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For the 25th anniversary of the Persona franchise, a special stream will take place on August 9, 2022, at 7:00 PM JST. That would convert to 3 AM PST/6 AM EST. Jun Fukuyama (who voices the Protagonist in Persona 5) and Daisuke Namikawa (who voices the Protagonist in Persona 4) will be guests. Atlus has stated that it will not announce a new game during this stream. [Thanks, ryokutya2089!]

You will be able to watch the stream on YouTube Live and Twitter Live. It is not an actual live stream with the guests, as everything was recorded beforehand. It is unclear what announcements Atlus will make during the Persona 25th anniversary stream if there is no news on upcoming games.

Good Smile Company has opened up pre-orders for Pop Up Parade figures of Claude and Lysithea from Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The Golden Deer duo is the final pair, following Edelgard and Bernadetta, as well as Dimitri and Felix. Pre-orders are open until September 1, 2022.

As per usual, the figures are wearing their school uniforms, as the figures are of their designs during the Academy Arc. Since they are Pop Up Parade figures, you will not be able to change their poses. Claude has one hand on his hip and the other slightly outstretched, as if he is in the middle of a conversation with someone. The Claude figure costs ¥4,800, or $34.99. It will ship out in January 2023 for those in Japan and March 2023 for those in North America.

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Square Enix is celebrating the 100-day Anniversary of Echoes of Mana. The mobile action-RPG based on the Mana series launched in April 2022, and it'll celebrate its 100th day in operation in August. To commemorate the milestone passing, the developers are giving away rewards to players, as well as adding more new content to enjoy.

Starting on August 4, 2022, the Echoes of Mana 100-day Anniversary campaign launches. Players who log in during the event period will receive various rewards, including 100 summons worth of tickets from the gacha. Other rewards include a 4-star memory gem item.

Another addition to the campaign is a new scenario event, "Labyrinth of Lost Heroes". The event features a new story and several new characters. The first is a 3-star Sumo "Resolve Renewed" version. This character and the 3-star memory gem "Fearsome Foursome" can be acquired by clearing event-specific missions. A summon banner gives players the chance to earn the 4-star Duran "Trusted Shield" version, and the 4-star Escad "Beholder of Justice" Version. The 4-star memory gem, "Finalizing Fate" is also on offer in the banner.

Check out preview images of the characters in the gallery.

[gallery columns="4" link="file" ids="933050,933049,933048,933055"]

Besides the event, the Echoes of Mana 100-day campaign also signals the arrival of the latest main quest chapter. Chapter 8 of the main story adventure is titled "Voidfig: Torment's Terminus". Players will confront the Ebon Knight, after their long series of encounters elsewhere in the Main Story.

August 1st is a special day in Japan. The Bon festival (also called "Obon") is when Japanese families celebrate their ancestors. Those ancestors are said to return in spirit form to the world temporarily. Bethesda and Tango Gameworks commemorated the occasion with the Ghostwire: Tokyo Obon update. A free update to the game dated August 1, 2022, the Obon update adds a new cosmetic costume for players to wear in-game, as well as a new emote.

In its blog post on the topic, Tango Gameworks drew parallels between Ghostwire: Tokyo and Obon. Just as the game deals heavily with spirits and their impact on the living world, Obon is a time to remember and celebrate the impact of one's ancestors on the world. The game includes areas and scenes inspired by the Obon festival, including iconic traditions such as the Bon Odori dance. The practice of Toro-nagashi, where lit lanterns are floated down a river to mourn departed souls, is also seen. The Bon Odori itself is available within Ghostwire: Tokyo already as the "Tokyo Bon dance" emote.

The Ghostwire: Tokyo Obon update adds the Jinbei costume, which is a casual kimono-style jacket and shorts outfit. Jinbei are often worn by Japanese men in the summer. The update also adds the "Japanese Sparklers" emote, which causes Akito to crouch down and admire a sparkler's glow. The update also throws in some bug fixes, adjusting things like gliding behavior, meot volume, and some progression issues.

Kemono Friends 3 is no longer available on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. Appirits announced that it had decided to cease its service for the console port of the free-to-play mobile and PC browser title. The game was playable for only ten days before the team had to put it into an indefinite maintenance period due to an issue that turned out to be unfixable.

Appirits launched the PlayStation 4 version of Kemono Friends 3 with PS5 backwards compatibility support on June 6, 2022. But ten days later, on June 16, 2022, it put the game on an extended maintenance due to a bug where players could not login properly. The team provided an update to the maintenance on July 22, 2022, but it ultimately could never fix the issue that plagued the PlayStation port.

The PS4 port of Kemono Friends 3 was completely separated from the existing mobile and PC browser versions, so players who used the console port's microtransactions could only obtain currency and items for that version. In its apology letter, Appirits promised full refunds to all players who have made purchases on the now-defunct port. It will provide a more thorough schedule and procedure for the refund process at a later time.

