How To Play Angelique Or Any Other Japanese Otome Game In English

I recently started playing Angelique Luminarise in English. The game was just released in May of 2021 in the Japanese Nintendo Eshop. It is not available in English. Not commercially – and not fan translated either. So how am I playing it in English?

Well it ain’t pretty, and it ain’t perfect but here’s how. Pretty simple really. The main thing you need is a smartphone with the free Google Translate app. I like to download the Japanese language pack for offline viewing too – but you don’t have to.

The other thing you’re going to need is to create a Japanese Nintendo Eshop account. This process is easy.

  • Go to accounts.nintendo.com
  • Enter your information
  • Select Japan as the country
  • Enter or create a new email address different from your existing nintendo email address
  • If it asks for a street address, you can use Tokyo University (just google the address) (this also works when creating Japanese Itune accounts)
  • Now on your nintendo switch create a new user account and link it to the new account you just created.
  • If any of the menus or text on screen is in Japanese, now you can get your phone and use live translation to convert it to your native language (which for me is English)
  • When you want to purchase games in the Eshop you will need a Japanese Nintendo Eshop Giftcard – I buy mine at Playasia and recommend them. I’ve bought probably over $500 in Japanese Egift codes from them and never have had a problem.

I would just use Paypal but Nintendo refuses paypals from my country (USA)

So I buy my giftcards at Playasia.

You can enter the giftcards into the Switch OR you can access the Nintendo Japanese eshop at https://store-jp.nintendo.com/ and add your balances or buy your games even this way. I find this easier – since with Google Chrome it automatically translates my screen without me needing to fumble around with my phone.

Even if you buy the games on the computer, you can install them remotely from your computer to your Nintendo Switch.

Very easy to buy Japanese games this way.

Now that you have the Japanese game you want to play, the awkward part may be trying to work two devices. I prop my Switch Lite up a bit – Switch users can use the kickstand, or play off their TV. I keep my Switch Lite in my lap, and in one hand I hold my phone with Google Translate running automatically.

Now in the case of Angelique you will want to go into settings and turn off the automatically advancing text option – use your phone to find it – It is on by default – and Google Translate is not fast enough to translate the screen before the text changes. Once you turn it off, you will have to press A to advance the text. It’s tedious but much better translation this way.

In my screen it says “Automatic Feed” TURN IT OFF!!!!!!! OFFFFFFF!! – You can thank me later lol.

Some scenes will still be “lost in translation” – not only because it’s machine translated and not 100% perfect – but because also some scenes are video and voice without text etc.

But nonetheless – this lets you play Angelique – and virtually any other game you can think of – in about 95% decent English.

The translation is pretty decent most of the time.

The funniest thing I saw was when playing Monster Rancher – the trainer introduces herself by saying “Hi, I’m Horrifying” instead of “Hi, I’m Holly”. After a few seconds google translate corrected itself – but it still made for a funny screenshot.

But no, in Angelique, from what I’ve seen with my brief like 15-minute journey into the game before work this morning, the translation is decent. I get the main gist of the intro story.

It starts out with a girl (that’s you) being soundly asleep and woken by a loud very rude kinda pompous and demanding character. He accuses you of being rude for not greeting him properly but says since you’re new he will forgive your rudeness. He introduces himself as the God of Light and one of 9 Gods in this universe and that he has taken you as a queen candidate from another world.

You meet a girl who arrived one day before you who is also another queen candidate and you meet a butler – who is also a God who gives you some paperwork to file. You enter your name, horoscope, blood type and answer a personality quiz.

After this, you’re taken to see the God of light again who explains the test you are about to face. You and your rival will be developing a nation using the powers of the gods, and whosever nation is more developed at the end will be elected as the new queen.

All of the screenshots that you see in this post were taken by me as I was playing Angelique Luminarise for Nintendo Switch. These are not edited in any way. Except for my featured image – the text is all correct – I just cropped it to fit as a featured image – and it was too funny and too appropriate not to use! “What the hell are these people saying? I have no idea” is exactly what I would be saying if I didn’t have my smartphone translating everything lol. So yes, that is what the character is saying in that scene, and every other image here. This is how it appears on my smartphone, replacing the text on the screen with English.

You don’t need to take photos – It does it real time. I just took a bunch of photos to illustrate on my blog here. I mean it’s not awful for machine translation. I have seen worse! And it’s better than being in Japanese – I have tried to learn before but it’s hard when it’s not just another language but a different alphabet – in fact… three different alphabets all of which can be used interchangably and like wtf… lol. Google you’re doing a good job. Keep being a bro.

It can be tricky especially if there is a glare or trying to get things at just the right distance or angle to translate properly. But it does in fact work, with a little finessing and fanangling.

What games will you be playing in English now?

I’m still most looking forward to Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side 4th Heart this October and Air I think in September – but for now, Angelique will keep me busy.

Japanese games are expensive I feel like… I feel like I’m spending $70-80 for one game – where in USA I’m used to spending about $50-60 – But still worth it. Because most of these games will never come out in English.

Angelique has been around for 25 years. Angelique Luminarise is part of a 25th birthday celebration. But we have never received a single Angelique game in English.

