Kotaku East

Bikinis Really Aren’t Necessary for Volunteer Work

Nobody asked for the help, but a woman named Zhang Xiner appeared at a Guangzhou Metro station in China dressed in a skimpy bikini. Her goal was to help commuters buy tickets and find their way. Oh, she probably wanted to get famous, too. Well, that seems to have worked! When asked by Sohu.com, one…

China’s Video Game “Retail” Displays Look Suspect

Last week, photos of last generation video game consoles have appeared online in China. No, these aren’t any regular old photos, the consoles in these photos are in retail display kiosks inside Chinese brick and mortar electronics shop Suning. These photos have spurred up the talk that China’s video game console market will open up…

In This Game, You Are Tied Up and Chained. For Real.

You know those locked room games? Well, imagine you found yourself in a locked room, blind folded, chained, and put in a straight jacket. This is not a video game. For the past two years, mystery rooms have become increasingly popular. As Kotaku previously reported, the mystery rooms are inspired by gaming’s locked room genre—you…

Was Naruto Ripped Off By a Chinese TV Show?

Since relations with Japan have come to a low of late, China has been churning out anti-Japanese television shows, games, and more. Ironically, while hating on all things Japan, one of China’s newest anti-Japanese productions seems to have stolen music from Japan’s own Naruto. That’s right, an anti-Japanese television show with music from Naruto. Go…

Drakengard 3‘s Director Is Keen for Drakengard 4

In a recently published interview from late last year with 4Gamer (via Siliconera), Drakengard‘s series director Taro Yoko reflected on 2013 and 2014. Last year was probably busy. This year? Less so. “I’d like to say thank you very much for the year 2013 to everyone,” said Yoko, who’s known for his honesty. “Living can…

One Company Is Dominating Chinese Internet Cafes (Apparently!)

While Chinese Internet cafes are supposedly on the decline, but with a 126 million active players at net cafes across the country it’s easy to see that net cafes are still a major player in the gaming scene of China. Such as it is, it’s always interesting to see what kind of games are being…

China Has Daycare for Husbands Who Hate Shopping

Some married men love shopping. They adore it. But some absolutely abhor it. And in China, there’s a special place wives can ditch them: husband storage! Called “laogong jicun chu” in Chinese (老公寄存处), which literally means “husband cloakroom,” the rest stations are for husbands who are either knackered from shopping or for those who would…

Pokémon X/Y Might Feature a Transgender Character

The above character appears to make a nuanced hint at her gender change in the latest Pocket Monster game, Pokémon X/Y In the English language version of the game, the text that accompanies the above character reads, “Yes, a mere half year ago I was a Black Belt! Quite the transformation, wouldn’t you say?” The…

Dead or Alive Creator’s Next Game “80% Done,” Arrives This Year

Late last month, Tomonobu Itagaki of Valhalla Game Studios revealed his new year’s resolution for 2014: “finish Devil’s Third” According to a recent interview, this may have been more than just a vague promise. During their end-of-year developer talk, 4Gamer had a chance to speak with Itagaki about his upcoming third-person shooter. Devil’s Third, he…

Yakuza‘s Producer May Hate GTA, But He Certainly Respects It

Yakuza series producer Toshihiro Nagoshi has previously stated that he hates Grand Theft Auto. You wouldn’t think so when he was asked which one of last year’s games impressed him the most. Japanese gaming blog 4Gamer recently asked 151 game developers this question: “Of games released in 2013, what title impressed/amazed you the most?” Among…

Over the holidays, the fan group working on translating Valkyria Chronicles 3 into English have finally released their work. If you own a Japanese copy of the game, you can download the patch and read the tutorial on how to apply it on the project’s official blog-slash-homepage here

It Just Wouldn’t Be New Year’s Without Anime Girls on Wooden Plaques

In Japan, New Year’s isn’t just about the dropping of the ball. It’s the turning of a new leaf, and with it come numerous traditions from fortune telling to warding off evil spirits and drawing cute anime girls on wooden plaques… Wait, what? The notorious “ita-ema” (痛絵馬) are back again this year in full force…

Japan’s First PS4 Commercial Twists the Knife in a Rather Mean Way

“Look at all these people, having fun with their PS4s,” the ad seems to say “Sure would be nice to get some of that action, huh?” While I’m sure Sony Japan’s intention wasn’t to torture people—even the caption reads “The world will be united with play,” which shows their heart was in the right place—still……

Comiket’s Not Just About Comics. It’s Also About Awesome Cosplay

Comic Market, aka Comiket is a bi-annual 3-day indie manga event. But it’s not just about manga. As the biggest and most famous indie manga event in Japan, cosplayers come out in droves. And this year’s winter Comiket 85 was no different. Be it sweltering heat or frigid cold, if there are crowds of fans…

Kotaku Editors’ 10 Favorite Games of 2013

Have you heard? The Last of Us is Kotaku’s game of the year. We’re not going to talk about The Last of Us now, though. Well, not “just” The Last of Us Over the last month, we have shared with you our top games from the year 2013. Ten picks from each of us. On…

Online Now: Takahide Hori (AKA YAMIKEN) has posted the full video of his short film, Junk Head 1, online. Hori has enlisted the aid of professional translator, Emily Balistrieri, for the full version’s English subtitles.

Japan’s Biggest Gaming Phenomenon of 2013

Without a doubt, the biggest gaming phenomenon of Japan this year involved the game which had anime girls as battleships. It’s too bad that most people outside of Japan can’t play it. When I firstwrote about Kantai Collection (艦隊これくしょん) – aka Kan Colle (艦これ) – it was back in July and the game was proudly…

China’s Video Game Industry Pulled In Over $13 Billion. Yes, Billion.

As the year comes to an end, year-end statistics are trickling out from every which way. Over the weekend, the China Game Industry Annual Conference’s China Games Party has released info on how much revenue the Chinese game industry has brought in over the course of 2013. Chinese video game companies pulled in over $13…

Why China Banned Battlefield 4, Modern Warfare 2, and 40 Other Games

Censorship is a pervasive issue all across the world, but nowhere is it more evident than it is in China. Here, media content falls under extreme scrutiny before it can be released to the public, and video games are no different. China’s Ministry of Culture has, over the years, released public notices denouncing certain games…

Hong Kong’s Government Explains Money Troubles… With Cartoons

In Hong Kong, government-provided public services are considered pretty good. Supposedly, the social welfare net is also pretty good. Technically being part of China but with a passport that is accepted by many western countries, Hong Kong is overall a pretty good place to live. However, in recent years, the local government’s pockets have been…