Fate/Grand Order fans may be cooling off from the Servant Summer Camp event, but there's more to experience for those with energy remaining. Right on the heels of the Summer 2022 conclusion is a rerun of last year's spring event: Tokugawa Restoration Labyrinth, Ooku. The FGO Ooku rerun gives players who didn't complete the event the first time another chance to clear it. Those who did get through the maze can do it again for more rewards, as well as a few new goodies.

The FGO Ooku rerun is, as before, based on 17th-century Japan and the convoluted design of Edo castle. The seat of power for the Tokugawa Shogunate, Edo castle was deliberately designed to confuse potential intruders, with its full layout familiar only to those supposed to be there. One feature of Edo and similar castles is the Ooku, or "great interior", an inner chamber that functions as the women's quarters. Women connected to the Shogun resided there, forbidden from leaving. Similarly, the Ooku was forbidden to men unaccompanied by the Shogun, with intruders quickly put to death. In FGO's rendition, the Ooku of Edo castle has been supernaturally transformed into a sinister maze, trapping those inside in a hell of corruption and decadence.

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown players can now decorate their aircraft with character emblems from The Idolmaster series. Bandai Namco newly added the emblems through the free 3rd Anniversary Update patch released on August 2, 2022. It featured 13 characters that appeared in The Idolmaster: Starlit Season, the series' latest console entry available on PS4 and PC in Asia.

The new update also added more aircraft skins. Some of them are modeled after squadrons in prior Ace Combat entries, such as the UPEO from Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere and the Wardog and Razgriz squadrons from Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War. It also added a new glitch-inspired Shining skin for the fictional aircraft XFA-27.

[tnm_video layout="mnmd-post-media"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfBPqIKMsWA[/tnm_video]

The new crossover content added another entry to the long-running collaboration between the two original game IPs owned by Namco. The crossover began in earnest when Bandai Namco added The Idolmaster DLC liveries in the 2007 Xbox 360 game, Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation. Most Ace Combat games released afterwards also received post-release content featuring characters from the idol-raising simulation game series.

Studio Trigger, CD Projekt Red, and Netflix have announced the Japanese voice cast list for Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. The anime show will feature prominent voice actresses like Aoi Yuuki and Tomoyo Kurosawa, and veteran voice actors such as Kazuhiko Inoue and Kenjiro Tsuda. KENN will become the show's main performer as he voices the protagonist David. [Thanks, doope!]

Here is the list of Japanese voice actors who provide their voices to the key characters in Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.

• David: KENN
• Lucy: Aoi Yuuki
• Maine: Hiroki Touchi
• Dorio: Michiko Kaiden
• Kiwi: Takako Honda
• Pilar: Wataru Takagi
• Rebecca: Tomoyo Kurosawa
• Faraday: Kazuhiko Inoue
• Gloria: Yurika Hino
• Ripperdoc: Kenjiro Tsuda

CD Projekt Red has also uploaded a new official trailer for Edgerunners on its Cyberpunk 2077 YouTube channel. It features Japanese voiceovers performed by the above voice actors. The video also contains subtitles in nine languages, including English.

[tnm_video layout="mnmd-post-media"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiR_lMNlJko[/tnm_video]

Discotek Media announced a host of new classic anime Blu-ray releases. Chief among them is a Blu-ray release of the TV anime series Urusei Yatsura with English subtitles. Discotek Media expects to release Urusei Yatsura sometime in 2023. The release will not come with any extras or additional content.

Urusei Yatsura, aka Lum or Those Obnoxious Aliens, is an anime adaptation of the manga series with the same name. It follows the protagonist Ataru and the alien princess Lum, who mistakenly believes Ataru to be her new husband. Rumiko Takahashi, the creator of Inuyasha and Ranma 1/2, originally wrote the story in 1977. Weekly Shonen Sunday later serialized the manga in 1978, and an anime adaptation soon followed in 1981.

The new Blu-ray release will include all 195 episodes of the anime. This release will include Japanese audio with English subtitles. Notably, these subtitles are based on the original AnimEigo subtitle scripts. AnimEigo originally licensed the television series and its various films before its license expired. Discotek Media noted that AnimEigo founder Robert Woodhead helped write custom software for the company to use in translating his proprietary subtitle format.

https://twitter.com/discotekmedia/status/1553561706671923200?s=20&t=k4fQ6sHDTgf5BH7iJiun5Q

Other Discotek Media announcements included the following upcoming releases:

Nintendo Switch Online subscribers in the U.S. can obtain new user icons designed after Xenoblade Chronicles 3 characters by redeeming their My Nintendo Platinum Points throughout August 2022. Users can gather the points by completing Missions in the Nintendo Switch Online app. They will then be able to use their points to purchase rewards such as user icons.