Another game series I treasure is Idol M@ster. I think there are ways – probably with android more so than IOS – to automatically translate the text on the phone screen while playing games – I do know there’s a new (or remastered) Idol M@ster coming out soon – or recently released for PC and PS4 – but I am happy with my many different Idol M@ster games on my phone. I haven’t figured out a good way to translate the phone app simultaneously as google translate and the game are running. I imagine there’s apps for that on android – or people are using bluestacks. I just do it the tedious way by taking a screenshot, translating it in the app, and repeat forever.

It’s different now on the Switch or other device because I can LIVE translate, so I don’t have to take screenshots or exit and re-enter the game. I can do everything on the fly.

Plus if I’m being honest….

I skip almost all the dialogue in games like Idol M@ster, Love Live, Bang Dream Girls, UtaPri, Ensemble Stars, etc…. Even when English versions are released because it’s not that interesting? LOL….. It’s really not. – I play to collect the cute girls (and cute guys) and enjoy the music… I think maybe it’s the way the text is divided or structured – forcing you to read bits of it to unlock the next scene or song – and wanting the rewards etc. I just skip all that shit – am I the only one? And I love story driven games – but damn, I just feel like all those mobile apps, the story slows down my gameplay and I just want to play and not be bogged down. Maybe because it’s slice of life? But that’s my preferred genre when reading manga or watching anime – I dunno what it is – but really – I’m not missing much by Idol M@ster not being in English – I’d be happy just with an English menu patch/release really. Good enough for me lol.

Other games like Angelique or Tokimeki Memorial or Air or Kannon etc where the story is actually interesting and good – I’ll use my smartphone to be able to enjoy the story – even though it’s inconvenient.

I already know I’ll buy Air and Tokimeki Memorial.

I’m thinking of buying Memories Off Historia 1 and 2 (a total of about 7 or 8 games there).

Plus lots of other Japanese games.

It’s awkward and cumbersome – but yes – for the most part “This will do”.

How To Play Angelique Or Any Other Japanese Otome Game In English was originally published on

Genshin Impact Review Of Free To Play Open World Anime RPG With Gacha

Genshin Impact has been making waves and covered by almost every media outlet. It has received both good and bad press. But I hadn’t played it until last month when I got my Playstation 5. Genshin Impact is also available on mobile and PC. And there is talk about bringing a version to Nintendo Switch but that won’t happen until late 2021 at the earliest. I’ve spent a few weeks now with Genshin Impact and have really enjoyed it thus far. Here’s what I think.

Genshin Impact is a new open world anime RPG by Mihoyo. It has stunning anime graphics, English voice acting, great music, and lots of unique features. The open world lets you explore, craft, hunt for treasure, perform both story and non story based quests, and of course fight monsters, all while collecting characters from a gacha. Genshin Impact is said to have terrible Gacha rates and gets a bad rep for that aspect sometimes.

I find the game quite fascinating for a free to play game.

Make no mistake, Genshin Impact is NOT an MMORPG – although it feels like one. It’s a single player RPG best described like an anime version of breath of the wild perhaps.

The story, the graphics the music, voice acting, and gameplay are exceptional for a free to play game.

I enjoy exploring the open world environment, getting loot and treasure, hopefully getting lucky with my free gacha draws, and cooking and crafting. I also really like the story and combat and gameplay. Really I like everything.

I’m new as bleep to this game, so that could be part of my awe and enjoyment. But I think it is one that keeps players coming back because of the open world nature of the game and high production values.

Get started for free. Already playing? Leave me a comment with your favorite aspects of Genshin Impact.

Score Card:

Geeky: 5/5 – Amazing visuals, music, voice acting, open world, a lot of fun combat skills, great game. Can’t believe it’s free to play.

Sweetie: 5/5 – The graphics are so cute! And you can cook and craft and explore and the story and voice acting are good too! You can also choose a female main character which I appreciate having the option!

Gameplay: 10/10 – Really great gameplay – so what if the gacha rates suck? I like everything this game has to offer – open world, exploration, cooking, questing, story, flying, climbing, everything in the world is interactable with. You can swim, you can climb trees, you can cut down bushes, break open crates and barrels, yeah I love this.

Graphics: 10/10 – I’m not saying they’re the best graphics I’ve ever seen in a video game, but they’re to MY taste, anime, bright, vibrant, lush, 3D or cell shaded, it looks awesome!

Music: 7/10 – Well above average – I like the music in Genshin Impact but I wouldn’t say it’s overly memorable in the end. It gets the job done.

Voice Acting: 10/10 – English voice acting is great. Paimon sounds so cute! I want to cosplay as Paimon as soon as this pandemic ends and we can go to conventions again.

Story: 7/10 – There is a story, but it kinda does take a backseat to the action and exploration a bit – but it’s still a pretty good story!

Characters: 10/10 – I like all of the characters so far. They’re cute and the English voice acting just brings them to life. Thumbs Up.

Replay Value: 7/10 – Pretty high! It can get repetitive sure, but the open world lets you play the way YOU want, and there’s in game events and other things to keep new content coming.

Overall: 71/80 89% Very Good Game For Girls!

HOLD UP! We have a NEW CHAMPION!!!

Genshin Impact takes our number 10 spot – knocking down former long-time number 10 contender – Lunar Eternal Blue – for the Best Games For Girls on our Top 10 list!!!

