Kotaku East

This Woman Makes the Same Face. At Nearly the Same Time. Every Day.

Yoko Shono is up bright and early daily for morning show Mezamashi TV, which is kind of like Today for Japan. And what seems like everyday at the nearly the exact same time, she makes what seems to be the exact same face. You must see it to believe it. Note: If you are prone…

After Vandalism Rampage, Schoolgirls Blame It on a Comic Book

All the chairs and desks were over turned. On the chalk board, the kanji character “shi” (死) or “death” was scrawled. But that wasn’t all. According to reports, police picked up two thirteen year old schoolgirls for the school’s vandalism as well as breaking and entering. On the night of February 4, both of them…

Chinese Restaurant Offers “Wife” Instead of “Wifi”

This restaurant in rural China isn’t bathed in Wifi. According to the above sign, it’s covered in Wife. Online in China, people are apparently amused by the above sign, spotted at a rural restaurant. It reads (via MIC Gadget), “Our Farm Has Been Covered With Wife.” While English isn’t the country’s official lingo, “Wifi” is…

Korean Politicians Want to Regulate Video Games Like Drugs and Alcohol

This week, South Korean politician Shin Eui-jin announced a bill that stipulated alcohol, online games, gambling, and drugs need to be strictly regulated. The reasoning? They are a source of addiction, the legislation argues. Rep. Shin Eui-jin, a member of the conservative Saenuri Party and former medical professor, is backed by fourteen other representatives in…

Report: Nintendo Didn’t Make the Famicom Red Because It Was Cheap

Ever wonder why the Famicom (née Family Computer) was red, gold and white? It was glorious color scheme, but the story goes that cheap plastics were responsible for the console’s iconic hue. That story, says one of the console’s main designers, is wrong. In a recent interview with Weekly Playboy, former Nintendo hardware designer Masayuki…

Tengami, the Japanese papercraft inspired game, is heading to the Wii U, NintendoLife reports.

In Japan, Ice Cream Sushi Exists

That is not wasabi. You are looking at green tea ice cream…sushi. No, really. That’s vinegared sushi rice (aka “sumeshi” or 酢飯), dried seaweed (“nori” or 海苔), and ice cream. The ice cream sushi is served “gunkan maki” (軍艦巻) or “battleship roll sushi” style. This week on Twitter via Byoukan Sunday, photos of ice cream…

Did These Pokémon Anime Singers Steal Their Crazy Fashion? [Update]

Japanese pop group Momoiro Clover Z is known for its unusual outfits. Sometimes the members dress like pirates. Other times, they dress like superheroes. Their latest album features the group’s most outrageous outfits yet. And they look like rip-offs. Momoiro Clover Z, who sang the Pokémon Best Wishes! anime ending theme, just released a new…

There Are Eight Ways To Play First-Person Shooters. Apparently.

Those who play shooters on a desktop already know that there is a considerable variety for how one can position him or herself. Let’s say that there are supposedly eight basic ways, m’kay? This image originally debuted a while back in Japan, but is once again making the internet rounds. It shows eight (count ’em,…

At this weekend’s NicoNico event, the Prime Minister of Japan wasn’t the only one decked out in a fancy outfit. There were also tons of cosplayers. Here’s a short round-up. Photos are courtesy of Asagawo Blog, and in case you missed it, here’s more on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s geek visit. ネタ系レイヤー＆カッコイイレイヤー その2, その1…

Earthbound‘s Creator Responds to Request for a New Game: “Impossible”

For years, players have been begging Earthbound (aka Mother in Japan) creator Shigesato Itoi for a new game. He’s listening and has a definite answer: Not gonna happen. Recently on Twitter, a fan tweeted this to 64 year-old icon: “Mr. Itoi, please tell us a way to get you to make Mother 4.” Itoi’s response?…

Woman Gets Upset After Starbucks Writes “Vagina” Instead of “Virginia”

Whoops. A Hong Kong Starbucks made one customer unhappy after totally screwing up a first name. Imagine that! A Starbucks spelling fail? Impossible. On the Hong Kong Starbucks’ Facebook page (via HongWrong), a customer posted an image of the fail, writing: This is my sister’s cuppa [SIC] from your HKU branch. Fancy your staff not…

Documentary 100 Yen: The Japanese Arcade Experience is now available on DVD. (Full disclosure: I’m in it!) The 68-minute DVD is region-free and has subtitles in English, Japanese, French, and Spanish. More on Arcade Heroes.

Thailand’s Fake Iron Man 3 Trailer Sure Is Something Else

Iron Man 3 is a big budget Hollywood production. What do you do when you want to recreate the movie’s trailer and don’t want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars? Something like this, I guess. IRON MAN 3 Trailer – Thai sweded by FEDFE [YouTube Thanks, Yodtao!] Kotaku East is your slice of Asian…

Princess Mononoke Stage Production Surprises People Online in Japan

Last summer, the above teaser image was posted online. It announced that classic anime Princess Mononoke was coming to the London stage. Pictures of said collaboration have surfaced online in Japan, where some seem totally shocked by the final production. Studio Ghibli allowed London’s Whole Hog Theater to bring its anime to the stage. Thus,…

Rural Chinese Libraries Have Become Unofficial Internet Cafes

Over the weekend, the National Library of China released a report on the state of the country’s libraries. According to the report, the state of China’s libraries is pretty bad with many rural libraries being turned into make shift net cafes. The report, republished by various media groups, doesn’t really get into much detail about…

A Japanese restaurant chain is filing an objection with the country’s patent office over Nintendo’s trademark for the word “WaraWara”, asking for it to be cancelled, reports 47News. The long-time Japanese restaurant chain is called “Wara Wara” and is quite well known in Japan. Nintendo’s trademark is related to the WaraWara Plaza; however, the restaurant…

China’s Military English Is Deep. Like, Really Deep.

The People’s Liberation Army (AKA the Chinese military) has a guidebook of English language phrases. Most of them are pretty basic, such as “Are you a new soldier?” or “We treat POWs well”. Other phrases are so profound. Located on People’s Liberation Army Daily, the guidebook has been online forever; however, website ShanghaiIst recently stumbled…

Update: Dating Show Staple Wants to “Evaluate” DOTA Player

Update: During this week’s episode, Zhang Ning was able to walk away with Zhao. There are loads of female contestants on Chinese dating shows. Contestant Zhao Jie, however, is different. Over the course of the last two years, Zhao has turned down every man. That is, until recently when the head of a Chinese pro…

Sega’s Joypolis amusement center is rolling out Sonic Athletics. It’s a treadmill-based arcade game that allows up to eight players to race in the 100-meter dash or the 110-meter hurdles, reports Siliconera. There’s also a long jump, too, but you don’t exactly jump on the treadmill. Instead, you simply press a “jump” button.