SEGA Possibly Considering North American and European release of Project Diva F, Online Petition Opened

 Posted by at 3:41 pm  Hatsune Miku, Videogames  4 Responses »
Jun 122012
 

After the recent buzz over the news of a Project Diva F demo booth at E3, a North American electronics expo, people have been excited over the possibility of an international release of the game. Hopes of this were shot down when SEGA said they were NOT planning an international release. This was a letdown considering the demo of the game was completely translated, and even small things like a clip of the game seen in this E3 PS Vita software showcase.

But this may start to turn around, as there’s some news floating around that SEGA was testing the waters with the E3 demo and may actually consider the game for an international release. Even if it’s just through digital distribution (which would make more sense from a cost standpoint), it’s definitely something that we wouldn’t want to slip by. A user has opened up an online petition where people can sign their name to show support for the game. The current goal is set at 10,000 signatures (EDIT: Now it’s 2,000).

To cast your vote and signature, please click here. Lets show our support!

Keio University of Japan Develops New Face Tracking Method for 3D Avatar Use

 Posted by at 3:24 pm  Other  3 Responses »
Jun 122012
 

A small Keio University group has developed a rather interesting method of tracking people’s facial movements in real time, using nothing more than a standard PC and a USB Camera. That’s right, no specialized hardware is needed for this to work. The method in which it works is pretty simple. The software locates several key points of a persons face, and then also locates the border of the face to allow it to detect the orientation of the head, as well as lip and eye movements.

In this demonstration video, you can see them testing the software with what clearly seems to be MikuMikuDance. They plan to develop the software so that it can be used by CG animation hobbyists as well as game developers. You can pretty much imagine this as something like Kinect, but for your face instead of your body. Using both of them combined could allow for pretty realistic model movements.

Any news on availability of the software is not yet known.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvievLytmrs]
 

Entertaining Miku Themed Programs and Games

 Posted by at 2:52 pm  Hatsune Miku, Other, Other Vocaloids, Videogames  10 Responses »
Jun 082012
 

I’ve found a few interesting applications and games over the years, and I figured that those who don’t know about them will also enjoy them.

 
This is a bit of an old “bullet hell” styled game, very similar to games like Touhou. There are several levels of difficulty, and you have the same level of firepower at all times. The enemies and bosses are all based on character icons from the popular Japanese video site NicoVideo. And your bombs? They’re none other than a giant MOLE!

You can download the game by clicking the above image (or click here), then click where it says “ヘクターミク ゲームプログラム [Ver1.00]“. There’s quite a bit to cover in terms of navigating the game menus and controls, so I suggest you read a blog post found here for all the details.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tac2hQNlYyk]
 

Hatsune Miku “Desktop Assistant”

This is a neat little application that summons a small Miku that roams around your desktop and does various activities. She’ll climb the edges of your screen and windows, jump around, play with various objects, and even multiply. So it is not a good idea to leave her unattended for extended periods of time. She even gets a bit mischievous and may steal your application windows to throw them off screen (only works on some windowed apps, not full screen). Thankfully the application has an option to summon them back if this happens. You can even move her around if you want.

 
To download the application, just click the image above (or click here). To use it, simply extract the entire folder and launch the file named “Shimeji.jar” (you will need Java for it to work). Afterwards, a small icon will appear in the lower right corner of your screen and a single Miku will drop onto your desktop. The controls for the application are as follows:

Top Option: Summon another Miku (or just double click the small icon).
Second Option: Calls all Mikus on screen to the location of your mouse.
Third Option: Deletes all Mikus on screen except the original (delete individual Mikus by right clicking on them).
Fouth Option: Brings back any stolen windows that were thrown off screen.
Fifth Option: Quits the application.

EDIT: Check the comments for another similar application posted by Neo! Thanks!
 

MikuMikuBench for Android Devices

More and more people are purchasing high end Android phones and tablets, and more people are getting competitive over who has the better device. Benchmark applications for these devices are becoming more popular, so a user has created a free application called “MikuMikuBench”.

The application has a MikuMikuDance model dance to the song “NyaNyaNyaNya!”, with the framerate counter clearly visible. Once the benchmark is completed, it will display a score based on your device’s performance. You can download the application from the official Android market by clicking here. The user has even created a Rin version. Here’s a video showing the benchmark running on 3 different devices.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZNpmG-d15c]
 

Nendoroid.jp Now Available in English + Hatsune Miku Project Diva F Spotted at E3

 Posted by at 1:57 am  Hatsune Miku, Merchandise, Videogames  10 Responses »
Jun 052012
 

In recent smaller news, nendoroid.jp has launched an English version of their website, nendoroid.jp/en/. Since many products are now becoming available for international shipping, this should make your product browsing experience much easier. Thank you very much to salanos for the tip!

This next blip of news doesn’t have a whole lot of information yet, but word states that a Project Diva F booth was spotted at E3, the Electronics Entertainment Expo, on Monday, June 4th. It’s unsure as to why a PjD F booth was even seen at a North American electronics show in the first place. There is a lot to speculate on that (as exciting as it is), but for now I’ll stick with what is known.

EDIT: Hatsune Miku’s facebook page has confirmed there is a booth, SEGA has also announced via twitter that a booth is set up with a PjD F tech demo. Here is the tweet: E3 2012：Sony Computer Entertainment America（SCEA）ブースにで「初音ミク -Project DIVA- f」出展決定！（Tech Demo）リズムゲームは日本語のままの出展ですが明日からの現地の反応が楽しみでございます！（2号）. Translation: A tech demo booth is set up with the game, but it’s still in Japanese(?). They’re excited to see the surprised reactions from fans touring the expo.

EDIT 2: Hatsune Miku’s facebook has posted several images of the demo booth. Do I need to even mention how jealous I am of the people who got to play this? There was two songs available: World’s End Dance Hall and Cat Food. Click the thumbnail to see the full version.


 
The new product art and packaging for the limited edition bundle has been revealed. It appears there will be two different types of box art. The normal release will have Miku placed on the right on the cover with a polychromatic background, while the limited bundled release will have Miku positioned on the left with decorative button faces in color. It will also include two neat artistic extras. One is a protective cover for the PS Vita, with the second being the AR (augmented reality) card.

Once again, the bundle will include the limited edition Crystal White Hatsune Miku PS Vita, a 4GB memory card, and a copy of Project Diva F with a slightly different box art. Thank you to gematsu for the info!
 

 

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