The Blog

The latest issue of Famitsu has made its way to subscribers in Japan, and that means yet another round of review scores. Want to see how this week’s games fared? Check out the score round-up below!

Remember, each Famitsu review is handled by 4 critics. They each give a game a score of 1 to 10, and then the scores are added together. In other words, a perfect game would get a 40 out of 40.

• Garden Life: A Cozy Simulator (PS5, PS4, Switch) – 7/8/7/7 [29/40]
• Stellar Blade (PS5) – 9/9/8/9 [35/40]
• Utakata no Uchronia (Switch) – 8/8/8/8 [32/40]

The Nintendo Switch Online app has been updated to Ver. 2.10.0. You can find the patch notes for this update below.

Thanks to the incredible support from the Pikmin Bloom global community, this month the app is welcoming its 2.5 Anniversary. To celebrate, Niantic will be holding a special event where Decor Pikmin that originally made their appearance during Pikmin 3 Deluxe and Pikmin 4 events will be making a comeback. Flower Badges from the last 6 months will be back too, so if you’re missing any, now’s your chance to catch up! The 2.5 Anniversary Event will be divided in 2 parts:

Part One: Decor Pikmin from console Pikmin games are back!

• May 18, 2024, 0:00 local time to May 31, 2024, 23:59 local time

Mystery Boxes obtained from destroying Bizarre Mushrooms will contain any of the extra rewards below, in addition to their original contents (which can be Diamond Cookies and Flower Petals, among others):

• Seedlings for Koppaite Space Suit Decor Pikmin (any of the 3 available types)
• Seedlings for Pikmin 4 Spaceship Decor Pikmin (any of the 7 available types)
• Flower petals for any type of May’s seasonal flowers

To increase your chances of meeting these Decor Pikmin, the number of mushroom battles you can access per day for free will be increased from 3 to 5! Gather your friends and get the party going – those mushrooms are not going to destroy themselves!

Part Two: Get your hands on Flower Badges you missed in the past!

• May 25, 2024, 0:00 local time to May 31, 2024, 23:59 local time

Missed any Community Days between November 2023 and April 2024? Now’s your chance to catch up and get your hands on any Flower Badge that has yet to make it to your collection. Not to worry if you already have them all, either – we’ve prepared a challenging mission for you too! Clearing this mission will get you a golden item for your Mii, so you can show off your Pikmin Bloom mastery in style!

When the event starts, 6 flower planting missions will be made available. Clearing these missions gets you the corresponding Flower Badge that was originally awarded on Community Day between November 2023 and April 2024. (Please note you’ll only receive missions for the badges that you’re missing)

If you already have all 6 Flower Badges from November 2023 and April 2024, you’ll receive a more challenging special mission. Clearing this mission gets you a golden Pikmin Bloom cap. Make sure to give it your best!

If you don’t have all 6 badges at the beginning of the event, but complete them during the event, you will receive this mission then.

During the event, the shop will be offering special mission tickets to obtain the elusive badge from Pikmin Bloom’s First Community Day, as well as throwback badges featuring Pikmin 3 Deluxe characters Alph, Brittany and Charlie. Don’t miss out on the Pikmin costume sale either!

Pikmin Dress Up Costumes, Pikmin Printed T-shirts, and Pikmin Beanies: On sale between May 18, 0:00 and May 31, 23:59

These items will be on sale during the event. If you were already eyeing them, now’s the time to grab a good deal!

Special Mission Ticket to obtain Pimin Bloom’s first Community Day Badge: Available between May 18, 0:00 and May 31, 23:59

When you purchase this ticket and clear the dedicated mission, you’ll obtain the special badge that was originally awarded to users who participated in Pikmin Bloom’s first ever Community Day. The mission must be completed by July 31, 2024 at 23:59.

Special Mission Ticket to obtain Alph, Brittany, and Charlie’s Badges (3 types): Available between May 18, 0:00 and May 31, 23:59

When you purchase each ticket and clear the dedicated mission, you’ll obtain a badge for the corresponding Pikmin 3 Deluxe character: Alph, Brittany, or Charlie. The mission must be completed by July 31, 2024 at 23:59.

Special Mission Ticket: Koppaite Space Suit Decor Pikmin: Available between May 18, 0:00 and June 2, 23:59

When you purchase this ticket and clear the dedicated mission, you’ll obtain a gold seedling for any of the 3 available types of Koppaite Space Suit Decor Pikmin (Red, Yellow, or Blue). The mission must be completed by July 31, 2024 at 23:59.

