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Kotaku EastJapanWith Japan Closed To Tourists, Empty Buildings In Akihabara Are Increasing
With Tokyo still under state of emergency orders due to covid-19, and the country closed to tourists, businesses relying on visitors have been hit especially hard by the pandemic. As John Daub from the Only In Japan YouTube channel points out, “Akihabara is one of the places that has changed the most over the last…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 8, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanFighting Game Legend Tokido Appears In BMW Ad In Japan
Hajime “Tokido” Taniguchi isn’t only one of the greatest Street Fighter players ever, he would also like to tell you about the BMW 2 Series. Tokido was recently featured in a short Japanese TV segment called Go Next, which is sponsored by the German car company. In the program he talks about how there was…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 7, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanCar Crashes Into Japanese Arcade, Thankfully No One Was Hurt
Last week in Hiroshima, a sedan plowed into an arcade at a little after 9 pm, knocking over a row of bicycles and smashing through glass. The game center was still in operation, and fortunately, no one in the car or arcade was hurt In the above image from FNN, you can see the car…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 6, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapan18-Year-old Artist Draws Incredible Portraits On Her Smartphone
Mejiro, an 18-year-old artist in Japan, was recently featured on the country’s national TV news for art she draws on her smartphone. “I drew this on my smartphone,” she said, holding up a portrait on her phone. Mejiro doesn’t use a stylus, but her finger as she draws directly on the screen. Her illustration app…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 6, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanCup Noodle Will No Longer Have Stickers Close The Lids
If you’ve ever bought Cup Noodle in Japan, you are familiar with the plastic sticker that’s used to close the lid after hot water is added. In Japanese, that sticker is called futa-dome shiiru (フタ止めシール) or “lid-stopping sticker” or better yet, “lid-fastening sticker.” Nissin, the company that makes Cup Ramen, will no longer use them…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanLife-Sized Slowpoke Plushie Going On Sale In Japan
Priced at 49,500 yen ($450), a life-sized Slowpoke will be available for pre-order later this month. Who wouldn’t want that? This is a Pocket Monster with its own messed-up theme song, postal truck, and mailbox. Everyone loves Slowpoke. As the official Japanese site explains, the plushie measures 25 inches high, 29.5 inches across, and 59…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanTaito Releasing Mini Arcade Cabinet Filled With 40 Games
Taito have unveiled a new mini arcade cabinet called the Egret II Mini, designed after Taito’s 1996 Japanese full-size cabinet. The mini version is packed with 40 games, dating from 1978’s Space Invaders to arcade titles from the 1990s. Have a look below at the games that have been announced so far. Ten more games…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanLast Year, The Pokémon Company Made More Money Than Ever
In 2020, The Pokémon Company posted record profits, with a 21.2 percent increase in net profit compared to the previous year. As Kantan Games explains, The Pokémon Company has disclosed its net profit in the past, with it reaching a record-high 18.6 billion yen ($170 million) last year. However, since The Pokémon Company is a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 2, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanManga Pirate Sentenced To Three Years In Prison And Fined Over $600,000
Romi Hoshino, the alleged administrator of now-shuttered manga piracy site Manga-Mura, was arrested on copyright charges in 2019 after a global manhunt. Today, the Fukuoka District Court found the 29-year-old guilty. As reported by FNN and Nikkei (via ANN), Hoshino has been sentenced to three years in prison and slapped with two fines: one for…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 2, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanPokémon Products Don’t Get Much Better Than This
Over the years, there have been oodles of Pokémon branded products. For example, I bought Pikachu toothpaste earlier today in Japan for my youngest son. But if you really think about it, that doesn’t have much to do with Pocket Monsters. This product, though, definitely does. These are insect baskets, known as mushi kago (虫かご)…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 1, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanCovid-19 Barrier Given JRPG Twist
Perhaps you’ve seen plastic guards at stores and offices to prevent the spread of covid-19. Bet you haven’t seen one quite like this. Propmaker Takumi Armory has created this “RPG Version” of a splash-prevention partition. Amusingly, it’s designed to look like a fantasy role-playing game selection menu, asking what you’d like to do. There are…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 28, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanDragon Quest XII Announced, Hardware Is TBA
Today, Dragon Quest XII was announced during a Square Enix live stream. In the teaser, the “XII” logo was in fire with a voice saying in Japanese, “Why do people live?” The game’s full title is Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii explains that the game will give the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 27, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanSmash Bros. Creator Masahiro Sakurai Is Thinking About Retiring [Update]
Masahiro Sakurai has a regular column in Japanese game magazine Weekly Famitsu. In the latest issue, just released and read by Kotaku, Sakurai’s article is titled, “Everything comes to an end.” According to Sakurai, he wrote the article earlier this month at the end of Golden Week, which is a string of national holidays in…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 26, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanMacross Designer Hospitalized After Tragic House Fire
Earlier today, there were Japanese news reports of a single-story wooden house catching fire in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture. According to anime maker Studio Nue, the house’s inhabitants were Kazutaka Miyatake and his wife Tomoko. Kazutaka Miyatake created mechanical designs for some of the most iconic anime ever, including Space Battleship Yamato, Macross, Mobile Suit Gundam…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 25, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanA Totally New Metal Saga Game Announced For Nintendo Switch
This week, a completely new Metal Saga has been announced to mark the franchise’s 30th anniversary. It’s called Metal Saga: Hangyaku no Rouka (The Beacon of Rebellion) and is bound for the Nintendo Switch. Metal Max was first released in 1991, and due to trademark issues, the games in the franchise have been released under…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 25, 2021