The icons will be available for a limited time. Nintendo will split the distributions into five waves on a weekly basis. The schedule for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Platinum Points Rewards is as follows:

• Wave 1 starring Noah and Mio: July 28 - August 4, 2022
• Wave 2 starring Eunie and Taion: August 4 - 11, 2022
• Wave 3 starring Lanz and Sena: August 11-18, 2022
• Wave 4 starring Chibi Mio and Chibi Eunie: August 18-25, 2022
• Wave 5 starring the Queens of Agnus and Keves: August 25 - September 1, 2022

Each wave will feature more than just the main characters mentioned above. The first wave also includes icons of several supporting characters like Riku, Valdi, and Juniper. Nintendo will end the ongoing wave every Thursday at 5:59 PM PT (8:59 ET).

Metal Max: Wild West may have been cancelled, but like one of its hardy survivors, the Metal Max series lives on. Granblue Fantasy developer Cygames acquired the rights to the series from Kadokawa Games, announcing the pickup on July 29, 2022. Along with the IP, series creator Hiroshi Miyaoka also moved to Cygames to continue shepherding the brand as a game director. Alongside producer Kenichiro Takaki (creator of Kandagawa Jet Girls and producer on Senran Kagura), Miyaoka will lead development on a new, console-based title in the franchise.

Right now the game doesn't actually have a name beyond Metal Max Project. Cygames debuted a logo for the for the project that featured pixel-style renditions of the various Metal Max lead characters.

Cygames' announcement commits to "creating a new future" for the now 30-year-old series. Miyaoka said that the rights transfer represents a great opportunity for Metal Max. He thanked Cygames for picking up the IP, and Kadokawa Games for agreeing to send it off.

Key is working on its next visual novel, Stella of the End (a.k.a. Tsui no Stella). First announced back in 2020, the game is due out on September 30, 2022. With the game coming soon, Key released the Stella of the End opening to get fans excited.

Check it out below. The OP is set to the song "breath of stella" by Zero Aimiya.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CozHHU_yhwo

Stella of the End is a "kinetic novel", a subtype of visual novel that eschews gameplay conventions like multiple endings. Some of Key's other works, like Planetarian and Harmonia, are also classified as kinetic novels.

The game's set in the future, in a time when humanity is forced to live in the shadows of the machines it created. Earth is now under the control of a group of machines that gained sentience and created the long-theorized "singularity".  "Transporters" shuttle goods between human settlements, braving the elements, hostile machines, and human bandits. One day, a transporter named Jude Grey receives an odd request: To transport Filia, an android in the form of a young girl. Developed as a substitute family member, the android is somehow unaffected by the Singularity Machines. The transporter and the girl set out on their journey, trying to make their way to a space elevator. Rumor has it that androids who make it to the space elevator's summit can be made human. Is it true?

The English version of Fate/Grand Order will make its way to Europe, New Zealand, and several Latin American countries. The mobile game's administrative team published a new post announcing the region expansion on the English website.

On August 2, 2022, at 01:00 PT (04:00 ET), Aniplex will launch the English mobile game to 19 new countries. But at the same time, it will also reset the Terms of Use agreement for all users. Existing players will have to reselect their country of residence when they log into the game.

Here is the list of countries where Fate/Grand Order will be newly available on August 2, 2022:

Square Enix and Ateam unveiled an Advanced Shinra Pack for Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier, which includes skins based on Weiss and Nero from FFVII Remake Intergrade. Additionally, the cosmetic packs include skins resembling Rosso and Shelke from Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII, as well as a few other accessories. Players can purchase the packs using either 300 Shinra Credits or using five Advanced Shinra Pack Tickets. The cosmetics will be available until August 31, 2022, at 01:59 UTC.

https://twitter.com/FFVII_FS_EN/status/1553938574151655426?s=20&t=JDlDOCXDQ-4XFQo7PG034w

Notably, the Weiss skin has a special feature that unlocks new effects with every duplicate skin obtained. The second level will unlock the alternate skin "Weiss Empowered". The third level unlocks a new kill effect "The Immaculate", which activates every time you kill or down an opponent.

Both the Weiss and Nero skins are available for the male and female character body types. Rosso and Shelke, however, are only available to equip for female characters. Furthermore, the cosmetic pack also includes items such as Weiss' blades, Nero's facemask, a Deepground Soldier skin, and various Deepground-themed accessories. Finally, the game is also hosting a six-day login bonus campaign where characters can obtain up to 20 Advanced Shinra Pack Tickets and two banners featuring Weiss and Nero.

You can get a look at the Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier Weiss and Nero skins below:

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Massage Freaks is a rhythm game developed and published by The Future You've Been Dreaming Of  studio qureate. It's now available on PC via Steam, but you won't find it under that name. Instead, it's got a new title: Beat Refle.

Beat Refle was originally set to debut on the Nintendo Switch under its old title (Massage Freaks). However, it was "delayed indefinitely" on Switch following qureate's "discussion with concerned parties". The game attracted attention from commentators in Japan, at first by using character names that seemed suspiciously similar to members of real-life idol group Hinatazaka46. qureate changed the names, but by then the backlash had blossomed to include criticism of the game's risqué content, and the massage parlor theme's connection to a recent series of sexual assaults in Japan.

