App News - Gundam themed iPhone GPS released in Japan!

The folks over at Andriasang have reported that iPhone users in Japan are able to purchase what could well be the start of an amazing trend of applications when it comes to the field of Satellite Navigation, otherwise more commonly referred to here in the UK as 'Sat-Nav' and 'GPS' in the USA.

Namco Bandai have unveiled the first of it's line of 'Character Navi' apps for the Apple iPhone. Which is a Sat-Nav app with the theme of an Anime. The first series to be immortalised in getting Japanese drivers from point A to point B is... Gundam!

That's right, for approximately £30.00 in Japan, granting you one year of usage, iPhone 4 and 3GS owners can have the Earth Federation or Zeon direct them to their destination. (You can choose either as your theme for the app.)

As you can see from the screenshots, your car is depicted as a mobile suit which can encounter 'battle events' where another mobile suit will appear and you have to defeat them! Now before you think you have to beat the other mobile suit otherwise you can't continue your journey, the designers have come up with a clever and super simple way of defeating said enemy mobile suit... simply drive on and you'll advance past the enemy. Meaning absolutely no interaction is needed on your part. (Yes, it really is that simple.)

It's currently unknown how often you will encounter these 'battle events'. Once would assume not as much as a game like Final Fantasy, but you never know.




It is also not known if this app (or any future apps of this kind) will be released here in the UK but we can safely say it is a brilliant idea and would make any iPhone a lot cooler. (Imagine driving to a convention like the London Expo with Amuro Ray telling you where to go.)

Video Game news: New Gundam and Bleach games to europe!

Tecmo Koei Europe have announced that we can expect two Anime releated games being released by them this year.

First of all, the long running Gundam franchise will have it's third outing as part of the Dynasty Warriors series as 'Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3' is set for release on July 1st across Europe on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 consoles.

The game is "set in the future, chaotic warfare has engulfed the universe. The world is ripe with strife as gigantic mecha called Mobile Suits march to war on land and in space. Featuring characters and mecha from over 30 years of Gundam anime and manga series, DYNASTY WARRIORS: GUNDAM 3 thrusts players into the galactic melee with over 50 playable and upgradable characters and over 70 playable and upgradeable Mobile Suits combed from the Gundam universe. New additions include Mobile Suits from Mobile Suit Gundam 00, Mobile Suit Gundam UC and many more.
DYNASTY WARRIORS: GUNDAM 3 also features a number of gameplay additions to the series, including 3 brand new featured systems, including the Partner Strike, Emergency Dash and Recovery Gauge Systems, which will bring a new level of full-out tactical action to the series. The Partner Strike System will enable the player to summon partner characters to the battlefield to assist at crucial moments, affecting your character’s current melee engagement or possibly the overall battlefield conditions for your army. The Emergency Dash System will allow players to execute new cancel and evasion moves negating enemy attacks. This system will bring a new level to gameplay since powerful combos can be more easily parried. The new Recovery Gauge System enables players to recover armor during battle allowing players more flexibility in their tactics on the battlefield.

Additionally, DYNASTY WARRIORS: GUNDAM 3 brings a new strategy facet to gameplay. Battlefields now incorporate multiple facilities with various functions. Capturing these locations will change the battlefield conditions and turn the tide of the battle in your favor.
Players will be also able to use a new Chain Explosion System to engulf their enemies in a maelstrom of fury! By initiating an explosion via certain attacks, players will be able to cause further carnage with their own chain of explosions. Skillful players can use this system to finish off entire squads of Mobile Suits in one blow, thus turning the tide of battle in their favor!"

To add to this, it's also been revealed that attendees of the London Expo this weekend will be able to see the game first hand as Tecmo Koei Europe will have the game on show in some capacity at the convention! So be sure to visit the Tecmo booth at the expo for a preview of what to expect!


