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Square Enix revealed a new Magic: The Gathering card depicting FFVII villain Sephiroth, and Tetsuya Nomura shared some insight about the designs for the art on each side, following its reveal at PAX East 2025. The card includes two designs of the character, with one of them being a new design for Safer Sephiroth that differs from his appearance in the original game.

Note: There are spoilers regarding Sephiroth in the original FFVII and FFVII Rebirth below. 6z2c57

The starting side of the card is titled Sephiroth, Fabled Soldier and it shows the character in his iconic black garb, lifting the Masamune sword with both hands. While the card itself obscures this next detail, an original sketch shared by Square Enix shows young Sephiroth at the bottom of the illustration, as he appears in FFVII Ever Crisis.

The other side of the card is titled Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel and it depicts Safer Sephiroth, the most powerful form that the character takes during his final boss fight in the original FFVII. As mentioned above, the new design is different to his classic look. Character designer Tetsuya Nomura said that there is a reason behind Safer Sephiroth looking different in this Magic: The Gathering card than he did in the 1997 release of FFVII, however he confirmed that he can't share more about it.

You can check out the cards and read Nomura’s comment here:

From what Square Enix shared, the card shows Sephiroth with his right arm detached from the wing growing on his right shoulder, unlike the original design. Additionally, underneath the torso there is another Sephiroth head.

This change is reminiscent to Bizarro Sephiroth, one of the final phases of the character in FFVII and the final boss in FFVII Rebirth. Considering the secrecy and Nomura’s words, there is a chance that this design is a hint to how Safer Sephiroth will appear in part 3 of the FFVII Remake project, but we won’t know until the game is out.

The Final Fantasy card set will appear in Magic The Gathering on June 13, 2025.

The post Tetsuya Nomura Talked About Magic the Gathering FFVII Sephiroth Art appeared first on Siliconera.

Sega and Hasbro announced that there will be a new crossover between the Sonic the Hedgehog series and Transformers that results in Sonic and Tails ing the toy line. They will be available together in a $49.99 set in Summer 2025, with pre-orders available through Hasbro Pulse and Target at 10am PT/1pm ET on December 10, 2024. 

Both the Sonic and Tails Transformers characters will be able to transform into vehicles present in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Each one is five inches tall. Both also come with weapon accessories to wield. 

Sonic is referred to as the Blue Booster. When in the car form, it looks like the Speed Star car the character uses in both the Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Sonic Racing series. Hasbro and Sega noted it requires 27 steps to shift between a humanoid shape and a car, or vice versa.

Here’s how Sonic will look:

Tails  is referred to as the Wingtail figure. People can change him into a plane. That ends up looking like the red version of the Tornado that first showed up in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. It takes a few more steps to become a plane, as you need to make 32 moves for that to happen.

And this is what Tails will look like:

Hasbro and Sega also shared detailed images of both together with us:

This is the second recent game crossover announced involving Transformers. Back in September 2024, Capcom confirmed there would be a Monster Hunter collaboration. The character represented there is Rathalos, with the ensuing figure being Rathalos Prime.

The Sonic the Hedgehog Transformers toys will launch in Summer 2025. You need to go through Hasbro Pulse or Target for the set.

The post Sonic the Hedgehog and Tails Become Transformers Toys appeared first on Siliconera.

We’re in a minor renaissance for 2D brawlers. Once a dead genre left in the 1990s, we now have a full resurgence thanks to games like Streets of Rage 4, River City Girls and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge. G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra is the latest classic franchise brought back in brawler form, as Hasbro’s action figure line takes center stage.

G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra has a simple premise. COBRA has unleashed an army of clones to attack the world’s monuments, you have to stop them. That’s it. Now go punch some guys. At the start of the game you can play as four characters, all from the 1980s G.I. Joe team: Duke, Scarlett, Snake Eyes and Roadblock.

If you’ve played any other game in this genre, you already know how gameplay operates. You’re on a 2D plane moving from left to right, although there is some movement up and down the screen too. You fight off armies of enemies that attempt to crowd around you and punch you in the face, so you have to punch them first. There are two attack buttons, and these attacks change when dashing, along with an aerial move. There’s also a special move you can activate once you’ve filled up an energy bar. The specifics of these moves change between characters, although the general control scheme stays the same.

