Remembering 2015: Anime and Gaming Analysis

The year 2015 has been quite an impact for our daily lives ranging from the good news, better news, the best news, the bad news, the worst news, and everything we laid our eyes on. Now it's the ideal time for this blog to write down the analysis on what's what over the year 2015.

Anime and gaming, not two words you'd often hear in the same sentence but for the year 2015, these two interests ever nerds and geeks loved about made huge headlines.

Amazingly, the year 2015 is a big year in the world of idols in anime and gaming but the heated rivalry between THE IDOLM@STER and Love Live! School Idol Project made the biggest headlines in 2015. In THE IDOLM@STER side, the airing of the Cinderella Girls TV series, the first ever Side M concert, the second Million Live concert, the Cinderella Girls third concert, and the 10th anniversary concert held at Seibu Prince Dome last July became every producers' fantasy came true and it's not just the live performances that scored big gains to one of Bandai Namco's most successful titles because with the announcement of a new IDOLM@STER game for the PS4 as well as the addition of new Must Songs PSVita game and the new Cinderella Girls Starlight Stage app game, this franchise keeps on expanding to greater heights.

The Love Live series marks the fifth anniversary since the project began in 2010 and catapulted its way to become one of the most successful franchises in anime history and in honor of such occasion, the movie version of the hit TV series, called Love Live! The School Idol Movie was shown in theaters not just in Japan but globally as well, including the US and in the Philippines. Following the blockbuster hit of the Love Live movie, the unveiling of the second-generation Love Live, known as Love Live! Sunshine!! was introduced and Lovelivers have been greeted by the new generation of school idols in the form of Aqours.

Of course, fans of THE IDOLM@STER and Love Live don't usually get along together but at the 2015 AniMelo Concert, all that's about to change when a selection of 765PRO ALL STARS performed alongside μ's in a performance both of the sides will never forget.

Anyway, enough idol trash right now, because the year 2015 brought us some of the best anime shows as watched by most otakus everywhere. They have this majorette-laden Sound! Euphonium, a role-playing adventure show Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in the Dungeon? (our favorite goddess Hestia made famous on this show), the rebooted Fate: Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works TV series, The Asterisk War, Himouto! Umaru-chan (this anime really brought laziness to a whole new level), and of course, the one anime that blew every viewers' heads off, One Punch Man.

Anime adaptations of video games are nothing new here and with the arrival of animer versions of the popular browser game Kantai Collection and the popular role-playing game God Eater, they made pretty decent mark in the world of anime in the year 2015.

Inside the world of Pokemon, we've been introduced by the arrival of the 720th Pokemon; the mischief Pokemon Hoopa. Apart from its announcement, the new mythical Pokemon starred in the Summer 2015 Pokemon XY film Hoopa and the Clash of Ages, along with the Pikachu and the Pokemon Music Squad short film. Players of Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire got their hands of Hoopa as well as the Prison Bottle item which allows them to transform Hoopa in its powerful Unbound form. Aside from Hoopa's arrival, a new chapter of the Pokemon XY anime series lit up and now called Pokemon XY & Z. In XY & Z, viewers will brace themselves to the mysteries of the legendary Pokemon Zygarde and its many forms from the Zygarde Cell, Zygarde Core, 10% Form, 50% Form, and the Complete Form. Apart from the many forms of Zygarde viewers will look forward through next year, viewers also surprised of Ash's Greninja unlike anything they knew about this ninja Pokemon. The bond between Ash and Greninja resulted it to become Ash-Greninja according to a certain Kalos mythology regarding the bond between the trainer and the Pokemon. Anyway, there's more explosive moments to expect on the XY & Z next year, including the upcoming film featuring the recently announced mythical Pokemon Volcanion.

While we're in the middle of the world of Pokemon, the franchise has been flooded with three new free-to-play games such as Pokemon Shuffle, Pokemon Rumble World, and Pokemon Picross. Apart from these F2P Pokemon games available on the eShop, there was a new Pokemon Mystery Dungeon game called Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon, where players get to pick whose Pokemon will they want to be and set off on an adventure to help other Pokemon and save the world from impending chaos.

