Last week, the Tokyo District Court (pictured above) ruled that publishing manga dialogue online without permission is copyright infringement. According to NHK (via ANN), a “spoiler site” published almost all the dialogue verbatim from manga between January 2019 and May 2020. In total, 63 volumes were uploaded. The manga in question is Kengan Omega, and…
If you’ve ever been to Japan (and even if you haven’t), you are probably aware that shoes are a big deal—and specifically, taking them off. The bottoms of shoes are considered dirty for obvious reasons. Because of this, walking inside while wearing shoes is certainly frowned upon. The cultural norms do not stop there. Walking…
This week, Nexon announced that last year the company greenlit up to $1.5 billion worth of investments in Konami Holdings, Bandai Namco Holdings, Sega Sammy Holdings, and Hasbro. Founded in Seoul but now based in Tokyo, Nexon is one of the most successful game companies in Asia. “We believe companies with strong, well-managed global IP…
Last year, the in-person Tokyo Game Show was canceled due to covid-19 concerns. In its place was an online event. This year, once again, the show will be only online. As organizers announced in an official release, this year’s theme will be Sore de mo, bokura ni wa geemu ga aru (それでも、僕らにはゲームがある) or, “We’ll always…
A 28-year-old Tokyo resident has been arrested for allegedly breaking into a trading card shop atop a six-story building to steal Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! cards, after climbing over the side of the building with a rope. Mainichi reports that in the early morning hours last week, Kensuke Nakanishi anchored a rope to a railing on the…
Famitsu editor Eiichi Sato was arrested for alleged fraud. According to Asahi News, Sato is accused of pulling off an impersonation ruse to collect freelance fees for articles. Sato was previously employed as an editor at Famitsu, a subsidiary of Kadokawa, and he was in charge of editing freelance articles. Famitsu, of course, is Japan’s…
Originally scheduled for “early summer” in Japan, the upcoming Shin Ultraman movie will be delayed. According to the official site, the scheduled release has been impacted by covid-19. Shin Ultraman will now get a new theatrical debut date, announced at a later time. Shin Ultraman is the latest collaboration between Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno and…
Last month, it was announced that the Nintendo Switch was getting a Ninja Gaiden trilogy release. But to the chagrin of some, this bundle includes Ninja Gaiden Sigma 1 and Sigma 2. That’s right, Ninja Gaiden Black and Ninja Gaiden II are not included. Announced in 2005, Ninja Gaiden Black was a reworked, harder version…
Whenever a massive game is released, no doubt, diehard fans wish nothing more than to take the day off. Some may suddenly find themselves coming down with a cold and the only recipe for recovery is a day of gaming. But employees at Tokyo-based VR-studio Mark-On don’t need to feign illness. Exec Jack Masaki formally…
In Japan, Konami doesn’t only make video games. It also has a major chain of sports clubs. Gyms have been hit hard by the novel coronavirus pandemic, and Konami has had to shutter a number of its locations. Konami’s presence in sports is why the company has developed exercise games and been a major sponsor…
Slowpoke might not exactly be the image postal carriers are going for, but in Japan, the sluggishly cute Pokémon is known as Yadon, and… well, let me explain Since the character’s Japanese name sounds like “udon,” the character has been promoting the famous noodle dish in Kagawa Prefecture since 2015. If you ever visit the…
For the past few years, Square Enix has been co-developing mobile game Final Fantasy XI R with Nexon. The game was dubbed an “MMMRPG” or “Massively Multiplayer Mobile RPG.” But now, apparently, it’s no more. Originally announced in 2015 as Final Fantasy XI Mobile, the game was promised to be a mobile version of, you…
When Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade was announced earlier this year, Square Enix detailed how it changed the textures and lighting, as well as added fog effects. Some changes were more subtle. During today’s Sony online event, Final Fantasy producer Yoshinori Kitase ran through the changes in the PS5 version. Most of the information was…
Lady Dimitrescu is one tall lady—to be exact, 2.9m tall (that is, 9’6″). But what does that look like next to actual humans? Let’s find out! During today’s online PlayStation event, the character was compared with celebrity hosts Hatsune Matsushima and Kayo Satoh. Matsushima is 5’2″ tall (161cm), while Satoh is 5’6″ (172cm). Lady Dimitrescu…
Bandai and anime studio Sunrise are teaming up for a new Gundam Build series. This time, though, it’s not animated. It’s live-action. Gundam Build Fighters debuted as an anime back in 2013, and was followed by sequels, with Gunpla builders vying to win battle tournaments. According to Gundam.info, the new series is called Gundam Build…
After not one but two delays, Super Nintendo World finally opened today. As Being Kansai reports, lines started forming by 6:30 AM, with a good crowd forming within an hour. Although Osaka lifted the state of emergency earlier this month (Tokyo is currently still under one), with people congregating, waiting inside, and eating in restaurants,…
Like Coke? A lot? Well, according to Nikkei (via Gearoid Reidy), the drink maker is rolling out a special subscription service in Japan. For 2,700 yen ($25) a month, subscribers get one Coca-Cola from any of Japan’s 340,000 vending machines per day. That would save about 900 to 1,000 yen ($8-$10) a month on a…
Hiroshi Sasaki is resigning as creative director of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics after suggesting that comedian and fashion icon Naomi Watanabe should appear as a pig during the opening ceremony. Sasaki’s derogatory suggestion was apparently that the famed comedian and fashion model should appear as the “Olympig,” a wordplay on the word “Olympic.” “There…
Square Enix is joining the NFTs fray with one-of-a-kind digital assets for their Million Arthur franchise. Please be excited. Today, Square Enix announced that it would be joining forces with Double Jump Tokyo for the endeavor. Double Jump Tokyo was founded in 2018, and the company has been at the forefront of blockchain technology in…
Former pop star Juna Yamada has been arrested for allegedly swindling money from a man she met through a dating site. Previously, the 22-year-old Yamada was a member of idol group SKE48, which she left in January 2019. According to CBC TV, Yamada told the man that she knew how to make money through investing…
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