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Kotaku East
Korean Schoolbook Doodles Make Learning More Fashionable
You know how textbook illustrations often look old fashioned? Time to get out those pens and markers and bring them into the 21st century! Sometimes the dated illustrations are due to the subject matter or other times they’re because of the age of the book itself. For the past couple of years, students in South…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 29, 2014 -
Kotaku EastIncredibly Small Zelda, Pokémon, and Mario Dioramas
There are small dioramas, and then there are these. They are teeny. Using putty, plastic, and a whole bunch of patience, a NicoNico user named ” A” created miniature versions of Pallet Town from Pokémon Red, Hyrule from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and the Bob-omb Battlefield from Super Mario 64 To give…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 29, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Nintendo Might Be Making Money Again
After what seemed like a truly difficult period, Nintendo looks like it could turn its first yearly profit in four years. According to Reuters, Nintendo revealed that it turned a 9.3 billion yen ($86.1 million)* operating profit during the period starting in July and ending in September. Reuters adds that analysts, however, were expecting a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 29, 2014 -
Kotaku East
McDonald’s Turns into Japan’s Most Popular Video Game Anime
A McDonald’s in Tokyo’s Odaiba has been turned into the fictional fastfood joint Mogmog Burgers from the extremely popular video game and anime series Yokai Watch. As reported on Inside and AnimeAnime, the restaurant is a recreation of Mogmog Burgers, with the burgers actually served up in a special Mogmog box The inside of the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 29, 2014 -
Culture
Japan Is Getting Strawberry Milk Pepsi
And it’s called “Pink Cola,” because as you can see, yes, the drink is pink. As Suntory announces in an official release, this Pepsi is strawberry milk-flavored. It joins the ranks of other limited-time only Pepsi flavors released in Japan, like Ice Cucumber Pepsi, Salty Watermelon Pepsi, and Red Bean Pepsi, among others. This isn’t…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Like to Zone Out? This Competition Is For You.
Yesterday, there was competition in Seoul. People competed to see who could space-out the most. Wait, what? As reported by major Korean news sites and TV networks (via tipster Sang), the event had criteria to select the most spaced out contestant. [Photo:seoulmania] To win, you needed to look spaced out for three hours, you needed…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Wasabi Toothpaste Sounds Like a Painful Way to Brush
When you hear wasabi, you probably think of sashimi or sushi. Maybe add toothpaste to that list as well? No, let’s not do that. This month, Japanese retailer Village Vanguard is rolling out wasabi-flavored toothpaste. The toothpaste smells like wasabi, it has a wasabi-like texture, and most importantly, it tastes like wasabi. If you’ve ever…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Porco Rosso Sunglasses, Yours for $480
Studio Ghibli is teaming up with Japan’s Washin Optical for official Porco Rosso sunglasses. They’re kind of expensive. The glasses come in two variations. There is the “Period Piece Model,” which is made like sunglasses were in the 1920s and 30s, which is when the anime takes place. The lenses are made from glass, while…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 28, 2014 -
Japan Is Good at Halloween
Impressive. Most impressive. When I first arrived in Japan many, many moons ago, Halloween wasn’t really a thing here. But in the last few years, it’s gotten bigger and bigger. This year might be the biggest Halloween yet! That is, until next year. Then, we can have this conversation again. Sure, while Japan still hasn’t…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 28, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Japan Has Crepe Vending Machines
The vast majority of vending machines in Japan have drinks or cigarettes. But some of them offer other items. This one, for example, has crepes. That’s right. Crepes. Spotted in Kagoshima by blog Kansaitei Kyushu, this refrigerated vending machine offers different crepes, from mixed fruit and chocolate banana to plain chocolate sauce and caramel pudding.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Olaf from Frozen Hanging Out in Tokyo
Like anyone else in the teeming metropolis, Olaf spent the other night taking trains, meeting friends, and getting something to eat. What else do you expect him to do? Build a freakin’ snowman? Obviously, this costume is for Halloween, which now gets a lengthy celebration in Japan (there were Halloween parades this past weekend, for…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Final Fantasy VII Comes To Life in Glorious Plastic
Square Enix doesn’t just make video games. It also makes toys. Cool toys. Like these. The company’s Play Arts line is bringing Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children to life with Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockheart, Barret Wallace, and Red XIII The Cloud figure is 12,960 yen (US$120), while the others are 10,584 yen ($98). Red XIII…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2014 -
Kotaku East
The Reality and Fantasy of Cosplay
Making good costumes isn’t easy and neither is taking good cosplayphotos. Like a fashion or a movie shoot, there is behind-the-scenes magic that goes into bringing the cosplay to life. As pointed out by Japanese site Kinisoku, recently some cosplayers have been sharing peeks at how they brought their pics to life. For example, cosplayer…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Beat Takeshi Hates Anime and That’s Okay
Famed comedian, actor, director and television personality Beat Takeshi does not like anime. In particular, he mentioned the anime of Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki. But don’t think for a second he doesn’t recognize anime’s importance. He does. During the Tokyo International Film Festival, Takeshi was asked about the sort of things that are important…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2014 -
Kotaku East
A Good, Horrible Look at Korea KFC’s Double Down
In South Korea, KFC’s take on the Double Down is, well, something else. You might have seen the promotional pics. Let’s have a look at pics of the actual sandwich. While the Double Down that was launched in 2010 in the U.S., it was two pieces of fried chicken with cheese, sauce, and bacon. KFC…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 24, 2014 -
The U.S. Military Is Developing a High-Tech Sandbox
Dubbed the ARES Sandtable, this U.S. Military prototype uses a Kinect, a projector, software, and sand to recreate real-world environments like never before. Below, via Military.com, you can see what traditional military sandtables look like: Traditional sandtables can take up hours to set up, while the AREAS table might make it possible to do the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 24, 2014 -
Watch People Freak Out Over Mewtwo in New Smash Bros.
Yesterday, Nintendo announced that Mewtwo was heading to the new Super Smash Bros. games as a downloadable character. Some people went bonkers. Others filmed themselves going bonkers. As pointed out by website Barukanlog, YouTubbers have been uploading live reactions to the announcement. Maybe they’re hamming it up? Maybe these could be staged? Maybe not? But…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 24, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Why These Chinese Sanitation Workers Dress Like Spider-Man
You might think this is just some gimmick. But it’s more than that. Much more. The Spider-Man outfits are a reminder these two men are risking their lives. Website Zhangjiakou Online and ShanghaiIst are reporting that sanitation workers Liu Jiancheng and Zhang Chengqing have recently changed uniforms from this: To this: Not just because Spider-Man…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 24, 2014 -
Kotaku East
Cartoon Dog Cafe Will Rot Your Teeth with Sweetness
This is cute. Really, really cute. Is too much? Probably! But golly, Japanese cafes don’t get much more adorable than this. You are looking at the Pom Pom Purin Cafe, which opened its doors this week in Tokyo’s Harajuku. This is the first of its kind in the country. If you are not familiar with…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 24, 2014 -
The Metal Gear Solid Fan Film We’ll Never See Finished
Back in 2009, I wrote about a MGS fan film called Metal Gear Solid Philanthropy. Made over the course of years, the one-hour movie looked really good. So does the planned sequel. Make that did Here is a 12-minute “pilot” that the fan flick’s producers hoped to use for crowd-funding a feature-length film. However, this…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 23, 2014
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