Backstage Pass: Blogger Ending Guide

Backstage Pass
Backstage Pass is not an iPhone app, so it may seem a bit out of place but after a long hiatus I thought I'd post something new! Backstage Pass is a dating simulation game following a shy makeup artist from Hawaii who is prone to panic attacks and far away from home. However, this is not a game review... This is a guide for the hardest ending to obtain in the game.

The Blogger ending is the pickiest of all endings in the game. After obtaining every other ending I really struggled with this one and found most guides to be a bit vague and following them never seemed to result in a win for me. So I played through, trying my own different odd techniques and writing down every single choice I made. Viola! A success! Now that I know a step by step process to guarantee a Blogger ending, I am going to share it with you.  Following this will absolutely result in the Blogger ending, even if some of the choices seem counter intuitive.

I will start this guide with the first choice the user can make, and work onward from there. This does not count the option of watching or skipping the intro because that is up to you.


Week Key: C= Class W=Work J=Exercise B=Blog Z=Sleep X=Event G=Go to town

8/28: Accept his offer
Week: C J C J C X C J C J

9/5: "Ask who he is hiding from"
9/6: Sleep
Week: C J X J C J C J C X

9/7: Stay
9/8: "Shrug it off" and Accept the job offer.
9/11: "Be serious"
9/13: Sleep
Week: C J X J C X C J C J

9/15: "Ask about the mall"
9/20: Accept the job offer then sleep
Week: C J C Z C J X J C J

9/24: "Ask Matthew"
9/27: Accept the job and sleep
Week: C Z C G C J C J C X

9/29: Go to the mall and buy every consumable (non-gifts) in Brains and Puzzles
10/2: "Be professional"
10/4: Sleep
Week: C J C J C J C X C J

10/8: "No need" Don't buy anything
10/11: Sleep
Week: C X C Z C J C J C J

(At this point your fitness level should be over 100.)
10/18: Use all your consumables that do not affect fatigue (See below)

History of Makeup -> +7 Fashion
Planetost: Wonders of Lightning -> -10 Fatigue
Journal -> +0.2 GPA
Rivenwell Online Companion Book -> +1 Intelligence, Unlocks access to the ??? Store
Famous Cities of the World -> +15 Intelligence
Advanced Makeup Techniques -> +10 Fashion
Workout Music -> +15 Fitness
Throne of Ice (Audio Book) Soundtrack -> -15 Fatigue
Double Agent (TV Series) -> +15 Charisma
Moonlight Avenger (Movie) -> +15 Charisma
Planetost (Movie) -> +15 Charisma
Knight Errant – The Complete Collection -> +1 Intelligence, affects John’s interactions (may affect hearts)

Use one anti-fatigue item. Your fatigue should be at 7ish.
Go to the mall with Adam but do not purchase anything.
Week: C J C J C J C J C J

10/25: Accept both jobs.  Use one anti-fatigue item and then sleep.
Week: C J X J C J C J C J

11/1: Sleep
Week: C J C J C J C J C J

11/8: Use one anti-fatigue item then sleep
Week: C J C J C J C J C J

11/15: Use one anti-fatigue item and sleep
Week: C B C W C B C B C B

11/22: Sleep
Week: C B C W C B C B C B

11/24: Spend the night
11/29: use one anti-fatigue item and sleep
Week: C B C W C B C B C B

12/6: Accept the job and sleep
Finals Week

12/13: Accept the job and sleep
Week: C B C W C B C B C X

12/15: "Work in the industry"
12/20: Buy the board game and the puzzle cube then sleep
Week: B B W W B W B X X X

12/22: "Get to work"
12/24: Bring the board game for Matthew
12/25: Give the puzzle cube to Adam
12/27: Go to the mall and buy the fuzzy boots, the skinny jeans and any top you want. Put them on.
Week: B B B B B B W W W W

1/3: Sleep
Week: C B C B C W C W C W

1/4: Get the extra credit
1/10: Sleep
Week: C B C W C B C B C W

1/11: Answer the question
1/17: Sleep
Week: C Z C B C B C W C W

1/21: Encourage her
1/24: Sleep
Week: C Z C B C W C B C W

1/31: Call Matthew.  Ask to go to the Cafe and order scones.
Week: C Z C B C B C W C W

2/7: Sleep
Week: C Z C B C B C W C W

2/14: Sleep
Week: C G C B C B C W C W

2/15: Go to the mall, don't buy anything
2/21: Accept the job (I think after this I slept.  Didn't write it down)
Week: C G C Z C B C X C W

2/22: Go to GameGo and buy all the consumables (Non-gifts)
2/25: "Say you'll do it"
2/28: Set your blog settings to videos.  Use all of the consumables that are not anti-fatigue (See below)

MovieManiac 7 -> +10 Fashion
Rock Festival – Greatest Hits - > +10 Charisma
Other Saga – New Life -> +10 Charisma
Monochrome Diet – Grayscale -> +7 Intelligence
Walk That Way -> +7 Intelligence
Imperialon V -> +7 Fitness
Webcam -> Lets you make video blogs