Sorry Lunar – you’re still my favorite game series of all time, but looking at things analytically – you didn’t age that well – except for your story and hand drawn animated cutscenes which are still amazing – but you lack replaybility, outside the cutscenes graphics are dated, and combat honestly could put people to sleep – but you’re still the best in my heart lol. You only lost to Genshin by less than 1 percent. My condolences. I’ll replay you again later :).

Genshin Impact Review Of Free To Play Open World Anime RPG With Gacha was originally published on

Three Things I Will Miss About My Pixel 3

I will be switching back to Iphone. My green Iphone 11 is supposed to be delivered by end of the day tomorrow. My reason for switching is to have a more secure device. I fell victim to the camera hack as well as within the past 6 months, 3 different accounts of mine have been hacked – I can’t prove it’s my phone’s fault, but I had the Iphone 6 – up until Pixel 3, and never had been hacked. The reasons for which are varied, for example Iphone is a tightly controlled app marketplace. While it’s not impossible for a rogue app to sneak in, it’s definitely more difficult. Another reason Iphone is more secure is because Android is the most widely used platform, similar to how many computer attackers aim their threats at windows because it dominates the market. They want to attack where the most people are. Lastly, Google’s convenience in password storage and account linking makes it easier for attackers to get all of your information in one place.

But there are several things I am really going to miss about my Pixel 3. Here are the top three things I will miss the most.

1.) Google Assistant

I find Google Assistant to be extremely helpful. I use it to take photos, set my alarm, search the internet, and any other number of things. Iphone has Siri but it’s still not the exact same thing as Google’s AI.

2.) The camera

I think the Iphone 11 Camera will be good – but I will miss the macro photography on the Pixel 3. As doll photography is my main hobby, I find I use macro more than any other type of photography. A lot of what makes a good Macro shot on the Pixel 3 is Google’s AI for the camera.

3.) Qoo App

The phone’s downfall is also its strength. An open app marketplace with a lot of apps. Qoo App which I’ve reviewed here before is an app that lets you easily get and keep updated apps from Asian countries such as Japan, China, and Korea. As an anime gamer, I will miss this – however; I know a work around on the Iphone to get games from the Japanese or Korean apple play stores.

There are other things I will miss too, the great clean interface that I’ve gotten used to. It is a beautiful user experience. Maybe the best I have seen. I’ll miss the cute “Not Pink” color – although I do love the tiffany blue mint green Iphone color too. And lastly, I’ll miss the unlimited online storage for the photos and videos of Pixel 3. There are many other great things about this phone that I will really miss. I haven’t had an Iphone since 6S… so I am a little unsure what to expect in Iphone 11. Time will tell if I’m happy with my trade-in or not. At least I got a great deal, a straight trade without having to pay anything except tax and that’s for the 256gb model, thanks to some great Black Friday specials running now with the major carriers. Goodbye Pixel 3, and hello to the next big thing.

Three Things I Will Miss About My Pixel 3 was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

Idol M@ster Shiny Colors – Japanese Mobile Game Review and Kinda Brief English Walkthrough

I am really into Idol M@ster Shiny Colors. Unlike other Idol M@ster Mobile Games or Love Live or Bang Dream, Idol M@ster Shiny Colors is not a rhythm game. Idol M@ster Shiny Colors is a simulation game. You are a producer and “hire” idols to work in your studio. You draw the idols from gacha.

Please note – I did not realize this when I played, but on your first 10 play gacha, you get UNLIMITED REROLLS by pushing the YELLOW BUTTON on the left. Once you are happy with your cards press the PINK button on the right. I didn’t know, I pushed the pink button and I only had one SSR. I have been thinking about starting over (and still might) but I think I had some pre-registration bonuses and other things I don’t want to lose by restarting the game. So definitely do not push the Pink button until you have the cards you want.

Collecting and dressing girls is the main appeal of the game. But what do you do once you have a team of idol girls? You can plan their schedule – like a true sim game. You can have them practice, give interviews, or other activities to promote their stats.

The stats also can be increased in a final-fantasy-style skill tree system where you spend skill points to unlock stat-bonuses like +20 vocals, +30 dance, +20 vitality, etc. Depending what “path” you take in the skill tree your girls will develop in different ways.

You have one main girl, and several other backup idols. The main girl is the one to gain from this skill tree system.

Performing a live show is quite different from other mobile idol games. It’s more almost like an RPG battle. You tap a girl’s face below the stage and then tap a “skill” along the left such as vocal, dance, etc. Then a colored bar will appear on the screen, try to time it right and tap the screen when the needle on the bar is in the white color. White will give you the highest bonus. Purple the least, and yellow a medium boost. You can also “link” your girls’ actions to perform together in one attack. On the right hand side of the screen are some other bubbles. i think, but could be wrong since I do not read Japanese, but think that you are competing against other idols, and as you perform these skills you can defeat the idols to the right hand side. But if you miss, you will notice your own idols on the left dropping off the screen. Once all the idols either on left or right are gone, the performance ends.

The artwork in the game is very kawaii, and SSR and higher cards have movie animations, both when retrieving from the Gacha and also when performing a live show. All of the idols are animated with Live 2D which brings the characters to life on your screen. Many of the cards have “multiple characters” on one card, and when performing a live show, or meeting the idols out in town, you may see special scenes featuring the characters all together.

The voice acting and music is also top notch as you would expect from an idol game.

