Kotaku East

Fan Game Crosses Persona with Mario Kart

Following in the steps of the Persona dancing game, one fan decided the next logical step would be a Persona go-carting game. Persona 4: Racing All Afternoon is a recently completed fan-game by MaxieManGames. In it, you race Mario Kart-style against members of the Persona 3 and 4 casts. Many of the game’s resources come…

Birdman‘s ‘Fucking Kimchi’ Comment Sparks Controversy in South Korea

Congrats, Birdman! You won four Oscars. But you’ve also pissed off some people in South Korea, so there’s that. In one scene, Emma Stone, who plays the daughter of Michael Keaton’s character, is asking what kind of flowers her dad wanted. Keaton’s character says something that “smells nice” or “something soothing.” Stone’s character responds, “It…

Teen Makes Sad Yu-Gi-Oh! Bike

It is really sad. But sad in the most wonderful way. Twitter user 6men47 worked all night on this real-life Yu-Gi-Oh! bike. Dubbed the Yusei Go, the motorcycle—or “Duel Runner“—appears in anime Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s and is driven by protagonist Yusei Fudo. [Photo: YuGiOhWikia] A real-life version appeared at the 2008 San Diego Comic Con. It…

A Nightmarish Explanation of Big Anime Eyes

Sure, you must wonder: How exactly does this work? How is it even physically possible? There is an explanation, and it’s nightmare fuel. Out of all the characters with big eyes, the ones in anime and manga aimed at little girls are, perhaps, the biggest. Twitter user Nuron1434 provided the world with, first, this example.…

Xbox One Burgers Now Available in Hong Kong

Hungry? Why not have a tasty Xbox burger and a delicious beverage to wash it down? In Hong Kong, you can. Fast food chain Triple-O’s is teaming up with Microsoft for the Xbox One Burger. It’s available for a limited time only, and from the looks of it, the meals appear to be either the…

The Tales Series Has Rockin’ Theme Songs

The newest game in the series, Tales of Zestiria, has a theme song so excellent that I’m listening to it on repeat right now. Of course, it’s far from the first game of the series to have an opening song this good. And I’m not the only one who thinks so. Many Tales theme songs…

Godzilla Hotel Opening in Japan

I think we can all agree: This room has the best view in Tokyo. On April 24, the Hotel Graceryin Shinjuku will kick off its grand opening in monster style. Godzilla style. The 30-story hotel sits atop the Shinjuku’s Toho Cinema (Toho, of course, made the kaiju famous) and features a couple Godzilla-themed chambers. [Photo:…

Dragon Quest PR Stunt Cruelly Exploits People’s Love for Bubble Wrap

That, or it exploits Japan’s love of Dragon Quest. Maybe, if not definitely, it does both. Square Enix and Koei Tecmo gaves have wallpapered part of Tokyo’s Shinjuku Station with bubble wrap covered in 100,000 Slimes. Who can resist bubble wrap? And in Japan, Dragon Quest has almost the same pull. Almost. [Photo: Inside] Because…

One Piece Has an Official Mini-Van 

In the past few years, Nissan has rolled out a Serena mini-van that’s covered in One Piece. You couldn’t buy it. But now in Japan, you can. Priced at 3.25 million yen (US$27,270), the car is designed after the Thousand Sunny, the ship of the Straw Hat Pirates. Fittingly, this car is called the “Thousand…

Being Good at Video Games Isn’t Cool, Says Japanese Poll

You might be terrible at video games. You might be amazing. And if you’re a guy who’s good at games, does that make you cool? That’s what one Japanese website wanted to find out. According to Buzz Plus, the following question was posed to two hundred women in Japan: “Do you think men who are…

Street Fighter Comes To Life with Japanese Celebrities

It’s not everyday you can flip on your television in Japan and see major celebrities cosplaying as Street Fighter II characters and talking incessantly about the game. Last week on variety show Ame Talk, a handful of famous Japanese people who are into video games dressed up and recounted their Street Fighter experiences and memories…

How Final Fantasy XV‘s Combat Works

Last December, Kotaku reported on Final Fantasy XV‘s combat. At the time, details were somewhat abstract. Today, we have a detailed list of how exactly the controls function. Square Enix showed off the basic controls in tonights FFXV walkthrough, and the images below are from the demo (via Japanese site Hachima Kikou). Perhaps seeing how…

Hot on the heels of Puzzle & Dragon‘s Super Mario Bros. edition is a Final Fantasy collaboration for Japan. As noted on Otanew, expect more details at a later date. No word yet about an international release.

Kim Jong-un: A Haircut Odyssey

Photos have emerged of a “new” Kim Jong-un hairdo. Simply put, it is spectacular. But how did we get here? When did this happen? Let’s take a look back at Kim’s coifs from over the years. The world didn’t always know that this ruthless dictator had such oppressive hair. For example, in the original backstory…

Five Must-Watch Anime for Winter 2015

We are now half way into the winter anime season. But with 35 new shows on the air it can be more than a little difficult to know which ones to watch. Luckily, we at Kotaku East come bearing our recommendations. Over the past few weeks, I have spent hour upon hour getting fully caught…

Japan’s Most Traditional Internet Cafe

There are loads of internet cafes in Japan. But it seems there’s only one that looks like a traditional Japanese inn. Welcome to Nagomi Style Cafe Located in Tokyo’s geek mecca Akihabara, this internet cafe is designed after a Kyoto inn. The Japanese word “nagomi” (和み) mean to soothe or calm. That’s exactly what this…

Poll: How Japanese Gamers Feel About the PS4

The PlayStation 4 was released in Japan nearly one year ago. So are Japanese buyers of the console happy with their purchase? Over 1,000 PS4 owners answered a customer satisfaction survey in this week’s Weekly Famitsu. Many were happy. Some were not. Here’s what was asked, what was answered, and a bit of what was…

In Final Fantasy XV, Cooking is Important

Camping is a big part of Final Fantasy XV. And what is camping, without some campfire cooking? As previously explained by director Hajime Tabata, is part of the core gameplay of FFXV, and plays a vital role in adventuring the vast open world. To recap, camping in FFXV converts exp gained through battles into levels.…

How to Beat up Pokémon in Japanese Arcades

The new Pokémon fighting game, Pokkén Tournament is hitting arcades in Japan this summer, and a new trailer is out to offer new details, including a breakdown of the controls. In the newly released trailer, some of the previously announced playable characters were shown as well as some new details were on how the game…

Why Final Fantasy XV Has Fantastic Hair

As a rule, Final Fantasy games have amazing hair. But the ‘dos in Final Fantasy XV look especially good. Thank fancy tech, professional hair stylists, and wigs for that. During the last console generation, a glut of characters had buzz cuts or sported coifs that looked like they were drenched in hairspray. Those bad hair…