• Kotaku East

  Spurned Singer Arrested for Computer Crime

  The Japanese entertainment industry is crawling with young women who hope to become the next geek idol. With her anime songs and maid outfits, Mako Okita might seem like any other hopeful, but she stands out. How many idols can say they’ve been arrested for cyber crime? Late last week, Okita was arrested by Japanese…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Uncategorized

  The Decline of the Chinese Gaming Industry. One Dude’s Opinion.

  China’s game industry to many, is nothing more than copy and pasting Western and Japanese games. China knows it, the world knows it. A Taiwanese game developer named “Marco” came out and talked about the possible death of the Chinese gaming industry. The following are excerpt explains Marco’s change from Taiwan to the Mainland, and…

  By Eric Jou Published April 16, 2012
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  Kotaku East

  Square Enix’s Dual-Wielding Game Shooting Up a Japanese Arcade

  Gunslinger Stratos is an upcoming third-person shooter for Japanese arcades. The Square Enix title features four-on-four online combat that allows players to face off against others across Japan. It is also dual wielding. Players can take their pistols and conjoin them to form new weapons. Check out gameplay in the above video. More details in…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Can China’s Monster Hunter Clone Slay…Monster Hunter?

  China’s Monster Hunter styled MMO, Hunter Blade, looks, plays, and feels exactly like Monster Hunter—well, almost. Despite adding some much needed gameplay elements to MH, Hunter Blade is a flawed monster hack and slash. Developed by Joy China, Hunter Blade, takes all the elements of MH and turns it into an MMO. Joy China didn’t…

  By Eric Jou Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Stop Creeps From Looking Down Your Shirt Forever

  This is the “Breast Line Cover”, and it’s here to block unwanted leering. Priced at ¥1,050 ($13) and available in six colors, the Breast Line Cover is for those women who want wear stylish clothing, but want to avoid embarrassing “accidental glimpses of cleavage”. The Breast Line Cover resembles a camisole, but simply affixes itself…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Japanese Nintendo 3DS Pitchman Shows His Toilet Gaming

  Kazunari Ninomiya, best known in the West for Letters from Iwo Jima, is a member of Japanese boy band Arashi. Ninomiya’s also a Nintendo spokesperson. And a toilet gamer. Lots of people game on the throne! (Heck, game designer Goichi Suda thinks up video games on the toilet.) Recently on Japanese television, Ninomiya admitted that…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  The World’s Strongest, Thickest, and Most WTF iPhone Case

  When you are shopping for iPhone cases, you probably want something durable, something strong. You probably do not want something that weighs over 4.5 pounds and could be used as a murder weapon in Clue Dubbed the “One-Inch Armored Case”, the case can possibly stop a 50-calibre bullet. Priced at ¥52,500 (US$648), the case comes…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Rumors of an iPad Mini Swirl in China

  The Chinese rumor mill has hit full blast today claiming to have details about the imminent release of an iPad mini. Chinese net portal, NetEase, has a story on a rumored new mini Apple tablet. NetEase claimed that the device will be released around the third quarter of this year to “counter attack” the upcoming…

  By Eric Jou Published April 16, 2012
• Uncategorized

  EA Says “There Are no Lay-Offs as Such”

  Responding to an earlier report on website Startup Grind, which claimed between 500-1000 employees would be laid off soon, EA has said “There are no lay-offs as such, we always have projects growing and morphing”. More at the update in the original story

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Transgender Ninja Aerobics Does Not Require Fishnets or Thongs

  In ninjutsu, the concept of “shinobi” (“stealth”) is key. So what happens when you mix it with aerobics? Fishnets and a thong, apparently. Sneaky! Exercise guru and former cabaret dancer Hibari Igano, the self-styled “World’s Toughest Transsexual” of Ninja Warrior fame, was a member of a ninja breakdancing team during the 1990s. Once again, she’s…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Even in Plastic, That’s a Big Sword

  This summer, Alisa from Namco’s monster hunting game God Eater Burst is getting her own figurine. It’s not very subtle! And at ¥8,190 (US$101), the 1/7 scale figure is not exactly cheap, either. God Eater is one of the PSP’s most successful titles in Japan. The series is similar to Monster Hunter, but does offer…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
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  Kotaku East

  How Does Nintendo Sound in Korean? Like This.

  Later this month, Nintendo is releasing the Nintendo 3DS in South Korea. To mark the event, Nintendo’s South Korean branch held an online Nintendo Direct press conference. The head of Nintendo Korea, Hiroyuki Fukuda, and Nintendo Co., Ltd.’s President Satoru Iwata both put in appearances. Instead of giving their speeches in Japanese with Korean subtitles,…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Japan’s Black Widow Killer Met Men Online. Then She Killed Them.

  On the morning of August 5, 2009, Yoshiyuki Oide logged onto his blog. He posted some photos of a model tank he was working on as well as some cookies he recently got in Tokyo’s geek district, Akihabara. “To tell the truth, I’m getting married, and today, I’m going to meet her family,” Oide blogged.…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Kotaku East Starts Now!

  Kotaku East runs from 4am to 8am Eastern. For more info about Kotaku East click here

  By Brian Ashcraft Published April 16, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  It’s People Like This That Make me not Want to Play Battlefield 3 Any More

  I mean, what’s the point? I hide in tanks to stay away from guys like this, but the more they level up, the more tools they get to pry me out and do terrible things to my corpse. Seriously, if you play Battlefield 3 – or even can appreciate a skilled player of first-person shooters…

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Team Fortress 2 Meets One of the Greatest Films of all Time

  Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator, a masterpiece of both comedy and propaganda, is rightly regarded as one of the most important motion pictures ever made. Meaning it’s well worth watching in its own right. If you’re put off by all that black and white, though, maybe ease yourself in with some Team Fortress 2 machinima?…

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
• Reviews

  This is a Real Man’s PlayStation Vita Case

  If you had to describe most video game carrying accessories in one word, it would probably be something like minimal. Boring. Tacky. Cheap. Puffy. And it would usually look like something you’d buy for $10 that looks like it cost $0.50 to make. Which is why I like Waterfield’s new PlayStation Vita case so much.…

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
• Uncategorized

  Report: EA About to Lay Off 500-1000 People [Update]

  According to a report on Startup Grind, a site that normally deals with tech companies and their founders, publisher Electronic Arts will very soon lay off as many as 1000 employees. Originally planned to take place last week, the lay offs have reportedly been slightly postponed, though may now take place ” as soon as…

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
• Uncategorized

  Sub Zero Seeks Revenge for The Matrix: Revolutions

  Sub Zero, in whose head it’s always 2003, plugs into the Matrix just to kick Neo’s ass. I don’t know about you, but it took me at least ten minutes before I could pull my head away from this. [via The Best Fun Site]

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012
• Uncategorized

  Iron Man vs Mass Effect vs Everybody Else

  With our little trip around the world in pursuit of the best individual purveyors of the art of cosplay now at an end, this weekly feature returns to business as usual. Namely, highlighting the best damn cosplay photos of the last seven days. OK, so that’s a slight stretch in this case, as we’ve got…

  By Luke Plunkett Published April 16, 2012