Kotaku East

Gothic Lolita-Themed Kitchen Knives Exist

What a time to be alive. IT Media reports that that what’s being called “The World’s First Lolita Kitchen Knife” is going on sale in Japan. “Lolita” refers to the Japanese fashion subculture. There are two types: the more Gothic-style Juliette, with a butterfly-inspired blade that’s etched with roses, and the pink Lappin, which features…

Final Fantasy XIV Items and More Coming to Phantasy Star Online 2

Two of the biggest Japanese online games, it appears, are collaborating. And you thought these games were rivals? Ha! This was suddenly announced today at a Phantasy Star Online 2 event in Tokyo. According to Famitsu and 4Gamer, the Final Fantasy XIV incarnation of Odin will appear this summer in PSO2 as an enemy boss…

Anime Makes McDonald’s Better

Don’t get me wrong! I like McDonald’s as much as the next person. I also like how much better it looks as anime. In Japan, the service at McDonald’s, and any another fast food restaurant, is generally quite good. The chain recently released a clip to, hopefully, inspire young people to get part-time jobs there.…

Capsule Toy Heaven. Kyoto, Japan. By Andreas Rühmkorb. 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!

Japanese Cat Cafes Are More Fashionable Than Ever 

We’re entering the next phase of cat cafes. It’s fancy. Until recently, the vast majority of cat cafes have been rather simple, no-frills operations. That’s not to say they’ve looked, I dunno, ugly, but many of them have been run out of bland-looking spaces. The aesthetic focus has been the cats and cleanliness, not the…

Please Don’t Eat This One Piece ‘Fruit’

In One Piece, Luffy eats the terrible-tasting Gomu Gomu no Mi, which makes his body all elastic. Since this replica is made of synthetic plastic and rubber, it probably tastes terrible, too, but won’t make your body all stretchy. It’ll make you sick! Instead of eating it, you are supposed to display it (or maybe,…

Watch Dark Souls III Come To Life with Chalkboard Art

A few years ago, Kotaku first reported how Japanese students were covering their classrooms’ chalkboards with incredible art. Now one of those former students is doing that for Dark Souls III Here we see a sped up clip of young artist Rena Rena, who’s now around 20, doing chalk art to promote Dark Souls III’s…

Open Late. Tokyo, Japan. By Emiliano Ruggiero 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!

People Testing IBM’s Real-World Sword Art Online

Back in February, Kotaku reported that IBM was making a real-life Sword Art Online concept, minus the real-life killing. Here’s a look at people testing the VR experience out at an event this week in Tokyo. Sword Art Online is set in the year 2022, when thousands of players who have logged into a Virtual…

My Neighbor Totoro as a Japanese Horror Movie

Perhaps, you’ve heard the scary theory that Totoro is really the god of death. Studio Ghibli might deny that (ha!), but there’s no denying that this recut trailer sure is creepy. Twitter user Nobu added some filters, scary editing, and unsettling music to create a horror version of My Neighbor Totoro. All footage and dialogue,…

The Total Sales for Pokémon Are Staggering 

This year marks Pokémon’s 20th anniversary. Starting in 1996, when Pokémon Red and Blue launched in Japan, the world has purchased millions of Pokémon games and its spin-offs. Over 279 million, that is. Think about that number for a moment. Dual releases aside, it’s incredible. According to Famitsu, that’s the latest global sales figure for…

In Digimon Tri, Growing Up Is Just as Hard as Battling Giant Monsters

It’s a scary moment when you realize just how dangerous the world really is, especially if your day-to-day life involves battling against giant monsters, like the teens in Digimon Tri’s second film. [Note: As one who grew up watching the 90s Digimon dub, I will be using the English localized names.] The last film (or…

For the Resident Evil Fan with Everything, T-Virus Fragrance 

Finally! You too can smell like zombies. According to Inside Games, Capcom is releasing this limited edition fragrance at its Capcom Cafein Saitama, Japan starting March 26. It’s called T-Virus and designed after the infamous Umbrella Corporation strain. Inside adds that this bottled scent is priced at 4,200 yen (US$37.63), but doesn’t give details on…

Haijima Station. Tokyo, Japan. By Romell Roberts. 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!

Splatoon Gets Inevitable Real-World Water Gun

You had an inkling this was going to happen, didn’t you? Famitsu reports that an official Splatoon Splattershot water gun is going on sale for 2,700 yen (US$24). It will be available this summer via HMV, starting July 18. Top image: HMV To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him…

Forget Apple Watch, You Want Bento Watch

A watch filled with little food is way more impressive than a watch that lets you check Facebook. Too bad the Bento Watch isn’t for sale! To show off its agriculture skills, Kyoto-based Takii Seeds created this clip (read: publicity stunt), roping in a master watch craftsman to design the timepiece, a plastic surgeon to…

Reminder: Pokémon Is Incredibly Popular in Japan 

Don’t ever forget this. In Japan, people really, really like Pokémon. So today, when the newest Pokémon Center opened in Kyoto, there were massive lines to get into the store. Yesterday, when I visited the shop to check out its limited goods, I kind of thought, hey, people will come tomorrow. Did they ever. As…

Chrono Trigger’s Excellent Battle System Returns

Recently, Square-Enix released its new RPG I Am Setsuna in Japan. Its most interesting feature? The return of Chrono Trigger’s excellent battle system—only with a few nifty upgrades. The active-time battle system has long been a staple of Square RPGs—Chrono Trigger and I Am Setsuna included. The system works like this: The characters have individual…

Resident Evil Is Getting a Musical

Like singing? Dancing? Resident Evil? The survival horror series is getting an official stage version this fall in Japan. The musical, which is currently titled Musical Resident Evil (heh), will star Reon Yuzuki, who has made a career of playing male characters while at the all-female Takarazuka Revue. Previously, Takarazuka Revue has done wonderful stage…

Potato-Chip Flavored Cola Sounds Disgusting

This is a real product. It’s in Japan. And it sounds nasty. Last year, game maker Namco teamed up with a Japanese potato chip company to make cola-flavored potato chips. That seemed kind of icky, yet still edible. But this? According to Game Impress Watch and Famitsu, the snack-flavored beverage tastes like potato chips that’s…