May Pang's Asian Media Internet News

On February 16th, I arrived at my local GameStop and picked up my own copy of Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth. If you know me well, it wouldn't be a surprise I would be getting this game on it's release date. Also, you would know that I have definitely beaten this game by now. Well, it was well worth my time and money to purchase this game.

Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth is a spin-off of the popular Ace Attorney video game series. Previous protagonists of this series include Phoenix Wright (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations) and Apollo Justice (Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney). Now, Phoenix Wright's childhood friend and prosecutor, Miles Edgeworth, gets his own game.

We first meet Edgeworth in the first game in the Ace Attorney series, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. It is revealed that Miles Edgeworth is a young prosecutor who is fearless in court and has never lost a case until Phoenix arrives. He is also troubled by his past in a case referred to as the DL-6, in which his father is the victim of a murder. In Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, all of the suspicions surrounding the murder are cleared and the real murderer is caught. After the case is finally put to rest, Edgeworth leaves on a trip of self-discovery and isn't heard from again until the last case in Trials and Tribulations where he helps Phoenix Wright in his toughest case yet.

In the beginning of Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, we catch up with Edgeworth on a return trip from the fictional nation of Borginia. Upon his return from the airport, he is already caught up in a murder case that took place in his office. The events of the game are out of chronological order but all center around the same incident. The Interpol is trailing an international smuggling ring and Miles Edgeworth gets caught right in the middle of it. He also hears rumors of the great thief the Yatagarasu who is said to only steal the truth. Then, a young girl by the name of Kay Faraday appears and claims she is the newest heir Yatagarasu name and vows to be Edgeworth's assistant and find the truth behind the smuggling ring and the Yatagarasu.

This game is fantastically played out. Although it took some time to figure out the chronological order of events, it becomes clear what the real objective is. We also are able to revisit some of the old characters in the Ace Attorney series such as Maggey Byrde, Detective Dick Gumshoe, Franziska von Karma, and Edgeworth's biggest fan Wendy Oldbag. With every Ace Attorney game, we must have a trusty young female assistant. In this game, we are given Kay Faraday who claims to be the new great thief Yatagarasu. She doesn't stray far from the female assistants from the past games (Maya Fey and Trucy Wright), which keeps the game's charm. The game takes place more outside of the courtroom. This time, we are given the gift of running. The player is able to control the movements of Edgeworth, making it more exciting when investigating crime scenes. As Edgeworth, the player is also able to use "Logic" to figure out the truth by piecing together pieces of evidence discovered at the various crime scenes. It's an easy controlled game that would be easy for anyone to play. It still contains the very funny and witty dialogue that has been used throughout the Ace Attorney series. Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth is a fantastic addition to the Ace Attorney series and doesn't stray too far from the formula of the other games. I'm sure any Ace Attorney fan, like myself, would fall in love with the game as much as I did. I would give this game an 8.5/10 and recommend it to everyone! I don't know what's better than playing as a prosecutor in a frilly magenta suit who has a not-so-secret love of the Steel Samurai.

Watch the English trailer for Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth!

With the upcoming United States release of Nintendo’s newest edition of the role-playing Pokemon franchise, Heart Gold and Soul Silver, I recently decided to transport myself back into the 90’s and relive the world wide and multi-generational phenomena that is Pokemon.

Originally released in Japan in 1996 as a duel compatible Game Boy role-playing video game (Pokemon Red & Green), Pokemon has become the second most successful video game franchise in history. There have been 18 different versions of the Pokemon role-playing game designed for the various Game Boy platforms, about 28 spin-off games designed for various gaming systems, an anime series running for over a decade, 13 movies, 10 CD’s, a trading card game, a Pokemon store in Rockefeller Center, NYC, and millions of dollars made through other merchandise.

