Otaku Crash

Keep the Manga Coming! Try eManga.com: the Digital, Download-to-Own Alternative!

Gardena, CA. April 26, 2013. While Square-Enix’s manga store no longer offers the latest and greatest digital titles in the manga world, eManga.com‘s digital, download-to-own storefront is still here to provide you with a steady stream of all the manga you love. The future of digitally distributed manga is here at eManga.com, where we provide fans with the accessible, download-friendly reading experience they need. Releases come weekly, and our digital library features hundreds of yaoi, shonen, shojo, hentai, “American comic,” and indie titles that customers can download and keep—forever!

There’s no renting and no restrictions on eManga.com—each purchase includes a 100% DRM free eBook in the file type of your choice (.prc, .epub, and .pdf to name a few!) and unlimited online reading access via our Java-based online reader. Not sure what file type will work best on your e-reader or tablet? New customers are invited to take our system for a test drive with a selection of samplers and free titles.

Right now we’re offering a special bonus to Square-Enix customers who want to see their digital libraries grow: send a screencap of your Square-Enix account to customerservice[AT]emanga[DOT]com and receive 15% off all purchases made from April 26th to May 10th!

But eManga.com isn’t just welcoming new customers. Our doors are open to all up and coming artists, writers, and creatives looking to gain exposure for their work! eManga.com is now looking to digitally publish your original manga, comics, novels, illustrated works, games, magazines, fiction… and more! If you created it, we’d love to help you sell it. For more information on submitting your work to eManga.com, check out our submission guidelines!

Whether you’re an avid mangaphile or a talented creator, you’re invited to join eManga.com as we build the best online manga experience imaginable: old, clunky digital bookstores are a thing of the past, and eManga.com downloads are here to stay!

About Digital Manga, Inc.
Located in Gardena, CA, Digital Manga, Inc. is one of the industry’s most unconventional and innovative companies, specializing in building corporate and cultural bridges from Japan to the West – specifically through the licensing, importation and preparation of anime (Japanese animation), manga (Japanese comic books) and related merchandise for North America’s mainstream and niche markets. In this capacity, DMI serves as a catalyst for the spread of Japanese pop culture institutions into the global arena. The company’s imprint lines include DMP (its mainstream imprint), DMP PLATINUM (its classic manga imprint), JUNE´ (its boys love imprint), 801 MEDIA (its adult boys love imprint), DokiDoki (its exclusive co-publishing imprint with Shinshokan Publishing), DH/DMP (a co-publishing venture with Dark Horse Comics), Project-H (its Seinen Hentai manga imprint), and DMG (a unique digital distribution initiative).

For more information about Digital Manga Publishing, visit www.digitalmanga.com as well as:
www.emanga.com
www.digitalmangaguild.com
www.projecth-books.com

New Digital Manga Header

With a new Year comes a new web page from our friends at Digital Manga Inc. Included bellow is a press release directly from Digital Manga highlighting some of there new features and programs. 

Digital Downloads, Reward System, New Manga, Yaoi, Hentai and New Gradol Club Photobooks

Gardena, CA. (December 21, 2012) Digital Manga, Inc., one of the manga industry’s most progressive and innovative publishers, is proud to officially announce the launch of the revamped digital storefront for eManga (www.emanga.com). Despite Mayan prophecies of the apocalypse, Digital Manga forges ahead towards a bright future with the unveiling of a new and improved eManga. Originally launched in 2008, eManga is the online ebook store run by Digital Manga Inc. that features titles published under DMI’s various imprints (including Juné, 801 Media, DMG, DMP, DokiDoki) in addition to a collection of Original English Language titles and select works from other publishers. The new eManga storefront has been designed to significantly enhance the customer’s purchasing and reading experience.

New Design, More Features

The new iteration of eManga will showcase a bevy of new and enhanced features, including but not limited to a bold new graphical interface, an updated native manga reader with intuitive page-flipping, better navigational and search capabilities, integrated social networking options, frequent promotional offers, weekly newsletter, and more customer interactivity elements (including polls, articles, and a rating and review system).

New Rewards System and Continuing Support for Existing Users

While the original eManga was essentially a digital manga rental site via streaming only and operated under a point-based currency system, the new eManga has been envisioned as a more consolidated and comprehensive digital manga store. Rather than buying points to use as currency on the site, eManga will accept credit cards and PayPal to purchase titles at their USD value. For those with existing eManga points, a new Reward Points program will be introduced. eManga users will receive 5% of their purchase back in the form of Reward Points, which can be applied to future purchases as significant discounts. Long-time eManga users also have no need to worry: all past purchases will be available for download, and all unused eManga points will be converted into reward points equal to the value of old, unused points.