Use two of the anti-fatigue items and call Matthew to go to the cafe for scones.
Week: C B C W X W C X C B

3/7: Call Matthew and go to the cafe for a salad with feta
Week: C B C W C W C W C X

3/14: Use an anti-fatigue item, call Matthew and go to the cafe for a salad with feta
Week: C B C Z C X C W C W

3/17: "Ask if the hotel job has yielded any more work"
3/21: Sleep
Week: G B W W X B Z B W W

3/22: Go to the mall and buy a dress with the shawl, a frilly shirt and any bottoms and shoes you want to pair with the shirt. Wear the frilly shirt, shoes and bottoms.
For the Adam scene "Encourage him by saying it'll get better"
3/24: "Ask Lloyd for advice"
3/28: Call Matthew and go to the movies to watch High Octane
Week: C Z C B C W C W C W

3/29: Guess
4/4: Sleep
Week: C Z C B C W C W C W

4/5: Get the worksheet
4/11: Make cupcakes. You will make German Chocolate ( Chocolate batter, applesauce, coconut).  Save 3 of them for later and eat 5 now.
Week: C G C B C W C G C W

4/12: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
4/15: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
4/18: Call Matthew and invite to movie theater, bring a cupcake and see High Octane.
Week: C G X W C W C W C G

4/19: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
4/20: Help
4/23: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
4/25: Call Matthew and invite to movie theater, bring a cupcake and see High Octane.
Week: C G C W C W C W C B

4/26: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
5/2: Change to the dress with shawl outfit then sleep
Week: C J C W C W C G C W

5/6: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
5/9: Call Matthew and invite to movie theater, bring a cupcake and see High Octane. (This guy has to be tired of seeing this film...)
Finals Week

5/16: Call Matthew go to the movies and see high Octane
Week: C J C G C W C W C W

5/18: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
5/23: Sleep
Week: W W W W W W W W W X

You should have (barely) won the award if you followed this exactly.
5/30: Sleep
Week: C G C J C J C W C B

5/31: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
6/6: Accept the job and sleep
Week: C B C W C G X J C G

6/9: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
6/10: "Insist on awarding the first contestant"
6/11: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
6/13: Call Matthew and go to the movies to see Night Witches
Week: C B C W C G C J C G

6/16: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
6/18: Go to the mall and buy the casual top and jeweled sandals plus whatever bottoms you want. Put them on.
6/20: Sleep
Week: C B C B C B C W X G

6/25: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
6/27: Call Matt and go see Night Witches again
Week: C J C G C B C W C B

6/29: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
7/4: Sleep
Week: X J C J C G C W C B

7/7: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
7/11: Confirm address for tickets Then call Matthew again and see Night Witches
Week: C B C W C W C G C B

7/15: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
7/18: Call Matthew again and see Night Witches
Week: C G C B C W C B C G

7/19: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
7/23: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
7/25: Call Matthew again and see Night Witches
Week: C W C B C G C W C B

7/28: Go to Pho 24 and have a bowl of soup
8/1: Sleep
Week: C B C B C B C B C B

This is where it ends.  If the screen goes black, you know you have it. The final CG can be seen on the right.

I hope this was helpful to those trying to get this ending.  I realise it could be improved on for the most efficiency but what is important is it gets you the Blogger Ending.

• 29.99 USD
• Genre: Indie, Simulation
• Release Date: Aug 23, 2016
• Language: English
• Developer/Publisher: Sakevisual

AutoRap

AutoRap App for iPhone
     Have you ever wished you could rap like the pros?  Like that auto tuned sound?  Got some fresh beats you want to throw down, but don't have any background tracks?  Well... this application can help with that.
     Not only will I explain how this application works, but I'll also provide some samples for you to listen to.
     When you load the application up you'll see a screen with some interesting patters (Much like the one to the right) that says in the center "Tap to rap".  But don't go jumping on the horse before putting on the saddle!  There's a smaller button toward the bottom that says "Menu"... Try this first.
     The menu gives you 4 options.  "Select Beat", "Top Rappers", "My Rapporteur" (Spelled Rappertoire) and "Help/Info".
     Select Beat is where you should start.  There are 2 modes here.  Talk and Rap.  You have featured songs to use, premium songs and freestyle songs.  If it says "FREE" after the title, you can use this background without paying.  The premium plays you'll need to purchase.  You can get unlimited premium plays for 2.99 a month.  Which, if you use this a lot, is a great deal.  Unlimited freestyle plays can be purchased for 5.99 a month.  But you can get freestyle and premium plays for free by taking part in the sponsored ads programs.  You will also start out with a set number of freestyle plays to use.  You can get more if people like your songs.  As well as during special events.
     Choose the song you want to sing to and it will prepare it for you.  Then, when the numbers count down from 3 to 1, and say "RAP!", start talking or rapping.  When you are done, tap the screen.  it will then add your words to the song.  Depending on how slow or fast you rap/talk you may get a different outcome, even with the same beat.  It doesn't just play what you say.  It divides it into parts and creates a chorus and so on.  It can sometimes take a few tries to get the rap to come out just right.  Especially if it decides to splice the rap in mid sentence.

