Kotaku East

The Tokyo Hostel That Looks Like a Bookstore

At Book and Bed Tokyo, you can fall asleep with any of the books the hostel has. Or manga, if you prefer those. According to Inside Games, hostel Book and Bed Tokyo was built with idea that this is a bookstore you can sleep at. The books aren’t actually for sale, but during your stay,…

How to Play Japanese Mobile Games on Your PC

Ever wanted to play some of Japan’s most popular mobile games on your computer? Well, me too. So let me walk you through how to do it. Before we get started, it’s important to keep in mind that your computer is not an Android phone or tablet. Because of this, not all games you can…

“Help, my mom is addicted to computer games!” On a recent episode of South Korea variety show Hello Counselor (via tipster Sang), a grade schooler seeks help over his mom’s incessant gaming.

Japan’s Geeky New Trend: Strange-Looking Heads

In Japanese, they’re called “igyou-atama” (異形頭) or, literally, “strange-looking heads.” They are oddly wonderful. This trend is directly connected to a series of anti-piracy public service announcements that play in Japanese movie theaters. Over the past few years, cosplayers would sometimes dress as these anti-piracy characters. There was also the inevitable fan art. [Photo: kameeeeeeeeen]…

Gangsta Has Crime, Drugs, and Super Soldiers

What it doesn’t have is anything that even comes close to being called an ending. Gangsta is set in a world much like ours, but with one major difference: the Twilights. By using a special performance-enhancing drug, soldiers from the recent past were endowed with nearly superhuman strength and speed. The problem is that said…

Track: Yasashii Kimochi | Artist: Chara | Album: Junior Sweet Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Meme Targets Characters That Don’t Understand Ears

In anime and Hollywood movies, you’ll see it: Characters who don’t know how ears work. This is the “There isn’t an ear there” meme. Can’t follow? Here, let Ted help: [Photo: X-Weibo] Traditionally, the worst offender has been kiddy anime Shima Shima Tora no Shimajiro [Photo: entermeus] See what I mean: [Photo: kirbyshimajiro] [Photo: vitao]…

Fist of the North Star Meets Japanese Rugby

Japan is doing rugby like only Japan can: with an anime! Here’s the official rugby anime that was screened at the Japan Pavilion in London during the 2015 Rugby World Cup. It’s inspired by the iconic manga and anime Fist of the North Star Japan will host the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and its team…

Claiming Censorship and Discrimination, Artist Stands Up to… LEGO

Famed artist Ai Weiwei is working on a series of portraits using LEGO. But the Danish toy company wants nothing to do with it. Last year, Ai did a series of LEGO portraits, featuring a series of famous political activists and dissidents who had either been jailed or exiled. The BBC Reports that Ai planned…

Lake Kawaguchi. Yamanashi, Japan. By Robert Arellano. 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!

Twitch’s Uphill Battle For Japan

In the West, Twitch is an internet superpower. In Japan, things couldn’t be more different. Mainstream success will be tough, but not impossible. Nothing is impossible. Originally launched as part of streaming site Justin.tv, Twitch carved a unique niche through game streaming. It’s not only a live-streaming pioneer, but with with over one hundred million…

Sony says it’s not currently developing any first-party PS Vita games and is instead focusing on its newer hardware, the PS4. According to Sony exec Ito Masayasu, third party studios have been working really hard on Vita games. All the releases Japan sees appears to be proof of that!

Exciting Adventures in a Zombie-Powered Steampunk World

Ever wonder what the world would be like if the British Empire had been built upon a working class of reanimated corpses? Well, the new anime film Empire of Corpses brings that world to life—and it is fantastic. Empire of Corpses begins in the year 1878 and is set in a world quite similar to…

We’ve already seen the official Metal Gear timeline, which helps keep the games in chronological order. Now, we get the complete—or damn near complete—timeline of the epic story, including how The Phantom Pain fits in (click here). Warning, there are spoilers!

The Up All Night Stream Plays Uberdimension Blanc + Neptune Faction Vs. The Zombie Army [Stream Finished]

Anthropomorphic video game consoles become school girls and fight zombies? …Alright, you talked me into it. Let’s give it a go. Update: The stream over, but you can watch the replay in two parts: here (15 minutes) and here (around two hours)! Uberdimension Blanc + Neptune Faction Vs. The Zombie Army (Geki Jigen Tag Blanc…

The Kenshin Musical Cast Looks Perfect in Costume

Well, except for Sanosuke. But, in all fairness, it might distract from the play if his actress went around bare-chested. On Wednesday, all-female acting troupe Takarazuka Revue held an event to show off the cast of their upcoming Rurouni Kenshin musical. Better still, the cast was in full costume; and Japanese website Natalie was there…

The Reason Why Final Fantasy XV‘s Main Characters Wear Black

It’s not simply because the color looks cool. Or because the characters hate pastels. On the Final Fantasy XV forums, the game’s director Hajime Tabata answered a question as to why all four characters were in black. Here’s Tabata’s explanation: The clothing worn by the four main characters is the official battle gear of the…

Tokyo Xanadu is… Okay

Japanese high school kids fighting evil in secret. I’ve never heard of that premise before. No, wait. I have. Tokyo Xanadu is the latest JRPG from Nihon Falcom for the PS Vita. Knowing what time sinks RPGs can be, I figured I’d pass on this one. Falcom has been around the block a few times…

The View from Penang Hill. Penang Island, Malaysia. By Ykeong. 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!

Track: Otonatic | Artist: Gesu no Kiwami Otome | Album: Otonatic/Muku na Kisetsu To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter@Brian_Ashcraft 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…