Kotaku East

Let’s See How Resident Evil 7 Is Doing In Japan

Resident Evil games are a big deal. People love them! Especially in Japan. Let’s see how the latest release did in its first week on sale in the country. Resident Evil 7 launched on January 26, and for the week between January 23 and January 29, it came in first in the Japanese sales charts,…

Japan Has Magikarp You Can Eat

Magikarp might be a useless Pokémon, but it certainly makes for a tasty snack! In Japan, “taiyaki” is a fish-shaped cake stuffed with red bean paste or custard. Taiyaki speciality shop Kurikoan has launched totally official Magikarp taiyaki—rather, “Koiking-yaki.” (In Japanese, Magikarp is called “Koiking.”) Priced at 106 yen (US$1.81), the treat comes in little…

Overwatch Pro-Gamers In Trouble For Relationships With Female Fans [Update]

This week, reports out of South Korean have two players on esports team Lunatic Hai at the center of a scandal. According to Inven (via tipster Sang), the whole things began after a post appeared, with the writer claiming she had dated a pro-gamer and mentioned Lunatic-Hai player Lee Tae Jun when asked to name…

Without A Doubt, The Best Yakuza 6 Glitches

Not only is Yakuza a good time, but it’s glitches and bugs can be, too. And here are the best ones of all. Like any big game these days, Yakuza 6 has some glitchy parts. Such as this. Or this buggy bit when the main character went M.I.A., turning Yakuza 6 into a first-person game.…

A Final Fantasy Wine Set For Only $950

Forget about Final Fantasy VII Remake! Square Enix has something else for you: wine and crystal wine glasses. Please be excited. Tonight in Tokyo, Square Enix revealedthe “Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary Ultimate Wine Crystal Edition.” It includes a thirty year-old bottle of Chateau Meyney red wine and two Final Fantasy inscribed glasses with Swarovski. Isn’t…

Musou Stars, Tecmo Koei’s all-star Dynasty Warriors type game, was originally slated for a March 2 release in Japan. Today, the company announced it’s been delayed to March 30 to “improve quality.”

Fighting Game Characters Recreated With Micro-Sized Blocks

It’s not size that counts, but how awesome you can make tiny block sculptures. Nanoblock are much smaller than your typical blocks or bricks, with the tiniest Nanoblock measuring 4mm x 4mm. Japanese Twitter user Seibu_lina0505 has been creating Nanoblock sculptures of iconic fighting game and anime characters. Know that Nanoblock has released official Street…

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age, the HD remaster of FFXII, will be released on July 11 in North America and Europe, Square Enix announced today. The game will also be out on July 13 in Japan and elsewhere in Asia.

Teeny Tiny Splatoon Guns 

Japan is getting a set of very small collectible Splatoon guns. Cute! Packed with a piece of candy, these miniatures are 380 yen (US$3.34) each and are available at supermarkets and convenience stores across the country. According to Game Watch Impress, the first set will feature eight different weapons. Since each gun is packaged at…

Wii U Production Has Officially Ended For Japan [Update]

Last fall, Kotaku reported Wii U productionwas slated to end“soon” for Japan. And today, we can say it’s officially finished. Update January 31 – 6:30pm: Nintendo of America issued the following statement: “Wii U production has ended globally.” The announcement was made on Nintendo Japan’s website under the Wii U hardware section. (Note that these…

Kitsune. Kyoto, Japan. By Tim Shill. JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line! 

Nintendo Delays Animal Crossing Mobile

The free-to-play Animal Crossing for mobile was slated for release early this year. Today, however, Nintendo has announced that it’s been delayed to make way for Fire Emblem Heroes.  Nintendo just made this announcement via a financial statement: For smart devices, we plan to release the game application Fire Emblem Heroes on February 2. We will…

Japan Now Has Kit Kat…Sushi

This week in Tokyo, you can buy Kit Kat sushi. Dreams are real! According to Entabe and Tokyo Bargain Mania, the first street-facing Kit Kat specialty shop will open in Tokyo’s Ginza on February 2. (The other shops are located in department stores and in underground shopping areas.) To mark the event, the store will…

Namco’s Founder Has Died At Age 91

One of the individuals who built the Japanese gaming industry has passed away. In 1955, Masaya Nakamura established Nakamura Manufacturing, a amusement-ride company that turned into Nakamura Amusement Machine Manufacturing Company or “Namco.” The company later merged with Bandai in 2005. During the decades following World War II, the rooftops of Japanese department stores were…

The Nier: Automata PS4 Looks Kinda Nuts

In Japan, Sony is rolling out special PlayStation 4 hardware to mark Nier: Automata’s release.  Sony has both a 500GB HDD and 1TB HDD version of the “Emil Edition” PS4, each coming with themed hardware covers and downloadable wallpaper. The 500GB version is 33,480 (US$292), while the 1TB is 38,480 yen ($335). Neither is bundled…

Some Persona 5 Fans Are Annoying Local Tokyo Residents

Persona 5 takes place in a fictionalized version of a real Tokyo location. Atlus is now asking fans to stop bothering the folks who live there. As Kotaku previously reported, the inspiration for in-game location Yongenjaya is Tokyo’s Sangenjaya. Many of its real-world spots were reborn in the game, including as P5‘s coin laundry, batting…

Resident Evil And Ace Attorney Themed Booze From Japan

Like sake? Wine? How about Capcom games? Then, Kyoto-based drinks maker Shiraito Shuzo has some beverages for you. As Famitsu points out, Shiraito Shuzo, which has been brewing sake since 1773, is releasing Resident Evil branded sake as well as a RE carved wooden sake box, known as a “masu.” The collaboration is to mark…

Final Fantasy XIV Inspires Live-Action TV Drama In Japan

It’s called Final Fantasy XIV: Daddy Of Light and is apparently the first time that FF has been the basis of a live-action TV show. According to Model Press, the show is about the bond that develops between a son and a father while playing the popular MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV It’s inspired by a Japanese…

Today in Japan, the first location test for arcade game Attack on Titan: Team Battle kicked off in Tokyo. Previously, Kotaku showed off the game’s earlier controller, but now we get a close up look at the latest versions via Famitsu. They’re nice! 

First Look At Nintendo Switch Game Cases In The Wild

This might just be a plastic box, but hey, I think game cases are interesting. Perhaps you do, too. Via Twitter user Gaijinhunter, here is our first look at the Japanese retail container for Switch games. They do look like PSP game boxes! Let’s see how they compare. Have a look at more cases below:…