Kotaku East

Inside the World’s First Kit Kat Specialty Shop

Earlier today, the world’s first Kit Kat “specialty shop” opened in Tokyo. It’s called the Kit Kat Chocolatory, and you can see a photo of it right up there. As previously reported, the new Kit Kat shop offers gourmet Kit Kats. That’s it! There are three flavors currently: the “Sublime Bitter,” which is made with…

Devoid of Details, Japanese Still Want Persona 5 So Damn Bad

Atlus proves that sometimes, name value is all you need. The 2014 game lineup is looking pretty exciting so far. With the upcoming release of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in Japan, Japanese gamers have a lot to look forward to. Japanese gaming magazine Weekly Famitsu asked its readers what games they were looking…

Check Out Japan’s Ridiculous Anime-fied Fairy Tales

The vast majority of book cover art in Japan is fairly conservative. Tasteful, even. But one publisher is trying to “update” classic books by covering them in anime art. Tokyo-based Kadokawa is one of Japan’s largest publishers. In recent years, the company has expanded into movies and video games. Seeming to take advantage of its…

Xbox One Will Suit Japanese Rooms Just Fine (Apparently)

2014 is here. Seriously, when is the Xbox One coming out in Japan? Apparently there are some issues Microsoft needs to address first. Microsoft has previously expressed their commitment to the Japanese market. However, with the complexities involved with different cultures, customs, standards and regulations, they have been hesitant to make any definite statements on…

Guess what Hideo Kojima is doing? That’s right, he’s showing off Ground Zeroes again—this time, demonstrating the Xbox One version’s second screen capabilities on tablets and smartphones. Check out his photos above and below. Photo 1, Photo 2, Photo 3 [Twitter] Questions? Comments? Contact the author of this post at andras-AT-kotaku-DOT-com. Kotaku East is your…

In Japan, Being Mickey Mouse Is a Part-Time Job

With those Kingdom Hearts games and with new Mickey Mouse cartoons, you’d think being the official Japanese language voice of Mickey Mouse would be a full-time job. For one university professor, it’s not. Takashi Aoyagi’s full-time gig is being a professor at Tokyo Seitoku University, studying Japanese Heian culture, classical Chinese poetry, and Japanese poetry…

Man Dresses as Predator, Proposes to Girlfriend

This week, a gentleman—no, a hero—named Zhao Ming dressed up as Predator and proposed to his girlfriend at a bar in Changchun, China. According to China Newsand CRI (via ShanghaiIst), his unsuspecting girlfriend, named Zhu Wenjing, entered the bar and was suddenly surrounded by seven individuals dressed as Star Wars characters, Bumblebee from Transformers and…

One Thousand Japanese Gamers Polled about the PS4

The PlayStation 4 isn’t out in Japan. The whole world is playing the console, but Japan isn’t. So how enthusiastic are Japanese gamers for the release of Sony’s black monolith next month? Japanese gaming mag Weekly Famitsu put out the call this week, asking 1,000 gamers for their thoughts on the upcoming PlayStation 4 release.…

Mecha Hello Kitty Is Ready To Destroy You All

Hello Kitty is getting a “super robot” toy. Bandai released a trailer for said toy, and it includes a robo Kitty-chan anime. As previously mentioned, the figure is around 4-inches tall and has several different “modes,” like “Underwater Mode” and “Flying Mode.” Kitty-chan even has a “Rocket Punch” that shoots her fist-like missiles. Part of…

Live-Action Kiki’s Delivery Service Getting a Computerized Cat

What’s the point of making a live-action Kiki’s Delivery Service if the cat is going to be CG? No, let me rephrase that. What’s the point of making a live-action Kiki’s Delivery Service? Recently on Japanese television, the first images of the movie version of Jiji, the black cat, were shown. If you have never…

DriveClub Delayed, Won’t Make the PS4 Launch in Japan

Slated to be a PS4 launch title in Japan, DriveClub has been delayed and won’t make its planned February 22 release in Japan. The reason for the delay? Website Inside Games quotes the press release as saying, “Various circumstances.” The game’s release date is now TBA for Japan and will be announced at a later…

Report: Japan To Tax Foreign Downloads Starting Next Year

Physical goods imported into Japan are taxed. And according to the Japanese media, starting in 2015, foreign downloads will be as well. Content such as digital music, e-books, apps, and games downloaded from foreign servers will levied with a consumption tax, reports Nikkei Going on info from government sources, Asahi, one of the largest papers…

The World’s First Kit Kat Store Is Opening in Tokyo

Japan is famous for its Kit Kats. The country has a slew of unique flavors that simply aren’t available elsewhere. On this month, it will get the first Kit Kat specialty store on Earth. Called Kit Kat Chocolatory, the store will open on January 17 at the Seibu Department Store in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro. It will…

A Collection of Japanese Katana Fails

Japanese katana are not only legendary, but sharp! You have to know what the hell you are doing. These experts most certainly do. But while practicing, they’ve cut up their fair share of successes—and failures. Before we look at their fails, here are over nine minutes of katana cutting perfection, courtesy of YouTube user shachiNT…

Fried Scorpion? Osaka Restaurant Serves Up Unusual Eats

If you ever visit Osaka, be sure to try one of its most famous dishes, “kushikatsu” (串カツ). Typically, it’s fried pork on skewers. One restaurant’s menu is anything but typical. The place to go for good kushikatsu (also called “kushiage” or 串揚げ) is Shinsekai. The neighborhood is rather rundown, and it’s hardly the nice part…

Hideo Kojima Taunts Us with Ground Zeroes on the PS Vita

Boy, that Hideo Kojima! First, he torments us with Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes on the PS4, and now via Twitter he’s teasing the game’s Remote Play for the PS Vita. The nerve. In these stills, you can see how Ground Zeroes apparently looks when running on the Vita. Nice, it seems! I’d like…

Meet Korea’s Most Infamous Character: Poop Man

This is Dongchimee. In you live in South Korea, you might be familiar with him. He’s into dookie and other shit. Note: Some readers might find this article’s content objectionable. The cartoon character is totally into collecting poop, doing poop experiments and wearing a dung hat, notes website Simply2Suitcases. Dongchimee is friends with flying laxatives…

Golden Time’s First Half Has Me by the Heart Strings

Back in November, I listed Golden Time as one of the ten anime of the fall you should be watching. Now, as the series passes its halfway point, I can truly say that Golden Time has a death grip on my heartstrings and refuses to let go. Good – An Empathetic, Yet Human Cast It’s…

Young Couple Funded Gaming Habit By… Robbing Gamers

Twenty-four year-old Jun Kanemaru met his girlfriend, a runaway, via an online dating site. Once a couple, they allegedly stole from arcade gamers in Tokyo’s geek mecca Akihabara. Today, Fuji News Network reports that the unemployed Kanemaru and his unemployed girlfriend were arrested for allegedly stealing a wallet from a woman’s purse. At the time…

Kojima Torments Fans with Photos of the Next Metal Gear on PS4

With only two months left ’till release, fans all over the world shout his name while shaking their fists in impotent anger. As spotted by Dualshockers, Metal Gear showrunner Hideo Kojima recently tweeted two photos of him playing (well… more “poking at,” really) Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes on a PS4, showing off the…