Brian Ashcraft

At Tokyo’s Ninja Bar, Drink Beer And Throw Shuriken

On July 1, the Ninja Cafe and Bar will open in Tokyo’s Asakusa. You can eat, drink, dress up like a ninja and throw shuriken. Food includes curry and rice, pasta, udon and more. Drinks include draft beer, whisky and soda, coffee and tea. The cafe is aimed at tourists who hope to get a…

As reported earlier this February, Japan’s first Nintendo Store will open this fall. But when? It’s been recently announced that the store will open in November on the sixth floor of the new Shibuya Parco building in Tokyo. Pokémon Center Shibuya and Capcom Store Tokyo will also open in Parco on the same floor.

Why Katamari Damacy‘s Creator Left Japan

On March 18, 2004, Katamari Damacy was released on the PlayStation 2. The game was unlike anything else, and a sequel soon followed a year later. In 2009, Katamari’s creator Keita Takahashi released Noby Noby Boy. A year later, he left Bandai Namco and shortly after that, Japan as well. I’d always wondered why Takahashi…

Service is ending for massively multiplayer online role-playing game Monster Hunter Frontier Z in Japan. Monster Hunter Frontier launched in Japan in 2007 on PC, and a big update in 2016 changed the game’s name to Monster Hunter Frontier Z. Twelve years is a good run, no?

Shibuya. Tokyo, Japan. By Adil Aeh JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!

Track: Sail On | Artist: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds | Album: Black Star Dancing Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment. 

Perhaps The Best Bread Art In Japan

We’ve previously seen made-in-Japan latte art and banana art. Both are great. Now let’s marvel at the art bread of Twitter user Izuyo. All the coloring is done with completely natural ingredients, Izuyo writes. Obviously, the fact that the bread will expand and rise when baking must be taken into account. Amazing! Have a look…

Chinese Resident Evil Fans Think This Biotech Company’s Logo Looks Familiar [Update]

In Resident Evil, the Umbrella Corporation is an evil biotechnology and pharmaceutical conglomerate. Shanghai Ruilan Bao Hu San Biotech Limited is also in biotechnology and, as Chinese Resident Evil fans point out, has a similar logo. Update: January 29, 2020 – 2:20 am EST: The Chinese Weibo post (below) mentions that this was for fun.…

Meiji Shrine. Tokyo, Japan. By The Cloofer JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!

Track: I Remember Nothing (Reimagined Video) | Artist: Joy Division | Album: Unknown Pleasures Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment. 

The Best Sandwiches Japan Has To Offer

Some Japanese sandwiches are terrible. Others are okay or even very good. However, these Japanese sandwiches are world-class. Go into your typical Japanese supermarket, and there simply isn’t a wide variety of bread, sliced cheese, meats and condiments. Department stores and fancy groceries are bound to have more variety, but your typical Japanese supermarket doesn’t…

China’s Official Studio Ghibli Posters Are Excellent

This month, Spirited Away will finally be officially released in Chinese movie theaters eighteen years after the movie first came out in Japan. To promote the release, artist Zao Dao created some truly wonderful posters. Via 2ch, have a look: Last year, My Neighbor Totoro was released in China, which was thirty years after the…

Naruto-Themed Ride At Japanese Amusement Park

Amusement park Fuji-Q Highland is opening the closest we’ll see to a Naruto-land, filled with attractions based on the popular ninja anime and manga. According to Kyodo, the Naruto-themed area is nearly 28,000 square feet and will feature attractions like an indoor ride in which guests wear 3D glasses and shoot targets (pictured). There will…

Matsumoto Castle. Matsumoto, Japan. By ShuYung Wu. JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!

Track: Halycyon (Again) | Artist: Dan Mckie and Orbital | Album: Backroom Jukebox – 6 Years of 1980 Recordings (Part 01 (2007-09) – Compiled By Dan Mckie) Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment. 

The Good Points And Bad Points Of Living In Tokyo

Do you live in Tokyo? Do you want to? Recently online in Japan, people listed the good points and the bad ones of living in the metropolis with the largest population density on Earth. Thirty-eight million people reside in the Tokyo metropolitan area, which is more than in Delhi (25.7 million), Shanghai (23.7 million) and…

League of Legends pro Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok now has his own collectible figure from Super Play. It’s priced at $33 and is one of the first, if not the first, collectible figure for an esports pro. (Thanks, Sang!)

Rice Field. Gyeongju, South Korea. By Anthony Dell’Ario | Official Site | Flickr JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!

Track: Your Song (Top Of The Pops 1971) | Artist: Elton John | Album: Elton John Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment. 

In Japan, Domino’s New Pizza Has Over Two Pounds Of Cheese

Domino’s has just released a “New Yorker One-Kilo Ultra Cheese” pizza that has been covered with, that’s right, one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of 100 percent mozzarella cheese. The pizza measures 40-centimeters (15.7 inches) in diameter and clocks in at 3,824 calories. This is way bigger than your typical Domino’s pizza in Japan. Below is a…