Inside the world of gaming, well thanks to the success of the PS4 and XBOX One, more and more games have find its way into these new age consoles. In the XBOX side, retrogamers got themselves for a treat with the Rare Replay collection and the remastered Gears of War collection but Halo fans managed to hunt the truth with the brand new Halo 5 Guardians video game. The game's epic storyline, co-op play, improved multiplayer and the rivalry between Master Chief and Jameson Locke are what made Halo fans swoon to this latest installment.

Bandai Namco's Tales franchise celebrated its 20th anniversary and in honor of such occasion, a brand new Tales game was released last January for the PS3 titled Tales of Zestiria. The 20th anniversary celebration also announced a next chapter in the Tales saga called Tales of Berseria and for this new installment, it introduces a female protagonist for the first time under the name of Velvet. It's set to release exclusively for the PlayStation consoles this 2016.

One of the biggest games that made the headlines in 2015 is the long awaited installment to the post-nuclear adventure franchise Fallout and with the all new Fallout 4, fans have been looking forward to play this latest installment after several years. This open-world action adventure game allows players to be who they want to be thanks to the SPECIAL system and apart from fighting enemies, players can build stuff and make negotiations. The possibilities are almost endless.

Konami has been quite making a headline for the year 2015 because with the cancellation of the new Silent Hill game that stars The Walking Dead's Norman Reedus on it as well as the change of staff management and the end of Kojima Productions as we knew it, looks like things aren't looking so well for the Japanese game company, especially when they've launched the long-awaited Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain for the Playstation and XBOX consoles. The Phantom Pain breaks the tradition from the past installments as it introduces open-world stealth for the players. From occupying guard posts, capture soldiers and wild animals, expanding your own bases and defend from opposing players, customizing weaponry, the possibilities are endless in The Phantom Pain.

Racing games scored big time in the year 2015 and one of the most successful racing games of 2015 are Dirt Rally, Assetto Corsa, Forza Motorsport 6, and most famously Project CARS, a game made by racers for racers.

The year 2015 brought us so many stuff fit for geeks and nerds alike. Be sure to check back onto this segment for the motoring analysis.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe (C205)

The first-ever Mercedes C-Class Coupe was introduced on the previous W204 model as the replacement to the ailing CLC-Class and now it's happy to be returned in the lineup, this time it's based on the latest W205 C-Class. So, what's it all about?

2016 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe

When the first C-Class Coupe was introduced, it became known as the sportiest member of the C-Class range, which consists of the sedan and estate. Made to target against the likes of BMW's 4-Series and Cadillac's ATS Coupe, the new C-Class Coupe blends style with technology and performance in one pristine package fit for the bachelors and the bachelorettes alike.

In terms of styling, the coupe version looks almost identical to the four-door equivalent but like we learned from the S-Class Coupe, the new C-Class Coupe features a much different rear end easy enough to distinguish it when parked alongside it. On the inside, it looks very similar to the latest C-Class and above all else, it's surprisingly high-tech to be toyed around by the driver when he or she's not driving in it.

The coupe version offers the same choice of engine types as its four-door and estate equivalents, most are mated with either a 6-speed manual or a 7G-TRONIC PLUS gearbox. The most economical version is the C220 d, which is powered by a 2.1L turbodiesel engine that has CO2 emissions of 106g/km and combined fuel consumption of 4.1l/100km. The most powerful version is the C 300, which is powered by a 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces 245PS of power and 370Nm of torque. It does 0-100kph in six seconds and onwards to an electronically limited 250kph.

And like the saloon and the estate, the new C-Class Coupe comes fully prepared with an innovative multi-link suspension and aluminium bodywork for lightness and rigidity. Yep, this two door saloon feels sporty enough to drive but for some added exciteness, perhaps it needed some more because it feels as civilized as what luxury cars do on the streets and on the open road. Either way, the two-door C-Class is as enjoyable as a librarian in a competition swimwear swimming on the weekends.

Of course, you can expect some safety tech implemented on the new C-Class Coupe especially those driver-assist system which tells the driver what should do while driving. It detects drowsiness, it automatically halts when it sense pre-collision scenarios, lane departure warning, automatic parking, so on, so forth. With all that science donned in the new C-Class Coupe, there's no telling how many surprises will shock the drivers in fruition.

