Kanye West, Macklemore and Tyler, the Creator Battle Illuminati Shamans in 'Hip-Hop RPG'

I've only just discovered Dominick Raburn's 'Hip-Hop RPG', and I can already say that it's hands-down one of the most bizarrely hilarious and entertaining web series' I've watched in a long while. The story follows a group of post-apocalyptic warriors who send a chosen soldier back in time to recruit their younger selves, change the course of history and avert the apocalypse. Sound familiar?

What if I told you the revolutionaries were a broadsword-toting Macklemore, an apothecary Drake, a mysteriously cloaked Kanye West with a reflective mask, and the chosen one was none other than Kendrick Lamar? It only gets crazier from here on out, with Kendrick performing limit breaks and Tyler the Creator transforming into a giant cockroach to battle Illuminati Shamans.

Kanye's got mad stats.

As a avid fan of the genre, It's immensely satisfying  to watch Raburn's combine of two things that, at least on their face, couldn't look to be farther apart (Hip-Hop and Old-School RPGs) into a mini-series that wears its self-awareness proudly and comes from such an obvious place of love and appreciation. Not since Barkley, Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden have I seen or experienced such an off-beat marriage of two niche hobbies and art-forms.

Check out the rest of the episodes after the break, Stop by the series' dedicated subreddit for news of in-progress episodes, and go follow Dominick and give him a shout-out on twitter!

It's Happening: Final Fantasy XV TGS English Trailer

The Last Guardian. StarCraft: Ghost. Half-Life 3. Final Fantasy XV. The fifteenth installment in Square Enix's long-standing JRPG franchise is one of modern-gaming's great white whales. Originally announced in May 2006 as a spin-off of Final Fantasy XIII titled "Final Fantasy Versus XIII", Final Fantasy XV (phew, that's a lot of roman numerals) retains the series' standard-bearing legacy of flashy FMVs, gravity-defying haircuts, and ridiculously complicated plots that more often than not result in deicide.

This footage has been floating around the web ever since it premiered at this year's Tokyo Game Show, but the fact that the English dub has finally been released feels like a occasion to take notice of. The previously unrevealed road-trip element to this installment has me especially intrigued. Along with that frenetically-paced combat, I wonder what other curve-balls this next installment has in store for us. Still no stated release date as of yet, a demo is being prepped for release next year, albeit with some slightly draconian requirements.

Mistwalker and Hironobu Sakaguchi's 'TERRA BATTLE' Has An Interesting Take On Crowdfunding (That soundtrack though)

I will always be a firm believer that Mistwalker's Lost Odyssey was one of the most underrated JRPGs of all time. Along with one of my favorite scores by the legendary Nobuo Uematsu, Lost Odyssey featured an incredibly moving story with character development that stood with the best (those flashback sequences still bring a tear to my eye).

With their followup The Last Story, also being highly underrated, I was became slightly worried for the studios future. Thankfully, it seems that the studio has found an interesting way at gathering funding for their game, by releasing a full game.

Rather than producing content based off of an initial Kickstarter campaign, the studio will instead be releasing future content for the already completed game depending on how well it sells, titling it as a 'download starter'. That means, if the game sells well enough, on top of the already beautiful art and soundtrack presented in the above trailer, we'll see even more characters and music. 

The game mechanics, while simplified for mobile devices, seem like an interesting twist on traditional turn-based JRPGs with a healthy mix of tactical RPGs thrown in. Using character placement and combo moves, it seems that the game will place heavy importance on team composition.

I won't lie when I say I'm rather skeptical of a mobile game, but it's apparent that the team at Mistwalker is incredibly passionate about this project. The game's beautiful art and soundtrack have definitely set me in the right mood, and the potential artists onboard have really got me hoping this campaign succeeds. Seriously, just look at the potential names on this project. A release date has yet to be announced, but it appears they're ramping up so definitely keep an eye out as this might be the last time we ever see a JRPG development team compromised of this many big names. I'm more than stoked.

Behind the Music - Final Fantasy XIII-2 'Crazy Chocobo'

If you're unfamiliar with the Final Fantasy XIII-2 rendition of the Chocobo theme song I suggest jumping over here and giving the entire song a listen. Now that we have that out of the way, the wonderful folks over at Server Crashers have revealed the songs creation (in the most funniest way possible of course). 

 

Forget what you knew about the famed Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, we're in a new era, an extreme era and our only musical savior is Shawn McPherson. If this isn't the true story of the song's inception, I don't know want to know what is because everything else pales in comparison (plus I might get a bit depressed knowing how big of a role Square Enix actually had in the creation of the song).

Be A White Mage And Tank Co-Workers

Available in 3D or 8-Bit (Via)

Ever wanted to dress up like a Final Fantasy character but didn't want to go cos-playing? This seller on Etsy has you covered. This White Mage hoodie is cute as heck and a really awesome call back to the original Final Fantasy and the 8-bit era of gaming. The hoodie will only set you back $78, but remember each one is hand made as opposed to mass produced and it will help you heal to the fullest extent.