Replay value is high due to limited time events that offer rewards such as gacha tickets and gems.

My only complaint is a lot of the gacha are for paid gems only. However, the gems are fairly cheap, you can get a few hundred gems for under $10 – I haven’t bought any yet.

Will we see Idol M@ster Shiny Colors get an English release? Probably not. They tried years ago to release some Idol M@ster games in English and it flopped – however, they wanted $65 for a mobile game – And worst of all, after it flopped, they pulled it down and even if you had paid for it you could no longer play it!!! I wish they would try again but with some of their “FREE” mobile games, either Shiny Colors, Theater Days, or Cinderella Girls. — But my hope is slim… However there are 2 things that give me a little bit of hope. 1.) They seem to understand that there may be English speaking players playing Shiny Colors, when the visual novel aspects come up and the choices appear, they show in English an emoji and English words that say “Perfect” “Good” “Normal” so even if you can’t read the choices you can pick the best response still. And when purchasing diamonds, the currency is shown in US Dollars, not in Yen, which is odd. I’ve literally never seen that ever before in any Japanese games. Which is a nice touch so I don’t have to try to convert it, if I ever decide to buy diamonds. And 2.) I have hope because we are getting more and more and more English idol games, with the upcoming Revue Starlight Re LIVE, or last year’s Bang Dream Girl’s Band Party and Utapri, or the ever popular Love Live School Idol Festival, we continue to receive more and more games in this genre, but we have yet to receive any of the free Idol M@ster games… Shiny Colors is only a few weeks old in Japan, maybe in a year or two we could hope to see an English release? But it is still fairly easy to play even in Japanese. But it would be nice to be able to enjoy the story! I’d be more likely to buy paid gems if the game was in English.

Scorecard:

Overall Score 70/80 88% B+ “Very Good Game For Girls”

Geeky: 5/5 – collect virtual waifus. very geeky. And simulation aspects set this game apart from other idol games.

Sweetie: 5/5 – the girls are adorable

Gameplay: 10/10 – finally a true simulation game, similar to Princess Maker or Tokimeki Memorial, you schedule your idol’s activities and watch their stats grow. I enjoy this much more than just a tappy tap rhythm game. Your girls develop in different ways based on your choices and I love that.

Story: 0/10 – I can’t read Japanese so this may not be a “fair score” but until an English version exists I can’t judge the storyline.

Characters: 10/10 – cute, gorgeous artwork, huge diversity of girls.

Artwork: 10/10 – cute, live 2D, SSR and higher cards have full movie animation sequences.

Voice Acting: 10/10 – all of the girls sound so cute.

Music: 10/10 – of course a game about idols is going to have catchy and cute music.

Replay Value: 10/10 – Lots of events, they give a lot of SR tickets and free Gems and the fact that this is a simulation game also adds replay value because the girls change based on decisions you make.

Overall Score 70/80 88% B+ “Very Good Game For Girls”

Idol M@ster Shiny Colors – Japanese Mobile Game Review and Kinda Brief English Walkthrough was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

Qoo App Is The Easiest Way To Play Japanese Google Playstore Games On Your Android Device

There are many tutorials out there for how to play Japanese Google Play Store Apps on Your (non-Japanese) Android Device. When I got my Google Pixel 3 a few weeks ago I researched how to install games such as Idol M@ster Million Live. I found a tutorial of how to use Tunnel Bear VPN and create a 2nd Google account and change your country. I did so, and was able to download a few Japanese games no problem… but somehow inexplainably, a few hours later, without me doing any thing at all to my phone or new Google account, my country had changed to the United States. And Google has this weird policy where you can only change your country once every 365 days… I could in theory make about 365 different Google Play Store accounts – but there’s a much faster and easier way that allows you to download Japanese Google Play Store Apps without needing a VPN like Tunnelbear and without creating a 2nd Google Play Store account and without having to change your country.

The answer is Qoo App. I had used Qoo App before on Bluestacks to download some games so I was familiar already with the service.

Please Note: I have no idea how safe this is… I have not had any issues but I am not responsible for anything that may happen to your account or your device… Qoo App claims to personally verify every game on their site and be virus free. But I don’t actually know how safe this is – so please understand you are accepting some risk in using this service.

To get started, you will want to visit https://apps.qoo-app.com/en on your Android device.

You will need to register an account and download the qoo app itself.

Qoo App cannot be obtained in the Google Play store.

But Android devices allow you to install apps from other sources – you will be presented a warning about how this app may harm your device – If you feel brave go ahead and accept the risk and install Qoo App.

Once Qoo App is installed, launch Qoo App to browse their games. It claims the games are coming directly from the google play stores. So now you can finally get those games that claim to not be available in your country.

Most games will not be in English – except for a few global versions of games that support multiple languages.

You can even Pre-register for up and coming games.

You can search for games with different tags, such as Otome or Fashion or Idol or RPG or Card to name a few! You’ll also be shown related similar apps to explore. You can also see the newest added games or see what’s popular right now.

Once you find a game you like, you can install it right from Qoo App.

After the game is installed, you will find it in your app drawer, just like a regular app that you would download from the Google Play Store. You don’t need to launch Qoo App to launch a game downloaded from Qoo App. Just launch the app right from your app drawer or create a shortcut on your home screen.

