Brian Ashcraft

Sony Video Game Exec Makes the Leap to Owl Noises

Let’s see. The game is Destiny of Spirits: Asia. That’s voice actress Kana Hanazawa. But she’s voicing Tsukuyomi, the female character on the television screen. Who’s voicing the owl? Why Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida. The owl character’s name is “Kichipii” (吉ピー), with “kichi” (吉) meaning “good fortune.” It’s a word play on Yoshida’s…

New App Makes Japanese Train Rides Less Sweaty and Hellish

Ever wanted to know which train coach was the least crowded? Or what the temperature in each carriage was? Well, in Japan, there’s an app for that. While I live in Japan, I work at home. My commute is from my bed to my desk. Every morning, I’m thankful I don’t get on a crowded…

Studio Ghibli’s Toshio Suzuki is retiring from working as a producer. Instead, Sports Houchi reports that he will take on another role at the studio: General Manager. Sounds like he’ll still be involved, but is passing the producing baton to the younger generation at Ghibli.

Japan’s Oddest English Book Is Still Wonderfully Strange

For students in Japan, it sometimes seems like many are only studying English to pass tests What fun is that? English is a tough language—especially for Japanese. In school, they learn all these stiff, formal expressions that might not be useful with dealing with “nama no eigo” (生の英語) or “native English.” All of this is…

Wait, You Might Get in Trouble in Japan for Leaking Spoilers?

That’s according to a Naruto fan site in Japan, known for posting spoilers. The site apparently received a message from a publisher, telling them to delete their articles and kindly asking them to shut down their site. Oh boy. The site, called Naruto Channel with “Naruto Spoilers” in the URL, then deleted all plot point…

Japanese Man Contorts Face to Make the Alphabet

Kouki Watanabe isn’t your typical Japanese college student. He has a special skill: He can make the alphabet with his face. On a recent episode of Osaka television show Detective! Knight Scoop, the 21 year-old Watanabe showed off his “kamen arufabetto” (顔面アルファベット), or “face alphabet.” The show specified that this was the English alphabet (英語のアルファベット),…

Azure Striker Gunvolt is a new 3DS game from Keiji Inafune and Inti Creates. Headed to the Nintendo eShop this summer, Azure Striker Gunvolt was revealed earlier today.

The Coolest 64 Year-Old Cosplayer I’ve Ever Seen

Meet Tomoaki Kohguchi. By day, he’s a consultant. In his free time, he is a coplayer. And today, he is 64 years old. What better way to celebrate that milestone than with cosplay photos? Here are some highlights, from Mr. Kohguchi’s Facebook page: I hope I’m half a cool as this guy when (and if!)…

Japanese Superhero Book Called “Detrimental,” Gets Banned

A book featuring Ultraman, the popular Japanese superhero series, has been banned in Malaysia. The government says there are concerns over public safety. The country’s Home Ministry banned the publication of a book titled Ultraman the Ultra Power. Ultraman is a long-running superhero series in Japan and has been broadcasted into Malaysia via satellite for…

Japan’s Real Castle In the Sky Offers Epic Views

This is Takeda Castle. It’s located in Hyogo Prefecture. In the sky. As website JCastle points out, the mountain top castle is now ruins, but it’s amazing that in the 15th century, they got all those rocks up the mountain, to 354 meters above sea level. No wonder the castle is called Japan’s Machu Picchu…

Famous Japanese Manga Were Born on These Desks

Our desks say a lot about our work—and a lot about us. Let’s have a look at the desks and tables of many of Japan’s biggest manga artists. These are the birthplaces of some of your favorite manga—and anime. Below, you’ll see photos of each artist’s desk—as well as one of their notable works. Many…

Japan’s Most Unusual Bullet Train Has Foot Baths

This is the future of Japanese train travel. And boy, it doesn’t get much faster—or interesting—than this. The bullet train (新幹線 or shinkansen) typically isn’t that fancy—though, the first-class “Green Car” carriages are certainly nice. However, the really fancy Japanese trains, such as the Twilight Express or the Seven Star, aren’t bullet trains but sleeper…

Are you in Japan? Do you like indie games? What about cool music? BitSummit kicks off in Kyoto later this week, with the first public day on Saturday. Click here for more info.

The Attack on Titan Burgers Look Utterly Disgusting

And by disgusting, I mean, revolting. And by revolting, I mean that I might actually want to eat this. Maybe not. Today, the Attack on Titan burgers go on sale at Lotteria fast food chain in Japan. There are three different sizes: five-patty, seven-patty, and ten-patty. But there is only one price—around US$20. Here is…

Hey Children! Here’s Your First Conveyor Belt Sushi Set

If you want to eat at a conveyor belt sushi (回転寿司 or “kaiten zushi”) restaurant, kids in Japan need to have their parents take them. Not anymore! Soon, they’ll be able get aboard the sushi train at home. This is “Super Seizing At Home Conveyor Sushi,” a toy that will be out this spring in…

Heroic Man Makes Working Toilet for His Toys

In Japan, there are plastic models of… urinals. I’m convinced that they’re a gag product for folks who want to mess around with figurines, but yeah, they exist. And one guy named Masa just did something amazing with one. He got it to work! The plastic model urinal is just designed to look like a…

Ever Wanted to Play Frozen in an MMO? Now You Sorta Can!

Popular South Korean MMO Aion just got an update. Included in this recent patch was a new golden blond braided hairdo. Gosh, this looks like Elsa from Frozen As pointed out by tipster Sang, the patch, which is called “Purple Light Revolution Update,” was released today. Above, you can see how the hairstyle compares to…

Three Years After Her Death, Daughter Sends Parents a Touching Letter

March 11, 2011 was truly a tragic day in Japan. Lives were changed and lives were ended. Yet, three years later, two parents who lost a daughter have just received a letter she mailed a decade ago. “Mom and Dad, by the time you get this letter, perhaps you’ll have a grandchild?” the daughter wrote.…

Nose Typing Doesn’t Get Faster Than This

Everyone has something they are good at. Something that makes them special. For India’s Mohammed Khurshid Hussain, that’s typing really fast. With his nose. Late last week, Hussain set the world record for typing an English language sentence in the fastest time. The sentence read, “Guinness world records have challenged me to type this sentence…

“We don’t have any information on the Xbox One hardware,” BlazBlue producer Toshimichi Mori told Siliconera. “I’m curious if Xbox One will even come out in Japan. I’ve been asking people about it and not one person has given me a definitive answer.”