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Kotaku East
Man Bought Fake iPhone. Man Got Angry. Man Killed Two People.
In China, fake electronics are everywhere. The whole place is packed with them. But increasingly, folks in China don’t want to own fakes. They want to own the real deal. Chinese news is reporting that a man in Henan Province desperately wanted an iPhone; he found what he thought was a real one at a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2012 -
Kotaku East
What Japanese Game Companies Have Done for Japan Since the Quake
March 11th this year will mark the one-year anniversary of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake. Since that time, a great deal of time effort and money has been offered for the rebuilding of the North-Eastern area of Japan from all parts of the world. Including the gaming world. Weekly Famitsu has gathered reports from numerous major…
By Toshi Nakamura Published March 8, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Game Console Destruction Led to Insane Car Chase
“A man destroyed a game console and escaped by car,” the caller told cops. What started as a routine police call turned into much more, with the suspect evading thirty patrol cars. All over a broken game machine! Thirty-five year old Yoshihiro Kubota, who works as a car salesman, apparently took off after smashing a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Lupin the Third Is Ready to Steal Your Television
Anime Lupin the Third, one of the greatest things ever, is returning to television with a new series. It’s the first new Lupin anime series on TV in 27 years. Dubbed Lupin the Third: A Woman Called Fujiko Mine, the anime follows the exploits of Fujiko Mine, the anime’s iconic female character. This new episodes…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2012 -
Kotaku East
How Drugs Could Kill the Japanese Internet
There are Japanese websites. There are Japanese blogs. But at the heart of the country’s internet and internet culture, one destination stands alone: 2channel. In Japan, the vast majority of game related culture and news first appears on 2channel, the country’s largest bulletin board, and then disseminates to other Japanese sites and blogs. And it’s…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Online Gaming Officially Makes You an Internet Addict in Korea
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (MOGEF) in South Korea released the results of last year’s survey aimed at studying the causes of internet addiction. The Ministry conducted the study from October to December 2011, which was just around the time when Korean news began to report on school violence. The possible link between…
By Chi Lee Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Is This Anime Outfit Fashionable? Or Just Freaky?
The photo was snapped in Tokyo’s hipster neighborhood Harajuku. I haven’t seen anyone dressed like this in Japan (and most people online in Japan also seemed surprised). The photo is making the internet rounds with some people saying this get-up looks cool. The guy might even be wearing a hug pillow! The look is interesting,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Just Look at All These Metal Gear Shirts
To mark the 25 anniversary of Metal Gear, Konami is teaming up with Uniqlo for a line of Metal Gear t-shirts. They’ll go on sale Apr. 16 at Uniqlo stores across Japan. This isn’t a first for Metal Gear. During MGS4‘s release, there was a line of Uniqlo shirts. Have a look at some of…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Sony Ramping Up PlayStation Suite
PlayStation Suite is Sony’s concept that “certified” PlayStation games will be available on Sony’s mobile devices. Today, Sony revealed that it “will offer a more streamlined content development environment for content developers—from large game development companies to small, independent shops.” A closed beta launched last fall, and the upcoming open beta will incorporate feedback to…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Cosplaying as a Curvy One Piece Character Ain’t Easy!
Japanese pop singer and AKB48 member Miku Tanabe loves cosplay. Some characters are a snap to dress up as. Others are not. “I love doing it,” blogged Tanabe, “but cosplaying large-chested characters is so tough!” Tanabe is dressed as notoriously curvy One Piece character, Boa Hancock. One cosplayer had better luck. Last fall, a Macau-born…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Colonel Sanders Sure Looks Like Hell
In Japan, Colonel Sanders is an iconic part of pop culture. There are Kentucky Fried Chickens across the country. In front of each shop, there’s a glasses-wearing Colonel Sanders statue. And boy, can they ever look scary. Don’t believe me? Above is the Colonel from the Akihabara KFC. When it recently snowed in the geek…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
This New Japanese RPG Has Soul
Rather, make that, “Sol”. Dubbed Sol Trigger, this Japanese role-playing game is Imageepoch’s upcoming title. It features character design from Shuji Sogabe of Persona 4 (the comic) and God Eater fame and a game scenario from Kazushige Nojima, who wrote Final Fantasy VII and Kingdom Hearts. Big names! Sol Trigger is slated for the PSP…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku EastAll You Need to Punch a Stranger is a $9,000 Watch
An old man in the subway car near the seats reserved for the elderly, the handicapped, and pregnant women, grips the rack above with one hand; next to him is an older hiker, weighed down by heavy gear on his back, who carries his jacket, a second bag, and his age like a shield in…
By Chi Lee Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Ladies Come for the Comics, Stay for the Pornography
Men aren’t the only ones reading adult comics and watching adult videos. (Shocking, I know!) In Japan, there are mature manga and porno flicks for females. Yet, women might feel reluctant to walk into their local convenience store and flip through dirty mags or rent X-rated DVDs at the video store. Good thing there are…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku EastThese Foreigners Want To Marry 7-Eleven
Now they don’t want to really marry 7-Eleven, but they’re more than happy to sing about going there—and wanting to marry it. Made by a bunch of foreign exchange students, the song is called “Konbini Ikou” (“Let’s Go to the Convenience Store”). In Japan, the vid went viral, racking up well over 100,000 YouTube views.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
When You Say Japanese Games “Just Suck”
Remember a decade ago? Heck, remember six or seven years ago? I do. I remember telling Japanese gamers that Western games were great and seeing the wry smiles. I remember hearing that the Xbox didn’t have any games on it Japanese people wanted to play—a polite way of saying Western games stink. How things have…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Conquering the World with Flying Penguins
Based in Seoul, Korea and Los Angeles, California, Gamevil describes itself as a world class leader in mobile game publishing. While “world class leader” is sometimes the language of arrogance or deceit, Gamevil was able to show the rest of the Korean mobile market this month that it can back its claims with numbers. That…
By Chi Lee Published March 7, 2012 -
Kotaku EastPirates, Plunder, and One Piece Gaming Booty
Hack-and-slash Dynasty Warriors is infamous for evolving very little—if at all—with each new iteration in the series. The biggest changes seen so far have been to either the cast or the setting. What was at first only about ancient Chinese warriors, now covers everything from Samurai to Gundams—not to mention badass manga Fist of the…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 6, 2012