The Crisis Core week has landed! And what better way to to prep you up for Square Enix's latest game on the PSP? Remember Monty Oum's CGI fanvid from a few months ago where hot babes Tifa, Rikku, and Yuna of Final Fantasy and Kasumi, Ayane, and Hitomi of Dead or Alive were pitted against each other in a Brawl - err, brawl, rather? Well, today we've got the sequel to that! And it's packing quite a punch with three new characters that jump into the fray. Who, you ask? Ah, well, sorry... No spoilers! Read more for the video.

 Team Ninja's leading man, the guy with a few smiles and a thousand words, behind the Tecmo-published Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive series deserves his own QuickJump Quicklist, so here's something dedicated to Tomonobu Itagaki and all his greatness. We've collected some lines from Itagaki that are either very amusing, or so badass fanboys would rather follow him around and wipe his sunglasses clean for a living.

Find all that at the full article!

Tomonobu Itagaki, head of Tecmo's Team Ninja and known for video games with babes and blood as seen in his Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden series, said in an interview that he doesn't feel censored by rating bodies like the ESRB and PEGI. He believes these organizations are actually good to the gaming industry.

"Entertainment shouldn't include things that make people feel uncomfortable or extremely upset," Itagaki said after pointing out that game developers are there to create entertainment. One of the reasons why he's all for rating game content was "it's very difficult to classify what people find offensive or what people find to be too violent only in words."

Itagaki also didn't want to be classified with people who "create something that is very far removed from societal norms and the moral sensibilities of the general public." He continued, "I think it's good that there are organizations out there in different countries that are trying to quantify - to say - 'this is considered to be more violent than that.'"

Team Ninja's boss also noted that the Japanese rating system is "a little bit backwards." According to him, a specific guideline is yet to be set for developers to know how far they can take violence in their games. Japan, however, is quite different from how other parts of the world see decapitations. Apparently, in the land of the rising sun, a quick kill is not that bad compared to a slow and painful death via belly slit.

There are other interesting things Itagaki mentioned in the interview, like how he enjoys love stories and that Kasumi could've been the star in Team Ninja's Nintendo DS offering. While we wait for Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword's scheduled winter 2007 release, we're also hoping Kasumi gets some touch action in the future.

 

For every ground-breaking title out there, there exists an unsung hero. They – like soldiers and bad sitcoms of old – are the miserable underdogs who never receive the due credit they deserve for their work. We're not talking about the developers -  we're talking about specialists - the (fictional) guys who work behind the scenes to ensure that the elements in whatever genre you play will always remain in tip-top condition, whether its your resident androgynous antagonist 's script, or your unfriendly neighborhood mook's marksmanship scores.

These guys will be the topic of today's quick list - along with an explanation with that special thing they do just to make the game better for one special individual - you. On to the list!
 
1. Sephiroth's acting coach
Let's be honest - Sephiroth isn't that original. More than one anime, manga, and J-RPG can boast its own brew of silver-haired, bad-ass sword-wielding bishie hotness, with Sephie being just a part of this popular trend. What sets him apart, however, is execution (acting, not Aeris…).
 
Sephiroth's dark foreboding lines and steely glare will haunt many a gamer's dreams, and for this, we can thank the man's ever-capable acting coach. We're talking the drama-guru who made Sephiroth walk the walk, talk the talk - the dude who probably taught him captivatingly cheesy one-liners like "Shall I give you despair?"
 
I'm afraid you haven't, Mr. Sephiroth's Acting Coach. You did give plenty of fanboys/girls something to think about for their next few - err - dreams, though...
 
Special accreditation goes to Cloud's hairdresser.

The rest of the list is available in the Full Article

 

Moé is a Japanese term referring how otaku love their characters in videogames and anime, often to the point of wishing they could watch over those characters. While you definitely won't be able to watch over videogame characters in real life, the Japanese website GameSpark does happen to have a listing of 20 of the most popular Xbox 360 characters known to Japan's gaming fans.

Whether that means you can stalk them is up to you though.

While the sample isn't exactly representative (1,500 votes), it does give us an indication that there's a pretty stable 360 community in Japan, all of which happen to like one female heroine above all others. In any case, here are the top 10 Xbox 360 game girls of Japan:

10. Luka from Lost Planet (33 votes)
9. Kluke from Blue Dragon (41 votes)
8. Aya from Oneechanbara VorteX (47 votes)
7. Lara Croft from Tomb Raider: Legend (48 votes)
6. Inphyy from Ninety-Nine Nights (55 votes)
5. Baek Changpo from Senko no Ronde Rev. X (71 votes)
4. Reiko Hinomoto from Rumble Roses XX (92 votes)
3. Alicia from Bullet Witch (117 votes)
2. Kasumi from the Dead or Alive series (221 votes)
1. Miki Hoshii from THE IDOLM@STER (565 votes)

The good news: For the guys who thought Tecmo's DOAX2 was just all about some gorgeous bouncilicious (Read: gravity-defying) babes out to play some volleyball in nosebleed-inducing swimsuits, we found a video of them that does NOT involve the following: playing in the sand, swimming, chasing each other around, jet-skiing, sunbathing, changing swimsuits, and yes - playing volleyball.

