Japan is the world power in video games, producing the most popular video hardware and software in the world that has won countless fans worldwide. Now these fans can take a look at the making of their favorite games in Japanese Game Graphics, which goes behind-the-scenes of the most-talked about and popular titles released for Playstation 2 and other consumer videogame hardware. Each of the 26 games covered (including Final Fantasy X2, Soulcalibur 2, and Oni Musha 2) gets its own fully illustrated chapter to describe the game and take readers beyond what is seen on the screen.The artists, illustrators, and creators of each game are extensively interviewed and they themselves describe what is unique about their game, what challenges they had to overcome to create the game, and how the characters and stories were created. They also describe what software and digital techniques (often invented especially for the game) were used to create the look and feel of each game and game world.
Detailed contents listing here: http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/books/the-untold-history-of-japanese-game-developers-volume-2/ Nearly 400 pages and over 30 interviews, with exclusive content on the history of Japanese games. The origins of Hudson, Masaya's epic robot sagas, Nintendo's funding of a PlayStation RTS, detailed history of Westone Entertainment, and a diverse range of unreleased games. Includes exclusive office layout maps, design documents, and archive photos. In a world first - something no other journalist has dared examine - there's candid discussion on the involvement of Japan's yakuza in the industry. Forewords by Retro Gamer founding editor Martyn Carroll and game history professor Martin Picard.
Japan has produced thousands of intriguing video games. But not all of them were released outside of the country, especially not in the 1980s and 90s. While a few of these titles have since been documented by the English-speaking video game community, a huge proportion of this output is unknown beyond Japan (and even, in some cases, within it). Hardcore Gaming 101 Presents: Japanese Video Game Obscurities seeks to catalogue many of these titles – games that are weird, compelling, cool or historically important. The selections represent a large number of genres – platformers, shoot-em-ups, role-playing games, adventure games – across nearly four decades of gaming on arcade, computer and console platforms. Featuring the work of giants like Nintendo, Sega, Namco and Konami alongside that of long-forgotten developers and publishers, even those well versed in Japanese gaming culture are bound to learn something new.
A Sky Longing for Memories is a Makoto Shinkai fan's dream! Featuring art created by the beloved director, this full-color art book is packed with art from the many movies he directed for Studio CoMix Wave. The book is a 175 page LANDSCAPE FORMAT softcover, the majority of which are images, a rare treat in the realm of fanbooks. Inside you will find hundreds of backgrounds from from his award-winning works: 5 Centimeters per Second, The Place Promised in Our Early Days, Voices of a Distant Star, and a TV advertisement for the Mainichi Newspaper. In addition to the backgrounds, there is a section about the software and technique behind CoMix Wave's animation, which discuss the key features of the software the studio has developed to use at various stages of production. The English edition also comes with a lengthy interview with Mr. Shinkai and other key members of his studio.
Arcade Mania introduces overseas readers to the fascinating world of the Japanese gemu senta (game center). Organized as a guided tour of a typical game center, the book is divided into nine chapters, each of which deals with a different kind of game. The tour begins with UFO catchers and print club machines at the entrance and continuing through rhythm games, fighting games, shooting games, retro games, gambling games, card-based games, and only-in-Japan games. Covering classics from Space Invaders to Street Fighter, games that are familiar to Americans in their home console versions (Rock Band, Guitar Hero and Dance, Dance Revolution), as well as the unique, quirky games found only in Japan, Arcade Mania is crammed full of interviews with game makers and star players, and packed with facts about each game, all lavishly illustrated with photographs and game graphics.
An unauthorized look behind one of the greatest video game franchises of all time, Final Fantasy The Final Fantasy universe is packed with compelling characters and incredible storylines. In this book, you'll take a fascinating look at the deeper issues that Final Fantasy forces players to think about while trying to battle their way to the next level, such as: Does Cloud really exist (or should we really care)? Is Kefka really insane? Are Moogles part of a socialist conspiracy? Does the end of the game justify the means? As Mages, Moogles, fiends, and Kefka are mashed together with the likes of Machiavelli, Marx, Foucault, and Kafka, you'll delve into crucial topics such as madness, nihilism, environmental ethics, Shintoism, the purpose of life, and much more. Examines the philosophical issues behind one of the world's oldest and most popular video-game series Offers new perspectives on Final Fantasy characters and themes Gives you a psychological advantage--or at least a philosophical one--against your Final Fantasy enemies Allows you to apply the wisdom of centuries of philosophy to any game in the series, including Final Fantasy XIII Guaranteed to add a new dimension to your understanding of the Final Fantasy universe, this book is the ultimate companion to the ultimate video-game series.
Enjoyable and informative examination of how Japanese video game developers raised the medium to an art form. Includes interviews, anecdotes, and accounts of industry giants behind Donkey Kong, Mario, Pokémon, and other games.
Encyclopedia of Computer Graphics and Games (ECGG) is a unique reference resource tailored to meet the needs of research and applications for industry professionals and academic communities worldwide. The ECGG covers the history, technologies, and trends of computer graphics and games. Editor Newton Lee, Institute for Education, Research, and Scholarships, Los Angeles, CA, USA Academic Co-Chairs Shlomo Dubnov, Department of Music and Computer Science and Engineering, University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA Patrick C. K. Hung, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, ON, Canada Jaci Lee Lederman, Vincennes University, Vincennes, IN, USA Industry Co-Chairs Shuichi Kurabayashi, Cygames, Inc. & Keio University, Kanagawa, Japan Xiaomao Wu, Gritworld GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Hessen, Germany Editorial Board Members Leigh Achterbosch, School of Science, Engineering, IT and Physical Sciences, Federation University Australia Mt Helen, Ballarat, VIC, Australia Ramazan S. Aygun, Department of Computer Science, Kennesaw State University, Marietta, GA, USA Barbaros Bostan, BUG Game Lab, Bahçeşehir University (BAU), Istanbul, Turkey Anthony L. Brooks, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark Guven Catak, BUG Game Lab, Bahçeşehir University (BAU), Istanbul, Turkey Alvin Kok Chuen Chan, Cambridge Corporate University, Lucerne, Switzerland Anirban Chowdhury, Department of User Experience and Interaction Design, School of Design (SoD), University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India Saverio Debernardis, Dipartimento di Meccanica, Matematica e Management, Politecnico di Bari, Bari, Italy Abdennour El Rhalibi, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK Stefano Ferretti, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy Han Hu, School of Information and Electronics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China Ms. Susan Johnston, Select Services Films Inc., Los Angeles, CA, USA Chris Joslin, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada Sicilia Ferreira Judice, Department of Computer Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada Hoshang Kolivand, Department Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK Dario Maggiorini, Department of Computer Science, University of Milan, Milan, Italy Tim McGraw, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA George Papagiannakis, ORamaVR S.A., Heraklion, Greece; FORTH-ICS, Heraklion Greece University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece Florian Richoux, Nantes Atlantic Computer Science Laboratory (LINA), Université de Nantes, Nantes, France Andrea Sanna, Dipartimento di Automatica e Informatica, Politecnico di Torino, Turin, Italy Yann Savoye, Institut fur Informatik, Innsbruck University, Innsbruck, Austria Sercan Şengün, Wonsook Kim School of Art, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, USA Ruck Thawonmas, Ritsumeikan University, Shiga, Japan Vinesh Thiruchelvam, Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Rojin Vishkaie, Amazon, Seattle, WA, USA Duncan A. H. Williams, Digital Creativity Labs, Department of Computer Science, University of York, York, UK Sai-Keung Wong, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan Editorial Board Intern Sam Romershausen, Vincennes University, Vincennes, IN, USA