Beat Refle is a rhythm game, but its gameplay mechanics involve giving massages to female clients. Players enter inputs in time with the music to get customers fully relaxed. There are also light story elements presented in the manner of a visual novel, with event art and voice acting. Over 50 songs are in the game, with six different customers to interact with.

Adventure Academia: The Fractured Continent is heading west. PQube Games announced that it's publishing the Acquire-developed strategy-RPG overseas. The game was first announced in June 2022 by Acquire, but international release plans were not specified at the time.

PQube  uploaded a fully localized overview trailer for Adventure, which shares its settings with the venerable Class of Heroes franchise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKoste242ko

Adventure Academia takes place on the titular fractured continent. Players will take charge of a new class of aspiring adventurers from various fantasy races. They'll be in control of the teacher, Alex, who serves as the focal point of the party. Alex can deploy students in his party to attack and defend. His ability to call in more students to join the fray increases with his level and progression. Stages have varied objectives and layouts, and battles happen in tactical grid in what seems to be real-time. Maneuvering out of the "danger zone" of boss attacks plays a role in gameplay, as does using magic to even the odds. Students can be upgraded and equipped to improve their capabilities, as well.

Adventure Academia: The Fractured Continent is in development for PS4 and Nintendo Switch. It releases on September 8, 2022 in Japan. Its international release date is not yet confirmed.

ININ Games revealed that it will release RayStorm x RayCrisis HD Collection in physical and digital formats. Additionally, it will also handle the digital release of the Ray'z Arcade Chronology in the West. Both compilations of Taito's classic shmup games will come to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.

The publisher made the announcement on its Twitter account. You can read the full tweet right below:

✈ Fasten your seatbelts, we are going back to the future and into war drenched times with the RayStorm x RayCrisis HD Collection (boxed and digital) and the Ray'z Arcade Chronology (digital)! ✈

More information coming soon! ???? pic.twitter.com/Xp2pVaNz6h

— ININ Games (@ININ_Games) July 30, 2022

RayStorm and RayCrisis are the second and third entries in Taito's Ray series of shmup games released first on arcades in 1996 and 1998, respectively. In 2010, Taito's parent company Square Enix released an HD version of RayStorm for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Type-Moon Studio BB delivered a new trailer for Fate/Extra Record, a remake of 2010's Fate/Extra. The new video is the first trailer and update on the state of the game since late 2020. It shows off some more of the graphical updates the game's received in the interim. There are also clips from different Servants' Noble Phantasms and from in-game story sequences.

Check out the trailer below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiWfzmCuiI4

The 2022 Fate/Extra Record trailer features narration from the character Twice H. Pieceman, as well as from Saber, Rin, Julius, and Rider. Other characters from the game like Taiga, Leo, Rani, and Shinji make their first updated appearances here, too. Environments and exploration gameplay is shown, as are cutscenes of Servant fights with Dan Blackmore's Archer and Lancer. It ends on shots of Rider's Noble Phantasm, and on Saber summoning her Aestus Domus Aurea.

PSO2: New Genesis will have new crossover content from Melty Blood: Type Lumina. Type-Moon made the announcement on the second day of Fate/Grand Order 7th Anniversary Festival, where it also published new information about its other games.

Type-Moon did not specify what kind of Melty Blood content will appear in Sega's PSO2: New Genesis. But when crossover content from other franchises appears in the latter MMORPG, it usually consists of avatar parts and accessories that let players replicate characters from the former. The items will be available in the gacha-like Scratch Ticket that usually runs for four weeks after launch.

Melty Blood: Type Lumina will be the second external franchise to bring crossover content into PSO2: New Genesis. Sega previously announced that it will release the first crossover avatar parts modeled after Hololive Production VTubers on August 24, 2022. In its roadmap for late 2022, Sega revealed plans to release more crossover Scratches with an external game title—which fits the description for Melty Blood—in October 2022, and an anime show in November 2022.

It has happened. Fate/Grand Order has added a new and iconic character from Tsukihime to its playable roster. The new Servant is known as Archetype Earth, the first FGO character based on a major Tsukihime cast member. She joins the roster as part of the game's ongoing 7th Anniversary celebration in Japan.

FGO and Tsukihime aren't exactly strangers to each other - both franchises share a conceptual framework and many world-building elements. Until recently, though, Lasengle opted to keep Tsukihime more at arm's length, making only indirect references to its characters. For example, the FGO NPC Sion Eltnam Sokaris is based on the Melty Blood alum Sion Eltnam Atlasia. The playable character Ryougi Shiki is from The Garden of Sinners, a precursor work to Tsukihime.

Project Lumina has announced that Neco-Arc and Mash will join the roster of playable characters as DLC in Melty Blood: Type Lumina. They will be available for free in the summer. Project Lumina will reveal the concrete date that players can get Neco-Arc and Mash in the near future. [Thanks, Famitsu!]

