All Otaku Magazine Issue 12

All Otaku Magazine Issue 1 21

AOM allotaku:mag

VALENTINES Issue 1 2 1 st January 201 5

#12

SA's Biggest

Online Otaku

Magazine

The GamerTokyo ESPBlood Lad

Ocha NigosuAttack on Titan

and more...

Cosplay Profi le: Saiyuki

KashuriUnderground Farming Barakamon

WWoorrlldd ooff WWaarrccrraafftt::LLoorrddss ooff DDrraaeennoorr EExxppaannssiioonn

Pokemon Omega Ruby andAlpha SapphireDennis Ritchie: Father of the

InternetTabletop Special

LLeeggoo BBaattmmaann 33::BBeeyyoonndd GGootthhaamm


All Otaku has reached 2000

Xas well as 5 other PC games from theBlack Lime range, including:

Final Cut: Death on the Silver ScreenHaunted Legends: The Bronze HorsemanResurrection: New MexicoLara Gate: The Lost TalismanLove Story: Letters from the Past

Don’t forget to visit our social pages.

This Competition ends on the 2nd of February 201 4


All Otaku has reached 2000

Xas well as 5 other PC games from theBlack Lime range, including:

Final Cut: Death on the Silver ScreenHaunted Legends: The Bronze HorsemanResurrection: New MexicoLara Gate: The Lost TalismanLove Story: Letters from the Past

All Otaku and Apexare giving awaySherlock Holmes

Crimes andPunishments

To Entervisits our websitehere and tel l us whatyour favourite animeof the season is andwe could be sendingyou the greathamper.

Don’t forget to visit our social pages.

This Competition ends on the 2nd of February 201 4 W

https://www.facebook.com/allotakumagazine

https://twitter.com/all_otaku_mag

https://plus.google.com/u/1/b/115216631584686192607/+AllotakumagazineCoZa/posts

http://www.pinterest.com/allotakumag/

http://allotakumag.co.za/ns/2000-likes-competition/


February

ContentsSections Features

AOM

5 Editor's letter

6 Anime Sector

Anime Release Schedule

Anime Reviews

1 8 Manga Sector

Manga Release Schedule

Manga Reviews

26 Film Sector

Film Release Schedule

Film Reviews

32 Gaming Sector

Game Release Schedule

Gaming Reviews

44 Tech Sector

Tech Release Schedule

Tech Reviews

52 Cosplay Sector

Cosplayer Profi le

Cosplay Buys

Cosplay How To's

60 Culture Sector

Best Anime Picks of 201 4 1 0

Shinmai Maou no Testement 1 2

Barakamon 1 4

Tokyo ESP 1 7

Blood Lad 21

Ocha Nigosu 22

Attack On Titan Manga 24

Predestination 30

Dracula Untold 31

HearthStone 38

World Of Warcraft: Lords of Draenor 40

Underground Farming 48

Denise Ritchie 50

Cosplay Profi le: Saiyuki Kashuri 54

LARPing 58

Meru Cosplay Picnic 61

Tonkatsu 64

W©201 2-201 5 All Otaku. All rights reserved

https://www.facebook.com/allotakumagazine

https://twitter.com/all_otaku_mag

https://plus.google.com/u/1/b/115216631584686192607/+AllotakumagazineCoZa/posts

http://www.pinterest.com/allotakumag/

http://allotakumag.co.za/


Letter from

the editor

After a fine holiday in

which I had some

very much needed

rest, we are back on

track with the first

issue of All Otaku

Magazine for 201 5!

As many of you

know, we lurk around

in the corners of the

conventions and

picnics with our

aspiring paparazzi -

happily snapping

away at cosplayers,

stores and their

owners, artist and

well pretty much any

and everything we

feel l ike. This year

however, we would

l ike to kick it up a

notch by actual ly

trying to be involved

a whole lot more with

the people who go to

these events. We

want to shake your

hand, and tel l you

what a great costume

you made, or chat a

l ittle about your shop

and the stuff you sell .

We also want to find

out what makes you

excited and what you

enjoy when, well just

being geek.

So, to al l of our avid

readers, here is my

new years resolution.

First off, I don't have

one, and I 'm not

making one. Get

over it, I think it's a

crappy habit

anyways. :P

Moving right on,

(didn't expect that did

you) we are going to

try and host some

competitions for you

guys, get some more

advertising done for

the budding business

out there and just

general ly try to be as

awesome as we can.

I f at any time we do

not l ive up to your

expectations, you are

welcome to come

and tel l us that, but I

need to warn you

beforehand, we have

trained martial artists

in our ranks, and we

are not afraid to use

them.

Enough rambling, I

hope you enjoy or

first release for 201 5!

Feel free to leave us

some comments on

our FB page!

By Leena Swarts

Contributors

Ceo and Chief:

Joannah Stewart

Editor:

Leena Swarts

Minions:

Bil l "Salazar" Masuku

Faure Teggin

Gareth Duff

Douw "Dk" Kotzé

Grant Wilson

Trisha Ramrathen

Ernst Ace Uchiha Buys

Adam Ligocki

Shane Reaper

Sahil Lala

Adam Ligocki

Derek John Scott

Richard Ware

All Otaku Magazin is owned and published electronical ly by All Otaku.Copyright 201 2-201 5 All Otaku. All rights reserved.

No part of this electronic magazine may be reproduced without the written consent of All Otaku.Requests for permission should be directed to: [email protected]


ANIM

ESECTO

ROur Anime sector covers highly advanced

classes in the intricasies of magic and

adventure management. The teachers are

highly trained with enough power to destroy

the planet. Yes, some of them have

tentacles, but we don't care.

001

Anime Sector February 201 5


Release ScheduleAnime releases for February and March 201 5

Toei

AnimationGolden

Time

Leviathan -

The Last

Defense

Engaged to

the

Unidentified

Reideen

Hozuki's

Cool

headedness

Patlabor

The New

Files OVA

Diabolik

LoversSpace

Brothers

Love,

Chunibyo &

Other

Delusions

Ben To

A Certain

Magical

Index

Brothers

Confl ict

OVA

Haikyuu! !

OAD

Shouwa

Genroku

Rakugo

Shinjuu

High School

DxD: Oppai,

Tsutsumima

su!

Hitsugi no

Chaika OAD

Gekijouban

Kyoukai no

Kanata:

Kako-hen

Yamada-

kun to 7-nin

no Majo

Free!

Eternal

Summer

Special

Omoide no

Marnie

Saki:

Episode of

Side-A:

Kuro no

Tanjoubi

Shin Gekijo-

ban Initial D:

Legend 2-

Tousou

Gugure!

Kokkuri-san

Specials

Hori-san to

Miyamura-

kun

Papa no Iu

Koto o

Kikinasai! :

I j in-tachi to

no Haru

Trinity

Seven OVA

Daitoshokan

no Hitsuj ikai

Picture

Drama

Senran

Kagura:

Estival

Versus –

Festival Eve

Full of

Swimsuits

Yama no

Susume 2

OVA

February 1 , 201 5 February 3, 201 5 February 3, 201 5

February 1 0, 201 5

February 1 0, 201 5 February 11 , 201 5

February 24, 201 5

February 3, 201 5

February 1 7, 201 5

March 4, 201 5 March 6, 201 5 March 1 0, 201 5 March 1 0, 201 5 March 1 4, 201 5 March 1 5, 201 5 March 1 8, 201 5

March 1 8, 201 5 March 23, 201 5 March 25, 201 5

February 1 7, 201 5

February 24, 201 5 February 24, 201 5 February 1 7, 201 5

Anime de

Wakaru

Shinryounai

ka OVA

February 1 3, 201 5

March 1 8, 201 5 March 25, 201 5 March 25, 201 5 March 25, 201 5

March 26, 201 5 March 27, 201 5March 26, 201 5


Previews and ReviewsAnime reviews and previews for February and March 201 5

Aldnoah Zero 2

Released: January 1 0, 201 5

Author(s): Gen Urobuchi

(original creator)

Katsuhiko Takayama (series

composition)

Aldnoah Zero is a storyof war between thepeople of Earth, and“Martians”, who are humans that relocated to Mars,after astronauts on the Apollo 1 7 missiondiscovered an enchanted uti l i ty which later becameknown as “Aldnoah” and gave them a superiorstatus. Season 2 of this anime picks up with theongoing war, and the descent of more “Martian”soldiers onto Earth, with the sole intent ofexterminating al l Earthl ings. Aldnoah Zero 2 beganits run on 11 January 201 5.

Death Parade

Released: January 9, 201 5

Author(s): Yuzuru Tachikawa

As we all know, afterdeath humans either goto heaven or hell ,however in DeathParade, there is one additional possibi l ity: QueenDecim. This is a bar run by the mysterious Decim,and is a place where some people go toimmediately upon their death. In this bar, Decimchallenges people to the Death Game, where theywager their l ives, and during which their truenatures are revealed. Decim the ultimate authorityin deciding who wins and who loses, and also, wholives and who dies. . .

NanamiMomozono


Author(s): Akitaro Daichi

Nanami Momozonoaccidental ly becomesthe Earth deity at ashrine near her school,when the previous deity, Mikage, passes on hisduties to her. To aide her in her godly duties,Nanami has the help of two attendants and asurprisingly handsome fox famil iar named Tomoe.The second season which began airing in January201 5 picks up where season 1 left off, with Nanamisti l l trying to strengthen her powers while alsodealing with her feelings for Tomoe and trying togain the acceptance of the other deities. There isalso the introduction of what appears to be newvil lain who has some past ties to Tomoe, whichindicates some major trouble for the human Earthdeity, Nanami.

Tokyo Ghoul S2


Author(s): Chūji Mikasano

Ken Kaneki is anordinary college studentwho lives in Tokyo, acity gripped by the fearof “ghouls”. Thesemysterious ghouls are human-l ike creatures thatdevour the flesh of other humans. Ken meets ayoung lady named Rize at a cafe that he frequentlyvisits, but l ittle does he know that his entire l ife isabout to change drastical ly. Season 1 of TokyoGhoul ended after 1 2 episodes in 201 4, withseason 2 beginning its run in early January 201 5.

By:Trisha Ramrathen

Click the images above to view the trai ler


WWee AArree

LLiivvee

Click the above

icon to tune in

The All Otaku Podcast is l ive and

we want you to tune in. Come join

us as we discuss the latest anime,

manga, games and geek stuff.

Find us on SoundCloud at:

AOP allotaku:podcast

https://soundcloud.com/all-otaku-music/sets/all-otaku-podcast

https://soundcloud.com/all-otaku-music

All Otaku Magazine Issue 1 21 0

BBeesstt AAnn iimmee ooff

220011 44By Douw “D.K” Kotzé

I t’s a new day, a new year and the time when you can expect some new and epic Anime series to comeyour way. Though, we are not about to let 201 4 sl ide without looking back at what it has given us. Thereare a lot of Anime that were probably the highl ight of the year to a lot of people. I mean, a lot of peoplehave been quite excited (understatement) about Sailor Moon Crystal that started airing in 201 4.


Akame ga Kil l

This is a dark action fantasy Anime that fol lows a girl named

Akame. She was bought, brainwashed, and raised by the

Empire as an assassin. Together with the infamous group of

assassins called Night Raid, Akame and Tatsumi set about

correcting the corruption within the empire.

DRAMAtical Murder

I t’s the Anime adaptation of Nitro + CHiRAL’s boys-love

adventure game.

The story centres the young man named Aoba who lives with

his grandmother on the island Midori j ima. He works in a junk

shop in the island’s Former Resident District after Toue builds

the Platinum jai l resort on part of Midori j ima and forces

residents to move. Aoba is content with his simple l ife, but

gets pul led into mysterious events unfolding on the island. I t’s

especial ly a good Anime to watch if you l ike them bishie boys.

Speaking of Anime with bishie boys in it, Free! Eternal

Summer splashed into 201 4 and I don’t think it disappointed

it’s fans though. I f they were aiming for feels, that sure is what

the fans receivedXespecial ly after it was over.

Tokyo Ghoul

The suspense horror/dark fantasy Anime set in Tokyo, which

is haunted by mysterious “ghouls” who are devouring

humans. People are gripped by fear of these ghouls whose

identities are masked in mystery.

Kaneki who is an ordinary college student encounters a girl

named Rize. She is powerful ghoul with an insatiable appetite.

Little does he know that meeting her wil l change his fate

overnight.

Naruto Shippuden

For the ongoing Anime I must say that 201 4 certainly had its

pretty epic and feelsy moments. Naruto might have ended in

the Manga, but the Anime continues (mostly because it hasn’t

reached the last Episode opposite the last Manga Chapter

yet). Naruto Shippuden has enlightened its readers and

viewers into the past of certain characters. The Anime also

revealed a character many of us probably didn’t see coming

and going the way he did. The Anime was said to be at the

point where there wil l be no more fi l ler arcs.