The Freedom of Digital Downloads

In addition to a new and improved Javascript online reader for better viewing on your browser of choice, customers who want the flexibility and security of digital downloads are in for a treat. eManga now allows customers to purchase and download their desired title as digital ebook files to own and keep. Rather than just allowing customers to buy ‘access’ to a particular title, meaning the product you buy could be taken away at the company’s discretion like most major ebook stores, such as Amazon Kindle store and Barnes & Noble Nook store, eManga allows you to effectively own your purchase. You download it. You keep it.

Offering seven distinctive ebook file formats ( http://www.emanga.com/faq ), DMI strives to ensure that our digital products available on eManga are optimized and compatible across all popular e-reading devices, including Amazon Kindle/Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iPad, Sony Reader, Kobo eReader, Android tablets, and more. When a customer purchases a title, you can immediately read the title on eManga’s native online reader and download one file type of your choice. Subsequent downloads of different file types will be a small additional cost. The ebook files are encryption-free, allowing them to be supported on all devices. Our files are protected in a unique way that still deters unauthorized distribution without the customer losing any of the freedom and control they desire. For those weary about how the ebook files will function on their device, a free 200 page eManga sampler will be available for download in all seven file formats (http://www.emanga.com/search?status=2 ).

An Ever-expanding Selection at Low Prices

With over 1000 digital titles and counting available for free preview and purchase, DMI has taken substantial time and effort to ensure our entire digital catalogue is available on eManga, so that customers can readily find all their genre favorites in addition to all the titles restricted from other ebook stores due to their censorship practices. DMI has been making great advances into the untapped American market for hentai through the Project-H imprint, and all of DMI’s digital hentai titles (including Shocking Pink, An Ideal Day To Fall In Love, and the popular Velvet Kiss series) will be available on eManga. eManga will also exclusively host the recently acquired Gradol Club Photo Collection, which features the most popular “gravure idols” (Japanese female models known for their tasteful but provocative poses) like Nana Ogura and Maria Ozawa. Gradol Club will be presented in vivid full-color, which will be sure to brighten the screen of any device. Economically priced at $7.95.

In addition to DMI’s print imprints, eManga will become the premiere choice to find the bounty of exclusive digital titles made available through the Digital Manga Guild, DMI’s special online community that offers skilled fans the opportunity of paid experience in the localization of Japanese manga and novels.

All forthcoming digital releases will debut on eManga a month prior to their release in other ebook storefronts. In conjunction with the new download model, eManga will also be competitively priced with most eManga titles cheaper than their other store counterparts.

Recently released titles that will be available for the launch of the revamped eManga include fan favorites like: (DMG) Faraway Places, I’m the Big Brother, Erementar Gerade 1-16, Love Club vol.1-2, Her Witch; (DMP) Countdown 7 Days, Replica, Start With A Happy Ending, Itazura Na Kiss, Maohden; (Juné) Ambiguous Relationship, Castle Mango, Blue Sheep Reverie, Gentlemen’s Agreement Between a Rabbit and a Wolf; (801 Media) Black Sun, Devil’s Infirmary. Affordably priced from $7.50 and up.

Special Promotional Discount and Digital Gift Cards

eManga will also be offering a special 10 percent off promotion in celebration of the launch during its first week (December 21, 2012 – December 28, 2012). Enter the code DMYC655 into the promotional code field during checkout and receive 10 percent off the entire purchase order (offer limited to one per customer). As the holiday season is already here, eManga is also excited to introduce digital gift cards, available in $15, $20, $25, $50, $75, and $100.

With so many significant changes, eManga will become the most optimal choice for purchasing and reading manga, and the current incarnation of eManga is only the beginning. DMI plans to continue to develop eManga over time so that the website will always be evolving to reflect our customer’s needs and desires. DMI’s reinvigoration of eManga as a comprehensive digital ebook store will increase the accessibility of manga and comics across all digital platforms, allowing eManga to become the premiere place for digital manga and comic readership.

Sign up for our Digital Manga newsletter and get all the latest updates!

Questions? Contact us at [email protected]

About Digital Manga, Inc.
Located in Gardena, CA, Digital Manga, Inc. is one of the industry’s most unconventional and innovative companies, specializing in building corporate and cultural bridges from Japan to the West — specifically through the licensing, importation and preparation of anime (Japanese animation), manga (Japanese comic books) and related merchandise for North America’s mainstream and niche markets. In this capacity, DMI serves as a catalyst for the spread of Japanese pop culture institutions into the global arena. The company’s imprint lines include DMP (its mainstream imprint), DMP PLATINUM (its classic manga imprint), JUNÉ (its boys love imprint), 801 MEDIA (its adult boys love imprint), DokiDoki (its exclusive co-publishing imprint with Shinshokan Publishing), DH/DMP (a co-publishing venture with Dark Horse Comics), Project-H (its Seinen Hentai manga imprint), and DMG (a unique digital distribution initiative).