     Here are some sample raps for you to listen to and get a feel for how the app works.

Food on a Moose (By my son)

Toddlers & Tiaras (Me)
Je t'aime (Me) (A good example of how bad it sounds if you talk too fast)
Iron Chef on the Tele (Me)
     Let's move on to the Top Rappers.  Clicking this option under the menu will give you a list of the most liked raps as well as the most recent uploads.  You can listen to other people's raps and if you like them, give them a heart!
     My Rappertoire lists all of the raps you have created.  From here you can choose to make a rap public or not, listen to ones you've made or delete them.  You can also share them via email, Twitter or Facebook.  making a rap public will post it on the main feed.  it will show up in the most recent uploads until it's pushed off by other newer uploads.  Want it to stay there?  Make it good and promote it!  The more hearts you get, the more likely your rap is to survive!
     The Help/Info section provides the social media sites for AutoRap as well as a tutorial, credits and basic FAQ.
     I wish there were a way to have more control over the way the rap is spliced and arranged.  Plus having to pay for the app and having to pay for the subscription is a bit much.  Otherwise it's a great application.
     This is a fun little application.  Maybe you like blogging?  Why not rap your blog!?  I'm sure your audience will be entertained.  Want to tell that special someone how much they mean to you?  Make it a rap!  this application can make things so much more interesting.
Rating: 4/5

• $2.99
• Category: Music
• Updated: Oct 15, 2012
• Version: 1.0.8
• Size: 25.1 MB
• Language: English
• Seller: Smule, Inc.
• © 2012 Smule Inc

Rated 4+

MOeGO Dictionary

MOeGO Dictionary App for iPhone
     Have you ever wanted to speak like a 'cutesy' Japanese girl (Or cartoon character)?  Or, have you ever wondered what they are saying, or what it means?  Why do they say certain phrases?  What sort of girls/characters would say the same thing in a different way?  If any of these quandaries come up for you, this could possibly be helpful.
     Starting up the application, don't do anything for a while.  If you let the application sit on the main launch screen the character girl will get bored and say various random things.  Sometimes she will even hum.  This is a cute feature that you'd only know about if you left the application sit for a while.  Feel free to take advantage of this.
     I will start off by saying that the character only speaks Japanese.  The application has English for the definitions.  However, the audio is entirely in Japanese.
     On the launch screen you will have a few button options.  Let's go through them.  We will start from the bottom and work our way up.
     Staff: This should be obvious.  This is essentially the credits list.  It lists off who was involved in the creation of this application.
     Official Site: This will open your browser and direct you to their MOeGO website.  The site's English is a little broken.  However, it's still easy enough to understand.  It also provides two demonstration videos of someone using the application.  I do wish they would have made the videos a but 'cuter' rather than the way they did.  The second video gives off a bit of an unsettling vibe.  Both videos take you through the process of scrolling down the lists.  Choosing a word/phrase.  Then listening to the word/phrase being said.
     About MOeGO:  I took a screen shot of this, to the left.  It explains the applications purpose and the type of speech this application features.
     MOeGO List: This is the main part of the application.  Clicking this will take you to a list of... well, lists.  You can see what I mean to the right.  Basically, from here you'll choose how you want to browse the content.  Browse by subjects, suffixes, etc.  Different lists will have different content.  Feel free to try each one.
     Once you choose one, you'll be taken to another list.  This will be the list of words and phrases.  This is where it starts to get a bit tricky.  You would imagine that downloading this application would be more for learning about Japanese... But all of the words/phrases are written on the lists using only Japanese characters.  Without being able to read it, you wont know what you're choosing until you click it and read the translation.  I would really appreciate if they made the list feature both the Japanese and English versions.  Something like this...
あにい / Older Brother
兄上様 / Older Brother
アニキ / Older Brother
兄君さま/ Brother
兄くん / Brother
兄チャマ / Brother
兄や / Brother
     Or at least they could write out the Romanji for the phrases.  Below are sample screens from the "Subjects" section.