However, while other modern brawlers have done interesting things with their mechanics, G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra feels comparatively basic. While Streets of Rage 4 offered creative use of special moves and Shredder’s Revenge offered some superb movement mechanics, Wrath of Cobra…has guns. Various firearms drop throughout the levels and can be used to blast enemies from across the stage. It’s not the most interesting addition, but there is some satisfaction to be found in blasting enemies from across the stage for a moment. Sadly, they can turn those guns on you too, which is much less satisfying to deal with.

G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra is old school to a fault here. It’s missing most of its contemporaries’ quality-of-life improvements, instead feeling like it stumbled straight out of 1992. Defensive and movement options are limited. Some enemies are tedious damage sponges. Getting surrounded happens often and can be brutal. All these elements were present in classic Streets of Rages and Double Dragons, which I still consider to be great games. However, while it’s easy to accept all this in games from the NES and Genesis eras, it’s less forgivable in 2024 when so many games have moved the genre forward in recent years.

On top of this, movement is sluggish and occasionally unresponsive. This is notable in turning, which was either so fast I broke into an unintentional run or it simply didn’t that I wanted to turn around. Turning in mid-air was also a dice roll, as the game simply decided on a whim whether or not it was possible to do.

Character balance is also significantly messy. I tried out each of the initial four characters and it’s impressive how much character choice affects the experience. If you’re playing as Snake Eyes, you can bump this review’s score up a point. He’s ludicrously fast, his attacks have brilliant range, he can dish out endless combos and, most importantly, his special summons a wolf. Playing as Snake Eyes felt like a power fantasy and much more in line with what I was expecting.

Then we have the rest of the cast. Duke is decent, but he’s also where most of my complaints about the game’s sluggishness came from. He’s the most generic brawler character imaginable, with decent moves that don’t stand out much. He does have a cool dash move quirk where he’ll slide himself behind an enemy but other than this, he’s average in every way.

And then we have Scarlett and Roadblock. The latter is a powerhouse with his attacks, but good luck getting them out because he’s so slow you’ll likely be hit before your animation barely begins. Scarlett has the opposite problem, with excellent speed but weak attacks. She should have one of the best attacks in the game, as she drops a miniature bomb for her aerial, but the explosive range is poor and it’s next to impossible to aim effectively. One of her dash moves inexplicably leaves her vulnerable for a full second too, a decision seemingly based on nothing more than trolling the player.

Presentation is serviceable. The sprite work is excellent but it’s hard to shake the feeling that it’s all pretty standard. I know I keep making comparisons to other recent brawlers Wrath of Cobra feels noticeably bland compared to the likes of Streets of Rage 4. That said, I did like how much of the military equipment was so obviously based on the toy line where the sight of every dirt bike and van led me to hearing “playsets sold separately” in my head. The goofy plastic feel of everything adds a lot to the setting, and I wish they’d leaned into it further to give the game a more unique identity.

The intro animations are severely lacking though. The character designs are bland and the voice acting is terrible. However, I’m willing to give it some credit if this was an intentional choice to replicate the stiff, limited animations of many 80s cartoons. Sadly, this is still better than how the rest of the story is delivered. You get text on the most boring loading screens in existence and nothing more. Obviously, story isn’t a huge draw for games of this type, but it did feel cheap.

The soundtrack was good, but I couldn’t help but feel like Tee Lopes was phoning it in. There’s still some catchy tunes here but it doesn’t quite reach the heights of his previous work in Sonic Mania or Shredder’s Revenge. That said, the opening theme song was a bop, mostly enhanced by the presence of Crush 40’s Johnny Gioeli. It’s an original composition rather than a recreation of the 80s theme song, but I feel it was a significant improvement. Gioeli is roaring “the all-American hero” with the same energy he sings about hedgehogs and “hell yes” is the only possible response.

However, it would be nice if the game’s technical issues didn’t get in the way of my enjoyment of that opening theme. Both animated sequences at the start of the game suffered problems in my copy. The opening animation just cut off halfway through while the opening story animation crashed the game entirely. While I rarely had issues in actual gameplay, those two glitches left a bad first impression.

On the whole, I found a decent amount of enjoyment in G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra. For the most part, it’s a standard brawler which is a fun time for a few hours, and I imagine is enhanced with friends. However, the inexperience of the dev team shows throughout, and I was left imagining how much better this would have been in the hands of Dotemu or WayForward.

