Tag: Japan

Silent Hill 3 Trophy Guide

Editorial Team

Silent Hill 3 Trophy Guide. Difficulty: **  A survival horror originally released in 2003 on the PlayStation 2, and revamped with trophy support for the PlayStation 3 in 2012. Far easier than the previous installment, with only two and a half playthroughs required for the Platinum.

Game Name Difficulty Trophies Developer Country Bronze Silver Gold Online DLC
Silent Hill 3 HD ** 22 Konami Computer Entertainment Japan 2 13 6 0 0

Silent Hill 3 HD

Silent Hill 3 HD is a survival horror game, originally released for the PlayStation 2 in 2003, and revamped in HD with trophy support for the PlayStaton 3 in 2012, along with new voice actors, as part of the Silent Hill HD Collection.

Seventeen years following the events of the original Silent Hill, Heather Mason, the baby girl given to Harry Mason to care for, is now a teenager growing up in Portland. However, it seems the cultist have returned, and wants to use Heather to give birth to their new god.

The original Silent Hill 3 received positive reviews, with an average score of 85%, praised for its creepy atmosphere, great graphics and sound, and for containing some good scares.

This game is far easier and less complicated than its predecessor, requiring only two and a half playthroughs, which can be done on either Easy or Medium mode.

As long as you're following the guides in our Links page, the Platinum can be earned in roughly 15 hours or so.

For your first playthrough, you can select Easy if you wish. However, you'll eventually need a total kill count of 333 enemies across your playthroughs to obtain the Heather Beam. Since Easy mode doesn't have as many enemies, we recommend playing on Medium, otherwise you may need to do another playthrough later on. During this playthrough, focus on getting the Normal ending for the I'm Normal I Promise trophy. You can also go for the Hoarder trophy, by finding at least 100 items, as well as the Wall Basher for finding the silencer. Hopefully, and particularly if you're playing on Normal mode, you should also unlock the They Look Like Monster To You trophy for defeating at least 75 enemies.

For your second playthrough, we highly recommend playing on Medium if you haven't already, in order to get those kills. This time around, we recommend going for the Possessed ending to unlock the It Was All In Your Head trophy by having over 4000 points by the end of the game. Kill as many enemies as possible. You can adjust the number of bullets you pick up from the Options screen, by hitting the L1, R1, L2, and R2 buttons simultaneously to access the Special options menu, and go into Bullet Adjustment. This makes things easier and won't affect the trophies. Also, if you haven't done so in your first playthrough, make sure you kill the final boss with a melee weapon, in order to obtain the infinite submachinegun.

For your third - and hopefully final - playthrough, you'll want to aim for the UFO ending for the Coolest Dad Ever trophy, which means having the Heather Beam and killing 30 enemies with it before reaching your apartment. You'll need the total kill count of 333 enemies in order to unlock the Heather Beam. If you haven't gotten it already, then unfortunately you'll need to do another playthrough. Luckily, however, once you do have the Heather Beam, getting the UFO ending doesn't take very long. Also, since the UFO ending makes for a short game, you should also go for the Makes My Head Hurt trophy on this run, which is for completing the game in only 2 saves or less. It should be noted that selecting Continue after dying will count as a save.

IGN has a Walkthrough here:
http://www.ign.com/wikis/silent-hill-hd-collection/Silent_Hill_3_Walkthrough?objectid=0

And a text-based Walkthrough by Conquerer:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps2/561292-silent-hill-3/faqs/26762

nauGie has a detailed Trophy Guide here:
http://ps3trophies.com/forums/showwiki.php?title=PS3-Trophy-Guides:Silent-Hill-3-HD-Trophy-Guide

Kheapathic has a great Trophy Guide here:
http://www.playstationtrophies.org/game/silent-hill-3-hd/guide/

And a Trophy Guide by Platisfaction:
http://psnprofiles.com/guide/64-Silent-Hill-3-HD-Trophy-Guide

Finally, here's a basic Trophy List:
http://psnprofiles.com/trophies/1381-Silent-Hill-3-HD

Silent Hill 2 Trophy Guide

Editorial Team

Silent Hill 2 Trophy Guide. Difficulty: ****  A survival horror originally released in 2001 on the PlayStation 2, and revamped with trophy support for the PlayStation 3 in 2012. Six full playthroughs are required for the Platinum, one of which involves permitting only two saves throughout the game.

Game Name Difficulty Trophies Developer Country Bronze Silver Gold Online DLC
Silent Hill 2 HD **** 28 Konami Computer Entertainment Japan 10 12 5 0 0

Silent Hill 2 HD

Silent Hill 2 HD is a survival horror game, originally released for the PlayStation 2 in 2001, and revamped in HD with trophy support for the PlayStation 3 in 2012, along with new voice actors, as part of the Silent Hill HD Collection.