      As you can see in the second screen, this is what the page looks like after you choose a word of phrase. It gives you the Kana, and the Romanji here.  It tells you the category in which you located this word or phrase.  Then it explains the phrase.  In the Subjects section, the first sentence of the explanation is 'who you would call this'.  So in the sample to the right, above... You would call a noble woman this.  However, sometimes the way it explains it can be confusing.  For example "Boku"  The "who" here is "The first person to create boyish girl"... This sounds like a parent of a boyish girl.  However, what it means to say is that a 'boyish girl' would use this phrase in the 'first person' sense.  Because "Boku" is "I".  I understand that the main purpose is to give an explanation that describes not only how to use it but also 'who' would use it.  Or who to use it for...  But I would really like to see them add an actual "Literal definition" section in there to avoid confusion.
     If you are unsure how to pronounce the word, there is a button at the bottom that will play the word.  Next to it is a button that will say the phrase that the word is used in.  I have found that every now and then the character will start saying random phrases, even though you are actively using the app (Which can be confusion).  For example on the "Warawa" page after clicking "Play" it played the word.  Then started talking about ice cream.  I pressed the button and the phrase button several times afterwards.  It would not play the ice cream phrase again.  This is how I knew it was just the character saying things at random.  You'll notice this as you click different lists, and browse the application.
     There are 22 words in this section.
     Next section: MOe Suffix.  This is a list of words or phrases you can end sentences with.  Again, it doesn't really define the phrases.  It gives you the circumstance in which you would use it.  It tells you the sort of person that would use it.  However, it does not give a true definition.  When it does occasionally define the word itself, it gives a vague definition.
     Below are sample screens from this section.

     Let's look at the second screen above.  "Soonanokaa" is said to be used when you understand a situation (Making it sound more like an interpreted sound than a meaningful word).  It basically means "I understand".  This is a bit of a vague definition.  An example of just not defining the word at all is their explanation of "Desuno".  It in no way explains what the word means.  It should at least define "Desu" to give you a basic idea.  For this reason, I would say that this application is really only useful for people who know at least the basics of Japanese.  Otherwise people are going to go around ending their sentences in random words, thinking they are 'cute', when really they just look insane, because they don't understand what the words really mean.  So use the application 'after' learning some of the basics.

     There are 24 words in this section.

     Next section "Onomatopoeia".  In case you don't know this word.  Here is the meaning...

on·o·mat·o·poe·ia/ˌänəˌmatəˈpēə/

Noun:

The formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g., cuckoo, sizzle). The use of such words for rhetorical effect.

     That pretty accurately describes these words.  Think of the words you see in comic books.  "WHAP!" "BAM" "WOOSH"... These are onomatopoeia words.  So these words don't really need defining, really.  Saying what they refer to should be sufficient.

     You'll see phrases like "Munimuni", "Mii", "Nnyu", "Mugyuu" and other cute sounds.
     There are 19 words here.  You'll also see a lot of this "~".  You can tell a word is drawn out in a sigh or whine when you see this.  Keep that in mind.

     On to the last section.  "Other MOeGO".  These are basically things that they didn't feel really 'fit' into the other categories.  Some examples being "Aha" (A laugh), Jiwaru (You're mean), Kiraidesu (I hate you) and Nannanoda (What's this!?).  Some of the definitions here are very good.  better than many other the explanations in the other areas.  Where as some of them are again, quite vague, confusing or misleading.  It's a hit or miss.
     There are 37 words on this list.  That's so many!
     Now for the break down!
     It's a very interesting application.  it has a unique concept.  It's not so much "Teaching Japanese" so much as it is trying to explain particular dialects of Japanese.  Like how some American people say "Y'all" or "Ain't" where as others do not.  The phrases like these that are used, define the character's personality.  just because it's the same language, doesn't mean everyone who speaks that language uses those words or phrases.  So for this, I respect the application creators for giving expostulations for these phrases.
     The application is easy to navigate, aside from the issue of the word lists being in Japanese only.  Also, it is visually attractive.
     The voice actress is very good and manages to provide voices for a wide variety of character types and situations.
     I was unsatisfied with the explanations of some words.  I still say they should list a literal translation in the explanation section (Sometimes they do, but rarely).  I also this that the example/sample phrase in which they use the word should have an English translation, rather than be written only in Japanese.
     I 'am' very happy that other than the word list and sample phrases, all other parts of the application have been translated to English before releasing this application to the US market.  This is something many application creators fail to do before a US release.  So again, I respect the application developers for this.
     Overall it is a good application.  it has a few issues, but I think so long as a person has a basic understanding of the language, it should be easy to use and understand.  This could be very useful for people trying to create their own japan inspired comic book/web comic.  It could also help people who watch Japanese cartoons to have a better understanding of the characters they are watching, and why they phrase things the way they do.
     Lastly, I want to discuss the price.  I don't think 2.99USD is terrible... It does provide many words and the voice actress clearly put a lot of work into it.  But I honestly feel that this is more of a 1.99USD application.  I feel it would be a more appropriate price.  Maybe they'll have a sale one day.  We can hope, right?
Rating: 3.9

• $2.99
• Category: Entertainment
• Released: May 12, 2011
• Version: 1.01
• Size: 17.5 MB
• Language: Japanese
• Seller: D-KIDS, INC.
• © 2010 D-KIDS.Inc. All Right Reserved.

You must be at least 17 years old to download this app.