Price? The new C-Class Coupe starts at 35,581 Euros, which sounds very costly to own for a luxury car, but it's surprisingly less expensive than the BMW 4-Series.

Photo: Daimler AG

Ford Mustang Shelby GT350

With the latest generation Ford Mustang's taking shape thanks to its new engine choices, a much modern design that harks back to the past, and a new suspension setup that matches up against Europe's finest, looks like Ford's on the roll to turn the Mustang into a global sportscar. If this car's going global in style, perhaps one Mustang we want in our wishlists is this advanced version of the new Mustang, the new Shelby GT350.

2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350

In the glorious past, the GT350 is known to be one of the most iconic and collectible muscle cars of the 60's, Now, fast forward fifty years to now and the legendary GT350 nameplate is back as the most advanced version of the new Mustang and because it's becoming a half-decent sportscar in its own right, you might think that this car is all buff and all bluff but no.

First up, the new GT350 is powered by an all-new 5.2L Flat Plane Crank V8 engine producing 526HP of power and 429lb-ft of torque while mated exclusively with a 6-speed manual gearbox. While it doesn't sound much for a V8-powered muscle car of this magnitude, it's powerful enough to roast some marshmallows when it makes a swift getaway.

2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R

Ford says that the new GT350 is more track focused than the previous GT500, which is known to be the most powerful Ford ever made it doesn't learn much despite the big power in its V8 engine. Of course, while this may not be the fastest Ford ever made, the handling will really remind you of the recently deceased Chevrolet Camaro Z/28. Yep, it's like a Porsche 911 GT3 edited for rednecks but if there's something even more redneck than a Porsche 911 GT3 RS, Ford will offer you a more hardcore GT350R.

The GT350R removes all concessions of comfort as well as implementing more aerodynamic features inspired by the base GT350 and the implementation of space age materials, turning this buff car into a potent track weapon that can be enjoyed most of the time. With the GT350 and the GT350R, this pony car's got talent when it comes to slip past through corners. However, there's a much bigger consequence when it comes to driving it because while this is essentially a much sportier take on the modern Mustang, you'd had to think twice about using it on a day to day basis, well save it to the base GT350, because if you've gone for the R, you'll find yourself in a hard place because with all that concessions of comfort deleted from the inside, you may find yourself struggling to live on the streets.

Either way, the new GT350 from Ford is all about being a well-proven track performer that benefits from the new Mustang's drivetrain to become as better as what European sportscars do during track days. Of course, while this maybe a track weapon but it's essentially a muscle car that likes to throw a party at the neighborhood, something that will wake the neighbors up on a late Saturday night.

Should you buy one? The new GT350 starts from $49,095 for the base to $62,595 for the R so it maybe sound much but it's more affordable to own one rather than an expensive European sportscar you've been longing for. Anyway, if I had something to say about the modern GT350, one thing comes to my mind and that is I want this car better than the classic GT350 of the 60's and who can't blame them? The video games I blame...

Photo: Ford Motor Company

Remembering 2015: Movie analysis

The year 2015 has been quite an impact for our daily lives ranging from the good news, better news, the best news, the bad news, the worst news, and everything we laid our eyes on. Now it's the ideal time for this blog to write down the analysis on what's what over the year 2015.

It has been a big year for movies straight outta Hollywood but technically, 2015 has been a big year for spy flicks such as Kingsman: The Secret Service, the movie version of The Man from UNCLE, the comedy flick SPY, the true-to-life story Bridge of Spies, the fifth installment of the Mission Impossible saga titled Rogue Nation, and the biggest spy flick of the year is 007: SPECTRE. The latest installment to the 007 films featured a bespoke Aston Martin DB10, which caused quite a stir among moviegoers and car enthusiasts everywhere but the biggest fact about SPECTRE is it garnered the Guinness World Record for the biggest film stunt explosion.