G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra ends up being a decent if unremarkable entry into the retro brawler genre. However, unbalanced characters, technical issues and bland presentation make it hard to recommend over more polished games from recent years.

G.I Joe: Wrath of Cobra is out now for PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

The post Review: G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra is a Decent But Unremarkable Brawler appeared first on Siliconera.

Digital Eclipse revealed the release date for its Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind. We’ll be able to play it on December 10, 2024. As a reminder, it will be on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC via Steam. 

To go along with the reveal, there is a new trailer. Things begin with an animate dsegment. From there, we see the rangers as themselves, transforming into their superhero identities. They then fight Putties in a number of different locations. One segment also shows them riding on bikes as they attack the Crabby Cabbie boss. Other bosses highlighted include Chunky Chicken, Turkey Jerk, and Goldar. A Megazord fight against Goldar also appears at the end of the footage.

Here’s the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind trailer.

We got our first look at the game at Summer Game Fest 2024. During that reveal, a first trailer appeared highlighting gameplay. It also focused on the multiplayer beat’em up elements we’ll experience when we go through the retro title. 

The Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind release date is December 10, 2024. It will be on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC via Steam. 

The post Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind Release Date Set appeared first on Siliconera.

Wizards of the Coast has given a sneak peek at the new Magic: The Gathering cards for 2025, including the Final Fantasy cards that’ll be part of the Magic: The Gathering Universes Beyond set. The set will come out on June 13, 2025.

People who were at MagicCon: Las Vegas got to see the six of the new cards, which will also be available digitally when they come out. According to Wizards of the Coast, this Magic: The Gathering set will be the largest collection of Final Fantasy artwork in a single game. You’ll be able to get cards of characters and scenes from all of the Final Fantasy games, from the first one to XVI. This will only be the main games, so spin-offs like Theatrhythm will likely not see any representation.

Zakeel Gordon, the Product Architect at WIzards of the Coast, said: “This collaboration is more than just cards. It’s about celebrating decades of iconic characters, legendary stories, and unforgettable moments from one of the most beloved franchises in gaming history. Final Fantasy fans will get to experience these characters in an entirely new way—through the strategic depth and storytelling of Magic: The Gathering.”

You can check out six of the Final Fantasy cards here:

Magic: The Gathering is the first trading card game and came out in 1993. As of February 2023, over fifty million people play the game and Wizards of the Coast printed over twenty billion cards between 2008 and 2016. While cards for the game generally adhere to the lore that’s within the game, Wizards of the Coast began adding collaboration cards as part of its Universes Beyond initiative. In 2022, the company already announced the Final Fantasy collaboration, along with the Assassin’s Creed cards (which came out in July 2024). Other intellectual properties that have appeared in Magic include Hatsune Miku, Jurassic Park, and The Lord of the Rings.

The Final Fantasy set will appear in Magic: The Gathering on June 13, 2025.

The post Here’s a Sneak Peek at the Final Fantasy Cards in Magic: The Gathering appeared first on Siliconera.

Hasbro announced Yahtzee: One Piece, a themed version of Yahtzee that comes with Luffy’s Straw Hat, dice, and other items inspired by the anime and manga. It is available for $23.99 and, cosmetic elements aside, plays like any other version of the dice-based game. 

Like many of the Hasbro Yahtzee sets, this comes with everything necessary to play the game. Rather than most games, the sheet only keeps track of how many Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, and Chopper faces come up each turn. Each die has Luffy in the 1 spot, Zoro in 2, Nami as 3, Usopp as 4, Sanji as 5, and Chopper as 6. (This is also the order in which the characters essentially the Straw Hat Pirates.) Since the numbers are also present on each face, you could also play a more traditional game that includes straights and full houses as well. A set of five themed dice, the themed scoring sheet pad, and a pencil come with the set. 

As for the replica of Luffy’s straw hat, it is both decorative and designed to be used with the game. You could use it when rolling the dice instead of a cup or your hands. It is made of yellow plastic and designed to look like the one he wears in the show.

Here’s the full gallery showing how the item will look:

This is one of multiple One Piece variants of existing board, card, and dice games. For example, there’s a version of Monopoly inspired by the series. Standard decks of playing cards show up. Not to mention the existing One Piece Card Game is available worldwide.