Special Mission Ticket: Pikmin 4 Spaceship Decor Pikmin: Available between May 18, 0:00 and June 2, 23:59

When you purchase this ticket and clear the dedicated mission, you’ll obtain a gold seedling for any of the 7 available types of Pikmin 4 Spaceship Decor Pikmin. The mission must be completed by July 31, 2024 at 23:59.

Seasonal Flower Petals (29 types): Available between May 25, 0:00 and May 31, 23:59

Petal flowers for all of May’s seasonal flowers will be available in the shop. These come in super handy to clear Flower Badge-related missions, so be sure to check them out! In order for the 2.5 Anniversary Event to display correctly, please use app version v93 or later.

Publisher eastasiasoft is launching The Prisoner of the Night on Switch today. The title is priced at $15, takes up 3.2 GB of space and includes English, Portuguese, and Spanish language support.

Nartide is a sweet girl who lived with her parents in a big house until, ignoring her mother’s advice, she slept without a blanket’s protection. That night, the cold wind of the night, called Cruviana, came in through the window and took little Nartide as her prisoner. Stuck in an eternal night, Nartide must find the light of her life and then search for a way home.

The Prisoner of the Night is a side-scrolling action platformer presented in nightmarish 2.5D style, where the lovely girl Nartide must survive terrible monsters and traps in the darkest, scariest night of her life. Prepare to guide little Nartide through 159 insane and terrifying stages, where every step could lead to a painful death!

Features:

• Explore a surreal world in side-scrolling platformer style!
• Overcome 159 stages ranging from dreamscapes to horrible nightmares.
• Collect 12 types of special clothes that grant useful skills to Nartide!
• Solve puzzles, avoid deadly traps and survive encounters with terrible creatures.
• Enjoy elements of folk Brazilian culture!

The 30th anniversary of Earthbound continues with the special announcement of a live-streaming concert!

Earthbound/MOTHER creator Shigesato Itoi has revealed that he’s always wanted to have a MOTHER music event, and the time has finally come. An exclusive live streaming event with a focus on the music of MOTHER and MOTHER 2 is on the way, and Keiichi Suzuki and a special band he has assembled will be performing live music for all to enjoy.

Hirokazu Tanaka will be joining Keiichi Suzuki, as they had worked together on the soundtracks for MOTHER and MOTHER 2. According to Itoi, Tanaka is planning on performing a remix of music from the MOTHER series. Last but not least, you’ll also be able to watch a roundtable discussion between the two musicians and Shigesato Itoi himself.

The Music of MOTHER streaming concert takes place June 22nd, 2024 from 8:00~10:00 PM Japan time. Sales methods and timelines vary by ticket type and tickets must be purchased in order to watch the stream. Tickets will go up for sale June 4th and will be available until July 7th, 2024. There will be special tickets that come with bonus goodies as well, but those are only available to purchase until June 17th, 2024.

Last but not least, here are the countries from which people can enjoy the streaming concert from:

Japan / Brazil / Germany / Hong Kong / Korea / Macau / Mexico / Singapore / Taiwan / Thailand / the United Kingdom / United States of America / Canada / Italy / Spain / France / Australia / New Zealand / Malaysia / Peru

Out to learn a thing or two about recent Fire Emblem Heroes happenings? Want to get a leg up on the battlefield? Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have shared another video showcasing some tips and tricks for Fire Emblem Heroes, and you can give it a watch above.

With this video in particular, you can learn a lot more about Lumera: Corrupted Dragon, Veyle: Fell Successor, Ursula: Blackened Crow, and Nergal: Traitor to Nabata, and how they can be useful in battle. You never know what piece of information could come in handy and turn the tide of a skirmish!

SPYxANYA: Operation Memories, a slice of life game based on the popular SPYxFAMILY anime and manga, hit store shelves in Japan last December, but it’s getting a worldwide release this June.

As that date approaches, publisher Bandai Namco has been sharing more details for the English audience. We most recently learned that the game will include over 15 minigames with Anya, including a Fashion Show-related mini-game You can see a bit of how that plays out in the video above.

In SPYxANYA: Operation Memories, Anya Forger has received a new assignment from school: create a photo diary of memories. On weekdays, head to class in the morning, then enjoy family time in the evening. On weekends, visit all sorts of exciting places, like the beach or art museums, in search of subjects worthy of photographing! What kind of photo diary will you help Anya create?

Nintendo’s brand-new museum, dubbed the Nintendo Gallery, was announced over 2 years ago. At that time, Nintendo said they had plans on opening the museum’s doors come 2024, and the more specifically stated March 2024. Obviously that didn’t happen, and now we have an update on when to expect the grand opening.

