pops up when players go to use special attacks. (You can see it in action at the 1:40 mark.)

Does all of this mean I'll be nabbing a copy as soon as the game hits Japanese store shelves on July 30? No, but I may well buy one later on down the road--especially if Bandai Namco fails to bring it to North America. (If you'd like to pre-order one, though, you can do so now via amiami.com.)

In the meantime, drooling over the video footage above will have to suffice.

Five additional games I'm looking forward to playing between now and the end of 2015

Last Friday, I published a post that featured blurbs about five soon-to-be-released 3DS, Vita and Wii U games that I'm looking forward to playing between now and the end of the year.

In that write-up, I mentioned that a second such post would be published sometime this week. Well, today is that day, and here are five more upcoming titles that currently take up space on my ever-growing "play as soon as humanly possible" list.

Dragon Quest VIII (3DS)--I know a lot of folks in Japan and elsewhere were unimpressed (at best) when this PS2-to-3DS port was announced a short while ago. I am not one of them--although, to be honest, that's probably due in large part to the fact that I've never played this particular entry in Square Enix's triumphant series of RPGs. (I own a copy of it, but it's yet to leave its packaging, I'm embarrassed to admit.) Regardless, I'm pretty stoked that an upgraded--in the areas that matter most to me, at least--version of Dragon Quest VIII will soon be playable on the system I favor most at the moment. That said, I'm dragging my feet in terms of pre-ordering it, as I want to wait a little while longer to see if the powers that be at SE decide to bring the game to North America. (Yeah, right.)

Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX (3DS)--This super-cute music-rhythm game was supposed to be released stateside in May. Just before its "arrival date," though, publisher Sega revealed that it wouldn't hit store shelves in the region until early September. Although I know some folks were upset by the delay, I actually applauded it, as I barely had time to play games--even those of one of my favored genres--at the time. Now, though, my schedule is much less hectic (or at least a bit less hectic). Hopefully the same will be true in a couple of months. Even if it isn't, though, I'm maintaining my pre-order--no ifs, ands or buts.

Persona 4: Dancing All Night (Vita)--Oh, hey, another rhythm-music game. What a surprise, right? Especially since I just told you it was one of my "genres of choice." Anyway, this Persona spin-off only recently leaped onto my "to buy" list, and mainly because it looks to be the definition of cool. One of the reasons I passed on Dancing All Night earlier, by the way, was that I pre-ordered Taiko no Tatsujin: V Version ages ago and I was all that sure that I needed to own two rhythm games for my criminally neglected (so far) pink-and-white Vita. After seeing more footage of it around this year's E3 event, though, I changed my mind. Plus, the new Taiko will be out in a matter of days, so surely I'll be all set for a similar-ish title by the time September rolls around?

Splatoon (Wii U)--OK, so this game doesn't belong in the "soon-to-be-released" category that pretty much all of the other ones that have been mentioned here and in my last post on the subject fit within, but I'm including it here anyway simply because I'm beyond interested in it. Is most of that interest tied to this Wii U shooter's completely fabulous art style? Yes, it is, but I'm OK with that. Also, I've read and heard enough positive impressions of this Nintendo-published effort that I'm willing to take a chance on it despite my general lack of love for the first- and third-person shooter genres--or I guess I should say that I'll be willing to take a chance on it after I finally obtain a Wii U console.

Steins;Gate (Vita)--Why is this oddly named visual novel taking up valuable acreage in this post instead of other portable games that don't include random pieces of punctuation in their titles? Because it's been hyped to the heavens in various online spaces, that's why. Oh, and then there's the fact that I find the VN genre to be pretty darn fascinating at the moment. Unfortunately, no one seems to know when Steins;Gate will finally show up in North America. (Both physical and digital versions have been available in Australia and Europe since the beginning of June.) Thankfully, I'm in no particular hurry to play it, so I'll happily pick up a copy of it--preferably a boxed one--whenever it eventually sees the light of day in my neck of the woods. (Update: apparently it was announced earlier this morning that it'll be released here on Aug. 26.)

Are any of you also planning to buy one or more of the 3DS, Vita or Wii U games mentioned above? If so, which ones? Or maybe there are other titles--even for systems like the PS4 or Xbox One--that have you eagerly anticipating their arrival on your doorstep? Regardless, please let me and others know about them in the comments section below.

See also: 'Five games I'm really looking forward to playing between now and the end of 2015'

Five games I'm really looking forward to playing between now and the end of 2015

True story: I've been on a bit of a "pre-order tear" for the last couple of weeks due to all of the just-announced games that have been offered up for sale at sites like amiami.com and play-asia.com.

I only mention this because the afore-mentioned pre-order-athon is fully responsible for the creation of this post.

So, which games am I really looking forward to playing between now and the end of 2015, and which ones have I already pre-ordered? Keep reading to find out.

Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer (3DS)--I don't know about you, but I've had quite a change of heart regarding this soon-to-be-released (in Japan, at least) 3DS title. When it was first unveiled, I looked at it in horror due to the fact that it sounded like little more than an embarrassingly limited cash-in. After its brilliant E3 2015 showing, though, I "did a 180," as the saying goes. Now, I'm not only interested in this game, but I've got a copy of the Japanese version, Doubutsu no Mori: Happy Home Designer, pre-ordered along with a couple of packs of the Animal Crossing-branded amiibo cards that will join it on store shelves in late July.