These characters were first teased in June 2022. As a reminder, the first two DLC characters (Neco-Arc and Mash) will appear in Summer 2022, and two more will appear in Winter 2022. All four DLC characters will be free.

Neco-Arc is a recurring joke character from Tsukihime. Her identity as an official meme will actually play into her fighting style. She has a lot of moves that can cause random effects, which means players who main her will need to rely on luck and fast thinking.

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Mash is the deuteragonist and heroine of Fate/Grand Order, and she is a close-range fighter with her shield. According to the article, she is a beginner-friendly character. Mash can also use her shield to guard herself as she rushes towards the enemy.

[gallery columns="1" ids="932931" link="file"]

Aside from the new DLC characters, there will be an update to the story mode. Aside from new scenarios that will let players experience a ‘boss rush,’ Project Lumina powered up the story sequences. There will be 2D pixel art characters moving on the screen to act out what is happening in the story.

During the July 31, 2022 live-stream to commemorate the 7th anniversary of FGO, Lasengle revealed some upcoming updates to the Japanese version of the game. These updates include new missions, a change to the battle system, an update to the animations, and a free 5-star Craft Essence. For the Craft Essence, you can able to choose one from seven. Kaleidoscope will be one of the choices. [Thanks, Famitsu!]

One of the major changes to the battle system is a buff to the Quick cards. Choosing a Quick card first in a Chain will buff every card's Critical Star generation, as opposed to the first one. Quick Chains also now give 20 Critical Stars. For reference, Quick Chains used to grant 10 critical stars. As well, if you form a Chain with a card from each type, it will cause a Mighty Chain. If you form a Quick, Buster, and Arts Chain with the same Servant, it will cause a Mighty Brave Chain. These Chains increase the performance of your cards.

A final change to the battle system is that you will be able to use a support Servant’s Noble Phantasm even if you are not friends with that person. This makes it easier for newer players that might have an unappealing Servant lineup to take advantage of fellow players' Servants to get through difficult content. Additionally, maxing out ascensions for your Servants will grant you Crystallized Lore. Crystallized Lore is required to upgrade Servants' skills to the highest level, and is usually only available as a reward from events and challenge quests.

The brothers Elric and their friends are making their smartphone debut soon. Fullmetal Alchemist Mobile has a release date in Japan, and it's on August 4, 2022. The release follows a round of closed beta tests in March 2022 [Thanks, 4Gamer!].

Fullmetal Alchemist Mobile is based on the titular manga and anime series created by Hiromu Arakawa. It's a strategy RPG with gacha elements., and players can roll for various characters from the franchise. Combat takes place on a grid and is turn-based. Characters can use various attacks, and unleash flashy ultimate techniques inspired by their actions in the story. Alongside a pre-release stream, Square Enix uploaded a trailer focusing on various characters' ultimate attack animations.

Here's one focusing on the Elric brothers, Winry, Izumi Curtis, and Sig Curtis. Other ultimate compilation trailers focus on characters like Roy Mustang and his subordinates, Amestris soldiers, the Homonculi, and more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PaOMDeX-MQ

July 29, 2022 was National Lipstick Day in the United States, but that didn't didn't stop Square Enix from sharing some trivia on the official Final Fantasy VII Remake account. The topic of the day was Shinra executive and known wearer of lipstick, Scarlet.

The official account shared some concept art of Scarlet from FFVII Remake. As head of Shinra's Weapons Development division, Scarlet was in FFVII Remake in a minor role. She took center stage, though, when the Intergrade update rolled around. She was the main antagonist of the Yuffie-centered "Episode INTERmission" storyline. She used her resources to confront Yuffie and Sonon, and their clashes expanded players' perspective on the conflict between Shinra and Wutai.

Check out the art pieces in the gallery below.

[gallery link="file" columns="4" ids="932916,932917,932918,932919"]

The FFVII Remake Scarlet Lipstick Day post included concept art of the character and an in-game capture. It also showed off concepts for the Crimson Mare, Scarlet's personal battle armor. According to the tweet, the Crimson Mare's cockpit is custom-decorated, and includes special holders for Scarlet's lipstick and cosmetics. These weren't seen in-game, though.

Due to how little people are using the function, Sony will discontinue the PlayStation 5's accolades system in the near future. It is unknown when exactly it will disappear, though it will be some time in Fall 2022. While you will not be able to send accolades to other players, Sony still hopes that people create a positive gaming environment and community. The news comes courtesy of a notice on PlayStation Japan's support site announcing the change [Thanks, ryokutya2089!].

Accolades are a function unique to the PlayStation 5. You mostly send them to players you had a positive multiplayer experience with. There are three accolades you can send – Helpful, Welcoming, and Good Sport – to define what it was about the player you liked. You can also look at your accolades to see what other players liked about you in your matches.

Genshin Impact is just entering the second phase of its Version 2.8 content cycle, but a new Genshin Impact Sumeru preview video shows off more of what's next. The upcomingd region of the game. At the same time, it reveals a number of new, potentially playable characters for Travelers to meet.