You might remember back in March when Nintendo fan @hanayohaneNEKO on Twitter decided to swing by the Nintendo Gallery’s location in Kyoto to get a sneak peek at how things are coming along, which is when they spotted something interesting the building’s construction notice.

According to the construction notice, the project is was planned to be wrapped on April 30th, 2024. Now it seems even that notice was off with its projected opening date, as April has come and gone without an opening. We’re still not sure what’s causing the delay of the Nintendo Museum, but hopefully the projected Fall 2024 date sticks this time around.

UPDATE: Nintendo has offered a little clarification on the delayed opening of the Nintendo Museum. According to Nintendo, the museum is already complete and the company is currently getting ready for opening. Since Nintendo anticipates these preparations will take some time, they shifted the opening to Fall 2024.

Niantic announced an upgrade for GO Snapshot which is now live, bringing more Pokémon into frame than ever before. New updates to the GO Snapshot feature let players add up to three Pokémon in any photo. Pokémon can move throughout the shot, ensuring the perfect group photo. Like the main series, a new toy can also capture a Pokémon’s attention, making snapshots more dynamic.

GO Snapshot also receives burst mode and a timer to give players additional options to choose from when composing their shots. To access the new GO Snapshot, players can easily select the Camera item in their inventory, or tap the Camera icons within the Pokédex or the menu.

• Point, position, and photograph Pokémon with all-new enhancements to GO Snapshot!
• To access GO Snapshot, select the Camera item in your inventory, or tap the Camera icons within the Pokédex or the menu.
• For the first time, you can include up to three Pokémon in your snapshots! You can pick whichever three Pokémon you please, or you can check out the available group sets. Group sets are featured suggestions that can help inspire your photography!
• You can place Pokémon in your photo on the ground, on an object, or in the air—you can finally snap a pic of certain Pokémon taking wing! You can also use a new toy to capture your Pokémon’s attention.
• Ready to review? Exit out of the GO Snapshot view to check out your AR photos, which you can bedazzle with all sorts of decorations!
• Other updates include burst mode, which takes a series of AR photos, and timer, which applies a delay prior to taking the AR photo.

While we haven’t seen much from the Ninja Gaiden series in terms of new games lately, there’s no doubt Ryu Hayabusa still remains one of the more recognizable gaming characters out there, especially for older gamers. That’s why it’s not too surprising to see the iconic character getting another piece of merch, this time in the form of a figurine.

Kaiyodo will soon be opening pre-orders for their new Ninja Gaiden Revoltech figure of Ryu Hayabusa, and this release marks the first collaboration between Kaiyodo and Koei Tecmo. This release will be a part of Kaiyodo’s Amazing Yamaguchi series, and we’re still waiting on a release date or price point at this time.

This figure of Ryu Hayabusa is inspired by the character’s look in Ninja Gaiden 2. While we’ve already seen a prototype, unpainted version of this figure, today brings us our first look at Ryu in color. This figure features articulated aspects, different hand parts, the Dragon Sword, Falcon’s Talons, hand/boot parts with blades, and a shuriken.

When we have release date and pricing information on this figure, we’ll be sure to share the details.

It’s time once again to take a look at the games heading to the Switch in Japan. Here’s what’s slated to hit the system for the week ending May 16th, 2024. Remember, this isn’t the final list, as there’s always some surprises each week.

• Awesome Pea 3
• Express Courier Pro: Urban Bike Delivery Simulator 2024
• Garden Life
• Hand in Hand
• Internet Generation
• Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
• Monster Outbreak
• Mutant Express
• Please Fix the Road
• Pool Party
• Read Only Memories: Neurodiver
• Sekimori Gami
• Sweetest Monster
• Tokyo Cooking
• Toon Toon Racing

Experience the ultimate staycation with your favorite Pokémon at Hotel Nikko Bali Benoa Beach. The beachfront resort offers themed rooms featuring Batik Pikachu, Sprigatito, Fuecoco, Quaxly, and more! Don’t miss this unique opportunity to make your staycation unforgettable.

Those interested in booking a room at the Hotel Nikko Bali Benoa Beach can do so starting February 15th, 2024, and bookings will remain open all the way until Dec. 31st, 2024. As for your actual period of stay, that will have to be booked sometime between March 1st and Dec. 31st, 2024. The cost is $159 a night and there’s a 3-day booking minimum.

The picture above gives you just a taste of what your hotel experience will be like, as your room will be absolutely flooded with Pokémon imagery. For a better idea of what you’re in store for should you book a room, you can check out more pictures here.