The Yahtzee One Piece version is available now. The first season of the One Piece live-action adaptation is on Netflix now, with season 2 on the way. The anime is on both Netflix and Crunchyroll. Viz Media handles the manga outside of Japan. 

The post Yahtzee One Piece Includes Luffy’s Straw Hat appeared first on Siliconera.

Lego announced that a set based on Transformers character Bumblebee is about to take flight. The new release in the Icons line will cost $89.99 when it shows up on the official site on July 4, 2024, though people who are part of Lego Insiders will get early access on July 1, 2024. 

Bumblebee consists of 950 pieces to build, and the recommended age is 18+. It features two modes to it. The one allows you to see Bumblebee as a robot. This also includes a gun the character can equip. However, you can transform it into a Volkswagon Beetle. This is done by strategically moving parts around, like you would a normal Transformers action figure, rather than taking apart and completely rebuilding the set.

Here are some initial images, including one of Bumblebee as it is going from robot to car form.

This is the second Lego character in this Transformers line. The first was Optimus Prime. It launched in June 2022. It set the precedent for sets to have the capability to swap between robot and vehicle modes without needing to do any rebuilding. As that kit consists of 1508 pieces to Bumblebee’s 950, it costs $179.99.

This isn’t the only crossover product between Transformers characters and other merchandise brands. For example, many of them are also part of the Kotobukiya Bishoujo figure line. A feminine adaptation of Optimus Prime debuted in January 2023, and Bumblebee followed in August 2023.

Lego Bumblebee will launch on July 4, 2024, with Lego Insider Early Access running July 1-3, 2024. 

The post Next Lego Transformers Character Is Bumblebee  appeared first on Siliconera.

SuperGroupies is releasing a brand-new line of merchandise based on the Transformers property to celebrate its 40th anniversary, and it will feature watches with interchangeable bands, wallets with detachable money clips, and jackets that transform into bags when folded. Pre-orders for the line of merchandise based on Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and Megatron will remain open until April 1, 2024.

The SuperGroupies line of Transformers merchandise is made to order, limiting them to those who order during the pre-order period. The jackets and backpacks will ship in July 2024, while the watches will ship out in September 2024.

The Optimus Prime watch comes with two interchangeable bands: a silver metal band and a blue rubber band. The face of the watch features the Autobots symbol and a design that is reminiscent of Optimus Prime's head. The Optimus Prime wallet us a deep red color with a metal Autobots symbol on the front. It comes with a removable money clip that can be used to hold a few cards or some money. The Optimus Prime parka-style jacket comes in red and blue with a large kangaroo pocket on the front. The pocket is where the jacket can be folded and transformed into a bag with straps. Images and prices for the SuperGroupies Transformers merchandise based on Optimus Prime can be seen below:

[gallery columns="5" size="medium" link="file" ids="1018416,1018415,1018417,1018418,1018419,1018425,1018426,1018427,1018428,1018429,1018420,1018421,1018422,1018423,1018424"]

• Optimus Prime Model Watch - ¥38,500 (~$260 USD)
• Optimus Prime Model Wallet - ¥17,600 (~$119 USD)
• Optimus Prime Model Jacket - ¥26,400 (~$173 USD)

The Bumblebee watch comes with a yellow rubber band and a black gunmetal band that can be interchanged to create two styles of watches. The Autobots emblem is also emblazoned on the face of the watch like the Optimus Prime watch. The Bumblebee wallet comes in black with a yellow accent the outside. The interior of the wallet is a bright yellow color and also comes with a removable money clip. The Bumblebee jacket comes in yellow and black, and folds up into a bag similar to the Optimus Prime jacket. Images and prices for the SuperGroupies Transformers merchandise based on Bumblebee can be viewed below:

[gallery columns="5" size="medium" ids="1018430,1018431,1018432,1018433,1018434,1018440,1018441,1018442,1018443,1018444,1018435,1018436,1018437,1018438,1018439" link="file"]

• Bumblebee Model Watch - ¥38,500 (~$260 USD)
• Bumblebee Model Wallet - ¥17,600 (~$119 USD)
• Bumblebee Model Jacket - ¥26,400 (~$173 USD)