• Frequent/Intense Sexual Content or Nudity

SugarPost

SugarPost App for iPhone
     I really wanted to download this for a long time because it looked so cute.  I adored the artwork.  I couldn't find a way to communicate with the app creator or artist.  Eventually I ended up downloading it, so I could browse through all of the adorable images and make some cute cards.
     This is a paid application, but with the limited selection, you'd think it was a free application.  At least there's no ad banners.
     This is an application for making little digital cards to send to friends and loved ones.
     There are 15 regular cards.  Each one has a cute picture and some words.  Some examples are
"You make me smile"
"Good evening and good afternoon, good night.  Do you have any good news?"
"Cheer up  Better days are coming.Everything's gonna be alright"
"Together we make dreams come true"
"Will you be my sweetheart?"
and "I'm so sorry, please forgive me.  I love you"
     You swipe across the bottom, where the cards are displayed, to sift through them.
     You also have a place on the card that you can personalize with your own message, as well as a To and From area.
     When you have finished choose the card and writing your message you can click the "Send" function in the upper right corner of the card edit screen.  From here you can preview the card, save it to your device, send it in Kakaotalk, Upload it to Facebook, or send it via email.  There is also an option that says "Message" which I assume sends it through a text, but it doesn't appear to work.  It just loads endlessly.
     Aside from these cards, there are also photo cards.  To access these, click the "Photo Card" image on the upper left of the launch screen.
     There are only 7 photo cards available to choose from.  Each one works like a photo frame.  You click the empty spot where the photo goes and access your photo album to fill it with the photo of your choice.  You also have the option of taking a new photo to add.
     This is where the issue I have comes in...  When you load a photo, it stretches it out.  Also, trying to pinch and drag it to fit properly causes the image to spazz and jump all about.  Never staying where you want it to.  Using the photo cards is next to impossible, if you want the photo to actually look right.
     Otherwise, the photo cards work the same way the regular ones do.  They each have a different adorable drawing and a phrase.  Some examples being...
"You can make your dreams come true"
"To be happy"
"Happy Cheer Keep Smiling"
and "Happy Birthday to you!  You make me smile"
     These also have a place for the message you wish to write, the To and the From.
     Clicking the send button here works the same as in the other section.  If you wish to return to the message section from the photo card section, simply push the "Message Card" image in the top right side of the screen where you select the photo cards.
     I have to say that though I adore the artwork in this application, I regret purchasing it.  The limited variety, not working SMS and the inability to properly use the photo cards is more than just a bit disappointing.  I speculate that the photos used to work, but after iOS updates has gone a bit 'off'...  I don't think the application creator updates this app anymore (It has never been updated since the release in June).  So I doubt it will ever be fixed.  But we can hope!  If the creator fixes the photo card performance and adds some more cards, I'd gladly give it a higher score... But for now... the score is as it stands.
Rating: 2/5

• $0.99
• Category: Entertainment
• Released: Jun 10, 2012
• Version: 1.0
• Size: 19.2 MB
• Language: English
• Seller: HYE SUN LEE
• © PonyBrown

Rated 4+

Ama-Hina

Ama-Hina App for iPhone
     Are you strong enough to survive a horde of zombies?  Could you fight them off with a sword?... What about with your bare fists?  Well now you can!  This game features fierce school girls who face a horde of zombies head on, with no fear!
     The name Ama-Hina is a shortened form of Amaneku and Hinata.  The names of the two characters you can play.  But there are other non-playable characters in the game.  Not only are there several different zombies, but they have newely added a devil girl named Kozel who will fire a large gun at you.  Fight off her attacks and battle onward!
     When you first start the game up you will see a fun introduction animation sequence.  I really enjoyed the music for this sequence (Also, if you leave the launch screen going too long, the intro plays over again).  It reminded me a lot of the Persona games.  After the intro you'll see the launch screen (Right Screen Capture).  From here you have a few options.
     Twitter: Takes you to the official Twitter page for CELLNAVI (English).
     Info: Gives you a brief list of who was involved with the game.  As well as the game version number.
     Ranking: Takes you to the high scores list.  You select by level (Urban, Rainy Day or Hell).  Choose the stage you want the high scores for and you'll see all of your best scores for that level.  You can even click the "World" tab to see the best scores for that level in the world!  How do you compare against the best players?
     Settings: This is for the controls on the game.  Default controls are left tap for jumping, right tap for attacking.  If you are not comfortable with this set up, you can click the "Change" icon in the upper right corner of the settings screen to change them.
     Play: This is the important part.  this is what you download the app for, right?  It certainly wasn't to play with the settings and visit the Twitter page.  Once you click Start you are taken to the character select screen.  Initially you'll only have access to Hinata.  You have to unlock Amaneku by laying through the game a bit.
     Once you select your character you move on to the level selection.  Again, initially only one level will be available to play.  This is the "Urban" stage.  Below are two screen shots from the Urban stage, being played with Hinata.  You can click the images to view the larger version of the screen captures, if you like.

     You may notice that in the second capture the monsters look pretty tough.  I'll get to that in a moment.

