Stuck at Home; Keeping myself sane

I suspect that most gamers find influence on what games to play or scenarios from a number of sources, including books, history, comics and Film/TV. In this short article I’m going to look at finding influence in film and tv for Asian based game ideas. Getting hold of Asian films isn’t all that hard, as there has been for many years a regular influx of films from the east readily available for purchase in shops, but for the purpose of this article I’m not going to be looking at DVD’s that can be bought. I’m going to be reviewing some of the apps available to view Asian film and TV, at the same time I’ll be recommending some of the choice films or TV shows which I think are some of the best ones to view.

The apps I’ll be looking at are as follows;

Viki

Netflix

Amazon Prime

Last year there were several TV shows worth watching from China and Korea, one of the best was The Longest day in Chang An, this can be watched on both Viki and Amazon Prime. The TV series is about a former detective turned convicted criminal, who becomes China’s last hope to thwart mysterious invaders who threaten the empire’s capital city on the day before the Lantern Festival. This is a historical drama set in the Tang Dynasty, with the features of the 24 TV series. Its action packed, full of suspense, drama and great set design.

On Netflix one of the better series was a Korean historical Zombie drama, called Kingdom. I really enjoyed this first series, and a 2^nd season has just recently been released. The series is adapted from the web comic series The Kingdom of the Gods, which was authored by Kim Eun-hee and drawn by Yang Kyung-il. Set in Korea’s Joseon period, a few years after the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592-1598).

It tells the story of Crown Prince Lee Chang (Ju Ji-hoon), who becomes embroiled in a coup/political conspiracy and is forced to embark upon a mission to investigate the spread of a mysterious undead plague that has beset the current emperor and the country’s southern provinces. This definitely one of the TV shows to catch on Netflix, especially if you’re considering an historical game with a supernatural flavour.

Over on Viki and Amazon there are quite a few dramas set during WW2 which are worth watching. The first is Sparrow on Viki, this is a spy drama set in Japanese occupied Shanghai, which revolves around a communist spy called the Sparrow, and Nationalist spies who have infiltrated the Japanese military and police. Set in the 1940s during Shanghai’s revolutionary times, communist agent Chen Shen infiltrates the Japanese’ base and adopts the code name “Sparrow”. His mission is to obtain the “zero” intel, a secret plan that could destroy China. To do so, he becomes the assistant of Bi Zhongliang, the leader of the Special Operations Team under the Public Security Bureau.

The next recommendation is My Battalion which is available on Amazon, it has two seasons.  It is a heroic story of the Chinese Army courageously resisting the Japanese Invaders during the World War II. In the year 1938, the Japanese Army went south to invade Xu Zhou. Liao Guangyi, the Chief Commander of the 56th Corps were forced to retreat. This tells the story of this famous battalion from their retreat to the final battle which they fought. This is highly recommended for anyone thinking of building a Chinese army for Bolt Action or any other WW2 period rule system.

My final recommendation is My Country is a Korean historical drama set During the transitional period between the end of the Goryeo dynasty and the beginning of the Joseon dynasty, two friends become enemies following a misunderstanding. They try to protect their country, and the people they love, their own way. The series follows the bloody coup that started the Joseon Dynasty, centred around a group characters that are caught in the coup. They fight to survive against the turmoil and strife of this period.

There are several more TV shows that are worth catching such as the Candle in the Tomb, set in modern China, about tomb raiding, with ghosts and other supernatural phenomena. I’d recommend Viki as it can be watched for free, if you don’t mind the adverts and all of the programmes are subtitled. Ever Night which has 2 seasons on Viki is a great Chinese fantasy drama, with magic and martial arts.