Set in another area of the Silent Hill town from the prequel, James Sunderland visits the town after receiving a letter from his dead wife. James searches the town for his late wife, meeting other characters along the way, while learning about and attempting to survive the horrors surrounding him.

The original Silent Hill 2 was both a commercial and critical success, with an average score of 89%, praised for its graphics, atmosphere, story, and overall frightening fun.

Not a simple Platinum, as it's easy to make a mistake with some trophies. You'll need to play through the game at least six times, to collect all the different endings for each corresponding trophy. The most challenging, however, is the Who Needs A Gun trophy, as it requires a large, specific set of requirements - one of which is saving the game only two times during the entire playthrough. If you make a mistake, you'll need to start over.

This is not a game for anyone searching for a quick Platinum. Expect, minimum, 35 hours of gameplay, if you do some research and planning first. Otherwise, expect far more time required.

A few things to mention before we get started. First, if you pause the game by hitting Select, you will also be pausing the timer. This comes in handy when you want to check any walkthroughs while working on completing the game under the 3 hour limit. Also, after clearing the game the first time, you can hit R1 in the Options menu and add a higher number of bullets under the Bullet Adjustment. Finally, unlike most games which have a master file to track all your progress, Silent Hill 2 HD does not. This means, you'll need to load your results each time you start a new game, otherwise each ending won't be included in your total count.

Now, with that out of the way, we highly recommend simply playing through the first time without worrying about anything. Just enjoy the story and get familiar with the game itself. If you like, you can set the Riddle level on Easy and Action level on Normal. You should unlock a number of story related trophies during this process.

After that, go ahead and do Maria's scenario, which will earn you the Restless Dreams trophy.

Next, set the Action level to Hard and the Riddle to Normal, and begin your second playthrough. Focus on getting the second normal ending.

Then, adjust the Riddle level to Hard, and play for a third time, aiming on getting the third and final normal ending.

Now, you'll need to start working on the special endings. We began with the Rebirth ending, which requires you to find four items: the White Chrism, Book of Lost Memories, Unholy Grail, and the Book of Crimson Ceremony. This will earn you the Say Your Prayers trophy.

For your fifth playthrough, you can aim for the UFO ending, where you'll need to get the Blue Gem and use it in three different locations.

Your sixth and hopefully last playthrough will be for the Dog ending, which requires you to unlock the Observation Room on the third floor of the Alternate Lakeview Hotel using a collected Dog Key. However, you should also check the Who Needs A Gun trophy in the trophy guides in our Links page to see the requirements of acquiring the Green Hyper Spray. During your sixth playthrough, you should be aiming for completing these requirements at the same time. This is not easy, and remember you can only save the game twice, while keeping both the Action and Riddle level on Hard. Completing these requirements will award you with a 10 Big Star result.

Finally, after being awarded the 10 Big Star, load up the game one last time, head to the camper on Saul Street, and inside you'll find the Green Hyper Spray, thereby unlocking the Who Needs A Gun trophy, along with the Platinum.

Good luck!

A great Walkthrough by duck360, which includes videos:
http://www.playstationtrophies.org/forum/silent-hill-2-hd/152152-silent-hill-2-hd-10-star-walkthrough-videos.html

And a Walkthrough on IGN:
http://www.ign.com/wikis/silent-hill-hd-collection/Silent_Hill_2

And a text-based Walkthrough by Alex:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps2/437029-silent-hill-2/faqs/34677

Kheapathic has a great Trophy Guide here:
http://www.playstationtrophies.org/game/silent-hill-2-hd/guide/

And a great Trophy Guide here, by trophybot:
http://ps3trophies.com/forums/showwiki.php?title=PS3-Trophy-Guides:Silent-Hill-2-HD-Trophy-Guide

And a Trophy Guide by Platisfaction:
http://psnprofiles.com/guide/3-Silent-Hill-2-HD-Trophy-Guide

Some useful Trophy Guide tips, here:
http://psnprofiles.com/trophies/1380-Silent-Hill-2-HD?guide

Lastly, here's a basic Trophy List:
http://www.playstationtrophies.org/game/silent-hill-2-hd/trophies

Would You Date This Man?

Editorial Team

It’s natural for many of us to wear a “mask” during certain events in our lives.

On a first date, being nervous and wishing to make a good first-impression, we may behave a certain way that’s not completely natural to our character.  But to the otaku, this metaphor of “wearing a mask” has become quite literal.

The small town of Washinomiya, in Saitama Prefecture, has become a pilgrimage site for otaku fans of the manga Rakkii Staa (Lucky Star) where the story is set.  The local chamber of commerce took notice of the otaku‘s spending power, and decided – why not hook these people up?  Two incomes are better than one.  The problem, however, is that otaku are generally shy by nature.

