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Wonder Fest Reveals Structurally Questionable Makoto Nijima Figure

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Prototype Makoto and Johanna figure on display at Wonder Festival 2017 (Photo by @hj_shohin)

Wonder Festival is a paradise for figure fans of games and anime. The event happens twice a year and is known to debut a huge set of upcoming figures at various stages in the development process. The summer edition of the festival just began, revealing some highly anticipated Persona 5 Figures including a Makoto Nijima Figure. The game may only be a few months old to American audiences, but it has been out since September in Japan giving companies plenty of time to stew up some high-end figures for fans to oogle.

This Summer’s Wonder Festival revealed a bevy of new Persona 5 figures including a new Futaba figure donning her metaverse outfit, as well as a figure of Takemi, the beloved goth doctor confidant. Perhaps one of the most anticipated figures: Makoto Nijima and her persona Johana were revealed and has garnered up some very mixed opinions. Heralded as one of the game’s ” Best Girls” fans have been craving a 3D version of their favorite member of the Phantom Thieves and what they got leaves a lot to be desired. 

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At first glance, the pose seems cool and fresh. The Makoto Nijima Figure is riding her motorcycle persona Johana in a slightly provocative fashion. Here in lies the problem. Not in the suggestive nature of her pose but in the structural integrity of the pose itself. It falls into the common pitfall a lot of artists rely on where a girl is twisted to show both her chest and butt from the same angle. This more often than not leads to some messy anatomy problems as girls cannot naturally achieve a pose like this. Makoto’s torso awkwardly protrudes out from her rear like a hybrid snake woman then makes a sharp curve angling back up into a painfully stiff shoulder and neck area.

Then we move to the front leg. It’s absolutely locked to the point of her knee bending backwards to give the appearance of a digitigrade animal leg. At this point, I can only assume that Makoto’s ACL has been torn allowing her to hyper extend her knee. Then we go down the leg a little further revealing Makoto’s snapped ankle. We can’t see the other leg in the photo but I hope it is bearing all of her weight because I’d hate to think she was supporting anything with a leg in that sort of position.

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Here is a much more natural way for this pose to work.

At this point in time, we only have this one photo and angle to view and there is a chance that this is just a bad angle. I would love to write it off as such but this is also the angle the company chose to show it from and as part of a 3D experience every angle should look appealing. Luckily this is a prototype and just a sculpt. Meaning that there will probably be changes made to the sculpt before it goes to paint and the errors seen today will be fixed before our beloved Makoto Nijima Figure is cast and molded.

The other sculpts in the series so far have been absolutely gorgeous and include characters such as the Twins, Ann, Futaba, and Joker. In fairness to the Makoto Nijima sculpt, we only saw versions of these other Persona 5 figures in their approved sculpts with eye paint and full paint versions. This leads me to believe we will have a much better and on model Makoto to spend our money on in the coming months and they just wanted to show fans that she was on her way.

My name is Courtney and I am into anime and games big time. I've worked in Games, TV, and Toy/Product Design so I know some things about those topics. I also like to curate and run zine art books in my free time.

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Transylvania Comic Con kicks off in exactly two weeks

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Transylvania Comic Con

In exactly two weeks, an epic journey will start in the heart of Transylvania for all those who love comics, games, and movies. The Transylvania Comic Con starts on October 18 and invites all participants to enjoy a three-day event where they will get to unleash their imagination at the cosplay contest, meet their favorite actors at the photo ops and photographs sessions, or find out interesting things at the panels hosted by the event. Great fun is granted even for those who would just like to take a look at the ComicCon and do some shopping of really cool items or snap some pictures with famous props, such as the Iron Throne.

The Transylvania Comic Con will take place in the heart of Transylvania, at the BT Arena in Cluj-Napoca. The event starts on Friday, October 18 at 4 P.M and lasts until Sunday, October 20. The stage hosts’ roles will be filled by Maria Muller and Ken Huegel. Some of the celebrities invited to the event are ‘Vikings’ and ‘Hunger Games’ star Alexander Ludwig, Kevin McNally Pirate of the Caribbean, ‘Spartacus’, ‘Arrow’, and ‘Shanarra’ star Manu Bennet, Rick Cosnett, from ‘The Vampire Diaries’, ‘Stargate Atlantis’ star David Nykl, and Roger Ashton- Griffiths, who played Mace Tyrell in Game of Thrones. Cosplay enthusiasts will get to see Daisy Cosplay and Imriel Cosplay.

Transylvania Comic Con will also welcome three featured artists and a Cosplay Guest, who wasn’t announced yet. The schedule is not public yet, and the timetable is subject to change, however, on October 5 participants will get the first glimpse at the program, from where they will find out more about the guests of the event. What we already know is that Transylvania Comic Con will host cosplay competitions on Saturday and Sunday. The General Cosplay Competition hosted on Saturday targets solo cosplay enthusiasts only, while on Sunday groups will get the chance to show off their costumes. This is also the day of the qualifiers for the international cosplay competition Clara Cow Cosplay Cup.

Tickets for the Transylvania Comic Con are still available for purchase, except for the VIP 3 Days Tickets, which are all sold out. The rules for participants and the tickets can all be found on the event’s homepage, here. It will definitely be an epic event, so we hope to see you there!