     While playing you'll have no control over your character, other than jumping and attacking.  She will continue to run forward on her own.  If she stumbles over an obstacle or is hit by an enemy, she'll lose speed.  Also, jumping decreases her speed.  However, if she does not hit anything for a long time her speed will increase to an unsafe point.  You don't want to be moving too fast.  You wont have enough time to react when an enemy appears in front of you.  3 hits from the enemy and your hearts are gone.  You'll fall and lie on the ground lifeless.  Game over.

     The upper right shows your distance.  The further you go, the better.  Your distance is essentially your score.  Sometimes you can get power ups and extra hearts from defeating enemies or attacking red bins. The red bins can also be used to defeat the enemy  They seem to be highly explosive.  If you strike them 3 times they will roll forward, exploding on the first thing they come to.  If the first thing they come to is enough bin, you'll get a domino affect, and that bin will now roll forward.

     Every now and again, among the zombie scum you will find a larger demon monster.  These creatures take more hits to defeat.  Also, if you get a particular distance on a level, you can come across Kozel, which you can see in the second screen capture above for the Urban stage.  She is very dangerous!  proceed with caution.  You can try to dodge her shots or attack them.

     Once you get to at least 500 meters in Urban, you'll unlock the "Heavy Rain" stage.  I unlocked this after my first play.  So it should not be difficult for you.  The screen to the right is from the heavy rain stage.

     Unlike the Urban level, in Heavy rain you are timed.  When you smash bins you can now get either life, power ups or time.  Once the time runs out, it's game over.
     Once you go 300 meters in heavy rain, the path to Hell is unlocked.
     Hell is a level that looks like the city has mostly been destroyed.  It is also timed.  The enemies are stronger and the speed is faster.  I have not posted images from this stage in the review to give you something to look forward to.  But I will give you some advice.  Jump on the buses rather than tripping past them.  You'll lose less speed.  Jumping while attacking an enemy does more damage.  this is especially useful against the larger monsters.
     Amaneku is unlocked after a certain amount of game play, I believe.  It doesn't take long.  After an hour of playing I had unlocked everything in the game.  Below you can see some shots of Amaneku fighting.

     You may notice that the second screen shot looks different from usual.  The character is large on the screen and there is a blue border effect.  Remember those power ups I mentioned earlier?  When you swipe your finger across the screen you'll do a power up move.  now, sometimes this can be difficult to time.  I had a hard time getting it to work when I wanted it to.  You'll have 3 of these at the beginning of a level, but you can pick up more from the bins and such.  It creates a sequence where the character is large on the screen and does a super move animation that does heavy damage to the enemy/enemies it strikes.  You might want to save these for the large monsters.

     In case you are curious about the differences between the characters, as far as game play goes.  Hinata does less damage, but her attacks are faster.  Amaneku does more damage but has a slower attack.  Keep that in mind when you select them for different stages.

     I really enjoyed this game.  It's simple but still challenging.  I like the available characters.  I would love to see them introduce more playable characters one day.  Perhaps you could play a zombie to fight the zombies... or play as the devil girl?  Either way, it was a really fun game.  I'm glad I got the opportunity to play it!  I think that if you like school girls, side scrollers or zombie battling, it's worth the download.  it's also available for Android.  But it'll cost more (2.87USD).
Rating: 5/5

• $1.99
• Category: Games
• Updated: Dec 07, 2011
• Version: 2.0
• Size: 34.1 MB
• Languages: English, Chinese, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish
• Seller: CELLNAVI
• © CELLNAVI

Rated 9+ for the following:

• Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
• Infrequent/Mild Horror/Fear Themes

Oldify

Oldify App for iPhone
     Have you ever wondered what you would look like in 20, 30, 40... even 50 years?  What will you look like as an old man or woman?  Well, this app could give you a basic idea.  This is of course also assuming you do not age very gracefully.
     When you load the application up you'll see a photo booth strip.  After you've made a few oldify images you can pull on the strip and view any of the images you have made in the past.  Bring them up and giggle or show people you know.
     At the bottom of the launch screen you can see icons for this app maker's other applications that you may choose to download.  One that makes you bald, one that makes you fat... and even a mustache application.
     Click on the prominent "start" button toward the top to begin the aging process.
     The camera will load automatically.  You can either take a photo from scratch using the camera or you can load one from your device.  Clicking the folder in the bottom left will allow you to access your device's storage to rummage through your photo albums.  At the top right corner, you can switch from front camera to back camera.  Or visa versa.
     If taking a new photo, try to get your face inside the guidelines shown on the camera.  If choosing a photo from your albums, choose a front facing photo that can easily be moved within said guidelines.  As you will be made to do this, once your photo is selected.
     Now you have one more step before becoming old and haggard... You will see your photo with a long sort of rounded rectangle toward the bottom.  This must be positioned over your mouth.  The two small circle marks must be positioned on your eyes.  This is for animation purposes.  The app will make it look as though the subject is blinking, coughing, yawning and so on.
     Click ready and watch the lovely graphic of two charming young people turn elderly... Then, your photo will appear...
     Your photo will animate as I stated earlier.  You can see the capture to the right in mid animation.  It looks better when you're actually watching it move.  The subject's head will move about.  They'll sigh, grunt, etc.  You can even hear them.  I find it interesting that the males sound like males and the females sound like females (In my experience)... Because no where does it ask you for a gender.  It must be bloody good at guessing.
     Below you can see another example of the before and after.

