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Kotaku EastCould This Gun Stop Online Trolls?
One of the best things about playing online is playing with others. One of the worst things? Playing with others. Some people are total dicks! Wouldn’t you love to shut them up? As previously reported on sister site Gizmodo, the SpeechJammer is a gun that “jams” people’s speech, by firing their words right back at…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 5, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Hooters Girls in Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid, never one to shy away from a collaboration, is bringing Hooters girls to upcoming its 3DS game, Snake Eater 3D A Hooters girl magazine appears as an in-game item. (Nintendo’s Yoshi also pops up in the game.) Today in Tokyo, Konami held a shindig at Hooters to promote the game with orange…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 5, 2012 -
Kotaku East
The Olympics, the Sex Worker Rumor, and Japanese Nerdom
In 2006, siblings Domu Narita (above, in pink) and his sister Mero pulled out a rare feat: both competed in the Olympics in the same sport. Domu, with his ponytail, and Mero, with her pink hair, might have appeared like your typical snowboarders, but not like the more conservative-looking Japanese athletes representing their country. They…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 5, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Japan’s Doll Festival with Little Kids
Tomorrow is the Hinamatsuri, or Japanese Doll Festival. During the festival, dolls are displayed on stands against gold leaf backgrounds. This evening while I was working (and making things for you to read), Mrs. Bashcraft and my two kids went to a friends to celebrate it. The holiday is for girls—and a good excuse for…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku EastLet Gundam Rock Your Face Off
The Gundam VS series has been headlining Japanese arcades for almost a decade now with its fast-paced Virtual-On-style robot-on-robot gameplay. The upcoming Mobile Suit Gundam VS Full Boost is the latest iteration in the series. It sports a roster of over 50 mobile suits, with at least one suit from every single Gundam series—it even…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Let’s Look Inside a Chinese Factory. A Chinese Condom Factory.
The world has heard about the conditions in the Chinese factories where gaming hardware is made. But what about the factories where, um, condoms are made? They look like this, apparently! Website Buzzfeed is running a series of Reuters images of the Safedom condom factory in Zhaoyuan, China. Safedom is the fourth largest condom marker…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Cosplay Isn’t Just About Costumes. It’s about Shoes.
It’s easy to forget, but shoes can make or break an outfit—especially a cosplay. Good shoes, whether you’re dressing as a soldier or Sonic the Hedgehog, matter. That was evident at the recent Comic World in Busan, South Korea, where some fancy footwear was on display. Comic World is a huge fan-based comic convention held…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
The Most Frightening Lunch Ever
Most Japanese bento lunches are either cute (for little kids) or boring (for adults). This one is…different. Online in Japan, some are saying it’s based on Detroit Metal City, the popular Japanese manga about heavy metal. However, as Kotaku reader lone_wolf99 pointed out, it’s based on The Evil Dead Lunch has never looked so horrifying.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku EastGal☆Gun in Three Words: Tentacle. Monster. Orgasm.
At TGS 2010, just inside the media entrance, there sat a van owned by Inti Creates (a game studio formed by ex-Capcom staff). As I came upon it my first day, I saw Kotaku‘s own Brian Ashcraft standing beside a crowd of Japanese photographers who were fighting for position in front of the van. I…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Spider-Man, Like You’ve Never Eaten Before
Remember when Japan got meat buns shaped like the Slime character from Dragon Quest? Well, now your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is getting his own bun, too. Ditto for Hello Kitty. There will be Snoopy buns with custard in them, instead of meat. Starting March 14, they’ll be available at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka for…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
The Hardcore World of Japanese Tattoos Will Make You Stronger
“I used to be into video games during the PS2 era,” Benny Her says, as he buys a green tea espresso at convenience store in Osaka’s fashionable youth district, Americamura. “But then I started apprenticing and didn’t have any free time.” That apprenticeship was a huge gamble. And Benny Her didn’t look like a gambler.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku EastMetal Gear …Arcade!? It Can’t be!
While Metal Gear Online‘s servers will be shutting down soon, there is one last place to get your Metal Gear Online fix: Japanese Arcades. Developed by Kojima Productions, Metal Gear Arcade is a light gun-FPS released in Japan on December 20, 2010. Much of Metal Gear Arcade is identical to Metal Gear Online with many…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 2, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Let Taiwan Show You What It’s Got
Taiwanese cosplay photographer Znmoon has a fantastic website filled with wall-to-wall cosplay pics. There’s months and months of content to be had here, with photos from a variety of anime, manga, and game events. Lovely pics, lovely costumes. 2號流動攤販 [znmoon 的相簿]
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 1, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Lions and Tigers and Animal Copulating, Oh My!
After nearly 9 months, game developer Crispy’s has broken their silence and announced new information, including the release date, of Tokyo Jungle. Originally announced at the 2010 Tokyo Game Show, Tokyo Jungle garnered interest for its depiction of a post-apocalyptic human-less Tokyo city overrun by forest and a multitude of animals. The game is an…
By Toshi Nakamura Published March 1, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Is Dragon’s Dogma Capcom’s Answer To Skyrim?
On Feb. 26th, at the Xbox 360 event in Akihabara, I got a chance to take a look at Dragon’s Dogma, Capcom’s upcoming game for the Xbox 360 and Playsation 3. When news first broke of the game, I had assumed it was just a fantasy-based Resident Evil or Devil May Cry, but after a…
By Toshi Nakamura Published March 1, 2012 -
Kotaku East
This Was Lunch
No, you are not reading Hideo Kojima’s Twitter (though, I think it’s silly that guy gets heat for posting pics of his food—he should be able to post whatever he wants!) Today I had lunch at my desk. The morning was spent doing an interview for a very cool story I’ll be running tomorrow. It…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 1, 2012 -
Kotaku East
The Weekend Xbox Japan Conquered Akihabara
On a chilly afternoon this past weekend, well over 100 people waited in line in Akihabara to see Microsoft’s “Xbox 360 Kansyasai in Akiba” (Xbox 360 Festival of Thanks in Akihabara). The event was a joint effort between Microsoft and Capcom, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Japanese release of the original Xbox (February…
By Toshi Nakamura Published March 1, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Meet The Chinese Guy Who Ripped Off Conan O’Brien
This is Da Peng. He is a Chinese variety show host, and he recently made his American television debut—for ripping off Conan O’Brien. On a recent episode, Conan O’Brien showed how Da Peng’s program, Da Pang Debade, totally copied Conan‘s opening animation. O’Brien then copied some of the silly antics of the Chinese show in…
Brian Ashcraft & Eric Jou Published March 1, 2012