Brian Ashcraft

Don’t Be Afraid of This PS3 Super Slim Commercial

Sony’s new commercial for its new PS3 iteration shows off the new hardware. It seems like just any other commercial. Until… 【TVCM】新型PlayStation®３　「出る。」篇 [PlayStationjp@YouTube] Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

Behold, the Awesome Queen of Gundam Cosplay

Gundam mecha aren’t exactly easy to dress up as. It’s tricky to reproduce that mecha armor—even tougher if you want to give it an original spin. For a while now, Taiwanese cosplayer Ran has been doing both. Whether it’s Gundam RX79 or MSΖ-006 ΖGundam, she puts her own spin on the giant mecha, with heavy…

The New Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Fighting Game Looks as Mental as Ever

Here’s the latest Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle trailer. It’s magical! Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle is headed to the PS3 sometime next year. Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

Japan Gets Its First “Snoozing with Women” Specialty Business

Akihabara is ground zero for Japanese manga, anime, and video games. No wonder the place caters to every nerd fantasy imaginable, such as maid cafes for guys (butler cafes for gals) as well as more adult services. The latest business to make a splash in Japan’s nerdom is always patrons to sleep with ladies. That’s…

Metal Gear Rising‘s special edition comes with a High Frequency Blade plasma lamp, among other goodies.

Pokémon Jack-o’-Lanterns, Gotta Carve ‘Em All!

October is right around the corner—and so is Halloween. While I haven’t picked out my costume (must remember to!), I have been thinking about what I’d like to carve into an orange gourd. These Pocket Monster carvings provide plenty of inspiration. These photos popped up on Tumblr site Think Like No One Else, and I’m…

Japan’s Geekiest Cars Run on Nerd Fuel

“Itasha” (痛車) literally mean “painmobile”, but they are Japan’s sticker-covered geek cars. The decals often feature anime, manga or video game characters. “Ita” either refers to the pain inflicted on the wallets of the car owners—or the folks who see the cars. This month, there was the “Ita Fest in Tohoku”. Tohoku, of course, was…

A Japanese woman was arrested for allegedly scamming cosplayers; they sent her money, she apparently sent them nothing.

The Latest Earth Defense Force 4 Trailer Looks Pretty Great

One of the best games I played at this year’s Tokyo Game Show was Earth Defense Force 4. I’m eagerly looking forward to the game’s release—from what I played, it seemed really cool! Here’s the latest trailer. And if you missed them, here are my TGS impressions 『地球防衛軍４』1stプロモーションムービー [D3P@YouTube] Kotaku East is your slice of…

Chin Stabbing? Okay, This Is Messed Up and Wonderful.

Gakuen Handsome, an adventure game aimed at Japanese women, is headed to smartphones. Oh goody, because the game is friggin’ bonkers It seems like your typical Boys’ Love game, with the main character transferring to an elite all boys school. It is anything but typical. Gakuen Handsome features dudes with very sharp chins—chins so sharp…

In Paranormal Activity 4, Kinect Shows Just How Scary Product Placement Can Be

The way Kinect works is that it sends out all these little beams of light. That’s how it can read movements and know when you flail about your living room. Those tracking dots are also perfect for creepy horror movies—and Microsoft product placement. The latest trailer for Paranormal Activity 4 shows off the Kinect. One…

I Had No Idea Tennis Balls Could Look so Delicious

If you said, tennis balls look cute, I could see that. They’re green and fuzzy, and that’s cute, I guess. But delicious looking? Tokyo sweet shop Nikki Cafe is serving (GEDDIT?) tennis ball shaped cakes called, um, “Tennis Ball Cakes” for ¥450 (US$5.80) apiece. They not only look realistic, they also look yummy. どこからどう見ても「テニスボール」にしか見えない！ 東京・本郷『NIKKI…

Up All Night with Some of the Best Cosplay on Earth

Cosplayers’ Cure Night was a showcase of some truly great cosplay. Kotaku was around before the event (snapping pictures), but we had to retire for the evening before it kicked off. What can I say, our bed time is so early! Sadly, we missed the event. However, Japanese game site 4Gamer was on hand for…

The PixelJunk Folks Are Definitely Interested in the Glorious PC Master Race

If you say “Q-Games”, the first things that come to mind are probably Nintendo and Sony. (Oh, and there’s that other Japan-based developer with a similar name.) But you think consoles. You don’t think computers. Consoles. That could change. “We want to be recognized as independent and as a developer that does many different things,”…

Guns Made from Bones (Yes, BONES)

The materials artist Bruce Mahalski uses are hardly typical—neither is what he creates with them. He works with bones to produce, among other things, replica pistols and assault rifles. The result is beautiful, yet unsettling, and provides a stark reminder of the power that these weapons have. Yet, the artist doesn’t necessarily see it that…

Japanese Beer Girls Inspired a Resident Evil 6 Monster

For years, Japanese beer companies have had famous pin-up models pose with frosty brews. Publicity posters were tacked up in izakaya (Japanese pub) style restaurants across the country. Those posters still exist (though they are on the wane when compared to a decade ago!) and live on in Resident Evil 6. Note: This post contains…

Japanese Man Arrested for Hamburger Fraud

Hamburger scamsters out there, take note! Thirty-five year-old Akira Watanabe was recently nabbed for trying to pull a fast one—with a hamburger and a hair. The unemployed man apparently returned a burger he had order, saying it had a hair in it and that he felt sick and couldn’t eat. The hair, it seems, was…

Hey, You’ve Got Nausicaä in My Final Fantasy IX

Since the Final Fantasy games have been so incredibly influential, it’s interesting to see where FF‘s designers have looked for their own inspiration. It’s no secret that Final Fantasy has apparently been influenced by Studio Ghibli. The Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind manga, for example, most likely inspired Final Fantasy‘s Chocobo—those big yellow…

The Foxconn factory that assembles the iPhone 5 is back online. Riots recently broke out apparently over labor tensions.

First Details on New Jiggly Ninja Game include Inevitable Destructible Outfits

When game designer Kenichiro Takaki thought about what he wanted to see in 3D on the Nintendo 3DS, one thing (er, two things?) came to mind. The result was Senran Kagura. Now the curvy ninja game is making its way to the PS Vita as Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus – Young Girls’ Proof This week’s…