One Piece

Meanwhile in Dressrosa, Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates are

sti l l going strong and you know Luffy, he’s not gonna stop unti l

he becomes The King Of The Pirates in One Piece. I sti l l love

watching and reading One Piece. Looking at how far they

have come, the animation style definitely has changed since

its debut.

Sword Art Online I I

Sword Art Online has come across as another Anime that’s

about people taking to virtual real ity gaming. I have no

problem with that though as I do love Anime and Gaming. I t

does however give everyone more variety into the whole

Gaming/Virtual Reality Gaming Anime series. I t’s sti l l

considered a great Anime, but it also has a fast paced plotl ine.

Sword Art Online I I sti l l seems to be an Anime loved by many.

Persona 4: The Golden Animation

Speaking of whichXIf you’re into keen on entering the “New

Game +” option, then check out Persona 4: The Golden

Animation


Shinmai Maou noTESTAMENTThe first l ight novel volume cover clearly i l lustrates that there is moregoing on between Mio and Basara than a step-sibl ing relationship.

Test text

Shinmai Maou no Testament (The

Testament of Sister New Devil) is

original ly a Japanese light novel series,

which was turned into a manga series,

and as of January 201 5 wil l be aired as

an anime show. The story fol lows high

school student Basara Tojo, who is

suddenly informed by his father that he

is remarrying, and along with a new

step-mother, Basara shall be getting 2

step-sisters named Mio and Maria

Naruse. His father then leaves for a

while, leaving Basara alone with his

step-sister. The sisters’ true forms are

revealed to Basara, and as it turns out,

Mio and Maria are actual ly a newbie

Demon Lord and a succubus.

The world of Shinmai Maou no

Testament is divided into 2 main

groups, namely the “Hero Tribe” and

“Demons”. The Hero Tribe and

Demons had been at war for many

years, unti l the powerful demon

Wilbert became the Demon

Lord and ended the war. His

daughter, Mio Naruse, is now

in l ine to be the next Demon

Lord, but has not awakened her

immense powers whith Maria Naruse

being Mio’s younger sister

and guardian. Through

some accidental

means, Basara

reverses a

“Master and

Servant Contract” and makes Mio his

servant.

Basara and his father, J in, are former

members of the Hero Tribe, who left

the vil lage five years before the

beginning of the story. Due to being

Hero Tribe members, both Basara and

Jin have inhuman strength and a host

of other abil ities. Upon discovering the

true identities of Mio and Maria, a fight


ensues, in which Basara shows the girls his true power as a

former Hero. Instead of taking down the demons, Basara

asks the girls to leave the house for deceiving him and his

father. Basara later shows up and saves the girls from a

couple of demons that are sent to kil l them, tel l ing them

afterwards that he wil l always protect them. While I haven’t

read the l ight novel series, I am keenly anticipating the anime

in 201 5 as the manga is quite interesting. In typical Japanese

ecchi style, these 2 step-sibl ings wil l undoubtedly develop

strong romantic feel ings for each other and possibly fal l in

love. The only good thing about that is that in this story, they

are step-sibl ings (that is what Basara is initial ly told) and not

actual blood sibl ings (l ike other manga and anime series),

which is just gross. There also appears to be a love triangle

that has formed between Basara, Mio, and Basara’s

childhood friend, who also happens to be a member of the

Hero Tribe. So if you’re l ike me and enjoy some romance in

anime and manga, then this is a good read because it wil l be

interesting to see what happens when the opposing forces

find out that 2 of their members are in love (let’s face it, they

are going to fal l in love). I t wil l also be really fun to watch Mio

awaken her true demonic powers and kick some demon butt.

I t’s seems like a great anime to look out for, but hopeful ly the

anime leaves out the more ecchi scenes, because if I wanted

to see a guy fondle a big-breasted girl , I would just watch

hentai.


As a writer it is extremely difficult tofind inspiration to churn out materialat wil l . I often find myself sitting andpondering for hours, sometimeseven days, about what I could write,or how I could write about a specifictopic. I t took me almost a week toget down to writing this review,because for the l ife of me, I could

not figure out how to get it started.And that’s when it hit me! I am (l ikemil l ions of other artsy-fartsy,creative people out there) just l ikeHanda Seishū from Barakamon.

Handa Seishū is a 23 year oldmaster call igrapher. After punchingthe director of a gallery for cal l ing

his work unoriginal and mediocre,Handa’s father sends him to ruralisland to calm down and locate hisown sense of call igraphy. At firstHanda-kun tries his utmost to focuson his cal l igraphy, but soon findsvil lage l ife getting in the way. Hemeets many new and interestingcharacters, mostly school kids, and

By: Trish


develops an especial ly strong bond with a 6 year oldgirl named Naru Kotoishi. Handa-kun soon finds himselfspending more time with the vil lage kids (who are onsummer vacation) and learning many new things bothabout l ife and himself (l ike realising for the first time thathe is al lergic to cats).

Handa-kun discovers what a festival is l ike for the firsttime, something that is quite common all over Japan.He soon finds himself having a lot of fun in the vil lage,and even relaxing, which quickly helps him to findinspiration to do his own call igraphy. While hiscal l igraphy style develops slowly throughout the story,you can see that he is inspired by the beauty of theocean and the simplicity of vi l lage l ife. Any creatively-incl ined person can tel l you that nature and relaxationoften multipl ies inspiration almost tenfold.

Handa-kun final ly admits that he is enjoying writing.This anime series is beautiful ly i l lustrated, with thelandscapes drawn attractively and beautiful ly matchingthe flow of the story and characters. In addition, thecontrast between Handa and Naru’s characters makethe story more interesting and il lustrates how peoplecan learn from others and grow, even if those othersare l ittle children. Naru is actual ly voiced by a childname Suzuko Hara, and her incredibly adorable voiceadds to the cuteness of Naru!

I think the story would have been more of a romancehad Naru been Handa’s age, as the two becomeextremely close through the duration of the anime.However, I personally enjoyed the fact that she was alittle kid, because it demonstrates how children canhave a profound effect on anyone, and that sometimes,their innocence can help adults unearth and workthrough their own issues.

Naru-chan reaches out to Handa-kun, depicting theidea that in this story, she is his saviour and helps himovercome his stress and rigid personality.

Naru unwittingly teases Handa, but at the same time,her innocence helps him overcome his quick temper.(Junon-Boy refers to “Pretty Boy” in Japanese culture,something Naru picks up from the older girls)Naru’s wil l for adventure and fun and her free-spiritednature is charming and brought a smile to my face. I tmade me nostalgic, remembering my own crazy,adventure-fi l led childhood. In her own natural way ofl ife, Naru helps Handa overcome his snobbish citybehaviour, and her brutal honesty (that can only comefrom a child) immensely aides him in overcoming hisanger and impulsive reactions to criticisms of hiscal l igraphy.Naru is not the only person to help Handa in the vil lage.There are many other school kids that he interacts with,especial ly, Miwa Yamamura, Tamako Arai, and HiroshiKido.

Handa ends up helping Miwa and Tamako with acall igraphy project they have to do for school, and byhelping them, he re-learns the basics of cal l igraphy.Handa also becomes known as “Sensei” in the vil lage,and is hired by many vil lagers to do some basic sign-writing for them. By doing these odd jobs, Handa learnsto overcome his newly-found fear of doing a bad job(which came about after hearing the negativecomments about his work in Tokyo).

I real ly enjoyed this anime, and was quite saddened bythe fact that it is only 1 2 episodes long. I t was a fun,easy-going anime, which helped me to understand thateveryone has insecurities about their work, evencreative people l ike call igraphers and writers. Theanime teaches us that criticism of one’s work is not abad thing, and can be used to improve the work beingdone. I t is definitely a series that I would recommendpeople to watch, especial ly if you are looking forsomething fun and light-hearted.


On his eternal quest for truth, justiceand more pokeballs the intrepidUrahara-sensei, master of thebarbed word and the cruelmachination has come to a questionthat has plagued the hardcoreanime fan for many years now. Isthe mainstream ruining anime?

First of al l al low me to nail mycolours to the mast as hard aspossible. In my opinion makinganime more mainstream is notgoing to destroy the industry, itwon’t even destroy the quality ofproductions coming out of Japan,no media has ever been ruined bymore attention, it’s only on thoseattempts to localise where theoriginal intent of the piece isignored, that we start having issues.

Let’s also start by making this clearanime has always been in themainstream. In Japan, where allanime is made, it has been a part ofevery day programming since thelate 70s, the stigma of the Saturdaymorning cartoon is long gone fromthe minds of eastern audiences andas a result anime catering to al ltastes and flavours is already beingmade, there is no need to defend it.Anime in Japan is not some minorityculture thing and while there arealways those who take it too far,going to the extremes andbecoming the legends of the Otakuculture, there are many more whosee it as a part of daily l ife. Anime ison TV at al l hours of the day andnight aimed from children to middleaged adults. We are long past thepoint where being in the

mainstream wil l ruin everything ifthere was ever anything to ruin.

Much like gaming the westernanime culture has it’s roots in thenerd culture of the 80's and 90'sand in America at least thesepeople were the ostracised by thedominant mainstream culture. I t’s asad reality but that sense ofexclusion has left a nasty aftertastethat as nerd oriented becomes moreaccepted those same nerds whowere ostracised feel their preciouspastime is being taken away fromthem. This is stupid and quitefrankly if your nostalgia is so easilyharmed you needed help beforeanime viewing became so easy.

I think the single largest reason thatthis myth that the “mainstream”ruins everything is al lowed to runfree is that people mistake wellintentioned mistakes for deliberateMalice. Most people acknowledgethat the dub jobs done by studiosl ike Manga in the UK and the lateunlamented "4Kids" in the US wereatrocious at best and l ivingvivisections of the work where it’sl iving heart was ripped out andserved as an entrée at the nextdinner party, but I would argue thatwithout Pokemon, Yu-gi-oh and themyriad hyper violent manime of the1 980s most anime fans wouldn’thave a common foundation inwestern cultures. The fact is thatthose initial introductions may havebeen hamfisted, badly dubbedmesses, but many of us have themas our first introductions to thiswonderful world of anime.

Also as the money starts to flow inwe get a lot of good things comingout of it too, studio Ghibl i may beincredibly popular in Japan but thestudio wouldn’t be enjoying as muchwestern interest if Disneycorporation hadn’t taken toredubbing their fi lms with usuallywell chosen voice talent then I ’malmost certain that there wouldn’t beas many people exposed to theseexcellent fi lms.Add in the fact that - as anime hasbecome more common we’ve alsohad an increase in qualitylocalisation companies l ike Sentaifi lmworks and Funimation who try tobe as close to the source materialas possible and help us avoidhastles l ike those that threatenedLive Action Akira or the terrifyingprospect of another Dragon BallEvolution hitting theatres.

In al l honesty it’s pretty clear thataside from a reactionary minoritythat claims that the mainstream issteal ing their toy, anime is alreadymainstream. Now suck it up anddeal with it.

- Urahara-sensei

Is Anime's movement into the mainstreammaking it less enjoyable?

Otaku Issues


Unlike everything else I 've had to review this year I

volunteered to watch this show from beginning to

end.

Also, unl ike Tokyo ghoul which comes from the same

season as the series Tokyo ESP is actual ly about its

supporting cast. While Rinka is definitely the centre

of the anime she is not the only character to get

screen time - in fact my favorite scenes are with

Rinka's ex-cop father, who in addition to being the

most merciless teacher she ever had, is also the

character I real ly wanted to see succeed. That and

his powers allowed him to control magnetism - he's

l ike Magneto only with more muscles. Honesty now

that I think about it a lot of the characters in this

show could be characters from the X- men. Heck

the show even has a man with psychic powers

named "The Professor".

That said, while the anime appears to be taking a

few footnotes from Marvel Comics, the story actual ly

appears to be taking heavy chunks out of Raiders of

the lost Ark. (trust me you'l l know it when you see it)

I f I had one criticism for the series it would be the

ending - which I wil l not spoil here. Let's just say they

clearly want a second season and leave it at that

(another trait that seems to have in common with

Tokyo Ghoul)

From a technical perspective this series looks

bri l l iant it has crisp character design and you can

always see the expression of a character clearly.

The bright colors and Surreal effects created by the

CGI fish and whatever the heck the flying penguin

Peggy is supposed to be, real ly blends well with the

traditional animated backgrounds and after Tokyo

ghoul the vibrant colors really make you enjoy the

series.

Music is the standard fare a lot of electro pop and

guitar riffs that are really entertaining but this series

did not have me out of my chair except during the

big orchestral suite at the end.

To conclude I highly recommend that you check the

series out if you haven't already, in a year that

seems mostly about sequels - original property that

draws you in as well as Tokyo ESP does, deserves

all the attention it can get.

Tokyo ESP is a breath of fresh air

to a relatively stagnant season that

spawned it. . .

By: Urahara-sensei

Tokyo

ESP


MANGASECTO

R

002

Manga Sector February 201 5

Our Manga sector covers some very tired

looking dudes with creepy looks and worn to

the nub pencils. We know they wil l ultimately

start the zombie apocalypse, so we wil l begin

preparations soon. Well , maybe after this cup

of coffee.