We know SPY is a comedy flick starring Melissa McCarthy but did you know that Jason Statham co-starred in this flick? Believe it or not, Statham appeared in Furious 7 as the villain named Deckard Shaw. Furious 7 featured some of the hottest cars including the bespoke Lykan Hypersport which made a shot by leaping through a tall building from within. With or without the late Paul Walker, the seventh installment of the Fast and Furious films kept the moviegoers' pulse racing to the very end.

Of course, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson reprised in the film as Hobbs but way after Furious 7, Johnson appeared as a helicopter pilot in the disaster flick, San Andreas. Some might say this is even scarier than 2012, San Andreas pits Dwayne Johnson as a helicopter pilot on a daring rescue mission to save his daughter.

Furious 7 maybe one of the hottest car action flicks of 2015 but it's beyond compare with the post-nuclear car action flick titled Mad Max Fury Road. With Tom Hardy now donning the titular character, most brave cinemagoers and car enthusiasts watched this flick to see some dystopian car action that feels so go, they wish they want to be in this world...or rather they did because they already have a Mad Max video game to toy around with on their XBOX One and PS4.

Legendary franchises made a huge comeback in the cinemas and with films such as Jurassic World, Terminator Genysis, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, these films surely bring the new generation of moviegoers a taste of legends in its own rights.

Superhero movies became dominant in the summer blockbusters of 2015 and for the Disney-owned Marvel, they've gone big with films like Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man, however, there was one film that didn't make the cut and that's the 2015 reboot of the Fantastic Four film.

Children's' films have been rose to dominance in 2015 with films such as the SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, Minions, Hotel Transylvania 2, and The Peanuts Movie, but the biggest breakthrough made possible by Disney with thanks to their live-action reboot of Cinderella as well as two Disney-Pixar films such as Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur.

In partial terms of erotic fantasies, the most erotic films of 2015 that satisfy their erotic fantasies were Fifty Shades of Grey and Magic Mike XXL, which is a sequel to the Magic Mike film that stars Channing Tatum.

Book-based films gained quite an interest in 2015 from the powerful biopic American Sniper, the science-fiction space movie The Martian, to the epic conclusion of The Hunger Games saga titled Mockingjay Part 2.

There are many many great movies ever shown in theaters in 2015 but deciding which is the best movie of 2015 is everyone's guess.

Check back on this segment as I'll be tackling on the anime and gaming analysis through the year 2015.

Let's Do The News! (December 29, 2015)

- Metro Manila Development Authority Chairman Emerson Carlos, who was one of the jurors of the 2015 Metro Manila Film Festival, welcomed the reported decision by the House of Representatives in the investigation of the disqualification of Erik Matti's film, Honor Thy Father, from being nominated in the best picture category.

- The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the overseas Filipino worker placed on death row was executed in Saudi Arabia. The OFW, named Joselito Zapanta, aged 35, was executed by the Riyadh Grand Court around 1420 hours. He was convicted for murder with robbery five years ago and was sentenced for killing his Sudanese landlord over a rent problem.

- The Armed Forces of the Philippines will display forty of their air assets during the commemoration of Jose Rizal's 119th death anniversary in Manila. The fly-by of these assets will be held just nine days after the AFP displayed their helicopets and aircrafts during the 80th anniversary in Clark, Pampanga. It will be the first time to initiate a fly-by in celebration of Rizal Day.

- Following the death of a nine-year old girl in Bulacan by a stray bullet, the Department of Health called on gun owners to be responsible and avoid indiscriminate firing.

- The United States expressed concerns that the new anti-terror law established by China would restrict the freedom of expression. A spokesperson to the Deputy State Department said that the new legislation requires internet-related companies to share information with the authorities.

- The northern Italian city of Milan has adopted an emergency measure to curb air pollution by banning everyone to drive their cars for three days.

- South Korean reports are divided over the historical agreement on the issue of comfort women. Last Tuesday, the Japanese and Korean governments reached an agreement and gained heavy coverage in newspapers.

- To attract more foreign visitors in the Taito Ward district in Tokyo, the ward's official website will be translated to 89 languages, with new languages such as French, Thai, Norwegian, and Nepalese. Officials warn that the translation will be Google-based so it may not be accurate but this translation want to to provide foreigners with more information about the ward's landmarks ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympics.

TTFN!!!