Qoo App lets you get games from Japan, China, Korea, and other Asian territories.

Not all games are available, but a huge selection are there.

Qoo App also has exclusive offers for in-game event items and bonuses.

They also provide reviews and news about new and upcoming Asian games.

Say goodbye to TunnelBear VPN and Hello to Qoo App.

Qoo App Is The Easiest Way To Play Japanese Google Playstore Games On Your Android Device was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

Google Pixel 3 vs Iphone XR Camera

I just ordered a Google Pixel 3 a few days ago because it was $150 off on google’s store – sale ends today by the way. After ordering the phone, to kill time I was watching videos of the phone… I am mainly excited about the Pixel 3 camera. I am still using an Iphone 6S… I’ve had since it came out… so almost any new phone camera would put mine to shame. The last android phone I have used was Samsung Note 1 so I’ve been “Team Iphone” for a long time. But Pixel 3’s camera just looked so good. How good is it really?

I took a blind test and played along with this video:

iPhone XR vs Google Pixel 3 XL Blind Camera Test!

Both the iPhone XR and Google Pixel 3 XL have a single wide lens camera on the rear. Both of them also use software for portrait blur photos. Let’s do some b…

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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kadb9iHYJ60%5B/embedyt%5D

I watched this and paused it and studied each photo and came to the following conclusions which I wrote AS I was watching it – At the end he will tell you which camera belongs to which phone… I won’t spoil it – you can watch it yourself.

Here are my comments…

1 B
2 B
3 A’s color is better but I do like how B’s subject “pops” out of the background
4 – same comments as 3
5 – B
6 – about equal. A looks a little washed out, B looks a little dark
7 – B all the way, although it looks kinda warm colored. A is probably more natural color, but seems blurry and less detailed
8 – B all the way, no contest. A is blurry and pixelated/noisy. B is much more detailed and “cleaner”
9 – B is much more sharp and crisp, but A is probably more flattering for the portrait, But prefer B because it pops
10 – B is much more detailed and crisp. A looks washed out and blurry but sometimes thats nice for portraits
11 – B – but this one is pretty equal
12 – A captures more “area” you can see other houses and cars. And the things in the foreground pop more, but B has more midrange “clarity”
13 – B all the way, A looks super washed out
14 – B all the way, it really pops out. (Since dolls are my main photography subject this would be the camera I’d want the most)
15 – A shows more background detail, but B is nice for Bokeh, and the subject seems more clear in B

My totals:

B = 10
A = 0
Tie = 5

Did I make a good purchase? – Watch this video to find out for yourself.

Google Pixel 3 vs Iphone XR Camera was originally published on

Roku Express vs NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition. Which Streaming Media Player Is Best? The Answer Might Surprise You.

I picked up the NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition on sale for $159 at Best Buy on Black Friday, regularly $199. I also had a $100 gift card to bestbuy from previous sponsored posts I’ve done for them. This is not a sponsored post. This is me providing my initial feedback of the device as I’ve now had it for five days. My end cost was $59.99

Earlier this year I purchased a Roku Express for I believe it was $29.99. It is the most basic cheapest Roku device, in hindsight I wish I’d purchased one with voice controls which I believe start around $49.99. I’ve had my Roku for about six months.

I thought I’d be “replacing” my Roku with the NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition… but that’s not the case… Roku is superior in almost every single way. NVIDIA Shield is only for very technical people, with very fast internet connections, and the only real reason I will keep and not return the product is because of GeForce Now their cloud gaming Streaming service that lets you play games you already own such as from Steam or Battlenet on your tv and on lightweight non gaming PCs without linking to another PC a direct contrast to solutions such as how steamlink works letting you mirror your screen from your gaming pc, in the case of GeForce Now you do not need an expensive gaming pc or any pc at all.

But the service is not without flaws. Everywhere I’ve read the hype, how there’s no lag, and everything is smooth, yeah sure maybe if you have a good internet connection. I do have cable internet but I live in extremely rural areas where I have no choice who my provider is. I don’t think my internet is terrible. It gets around 15mbps, but let me tell you… GeForce Now is almost unplayable for me… don’t believe the hype! It’s not any different for me than PlayStation Now, another Streaming service I use, in fact, PlayStation Now has far less lag for me than GeForce Now. I had to disable my steam authentication token because it was physically impossible to use the controller and onscreen keyboard to type the code before it refreshed and changed. Games stutter, lag, jerk, and freeze… and I wasn’t even playing super new AAA graphically intense games. The first game I tried was Battle Chef Brigade, a 2d simple indie game.

Ok lag aside, there’s some other flaws:

I thought I could play games from the google play store… I can… sort of… but very very few of my favorites are available for “android tv”. Here’s where being a tech wizard comes in, you can sideload apps from a usb stick. Not included of course. They didn’t even include an HDMI cable. I’m using the HDMI cable from my Roku, cost $250 less and provides me everything I need out of the box.

I’m not tech illiterate but the NVIDIA Shield is ridiculously needlessly overly complicated… every other Streaming Media player on the market just works out of the box in minutes… it took me three hours to set up and troubleshoot my Shield. Mostly due to generic unknown errors and series of reboots and updates…

Games aren’t the only thing missing, several of my favorite tv channel apps are not compatible with android tv, such as TLCGo. Roku has far more apps and a much more intuitive user interface and setup takes only seconds even when needing updating not hours…

Hell google themselves don’t even seem to want to support their crappy Android TV as Google Chrome isn’t even compatible with it!