Release ScheduleManga releases for February and March 201 5

Wallflower,

The Graphic

Novel 34

Blood

Blockade

Battlefront

Volume 7

(Manga) US

Deadman

Wonderland

Volume 7

Dragonar

Academy

Volume 5

Dawn of the

Arcana

(Manga)

Vol. 01

Jormungand

(Manga)

Vol. 1 0

Gantz

Volume 34

Hayate the

Combat

Butler

Volume 25

I Am Alice:

Body Swap

in

Wonderland

Volume 3

Magi

Volume 1 0Neon

Genesis

Evangelion

Volume 1 4

Tiger &

Bunny

Volume 6

Samurai

Executioner

Omnibus

Volume 4

Cardfight! !

Vanguard,

Volume 5

Devils and

Realist

Volume 4

A Certain

Magical

Index

Volume 2

Claymore

Volume 26

D.Gray-man

Volume 6

Dragon Ball

(3-in-1

Edition)

Volume 8

Naruto

Volume 69Oresama

Teacher

Volume 1 8

New Lone

Wolf & Cub

Volume 4

Girls Und

Panzer:

Little Army

Volume 2

Knights of

Sidonia,

Volume 1 3

Oh My

Goddess!

Volume 47

Kokoro

Connect

Volume 3

Strike

Witches:

One-

Winged

Witches

Volume 2

Accel World

Volume 3

Alice in the

Country of

Joker: The

Nightmare

Tri logy

Volume 3

The Devil Is

A Part-Timer

Vol.1

Puella Magi

Oriko

Magica

Extra

Volume

Blade of the

Immortal

Volume 31 :

Final

Curtain

Soul Eater

Volume 25

Sword Art

Online:

Fairy Dance

Volume 3

Fairy Tail 47

February 3, 201 5 February 4, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5

March 3, 201 5

March 31 , 201 5

February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5 February 11 , 201 5February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 7, 201 5February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5

March 3, 201 5February 1 7, 201 5 February 24, 201 5 March 3, 201 5 March 3, 201 5 March 3, 201 5

March 11 , 201 5March 1 0, 201 5 March 1 7, 201 5 March 1 7, 201 5 March 24, 201 5March 1 0, 201 5March 4, 201 5

March 25, 201 5March 24, 201 5 March 31 , 201 5 March 31 , 201 5March 24, 201 5March 24, 201 5


The Gamer

Released: 201 3

Author(s): Sung San-young

There truly is nothing l ike a

good manhwa title, honestly.

And The Gamer is no

exception to this standard.

Han Jee-Han, a normal high

school student, suddenly

develops a special power where his entire world is shifted into

a game-l ike setting. He can see the power levels of people,

look at the stats of a seemingly normal item, get abil ities, and

even level up! Follow Han Jee-Han as he discovers how to

use this power, and maybe even where it came from. The

chapters being released regularly for a ful l year now and have

led Han deeper into the gaming world.

While a typical gamer now-a-days is locked into either the

shoot-em-up FPS games or their MMORPG taking down

towers and the such, the games that this series mimics are

closer to adventure games or JRPGs (Final Fantasy). But

somehow the seriousness of those gaming genres is watered

down into hilarious moment of Han getting notifications for

mundane things that he is aware of natural ly, l ike his mood

changing.

Kaichou Wa Maid-Sama!

Released: February 2008

Author(s): Fuj iwara Hiro

Bri l l iant and overachieving,Misaki Ayuzawa is thePresident of the StudentCouncil at Seika High School, formerly a boys' school.Unfortunately, most of the students are sti l l male and stuck intheir slovenly habits, so man-hating Misaki real ly socks it to'em in an attempt to make the school presentable to attractmore female students. But what wil l she do when the sexiestboy in school finds out that after school, Misaki works in amaid cafe. This series has been going for 7 years and it is sti l lcharming, the art is beautiful and the main characters have alot to offer. While the story may be about a some what feministcafe Maid it is sti l l rather l ight hearted in its message.

The Tower of God

Released: February 6, 201 5

Director(s): TheWachowskis

The story centers around aboy called Twenty-FifthBaam, who has spent his l ifetrapped beneath amysterious tower. Chasingafter his only friend, hemanages to open a door into the Tower, and must now facechallenges at each floor of this mysterious tower as he tries tofind his companion. The Tower is a mysterious structure that iscompletely enclosed and hosts many unique environments. I tis permeated by an element cal led "Shinsoo", which hasstrange properties. I t is inhabited by many different intel l igentspecies. I t is uncertain what the world outside the Tower isl ike.Each floor is composed of three layers: an external OuterTower which serves as the residential area, an Inner Towerwhere Regulars are tested, and a Middle Area, which acts asa network l inking each floor. In order to ascend the tower,Regulars are required to pass tests on the lower floors.

Witchcraft Works

Released: June 201 0

Author(s): Mizunagi Ryuu

The main character

(Takamiya, Honoka) is a

regular student whose only

problem seems to be that he

sits next to Kagari, Ayaka, the

school's #1 beauty. Yet when a fal l ing part of the school's

building is about to send him to the afterl ife, it was her who

came to his rescue. Except, she was dressed as a witch,

carrying him in her arms and floating on a broom. She

continues to protect him using her fire magic unti l the attempt

on his l ife ends. She tel ls him it is her mission to protect him,

and that now she can final ly protect him openly.Why was Takamiya attacked, who asked Kagari to protect him,

and why does she refer to him as "my princess"?

Previews and ReviewsManga reviews and previews for February and March 201 5


Everything fromzombies, to dragonslitter the demon world,and attention to detai l isnot spared on even themost insignificantcharacters. The artmatches the storytel l ing perfectly with itsshonen style of art.While thecharacterization ofmany recurringcharacters is not as in-depth as we wouldhave liked the maincast are fleshed outwith backstories thathelp you understandthe way they are andhow their current

relationship wil l moveforward without delvingtoo deep into specifics.In particular therelationship betweenStaz and his brother,while he appears to bean antagonist and doeseverything he can tomake Staz’s l ife a l ivinghell . A look at their pastexposes his truenature.The manga waspopular enough to havebeen animated. Butawkwardly only 1 0episodes wereoriginal ly aired endingin the middle of anexciting arc, with many

Staz is one of thetoughest vampires in thedemon world. But unl ikehis ancestors, he findsbeing a vampire to be aserious pain in the assand prefers to spend histime watching anime andplaying video gamesinstead, before anythinghe is a ful l-blown otaku!When a Japanese girlnamed Fuyumi wandersinto his territory, Stazcannot hide hisexcitement at final lymeeting a l iving humanfrom his favourite culture.Unfortunately, Fuyumidies after beingswallowed by a monster,leaving her bare soulbehind. Staz vows toFuyumi that he wil l bringher back to l ife by anybloody means necessary.

Blood Lad takes us on acomical yet action packedjourney that is fi l led withfamil iar and unfamil iarmonsters of legend andlore.

big reveals to the plotthat it left fans thinkingthat the anime was madeas a teaser for themanga; seems to be thelogical and fair andsanity-maintainingexplanation.Overal l , a must read foranyone into thesupernatural, fightingcomedy genre.

Blood LadBy: Bil l "Salazar" Masuku

Written by Yuuki KodamaPublished by Kadokawa

ShotenEnglishpublisher YenPress

Demographic SeinenMagazine Young AceOriginal run September 4,2009 – ongoingVolumes 1


Ocha NigosuBAD BOYS DRINK TEA TOO


Ocha Nigosu which l iteral ly translates to "BadBoy Drinks Tea", is a manga that fal ls into theever popular theme of reforming delinquents.While it is not as common as fish out of water, orthe coming of age theme; the prevalence ofdelinquency in Japan has this being a veryrelatable topic for the "sl ice of l ife" genre whichfocuses on events happening to everyday folkrather than the supernatural of which we havecome to expect from manga in general.The bad boy is actual ly very misunderstoodcharacter, the story fol lows the high schooldel inquent Masaya Funabashi, better known as"Devil Ma-kun" who is trying to reform his imageby joining the Japanese tea ceremony club. Hisfearsome and devil-l ike appearance scares timidcharacters and infuriates other delinquents, andthis contrast in relationship dynamics makes thecharacter development interesting to fol low. Hehimself is learning to be more cultured afterjoining the tea club in his high school. Coupledwith his frightening appearance is his devastatingphysical prowess which is within the bounds ofbelievable strength but made out to be nearsupernatural comparative to the rest of thecharacters he interacts with in the tea club and

school.This story is one of the stranger titles I ’ve pickedup, not for its comical moments, action or drama,but for its sincerity which is well portrayed througheach character. Everyone is true to who they are,despite what society expects of them - which is adeep social lesson. Together with teachingreaders who aren’t famil iar with the importanceand prestige behind Japanese tea culture. Theart work is compell ing and does a great jobil lustrating the reforming delinquent’s saga. Goodfor expanding your readership tastes while notstraying too far into unknown ground.

Volumes: 11Chapters: 1 09Status: FinishedPublished: Aug 1 0, 2007 to Oct 1 6, 2009Genres: Comedy, School, ShounenAuthors: Nishimori, Hiroyuki (Story & Art)Serial ization: Shounen Sunday

BAD BOYS DRINK TEA TO

By: Bil l Salazar Masuku


Single-handedly the most emotional ly gripping story in terms of settingthe idea of fear and helplessness in the reader by depicting an erawhere the entirety of humanity has been forced to hide within walls asthey cower from beings known as titans. While the titans vary in sizethey more often than not tower over humans, with most being shoulderheight with 2 storey buildings.

But what truly injects fear into our system is the fact that the titanssolely eat humans. Ignoring al l other forms of fauna and flora as theyadvance towards the last surviving humans, not for hunger or forsurvival but for simply predatation. Closer to forces of nature ratherthan monsters – mankind's only hope of fighting titans are the story’sfocal group, the Recon Corps equipped with blades and 3D-maneuvergear that al lows they to move swiftly through the air using pressurisedgrappling hooks.

Despite shingeki no kyojin being the most popular manga out now,having recently knocked One Piece off the place of number one insales volumes. SNK is popular for its suspensive plot and mysteryrather than its artwork. In this department SNK is surprisingly terrible.With l ittle detai l in the characters’ appearance it is often difficult todetermine who is who when reading panels briskly. Fortunately, l ike al lmanga artists who run for a long time the artwork has steadilyimproved as each monthly chapter has been released. Notably it isevident that the original author has borrowed imagery from the animeto help develop a reader friendly style.As far as recommendations go, it goes without saying that at somepoint you must read Shingeki no Kyojin and be pulled into the world ofthe titans and watch the conspiracies unfold.

Shingeki no kyojin is arguably one of the most interesting mangacurrently being produced. Its overwhelming sales in recent yearsafter the release of the anime, sparked an unprecedentedamount of readership worldwide.

AAttttaacckkoonn TTii ttaann

By: Bil l Salazar Masuku

All Otaku Magazine Issue 1 225 CCoommiinngg JJuunnee 22001155......


Film

SECTO

R

003

Film Sector February 201 5

Our Film sector covers ghosts, adventures,

time travel and spoons. No, not the type they

had in the matrix. Real spoons that wil l not

bend. . . Not even for Neo.


Release ScheduleMovie releases for February and March 201 5

Jupiter

AscendingThe

Seventh

Son

SpongeBob:

Sponge Out

of Water

Lambert &

Stamp

Pass the

LightFifty Shades

of Grey

Kingsman:

The Secret

Service

The Last 5

Years

Hot Tub

Time

Machine 2

The DUFF Jane Got a

Gun

McFarland,

USA

Russell

Madness

The Lazarus

Effect

The Vatican

Tapes

Focus Maps to the

Stars

Outcast Deli Man Chappie Unfinished

Business

Merchants

of Doubt

The Coup Paranormal

Activity: The

Ghost

Dimension

Cinderel la In the Heart

of the SeaJust Before

I Go

The

Divergent

Series:

Insurgent

Do You

Believe?Get Hard Serena While We're

YoungA Little

Chaos

It Fol lows Home

February 20, 201 5 February 20, 201 5 February 21 , 201 5February 20, 201 5 February 27, 201 5February 1 3, 201 5 February 20, 201 5

February 6, 201 5 February 6, 201 5 February 1 3, 201 5February 6, 201 5 February 1 3, 201 5February 6, 201 5 February 6, 201 5

February 27, 201 5 February 27, 201 5February 27, 201 5 February 27, 201 5

March 27, 201 5March 27, 201 5March 20, 201 5

March 20, 201 5March 1 3, 201 5March 1 3, 201 5 March 1 3, 201 5 March 1 3, 201 5March 6, 201 5March 6, 201 5

March 6, 201 5February 27, 201 5 March 6, 201 5

March 27, 201 5March 27, 201 5 March 27, 201 5March 27, 201 5


Previews and Reviews

Big Hero 6

Released: November 201 4

Director(s): Don Hall , Chris

Wil l iams

From the same studios as

we got "Wreck it Ralph" and

"Frozen" comes a tale of a

young prodigy called "Hiro Hamada" who, with his friends get

catapulted into danger when a devastating event occurs in the

city of San Fransokyo. Together with his friends and the help

of an inflatable robot cal led "Baymax" they set out to help the

citizens of their hometown. Using his crazy intel lect, Hiro

transforms his friends into a band of high-tech heroes called

"Big Hero 6". I t is a tale of adventure, friendship and some

neat gadgetry, and considering where it is coming from, not to

be missed.