The Megatron version of merchandise is the only set representing the Decepticons, and features black and grey coloring. The watch comes with a black gunmetal band as well as a black rubber band. The front face of the watch features the Decepticons emblem, and features purple and red accent colors. The wallet is grey with a black accent along the front. The interior of the wallet has red accent colors, and comes with a removable money clip with the Decepticons emblem printed on it. The jacket comes in black and grey with red accents around the jacket. Like the other two jackets in the Transformer line, it can also turn into a bag. Images and prices for the SuperGroupies Transformers merchandise based on Megatron can be seen below:

[gallery columns="5" size="medium" ids="1018445,1018446,1018447,1018448,1018449,1018455,1018456,1018457,1018458,1018459,1018450,1018451,1018452,1018453,1018454" link="file"]

• Megatron Model Watch - ¥38,500 (~$260 USD)
• Megatron Model Wallet - ¥17,600 (~$119 USD)
• Megatron Model Jacket - ¥26,400 (~$173 USD)

Other recent SuperGroupies merchandise lines based on popular anime and video game series include a collection based on Yu-Gi-Oh's Yugi and Kaiba and Ghost of Tsushima protagonist Jin Sakai.

The SuperGroupies Transformers merchandise line will be available for pre-order until April 1, 2024.

The post SuperGroupies Transformers Jacket Transforms Into Bag appeared first on Siliconera.

Hasbro has announced that Final Fantasy and Assassin's Creed cards will appear in Magic: The Gathering. Players can expect them some time in 2024. This news came out during Hasbro’s Investor Day, and they will be part of the Universes Beyond Initiative. [Thanks, IGN!]

There are no details about what characters will appear from the series, but Cynthia Williams (Wizards of the Coast president) has commented that the releases would appear “from 2024.” Williams has not mentioned if the Final Fantasy and Assassin’s Creed cards would be individual cards available through Secret Lair drops, or pre-made decks.

During the announcement, Williams commented that 2022 would be the 35th anniversary of Final Fantasy and the 15th anniversary of Assassin’s Creed. Both franchises are still releasing games, with Final Fantasy XVI set to come out in Summer 2023. Meanwhile, Ubisoft announced three Assassin’s Creed games during the Ubisoft Forward in September 2022.

Other IPs that Hasbro previously collaborated with for the Universes Beyond Initiative include Fortnite and Lord of the Rings. The Fortnite cards are Secret Lair drops that are reprints of existing Magic cards. Meanwhile, the Lord of the Rings cards will appear as an entire complete set.

The Final Fantasy and Assassin’s Creed cards for Magic: The Gathering will appear some time in 2024.

The post Final Fantasy, Assassin’s Creed to Magic: The Gathering appeared first on Siliconera.

Kotobukiya has revealed new images of a work-in-progress sculpt of the Hatsune Miku My Little Pony collaboration figure. Additionally, the company announced that further information about the figure would release during its online event on August 29, 2021.

As part of the Bishoujo line of figures, the Hatsune Miku figure was announced earlier this year. Similar to past My Little Pony Bishoujo figures, it will feature a bishoujo-style Hatsune Miku alongside a smaller pony-fied version of the Vocaloid singer. While the announcement also featured illustrations by Shunya Yamashita, this is the first time fans get to see photos of the actual figure currently in development.

Like the illustration it's based on, the figure features Miku with her signature twin tails and uniform. Next to Miku is a pony with similar twin tails and necktie riding on a music-themed stand. Furthermore, it looks like purchasers can display the pony figure separate from the Miku figure.

You can get a better look at the Hatsune Miku My Little Pony figure below:

[gallery ids="895853,895852,895854" link="file"]

Kotobukiya plans to announce more information about the figure during the Kotobukiya Collection Online 2021 Livestream event on August 29, 2021. A special website is also planned to go live on the same day.

There is currently no confirmed release date or price for the Hatsune Miku My Little Pony bishoujo figure.

The post Get a First Look at the New Hatsune Miku My Little Pony Figure appeared first on Siliconera.

Another Mario variant of a classic board game is available. Hasbro released The Game of Life: Super Mario Edition. This is a $29.99 take on The Game of Life. However, while the original version involves making life choices and pursuing success until you reach retirement, this version is a bit different. Instead, players are trying to prepare for a fight against Bowser.

