- Kotaku East
These Pokémon Cards Are Slightly Different. Can You Tell?
One card is Japanese. One is English-language. But that’s not it. And sure, the Pocket Monster is “Grimer” in the West and “Betobetaa” (ベトベター) in Japan and the HP order and font were changed. Those aren’t it, either. Those are big differences. There’s a slight difference between these two Pokémon cards. Can you spot it?…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
This Kiki’s Delivery Service Cosplay Delivers a Big Bow and a Little Black Cat
Big red bow? Check. Simple dress? Check? Jiji, the cat? Check. All that’s missing is a broomstick and a little Yumi Matsutoya Somewhere between the skimpy midriffs and hot pants at a recent Japanese cosplay event, there was this lovely Kiki from the Ghibli classic Kiki’s Delivery Service. That’s cosplayer Kuroneko as Kiki. Click on…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 -
Kotaku EastGiant Video Game Monsters Invade Universal Studios Japan
Most of the West might not give two farts about Monster Hunter, but Japan adores it. Capcom’s monster hunting series is appearing at Osaka’s Universal Studios Japan this summer in giant statue form as part of “Monster Hunter Real 2012”. By “real”, I’m assuming they mean “herky-jerky”? Last year, Universal Studios Japan held “Monster Hunter…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
The PS Vita Still Struggles After Six Months, But The Solution Is Obvious
The Playstation Vita hit stores in Japan on December 17th, 2011. Since then, sales performances for the powerful little handheld have been… “Not meeting expectations” would be a mild way of stating it. This week, Weekly Famitsu covered the past 6 months of the Vita’s fight in the game market. As of July 7th, the…
By Toshi Nakamura Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
No, This Isn’t a Star Wars Set. It’s a Japanese Game Studio.
The vast, vast majority of Japanese game studios are bland, boring office affairs. Even the entryway for Nintendo’s Kyoto headquarters is nothing to write home about. This, however, is. So start writing. Level-5, the folks behind those Professor Layton games, have a truly spectacular corporate digs. Internal design and architect company Noa did Level-5’s HQ…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
After Nine Months, The Latest News On Level-5’s Fantasy Life… Is A City
After being unveiled at the Level-5 World 2011 last year, news about Level-5’s new open world RPG, Fantasy Life, remained mostly silent. Now, with a release of “2012” and only about 5 months of the year left, new information is slowly trickling out. Set in the world of “Fantazeel,” Fantasy Life is an open world…
By Toshi Nakamura Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
Ninety-Nine Nights Online Is No More as of This Fall
Q Entertainment’s MMORPG Ninety-Nine Nights Online, the MMORPG version of Ninety-Nine Nights, is shutting off the lights on September 27 and going offline. Goodnight, N3 Online! [Game Watch Impress]
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
Official Kirby Playing Cards Shuffle Out This Summer
Longtime card maker turned video game company Nintendo is readying two sets of Kirby playing cards. Starting this August, a blue set (above) and a green set (same, but green) will go on sale in Japan for ¥1,050 (US$13) each. 星のカービィトランプ [任天堂]
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
Classic Anime Princess Mononoke Is Being Turned into a Stage Play
Studio Ghibli revealed that Princess Mononoke is coming to the London stage. Theater company Whole Hog Theatre will be doing a production of the 1997 anime next April at London’s New Diorama Theatre. The stage version is a collaboration between Studio Ghibli and Whole Hog Theatre, and it has been in development for over the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 - Kotaku East
It’s Not Really Cosplay if You’re Naked
Yesterday at an anime festival in Shenzhen, China, a cosplayer showed up dressed as a female spirit. Dressed? Did I say dressed? Silly me. The cosplayer showed up as the Chinese apparition Nu Gui, but the crowd that gathered was very real. Dressed only in a flesh colored skivvies and wearing nipple covers, the cosplayer…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 19, 2012 -
UncategorizedThe Smart Way to do a PS2 HD Remake is With Japanese Gangsters Punching Faces
Badass Japanese soap opera (and occasionally sublime brawler) Yakuza’s first two games are getting HD re-releases on the PS3. This trailer gives us our first look at the updated editions in action. While many “HD” ports are disappointing, that shouldn’t be a problem for the Yakuza games. After all, outside of cutscenes many parts of…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Uncategorized
Link, You Look Awfully Cool Considering You’re About to Fight a SPIDER THAT LOOKS LIKE A SKULL
One of the Zelda series’ most dangerous (and creepy) enemies, the skulltula, is the star of this great piece of art by Asashi-Kami. Bonus: if you like it so much you’d like to wear it on your chest, you can Skulltula [DeviantArt]
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Uncategorized
When Optimus Prime Meets Warhammer, My Jaw Drops
What do you get when you cross Optimus Prime with Warhammer 40K’s Orks? A joke with a terrible punchline, I’d wager, but also this amazing custom piece by Singaporean madscuzzy. While it may just look like a slightly modified version of an existing Transformers toy, it’s actually the result of a ton of work on…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 -
UncategorizedPeter Molydeux’s New “Game” is a Giant, Hype-tastic Tease
Curiosity is the name of the first title legendary designer Peter Molyneux has worked on since leaving Lionhead. This is not a trailer for that game. Well, it is, kind of. It’s brilliant satirist Peter Molydeux’s trailer for Curiosity, which takes Molyneux’s penchant for hype and blows it quite literally out into space.
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Uncategorized
At Dawn, Look to the East for This Incredible Lord of the Rings LEGO Diorama
While there’s official Lord of the Rings (and The Hobbit!) LEGO sets, to keep them affordable and able to fit on a store shelf they’re kept small and fairly basic. So the official Helm’s Deep set looks nothing like this monstrosity Built as a promo centrepiece for a store in Oslo, Norway, Daniel Z’s massive…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Uncategorized
What The Big Daddy of the Future Could Look Like
BioShock’s Big Daddy enforcers look great, but they’re stuck in the past. All that rust and brass, it’s so 20th century! What they need is a makeoever, bring them up to 21st century standards. Artist Sean Bigham tackled the issue a few years back, and the results are surprisingly tasteful. I especially like the little…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Culture
Drown Your Eyeballs in Rayman: Origins’ Gorgeous Concept Art
That’s it. No mahine guns today. No more giant robots, no post-apocalyptic landscapes, no bloodthirsty aliens. Today, we’re looking at video game concept art that’s so damn bright and cheerful it’ll put more peps in your step than you’ll know what to do with. It’s all the work of Floriane Marchix, who is currently at…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 - Uncategorized
More Disturbingly Life-Like Dark Knight Rises Toys
Following up creepy Christian Bale and tiny Gary Oldman, Hong Kong collectible company Hot Toys will also be releasing incredibly realistic Dark Knight Rises replicas of villain Bane and Batman’s old Tumbler. If you were hoping they’d be available in time to take with you to theatres, though, you’ll be disappointed. Bane ($195) won’t be…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012 -
UncategorizedSkyrim and Minecraft Collide to Form the Ultimate PC Game
Many Skyrim mods are there to enhance the game in a realistic manner. Better maps, easier menus, improved visuals, etc. This one doesn’t do any of those things. It just turns the game into the most Nordic game of Minecraft you’ve ever seen. Sure, all it really does is add some turn characters in Skyrim…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2012