Digital Manga, Inc.’s Platinum Manga imprint is returning to Kickstarter to publish the first ever full-color Osamu Tezuka manga in English!

Gardena, CA (June 21^st, 2012) — Today Digital Manga, Inc. launched a project on crowd-funding site Kickstarter to translate and publish Unico, the children’s comic by Osamu Tezuka, in English for the first time. Until July 21, fans will be able to buy into the project to receive rewards including copies of the book and exclusive bonuses, such as T-shirts, posters, stickers and a digital companion with educational games and bonus material for young readers and their parents and teachers.

If fans pledge a total of $20,500 or more by the deadline, Unico will be released in a single volume edition in January 2013 through DMI’s Platinum Manga classics imprint. It would be the first manga released in full color in English by Tezuka, an important pioneer of manga and animation in Japan and perhaps the most prolific and acclaimed comics artist of all time. Digital Manga’s previous two successful Kickstarter campaigns were focused on two of Tezuka’s adult works, Swallowing the Earth and Barbara. In a twist, Digital Manga has announced that if the goal is met with sufficient time to spare, another Tezuka children’s license will be made available through Kickstarter immediately.

The book opens in mythological Greece, where Psyche takes care of Unico, and in return he uses his magical powers to bring her happiness. Jealous of Psyche, the goddess Venus orders the West Wind to wipe Unico’s memory and spirit him away where Psyche will never reach him. Unico’s adventures eventually take him to the Wild West, medieval Europe, and even more fantastic locales. Along the way he makes friends and turns back evil with the power of love.

“With Unico losing his memory every time he is transported to a new world, the book is not only a fun adventure for kids, it’s also a moral story, with considered spiritual themes,” said Ben Applegate, editor of the Platinum Manga imprint. “Unico already has a small fanbase in the United States thanks to the animated films, which were first released here in the ’80s and were recently re-released on DVD. However, we’re not just trying to appeal to nostalgic grown-ups like me. We’re doing the book specifically so that parents can read it with their kids. And teachers, too: We think this would make a great addition to primary school libraries and literature curricula.”

The digital companion, available exclusively through the Kickstarter campaign, will also include entertaining explanations of the Greek myths and historical locations used in the book.

The Kickstarter campaign, with promotional materials and a video, can be viewed here:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/digitalmanga/publish-osamu-tezukas-unico-in-english-in-full-col

* – All logos and art are not final.

Ordinarily, I’m all for car customization.  Nothing speaks more to individuality than taking a car that rolled off a factory line, and turning it into a one-of-a-kind work of art.  I’ve even seen some otaku-inspired custom graphics that looked great (you may have heard of the Japanese Grand Touring Championship car painted with an Evangelion-themed livery).

This is not one of those times.

Why, God? WHY!?

The cutsey imagery.  The paint color combination.  The big chunky rims.  Everything about this is wrong.

But the worst part of this is the car that’s been bastardized.  Normally, if this was just a crappy Scion or faceless Honda, I’d just shake my head and chuckle.  The car in question is a Stratos.  Now admittedly, this is probably a modern kit car (probably a Stratos Hawk), but it’s based on the Lancia Stratos.

The reason the car guy inside me is getting all upset is because this car is a legend.  Styled by Bertone (one of the most legendary car designers of all time), powered by a Ferrari V-6, and built by what Top Gear called “the most charismatic car makers of all time.”  Not only is it an insane super car, it’s a legend in the World Rally Circuit.  It won the 1974, ’75, and ’76 World Championships (it probably would’ve won more, but parent company Fiat wanted to promote their own models, so it was replaced by a less successful Fiat 131 Abarth).  Here’s what this beast SHOULD look like.

Ah, much better.

I wouldn’t normally rant about cars on this site, but this comes down to what’s appropriate.  One person I was discussing this with claims the orange paint job looks better than the original.  I say this is the equivalent of painting over the Mona Lisa in neon colors.  Just because it’s eye-catching doesn’t make it a good idea.

And remember kids, pimping your ride anime-style is all well and good, but leave the Classics alone.  That’s what the Honda Civic is for.

Where do you live on the internet?  Find out with this handy dandy map!

I can see my house from here!

Found on Kotaku.

Seeing as I’ve been given permission to post here, I figure I might as well post about what’s been occupying the majority of my time: video games! This year looks like it’ll be  particularly promising for the gaming realm, so here’s just a few of the early gems:

-F1 2010

Yes, that's a screenshot. Yes, it's just that pretty.