Check out the video below, which was uploaded to the Genshin Impact YouTube account on July 29, 2022. English subtitles are available via closed captions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrC7DTUsii8

The Genshin Impact Sumeru preview video features comments from IP Scriptwriter Yogurt and Monster Designer Baiheng. They walk viewers through a view of Sumeru society and the people that live there. Sumeru is split between humid jungle and dry desert, and is home to various critters suited to the area. Humid jungles are ideal for evolving powerful Shroom-kin into Fungi, while the desert's ruins are guarded by ancient machines.

The groups living within each environment of Sumeru have differing ways of life, as detailed in the Genshin Impact Sumeru preview video. The people of Sumeru are governed by an organization called the Akademiya. Under the Akademiya, Sumeru citizens trade in knowledge, and take advantage of a system called the Akasha to regulate knowledge like a resource. The Akasha was bestowed by the previous Dendro Archon, Rukkhadevata. Meanwhile, the Eremites are another society in Sumeru, with roots in an ancient civilization from its desert area.

More info on the upcoming Chainsaw Man anime series is nigh. The official Chainsaw Man Twitter account revealed the show's key visual. At the same time, it teased that the first trailer for the series will debut early in August.

Check out the new Chainsaw Man key visual below.

The poster for the Chainsaw Man anime shows off Denji standing atop some rubble. Seen in his devil form and sprouting chainsaw blades from his limbs and head, the visual communicates the series' gory, violent aesthetic and its modern setting. Based on the manga series by Tatsuki Fujimoto, the show will follow the adventures of Denji, a novice devil hunter. After being betrayed and left for dead, Denji forms a contract with his pet chainsaw devil, Pochita. This allows him to fuse with Pochita and call on his chainsaw-wielding power to kill devils and make a better life for himself. The show is being produced by studio MAPPA.

D3 Publisher has a new game in the works, and it will be available worldwide. The Japanese company has set up a new website, Twitter account, and Instagram account that are also available in English.

An English version of the teaser trailer is also available, and you can watch it right below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43YLSjnEHMc

The trailer shows that the game will have anime-style visuals with cel-shading. It will star a long-haired Japanese schoolgirl who can wield a katana sword. The initials JKHH appeared at the end of the trailer.

Outside the trailer, D3 Publisher partially announced the game's title. It will have two words, and the last word will be Maiden. Nothing else is known about the new game from D3 Publisher, which has been a subsidiary of Bandai Namco since 2009.

Before this new project, D3 Publisher released the action RPG Maglam Lord as its newest IP in 2021. The game was available first on the PS4 and Switch, and the publisher later brought it to PC on May 30, 2022. The company is currently working on releasing Earth Defense Force 6 for PlayStation 5 and 4 in Japan on August 25, 2022.

D4 Enterprise has confirmed the release date for Record of Lodoss War Chronicle. It will release the compilation of classic PC and SNES games in Japan on August 31, 2022.

A new trailer showcasing the compilation has also appeared on the Project EGG YouTube channel. You can watch it right below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7shRV2RLzY

D4 Enterprise first revealed the compilation in April 2021 with a Spring 2022 release window. The initial lineup included classic titles released for the PC-9801, MSX2, and Super Famicom (SNES). The publisher has since added the X68000 versions of the first three titles. These versions were based on the PC-9801 releases and had better graphics.

Here is the full list of titles that will be available in the compilation:

The Da Capo visual novel series will have a new entry, and it will appear on PC browsers in Japan. Circus has opened a new website for Da Capo 5. The newest sequel will arrive to mark the series' 20th anniversary.

The website itself has yet to contain a list of platforms that Da Capo 5 will be available for. However, a Japanese press release announcing the game has shown up courtesy of Exnoa, the company behind the DMM Games platform. It confirmed that the visual novel will be available on PC browsers.

The Da Capo series originated as an adult visual novel released for PCs in Japan in June 2002. However, Circus also released all-ages versions of the games on PCs and consoles. The company mostly sells the PC versions in physical formats. As of this writing, Da Capo 3 R is the only entry that is available digitally on Steam.

The previous mainline entry, Da Capo 4, appeared in 2019. In 2021, Circus also released Da Capo 4: Fortunate Departures, a direct sequel telling stories after the endings in the original game.

In October 2022, a new accessibility update will go live for Resident Evil Village. This free update will include the choice to toggle subtitle sizes, as well as color and background. Speaker names will also appear in the subtitles when you play the game in story mode, and closed captions will be available.

The final portion of the accessibility update will add a permanent reticle on the screen. The accessibility update will launch at the same time as the Winters’ Expansion and Gold Edition. That means it will likely appear in-game around October 28, 2022. The accessibility update will be available for all versions and platforms of Resident Evil Village.