Hotel Nikko Bali Benoa Beach has announced some bonus goodies that will be part of this special room booking. Those who hop in on the hotel’s app and book a stay in the Pokémon-themed room will get to take home these special items as well:

• 2 Pokémon TCG Booster Packs
• Bali Special Edition Pokémon Drawstring Bag
• Bali Special Edition Pokémon Tumbler

Memories Off Sousou: Not Always True is a new romance visual novel from MAGES., and it’s set to arrive on Switch in Japan sometime this year. While things have been rather quiet on the game since its initial reveal, today brings us a breakdown of the game’s story along with a look at some of the characters you’ll come across.

In Memories Off Sousou: Not Always True, you’ll play as second-year high schooler Itsuki Kusumegi, who comes in contact with Sae Sunomiya, a part-time worker at the Ressac restaurant and café. Sae is a third-year student at the same high school as Itsuki, and Sae ends up with a terrible first impression of Itsuki due to a botched meeting at the café.

Itsuki’s childhood friend Nene Amaha aims to help Itsuki build a relationship with Sae, but as you’ve probably guessed, Nene also has feelings for Itsuki. There will also be other romantic interests in the game, such as light novel enthusiast Kazune Kitakata, the delinquent senior Setsuka Nakamori, and the half-German soccer player Marie Akira Forster.

The list of supporting characters revealed so far includes Itsuki’s best friend Arata Otani, the class teacher Tsubame Minami, the Ressac restaurant’s chief trainer Shin Inaho, and Marie’s teammate Hikari Kurauchi. You can get a look at all of these characters in a gallery here.

A few months back, we reported on the collaboration between The Pokémon Company and the renowned Japanese Vocaloid, Hatsune Miku, titled “Project Voltage 18 Types 18 Songs.” This project promised 18 songs and accompanying illustrations, each representing a unique Pokémon type.

The eighteenth and final illustration was released back in late September, but it turns out there’s even more art to look forward to. These supplemental art pieces will release on random dates, but they’ll continue to showcase Hatsune Miku and Pokémon together. Along with that, the art will spotlight some other Vocaloid idols as well.

Today’s art is titled “Stroll in the Sky, “ and it was created by artist hanekoto. Will this be the final release in this series? Only time will tell!

Vampire Survivors continues to expand through all different kinds of DLC, and the next collab is drawing near. Vampire Survivors dev Poncle previously announced that the game is getting Contra collaboration DLC come May 9th, 2024, and today brings us a sample of one of the new music tracks.

The VS version of: Battle in the Jungle was composed and arranged by Filippo Vicarelli. The tune was originally composed by Hidenori Maezawa and rearranged in Contra 4 by Jake Kaufman. Filippo Vicarelli takes us back to where it all began with this reimagined version of Contra 4’s arrangement from the classic Jungle stage theme (only heard when the game is set to hard mode). Positively exploding with riffs, “Battle in the Jungle” has more 80s action energy than Arnold Schwarzenegger locking hands with Carl Weathers.

The President’s cousin’s sister’s dog has been kidnapped by Red Falcon. Are you bad enough to come to the rescue? Vampire Survivors: Operation Guns embraces the visceral simplicity of classic Contra, with build-focused Characters that encourage min-maxing and stat manipulation, a tonne of weapons (we’re talking 20 including evolutions!), and a difficulty curve that combines quintessentially arcade-hard gameplay with the original Vampire Survivors formula.

Vampire Survivors is a time survival game with minimalistic gameplay and roguelite elements. Hell is empty, the devils are here, and there’s no place to run or hide. All you can do is survive as long as you can until death inevitably puts an end to your struggles. Gather gold in each run to buy upgrades and help the next survivor.

UPDATE: Another soundtrack sample from the Contra DLC has been shared, and this time we get to hear the Vampire Survivors version of “The Hard Corps,” which was was arranged by Filippo Vicarelli and originally composed and arranged by Hiroshi Kobayashi, Michiru Yamane, Akira Yamaoka, Hirofumi Taniguchi, Aki Hata.

UPDATE: Another soundtrack sample from the Contra DLC has been shared, and this time we get to hear the Vampire Survivors version of “Yoru no Nikusyokujyu.” This track was arranged by Filippo Vicarelli, and originally composed and arranged by Hiroshi Kobayashi, Michiru Yamane, Akira Yamaoka, Hirofumi Taniguchi, Aki Hata.

UPDATE: Another soundtrack sample from the Contra DLC has been shared, and this time we get to hear the Vampire Survivors version of “GTR Attack!.” This track was arranged by Filippo Vicarelli, and originally composed and arranged by Hiroshi Kobayashi, Michiru Yamane, Akira Yamaoka, Hirofumi Taniguchi, Aki Hata.