Well, I\'m finally back from my 5 week trip around half the globe and found some strange things along the way. I\'m not the sort of person that always has his mind on videogames, but while on the road, some things I came by were so connected with the gameworld I had to notice. Here are some of them:

South Korea:

- One of the largest hotels in Seoul is called \"Hotel Amiga\"

- \"Navi\" is a shoebrand (MMBN)

Japan

- An old name for a part of Tokyo is kalled \"Kanto\" (Pokémon)

- In a Japaneze sword museum, there was a Wakizashi (sword) ingraved with the words \"Masamune\" (Crono trigger). In the same exebition, andother sword, a Tachi, was ingraved with \"Yasumitsu\" (Tekken, even though the name was only half right I thought I should mention it)

- A type of bullettrain was called \"Hikari\" (MMBN)

- In Tokyo a Tokyo park there is a gathering of (mostly) girls who dress up for photogaphy every weekend wearing the craiziest things they can think of called \"cos-play-zuku\", the game related part of this is that in my guidebook, there was a small drawing just for an impression. The artist had used a motif that was not present in the croud. The picture resemled Morrigan, Lilith (Darkstalkers) an Mai (King of fighers). I will scan a picture of this later.

- In a shinto shrine I found in several places, a carved \"Triforce\" (The legend of Zelda) I\'ll scan a photo of this too.

Russia

Not \"game related\" as such, but at a market I found a booth selling pirate copy games. Most have seen the Yellow SNES lookalike. This has now bein replaced by a new lookalike. Ironically enough, it looked like a fusion of a Gamecube and an X-box. Got a picture for this one too.

Nothing from Ukraina though.

I\'m not sure where I am going with this topic, but If you have any of your own you would like to add, feal free to.

Post redacted

Yey, Snakeman really is back.

I think most of these references are things that the games took from real life and not the oter way around but it\'s still pretty interesting nevertheless.

I read somewhere that Hikari meant Light in Japanese (Dr. Hikari = Dr. Light), so I guess it\'s a Light-speed train or something... I\'d like to get some navi shoes. Everytime I put them on I\'d be like \"Jack-in!\" lol

From what I understand, The Masamune, was originally used in Final Fantasy. Along with the Murasame. The legend was that the Murasame took life away while the Masamune gave life.

BTW, the Japanese Chrono Trigger doesn\'t have a Masamune. Back there it\'s called the GrandLeon.

The Masamune and Murasame were swords from an ancient japanese legend, not some reference from a game.

Ooooo, the Masamune... (And yes Masamune sounds tons better than Grandlion)

There\'s a Masamune in Castlevania Symphony of the Night as well.

Japanese sword museum..Necro would like that.

Hmm... I should\'ve made that clearer. I was refferring to real life. That is the actual legend. I don\'t Recall FF giving a legend.

BTW, Hollow. Masamune doesn\'t make any sense in comparison. Especially not in Chrono Cross.

I wasn\'t talking about sense, I was talking about what sounded better.

Not to mention CT\'s \"Masamune\" is a broadsword. Neither the Masamune or the Murasame are broadswords.

While it\'s true that Masamunes and Muramasas weren\'t broadswords, it\'s not like there was only one of each. Masamune and Muramasa were both swordsmiths, and like most swordsmiths, they made more than one sword each.

Muramasa/Masamune/Murasame
Character: Humphrey Mintz
Type: Two-Handed Sword
These swords are named after swordsmiths who lived in Japan during various different eras (with the exception of Murasame). Masamune was a swordssmith who lived during the 13th century and worked for the government. Due to Japanese custom, a swordsmith was not allowed to etch his name on swords that were made for the government. For that reason, known Masamunes are very rare, and only two swords remain in the present day. Muramasa was a swordsmith who lived during the 14th century, and made extremely sharp edges. His swords gained an infamous reputation after various members of the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate suffered odd deaths to the various weapons of Muramasa, such as spears, katanas, and daggers. For that reason, the shogunate banned the possession of these weapons--the penalty was death. However, those who harbored secret resentment towards the shogunate treasured each of these sword as a \"Tokugawa Slayer.\"
Murasame, on the other hand, is a sword used by one of the eight heroes of the \"Nanso Satomi Hakkenden,\" a Japanese story written during the Edo Period (17th-19th century) which was affected by the Shui Hu Chuan.
The weapon used by Humphrey changes in shape between Suikoden 1 and 2, which is somewhat odd. There is no explanation for this, but the two weapons are almost completely dissimilar. In Suikoden 1, his sword was a curved, one-bladed sword, while in Suikoden 2 it is straight and double-bladed.


If you know anything else, please post

Heh, I found a game reference in the form of Gamera 3: Revenge of Irys: Ayana says to a baby Irys:\"If I get Irys to Level 35, Gamera will never beat him!\" Yep, maybe the script-writer had Pokemon on his mind. Also, in Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, a short scene has Pokemon plush, and more game characters (e.g.: Donkey Kong) and the kid has a Goomba figurine! Also, there is a store called \"Varia\", I\'ll look for more game references, also, in Frankienstein Conquers The World, Destroy All Monsters, and GMK\'s Baragon bares a sharp resembelence to Nidoking, and the evolved form of that rhino-rock Pokemon. (Forgot names.) Also, there is a baseball team called Portland Mavericks, and another called the New York Mets, I don\'t know the Mets\' mascot..
[Edited on 27-8-2004 by Kiryu]

[Edited on 29-8-2004 by Kiryu]

[Edited on 29-8-2004 by Kiryu]

[Edited on 29-8-2004 by Kiryu]

[Edited on 29-8-2004 by Kiryu]