Brian Ashcraft

Behold, Video Gaming’s Jar-Jar Glitch

Some of the bugs in the newly released Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires sure look familiar. Too bad they muck up the gameplay experience. How rude! Released in Japan on November 20 for actual money, expansion Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires allows players to customize their characters as well as marry and have offspring. But the game…

Some of Japan’s Most Memorable Twitter Pics of 2014

This year is not over. We have one more month! But, let’s look back at some, certainly not all, of the most memorable Twitter pics Japan has seen so far this year. Via Matome Naver, some of the photos went viral. Some are beautiful. Some are odd. And some are cool. What they all have…

Concern That Japanese Video Game Stores Will Die Out

People come from around the world to shop at Japanese game stores. Yet, in the country, some worry that those specialty shops will vanish. One insider even thinks video game shops will vanish in the next five years. On website Gekicore Gamelife, game retail employee Osho writes about how tough business has been for brick-and-mortar…

PS4 title Earth Defense Force 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair was supposed to be released next February in Japan. It has been delayed to April 2 “due to various circumstances,” according to Famitsu

You Are Not Looking at an Anime Image

It’s actually a photograph of a plastic Gundam figurine. No, really. It is. Back in 2012, Kotaku profiled a Gundam statue with an anime-inspired custom paint job. That one was made by modeller mumumuno53, and so was this latest effort. But honestly, this time mumumuno53 has really topped that earlier effort. Check it out for…

Green Tea Latte Makes for Wonderful 3D Art

We’ve seen 3D art for coffee. We’ve see it in color, too, and from vending machines. And now, we get to see green tea latte art. Green tea latte, or matcha latte, is delicious. In Kyoto, which is famous for its tea, Cafe Suisen serves up matcha latte art and matcha shake art for those…

Fake Star Wars: Force Awakens Trailer Is Most Impressive

You are not looking at a real trailer for The Force Awakens. Sorry! It’s phoney. Fake. And fan-made. But you know what, for what it is, this is pretty good. Uploaded by YouTuber Romeo Lux who wrote, “Awesome! Great tone to this trailer! Now I just can’t wait for the real thing!” As pointed out…

You Won’t Believe How Different This TV Anime Looks

Tomorrow, the latest disc version of anime Mekakucity Actors goes on sale in Japan. Above, you can see a scene from the broadcast version. And holy crap, the Blu-ray/DVD release seems different. The anime, of course, is based on the light novel Kagerou Project. Since the latest Blu-ray/DVD isn’t out yet, we don’t know yet…

Report: Square Enix Is Making a New, Unannounced RPG for Consoles

The game’s not a remake, it seems. And since Final Fantasy XV has already been announced, it’s not that. So what could it be? If this Japanese game magazine leak is true, we’ll know soon enough. According to a supposed early Famitsu leak (via CS Blog), Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda apparently mentioned that the…

Cheeky and Somewhat NSFW Projection Mapping

We’ve seen an array of projection mapping. There’s been Gundam projection mapping, Attack on Titan projection mapping, Sega sand projection mapping and Osaka Castleprojection mapping. But now, this man’s effort is something to really get behind. Note: This article contains content some readers might find objectionable. At Japanese comedy blog Omocoro, writer and fart cannon…

Music gamer wedding cakes sure are romantic. This photo comes via Twitter user HicShe

Gravestone Gundam Can Watch Over Your Tomb

If you are looking for a way to check out in style, look no further. Here is a stone Gundam spotted at a gravestone carver in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. Writer Tomoki Yoshimura snapped the photo in the city of Yasu and uploaded it to Twitter. According to Yoshimura, this was located at a hakaishiten (墓石店),…

Pizza-Flavored Chocolate Is Wrong and Tastes Terrible

This weekend, while watching my middle son play soccer, my oldest son said, “Dad, I bought some pizza-flavored chocolate.” Of course, I replied with “That sounds disgusting.” He then asked if I wanted to try it. Oh yes, I said. Oh yes. This is pizza and cheese-flavored Tirol Chocolate. This brand is incredibly famous in…

Smash Bros. Characters Sure Suck at Swimming

Good at fighting? Yes. Good at swimming? Nope. Not at all. Via YouTuber Master0fHyrule, this compilation shows swimming—and drowning—animations for the characters in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U Obviously, the reason why the characters die so quickly is so the game doesn’t grind to a halt. This isn’t water sports! Watching the clip, it…

Fake Cartoon Eyes for Cats Make Everything Better

If not everything, damn near it. Late last week, Twitter users in Japan began uploading photos of their cats with cartoon eyes. Bless them for that! In Japanese, the meme is called “cat montage” (猫モンタージュ or neko montaaju). It began when Twitter user Shiratamaaaa uploaded photos of cats with cartoon eyes, writing, “I recommend neko…

Ten Years Later, One of Gaming’s Greatest Moments Comes to Life Again

A seminal moment in the history of competitive gaming is the Evo 2004 match between Daigo Umehara and Justin Wong. Tonight, the two celebrated the fight the best way possible: Facing off in Street Fighter. Just in case you haven’t seen the original fight, you can watch it below. (Daigo is Ken, while Justin is…

Bathing Grandmas Apparently Cut from Pokémon ORAS

In the original Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, there is a hot springs in Lavaridge Town. Players could go and soak in the steamy water with some old ladies. Lavaridge Town returns in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. So does the bathing. The grannies, it seems, do not. Hot springs are called “onsen” (温泉) in Japanese.…

Wushu Is a Martial Arts Ballet of Combat and Beauty

Look. At. That. Look at it! Choreographed martial arts doesn’t get much better than this. This, of course, is the Chinese martial art wushu. In competition, there are events with individual or several participants. While the moves are choreographed, timing is key. One wrong move can not only ruin the rhythm, but result in disaster.…

After Thirty Years, Father Draws Another Beautifully Hard Maze

Previously, Kotaku introduced an incredibly difficult-looking maze that a father created over thirty years ago for his daughter. The drawing took the father seven years. Now, three decades later, he’s begun another one. Twitter user Kya7y says her father is aiming to make a maze that is “more beautiful and easier to complete.” She added…

Nothing Says New Dragon Ball Anime Like a Green Tracksuit

You might have seen the first promotional image for the new Dragon Ball Z anime. But did you notice what Gohan is wearing? People online in Japan have. Yep, a green tracksuit. This…doesn’t exactly scream Dragon Ball Z, does it? Or maybe it does. “What is he a gym instructor?” asked one Japanese 2ch user.…