Seventh Son

Released: December 1 7,

201 4

Director(s): Sergei Bodrov

Based on a novel cal led The

Spook's Apprectice this is the

first instal lment of "The

Wardstone Chronicles" by Joseph Delaney.

Seventh Son is about Thomas Ward, a seventh son of a

seventh son. This gives him the abil ity to see things that others

can't and leads to him being taken in by a "Spook" or

demon/witch hunter.

As the apprentice of a Spook, Thomas is faced wih his first

challenge when his mentor leaves and an evil witch, Mother

Malkin, escapes her centuries old confinement.

Jupiter Ascending

Released: February 6, 201 5

Director(s): TheWachowskis

Jupiter Jones was born with

the stars themselves

predicting that she was

destined for greatness. Now in adulthood she is faced by the

everyday reality of a day job and a streak of bad luck. This al l

changes the day that Caine, a genetical ly engineered ex-

mil itary hunter tracks her down and gives her a glimpse of the

destiny that she was meant for. Jupiter was born a royal, with

an inheritance that wil l shake the stars. She has but to claim

her place in the empire.

Into the Woods

Released: December 201 5

Director(s): Rob Marshall

This is the story of a baker

and his wife who are cursed

by a witch. In order to l ift the

curse, the baker and his wife

must acquire four rare items.

A cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow

as corn and a slipper as pure as gold. In a wonderful

combination of classic fairy tales, the movie takes an alternate

look of both the pre- and after effects of the tales whilst

del ivering a stunning performance. Have a look at what

happened after Jack cut down the beanstalk, after Cinderel la

married her prince, after Red riding hood was visited by the

wolf and after Rapunzel was set free from her tower.

Movie reviews and previews for February and March 201 5

Click the images above to view the trai ler

By:Joannah Stewart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLyk00gFPdQ

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

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXiNkOjM7oM



Predestination

After much procrastination I final ly sat down

to write this article a day before it was due.

General ly this is a bad thing, if you don't

know what to write then the movie must

have been bad.

But in this instance that is not the case, in

fact, this movie was great!

I ts so great that I would dare say it is one of

the best movies to come out of the time

travel genre in the last 1 5 years. The

problem though is where do you start when

the fi lm you just watched was a completely

closed circate that has many beginnings and

ending through out.

A good place to start would be with the

synopsis, the synopsis being one of the

most decieving parts of the fi lm. You are

lead to believe that this fi lm is going to be an

action packed futuristic version of "The

Bourne identity", with secret agent time

travellers stopping criminals through time.

The reality is further down the rabbit hole

than that, much further. This fi lm revolves

around a temporal agent who is sent back in

time to stop a criminal cal led the "Fizzle

Bomber".

Desguised as a bar tender he meets a

young man(John) who writes "confession

stories" for money.

John proceeds to tel l him the story of how he

was born a girl , left at an orphinage, and

became a candidate for a female space

program. He explains that after meeting a

young man, who resembeled his current self,

that she fel l in love and later fel l pregnant,

leading to her ultimate sex change.

When his story is done, the time traveller

offers John the chance to kil l the man who

stole her heart, explaining that he believes

this man to be the Fizzle Bomber and John

accepts. Only to go back in time and find out

that he himself is the man that she fel l in

love with.

This plot twist has many implications on the

rest of the story but it is al l brought together

so well , explaining the process that every

person goes through when dealing with self-

identification. The movie has a subtle yet

complex point to make about the way that

we see and treat ourselves and was pulled

off bri l iantly.

A movie that wil l take you entirely by surprise,and that is a good thing.

By:Joannah Stewart


Dracula Untold

Gary Shore’s Dracula Untold depictsone of mythology’s most feared, yetloved horror creatures as a man withthe desire to protect his family andkingdom. The 92 minute spectaclemeshes the mythology of BramStoker’s Dracula with the history ofthe Prince of Wallachia(Transylvania), Vlad I I I or Drăculeaa.k.a Vlad the Impaler (Dracula).According to historical accounts,Vlad I I I was held as a politicalhostage by the Ottomans, duringwhich time he was educated andtrained. In order to remain at peacewith the Ottomans, Transylvania wasrequired to pay a tribute to theSultan. However, Vlad resented theOttomans, and rebelled againstthem, starting a war. Vlad receivedhis nickname “The Impaler” for hisaffinity for impaling his victims onhigh stakes.

Luke Evans stars as Vlad Tepes I I Ia.k.a Dracula, the Prince ofTransylvania, in Shore’s re-imaginingof Vlad the Impaler, who is known tobe the inspiration behind BramStoker’s horror novel Dracula.Fol lowing the historical account of“The Imapaler” the movie beginswith the young prince, Vlad, at anOttoman camp where he is educatedand trained as a soldier and

becomes a fearsome warrior wherehe earns the nickname “TheImpaler”. On his return toTransylvania, he is restored to histhrone, marries a beautiful womannamed Mirena (Sarah Gadon) andfathers a son. His small kingdomlives in peace for years unti l theSultan demands that he send 1 000young boys to be trained asOttoman soldiers, including Vlad’sson. By refusing the Sultan’srequest, Vlad begins a war betweenthe two nations. Desperate for thepower to defeat the Ottoman army,Vlad heads to the feared mountainnear his kingdom where, it isrumoured, l ives a horrific creature.The priests call this creature avampire: a demon who drinks theblood of humans. Vlad is given theblood of the Master Vampire(Charles Dance) and is immediatelyendowed with the supernaturalpowers he needs. He is warnedhowever, that if he gives in to hisbloodlust and feeds within 3 days,then he shall remain a demon for al leternity.

Shore’s retel l ing of the birth ofDracula intertwines both thehistorical legend of Vlad I I I andStoker’s imagining of the blood-sucking vampire, making a pretty

decent story. He did tend to focusmore on the history than the mythwhich was a tad bit disappointing. Assomeone who has read Stoker’sDracula numerous times, I waslooking forward to seeing moreslashing and horror as opposed tothe love fest presented by Shore.While it was sweet to see a morehumane side to Dracula, one thatloved and valued his family andpeople above and beyond all else, itwas disheartening to watch one ofmythology’s most infamous fiendsbeing reduced to a mere loving andcaring mortal. Despite this, anyonewho is interested in watching thisfi lm should not be expecting aretel l ing of Stoker’s story but rather afresh take on the legend of Dracula.

Trisha Ramrathen

A film with al l the wibbily wobbly timey wimey things you could ever need.

By:Trisha Ramrathen

/10


GamingSECTO

R

004

Gaming Sector February 201 5

Our Gaming sector covers headshots,

chainsaw kil l ing sprees, and numerous fish

slaps, al l while looking at up and coming titles

in the gaming industry. I f you want to borrow

my sniper rifle, that wil l be $50 please. . .


Release ScheduleGame releases for February and March 201 5

There Came

an Echo

Criminal

Girls: Invite

Only

SpongeBob

HeroPants

Evolve Story of

Seasons

Kirby and

the Rainbow

Curse

Dead or

Alive 5: Last

Round

Resident

Evil :

Revelations

2 - 1

Total War:

Atti la

American

Truck

Simulator

Blackhole The Order:

1 886

Dragon Ball

XenoVerse

Dynasty

Warriors 8

Empires

htoL#NiQ:

The Firefly

Diary

Hyperdevoti

on Noire:

Goddess

Black Heart

Resident

Evil :

Revelations

2 - 2

Under Night

In-Birth

Exe:Late

Resident

Evil :

Revelations

2 - 3

Screamride Zombie

Army Trilogy

Atel ier

Shall ie:

Alchemists

of the Dusk

Sea

Resident

Evil :

Revelations

2 - 4

Tokyo

Twil ight

Ghosthunter

s

Code

Name:

S.T.E.A.M.

Battlefield

Hardl ine

Bladestorm:

NightmareDmC:

Definitive

Edition

Final

Fantasy

Type-0 HD

Project

CARS

The

Awakened

Fate

Ultimatum

Bloodborne MLB 1 5:

The Show

Amplitude

February 3, 201 5 February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 3, 201 5February 1 0, 201 5 February 1 7, 201 5February 1 , 201 5 February 3, 201 5

February 20, 201 5 February 20, 201 5 February 24, 201 5February 20, 201 5 February 24, 201 5February 1 7, 201 5 February 1 7, 201 5

March 1 7, 201 5March 1 3, 201 5March 1 0, 201 5 March 1 7, 201 5 March 1 7, 201 5March 1 0, 201 5March 1 0, 201 5

March 24, 201 5March 1 7, 201 5 March 31 , 201 5 TBAMarch 1 7, 201 5March 1 7, 201 5

March 6, 201 5February 24, 201 5 March 3, 201 5 March 3, 201 5February 24, 201 5February 24, 201 5

Platforms:

Win, Mac, Lin,

PS4, XBOX

Platforms:

PSVita

Platforms:

DS, X360,

PSVita

Platforms:

Win, PS4,

XBO

Platforms:

3DS

Platforms:

WiiU

Platforms:

Win, PS4,

XBOX, PS3,

Platforms:

PS3, PS4

Platforms:

Win

Platforms:

Win

Platforms:

Win, Mac, Lin

Platforms:

PS4

Platforms:

PS3, PS4,

X360, XBOX

Platforms:

Win, PS4,

XBO, PS3

Platforms:

PSVita

Platforms:

PSVita

Platforms:

PS3, PS4

Platforms:

PS3

Platforms:

PS3, PS4

Platforms:

XBOX, X360

Platforms:

PS4, XBOX,

Win

February 24, 201 5

Platforms:

PS3

Platforms:

PS3, PS4

Platforms:

PS3, PSVita

Platforms:

3DS

Platforms:

Win, PS3,

PS4, X360,

Platforms:

PS3, PS4,

XBOX

Platforms:

PS4, XBOX

Platforms:

Win, PS4,

XBOX

Platforms:

PS3

Platforms:

PS4

Platforms:

PS4, PS3,

PSVita

Platforms:

PS3, PS4

Platforms:

PS4, XBOX


Previews and Reviews

LEGO JurassicWorld

Released: June 201 5

Publishers: Warner Bros.

Interactive Entertainment, TT

Games, The Lego Group

Following the epicstoryl ines of JurassicPark, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic ParkI I I , as well as the highly anticipated Jurassic World,LEGO Jurassic World is the first videogame whereplayers wil l be able to rel ive and experience all fourJurassic fi lms. The game wil l be available in June forthe Xbox One all-in-one games and entertainmentsystem; the Xbox 360 games and entertainment systemfor Microsoft; PlayStation4 and PlayStation3 computerentertainment systems; PlayStationVita handheldentertainment system; the Wii U™ system fromNintendo; Nintendo 3DS™ hand-held system; andWindows PC.

TERA (The ExiledRealm of Arborea)

Released: January 25, 2011

Publishers: Gameforge,

Gameforge Berl in, Ubisoft,

Naver Corporation, En

Masse Entertainment

Developed by BlueholeStudio and published inNorth America by En Masse Entertainment, TERA (TheExiled Realm of Arborea), is an award-winningMMORPG for the PC platform that takes the fightbeyond the genre’s traditional point-and-cl ick combatsystems with enhanced aiming, dodging, and tacticaltiming to create an intense and rewarding combatexperience. Explore a vast fantasy world rich withhistory, lore, and danger. Battle epic monsters and makenew friends and all ies with a vibrant onl ine communitywith l ike-minded adventurers navigating the social,pol itical and economic structures within the world ofTERA. With over 1 7 mil l ion registered users globally,TERA continues to gain traction with fans through itsactive community and support

World of Tanks

Released: 1 2 August 201 0

Publishers: Wargaming

World of Tanks is amassively multiplayeronline game developedby Belarusian-Cypriotcompany Wargaming.The focus is on player vs. player gameplay with eachplayer control l ing an armored vehicle, which may be aLight, Medium or Heavy tank, tank destroyer, or self-propelled gunThe player takes control of a singlearmored vehicle of his or her choosing, and is placedinto a battle on a random map, though map selectionmay vary with different game modes. The player hascontrol over the vehicle's movement, firing, and cancommunicate with other players through typed or voicechat. World of tanks has become very popular and evendebuted as an eSports game at the World Cyber Games201 2.

