-
Japanese Maids Busting Nintendo Blocks in This Digital Wonderland
Most maid cafes aren’t exactly visually striking. The decor lacks pizzazz. Japanese maid cafe chain Maidreamin has pizzazz out the wahzoo. The cafe is Mario meets maids, while guzzling electric Kool-Aid. It’s a trip. Maidreamin has locations throughout Tokyo’s Akihabara, but its Shibuya establishment and its new Osaka locale are stunners. They aren’t your standard…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 18, 2012 -
Mass Effect, Portal, and More as Things of Pixelated Beauty
What Mass Effect, Portal 2, Deus Ex, and BioShock have in common are memorable worlds and visual flairs. Not sacrificing either, artist Pieceoftoast traded the games’ high-def graphics for pixels. The result is stunning. Seeming to channel Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP, the art not only captures the feeling and mood of each game, but…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 18, 2012 -
D.I.Y. Assassin’s Creed Arm Blades Sure Look Scary!
A guy in his bedroom, with a dangerous sleeve weapon. No, you’re not watching Taxi Driver, but rather, YouTube user Angelegend showing off his arm-blade. You know, like the ones in Assassin’s Creed The arm blade was created from things like a door hinge, which doesn’t sound easy. According to Angelegend, “It’s a bit complex,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 18, 2012 -
When the PSP Was a Fashion Statement
Portable | LOS ANGELES: A “Pret a PSP” fashion show marked the console’s 2005 launch. (Photo: Chris Pizzello | AP) More Triangles in Games! Love-Triangles, That Is I was disappointed with Uncharted 3 for a number of reasons. Certainly one of those reasons was that the game had bizarre difficulty spikes and could be kind…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Japan’s Ten Biggest Games of 2011 Were…
2011 is over. So let’s look back at last year and suss out what the ten biggest games in Japan were. Japanese sales tracker Media Create tracked the sales for the period between Jan. 3, 2011 and Jan. 1, 2012. Here goes: 10. Wii Sports Resort Wii: 579,220 9. Dragon Quest Mosnters: Joker 2 Professional…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Max Payne 3 Delayed Until May
Originally planned for a March 2012, Rockstar Games revealed this morning that the game will get a new launch window. In Max Payne 3, players go to São Paulo, Brazil, where the game is set Remedy Entertainment, creators of the original Max Payne, recently said what Rockstar Games has done with Max Payne 3 is…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Dine on These Resident Evil Cosplay Photos.
Cosplay superstar Omi Gibson once again amazes the internet with her ability to bring game characters to life. Here, she’s Jill Valentine from Resident Evil 2: Apocalypse There’s smoking, a gun, and Omi as well as some fine photography from Omi cohort Taka. The end result is better than a Jill sandwich! BIOHAZARD２ Apocalypse [Omi…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Goodbye Hudson. It’s Been Fun.
On Mar. 1, Konami’s takeover of Hudson will go into effect. The merger will mean that Hudson ceases to exist and is dissolved into Konami. Best known for Bomberman, Hudson became a fully-owned Konami subsidiary in last year. [Infoseek]
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Dress Up Your Bikini-Wearing Cowgirl Killer!
Onechanbara, that bikini cowgirl game that’s spawned several low-budget flicks, is getting a new installment, Onechanbara Z: Kagura And that latest Onechanbara installment is getting downloadable content. There are several packs, such as a Soul Afro one for 240 Microsoft Points, a Sailor Uniform set for 320 Microsoft, and a Demon Decoration set for 240…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
This Creepy Chinese Gundam Copy Will Blow Your Mind [Update]
Holy crap! China reworked Gundam Seed, and a bunch of other things, into this mind melting cartoon extravaganza. This brings back memories of the Chinese Gundam! Dubbed Xu You Ji, it is populated with creepy Uncanny Valley children in Evangelion style plugsuits and creatures from Monsters vs. Aliens. The cartoon even has music from anime…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Man Gets in Kid’s Face over the PlayStation Portable. Police Alerted.
On Jan. 12 in Osaka, a grade schooler and a friend were playing video games outside. It was 5:30 and getting dark when a middle-aged male approached. Man, he seemed pissed. “Why you own a PSP?” he said to the grade schooler, grabbing the child by both shoulders. The man, dressed in a navy boy…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Indian Brides Are Angry about Illegal Marriage Dowries
While the notion that Indian brides are so cheesed off about dowries that there’s a Angry Birds sounding clone Angry Brides might sound humorous, the backstory is anything but. Five decades ago, marriage dowries—giving money or jewels—were outlawed in India. The custom still exists, and, according to Reuters is still so widespread that many grooms…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
Thank this Japanese Porn Star for Edgy Cosplay
The lines between Japanese cosplay and adult videos are becoming increasingly blurred. Porno actresses are doing cosplay. Cosplayers are doing blue movies. Japanese adult video studios churn out cosplay themed flicks. Everybody’s dressing up and taking off their clothes! But the lines weren’t always blurred. Ask Ran Asakawa. This article contains some NSFW imagery. Now…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
It’s Like Skyrim‘s Guardian Stones for Real
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Guardian Stones give players special abilities. One stone can be activated at a time, and if you’ve played the game, you will be familiar with them. These powers these stone offer exist only in Skyrim. The stones themselves seem to have a real-life counterpart. Kotaku reader Brian, spotted this…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
This Zelda NES Mod Is Magical
Platinumfungi grew up playing The Legend of Zelda and decided the best way to say thanks was with a NES case mod and this lovely video. Platinumfungi did the casemod, custom NES guy Jayrod2 did the paint job, Will Chiles did the music, and Avid Productions 479 did the video. And I did this post.
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
How to Make Your Skyrim Map Better: BLOOD
Fake blood, that is. Skyrim player and prop maker Shannon Clawson decided to modify the map bundled with The Elder Scrolls V. Out came the sandpaper, fake blood, and fire. Add an old frame and bam you’re done! “Project time was less than an hour,” Shannon wrote. “Well worth the effort.” And yes, Shannon is…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 17, 2012 -
It’s Like Mario Bros., But Smaller and Harder
When I was seven years old, I got the Nintendo Entertainment System for Christmas. My parents already had a Pong machine and a Magnavox Odyssey, and I enjoyed both machines very much. Bu this was different. This was my console. My first console. And the game I fell in love with instantly was Super Mario…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 16, 2012 -
Soul Edge?
Joystick | TOKYO, JAPAN: A joystick for Namco’s upcoming fighter. (Photo: GameWatchImpress) The Nintendo PlayStation You Never Got To Play The first PlayStation 1 controllers looked silly. No wonder the world never got to use them. The world also never got to use this first PlayStation from 1991. More » THQ Says it has “Not Cancelled”…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 16, 2012 -
Live in China or South Korea? Write about Games?
Not only is Kotaku going through applications for Tokyo correspondents (we are currently no longer accepting applications), it is also looking to expand its coverage beyond Japan to China and South Korea. That’s right, Kotaku is looking for a few good men/women/whatever in China and South Korea. Do you go to ChinaJoy every year? Hang…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 16, 2012
Brian Ashcraft
Brian Ashcraft's posts