Code: Realize (Vita)--I've considered myself a fan of the otome genre ever since I played through the first Hakuoki game that made its way to the West. (I shared my impressions of that PSP title in this "somewhat gay" review.) Does that mean I'll get a kick out of Code: Realize, which will earn both a digital and physical release sometime this fall courtesy of Aksys Games? Not necessarily, but I certainly hope I'll end up feeling as positive about it as I did about Demon of the Fleeting Blossom. The story "hook" of this Otomate-made game should help matters quite a bit, given that it features a number of famous literary characters as romance options.

Super Mario Maker (Wii U)--Does this mean I'm actually going to get off of my cheap, lazy butt and buy a Wii U before 2015 comes to a close? That's the plan, but your guess is as good as mine as to whether or not that's what will happen. If it does, though, you can thank Super Mario Maker, which I think looks absolutely stunning at this point--and I'm not sure we even know all there is to know about it yet. Speaking of which, if someone at Nintendo were to reveal that Super Mario Bros. 2 (Super Mario Bros. USA in Japan) characters, enemies, items and moves will be appearing in this game, too, I'd go out and buy a Wii U console the very next second.

Taiko no Tatsujin: V Version (Vita)--My decision to include this upcoming Vita release on this list shouldn't surprise those of you who previously read this post or this post. Still, I'm mentioning it here because it's easily near the top of the heap in terms of games I desperately want to play in the next six months. Thankfully, I know for certain that I'll be playing it either in late July or in early August, as I pre-ordered it as soon as I was able via the previously discussed amiami.com.

Yo-kai Watch (3DS)--I've wanted to play this Pokemon-esque Level-5 RPG since it first graced Japan with its presence two years ago. Thankfully, Nintendo revealed it will be releasing a localized version of it in North America this holiday season. Will it also bring the series' second and third entries to our shores, potentially in 2016 and 2017? I sure hope so, although I can't say I'm all that confident that's what will come to pass. Oh, well, at least we'll always have this first ghostly adventure.

This isn't the extent of the games I'm looking forward to playing between now and the end of the year, by the way. In fact, I've already started writing a follow-up post in which I declare my love for five more such titles, so look for it to be published sometime next week.

In the meantime, let me know which games, if any, you're chomping at the bit to sink your teeth into at some point during the remainder of 2015.

#ADecadeofDS: Contact

Amount of time devoted to this game since I started playing it just over a month ago--Eleven hours, 31 minutes.

Most recent boss toppled, location reached or milestone achieved--I can't believe I'm making this comparison, but the last boss I remember conquering (there are surprisingly few in Contact) actually reminded me of that pink whale that sits in wait at the end of The New Zealand Story's first stage. Here, however, the entity that you're sucked into and forced to battle from within is an Egyptian pyramid.

The most recent location I encountered, though, clearly was a take on Tokyo's famous Akihabara district. A particular highlight of this area: some of the "enemies" found on its upper reaches included refrigerators and vacuum cleaners that had been imbued with life.

Overall comments on the experience so far--I don’t know about you, but I’ve always found it “interesting”—and I don’t necessarily mean that in a good way--to finally play through a game I’ve had my eye on for ages.

There are all sorts of reasons for that, of course, but a big one for me is that it’s far too common for my curiosity in long-ignored titles to grow to such an extent that I wind up considering them at least a bit of a letdown after I start playing them.

Has that been the case with my maiden voyage through Grasshopper Manufacture’s Contact so far? At risk of sounding wishy-washy, I have to sheepishly admit that the answer is: in some ways, yes, and in some ways, no. That said, I’ve found the 11 or so hours I've spent with this dual-screened adventure up to this point to be more positive than negative, which is all most folks are going to want to know (especially if they're trying to figure out if they should follow in my footsteps and play it or not).

Some of the things that have made it a satisfying experience: its dual art styles (one of which harkens back to games like EarthBound, while the other recalls more lushly illustrated 16- and 32-bit titles), its eclectic and appealingly video-game-y soundtrack, its rather cryptic story and its overall "feel." (In regard to that last bit, I simply have a blast moving the protagonist around Contact's many gorgeous environments.)

As for the few aspects that have had me, at times, wanting to hurl my 3DS against the nearest wall in anger, they would be Contact's fairly hands-off battle engine (although if you're like me at all, it'll grow on you over time), its stiff challenge and its stubborn dedication to being head-scratchingly obtuse. (Let's just say I've had to turn to GameFAQs on more the one occasion to figure out what I was supposed to do next or how I was supposed to defeat a boss.)

Do I wish some of the above-mentioned pitfalls had been fixed, or at least partially smoothed over, before this intriguing DS title was plopped onto store shelves? I guess you could say that. Still, I've enjoyed this undertaking quite a bit despite its sometimes-off-putting quirks, so it's hard to rail against them too mightily.

Will I continue to play this game in the coming days, weeks and maybe even months?--I sure hope so. Normally I'd offer up a solid "yes," and without hesitation, especially since I seem to be fairly close to the finale, but that's just what I said about My World, My Way--a game I liked more than I've liked Contact so far--as well as a few of the other DS titles I've recently played, so I know it's far from out of the question that I'll continue the trend (of not living up to these predictions) with this Rising Star Games-published effort.

Do I recommend it to others?--Oh, boy, this is a tough one. If you're the kind of person who generally gets a kick out of playing RPGs that attempt to do things differently, I think you'll at least find this adventure to be interesting--especially if you can nab a rather inexpensive copy of it. If you're not the genre's  biggest fan, though, or if the only Contact carts you come across cost more than $30 or so, I'd probably recommend spending your hard-earned cash elsewhere.

Next up--Bokujou Monogatari: Youkoso! Kaze no Bazaar e (known in other regions as Harvest Moon DS: Grand Bazaar) and Penguin no Mondai: Saikyou Penguin Densetsu!

See also: previous #ADecadeofDS posts