If you want to spend $200 for hours of updates, then have to find or buy your own hdmi cables and usb sticks, then fart around side loading apps from your pc to the stick to your Shield, and have a laggy choppy gaming streaming experience well that’s up to you…. keep in mind NVIDIA will begin charging for this service soon too and has not released any pricing details. From what I’ve seen, I won’t subscribe.

I would take my Roku any any any day of the week. GeForce Now is an exciting and interesting concept. I became excited and interested reading reviews of how it had no lag and performed perfectly as if you were playing it right on a pc gaming rig, but my experience left much to be desired.

I haven’t tried side loading anything yet. My instincts and speculations tell me that Apple TV has far more compatible apps and a better interface than Android TV.

I tried watching kissanime and TLC on my Shield using Puffin.TV, TLC had audio but no picture, kissanime would play about ten minutes then tell me filetype is unsupportable. I’m now watching the same anime on my Roku using a mirror from my iPad and iWeb TV (to be fair this probably exists on Shield too I didn’t check) and having zero issues, TLCGo and other apps are all at my fingertips the interface looks more pleasing intuitive less cluttered and just works. For a tenth of the cost…

For me, the answer is clear, love my Roku, and shockingly disappointed in my NVIDIA Shield TV.

Roku Express vs NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition. Which Streaming Media Player Is Best? The Answer Might Surprise You. was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

Food Fantasy Game Review

Food Fantasy is a brand-new cooking RPG and card collecting game from the creators of Love Nikki Dressup Queen. It combines many different styles of gameplay such as allowing you to research new recipes, gather ingreedients, explore the story, battle monsters, and collect cards known as “food souls” to add to your party or put to work in your shop. I’ve been playing since the game launched a few days ago and thought I’d share with you my initial thoughts of this cute little free mobile game.

Title: Food Fantasy

Genre: Cooking Simulation, Restaurant Management Card Collecting / Battling, RPG

Publisher: Elex

Release Date: July 2018

Price: Free

Where to Get:

IOS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/food-fantasy/id1366072359?mt=8

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.egg.foodandroid&hl=en_US

Geeky: 1/5 – There’s not much “geeky” about this game. If you like cooking mama and can imagine a mash up of cooking mama with love live, then you can imagine something like Food Fantasy. Mostly I can’t give high marks because the combat is very basic and mostly automated and not very engaging or challenging. I don’t see this having wide appeal unless you like cute things or love games like cooking mama.

Sweetie: 4/5 – I think girls will like the simulation aspects the best. When the game starts you can select a cuisine style to specialize in, you can research new recipes, decorate your restaurant, and you can collect cute “food souls” that can work as staff in your restaurant, or be added to your battle party. I can’t give it a 5 for appealing to girls because the story is quite weak.

Overall: 49/60 82% B- “Very Good Game for Girls”

Gameplay: 4/5 – I’m on the fence about the gameplay aspects. It is a unique and fun game for sure. But I think the combat system leaves much to be desired. But combat is not really the main focus of this game. This game tries to be a jack of all trades, but is really a master of none. There are better RPGs, better card collecting games, and better cooking games out there – but none of them combine all 3 of these things…

When the game starts you select a small thumbnail image to represent you. – Other cooking games often let you customize an avatar character and add dress up options – since this game is by the creators of dressup nikki I was surprised, and a little disappointed not to see such features in Food Fantasy as well. – But there are some female “avatars” (thumbnails), and some “fantasy” type ones – for example my avatar is a black cat with little chef hat lol. It’s pretty cute.

After naming yourself and choosing your little thumbnail picture, you’re shown a tutorial and introduced to a few characters and shown some background story. Through the tutorial you will experience many things. First you will select one of three cooking styles which will determine your first recipe – and I’m not sure if they will have an effect on other recipes you can obtain or give you a boost to certain recipes.

Next you get to fight some monsters and progress through various missions. Sometimes some monsters will drop ingredients that you need for cooking. – they don’t seem to drop often enough though.

Back in the restaurant you can assign staff to cook food or wait on customers. Different characters give different bonus effects to your restaurant. Customers will come and go to your restaurant even while not playing, or while adventuring and exploring other parts of the game. You will need to periodically check in to cook new dishes and collect your tips and other aspects of restaurant management.

You can decorate your restaurant with cute items which in some cases grant bonus effects when placed in your restaurant.

You can also improve your dishes by leveling them up by making them over and over again, or by adding spices and other items to each recipe. In addition to improving existing dishes, you can also research and develop new dishes if you have enough ingredients.

The final aspect of the game is the “card collecting” in the form of summoning new “food souls” which as mentioned can be assigned as staff or assist you in the battle field. The cards range from common to ultra rare. Drop rates seem generous, I summoned an ultra rare food soul, Peking Duck, early in the game without spending real money. There are also numerous special events, such as the launch party that will award ultra rare food souls for completing specific tasks and missions.

You can then take these food souls into battle – but the battles are really rather dull and not a very fun aspect of the game. You can tap to remove status ailments from your party members or tap to interrupt the boss from using powerful special moves, but largely, it’s more automated and you sit there watching your food souls fight, and the difficulty level is quite low. I have not lost a single match yet.