I recently purchased for myself a Teal Game Boy Color, and my own personal favorite, a copy of the original Pokemon Silver game to refamiliarize myself with the map, and most of all, the Pokemon (Looking thoroughly online, was available for a total of about $30). This second generation of Pokemon games added an additional 100 Pokemon, though most of the original 151 were available throughout the game. Although I love the original red and blue versions, there were some new components added to Pokemon Silver that created a whole new level of game play. There is an internal clock that kept track of the current date and time; Pokemon appearances and other events in the game can only occur at certain times. Pokemon can now hold items, including berries, which can automatically heal hit points (HP) or other status ailments on the Pokemon holding it, without wasting a turn. New Pokeballs were added making Pokemon easier to catch, and Pokegear, like cellphones, were introduced to enhance game play.

Included among the 100 new Pokemon added to the second generation, the three legendary dogs, Raikou, Entei, and Suicune were introduced. These Pokemon flee often, unless a move like scary face was used to prevent fleeing. They also moved very frequently, making them much harder to track. Steel type and Dark type were added to the game, as well as the possibility of running into the rare and elusive “Shiny” Pokemon. Shiny Pokemon are very difficult to find, and are a different color than other Pokemon of that species (many of us are familiar with the Red Gyarados which is on the news program at the beginning of some Pokemon games). Finally, breeding through the daycare center was introduced in the second generation of the Pokemon games, enabling players to breed stronger Pokemon.

Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver have already sold over 2 million copies in Japan, and have promising sales outlook in the United States. I am personally very excited for the release of these games, and I am planning on purchasing Soul Silver, due to my love of Lugia. In these versions, the Pokemon that is first in your party will follow you around, outside of its Pokeball. Players can talk to their Pokemon and it will occasionally pick up secret items. There is a new mini-game called “Pokethalon” which utilizes the Nintendo DS, DS Lite, and DSI’s touch screen. There is another feather called the “Pokewalker”, although I am not quite sure about this feature. To make it work, you would have to buy a Pokeball shaped pedometer, and through infrared signals, can “hold” a Pokemon to increase experience, closeness, and increase money. Overall, I can’t wait for the United States release on March 14th! I hope to see everyone on WiFi very soon!

Watch the English trailer to Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver!

Sad news in the world of KPOP today. An official statement has been released that 2PM's former leader, Jay Park/Park Jaebum, will not be returning to the group. After several excrutiating months of waiting for an answer, the Hottests finally got theirs... and it's not the news they were hoping for. JYPE released a letter through their official website today. The letter stated:

On December 22nd, 2009, Jaebeom had confessed to Jung Wook representative that he had done something wrong during Again and Again promotions. It was apparently more serious than his MySpace controversy.

The six other members were not notified then as they were busy with year-end activities. On January 3rd, 2010, everyone of us (along with the members) sat down for a discussion and later came to an agreement 3 days later that it was no longer possible for Park Jaebeom to continue activities along with 2PM.

We thus decided to terminate our exclusive contract with Jaebeom.

It was also revealed that JYP had planned for Jay to return to 2PM this upcoming April with their new album. Unfortunately due to this turn of events, Jay's contract was terminated. Before 2PM's activities resumed in April, JYP was to have a conference regarding Jay's return. Also, this decision was made January 3rd yet JYPE didn't release a statement until now. Many of the fans are in an uproar because of this. 2PM's promotional activities for their album 1:59PM weren't scheduled to end until January 17th. The announcement of Jay's contract termination may have interfered with their activities if they did not wait. The Hottests are also annoyed with the fact that the other 6 remaining members agreed to this decision. Some believed that they betrayed Jay with this decision.

After the announcement of this terrible news, the Hottests started a protest in front of the JYPE building and are currently writing many letters. JYPE has also scheduled a conference with the fans on the 27th. The fans are right now in an uproar and I'm sure many of them are waiting for this conference.

It's a shame all of this had to happen the way it did. Many people, including myself, waited for an answer regarding Jay. Now and answer has come to us and many of us aren't happy. Right now, all we can do is support Jay, JYP, and the rest of 2PM with their future activities.