So, what if they wore masks?

And so, the local government organized a large goukon – rougly translated as a “single’s party.”  Fifteen male otaku and fifteen females with similar manga and anime interests were invited, each adorning a halloween mask of Mickey Mouse, Pikachu, Doraemon, and various other characters, hoping to meet that lucky someone.

“I feel this is an easier way to talk to people,” said one 27-year-old woman in a bunny mask.  When asked one young male – wearing a samurai master mask – if he planned to go on a real date, he answered, “I hope so…maybe.”

And the result?

Seven couples left the event together.  That’s a 47% success rate!  Way to go, otaku!

From Japan: The Mysteries of Japanese Cosplay!

Editorial Team

Having been to the Tokyo Game Show on “business days,” I can say that the experience is satisfying. No crowds, no pushing and shoving, no long lines to play a game. Unfortunately, that also meant no Japanese Cosplay.

So who are these Cosplayers?  What are they?  Why are they?  So many questions…

Japanese CosplayIn Japanese, kosupure is a hybrid of the English words “costume” and “play.”  In a nutshell, these are fans who enjoy dressing up as manga, anime and video game characters.  I like to think of it as a kind of Halloween-like sub-culture, as you don’t usually see Cosplayers on the train or buying Big Macs at McDonald’s.  Rather, they usually get together at specific events – such as the Tokyo Game Show.

While it’s possible to buy these outfits at shops in Akihabara and other places, most Cosplayers I spoke to during past TGSs said they made their costumes themselves.  There’s “mecha” Cosplayers who dress as robots made of cardboard, a billion Final Fantasy characters, I even saw a Sega Saturn running around.  Hair is either dyed and stylized, or they use wigs.  The outfits themselves are either hand-crafted, or put together using an assortment of clothing.

Makuhare Messe, where the Tokyo Game Show takes place, is made up of three ginormous rooms.  In between are these narrow, outdoor alleys – where the Cosplayers mainly hang-out.  They each find themselves an area near a wall, and a line is formed by the otaku anxiously waiting to take their pictures.  The Cosplayers make several poses, while the otaku click away on their cameras (sometimes requesting specific poses) until they’re satisfied, and the next person in line moves up for their turn.

Japanese CosplayI personally wouldn’t call this sub-culture a form of role-play, as the Cosplayers don’t usually “play their role.”  I’ve never seen a Solid Snake act out a battle with a Liquid Ocelot (maybe because there’s no room) and if you speak to a Cosplayer, they talk like a normal human being (usually) and not in character.

So why do they do it?  Maybe for the same reason Westerners have fun dressing up on Halloween.  Because it’s fun to dress up.  And having people line up to take their picture gives them a day of fame.

Though I did enjoy the lack of crowds visiting the TGS on a business day, I felt that without the Cosplayers, there was something missing.

 

written by Damon Finos

From Japan: The AKB48 Craze!

Editorial Team

AKB48: Who are they? What are they? Why are they?

Well, to answer those first two questions, AKB48 is the hottest thing to hit Japan since white rice.  AKB is short for “Akiba,” which in turn is short for “Akihabara,” a district in Tokyo and the HQ for most otaku.  AKB48 is a girl group, currently made up of 64 members ranging in ages from early teens to early twenties.  They sing, they dance, and they have thus far released 13 singles.

akb48 cafe1What makes them different from other girl groups?  For one, most groups don’t have 64 members (they even hold the Guinnes World Record for “largest pop group”).  But the general concept of AKB48 is that they’re “the girls next door,” the “idols you can meet.”  In a kind of lottery, fans buy a number of the same album hoping to get that golden ticket which allows them to meet an AKB member for 5 minutes.  You can shake her hand, take a picture, and gush out how much you love her.

And I must admit, their marketing strategy is brilliant. AKB48 is in everything: stationary, dishes, figures, chocolate, countless commercials, appearing in TV dramas, etc.  In September 2011, the AKB48 Cafe & Shop opened in Akihabara (conveniently next to the Gundam Cafe) where waitresses dress up in school uniforms and AKB videos play on a dozen flatscreens around the shop.  Prices aren’t as expensive as you might expect, and their cheese cake is pretty good.

akb cafe2AKB’s success has lead to other groups popping up in Japan as well as Asia.  There’s now SKE48 from Nagoya, SDN48 short for Saturday Night, NMB48 in Osaka, and JKT48 in Jakarta.  Expect more to come.

So what’s the attraction?  According to our Korean corespondent and avid AKB48 fan; “I like them because there’s [a member] for everybody, and unlike real girls, they’re not there to make you deal with girl related [issues].”  In other words, they’re idols through and through.

Only there’s 64 of them.

 

written by Damon Finos