New Peugeot 308 GTi by Peugeot Sport

Peugeot's return to hot hatchery since the 208 GTi made the French carmaker to explore new heights with the arrival of the brand new 308 GTi, their most potent version of the second-generation Peugeot 308 hatchback. Would the VW Golf GTi had something to worry about?

2016 Peugeot 308 GTi

Generally, yes, because with the new 308 GTi, Peugeot managed to venture the hot hatch world with brave new heights because this is essentially the most powerful Peugeot hot hatch ever made and for some, this new hot hatch wants to draw inspiration from the legendary Peugeot 306 S16, the hatchback that set benchmarks for French hot hatches, but truth be told, it's a lot more than that.

It's powered by a 1.6L THP engine that delivers a much tangible 270HP of power output. With that kind of power output, it's an undeniable fact that this is much more powerful than the Golf GTi and the Ford Focus ST, but less than the ultimate Golf, the Golf R. Mated exclusively with a 6-speed manual gearbox, it does 0-100kph in less than six seconds and onwards to an electronically limited 250kph.

Either way, even though the 308 GTi has some big power under its small engine, the handling that has been the key point of hot hatches is still there. Thanks to the available Driver Sport Pack, the new GTi feels as livelier as Peugeot's past hot hatchbacks that dates back to the iconic 205 GTi, meaning it's a great car to drive on a track day and it doesn't matter if you're not concentrating. It maybe mild on the driving dynamics but it feels very accessible to handle and even if you're a track-shy rookie, it feels not so bad. However, while the GTi is focused to be a track weapon, driving on normal roads will have a different experience and because of its stiffened suspension, you may find driving one on the city streets to be a stressful experience, especially on heavy traffic.

Anyway, should you buy one? The new Peugeot 308 GTi by Peugeot Sport starts at 37,200 Euros, which sounds like a lot for a Peugeot but less expensive than the Golf R, which is not what you call a smart buy but either way, the 308 GTi by Peugeot Sport is the ideal hot hatch to drive on a track day and if you wouldn't mind the stiffened suspension that caused so much drama on the normal roads, it is a fantastic addition to your garage.

Photo: PSA Peugeot Citroen

New Mini Clubman (F54)

If you ever thought that with the launch of the five-door Mini Cooper, you might expect that the Clubman will be gone for good but no way because that would be pretentious and silly. Anyway, even with the five door present in the lineup, Mini decided to regenerate the longer Clubman to become the most spacious Mini available to the market.

2016 Mini Clubman

Just like its normal Mini, the new Clubman is now a bigger, more roomier Mini, you can take loads of if you have a little hectic schedule to deal with. With a car like this, think about the stuff you'll do from your recently made to-do list whilst on your day off. One minor setback, though, and when you notice that when you park this car side by side with the normal Mini five-door, you will notice that there's not much difference between those two except for its longer wheelbase and the signature doors at the rear. The club door from the previous model is gone, meaning the new Clubman is an accessible Mini your friends could enjoy.

Of course, you still have the new Mini interior as seen in any other new Minis but because of its added dimensions to the new model, you'll have lots of room not just for the passengers but also boot space, which is fairly decent for the average courier man.

Like all new Minis, it's been utilized in BMW's UKL1 platform as seen on the BMW 2-Series Active Tourer, meaning that it's a front-wheel drive car so it's as civilized as a salaryman. Sure, it's got a nice suspension setup but because of being too big for its size, it doesn't feel as fun to drive as any other Minis in the history books. It rather feels bulky every time you turn the steering wheel and understeer can be a bit of an issue for the Clubman.

The cheapest Clubman is the One, which is available at 21,900 Euros and what you get is a 1.5L three-cylinder turbo engine developing 102PS of power and 180Nm of torque. The most powerful version is the Cooper S, which has a 2.0L turbocharged engine that can go from 0-100 over the seven second mark. The most economical is the One D Clubman, which has CO2 emissions of 99g/km. Either way, they're all about choices for the new Clubman.

So, should you buy one. As mentioned before, the new Clubman starts at 21,900 Euros, which is somewhat more expensive than the five-door Mini offered in the lineup but in terms of ownership, it's somewhat average to the average buyer.

Photo: MINI