Three time Olympian Apolo Anton Ohno has done it! On Saturday night in the 1,000-meter short-track speed skating event, he won bronze making it his seventh medal. He broke Olympian Bonnie Blair's previous record by one medal now making him the most decorated Winter Olympian in U.S. history. United States over all has received a total of 23 medals during this Olympics. Apolo now has two more events to come. Apolo, we are proud and honored to have you on our team. Go Team U.S.A.!

We attended the Polysics Concert at the Gramercy Theater in New York City February 13 on Saturday night and it was insane! The line was pretty long, wrapped around the building as all the Polysics fans anticipated what was in store for them. When we finally got inside we waited anxiously for the concert to start, not knowing what to expect. The Polysics came on the stage making sure all of their instruments were in tune, testing them out to  A-ha's "Take On Me" playing in the background coming while the audience was singing along with the lyrics.

The Polysics began with greeting the crowd with a warm welcome, telling everyone how much they loved New York.  They opened with the song Young Oh Oh! and the crowd sang along and swayed their hangs back and forth in delight. The fans started a mosh pit near the front of the stage, getting excited over the Polysics amazing energy. Other fans were jumping up and down, singing the songs with Polysics. At one point Hiro commanded the crowd to do jumping jacks. It was an incredible sight to see! The mood during the concert was at all times energetic. It was surreal seeing the Polysics work the stage in their orange jumpsuits. Hiro swayed to and fro across the stage playing his guitar with precision speed. Kayo pulled out her pom poms at times, shaking them at the crowd as if we were at a football game. Fumi played her bass like it was going to take off into orbit and Masashi beat on the drums as if he were beamed in from another world.

Polysics played the crowd favorites Digital Coffee, Bero Bero, I My Me Mine, Kaja Kaja Goo, and Shout Aloud! to name a few. Hiro asked the crowd did they want to be his Valentine and the crowd yelled "YES"! in unison.  The concert had our adrenaline pumping the entire time and  once it was time for it to end, we didn't want it to. The Polysics played their last song and bid their goodbyes. Yet as they left the stage, the crowd shouted, "POLYSICS! POLYSICS! POLYSICS!" and they came out to play a couple more supercharged songs for an encore.

The Polysics is a music group that knows how to entertain with expertise while having fun doing it. We definitely cannot wait to see them rock again!

Check out our exclusve interview with the Polysics!

Take a look at our photo gallery of the concert!

In watching the Olympics this year I have seen so many inspiring , triumphant stories. Some of the stories have an unbelievable surprise like Olympic figure skater, Nobunari Oda of Japan. He is a direct descendant, number 17 in line, of the daimyo Oda Nobunaga also known as the "Demon King". I could barely contain myself when I heard the commentators talk about his noble ancestry. I have read so much on feudal Japan, because I was fascinated with it. I really liked learning about the war strategies and the stories behind all the leaders of that time. I remember reading about Oda Nobunaga, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi to name a few. It's thrilling to know that Nobunari Oda now skating in the Olympics is a part of ancient Japan's great history.

This has been an awesome four days of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics so far. I've been a hardcore fan of the Olympics since I was a small child and I still get excited whenever I hear the Olympics' theme song. This Olympics has had some powerful competitors and amongst them is a long list of Asian/Asian Americans who have practically been in every competition, especially  in speed skating.

American apple pie Apolo Ohno's silver medal in the 1500M final February 13 is the sixth medal he has won now making him the most successful short track athlete in history. Ohno has surpassed Eric Heiden as the most decorated male for the Winter Olympics. The gold went to Korea's Lee Jung-Su and the bronze to our very own J.R. Celski. I am extremely happy to see Celski up on his feet again after his almost tragic accident during the Olympic trials when the blade from his skate ripped his thigh almost cutting his femoral artery apart.

Figure skating has always been my most cherished sport. I watched all the pair skating these last two days on pins and needles! The jumps have always been my favorites and the skating is absolutely breath taking. In the short program Sunday night, China's couple Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo performed a flawless short program receiving record scores.  What a way for them to start the Lunar New Year! Monday night Shen and Zhao won the gold in the free skate program, the first in China's history which will make their wedding celebration that they have been holding off on even sweeter. Teammates Pang Qing and Tong Jian of China took the silver home for the free skate program.