Also set release exclusively on Playstation 3 in September is Bleach: Soul Resurreccion. Here's the info direct from Tecmo Koei -

""There are numerous anime-based video games, but many fall short in gameplay," says Jack Niida, Producer at NIS America. "Bleach: Soul Resurreccion faithfully represents the anime series with its beautiful cel-shaded graphics and combines it with amazing gameplay. The game style is simple enough for action game beginners, yet has enough features to satisfy hardcore players. The game follows the battle against the evil Arrancars, but there are times when you will be able to play as the enemy. This is especially exciting if you follow the manga closely, since you can be characters in the manga that are normally forgotten after being defeated." "BLEACH is one of the most popular anime and manga properties to ever be released in North America, and the new Bleach: Soul Resurreccion video game incorporates many familiar characters and storylines from the series," says Pascal Bonnet, EMEA Dirctor for Licencing at Viz Media Europe. "We look forward to the success of this new release and to working closely with NIS America as they add an exciting new dimension to this celebrated property."


GAME INFORMATION
Based on the popular manga/anime series, Bleach: Soul Resurreccion depicts the battle between the Soul Reapers and the army of evil Arrancars that threaten the peace of the world.

Bleach: Soul Resurreccion gives players the sensation of single-handedly destroying an army of monsters and evil spirits with lightning-fast swordfighting action. Gamers can re-live the experiences of various characters from the anime by closely following the original story. The environments are faithfully reproduced with beautiful cel-shaded 3D models that will satisfy even the most devoted fans. Bleach: Soul Resurreccion will give gamers an unparalleled anime action game experience.


GAME FEATURES
- 21 playable characters from the hit anime/manga BLEACH.
- Massive free-roaming action/adventure game with beautiful anime-inspired cel-shaded graphics.
- Various game modes, including: Story Mode, Mission Mode, and more.
- Customizable character leveling system: unlock status enhancements and add special abilities through a customized "character map" for each playable character."

There is no word on if this game will be appearing at the London Expo, but certainly expect there to be more updates on this through the Temco Koei website.

Big Gundam UC news, Manga UK DVD news, 'OreImo' leaked episode update

Hello everyone, and welcome to the latest mini blog post! Before we go into the news, apologies for the lack of updates over the last week. The Anime Chronicle team has been battling illness recently, and we've now recovered!

Beez reveal big 'Gundam UC' News!
The wonderful people over at Beez Entertainment have just revealed some big news regarding the second episode of the 'Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn'!

In a press release (which can be read in full here) they announce that complete second episode of the OVA will be available UK residents the first time via the Playstation Network (PSN) prior to it's release on Blu-Ray in Japan and the USA on November 12th! This viewing period will begin on October 30th, but if you want to sample a piece of the OVA now, you can do by heading over the to the Bandai channel website, where you can watch the first 14 minutes for free, with English subtitles to compliment the original Japanese audio!

You can view the 14 minute preview here.

No doubt, there will be more news regarding to this come shortly. Perhaps as soon as the London Expo next weekend! There is currently no set release date for Gundam UC episode 2 in the UK. Could this be the first step toward that information being revealed? Only time will tell!

Source: Beez Press Release


Manga UK DVD News!
Our friends over at Manga UK have revealed some information regarding a forthcoming release and a fairly popular title currently available in shops!

First of all, via their Twitter account on October 16th we were informed that the OVA 'TO' also known as '2001 Nights'. This work was directed by Fumihiko Sori (who also directed 'Vexille' in 2008, and was the producer for 'Appleseed' in 2004.)

The story begins in 2068 and follows colonies of humans in space trying to survive, and then moving to other star systems to house new colonies. For more information on the, click here.

In other Manga UK DVD News, they also revealed on their twitter that they (as it stands) will not be releasing the remainder of the 'D.Gray-Man'! This is apparently due to neither them or Funimation (in the USA) acquiring the rights to the unreleased episodes. While possibility of an English dub is low, could this perhaps be a way for Manga UK to release the episodes subtitle only like Beez will be for 'Durarara!!' next month? Only time will tell! (For more information on this story, visit our friends at UK-Anime.)

Sources: Manga UK Twitter / ANN / UK-Anime


'OreImo' leaked episode update
Following up on the story of the leaked epispde of 'OreImo' we reported in our last blog entry.
The CEO of Anime News Network (ANN for short,) issued a statement last Wednesday (October 13th) regarding the situation. In short, ANN assumes full responsibility for the episode being obtained from it's servers. He said "...security measures believed to be in place on our video server failed and were unlawfully circumvented."

In light of this, full refunds to anyone who subscribed to their premium service within a few days of the statement being published. They also apologized for potential negative effect this could have on the development of simulcasts.

To read the complete statement, click here.

Source: ANN / ANN Statement