The Gold Edition of Resident Evil Village will be the base game and the contents of the Winters’ Expansion. Winters’ Expansion will consist of three main parts: third person mode, The Mercenaries Additional Orders, and Shadows of Rose. Chris, Lady Dimitrescu, and Heisenberg will be playable in The Mercenaries with Additional Orders. Meanwhile, Shadows of Rose is a sequel of sorts in which you can play as Ethan’s daughter, Rose.

The NieR fan community has been in an uproar over the last several days, following the saga of a "secret church" area supposedly discovered five years after the game's release. Now the secret of the NieR Automata church has been revealed. As it turns out, it's neither an elaborate hoax, nor a bit of viral marketing for something new to do with NieR. Rather, it's a bit of both. According to its creators, the whole event was a complex, engrossing stunt designed to show off a powerful new set of modding tools.

You can read more about the beginnings of the stunt in this post. But to summarize, an anonymous player going by "sadfutago" began posting videos and screens a never-before-seen church area supposedly found in NieR Automata's Copied City location. Many were left wondering whether the thing was a hoax or actual, newly-discovered content in the game. The case for it being "legitimate" was bolstered by the fact that at the time, NieR Automata modding tools and techniques were widely considered incapable of fashioning entirely new areas as demonstrated in the videos and screenshots posted. Combined with cryptic references to the rest of the NieR franchise, some suggested it was a viral marketing trick to promote the upcoming Switch port of Automata, or even a new NieR game.

HoYoVerse has released some information on what players can expect for the Phase II of Version 2.8 of Genshin Impact. As a reminder, this will be the final update to the game before the Sumeru region debuts in Version 3.0. Yoimiya will be one of the limited 5-stars available to pull for. Players will also have a higher chance of pulling Yun Jin, Xinyan, and Bennett from this banner.

For those who wish to pull for weapons instead, the weapon banner will feature Thundering Pulse (Bow) and Summit Shaper (Sword) as the exclusive five-stars. There will also be an event story of sorts featuring Yoimiya and Heizou, judging by the official art for the second phase of Summer Fantasia.

https://twitter.com/GenshinImpact/status/1552204643534528513

From August 4 to August 15, the game will run the Reminiscent Regimen event. It will take place in the Golden Apple Archipelago, and players will need to first finish the Summertime Odyssey: I quest. This event will be a time challenge using your Waverider. Prizes include the usual Primogems, Mora, and Hero’s Wit experience books.

From August 12 to August 22, Genshin Impact will run the Evermotion Mechanical Painting event. You will need to restore mechanical parts and then combine them; most likely, there will be a puzzle element to this event. You will get a Furnishing alongside the usual Primogems, Weapon Ascension Materials, and Mora.

FFXIV producer and director Naoki Yoshida has announced a delay for the planned NA data center expansion. Originally planned for August 2022, Yoshida revealed that the first phase of the expansion will instead start in November 2022. The schedule for the second phase of the expansion will remain unchanged.

Yoshida explains that the main reason for the delay was related to recent semiconductor shortages. Specifically, the company's server vendor had informed Square Enix that it would be unable to deliver the required equipment due to the shortage. While Square Enix had tried to find another solution, it ultimately decided to delay the first phase of the expansion.

The planned data expansion will add a total of eight new worlds for North American players to play in. The newly added worlds will arrive in two phases and will fall under a new logical data center. The first phase will add four worlds, with the second phase adding an additional four worlds. Square Enix expects the second phase of the expansion to roll out sometime in the Spring or Summer of 2023.

Sky: Children of the Light is known for having an ethereal, mystic atmosphere. Thus, it's fitting that its upcoming collaboration is with an artist many know as an ethereal, mystic voice. Developer thatgamecompany bills the event, called Season of Aurora, as a one-of-a-kind experience featuring Norwegian singer-songwriter AURORA.

AURORA produced hit songs like "Runaway", and contributed to the soundtrack of the Disney film Frozen 2. Additionally, she played the role of "The Voice", an ethereal presence calling Elsa away from her kingdom.

Thatgamecompany produced a teaser to promote the Season of Aurora, embedded below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LKhTBECETY

Sky was developed by thatgamecompany, which also developed Journey. In it, players take control of a "Child of Light" and fly about various environments, gathering up scattered light to return the stars to the heavens. Players solve puzzles, explore, and interact and cooperate with strangers using unique multiplayer mechanics.

More perfumes inspired by Guilty Gear Strive characters have appeared in Japan. Fairytail Parfum has released a new wave of eau de parfum bottles in the country. The new perfume lineup consists of Sol Badguy, Ky Kiske, Ramlethal Valentine, and Jack-O.

This is not the first time Fairytail created perfumes for Sol Badguy and Ky Kiske. The perfume producer released their perfumes in 30ml bottles in July 2021. While it still uses the same ingredients as before, it packs the new perfumes in larger 50ml bottles.

In the meantime, Fairytail also created new combinations to produce Ramlethal's and Jack-O's perfumes. Here are the ingredients used in the new Guilty Gear Strive perfumes:

• Ramlethal's perfume: Red thyme, jasmine, and peony at the top; powder, white freesia, and lily of the valley in the middle; white musk, suede, and spice at the bottom.
• Jack-O's perfume: Fragrant olive, yuzu, and jasmine at the top; iris, apricot, and magnolia in the middle; musk and cedarwood at the bottom.

