Brian Ashcraft

First Look At The Final Fantasy XIV Themed TV Show’s Opening Credits 

In Japan, there’s an upcoming TV drama centered around Final Fantasy XIV. Previously, all we’ve seen were stills from the show. Now, we have the show’s intro sequence. Called Final Fantasy XIV: Daddy Of Light, the show follows the bond that develops between a son and a father while playing the popular MMORPG Final Fantasy…

Shinjuku Gyoen. Tokyo, Japan. By Tim Shill. 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!

Cherry Blossom McFlurry Coming To McDonalds Japan

Nothing quite says spring in Japan like…a McFlurry. During this season, many products, from yogurt to Starbucks, get limited edition sakura (cherry blossom) versions in Japan, which is probably why McDonald’s is rolling out a special spring McFlurry.  According to Entabe, this frozen treat comes with sakura-colored waffle cone bits accented with pickled cherry blossom…

Behold, Hardcore Anime Armor 

They’re called Love Livers (ラブライバー or rabu raibaa). And do they ever love schoolgirl anime Love Live. They even have the armor to prove it. Love Live—sorry Love Live!—follows of group of students who start an idol girl group to keep their school from closing. Diehard fans show their Love Live! affection by wearing a…

Usain Bolt Gets Long Overdue Pokémon Ad

This really should’ve happened years ago, but here we are, Usain Bolt and Pokémon together at last. In Japanese, “Bolt” is ボルト (boruto), and “volt” is ボルト (boruto), providing ample ground for endless Pokémon puns in Japanese, such as the Jyuu-man Boruto (100,000 volt, or “Thunderbolt” attack in English).  Kotaku East is your slice of…

Thorsen Creek Petroglyphs. Bella Coola, British Columbia, Canada. By Taylor Helferty. 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!  

Today Is Pokémon‘s 21st Anniversary

Can you believe it? On February 27, 1996, the first games in the Pokémon series were released in Japan. The world has never been the same. In Japanese, the games were titled Pokémon Red Version and Green Version, and the series hit North American two years later in 1998. The trading card game wasn’t released…

Jim Sterling Returns With A New Jimquisition About The Dismissed Lawsuit 

Last week, the $10 million lawsuit against Jim Sterling was thrown out of court. This week, Sterling is back with much more to say.  Sterling previously commented to Kotaku about the dismissed suit, but has much more to say in a nearly forty minute, rather somber YouTube video. Toward the end, Sterling says, “I’ve done…

Get Ready For More Nier: Automata Cosplay 

Now Nier: Automata is out in Japan and soon coming to the West, expect more and more cosplayers to bring the main android protagonist to life. Nier: Automata isn’t new per se. I mean, 2B outfits were already make their way through the internet last fall. But in the past month, there has already been…

Boy Uses Dragon Ball Z To Survive Bee Attack 

An 11-year-old boy in Phoenix ended up in intensive care after being stung by 400 bees. He says he got through that terrible attack by channeling Vegeta. According to Gila Valley Central, Andrew Kunz and a friend were shooting BB guns at an old rusted car. A colony of Africanized bees had taken up residence…

Dancing. Lodwar, Kenya. By Joel Brock. 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: The Golden Age | Artist: Beck | Album: Sea Change Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Soon, You Can Spread Coffee On Your Toast In Japan

Mark your calendars. March 1, 2017 will be one to remember because on that day, people in Japan will be able to put coffee on their toast. What a time to be alive. According to Curazy, Snow Brand Milk is releasing a spreadable version of its coffee to mark the 55th anniversary of its release.…

Hayao Miyazaki’s Retirement Is Officially Over

Back in 2013, Hayao Miyazaki retired from feature filmmaking, saying, “This time is for real.” Now, his long time producer says Miyazaki is coming out of retirement for another full-length movie. Even though he had retired from features, Miyazaki continued to come into Studio Ghibli and work. After initially stepping away from directing features, Miyazaki…

Nintendo Is Suing Go-Karting Company Over Copyright Infringement

Today, Nintendo announced a lawsuit against a Tokyo-based kart rental service called MariCar. Tokyo has been home to a couple different karting businesses as the vehicles are street legal. Previously, Kotaku profiled Akiba Kart, a service renting out karts to those who want to explore the city’s geek district by go-kart.  The whole karting-on-Tokyo-streets thing…

Red Georgia Clay. Zoo Atlanta, USA. By Greg Eid. 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: Back in Black | Artist: AC/DC | Album: Back in Black  Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

China Now Has An Ugly, Giant Iron Man Statue

China has some rad giant statues, such as this Evangelion EVA-01 Test Typeand this badass panda. They’re great! The above faux Iron Man, however, is not.  According to CFCNews and Tencent (via ShanghaiIst), the giant Iron Man went up at a tourist spot World Cultural Heritage Expo Park in Anhui, China.  The 30-meter Iron Man…

Japanese Wrestling Photos That Look Photoshopped, But Aren’t

This week, a tag appeared on Twitter for wrestling photos that look so unreal you’d think they had to be Photoshopped. The tag reads #クソコラじゃないのにクソコラに見えるプロレス画像 or basically, “Even though they’re not crap Photoshops, pro wrestling images that appear ‘shopped.” As a rule of thumb, professional wrestling is filled with colorful characters and wild moments. Japanese…

That’s One Lewd Trophy, Nier: Automata

It’s called “What Are You Doing?” and if you accidentally get this Trophy, you might want to ask yourself the same question. Picking up on the game’s cheeky controversy, here is achieving said Trophy. To get it, you need to do this ten times. Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you…