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Less than three weeks to go until Transylvania ComicCon

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Transylvania ComicCon

The countdown has begun. There are less than three weeks until Transylvania ComicCon kicks off. The three-day event will take place in the heart of Transylvania, in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, between 18 October and 20 October at the BT Arena. Those who will attend the event will get to meet some really cool guests and can participate in numerous activities, all of which are going to be amazingly fun. The schedule of the event won’t be available for another couple of days, however, the majority of guests are known.

Transylvania ComicCon will welcome some beloved actors, such as Alexander Ludwig, Kevin McNally, Manu Bennett, Rick Cosnett, David Nykl, and Roger Ashton- Griffiths. The event will be hosted by Maria Muller and Ken Huegel, and the YouTubers/ streamers of the Transylvania ComicCon will be Cluj-Napoca’s own Creative Monkeyz. It is not yet clear who the featured artists will be, but this should become known on October 5th, when the event’s schedule will become available on the website.

Besides having photo ops and autograph sessions with the aforementioned guests, participants will also be able to show off their imagination and skills at the cosplay contests. The solo General Cosplay Competition starts on October 19 from 13:00. The group competition starts on Sunday, also at 13:00. At the same time, the qualifiers for the international cosplay competition Clara Cow Cosplay Cup will start. Other activities participants can attend at the Transylvania ComicCon include panels, and props& booths. Naturally, there will be an artists’ alley, a gaming area, and a shopping area too.

The entry fee for the Transylvania ComicCon is really affordable. Those who want to have a photo op and get the autograph of Kevin McNally or Roger Ashton-Griffiths have to pay less than 15 Euros for the treat. The VIP three-day tickets cost less than 100 Euros, while one-day entry fees are as low as 10 Euros. These prices may be incredibly low but the level of fun will go incredibly high at the Transylvania ComicCon. Check out the event and all it has to offer here.

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The 5 best MMORPG games you can play right now

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Let’s travel back to 2000s. Can you remember the time when MMORPG genre popped up out of nowhere? Early genre games such as Everquest, World of Warcraft or Guild Wars were considered to be the prophets of the new age of PC gaming. MMORPGs or Massively Multiplayer Role-Playing Games have been considered the most gratifying, rewarding, immersive, and time-soaking games out there. However, as time went by, only a handful of MMORPGs managed to secure their communities and stay a little while longer.

So today we’re talking some time (and internet space), introducing the very best games of the MMORPG genre. Some of these games are old and can brag about their long history while some of them are fairly fresh inviting fans of the genre to explore seemingly unending content. Most importantly – all of these games are alive and will grant you hundreds of hours of joy.

  1. The Elder Scrolls Online

We begin our list with the youngest of the bunch. ZeniMax Online Studios creation, The Elder Scrolls Online is set in the magical continent of Tamriel which will be familiar to the fans of TES franchise. The game’s storyline is indirectly related to other games of the franchise; however, the game is set way far back before the events of Oblivion, or Skyrim. Currently the game has two  expansions: The Morrowind and the Summerset, however, the developers have promised a third expansion The Elder Scrolls Online: Elsweyr which is coming out on June 4, 2019.

  1. Final Fantasy XIV

Final Fantasy XIV  is developed and published by Square Enix. First released back in 2013 the game quickly became a hit among many MMORPG genre fans across PC and PlayStation communities. It has tons of great content which is keep on coming even to this day. Recently Square Enix has announced yet another game expansion titled Shadowbringers which will bring a variety of new dungeons and include yet another playable race: the rabbit-like Viera, already known to the fans of Final Fantasy XII. The game will also increase its level cap from 70 to 80 and introduce a number of new zones to explore.

  1. Guild Wars 2

This ArenaNet MMORPG game certainly deserves a spotlight in our list. Guild Wars 2 is an attractive piece because of its ever-living world structure which captivates players with multiple quests, continuing storyline, and rewarding gameplay mechanics. The game is also considered among the best MMORPGs because of its freedom and versatility when it comes to personalization. You can literally create, augment, and specialize your character in such a way that it would be exceptionally unique to your preferred playstyle.

  1. RuneScape

RuneScape is the oldest game on our list, however, it carries the very same explorer’s spirit within. It’s safe to assume that if you’re interested in MMORPG genre you’ve tried this game already at a certain point in time. We can still remember the wood chopping, fire making, and fishing activities which required hours upon hours of discipline, and we also remember how much joy did that provide. And it still does if you’re patient enough. That’s why it secured a spot on our list!

  1. World of Warcraft

No MMORPG games list would be complete without the king of the genre. It has been over 14 years since Blizzard released World of Warcraft. The game was a phenomenal success and became one of the most iconic titles of all time. World of Warcraft is even included in the video game Hall of Fame and there are plenty of reasons why. Even today the game is huge and has millions of players logging in to play it every month. Throughout its history World of Warcraft has seen 7 major game expansions with tons of great content to explore. Furthermore, Blizzard is planning to release a Classic version of the game sometime this summer which means that the king of MMORPGs can be entering its second lifecycle. If you’ve never played – we do recommend you give it a try.

While some of these games can be played for free, some will require you to purchase certain expansions (or game time). On Eneba Marketplace you’ll find everything you need in order to start your new MMORPG adventure!

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