This is the racing game for people who thought Forza 3 was “too arcadey.”  Personally, I lost most interest in real-world F1 when they pulled out of the US (although they are returning in 2012), however this is a Codemasters game (makers of the Dirt series, and Grid).  As promised, this is a remarkably deep simulation racer, forcing you to use tactics during your races.  Do you spend another couple of laps practicing, learning the course better, or do you retire early, conserving your tires and engine?  Fortunately, there’s a lot of customization here, so you can switch off some of the more hardcore elements, and dumb down the AI.  There are a few flaws here and there.  Given how realistic the game is, it’s surprising that there’s no safety car, or mechanical failures (though there is crash damage).  There are also a few graphic bugs, but they largely stand out due to the game being so beautiful.

Buy this: if the idea of adjusting downforce to cut an extra .05 seconds off your lap time to be appealing, if you’ve ever played a Codemasters game.

Don’t buy this: if you’ve never heard of the Monaco Grand Prix, if you’re just looking for something you can pick up very quickly, or if you think NASCAR is the be-all and end-all of motorsports (or more obviously, if you don’t like racing games).

-Enslaved: Odyssey to the West

Post-apocalyptic New York never looked so good.

Based loosely on the Chinese tale Journey to the West, Enslaved takes the platforming action from Prince of Persia, and mixes it with the visuals from Uncharted.  Essentially you play a character named Monkey, who has to lead a young girl named Trip through the ruins of New York, fighting off rampaging mechs (some of whom look disturbingly like Dog from Half-Life 2) in an effort to return Trip home.  Combat is simplistic (but visually rewarding), and platforming is linear, but easy to pick up.  But the stars here are the visuals, the music, and the character interaction.

Buy it: if you own an HD TV, if you enjoyed Prince of Persia but thought the last few entries were garbage, if you enjoy a nice single player romp.

Don’t buy it: if you’re expecting more than 10 or 12 hours out of this, if you have a friend who wants to play, if you’re still using an obsolete standard def monitor.

-Dead Rising 2

Phone call for you! Hope it's a doctor!

It’s campy, it’s a mall full of zombies, and it uses parasols in ways you never imagined.  Yep, it’s a Dead Rising game!  Every October, I have a little tradition of picking up a horror-themed game, and DR2 is this year’s candidate.  This time it adds the ability to custom-build weapons (combining a bowie knife with boxing gloves creates knife-gloves, essentially Wolverine-style weapons).  Other than that and a change of scenery to something much more Vegas-like, there isn’t that much different from the first Dead Rising game.  Unfortunately this also includes the game’s sluggish controls.  Be prepared to throw your controller in rage.  A lot.

Buy this: if the idea of slaying zombies with two chainsaws duct-taped to opposite ends of a kayak paddle sounds appealing, if you liked Dawn of the Dead (or Shawn of the Dead for that matter).

Don’t buy this: if you hate long load times, if you can’t handle really bad dialogue, if you can’t abide poor controls.

-Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions

Does whatever a....well, you know.

Spider-Man has had a history of mixed success in the video game world.  On the one hand, you have Spider-Man 2.  On the other hand, you have Spider-Man: Friend or Foe.  Fortunately, Shattered Dimensions scores closer to the latter.  Basically, Mysterio has shattered the Tablet of Order and Chaos, pieces of which have traveled to alternate time-lines, such as the noir Spider-Man universe (pictured above).  Each Spider-Man has his own strength (Ultimate Spider-Man is uber-powerful, Noir Spidey is stealthy, etc.), so essentially you’re getting 4 smaller games wrapped into one package, and tied together by a unifying plot line.  Fortunately, all four Spider-Men have excellent writing, hysterical puns, and perfect voice acting.  Even creator Stan Lee helps out with some narration in classic 60′s style.  So what they’ve done is take a cross-over comic, and turned it into a video game.  Fan service ensues.

Buy this: if you like Spider-Man (duh), if you like funny dialogue, if you remember the short-lived Spider-Man 2099 series.

Don’t buy this: if you can’t handle a very bad camera, if you hate what they’ve done with web-swinging and wall-crawling (both can be frustrating), if you don’t like Spider-Man (again, duh).

-Halo: Reach

I find your lack of faith disturbing.

Microsoft’s unkillable IP gets another entry, this one being the last by original creating studio Bungie (all further entries will be done by the new 343 Studios).  You should probably know the drill by now: humanity vs. Covenant aliens, last of the Spartans, remember Reach, etc.  Single-player mode’s story isn’t quite as epic as I’d expected, but it gets the job done, as well as giving us a surprising space flight combat level (which proves to be massively entertaining).  Multiplayer continues to be fast and frantic, but now game modes are even more customizable.

Buy it: if you like first-person shooters, if you want to see the prequel to Halo’s story, if you have friends who also enjoy FPS.

Don’t buy it: if you don’t have an internet connection (half the game’s in the multiplayer), if you can’t handle 13 year-olds hurling homophobic slurs over XBox Live (or at the very least are too lazy to mute them), if you think the Halo series is overly-pretentious and over-hyped.