Rugby 1 5

Released: November 21 ,

201 4

Publishers: HB Studios

Rugby 201 5 simply isn’t agreat game. Truth be toldit probably isn’t as terribleas some make it out to be,but it simply does not del iver to the wants and needs ofthe average gamer who loves Rugby.To the game’s credit, Rugby 201 5 has variants of manyimportant club and provincial sides in addition tonumerous international sides, including lesser knownones like Namibia. The issue is that they are veryclearly variants. You wil l not find the Stormers orWestern Province here. Instead you can select the team“Cape Town”.You wil l also find that the players you are famil iar withare not available, and the players in their stead areunrecognisable. Even though this is almost certainlydue to l icensing hurdles, l ittle effort was made toaddress the issue.

Gaming reviews and previews for February and March 201 5

http://worldoftanks.com/

http://tera.enmasse.com/

http://www.rugby15.co.za/


Come join ourGame

South Africa's premium casters

Click the l ink to find out more

http://navtv.co.za/


Tabletopgamers In the interest of starting a new semi-regular article around

tabletop gaming here is the first instal lment of All Otaku Mag’sTabletop. Gaming communities across South Africa are goingfrom strength to strength and with so many awesome newgames coming out al l the time we are truly l iving in the goldenage of tabletop. I hope to bring you a brief review and rating oftwo or three games per week, some new and some old but al lawesome.

BETRAYAL AT HOUSE ON THE HILL

Betrayal is an older game that went out of print and has come backthanks to massive demand by the fans. I f you are a fan of horrorthen this wil l be right up your al ley. I t is a co-operative game with atwist. Players start out with a unique character and health meter (themeter gauges a player’s health /strength / sanity / intel l igence). Asthe game commences the board is only a single room and playersmust explore the derel ict and spooky house on the hil l to build theboard. This is the essence of a modular game; players create theboard through their decisions. During this first phase of the game allplayers are on the same side, merely trying to find their way throughthe haunted house and gather items and weapons. Eventual ly certainconditions wil l be met and the game really kicks into gear!

When these “conditions” are met a scenario is triggered. There arefifty unique scenarios in the game each with its’ own spine chil l ingstory. From zombies to serial ki l lers to werewolves and even aliensthe replay value here is massive. The player who triggers thecondition is then designated the “betrayer” and he must leave theroom in order to read his role and win conditions. This remainsunknown to the remaining players who also have their own wincondition.

For example; in a game we played recently the “betrayer” was adiabolical ki l ler who had buried alive a person in the basement. Wehad to get to the basement and dig this person out. The betrayer hadto get to the basement and nail the coffin shut. I t is a race againsttime and the items you gathered and how well you have explored themansion wil l determine the winner.

I absolutely love this game and whole heartedly recommend it toeveryone.

POWERGRID

Powergrid is also an older game in the German style(Funkenschlag) and wil l appeal to traditional boardgamers andbeancounters. I t has a great mechanic but also a few drawbacks.Essential ly each player is attempting to buy power stations and usethem to power buildings across the map. Think of it as monopoly butwith a twist; you need to power your buildings in order to win.

Each round of the game has multiple phases. Players begin bybidding on power stations against each other in an auction (this canget pretty heated as a power station that may cost around 1 0 bucksis suddenly skyrocketed to 50 as two players square off against


ROUND-UP

That’s it for the first edition of All Otaku Mag’sTabletop. I f there are any games you wouldl ike us to write about please send and emailto [email protected] have created an All Otaku Meetup group(www.meetup.com/ALL-OTAKU/) and wil lthrowing some tabletop events in the nearfuture. I f you are part of a tabletop communityin your area and want your crew featured onthe website please drop the us a line eitheron the site or on facebook.

NETRUNNER

Netrunner is a great card game that I have only had theopportunity to play once so this review may be a bit thin. I t is a“Living card game” (LCG) so unlike a “Trading card game” (TCG)there is only one core set that al l players own and build decksfrom. This is much more affordable (and in my opinion infinitelybetter) than the need to buy endless booster packs to construct agood deck (Magic / Yu-Gi-Oh).

In Netrunner one player takes on the role of a futuristiccorporation and the other player the role of a runner. During thegame the corporation wil l try and advance “agendas” and therunner must stop them by stealing them. Boardgame geekexplains the rules as fol lows:

“Corporations seek to score agendas by advancing them. Doingso takes time and credits. To buy the time and earn the creditsthey need, they must secure their servers and data forts with"ice". These security programs come in different varieties, fromsimple barriers, to code gates and aggressive sentries. Theyserve as the corporation's virtual eyes, ears, and machine gunson the sprawling information superhighways of the network.In turn, runners need to spend their time and credits acquiring asufficient wealth of resources, purchasing the necessaryhardware, and developing suitably powerful ice-breakerprograms to hack past corporate security measures. Their jobsare always a little desperate, driven by tight timelines, andshrouded in mystery. When a runner jacks-in and starts a run ata corporate server, he risks having his best programs trashed orbeing caught by a trace program and left vulnerable to corporatecountermeasures. I t's not uncommon for an unprepared runnerto fai l to bypass a nasty sentry and suffer massive brain damageas a result. Even if a runner gets through a data fort's defenses,there's no tel l ing what it holds. Sometimes, the runner findssomething of value. Sometimes, the best he can do is work totrash whatever the corporation was developing”

The game is critical ly acclaimed with a very active and awesomecommunity. Having met the guys in Cape Town I am reallyexcited to get my teeth into this one. I am also told there is alarge and friendly community in Johannesburg so hopeful ly wecan see some intercity tournaments in the future.

each other to get it), then players need to compete to buyresources to use those power stations and lastly players need toplace their buildings that they wil l power across the map. Asyou can see there are multiple ways for the strategy in this gameto get pretty deep and it often involves a lot of creativity.

Having played this game twice in the space of one week I cansay I do enjoy it but find that it can get sl ightly drawn out. Bothgames went on a lot longer than I expected (mostly due topeople taking their sweet time to make a decision; an egg timerto force them to keep it under a minute is suggested). But on thepositive side it doesn’t get boring as the multiple phases are allequally entertaining. Another great thing about the game is that itis so well balanced that even if one player fal ls behind early orone player pul ls ahead the ending of the game is almost alwaysneck-and-neck between all players.

www.meetup.com/ALL-OTAKU/


By: Leena Swarts

World of warcraft :Warlords of Draenor Expansion


By: Leena Swarts

WoW has been around for a long

time. I t is no secret that the fan base

has dwindled over the years, mainly

due to players becoming tired of

“more of the same” mental ity. Yes,

the expansions are numerous, and

the lore just keeps expanding, but

somehow the feel of the game

doesn’t change. The stats have

become sil ly, the dps output have

become a joke, and the raid bosses

are laughable. Grind, grind, grind.

Like all MMO’s, Wow was no

different, just more polished.

So, Blizzard has put it al l on the l ine

with Warlords of Draenor. Arguably

the last expansion of Wow, but they

have been saying that for a while.

HoweverX They have made some

serious corrections to the game that

pul led back a huge amount of

players. For those of us who have

been playing since “vanil la” or

“burning crusade”, a lot of us would

agree that the “Wrath of the Lich

King” expansion was probably

Blizzard’s crowning achievement

when it came to wow expansions.

The game was, well for lack of a

better term, just fun. The stats

were well balanced, the holy triad

were well balanced, and the raids

were both fun and challenging.

So now let’s fast forward to the

latest expansion. Warlords of

Draenor impresses from the word

go. The story just sucks you in and

refuses to let go. I have to admit, if

there is one thing that they did right

this time around, it was to make

“you” feel part of the world. The

quests, the progression, and oh

man, those cut-scenes just keep

you on your toes and keeps you

going. When the dust final ly

settled, I was standing in my own

garrison and I was happy. There

are only a few games that I have

played to date to which I can make

that kind of claim. Gone is the

never ending days of grinding to

level up. Gone is the dreary, feet

dragging experience of getting your

character up through the last levels

in the expansion.

Ok, so let’s have a look at some of

the new goodies and features in

the expansion. The biggest

change you wil l see is undoubtedly

the garrison. Every player has one,

and it is l ike, to quote Tony Stark

“HomeX just moreX me”. The

buildings in your garrison is

completely your choice, and there

are some very nice choices to add

to the experience of the game.

These buildings can also be

upgraded to the third level, with

each upgrade providing some nice

and unique benefits to your

garrison. I think that since most of

the player base has the best and

most expensive mounts already,

that the garrison is the new gold

sink. *winks*

Speaking of flying mounts, there

are none thus far in the expansion.

Flying mounts are amazing to

have, but it does leave you feeling

a l ittle “detached” from the world.

Staying land bound keeps your

sense of size firmly rooted and

keeps you from feeling that the

world is actual ly pretty small . I t

does also mean that if you want to

go anywhere, you might have to

slog through a couple of mobs to

do so. Pro’s and con’s? Yeah,

there is a bit of both in there. The

garrisons are much more than just

buildings and upgrades though.

There are fol lowers to recruit,

missions to go on, assaults to lead,

defending your garrison against

attacks, just a whole lot of fun to be

had all in al l .

NewCharacterModels


So let’s get back to end game

content. The expansion is sti l l pretty

new, and most players are sti l l

gearing up for the end game raids,

with most of us sti l l in the heroic

dungeons farming for gear. Not

much has changed on that bit, but

Blizzard has made some very

generous changes in the way we get

gear for our characters. Instead of

doing the dungeon over and over for

a single item like in the past, every

boss wil l drop something specific to

your character, if it has something in

its loot tables. Well the first time

around anyways. Which means that

when you do the dungeon for the

first time, you wil l probably get

between two and four upgrades for

your character. I f you use the

looking for group system, this wil l

not stop after the first run through,

only if you keep in the same group.

Neat huh?

Speaking of dungeons, it al l comes

back to stats, which is another huge

change that they brought to the

latest expansion. Everything got

scaled down again to pretty much

“Wrath of the Lich King” standards.

The dps output looks pretty much

the same as back then, the tanks

actual ly have to do damage

mitigation again, and the healers

have their work cut out for them.

This makes dungeons fun again,

because it is no longer just a race to

get through and you actual ly have to

use some strategy to get to the end.

The heroics are especial ly hard at

this stage.

Looking forward though, I guess I

am keen to see if Bl izzard wil l try

and keep the dungeons as

challenging as they are now, or if

with the increases in gear stats,

players wil l be able to just face rol l

the dungeons as they always have

after the first part of the expansion.

I , for one, sincerely hope that they

do. I t keeps the game interesting

and keeps players playing, which in

turn keeps them funded and

producing more stuff. Everyone

wins right?

In conclusion, if you are a Wow

player that has lost their way, have a

look at Draenor. I t has a lot of

positive things going for it. I f you are

a new player looking for an

MMORPG, well Wow is pretty much

sti l l the best on the market, and with

Draenor out now, it wil l most l ikely

retain that spot for some time.

- By Beleran

http://dyinglightgame.com/


http://dyinglightgame.com/


LEGO Batman 3:

Beyond GothamLEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham is the latest LEGOgame of our favourite DC caped crusader. My favouriteDC hero (not the one the people deserve, but the onethat the people need) and it’s developed by Traveller'sTales, for the Microsoft Windows, Apple OS X,PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo 3DS, Xbox360, Xbox One, Wii U and iOS. Yes, that sure is a really,real ly, real ly wide range of availabi l ity right there. Youreally don’t have a reason not to get thisXit’s availableon practical ly everywhere. Okay, not everywhere, butyou get the point. Let’s not forget that the game is alsoavailable for Mac via Steam. I t is the third instalment ofthe LEGO Batman game series and a direct sequel toLEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes.

This game might have the name of Batman, but it cal lsfor yet another crossover story-l ine of the DC Universe.To be honest, the name “Batman” does wonders for thesell ing of merchandise and games.Batman and everyone else are doing what they dobestXkind of. Things soon start to go in a downwardspiral and your usual suspects of this crime-relatedtragedy are none other than those same two guys thathave a number of team-up cooperation behind theircriminal records. The Joker is back and Lex Lutherseems even more determined to get back at our DCSuper Heroes. Brainiac is also in the vil lainous picture

as is other famil iar vi l lainous faces. What is their plan?I ’m not gonna tel l ya, but it’s more in the l ines of WorldDominationXas always. Well , a stolen ice cream isn’treal ly worthy of a super hero crossover, right?WaitXyou’re actual ly thinking about it?

Get your hands on the game and play through anotherepic LEGO Batman game. Build stuff and kick LEGO-crime butt. Play as many famil iar and unfamil iar facesthrough the DC history. Play as your favourite Heroesand Vil lains. You’l l even be able to play as Adam West.Yes, the legendary Adam West himself who starred asBatman from the 1 960’s Batman T.V series and movie.Comedian and talk-show host Conan O’Brien wil l mostl ikely be there as well , seeing as he had a superhero ofhis own, thanks to DC Comics. You’l l be able to play asmany other characters as well , including Alfred,Aquaman, Bane, Bat-Cow ~pausing and waits for that tosink in~, Batgirl , Batman, many different versions andvariations of Batman, Bat-Mite, Bruce Wayne, Robin,Dick Grayson, The Joker, Lex Luther, Flash, WonderWoman, Martian Manhunter, Miss Martian, Nightwing,Shazam, Superman, Superboy, Supergirl and many,many, many more!