Story: 3/5 The story is very weak and poor, and there are some awkward phrasings and some questionable translation issues. I feel the story has potential to be interesting, but it’s not yet. Basically, you summon a food soul who has no powers and they tell you she is an empty shell and that usually such food souls are discarded, but you feel bad for her and take her in, because you feel responsible because you were the one who summoned her. She vows to help and often tries to protect you even though doing so without any powers would mean sacrificing herself. She is frustrated and wants to grow stronger, but you’re told it is impossible. – If I have to guess, she probably does have some special power or something, that’s how these stories usually go. Right now, the story is slow and dull, but perhaps things will get more interesting – I’ve only been playing for 2 days, maybe an hour each day, so I’m still in the beginning stages of the game. But thus far, not really impressed with the story.

Characters: 5/5 – The characters are super cute, and there is a mix of male and female characters which is rare for these summoning types of games. Also every food soul has an English Voice Actor (or Actress), and if you don’t like the English voices, you do have the ability to select the Japanese ones as well. This is a really nice plus, I haven’t seen many of these summoning games that bother to add English voice acting. The artwork is adorable, and of course it’s all inspired by various food and beverages which gives it a nice theme.

Graphics: 5/5 – Graphically this game is quite nice with a unique storybook like style. The anime style food souls and npc characters are all very cute. The backgrounds are really detailed and lovely. I can’t find anything to complain about here.

Music 3/5: Some of the music and sound effects sound recycled from love nikki? Or at least very similar in style.  It’s average at best. Nothing really stands out, but thankfully nothing is annoying, although like most mobile games it can be repetitive at times.

Voice Acting: 5/5 – I love that there’s English Voice acting – and some of them are quite good. I also equally love that they’ve left the option to switch to the original Japanese voice actors at any time as well. Great touch. I know they spent a lot of money licensing the original cast, as well as hiring all new voice actors for the English release. This shows me they care about the fans, and about the game, and it was just a really nice surprise and does set the game apart a bit from other summoning games out there.

Crafting: 5/5 – I love that you can research new recipes. This game reminds me of several other much larger cooking/crafting games such as the Atelier series of games, or Mana Khemia, or Kamidori Alchemist Meister.  The crafting aspects are probably the highlight of the game. In that regard though there are probably a dozen other mobile games which do a better job – If you’re looking for similar games check out anything by Kairosoft, Nippon Cafeteria, Sushi Spinnery, or Ramen Master being 3 that focus specifically on food – while other Kairosoft titles apply the same game mechanics to other jobs/roles. Or check out other cooking and restaurant management games such as I love Pasta and I love Coffee – which I reviewed here. Or of course, I’m sure you’re familiar with the famous Cooking Mama games. Even though these other games may have more in depth crafting/management aspects, I still give food souls a 5 in this area. Out of all the different aspects of this strange little game, I think the cooking and simulation aspects are the strongest and most fun elements.

Customization: 4/5 – You can decorate your restaurant, assign staff, and choose your food specialty. But most other mobile restaurant simulation games have a dressup aspect and I miss that here.

Cuteness: 5/5 – The food souls are super cute and the graphics and voice acting take that cuteness to the next level.

Replay Value: 5/5 – With the special events and wide variety of things to do, from battling, to cooking, to decorating your restaurant, to collecting food souls, to inventing new recipes to serve in your restaurant, or progressing through story missions, this game has a lot to offer and will keep you busy.

Overall: 49/60 82% B- “Very Good Game for Girls”

Food Fantasy Game Review was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

I’m testing a new plugin that will let me more easily share app recommendations with my readers. The first app I’m going to recommend is Princess Closet by Ciagram. It is an otome game available in both the IOS and Google app stores.

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

What I like about Princess Closet is that you don’t have to spend real money on cash shop items to reach the good ending. You can also read a few stories each day for free, making it possible to play the game without having to invest any money.

Read the full description and see screenshots below. This info was taken from QooApp. But this app can also be downloaded via the Google Play and IOS stores without using Qoo App.

Get Princess Closet on IOS Here: https://itunes.apple.com…

Get Princess Closet on Android Here: https://play.google.com…

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

Download

Description

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

◆Princess Closet will give you your Super Happy Ending for free

-A dating sim for girls where you can enjoy the love story without paying!

-Get the Super Happy Ending for free!

-Advance smoothly with no tedious missions!

-You can read 5 romance Stories every day for free!

-A game for girls who want to play otome games without spending any money!

Invited by a member of the popular fashion brand “Princess Closet,” you have been transformed into a “fashion model.”

Work together with the ultimate handsome boyfriend towards becoming a top model!

Your encounter with your dashing boyfriend… is the beginning of a romance that will change your life!

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

◆An extravagant cast of voice actors! Their voices will draw you deeper into this world

This romance game includes an extravagant cast of voices actors for the four handsome male leads.

You will be able to experience their sweet, charming voices as if they were right next to you!

With no real ambition in life, you luck out and manage to get a job at a large company.

Although not overwhelmingly dissatisfied, you are bored by the daily, unchanging routine work. And you find yourself wondering, “Am I okay with the way things are?”

Your only small relief from all of this is fashion.

That is, until the day that “Leo,” the up-and-coming fashion brand designer, suddenly appears in front of you.