Here is how this version of the game works. When someone starts playing The Game of Life: Super Mario Edition, they pick Mario, Luigi, Peach, or Yoshi as their avatar. They then go around the Mushroom Kingdom on the board. As they do, they’ll get coins and chances to participate in minigames, complete actions, and buy Stars. Question blocks will involve chances to earn items. People can also end up collecting Companions. Bowser’s Castle waits at the end, and people who reach him will use everything they’ve accrued to fight him.

This isn’t the first time a Mario version of a board game changed up the rules. Hasbro’s Monopoly Gamer line did as well. The original Monopoly Gamer is about building up points and fighting boss battles as Mario, Peach, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong. Monopoly Gamer: Mario Kart added rules that involved “racing” around the board.

The Game of Life: Super Mario Edition is available. People can find it at stores like Amazon, GameStop, and Walmart.

The post The Game of Life: Super Mario Edition’s About Fighting Bowser appeared first on Siliconera.

There’s a Naruto Monopoly game out and, instead of taking the approach of buying property around places like the Hidden Leaf Village, it involves buying ninjas. Likewise, instead of placing homes and hotels, you’re placing onigiri and ramen bowls. There’s a hint of a theme there, but there are times when it doesn’t commit to the bit in the same way something like Monopoly Gamer does.

While there is the theme, there’s no functional change to the way Monopoly is played in Naruto Monopoly. Your goal is still to be the last person standing while everyone else goes bankrupt. The back of the box might say “Recruit the best ninjas to show the Hokage that you’re up to the task of leadership,” but that’s the only time that comes up. Which is a bit of a shame, because a rule change that might have prioritized collecting known “teams” or having a certain number of warriors on your side would have done a lot to set it apart.

But then, the placement of characters is a bit haphazard for that too. For the most part, teams are properly placed together. For example, the three “pink” properties in Naruto Monopoly are Team 10’s Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru. But then the game also splits up Team 7 by making Naruto and Sasuke into Boardwalk and Park Place and putting Sakura in the Green properties with Kakashi and Sai. (Also, I’m a bit disappointed that the more advanced “legends” like Jiraya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade are only put as yellow properties while people still learning like Naruto and Sasuke are the most expensive ninjas on the board.)

While the naming and for items aren’t the same, their functions are. Onigiri are houses, while ramen bowls are hotels. Placing them on a ninja increases their value when someone else stops by. Unfortunately, the food element is only aesthetic and explanation why feeding ninja makes them better. (Perhaps they fight better when eating properly?) The game still refers to this as rent, though if you wanted to “play along” you could pretend you’re paying to “borrow” their services for a mission. Chance and Community Chest cards are Mission and Training cards. They don’t actually give you tasks, but instead are the standard excuses to give you a quick reward. There’s no attempt to change “jail.” Though the railroads are now the Akatsuki Deidara, Kisame, Itachi, and Pain.

Also, you unfortunately don’t get little figures of characters like Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi as tokens. Instead, you get an Akatsuki cloud, Anbu mask, boot, Gaara’s gourd, kunai, and shuriken. Which I suppose makes sense, given all of the major characters appear as spaces on the board. It does seem a bit like a missed opportunity to get to “be” your favorite characters from the series.

In general, Naruto Monopoly is fine. It’s a reskinned version of Monopoly, which people might appreciate. As long as someone doesn’t go in expecting character tokens that look like familiar characters or new rules inspired by Naruto Shippuden and its world, they’ll likely have a good time. Thought ittedly, it will always annoy me though that somehow Naruto and Sasuke are the most valuable “properties” in the game.

Naruto Monopoly is now available.

The post Naruto Monopoly Involves Recruiting (and Feeding) Characters appeared first on Siliconera.

A Hatsune Miku and My Little Pony collaboration is currently in the works at Kotobukiya. The news was announced by the Hatsune Miku official Twitter and revealed that the Vocaloid singer will be reimagined as a pony as part of Kotobukiya's Bishoujo lineup. While there are no further details on a release date, Kotobukiya has stated that the statue will be "coming soon."