The bad news: Two words - Pole Dance. While the vid's gotten rid of the elements that have made it such a hot item for dudes (and earned it the wrath of the dudes' GF's), we're sure you guys won't mind what the devs have left out as you watch the game's gals kick, spin, and duck in these these video segments...and they ain't even fighting. And if your girlfriend/mom/wife asks...you didn't get this from us. The vids should have a parent gate set up, so the kiddies won't be able to access them too easily. Enjoy, and keep your nose clean.)

Lined up from top to bottom: Kokoro, Hitomi, Christy, and Kasumi.

More videos after the jump!

Those who carry the Y chromosome will need no encouragement to unlock these DOAX2 Achievements, provided courtesy of Xbox360Achievements. And the name of the game is collection. Collect swimsuits. Collect friends. Collect Achievements. And collect this 100-point Secret Achievement just by playing the game further. No need for encouragement there either.

I guess the girls have some built-in fashion sense, if Xbox360Achievements are right and all you have to do to "Make X friends" is to collect as many swimsuits as you can. Aren't the minigames supposed to be responsible for that? Can't be sure; we'll have to wait till we get our own hand(s) on the game to find out. But collecting swimsuits should be fun.

KASUMI ACHIEVEMENTS
Kasumi's Lovely Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Kasumi!
Make 2 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Kasumi!
Make 4 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Kasumi!
Make 6 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Kasumi!
Kasumi Complete Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Kasumi!

AYANE ACHIEVEMENTS
Ayane's Adorable Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Ayane!
Make 2 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Ayane!
Make 4 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Ayane!
Make 6 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Ayane!
Ayane Complete Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Ayane!

HITOMI ACHIEVEMENTS
Hitomi's Fresh Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Hitomi!
Make 2 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Hitomi!
Make 4 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Hitomi!
Make 6 Friends (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Hitomi!
Hitomi Complete Collection (20): Gather as many swimsuits as you can with Hitomi!

More Acievements at the full article.

Pre-Order: [Dead or Alive Xtreme 2]

Though Dead or Alive is one of the most popular fighting games in the market, which on top of having been released on multiple consoles, has also spawned a plethora of merchandise, many believe that bringing the whole concept of female fighters in scanty clothing to Hollywood may not have been such a good idea.

Slated to be released in October this year, Dead or Alive the Movie centers around the characters Tina Armstrong, Christie, Kasumi (referred to as "Princess Kasumi" in the film), and Helena Douglas. As the plot goes, these ladies are invited to a secret martial arts meet to compete against each other, only to end up fighting as a group to defeat an evil force.

One has to admit that the soup isn't particularly thick in this one. However, judging from the trailer (which I have watched after the credits of another particularly good movie this year), it does promise some slick action moves from our femme fetales. Yet the question remains: will watching the movie and the ladies who star in it be even nearly as rewarding as just staying home and playing the game instead? What do you think? Let us know via the comments.

We earlier reported about the Dead Or Alive 4 demo's recent availability on the Marketplace. Many of you were asking why in the world it became available six months after the game was released. Well, to answer those inquiries is TeamNINJA's very own, Tomonobu Itagaki who recently answered some inquiries about DOA4 and why now is the right time to come up with a demo.

Mr. Itagaki mentioned that the reason why they released the demo six months after the game came out is because they want to "let the bigger installed base try a game they may have overlooked in favor of newer titles". TeamNINJA would like "as many potential players as possible to get their hands on the game and try it out." He also mentioned that the demo will have two playable modes which are the versus and time-attack modes with both modes featuring single battle and tag battle.

When asked if TeamNINJA is considering any new downloads or add-on features for people who already own the game, the ever colorful Itagaki said that he and the team are completely focused on the DOAX2, therefore they don't really have that much time to make more downloadable content. He also divulged that they have "not done anything to DOA4's online code since the March update."

If you are a frequent Xbox Live particpant, there is a chance that you have played with Itagaki himself. He admits that he still joins matches on Xbox Live incognito and that "it is a very valuable experience to be able to listen to players discussing the merits of various aspects of the game." When asked if DOA4 would be his last fighting game, he seem to have changed his mind about it for he answered with a more hopeful - "at the moment, I am making several other games; after I have brought those to completion I will be more ready to talk about the future of Kasumi and company."