DLC Content should include a fan-designed characterthat was the winner of the game’s contest.

Douw “D.K” Kotzé


For those not famil iar with Pokémona game series that hasn't changedvery much in 1 5 years and even lacesince the advent of this game'soriginals. Pokémon is a game inwhich you hunt down wild Pokémoncapture them in tiny balls and beingtrain them to fight in your ownfuturistic arena cockfight unti leventual ly you become the greatestmaster of them all (or get bored andwander off to play something else).

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphireare remakes of the original Pokémonruby and Pokémon sapphire thatwere released for the Gameboyadvanced in 2002/2003 andbecause they are remakes I wil lprobably be more harsh on themthan I would an original entry l ike X.These games tel l the story of ayoung boy or girl arriving in LittlerootTown and being expected to go offand have an adventure in the woodswith wild animals. Along the waythey wil l be accosted by vil lainswearing spiffy uniforms (that matchthe color of your game) that withoutdoubt have the stupidest motivationsof any vil lain team in this franchise,

eventual ly culminating in a battle inwhich you must face down a Titanwho can drown the world or one thatwil l burn it.Final ly off the you've become achampion you must help somescientists save the world from a kil lerasteroid. In other words a typicalPokémon Game.

Yet despite al l I have just said Iadore this franchise with nearlyevery fiber of my being. Pokémon isjust fun, the basic mechanics haven'tchanged much since Generation 3(the generation that inspired theseremakes) but that just means of aeasy to work with and ORAS iseasily more user friendly thanprevious instal lments l ike X and Y.New features incorporated thisgeneration such as rel iable wirelessmultiplayer, super training andPokemon-amie return although sadlythey sti l l have their Kalos themesand have been rammed into onemenu when they previouslyoccupied three show a little sign oflaziness. And now joining this is the"dexnav" feature which allowspotential trainers to find al l the

Pokemon on a route before movingto the next, a must for thecompletionist who has to grab all71 8 of the l ittle monsters that arerunning around the absolutelygorgeous 3D Hoenn environments.

Unfortunately the gremlins of Hoennpull the game down, if you want togo exploring Hoenn you wil l need tohave 2 HM slaves to handle al l thenew caves and undersea places.Sti l l if you want a fun experience youcan't real ly go wrong with PokemonORAS7/1 0

Pros.Lots of pokemon to catchBeautiful environmentsGreat places to explore.

Cons.I t's Ruby and Sapphire with prettygraphicsExploration requires too many HMsHoenn pokedex is a l ittle boring.

-Urahara-sensei

I t's Pokémon. I 'm sorry, but there's very l ittle else to say about this title that you couldn't say of the title it'sremaking from 1 2 years ago. That said it is very nice to go back to Hoenn and re-experience arguablythe weakest generation of this franchise.

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire


TechSECTO

R

005

Tech Sector February 201 5

Our tech sector covers microbits and

nanobytes, pieces of soldering iron and our

l ittle gadget that lets us peek into the future.

No, you can't have it.


Latest Updates

Google to Stop thesale of GoogleGlass

Google has recentlyannounced that they wil ldiscontinue the sale ofGoogle Glasses unti l thecompany can develope amore affordable version witha better look.

Glass sales wil l go on hold to the public on January 1 9.

Google wil l sti l l be sell ing a version the product to companiesthat have found uses for it in their offices, stores and factories.

"By the time Glass returns to the consumer market, it wil l facemore competition from other wearable computing devices,including a line of smart watches that Apple plans to beginsel l ing this spring.

In a Thursday blog post, Google l ikened the Explorer edition ofGlass to an infant learning how to walk.

"Well , we sti l l have some work to do, but now we're ready toput on our big kid shoes and learn how to run," Google said. "

- The Times of India

Nintendo pullsaway from Brazil

Japanese videogame

leaders, Nintendo, have

decided to hit the pause

button when it comes to

exporting their releases to

Latin America.

"We are pausing on Brazil while we look for a sustainable

(distribution) model, " says the company's general manager.

According to Nintendo the decision has been made due to

high import rates and a lack of local Nintendo manufacturing

facil ities in South America.

"We are going to go back to the drawing board to create a

total ly new model, " said Van Zyll , adding that current stocks

should satisfy demand through the end of the year.

Twitch createsMusic media Libraryfrom streamers

Since it's creation in 2011

twitch TV has given a lot to

the community, creating an

opportunity for gamers and

video fanatics al ike to get

their work out there.

But one thing the network has struggled with is the copyright

laws pertaining to audio and music cl ips used by some of the

sites many fol lowers. Twitch is required to mute any video that

has a copyright infringment leading to many disgruntled users.

However, with the service now being owned by Amazon, they

have taken new steps towards stopping copyright infringement

but giving it's users access to the new Twitch Music Library.

The Twitch Music Library is a growing l ist of pre-approved

music that twitch cl ients can use on their new and old videos

wth out fear of being muted.

Five-mile Hyperlooptest track in Texas

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla took

to Twitter on the 1 5th

announcing plans to create

the first five mile Hyperloop in

which companies and

students can test their pods.

Musk first broached the idea of Hyperloops 1 8 months prior

but has been rather quiet about it unti l now. The goal is to

eventual ly build the Hyperloops across country with capsules

inside that travel 800mph. That is 300mph faster than a

commercial jet plane.

The CEO says that a system like this wil l cost a quarter of

what it would take to build a highway, and consume 1 /20th the

materials that a railway line would. Elon says that this wil l

impact the price of travel dramatical ly, making travel far more

affordable.

Tech updates for February and March 201 5


UndergroundFarming

Thinking back, I remember a time when foods grown in a

factory was seen as a bad thing. People believed that

growing food outside of it's natural "habitat" was bad and that

no nutrients could be gained from it. I t was unnatural, far too

clean, would cost a fortune and quite frankly it was the most

absurd thing we had ever heard.

In today's society however, I would l ike to believe that is not

the case any more, not only do we have enough information

on agriculture to do this but we also have ways of reducing

the power usage to sustain these kinds of farms.

Over 8 years ago a company called Pasona O2 began the

research and implementation of "urban farms", they planned

to use underground and indoor spaces to grow crops using

Hydroponics and Aeroponics. Original ly the facil ity was

created to teach the unemployed how to farm but it soon

became much more. With the help of energy efficient LED's

and temperature control, Pasona O2 now grow 200 different

species of plant over 1 000 square meters of building.

Pasona O2 is not the only group cottoning on to the idea of

Urban Farming. A company in the UK called Zero Carbon

Foods recently started Growing Underground, an urban farm

33 meters under Clapham, London.

This is al l fine and well , and a lot of you may be thinking that

this is just some marketing ploy to get people to buy a

special ised product.

The Benefits ofAlternative Farming:

- Lower Carbon Emissions- Uses 70% less water- Uses three times lesselectricty- Takes up far less space- Uses little to no pesticides- Immediate access to freshlypicked produce- Yields 250% more produce- Better Taste- Promotes economic growth

Could our food be grown underground

in the near future?

By: Joannah Stewart

Organic farming for the free loving hippie.


Aeroponics

- the process of

growing plants in an

air or mist

environment without

the use of soil or an

aggregate medium.

Hydroponics

- a subset of

hydroculture and is a

method of growing

plants using mineral

nutrient solutions, in

water, without soil .

Hydroculture

- the growing of

plants in a soil less

medium, or aquatic

based environment.

Plant nutrients are

distributed via water.

Geoponic

- and geoponics refer

to growing plants in a

normal soil . Contract

to hydroponics and

aeroponics.

"THE FUTURE IS NOW.

THE FUTURE IS GROWING UNDERGROUND."

But in reality underground farming is not only a solution

to the waste produced by conventional farming, it is also

entirely human-friendly .

This method of farming uses 70% less water and 3

times less electricity than conventional farming,

underground crops can be grown year round without

stopping and creates 250% more produce than a

normal farm. Due to the control led environment the

plants are grown in there is no plant diseases and no

need for pesticides, making the entire operation organic

and healthier for human consumption. Regular

underground farming would lead to major advances in

agriculture and essential ly boost the global economy,

creating more jobs and allowing rural areas to feed

themselves.

There is also the added benefit of a longer food

lifespan. Because these food sources are in the heart of

your city or the surrounding area they can be picked

and processed in a day and sent out immediately for

delivery, we as consumers wil l no longer receive food

that has been in transit for days on end.

Now I know that I may be sounding a little nutty right

now so I am going to stop right here. I bel ieve I have

made my point and hope that I have given you

something to consider. We are lucky to be alive in an

age where these sort of things are even possible, sure it

may not be the future most of us where hoping to be

born in to, but we are the generation that wil l get to

watch that future unfold, and hell , we may even be the

ones who make that future happen.


Dennis RitchieBy Douw “D.K” Kotzé


Dennis Ritchie

The Man Who Helped Us Create a Better

Future.

Dennis Ritchie. Better than Steve Jobs. The

inventor of the internet. Dennis Ritchie, the

man who deserved so much more credit than

he received. Some people called Dennis

Ritchie the “Godfather of Programming”.

“Ritchie was under the radar. His name was

not a household name at al l , butX if you had

a microscope and could look in a computer,

you’d see his work everywhere inside.”

These days you’l l hear people praise and

admire the people who have brought us

some of the greatest things in technology

today. Born on 8th of November 1 970, Tom

Anderson is the American co-founder of the

social networking website MySpace. Born on

1 4th of May 1 984, Mark Ell iot Zuckerberg is

an American computer programmer, internet

entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Facebook.

Steve Jobs of course was an American

entrepreneur, marketer, inventor, co-founder,

chairman and CEO of Apple Inc.

Believe it or not, but this guy you probably

never heard of has contributed more than the

above mentioned, that you probably have

heard about. In fact, Dennis Ritchie has

contributed more than Steve Jobs, Bil l Gates

and even more than Mark Zuckerberg has

ever contributed to the modern digital age

combined.

I t was once said that Dennis Ritchie’s

contribution to the human race overshadows

all other inventors and scientists working in

the 20th and 21 st centuries. That’s kind of a

huge statement, right? Think about it though.

I t’s pretty impossible to walk on our Earth

these days and not find some form of

technology that has not been affected in

some way of Dennis Ritchie’s work.

Apparently, there is this thing they called the

“inevitable Dennis Ritchie vs. Steve Jobs”.

Well , let me do something different and break

a few things down for ya though. Steve Jobs

has been known to bring Apple from near

bankruptcy to profitabil ity by 1 998, he has

given us a lot of expensive stuff that most of

us can’t afford and some of which people

can. Do you think he could have done it if there

was no Dennis Ritchie though? Would we

have internet or computers l ike today if there

was no Dennis Ritchie?

Dennis Ritchie was known for creating the C

programming language, with a long-time

colleague Ken Thompson –the Unix operating

system. Ritchie and Thompson received the

Turing Award from the ACM in 1 983, the

Hamming Medal from the IEEE in 1 990 and

the National Medal of Technology from

President Clinton in 1 999. Ritchie was the

head of Lucent Technologies System Software

Research Department when he retired in 2007.

He was also the “R” in “K&R C” and commonly

known by his username “dmr”.

The C language is widely used today in

application, operating system development,

and its influence is seen in most modern

programming languages as well . Unix has also

been influential , establ ishing concepts and

principles that are now precepts of computing.

When Steve Jobs passed away, people

mourned the passing of a “giant” in the

technological industry and the media covered

more about him than they probably should

have. Not too long afterwards, Dennis Ritchie

passed away. The media seemed

uninterested. The world seemed like they just

didn’t give a damn in a way. A lot of people

voiced their reactions to this and pointed out

how Steve Jobs didn’t deserve all the extra

unnecessary media coverage. A few people in

particular referred to the

success of Steve Jobs as standing on the

shoulders of Dennis Ritchie. After al l ,

where do you think would computer

technology be without Dennis Ritchie?

Your iPhone would probably sti l l be the “I -

wil l use my telephone”. You’re iPad would

probably sti l l be the “I -wil l use my

notepad”. We would al l be in the “i-Human”

generation instead of the one that has

Apple technology. In the end, the real

“techno giant” that we lostXwas Dennis

“The Godfather of Programming” Ritchie.

Dennis Ritchie:

Ful l name: Dennis MacAlistair Ritchie

Born: September 9, 1 941

Died: c. October 1 2, 2011 – at the age of

70

Nationality: American

Fields: Computer Science

Instititions: Lucent Technologies, Bell Labs

Education: Harvard University

Known for: ALTRAN, B, BCPL, C, Multics,

Unix.

Notable awards: Turing Award (1 983),

National Medal of Technology, IEEE

Richard W. Hamming Medal (1 990),

Computer Pioneer Award (1 994), Harold

Pender Award (2003), Japan Prize (2011 ).