Fairytail Parfum did not limit its product lineup to Guilty Gear Strive's playable roster. It also released a couple of perfumes inspired by Dizzy and Elphelt Valentine. Both of them appeared as playable characters in the preceding Guilty Gear Xrd series, but Arc System Works has yet to add either of them to Strive.

A new Yakuza saga began with Yakuza: Like A Dragon, but Sony wants to let PS Plus subscribers have a chance at seeing the whole series. The Yakuza series will join PS Plus at the Extra and Premium tiers in 2022. That means 8 games, including Yakuza: Like A Dragon, will be available to PS Plus subscribers.

The one wrinkle is that the exact selection of the Yakuza series on PS Plus varies depending on the subscription tier. The offering starts in August 2022, with Yakuza: Like A Dragon. It's part of the PS Plus August 2022 slate, and is available to all PS Plus members from Essential tier up. The rest of the games in the Yakuza series are split across PS Plus Extra and Premium tiers.

Extra tier subscribers gain access to Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, Yakuza Kiwami 2, and Yakuza 6: The Song of Life. Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the series, taking place in the 1980s and showing how Kazuma Kiryu earned his reputation. Yakuza Kiwami is an enhanced remaster of the original PS2-era Yakuza, using tech and gameplay based on Yakuza 0. Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a remake of Yakuza 2, but based on the gameplay and graphics of Yakuza 6. Yakuza 6 is the last game in the Kazuma Kiryu saga, and sees the Dragon of Dojima become a foster father.

"Ichiban" might mean "first" in Japanese, but he's coming to PlayStation fans' libraries in the "eighth" month. Sony is leading the PS Plus August 2022 games with Yakuza: Like A Dragon. The strategy RPG is part of PlayStation game offering for the month*. Alongside it are Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2, and Little Nightmares.

*The selection reflects the North American PSN. Other regions may have different offerings.

All three PS Plus August 2022 games are available to all PS Plus subscribers, from the basic Essential tier up through Premium. They'll go up for download on August 2, 2022.

Also known as Yakuza 7, Yakuza: Like A Dragon begins a new saga in the Yakuza series. Ichiban Kasuga is a low-ranking gangster thug, fresh out of prison after serving 18 years for a crime he didn't commit. Players will see him uncover the truth behind the betrayal as they rise to power. Both the PS4 and PS5 versions of the game are available.

Also added to the PS Plus August 2022 slate is the remake of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 and 2. Arguably the most iconic skateboarding games of all time, THPS 1 and 2 first appeared on the PlayStation 1. Now they've been remastered for current platforms, including most of the original soundtrack and roster. Both PS4 and PS5 versions are available.

A new Valkyria Chronicles exhibit will appear in Japan ahead of the series' 15th anniversary. A pre-opening of the Raita Honjou & Valkyria Chronicles Exhibit will take place at Phrase Gallery Akihabara from July 31 to September 4, 2022.

This exhibit will primarily feature illustrations from the Valkyria Chronicles series. There will be a focus on Valkyria Chronicles Duel, the mobile and PC browser card game that ran from 2012 to 2015. A shop selling merchandise related to the series will appear for the duration of the event. The venue will also double as Raita Honjou's personal art exhibit. Raita Honjou provided character designs for the Valkyria games, as well as for other titles like Fate/Grand Order. As such, the venue will also feature art and products other than Valkyria Chronicles and Sega-owned IPs.

The exhibit will be open five days a week. People in Japan will be able to visit the venue on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 14:00 to 18:00 JST, and Fridays to Sundays from 12:00 to 20:00 JST. The venue will not be available on Mondays and Thursdays.

The Valkyria Chronicles series' 15th anniversary will fall in April 2023. Sega released the first game in Japan on April 24, 2008. The series' latest entry, Valkyria Chronicles 4, came out in 2018 for the PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

Takanori Nishikawa, also known for their solo act T.M. Revolution, appeared in a commercial for Touhou Arcadia Record. Nishikawa dressed as popular Touhou Project character Reimu Hakurei. The commercial aired on Japanese televisions and is also available to watch on YouTube. [Thanks, Inside Games!]

The 30-second commercial initially features Nishikawa dressed as a Japanese high schooler. When his teacher catches him sleeping during class and throws a piece of chalk at him, Nishikawa transforms into Reimu Hakurei. Fittingly, Nishikawa's character is named "Nishikawa Reimu".

The transformation has Nishikawa fit snugly into a midriff-exposing outfit and full makeup, mimicking Reimu's appearance in the game.  Nishikawa then dodges an array of pink chalk, a la Touhou Arcadia Record’s side-scrolling shoot-em-up game mechanics.

You can check out the full commercial in the video below:

https://youtu.be/Prsd0DKxa3o