     Now that you have your future self... What do you do with him/her?  Well, you can share them with friends or family.  You can see on the left side of the finished screen there are buttons for emailing or uploading to Facebook.  There is also the option to download the finished image to your device.  This will not be animated.  it will upload it as a still image.  You can remove the buttons by clicking the arrow on the right middle of the screen.
     You can go home and start all over with a new image by clicking the home image at the top left.  If you'd like to see your photo young again (But still animated) you can also do that by double tapping the screen.  You'll still blink and look around... but you'll be young as you were when you took the photo.
     I actually really like the fact that they go out of their way to animate the results.  It's a really interesting feature and I enjoyed it.  I think the results are quite nice.  It's fairly believable.  I suggest only using photos without glasses.
     I think 99 cents is a reasonable price for the work that went into this application.  It's not something I see myself using often.  I'll likely remove it from my phone soon.  However, it's something I am glad I got to try out.  I feel it was money well spent.  Very entertaining.
Rating: 5/5

• $0.99
• Category: Entertainment
• Updated: Aug 22, 2012
• Version: 1.8
• Size: 20.5 MB
• Language: English
• Seller: Apptly LLC
• © Apptly LLC

Rated 4+

Breathing for Health

Breathing for Health App for iPhone
     Being able to control your breathing is very important.  It helps during yoga and exercise. It helps when you are running or when you are trying to relieve stress by taking deep breaths and relaxing.
テラシュールウェア  have created this application to help you to control your breathing.
     I do yoga and exercise.  However, I also have trouble with asthma.  It can be especially bothersome when I need to walk somewhere.  I thought this application might be useful for me for that reason.  If I could control my breathing when my asthma starts kicking in, I wouldn't be gasping or struggling to breathe. (Yes, I have an inhaler, but I don't like using it)
     So, upon starting the application up we see the title and a calm serene looking landscape.  Very peaceful and vivid.
     There is a settings menu that appears, which gives you the breathing rate options.  Depending on what you are doing, you will need to change the settings.  You can set the time for 5 to 60 minutes (By 5s.  So 5, 10, 15, etc).  You can also switch between two breathing styles.  In and out, or in, pause, out.  The second being more for relaxation and yoga.  The first one being better for jogging and such.  And lastly you can control the tempo.  It's on a scale of 1-5.  5 being the fastest.
     When the settings are correct for what you need, click the start button at the bottom.  You will then see the next display screen.  The breathing will not begin immediately.  There is a play icon in the center of the screen.  Hitting this will begin your breathing.  You can also pause at any time, if you feel like you need to.  This can also be good for mid yoga breaks.
     You will see a pie chart in the top right.  For in and out, there will be two parts, In, pause, out will contain 3.  There is a little animated character that will tell you to breath in, out or pause.  This will all depend on which part of the pie chart you are on.  There is also a note playing for each part of the pie chart to audibly tell you when to breathe in or out, should you be unable to look at the phone.  The timer is at the bottom, so you know how much longer you have until your breathing session is complete.
  There is also a small information panel built into the application.  I have screen captured it for you.  It is to the left.
     I like the unique and useful idea for this application.  The graphics are very attractive.  I find the audio to be very useful.  However, it can get a bit annoying, after listening to it for several minutes.  I would like to see a mute option added at some time in the future.
     All in all, the only real issue I see is that the price is very high for this application. It's a great idea, and I could see them profiting off of it.  However, I feel that the high cost could very well be causing many users to decide against the purchase.  I think a reasonable price for this is 99 cents.  I think 1.99 could work, if it is updated often (Maybe they could add different scenes to switch between, or maybe different audio options).  These would be easy to implement and could make the costumers happy and the cost reasonable.  However, where the price is currently will cause me to lower the score a bit.  If the price were lower, I would surely give this application a higher score.
Rating: 4/5

• $3.99
• Category: Health & Fitness
• Updated: May 31, 2012
• Version: 1.01
• Size: 7.8 MB
• Languages: English, Japanese
• Seller: KAZUHISA HIRATA
• © テラシュールウェア

Rated 4+

MeiMei

MeiMei App for iPhone
     Have you ever wondered what your name means?  Have you ever wondered what your name would mean... in Japanese?  If so, this application is for you!  Keep in mind that this application is for entertainment purposes only!  So don't get mad if your name ends up being something you don't like, or doesn't make sense.
     This is a simple application, so it wont take any effort to learn or be confusing.  Basically you just type your name in and tell it what 'type' of meaning you'd like.  You tell it your gender and click "Create".
     You'll receive one of various backgrounds and the Kanji for your name along with the Romanji and the meaning for each character that, together, make up your name's meaning.  You can even get your results made into a T-shirt (for a price)!
     If you don't like the results you got you can always try again.  You can get a variety of results for your name.  there is bound to be one you are satisfied with.
     This is a fun application to use on your own name, your family and friend's names... pet's names... If you're making a story or a comic, this could also be a useful application to use as a way of naming your characters!
     There is a "How to Use" option on the front screen that explains the application and how it works.  There is also an option that explains the Kanji.
     I really like the Log feature on the front screen because you can scroll through all of the previous results you've gotten.  This way you don't forget your favourites!
     Below are some of the results I have gotten from this app.  You can click on the screen shots to view the larger version.  This will help in reading the text on them.