Steve Jobs:

Ful l Name: Steven Paul Jobs

Born: February 24, 1 955

Died: October 5, 2011 – at age 56

Education: Reed College (dropped out)

Occupation: Co-founder, Chairman, and

CEO, Apple Inc. Co-founder and CEO,

Pixar. Founder and CEO, NeXT Inc.

Years active: 1 974-2011

Net worth: US $8.3 bil l ion (July 201 0)

Board member of: The Walt Disney

Company, Apple Inc.


CosplaySECTO

R

Cosplay Sector February 201 5

006

Our Cosplay sector covers Cosplay tools,

cookies, interesting techniques on using said

cookies, and ultimately how to put your

cookie to best use when sitting for the fourth

hour in front of you sewing machine and your

knees are kil l ing you.


Cosplay BuysThis is a l ist of must-have things to own as a cosplayer and where to get them. As a new

cosplayer it is hard to know what tools to buy and how to use them.

Since this is our first article of this kind lets start with the basics of sewing.

By: Joannah Stewart

Sewing Kits

A sewing kit is a cosplayer's

pride, it is a collection of bits

a bobs that you cannot do

without. A sewing kit should

consist of needles (in various

sizes), a pair of sewing

scissors, different coloured

thread, a tape measure, pins,

and a few buttons.

As any cosplayer knows though, it doesn't stop there. A lot

more can be added to this col lection depending on what you

wil l be creating and what makes you happy.

Aditional items such as zips, ribbon, punches, patterns,

material scissors, embroidery hoops, thimbles, seam cutters,

stamps, sheers, stuffing, boning, pattern paper, etc, can be

added to your collection. The list goes on and the more you

learn about these items the more you wil l come to appreciate

the tools you are working with.

Patterns

Another very important part

of creating your outfit, no

matter if it's material or a

prop, is your pattern. A

pattern is the shape and

amount of material that wil l

be needed for your outfit.

The pattern wil l let you howmuch extra material wil l be needed around your panels for aseam and how each piece of material fits together to createyour outfit. A pattern uses markers to indicate things l ikeseams, tuckets, pleats, folds and pins. I t wil l be your guidethrough out the entire sewing process. At first they wil l seemcomplicated but once you understand a pattern it wil l be aseasy as reading any book.

Materials

Material is one of my

favourite things about

seemstressing. Each material

has a life of it's own and can

add a lot to the cosplay you

are creating. Choosing the

right material or col lection of

materials is crucial to any

item of clothing you make.

Certian materials do not go well with others as they have

different thread counts and shrink rates so you wil l have to ask

some one at the haberdashery if the materials you are working

with go well together. Other than that the materials that you

use are entirely up to you and you wil l probably spend a good

few hours looking for the right material for your costume.

Also remember to pre-wash your materials before sewing

them together. Material stores often pre-wash their materials

before they sell them but some times they don't and you do

not want to end up having the material die of one material

running into the rest of your costume.

The Sewing Maching

A sewing machine can save

you a lot if time and

concentration when it comes

to making an outfit, but it is

not neccessari ly a must have.

Cosplayers have been known

to sew their outfits entirely by

hand, however a sewing

machine can be faster and often neater to.

Your sewing machine works by sewing a thread through the

material and catching a separate thread on the other side,

underneath the material . So unlike hand sewing that only uses

one thread a sewing machine uses two spools of thread in one

line of stitching.

This requires the machine to have perfect timing, meaning that

your machine's time wil l need to be set properly. Nowadays

that is a simple process but if your timing goes out too far you

wil l need to have it reset by the machine makers.


SaiyukiKashuri

CosplayProfile


1 . NOT ONLY ARE YOU A COSPLAYER BUT ALSO A GENUINE

GEEK GIRL. WHAT IS ONE OF YOUR MOST IMPORTANT

EXPERIENCES AS A GEEK?

Getting to know other people who share your interests.There is nothing more fun than being able to talk aboutsomething you love, and people actual ly understandwhat you are saying.

2 . SO WHEN YOU STARTED WITH COSPLAY BACK IN 201 0, YOUSEEMED LIKE SUCH A SHY GIRL. NOW THAT HAS OBVIOUSLY

CHANGED. HOW HAS COSPLAYING AFFECTED YOU ON A

PERSONAL LEVEL?

Cosplay has seriously given me a confidence boost. Iwas bull ied (well more teased and talked about behindmy back), I didn't real ly fit in because I didn't l ike al l thelame crap everyone else was in to. I was an earlybloomer, an my maturity was superior to those of peoplearound me.So getting back to the point, Cosplay has made meaccept myself as an Individual, and taught me that you

dont have to force yourself to go with the flow.

3 . WHO IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN COSPLAY INDUSTRY INSPIRES

YOU MOST?

I would definitely have to say Tayla Barter (KinpatsuCosplay), she's been cosplaying for a shorter periodthan I have, but her skil ls are far greater than my own. Ihope to reach that level one day, and perhaps even do ateam-up. Keep up the amazing work!

AND I Can't forget my Nakashi <3 being partenered upwith this talented creature for 5 years has alwaysinspired and motivated me to work even harder :)

4 . WHEN DID YOU FIRST REALISE THAT YOU WERE A

COSPLAYER?

I didn't even know what cosplay was unti l Nakashiproposed the idea to start cosplaying together, but assoon as it came to the first time we took pictures andplanned our costumes, I was hooked.

Saiyuki KashuriThis issue we interview one of South Africa's up andcoming cosplayers Saiyuki Kashuri.


5 . WHICH OF YOUR COSTUMES IS YOUR FAVOURITE?

Uhm.. thats a very good question. .I think it would sti l l have to be my nightingalearmour from skyrimbut my Erza Heart Kreuz v2 armour wil l comesecond.

6 . IF YOU COULD GO ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WHERE

WOULD THAT BE?

I 'd love to go to Japan, but if that wasn't possible,I 'd say London. Maybe I can track down myBritish relatives.

7 . HOW DO YOU THINK COSPLAYING AFFECTS THE

GLOBAL GAMING AND GEEK MARKET?

It brings us all closer together, you get to meetnew people and make new friends. Cosplay alsostands as a kind of advertisement for gaming andthings in the geek market. You cosplay from agame, more people wil l find out about the game.I 've found out about how many games I neverknew were even made in the last few years, al lbecause cosplayers I fol low have cosplayedcharacters from them.

8 . WHICH DO YOU PREFER? TOFFEE OR CANDYFLOSS?

Both! I have a major sweet tooth :3But I prefer Toffee. I ts chewey and so goooood

9 . HOW WOULD YOU REACT TO THE OLDER

GENERATION ASKING YOU ABOUT COSPLAY?

First thing, Gran its not some satanic worshipthing x'D (had to explain cosplay for 5 years, nowshe thinks I do some sort of weird modeling)

When faced with tel l ing the older generationsabout cosplay, I usually show them pictures of thecharacter, and then pictures of my cosplay. Thenexplain to the best of my abil ity that I am simplytrying to bring the character to l ife.

1 0 . WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ANIME AND WHY?

Favorite anime. . . .I can give you my Favourite and top re-watchanimes. Because one does not simply have oneFavourite.

-Fairy Tail- Another- Danganronpa- Hellsing & Hellsing Ultimate- Highschool of the Dead


Step 1Create a simple mask stencil onpaper. Make sure to measure itagainst your face by pressingthe mask in around the nose asthe leather mask wil l hug yourface.

Step 2Trace the stencil onto theleather and cut out the mask. Be careful not to fray the edges or create jagged cuts,use a stanley or a leather cutter to cut along the stencil led l ines.

Step 3Soak the leather mask in warm water. Remember that temperature of the water is a keyfactor here, the warmer the water, the harder the leather wil l become when it dries.While it may be tempting to make the water as hot as possible this is not advisable asthe leather wil l dry very hard and become brittle.Soak your leather in water for about 1 5 minutes. Or unti l al l of the bubbles on thesurface of the leather have gone. You do not want to soak it for too long.

Step 4Take the wet leather and stretch it over your face mold or cast, this does not have to bea cast of your own face. I t can simply be a manikin head. Make sure to push the leatherin around the bridge of the nose and around the eyebrows to capture the ful l form of theface. Leave the mask to dry on the face for a few hours. You could fast track thisprocess by running a hair dryer over it on low heat, but this is l ikely to damage theleather and make it brittle if it is not done correctly. Also avoid sun drying the leather asthis wil l end in the same result.

Step 5Remember that after the leather has dried it wil l shrink a l ittle which should make for asnug fit. Now you can paint the mask or add any decorations you want to it with a l ittlematerial glue or by stitching the leather wit a leather needle.

Tip:To get the best shape out of your leather keep working it unti l i t is completely dry. Usingthe back of a spoon works very well to push in the curves of your mask, creating asmoother curve. Beware that the wet leather wil l mark quite easily so take care not todent or damage the leather in any way.

Molding leather is a very useful ski l l , as many cosplay items can be made from leathersuch as masks, bags, guards and even armour.

There are many different ways to form and harden leather. Different leather types andresults require different techiniques, the simplest technique being watering hardening.

To use this technique you wil l need:

- Leather- A bowl of luke warm water- A face cast- A spoon

CosplayHowTo's


ToLARP,or nottoLARP...

There exists aX delicate balance

between the two different

communities, cosplayers and

LARPers. The one strives for

perfection, duplicating their favourite

characters from the entertainment

industry, where the other strives for

perfection in impersonating their

ideal characters, in whichever form

they are designed. Both do

costuming, but is one really more

advanced than the other? I ’ve heard

somebody say: “LARPers wil l

Cosplay, but Cosplayers do not often

LARP.”

First off, before we decide - if we

decide at al l , let’s take a look at the

respective arts. Cosplay is an

industry that has taken a massive

growth spurt over the last couple of

years, both locally and

international ly. I t is a practice that,

l ike most geek things nowadays,

originated from Japan, where people

would dress up and impersonate

characters from anime

movies/series. When the rest of the

world final ly caught on to the fad, it

exploded to include characters from

games and movies as well .

Of course, Trekkies and Star

wars fans were already by that

time doing the same thing, but it

was more focused on their

respective series. Nowadays,

there are often competitions

hosted at conventions and what

started out as an amusing

hobby has grown to an art form.

Perfection is the key, and

imitating your character as

accurately as possible, not only

in look, but in attitude as well , is

the aim. The more realistic the

portrayal, the better the Cosplay.

This of course means that the

field is extremely competitive,

and rivalries are the word of the

day. Despite this though, the

community always tries to be

friendly, welcoming and

accepting to new arrivals and

older participants, no matter

your race, gender, age etc. I t

truly is something that defies

everything conventional and

inspires the creative.

Now let’s take a look at

LARPing. LARP is short for

“Live Action Role Play”. The aim

for a LARP is to create an

environment where people can

“l ive” as another character of

their own choosing. Imagine for

a moment, designing and

playing a character in an RPG.

Now translate that to real l ife,

and you have an idea of what

LARPing is about. I t is so much

more than just costuming; it is

l iving, breathing, acting and

making the decisions for your

character. LARPs are not

l imited to medieval settings

either, with Vampire LARPs and

Star Trek LARPs being popular

settings as well . The idea

behind a LARP is creating an

environment where people have

near unl imited creativity, where

events and adventures can take

the most unexpected turns and

where social interaction is

encouraged between players.

Every player has a character

history, and most have a public

and private narrative. The public

are shown to all players, and the

private shown only to members

who design the plot. For those

of us who have played

Dungeons and Dragons, you wil l

know how often players mess

around with the “ideal”

adventure that the Dungeon

master planned. They have to

be quick on their feet, adapting

to ever changing situations as

the story develops. Now take

the idea behind this and once

again, take it to real l ife. You

want information about

something? Well , it is not going

to be given to you; you need to

ask around, maybe even

threaten some people. You are

after some magical gear or rare

spell? Well , there are some

pretty nasty monsters out there

who dare you to come and fight

them for it. Fortunately, there


are rules set down for combat

making it safe for players. Injuries

are not uncommon at LARPs

though, people are being active all

the time after al l . I t is a different

type of community you wil l find at

LARP events. The players, even

though their characters may not be

too cordial with each other in game,

are almost a family out of game.

There is a type of closeness

between the players that I have not

real ly found anywhere else. I may

just be speaking of the experiences

I have had at my LARPing group,

but that is how I felt sharing time

with these people. There is no real

competition between the

characters, except if you are a

mouse and cats are chasing youX

(Yeah there are people who

costume those races, it’s hi larious)

All in al l , a great place to be if you

want to get away from reality for a

bit, just enjoying a pleasant

environment with good people.

So now, more to the point, is

LARPing a better form of Cosplay?

I would honestly say the two are so

unrelated that they cannot real ly be

compared. The two are just so

different that I feel you should

judge grapes with other grapes, not

grapes with apples. There is a

different feel to both, and both have

amazing qualities that people can

enjoy. I would say the choice on

which of the two you would enjoy

participating in, is solely up to you.

Ultimately, it the decision on if you

do one or the other highly depends

on what you are aiming to do with

your time and effort. I f you enjoy art

in the sense of creating props /

costumes, with a l ittle acting on the

side, then I would say Cosplay is

your thing.