Congratulations to all the winners and keep it up my Asian people!

Thank you to everyone  who entered the contest. The winners of the contest are smanta, Sarah, and star.candy. Please send your mailing addresses to lara@maypang-amin.com and we'll send off your packages promptly. Stay tuned, because we have some hot album giveaways coming up in the near future!

G-Dragon, leader of the Korean boy band Big Bang, had a controversial concert last year in December. As we have been reporting, G-Dragon had recently been taken in for questioning on the events that happened. He and choreographer Aimee Lee Lucas performed his song "Breathe" where they shared a bed and took part in activities of what some have said is sexually explicit. Now, G-Dragon's concert has been aired in Japan with the footage unedited and everyone gets to see what really happened that night.

What do you all think? Was taking G-Dragon into questioning worth the trouble?

The Polysics is a hot new wave band from Tokyo, Japan. They are famous for their supercharged, energetic performances and their innovative, funky sounds. I recently had the opportunity to interview them via Skype and with their translator Shin.

Mai: Everyone please introduce yourselves.

Hi! I'm Hiro from the Polysics and I do the guitars, vocals, and programming.
Hi! I'm Kayo and I play the synthesizer (keyboard).
Hi! This is Fumi and I'm the bass player.
Hi! I'm Masashi Yano and I play the drums.

Mai: When was the band formed and how many of the original members are still in it?

The all formed in 1997 and Hiro is the only member from the original band.

Mai: What made all of you choose to play this genre of music?

Polysics: Our music is a fusion of all the music we like and the style along with the sound we want to produce. We didn't want to go for a specific genre, it's something we like to do.

Mai: I notice that your influences in your music range from David Bowie to The Ramones to Frank Sinatra. What other genres of music would you like to incorporate into your current style of music?

Polysics: In regard to Frank Sinatra, we did the cover of "My Way". We are influenced by New Age music, the B52's, Devo, Talking Heads, and Japanese techno pop bands like YMO. Everyone has different musical background in the band that they come from and they all fuse together to create what is Polysics.

Mai: What hobbies do all of you do when you are not performing?
Hiro: I like to watch DVD's of "Godzilla" and "Ultraman"
Yano: I love to make coffee in the morning, grind the beans, I love the whole process.
Kayo: I love to make hair bands and knit.
Fumi: I love to drink and eat.

Mai: What would a typical day consist of in preparing for a concert?

Polysics: Everyone drinks Red Bull and that's about it.

Mai: What is your touring schedule like?

Polysics: We have around 100 shows inside and outside Japan. We come to the states almost every year. This is our seventh or eighth time coming to the states.

Mai: Why do you choose to perform in boiler suits?

Polysics: Because of Devo and we like to be referred as wearing jump suits. The jump suits are our default that we always go back to. But for the summer festivals when it gets really hot, especially in Japan, we switch it up a little, for example we wear flight attendant costumes and boy scout costumes to name a few.

Mai: What artists would you like to perform with?

Polysics: To tour with Devo would be a dream come true.

Mai: Kayo, I understand you are leaving the band in March, what are your future plans?

Polysics: We like the term "graduation". Kayo is graduating from the band. It's mostly undetermined, I would like to come back to the states for a pleasure trip to check things out. I like America's West coast the best.

Mai: Do you hope to get more fans with the “Absolute Polysics” album?

Polysics: With every release we try to gain a new audience. We would love to tap into the audience that loves their energetic music like rock and roll, punk. This particular album has more of an individual color coming out more so than in other past albums. It's something that you can look for in this album.

Check out the video of one of their latest songs Shout Aloud!
from their Absolute Polysics album.

We will have a review of the Polysics concert that we will be attending this Saturday, February 13, 9pm at the Gramercy Theatre in New York. If you're in the New York area check the theater for information on tickets.