Brian Ashcraft

Two Chinese Guys Copied That Insane Shanghai Tower Climb

Recently, in the middle of the night, two young Chinese men snuck into the Shanghai Tower construction site. Their goal was to climb to the top, just as two European daredevils recently did. One of the mysterious Chinese climbers apparently told newspaper DongFang Daily, “If foreigners can climb to the top, then we can, too.”…

Baskin Robbins Is Releasing Ice Cream Dolls in Japan

In Japan, March 3 is Girl’s Day (雛祭り or “Hinamatsuri”). It’s a doll festival. To celebrate, Baskin Robbins is releasing a set of five ice cream “dolls.” Delicious! Here is how the real dolls are displayed during Hinamatsuri. The dolls represent the Emperor and Empress—as well as their attendants. And now, in ice cream form,…

The Machines That Claim to Uncensor Japanese Pornography

This week in Osaka, cops busted uncensored dirty movie sellers. According to The Tokyo Reporter, police seized 140,000 uncensored DVDs. Pixelated porn is the law! And in the past, machines were made to give those rules the shaft. Note: This story might contain content some readers find objectionable. During the Meiji Era (1868 – 1912),…

The biggest selling PS4 game during the console’s first two days out in Japan? Famitsu reports that bundled game Knack “sold” 322,083 units, Yakuza: Restoration sold 73,086 units, Battlefield 4 sold 26,878 units, and Killzone Shadow Fall sold 25,978 units.

China’s Pollution Is Making Japanese Air All Crappy

Osaka issued its first pm2.5 warning today. But it wasn’t the only place in Japan to do so. Japan’s neighbor China is covered with pollution. It’s a serious problem, and the long standing fear in Japan has been that the dirty air, which is rife in concentration of 2.5-micrometer particles, will drift over. There is…

The Cats of China’s Forbidden City

For centuries, China’s ruling dynasties lived in the imperial palace. Today, it’s home to cats. Ma Guoqing, who works at Forbidden City, tells China Daily that some of the cats are directly descended from the original palace felines. Others are strays. But all the animals are taken care of in the palace complex. News sites…

The Xbox One Can Stream Games Via Twitch Starting In March [UPDATE]

Next month, an update will bring the popular Twitch video game broadcasting service to the Xbox One in a way that home consoles have never seen before. It will launch on March 11, just in time for Titanfall. According to AP, the update will allow Xbox One the ability to live stream games via Twitch…

“Bean Beards” Are the Best Fake Japanese Trend

This is not a real trend. Japanese people aren’t actually wearing bean beards for fashion. Shame, because this is wonderful. In Japanese, there are red beans called “azuki” (アズキ) that are eaten in sweets or for special occasions. That’s why artist Takao Sakai, who’s known for his playful food-themed art, calls the project “Azurer.” His…

The Perfect Beauty of Cat Island

In Japan, there isn’t just one cat island, but a couple. And recently, one internet commenter visited the most famous one in the country and took some lovely photos. Located in Miyagi Prefecture, Tashirojima was home to over a thousand people during the 1950s. As previously mentioned, only a few hundred people live there now,…

Attack on Titan Live-Action Special Effects Look Terrifying

Remember that Attack on Titan Subaru commercial? The ad featured giant Titans. Two of them were actors in scary make up. And the third? From the looks of these behind-the-scenes pics, the third one—the Colossal Titan—was a giant puppet. According to IT Media, seven puppeteers controlled the large-scale maquette. According to me, the puppet looks…

Sony sold 322,083 PlayStation 4s in Japan during the console’s first two days on sale, reports Famitsu. In comparison, Sony sold 88,443 PS3s in Japan during its first two days when it launched in 2006.

Robocop Stopping Perverts on Japanese Trains

As part of the public service campaign, Robocop is doing his part to nab unsavoury perverts on Japanese trains. Your move, creep! The campaign is a collaboration between the robot officer, the Osaka Police Department, and the West Japan Railway Company. In the middle of the public service spot, which is currently on the police…

“Panda Dogs” Born in China

Not one panda dog, but three were recently born in China’s Jiangsu Province. They’re not actual pandas, but have markings that make them look like them. They’re panda dogs! D’aww, so cute. According to iFeng, the three pups were born in a litter of six, with the other three dogs looking like dogs. All pups…

DayZ Lead Developer Will Step Down, Start His Own Studio [UPDATE]

Dean Hall, the lead developer behind hit multiplayer game DayZ, is leaving studio Bohemia Interactive. Hall plans to create his own studio in his native New Zealand. Hall told Eurogamer that he never intended to be at Bohemia Interactive’s Prague office and originally wanted to stay in his home country. “And it’s kind of like…

Bank Teller Laughs at One Truly Awful Robber

Recently, a man walked into China Construction Bank in Shanghai with a meat cleaver. He apparently wanted to rob the bank. Things did not go as planned. The man entered the bank, while talking on the phone. When he looked like he was going to pull the fire alarm, a guard supposedly shouted at him.…

It Takes a Brave Person To Work Behind This Game Store Counter

And it takes a braver one to walk up to it and buy something. Note: Some readers might find the content of this article objectionable. Japanese store Game Shop Seagull Izumi Bypass shop is somewhat infamous for its in-store promotions. Below is a recent in-store display for adults-only PC game Happy Maher Fragmentation Dream Yikes!…

Fashionable Young Woman Breaks Roof Tiles with Her Head

Japanese actress Rina Takeda stars in a new credit card commercial. In the ad, the 22 year-old uses her head. Studying karate since she was ten,Takeda is black belt in Ryukyu Shorin-ryu Karate. She made her film debut in the martial arts flick High Kick Girl! In it, she did her own stunts and performed…

Here’s a Japanese Pizza Hut That looks…Different

A Pizza Hut in Tokyo looks, well, not quite like the other Pizza Huts in Japan—or anywhere else, for that matter. Starting today, the branch in the Kanda neighborhood has morphed into the “Otonokizaka branch” in honor of popular anime/manga Love Live! This particular Pizza Hut serves Akihabara, which is the city’s geek and electronics…

The PS4 launches tomorrow in Japan, but the countdown to the console’s launch event begins today at 8:30am EST. Watch it right here.

The Thinnest Latex Condoms on Earth Certainly Are Stretchy

A Chinese company recently took the Guinness World Records for the world’s thinnest latex condom. It comes in at 0.036 millimeters. According to AFP, a press conference held this week in Hong Kong to announce that Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products set this new world record. It was previously held by Japanese condom maker Okamoto…