I f however you enjoy art in the

sense of acting and role-play, I

would recommend trying LARPing.

Don’t get me wrong however; there

are LARPers out there who have

created amazing costumes for their

characters. After al l , i t is half the

fun. Irrespective of which you end

up doing, they are both fun and

both are worth engaging in. Now

get out there and be a geek!

- By Beleran


CultureSECTO

R

007

Culture Sector February 201 5

Our Culture sector covers everything else. . .

Let's see, what did we miss? Packing my

bunny? Nope. Location of nuclear shelter?

Got it. . . Time of next dimensional wormhole?

Wait, where is my notes on that? While I

search for it, have a look at some of the stuff

happening, and share some of the Japanese

culture that we collecte. . . . . . . . . . Damn, I missed

the wormhole.


Organised and hosted by Janel “Kimiko” van Aswegen and

Justin Rogers “The Great Wizard Jenkins”, the Meru Cosplay

Picnic was born. Last year’s January picnic didn’t real ly have a

name. Well , none of our picnic events had a name actual ly.

Last year’s picnic was better known as “Taran, Leigh & Kimi’s

Cosplay Birthday Picnic”. I t was fantastic, it was awesome and

I was dying underneath the suit as Bruce WayneX

By Douw “D.K” Kotzé/Silver Angel C

Meru

Cosplay

Picnic


We do often celebrate birthdays at these events, but

it’s not just about the birthdays. These events hosted

by Kimiko and the Great Wizard have now been

dubbed as the Meru Cosplay Picnic and they have

an adorably cute mascot for these events too. Meru

(the event mascot) was designed by the talented

Kaylee Claire who is known as Kay Ling-Ling

Cosplay. These events brings us all together to

catch-up, social ize, meet new people, make new

friends and one of the most important things among

them allXhave fun.

At big events such as rAge Expo, Geekfest or even

the smaller cons, there isn’t always time to social ise

or a place you could just have fun and relax with

others, especial ly for Artists, Photographers and

Cosplayers. This is where these events come in. You

don’t have to, but these are the kind of events you

can Cosplay and have fun wherever the event is

being held.

The first Meru Cosplay Picnic was held in

Johannesburg’s Walter Sisulu National Botanical

Gardens. We have been here for last year’s January

event as well . The place is definitely beautiful , no

doubt about that. The field, trees, the nicely crafted

statues placed around the venue, the sight of the

waterfal l –I t’s definitely a good place for picnics. We

started off meeting at one of the big trees that had an

iron statue of –what looked like a grasshopper- stuck

to itXup there somewhere. Despite what the event

thing said on Facebook, we had at least over fifty

people that attended the Meru Cosplay Picnic. There

were a lot of new faces, al l welcomed. With it being

summer and all , it was definitely a hot day, but with

the weird weather right above us, we migrated over

to the stage. I ts roof looked awful ly similar to that of a

potato chip from a distance. Now that we had a roof

over us, we were definitely covered for in case of any

rain. We had some drippy, drip, drip moments, but it

didn’t rain while we were thereXbut sti l l , we were

prepared.

We had so many Cosplayers at attendance. You

could see well-known characters from Bleach,

Naruto, One Piece, Little Mermaid, Batman, Teen

Titans, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mortal

Kombat. From Star Wars we had a Jedi youngling, a

casual Princess Leia and Biggs Darkl ighter “I ’m

going in. Cover me, Porkins”, an awesome Gajeel,

Mira, Levy and Erza from Fairy Tail , Eureka and

Anemone from Eureka 7, Zakuro & Ichigo from Tokyo

Mew Mew/Mew Mew Power, two Sims, World War 2

guysXthere are seriously too many to mention, but I

got to admit that the Ice King (The Great Wizard

Jenkins – Justin Rogers) had lots of princesses and

their Adventure Time group was most l ikely the

biggest around. I hope Gunter l iked that muffin

thoughXthen again, I ’m not entirely sure if Luffy

knows how to bake. I tried, okay?

After a series of group photos were taken, Kimiko

stepped down from the stage after being in Police

Officer Sousuke’s clutches. She delivered a very

heartfelt speech and thanked everyone for attending.

Afterwards, I was just glad not to be on my knees

anymoreXto be completely honest with you all , I wil l

never ship "Knees and Concrete Floor" as a

pairingXNEVER!

After the group photo and Kimiko’s speech, we had

the chance to get a Tai Chi demo from Jeffrey Lu

from Kelga Creations. We had one heck of an

awesome day and I ’m certainly looking forward to the

next Meru Cosplay Picnic.


MugiwaraONE PIECEStore At Shibuya Parco

TravellersGuide

Address: 1 5-1 Udagawacho | 6F Shibuya Parco

Part1 , Shibuya 1 50-8377, Tokyo Prefecture

Country: Japan

Otaku type: Anime Otaku

Website: http: //www.mugiwara-store.com/

View the stores video

Anime and manga is about escapism, and what could help

you escape the confines of reality better than pirates

travell ing the sea of an unknown world? That is why this

store makes it to our top l ist of Otaku places to visit before

you die.

The super popular Mugiwara Store is a One Piece only

supply store with merchandise from the equally popular

anime of the same name. I am sure that One Piece fans

around the world wil l agree that this is a MUST have in

every country but unfortunately this one store can only be

found in Tokyo on the 6th floor of Shibuya Parco Part 1 . In

fact the entire 6th floor of Shibuya Parco is dedicated to

Otaku, making it a hotspot for al l that is holy to a modern

day Otaku.

The One Piece Mugiwara Store stocks over 1 0 000 different

items and features a life-size figure of Monkey D Luffy, the

great rubber captain. The retai l area itself is designed to

resemble the Thousand Sunny ship's hold and includes a

Mini Merry I I boat replica as well as a gateway decorated

with the whale Laboon painted with the Straw Hat pirate

mark.

As many of you may have figuredout, the store is named after thepirates of One Piece making thisa truly authentic place to visit. I treal ly should be on every Otaku'sl ist of places to visit when goingto Japan.

By:JoannahStewart

http://www.mugiwara-store.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9SB8us3l8w


TonkatsuThe art of deep

fried pork

A popular dish in Japan, Tonkatsu is a favourite with thelocals. This “western style” crumbed pork is not the healthiestfood but rather comfort dish served in many Tonkatsurestaurants throughout Japan.

Since it’s such a special ized store this makes finding

one in SA extremely difficult. The good news is that

making Tonkatsu at home is very easy. This dish

resembles KFC in its making so if you know how or

have made fried chicken before then you have got this

one down.

Most of the ingredients in the recipe are easily found at

any supermarket. Even panko, which are bread

crumbs, can either be bought at a store or simply

make it with old bread. I f you make your own crumbs

remember to leave them to dry sl ightly in the oven first.

Try to avoid I tal ian bread crumbs as they are too fine

and that doesn’t give the crunch we want.

Tonkatsu is almost always accompanied by two things:

Tonkatsu sauce and thinly sl iced cabbage, a kind of

coleslaw if you wil l . This thick Worcester-based sauce

is an important seasoning for Tonkatsu, many have

said that it completes this dish. Tonkatsu sauce is

available at Japanese markets or onl ine stores, but if

you can’t find it, you can make it by mixing 1 part

Worcester sauce and 2 parts ketchup to get something

close to the actual taste. I t may also be served with

ponzu (a citrus based sauce) and grated daikon

(winter raddish) instead of tonkatsu sauce.

There are variations of the Tonkatsu dish, such as

Katsudon (Tonkatsu and eggs cooked in seasoned

dashi over rice, yummy!), Katsu Sandwich (katsu

sando), and Kastu Curry (katsu karē). Some of these

dishes are even served with karashi (mustard) and

lemon, or rice, miso soup and tsukemono (pickled

vegetables) and eaten with chopsticks.

OtakuKitcken


Instructions

Make your meat tender by using a tenderizing hammer.

Make sure that the meat is flat and then make small

cuts al l over pork chops with the tip of a knife. Sprinkle

salt and pepper on both sides of meat.

Coat the meat with flour, dip in a bowl of beaten eggs,

then cover with bread crumbs.

Heat oil in a pan to 1 80C, and deep fry your crumb-

covered meat. You can check the temperature by

dropping a bread crumb. I f it comes up to the oil

surface right after it's dropped, it's good.

Fry unti l color turns golden brown and meat floats in

the oil , about 5-8 minutes, turning once or twice.

Set the meat on a cooling rack for a minute. Cut into 5-

6 pieces.

Tonkatsu may also be made by sandwiching an

ingredient such as cheese or shiso leaf between the

meat, and then breading and frying.

After researching this dish I went straight on to making

it. Instead of a pork chop I used mince meat to create

Menchi-katsu served with sticky fried rice and lemon

wedges. I t was pretty awesome if I do say so myself,

especial ly with sweet chil l i sauce. And that is the great

thing about this dish. I ts versati le. You can make what

you want out of it.

History

Tonkatsu was original ly considered a type of yōshoku

(Japanese versions of European cuisine) invented in

the late 1 9th and early 20th centuries. Back then it was

called katsuretsu (cutlet) or simply katsu.

Variations

Several variations of tonkatsu use alternatives to pork:

Chicken katsu, which uses chicken instead, often

appears in Hawaiian plate lunches.

Menchi-katsu or Minchi Katsu, is a minced meat patty,

breaded and deep fried.

Hamu katsu, a similar dish made from ham, is usually

considered a budget alternative to tonkatsu.

Gyū katsu, also known as bīfu katsu, is popular in the

Kansai region around Osaka and Kobe.

Saengseonkkaseu is a Korean fish cutlet modeled on

the Japanese dish. Tonkatsu in Korea is known as

donkkaseu or donkaseu.

A similar cuisine with ingredients other than pork, beef

or chicken is cal led furai (fry), not katsu (cutlet), such

as aji-furai (fried horse mackerel) and ebi-furai (fried

prawn).

Ingredients4 pork loin chops (about 1 " thick,no bones)saltpepper1 /2 cup all purpose flour1 -2 eggs1 cup panko or bread crumbsoil for deep frying

Prep Time: 1 5 minutesCook Time: 1 0 minutesTotal Time:25 minutesYield: 4 servings

By: Joannah Stewart


KENDAMA: APopular JapaneseToy

JapaneseCulture

This week I discovered a toy called Kendama that is

very popular in Japan.

Now many of you may have seen or even played with

a Kendama as a child, I remember having one as a

kid but I never really understood how it worked or

where it was from. Kendama as a toy has held long

standing popularity in Japan amoung children and

adults al ike, but it is only recently that Kendama has

become an actual sport played by competitors across

Japan in actual tornaments.

While this may seem like a simple toy to you and me,

Kendama has over 1 000 moves that can be mastered

and is often said to help develop concentration and

perseverance. I t can be played any time, any where

and by any one.

The kendama of today are made from a stick with a

point at one end, three attached cups, and a ball with

a small hole in one end. The two side cups are called

the big and small cups while the cup at the end of the

stick is cal led the medium cup. At the opposite end of

the stick is a point on which the user is supposed

spike the ball . The ball is attached to a string that is

then connected to the stick.

The game is basical ly played by tossing the ball into

the air and trying to catch it either on one of the cups

or the spike. And trust me it is not as easy as it

sounds. The games difficulty wil l depend on what

techniques are used and what your ultimate goal is,

al lowing people of any age or skil l to master their own

tricks.

While many may believe that kendama was invented

in Japan, the truth is that it actual ly wasn't. Some

records show that Kendama was created in France in

the sixteenth century where it was called bilboquet, bi l

meaning "ball" and boquet meaning "tree",roughly

translating to wooden ball . Back then the game was

different with only two cups on either end of the stick.

There are also theories that this game was developed

in Greece or China, and the absolute truth is not

known.

I t is thought that Kendama came to the East with

traders from the Silk Route during the Edo period

(1 603-1 868) and was played by adults as a sort of

drinking game. Kendama only became popular

amoung the Japanese in the Meij i Era (1 868-1 91 2),

when the Minister of Education introduced it to

youngsters in school.

While Kendama does not originate from Japan it has

become a part of the cuture, to the point where the

Japan Kendama Association was founded

standardized kendama for competitive use and

created standardized rules for the purpose of al lowing

a greater number of people to play the game together

the same way.

By:JoannahStewart


All Otaku Magazine takes all reasonable precautions to ensure accuracy of information presented. We cannotaccept responsibi l ity for any damages or l iabi l ity arising from the dissemination and/or use of information publishedin this magazine.

Issue 11

Issue 6

Issue 1

All Otaku Magazin is owned and published electronical ly by All Otaku.Copyright 201 2-201 5 All Otaku. All rights reserved.

No part of this electronic magazine may be reproduced without the written consent of All Otaku.Requests for permission should be directed to: [email protected]

Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 4 Issue 5

Issue 7 Issue 8 Issue 9 Issue 1 0

Issue 1 2

Previous Issues We bring you all of yourlatest anime and more!


Documents

All Otaku Magazine Issue 12