At that moment, you never suspected that your encounter with him would change your life drastically…

“Fashion and romance will change my life.”

A dating sim game for girls who want to experience heart-throbbing romance, while enjoying fashion!

-If you love dating sims, otome games, games for girls, or romance games.

-If you are looking for romance novels, visual novels, online novels, light novels, romance comics, romance manga, or shoujo manga.

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

-If you are looking for sweet, romantic dating sims or stimulating dating sims.

-If you are looking for visual novels with sweet romance storylines.

-If you are looking for free otome games you can enjoy without paying.

-If you are looking for a game where you can experience romance with princes, aristocrats, CEOs, or celebrities.

-If you like situations that include a cute childhood friend with an adorable accent.

-If you are looking for dating sims with great art and graphics.

-If you want to experience forbidden love at the office.

-If you want to be a princess and experience your own Cinderella story.

-If you are looking for marriage games where your handsome boyfriend or lover proposes to you.

-If you are looking for adult games with keywords such as contract, secret, seduction, and fate.

-If you respond to keywords such as fated love, adult visual novel, or forbidden love.

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim

-If you like popular dating sims for girls that are free.

-If you don’t mind dating sims that contain boys love.

-If you are looking for otome games where you are surrounded by handsome guys.

-If you want to find your perfect husband, boyfriend, or lover in the ultimate otome game.

-If you are looking for someone to marry who is handsome, a celebrity, an heir, prince, charismatic, or rich.

-If you like otome games as well as comics, manga, anime, or BL.

-If you have a husband, boyfriend, or lover, but you want to find someone who is more perfect for you.

-If you love romance dramas and are looking for romance apps.

-If it is your first time using a romance app and you want to find a romance app for girls that you can play for free.

-Free installation

-Uninstalling the app or clearing the cache will reset player data.

[…]

Princess Closet : Otome games free dating sim was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

BanG Dream Girls Band Party – English Release in Spring 2018

Bushiroad is bringing us yet another great anime rhythm game.

From the creators of Love Live School Idol Festival, and hot on the heels of the recent announcement of Klab’s English localization of Utapri Utano Princesama Shining Live, Bushiroads has recently announced plans to localize BanG Dream Girls Band Party.

More details can be found on the official website at https://bang-dream-gbp-en.bushiroad.com/

pastel palettes

pastel palettes

Not only are we getting the mobile game, but also English versions of the Weib Schwarz card decks:

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The mobile game will be available in Spring 2018 on Android and IOS

Check out the English Release Trailer Below:

More information can be found in the English fan wikia based on the Japanese versions of the game at http://bandori.wikia.com/wiki/BanG_Dream!_Girls_Band_Party!

I have not played the Japanese versions myself just yet. I’ve read that it is the highest grossing mobile game in Japan right now.

From what I have seen in the wikia and official website, the game features a lot of fun unique elements that make it a slight step up from Love Live School Idol Festival.

The feature I’m most excited about is the costumes. Each time you get a 3 or 4 star or higher card, you unlock a new costume for your characters that you can equip and see on their chibi or cameo appearances while playing the game.

afterglow

afterglow

Other differences between Love Live include “Multi-Lives” the ability to play online in real time with other players – I know Love Live School Idol Festival offers this ability during certain events, but in GBP, it is always available.

You can also trade in your duplicate cards for seals which can be exchanged for limited event items

The biggest difference between GBP and LLSIF is that there are no song types currently, so it doesn’t matter which girls are in your party, even though each girl has her own attributes such as Powerful, Pure, Cool, and Happy. These attributes determine your score multipliers. But you no longer get the bonus of let’s say using a team with primarily high “Pure” cards in a “Pure Song”. However, to get the most out of your score multiplier, it is best to keep a team of same attribute idols. Such as “Pure” or Cool, because of the items you can equip that boost single attributes. You can also further maximize your score by keeping your team all within the same band such as Poppin Party or Pastel Pallets or Roselia. This is because you can buy special band equipment that enhances members’ stats from specific band groups and only 1 type of each item can be equipped at a time, forcing you to choose which band you want to focus on.

This may change, as the game is still relatively new at this time.

Hello Happy World

Hello Happy World

You can also, not only unlock songs by reading the main story and playing the game, but also unlock new songs by purchasing additional songs with special in-game currency.

There are areas you can explore and items you can place in these areas as well that will impact your band members’ stats as mentioned above.

GBP is a multi-media project, similar to Love Live School Idol Festival. It includes real bands comprised of the characters seiyuu’s (voice actresses), as well as an anime, card game, and mobile game, and various merchandising.

Roselia

Roselia

The announcement of an English version of Girls Band Party makes me so happy and excited. I still hold out hope that some day Bandai will release English versions of their Idolm@ster games – other than the $60 ones that they used to sell in the app stores. I mean, come on, just give us English versions of the free to play games, and collect money from us “dumb Americans” who want to spend $$$ on virtual “waifu” lol. Idolm@ster still remains my favorite idol game, mostly just because of the artwork, I mean, being able to see the girls actually performing on stage, like in Idolm@ster Theater Days is amazing!! Live 2D is the best thing to happen to anime games! 🙂

Poppin Party

Poppin Party

BanG Dream Girls Band Party – English Release in Spring 2018 was originally published on GeekySweetie.com – Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News