Brian Ashcraft

Dude Clears Zelda: Ocarina of Time With…His Feet

For a while now, gamer Wakou has been playing video games with his feet. Today, let’s watch him play through The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This is a small sample of a twenty-five minute foot playthrough on NicoNico. There are actually, twenty parts of the playthough, with each clip running about thirty minutes.…

Stroll Down One of the Fakest Streets in China

H&N? Hugo BGSS? And SFFCCCKS Coffee? Welcome to Wuxi city, which might be home of the phoniest shopping street in all of China. The signs are located on a shopping street at Shimao Skyscrapers. Instead of Apple, there’s “Appla.” Instead of Zara, there’s “Zare.” H&M is “H&N.” These don’t appear to be actual shops (though,…

A Truly Spectacular Cosplay Evolution

You’ve seen the evolution chart, right? The one that starts with a monkey and ends up with a human. Imagine something kind of like that, but with cosplay. This is Mel Kishida. He’s an illustrator best know his work on anime Hanasaku Iroha and the Atelier video games. A few years ago, he posted this…

The new Sailor Moon anime, which marks the franchise’s 20th anniversary, begins airing worldwide this July on NicoNico Douga.

The Chair You Can Wear on Your Head

Many offices in Japan have helmets in case of natural disasters. But helmets might be stored in inconvenient locations. That’s why some Japanese designers have created a new helmet that can be kept in an easy to find spot: Under your butt. Dubbed “Mamoris” (“mamoru” or 守る means “to protect” in Japanese), this emergency helmet…

One of Korea’s Most Talented Game Artists Leaving NCsoft

After eight years, illustrator Hyung-Tae Kim is leaving NCsoft. Earlier today, Kim confirmed the departure on his blog. Known for his work on the Magna Carta series (and more recently, Blade & Soul), Kim is perhaps the most well-known Korean game illustrator in the West. Korean fans might have felt something was up when Kim’s…

Counting Down New Year’s Eve with Hardcore Japanese Gamers

New Year’s is the biggest holiday of the year in Japan. But don’t tell that to these folks. They’ve got arcade games to play. On a recent episode of Monitoring (an observation TV show that, um, monitors folks), footage of various places, such as a laundromat, on New Year’s Eve were shown. The purpose was…

Sick of Shooters? Here’s a Mind-Bending First-Person Puzzle Game

Students at Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment Technology Center are developing a “First Person Puzzle” game built around forced perspective. The demo is really trippy. The team of students, which calls itself Pillow Castle Games, says this is a proof-of-concept demo. It’s impressively creative. “We are deep in development of the game itself—this tech demo is…

Meet the Most Humble Man in China

Billionaire Guangbiao Chen is not one to brag about his many accomplishments. Why do that when his business card can do it for him? Chen, who once sold “Good Person Guangbiao Chen” canned air in China, recently claimed he wanted to buy The New York Times. Think there’s enough space on his business card for…

Japanese Kids Show Host “Loves Cock,” Apparently

This has to be one of the most unfortunate uses of the English language on Japanese television. Ever. Morning show Miburi TV is a children’s dance program hosted by choreographer Sasuga Minami, who teaches new moves to children and wears a peculiar outfit with some very choice lingo. “Miburi” (身振り) means “gesture” in Japanese. The…

Attempted Robbery of Game Developer Caught on Camera

Earlier this evening, an attempted robbery occurred at Los Angeles-based game developer Robotoki. “These two men attempted to rob robotoki tonight, unfortunately for them, I work late,” tweeted Robotoki president Robert Bowling. He posted security footage of the incident on Instagramas well as a photo (below) on Twitter. In security footage, that’s Bowling leaping down…

A Visit to Japan’s Bunny Cafes

Let’s see. Japan has cat cafes, owl cafes, squirrel gardens, and penguin bars. So, of course there are bunny cafes! Called “usagi cafe” (うさぎカフェ), the furry establishments have been around for a few years now and really started to take off in 2012. But don’t think there’s a bunny cafe on every street corner in…

Behold, The Most Embarrassing PS Vita Game of 2014

The ridiculous Senran Kagura series is getting a cooking-themed rhythm game for the PS Vita. The game’s animated opening could be the most mental thing you’ll see all day. Titled Deka Mori Senran Kagura, the game is headed to the PS Vita this March in Japan. “Deka Mori” (デカ盛り) refers to “huge food servings.” Note:…

Is This New Anime Trolling South Korea and China?

This week, Soni Ani Super Sonico The Animation began broadcasting in Japan. The series features Super Sonico, the mascot character for Tokyo-based game developer Nitroplus. And one short, subtle sequence is raising eyebrows among some online in neighboring South Korea. Here are stills of the sequence in question, courtesy of South Korean site MLBPark: Did…

The Wall Street Journal has a smart analysis of China’s nebulous lifting of the console ban—namely, what it means, and why game makers shouldn’t get excited just yet. The takeaway? The latest announcement apparently adds little to what Kotaku already reported last fall.

Another Penis-Shaped Building Erected in China

And it’s not the first phallic-looking Chinese building in recent memory, either. Remember the golden one in Beijing? The latest effort is also the tallest penis building in the city of Jinan. The structure is going up in the city center, where it towers over all. Have a look at photos (courtesy of CNR.cn) from…

Can You Tell What’s Chocolate and What Isn’t? Asks Japanese TV Show.

Perhaps, this gentleman is biting a door handle. Or perhaps, he is eating a door handle made of chocolate. In Japan, “sokkuri sweets” (“sokkuri” or そっくり means “looks like”) are deserts and confectionaries that look like other things. Traditionally, they look like other food—for example, here are some cakes that look exactly like ramen noodles.…

StarCraft Pro Gaming Legend Is Coming Out of Retirement

Former pro gamer Hong Jin Ho (aka “YellOw,” pictured) has been spending his retirement as a Korean TV star. Today, however, it was announced that Hong is coming back to the StarCraft: Brood War eSports arena. Good news, indeed! According to Naver (via tipster Sang), GomTV is revising the StarCraft 1 eSport tournament in what…

Man Arrested After Allegedly Forcing Child To Play Grand Theft Auto IV

In Japan, Kyoto Prefectural Police have arrested a 28 year-old man. His crime? Allegedly forcing an elementary schooler to play Grand Theft Auto against the child’s will. According to reports in MSN Japan and Yomiuri Online, the suspect, a 28 year-old male nurse named Maasa Kawabata, allegedly made his wife’s nine year-old son from a…

In Japan, McDonald’s Just Released Disgusting-Looking Cheese Fries

McDonald’s is releasing “vintage” style American burgers in fries in Japan as part of a limited time promotion. The fries—called “Classic Fries with Cheese”—look icky. Sure, cheese fries themselves look kinda icky! But these aren’t cheese fries. There’s not melted cheese goodness to be found. Above, you can see the McDonald’s promotional image, which, of…