The collaboration figure will also include a "Miku Pony," as shown in the announcement tweet below. In it, the pony has Miku's signature twin ponytails, as well as her necktie and "01" arm symbol. Kotobukiya has yet to confirm a price for the statue. However, other My Little Pony statues cost between ¥11,000 and ¥17,000 (about $101 to $156).

https://twitter.com/cfm_miku_en/status/1395560019752480768?s=20

Shunya Yamashita designed the art and has worked with Kotobukiya on its My Little Pony Bishoujo statue series before. Currently, the My Little Pony lineup features twelve different statues, each including a pony and bishoujo version of the series' characters. The Bishoujo line also includes many other characters, from DC comics' Poison Ivy to Darkstalkers' Morrigan.

The Hatsune Miku My Little Pony collaboration is the fifth in the #MikuWorldCollab global collaboration series. Back in February, Crypton Future Media announced a collaboration with Pusheen as part of the series. The company is also holding a Hatsune Miku Expo entirely for free, through its Twitch and Youtube s on June 6, 2021.

The post New Hatsune Miku and My Little Pony Collaboration Figure Revealed appeared first on Siliconera.

Nexon announced that it invested an approximate $874 million in toy and video game companies across Japan and the United States. Nexon made the announcement through its securities report, where the company is required to disclose investments made. By the end of 2020, ¥92.4 billion (around $874 million) was invested in companies like Hasbro, Bandai Namco Holdings, Konami Holdings, and Sega Sammy Holdings. [Thanks, Gamer!]

In the company's investment disclosure, CEO Owen Mahoney stated:

We believe companies with strong, well-managed global IP are often overlooked and undervalued in a market that is narrowly focused on introductions of new IP. These investments reflect our respect for management teams that create and grow global properties over a period of years and decades. We believe that each has potential to capitalize on the secular shift from linear formats to interactive entertainment.

Additionally, the company announced that it made estimated gains of approximately $279 million after taking into market value. Nexon also stated that the investments are long-term investments with profit in mind and made with "no intention of acquisition or activism."

Notably, some of the companies invested in were not listed as they did not meet the investment amount required for disclosure.

Nexon is one of South Korea's leading video game companies. The company is behind many popular online games such as MapleStory and Kart Racer: Drift. It also released mobile MMORPG V4 to global audiences back in 2020.

The post Nexon Invests $874 Million In Bandai Namco, Konami, and Sega Sammy appeared first on Siliconera.

Sound general quarters, because the newest big wave to hit naval combat game World of Warships is a crossover with none other than the Transformers franchise. Developer Wargaming.net has hooked up with Hasbro to make four well-known Transformers characters playable in-game. Check out a trailer for the crossover below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnGP42M6Dig

The Autobots and Decepticons will each send two characters to represent their faction in World of Warships aboard the decks of specially modified Tier X vessels. The Transformers ship skins feature customized paint jobs based on their characters, and also host specially animated models, as well as special turrets that show the guns being operated by Cybertronians. As for the characters themselves, the usual suspects all make an appearance. Autobot leader Optimus Prime will take his place aboard the deck of a Montana-class battleship, while Decepticon leader Megatron raises his alloyed fist over the crew of a German Großer Kurfürst-class battleship. The two leaders' subordinates also appear with lighter classes of ship. Bumblebee lends his recon and stealth expertise from the environs of an American Gearing-class destroyer, while seismic specialist Rumble gets aboard a Russian Khabarovsk-class destroyer.

World of Warships is hardly a stranger to out-of-left-field content, though. The game has run crossovers with a variety of franchises, including Azur Lane, Arpeggio of Blue Steel, and Warhammer 40,000. For an April Fools' joke, the game put on a space-based theme, allowing players to briefly cosplay as the Space Battleship Yamato. Meanwhile,  its sister game World of Tanks, also ran collaborations with Valkyria Chronicles and Girls und Panzer.

That said, the Transformers brand doesn't immediately come to mind when one thinks of naval combat. Most recognizable Transformers characters have taken on the form of more land-bound vehicles like cars, trucks, and tanks (in fact, the crossover version of Megatron takes the form of a tank, whereas his classic design transforms into a large handgun). Aquatic transformers are relatively few and far between, limited to being alternative modes for existing characters, like the Triple-Changer Broadside, or obscure characters like Seaspray.

Check out more details on the World of Warships X Transformers: Warships in Disguise crossover here. The update is planned to go live for World of Warships on PC in September 2020.

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