      This application is affordable at only 0.99 USD.  It also has a share option so you can share your results on your social network of choice.  I found it to be a fun application.  It could also be seen as educational.  It can help you learn different Kanji and the meaning of said Kanji.  If you are studying Japanese, this could be a useful application to have.
     This is not an application I would expect someone to be using on a regular basis.  So I usually wouldn't want to pay.  However, since this application is straight forward and does exactly what it's supposed to do, I think it could be a good purchase, if you are looking for this type of application.  Especially since it has so much variety in results.
Rating: 5/5

• $0.99
• Category: Entertainment
• Updated: Jul 12, 2012
• Version: 1.0.4
• Size: 20.6 MB
• Languages: English, Japanese, Spanish
• Seller: CINCOCCHO Inc.
• © 2012 CINCOCCHO Inc. All Rights Reserved.

箱庭ズ

 箱庭ズ App for iPhone
     This is a cute clock app, entirely in 2-D pixel art.  It reminds me of that really old game from the 80s (I forget the name) where the little fellow just walked around his house all day and did what he wanted, and you watched him.
     Now I'll be frank (Pleased to meet you, Frank!), I am in no way a fan of clock applications for devices that have clocks on them already by default.  It seems like a complete waste to me.  However, that being said, I still paid and downloaded this.  Why?  It seemed really interesting to me.
     You can choose between 3 characters.  You can also switch between 3 different rooms.  This is done with the "Room change" and "Character change" buttons at the bottom.
     The characters walk around and you can interact with them, as well as the room itself.  For example, taping the little pink haired fellow can cause him to respond by swishing his hair and posing.  Or it can cause him to play some music on his guitar.  Sometimes the female character falls over from being tapped.  The cat boy enjoys his tea and will sometimes swat you with his sword.
     Here is a list of things in the rooms that can be tapped to see an animation.  I wont list all of them, as I think that part of the fun here is to explore each room yourself.
---------
Traditional Japanese Bedroom:
Wall Scroll
Sliding panel over entrance
Fish bowl
Pink Bedroom:
Window
Tele
Modern Bedroom:
Guitar
Computer
Clock
----------
There is also a large "Talk" button on the lower section of the app, you may have noticed.  When you press this button the character will tell you something.  However, it is via text only, this application has no voices.  Wouldn't it be more fun if it did?  The text is in Japanese, so if you are unable to read this language, it may be a useless feature for you.  Here are some sample phrases (Translated).  I am not sure if the rooms cause them to say different things or not, so I have listed the room in which the phrases were said as well. (I put the names after the character.  I 'believe' these are their names based off of conversations with them in the app)
Female: (Nikki)
"Why not make tea?" (Traditional)
"Good evening" (Pink)
"Please take care of yourself" (Modern)
Fashionable Male: (Yuge)
"Don't succumb to drowsiness" (Modern)
"Nja~(sound), Goodnight!" (Traditional)
Cat Boy: (He speaks differently & is difficult for me to translate) (Mesare)
"Don't swallow when drinking sake, thank you." (Something like that) (Pink)
"Those customers who love themselves, I am Mesare." (Something like that) (Pink)
     Of course it also functions well as a clock (It's primary feature).  You are shown the time of day as well as the day of the week & the date.  There is no alarm function or any way to change the display time (Military VS standard).
     Overall I believe this is a very cute application.  It's fun to fiddle with for a short time, but I do not see myself using it in the future.  As I have said, I'm not much for 'clock apps'.  I wish they would have added an audible feature to this so we could hear the tiny characters speaking.  Also, considering everything other than the speaking is in English, translating the phrases the characters say would have been nice.  It's cheap, only 99 cents.  But I'm a bit torn as to whether it's worth it or not for me... However, if you find yourself often needing or using a digital clock to display the time on your desk or what not, this could be worth it for you.
     If you're not sure as to whether or not you should pay for this version, there "is" a free version you can try out (I did not find out until later).  It features only the samurai cat fellow.  It only has one room available (Traditional).  It is called "箱庭さん".  You can view it in the app store here.
Rating: 4/5

• $0.99
• Category: Utilities
• Size: 0.5 MB
• Language: English
• Seller: Kazumiti Suzuki
• © Actual Brain Corporation