Brian Ashcraft

Japanese Politician Suspends Animal Crossing Campaign

Shigeru Ishiba, Japan’s former Defense Minister, is in the running to become the country’s next Prime Minister. This weekend, his campaign announced its plans to come to Animal Crossing: New Horizons According to Jiji, Ishiba’s campaign then decided to suspend activities in New Horizons that same day before they even got off the ground. Originally,…

The Japanese town that replaced humans with…scarecrows. YouTuber Tokyo Lens went to Nagoro Village in South-Western Japan. The town, with its decreasing population, is filled with around 300 handmade scarecrows, with each representing a real individual.

Burger King Releases A Chocolate Whopper In Taiwan

Back in 2018, Burger King announced a chocolate Whopper. That was an April Fool’s prank. Now, in 2020, that joke has become a reality. The original gag was more dessert than a burger, featuring a chocolate cake bun, a chocolate patty, raspberry sauce, white chocolate rings, and candied oranges. This, however, is a real burger.…

Track: Time | Artist: Hikaru Utada | Album: Time

The Death Stranding PC Case Is Subtle

With Death Stranding released on PC this July, emblazoned computer hardware and gear was only a matter of time. Here’s a look at the game’s upcoming PC case. Mind you, this (above) is a rendition of the actual case… It’s subtle, sure, but I don’t know how functional it is. Are those air vents enough?…

This Isn’t An Enormous Nintendo Switch, It’s A TV

The Nintendo Switch is a neat handheld you can connect to the television. One Twitter user, however, decided to turn a TV into a giant mock-up Switch. The result is excellent. Kai.mariosfun created this Switch-themed television board, with each of the giant faux Joy-Cons doubling as cabinets. The design is creative and wonderful. I love…

Track: Drive-In Saturday (Live) | Artist: David Bowie | Album: Something In The Air

An Iconic Osaka Symbol Is Now Gone

One of the most iconic symbols of Osaka is the fugu (blowfish) paper lantern that hangs over the city’s Shinsekai area. This week, the lantern was taken down as the restaurant it advertises will close. The fugu-specialty eatery Zuboraya opened in 1920 and went on to become popular with tourists, with the blowfish lantern becoming…

Heian Shrine. Kyoto, Japan. By Leonis Caeli | Official Site | Instagram JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!

A Look At Tokyo Without Tourists

Typically, parts of Tokyo are overrun with tourists. These are not typical times. Because of covid-19, Japan has closed the country to tourists (until this month, it had also closed the country to foreign residents and even made it exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for permanent residents to leave and then re-enter the country). While…

Xbox Is Coming Back To The Tokyo Game Show, But Without Next-Gen News

In years past, Microsoft had massive Xbox booths at the Tokyo Game Show, going head to head with the likes of Sony. But, as it turns out, Japanese gamers aren’t really into Xbox! So, as well as missing the 2012 show, Microsoft really went M.I.A. starting in 2015. Now that this year’s TGS is virtual,…

Let’s See Life In Japan Over 100 Years Ago

It’s 2020. Perhaps you’ve been to Japan (or even live here), but if not you can always see copious clips of what life is like in the country. But what about, say, over a hundred years ago? There is video about, of course, but YouTube user Denis Shiryaev has upscaled footage taken in Japan between…

Track: September (Live) | Artist: Earth, Wind & Fire | Album: Live in Orlando

Recreating Gundam Box Art With Gundam Models

Gundam models have excellent box art. Twitter user Cody has brought classic mecha art to life with a three-dimensional plastic model. The result is very impressive—and the painting alone took 15 hours. As you can see Cody painted the model to resemble the flat box art. Cody has done other pieces that, likewise, are recreations…

Track: The Big Ship | Artist: Brian Eno | Album: Another Green World 

Nintendo Allows Cancelations For Digital Game Pre-Orders (In Japan, For Now)

Previously, if you pre-ordered a digital Nintendo game and then changed your mind, tough! As soon as the order was placed, your credit card was charged. That’s now changed—in the Japanese eShop, at least. Starting today, customers can cancel their pre-order games up to seven days before release, free of charge. After that window has…

Pikachu Stars In The PPAP Singer’s New Music Video

In 2016, comedian Pikotaro went viral with his song “PPAP.” Earlier this year, he released a song to encourage people to wash their hands. Now, he’s back, and this time he’s hanging out with an electric rodent. The new song is called “Pikataro and Pikotaro” (Pika to Piko in Japanese). In much of it, Pikataro…

This Isn’t Anime, But A Model Diorama

Twitter user Annkoromoti makes incredible models, bringing them to life in anime-like dioramas. Pictured is a Valkyrie from the Macross anime—a model with a cell-shaded paint job. Have look! Amazing, no? Here is how it compares to an anime still: This is truly great. A close-up look really shows the detail: We’ve previously seen other…

Akihabara Will Look Different After This Arcade Closes [Update]

The Sega Akihabara 2nd arcade, which was formerly known as Akihabara Gigo, is closing at the end of the month because 2020 sucks. The arcade, a two-minute walk from Akihabara Station, is famous for its Sega-emblazoned escalators and is an area landmark. The official notice states that the arcade’s last day of operation is August…

After Nine Years, A New Haruhi Suzumiya Novel Will Be Released

Originally a light novel, Haruhi Suzumiya launched an iconic anime and manga in the 2000s. The manga is ongoing, but there hasn’t been a new Haruhi novel since 2011. Until now. This November, a new Haruhi volume will be released in Japan. According to Japanese site Kai-You, it will be out November 25. Titled Suzumiya…