Brian Ashcraft

First Peek Inside Japan’s Dark Souls Cafe

Last December, From Software announced it was rolling out a Dark Souls themed cafe. Yesterday, it opened in Tokyo. Let’s have a look inside. The Dark Souls Cafe is a collaboration between the game’s developer and Australian-themed eatery OZ Cafe. It’s for a limited time only, serving Dark Souls themed food and drink and plastered…

Bikinis Really Aren’t Necessary for Volunteer Work

Nobody asked for the help, but a woman named Zhang Xiner appeared at a Guangzhou Metro station in China dressed in a skimpy bikini. Her goal was to help commuters buy tickets and find their way. Oh, she probably wanted to get famous, too. Well, that seems to have worked! When asked by Sohu.com, one…

In This Game, You Are Tied Up and Chained. For Real.

You know those locked room games? Well, imagine you found yourself in a locked room, blind folded, chained, and put in a straight jacket. This is not a video game. For the past two years, mystery rooms have become increasingly popular. As Kotaku previously reported, the mystery rooms are inspired by gaming’s locked room genre—you…

Drakengard 3‘s Director Is Keen for Drakengard 4

In a recently published interview from late last year with 4Gamer (via Siliconera), Drakengard‘s series director Taro Yoko reflected on 2013 and 2014. Last year was probably busy. This year? Less so. “I’d like to say thank you very much for the year 2013 to everyone,” said Yoko, who’s known for his honesty. “Living can…

Hyper-Violent Anime Gets a Hollywood Live-Action Trailer

The classic, cult-hit anime Kite is coming to the big screen in a live-action Hollywood production starring Samuel L. Jackson and India Eisely. Here’s the flick’s debut trailer. It feels reminiscent of Luc Besson’s The Professional (not a bad thing), and I doubt the live-action version will be anywhere as violent (or pornographic) as the…

China Has Daycare for Husbands Who Hate Shopping

Some married men love shopping. They adore it. But some absolutely abhor it. And in China, there’s a special place wives can ditch them: husband storage! Called “laogong jicun chu” in Chinese (老公寄存处), which literally means “husband cloakroom,” the rest stations are for husbands who are either knackered from shopping or for those who would…

Pokémon X/Y Might Feature a Transgender Character

The above character appears to make a nuanced hint at her gender change in the latest Pocket Monster game, Pokémon X/Y In the English language version of the game, the text that accompanies the above character reads, “Yes, a mere half year ago I was a Black Belt! Quite the transformation, wouldn’t you say?” The…

Watch Nvidia’s New Tegra K1 Demo for Unreal Engine 4

The Tegra K1 is Nvidia’s newest super chip. The mobile processor packs a whopping 192 CUDA cores—a Nvidia first. Here you can see it in action with Epic’s Unreal Engine 4. NVIDIA Tegra K1 Demo: Unreal Engine 4 [Nvidia@YouTube via Dtoid] To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on…

Motion-Controlled Anime Boobs Exist (*Sigh*)

I’m not sure why they exist. But, as Japanese site IT Media points out, they do. And what’s this tech demo called? “Oppai Motion,” or “Boob Motion” in English. Warning: This article contains content some readers might find objectionable. As you can see in the below video, the demo uses the Leap Motion gesture input…

Have Horrible Handwriting? Maybe This Machine Can Help.

My handwriting is messy. I wish it was better! Doesn’t matter if I am writing in English or Japanese, it’s chicken scrawl. Thankfully, there’s a new machine to write clearly for me. This is the Word Writer from Tokyo’s Max Ltd. It’s a printer that can use a ballpoint pen, a felt tip marker, or…

Tonight, a PlayStation Exec Was Moved to Tears

Console launches are emotional events—for gamers and game makers. And tonight in Seoul, one PlayStation exec broke down and wept. This is Shiro Kawauchi, the head of Sony Computer Entertainment Korea. Speaking in his native Japanese and getting choked up in the process, Kawauchi talks about how PlayStation fans have been waiting days for the…

Happy Birthday! Today, the PS Vita is two years old. The Sony handheld first launched in Japan on December 17, 2011. The following February, the portable launched in Europe and North America.

Giant Crustaceans Make Fantastic iPhone Covers

Just look at this slick Giant Isopod iPhone 5s/5 cover. Do it. Look! Don’t you want to pull a Giant Isopod out of your suit pocket? No? What about a Giant Isopod phone cover? Sure seems like the case offers plenty of cushioning. And since the back is covered, you can do this if you…

What Do You Think of the Live-Action Persona 3 Actors?

Japanese role-playing game Persona 3 is coming to the Tokyo stage. Here’s a first look at the cast members in full Persona 3 garb. As JetFusion notes, the stage play is called Persona 3: The Weird Masquerade ~The Blue Awakening~ and opens next January at Tokyo Dome City’s Theatre G-Rosso. Persona soundtrack composer Shoji Meguro…

17 Minutes of Rube Goldberg Machines Will Make Your Day

In Japan, there’s a children’s educational program called PythagoraSwitch. The majority of it is a Sesame Street-style puppet program, but there are fantastic interludes with Rube Goldberg machines. Let’s watch those! Above, you can see what’s supposedly all of the show’s Rube Goldberg machines. My kids have grown up watching this program each morning, and…

According to Masahiro Sakurai, the rumor that Smash Bros. for the Wii U/3DS is launching in Spring 2014 is not true. Sakurai did confirm that the game would hit sometime in 2014, though.

I Had No Clue Hedgehogs Were So Darn Cute

Blame Sonic. Or Ron Jeremy. Blame someone or something! Because, really, I didn’t know hedgehogs were this adorable. As a photographer (er, hedgehographer?), Tokyo-based Instagram userShota Tsukamoto has been documenting his cute pet Darcy. Via website DDN Japan, here are some of the most memorable pics: Sonic got it all wrong. We didn’t want a…

Forget Hunky Men, You Want to Date Buggy Men

In Japan, “otome” (maiden) games give players a slew of handsome men from which to choose. A recent game offers much more than that. Say hello to buggy men! New Japanese smartphone game Boyfriend (Fictitious) is amusing people on Twitter with its unusual dreamboats. Here, have a look (via Otaku News): These aren’t bugs, they’re…

Death Note Is Being Turned into a Musical

Nothing quite says “musical” like a notebook that allows you to kill people! Beats Cats, I guess? Hit manga Death Note has already been turned into anime, video games, novels, and live-action films. And in 2015, it will become a musical, website NariNari reports. A musical perhaps because they are running out of things to…

Iron Man Should Be In… Sailor Moon

Don’t believe me? Watch this short, yet epic animation and then believe. First-year animation students at South Korea’s Chungkang College of Cultural Industries created the clip they’re calling “Iron Moon” for a second semester project. Yes, that is Tony Stark doing the Sailor Moon S transformation. The stuff of dreams! Bravo, kids! 아이언문(Iron Moon)-청강 2013년…