- Kotaku East
Toyota Just Turned the Nintendo DS into a Navigational System
If Japan uses the Nintendo DS in schools, then why not in cars? Toyota’s newest Smart Navi car navigational system enables drivers to turn the Nintendo DS into a navi remote control. No, no, no not drivers. Passengers. The system is called Kuruma de DS (loosely, “Use the DS in the Car”). It allows passengers…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 -
Kotaku EastWhen Plastic Surgery Goes Bad and Destroys You
You see them on TV on variety shows and in commercials. They look utterly perfect. But are they? Japanese manga Helter Skelter explores these issues. It follows Japanese superstar Ririko, whose seemingly flawless appearance is the result of extensive plastic surgery that requires constant care and attention. After the beauty clinic she frequents comes under…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
That Capcom/Namco/Sega Game Is Getting Crowded with Characters
Project X Zone is an upcoming 3DS collaboration between Capcom, Namco Bandai, and Sega. The game features characters from all three! So far, we’ve seen a whole host of characters from various Sega, Namco, and Capcom games. But wait, there are more. The latest issue of Japanese game magazine Famitsu reveals new characters going the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
The World Likes Japan and China Better than America. Apparently!
It’s a popularity contest. A global one. The BBC had a total of 24,090 citizens from 22 countries polled about which countries they thought were “mostly positive” or “mostly negative”. Here’s the top five: 5. China 4. UK 3. Canada 2. Germany 1. Japan The United States was number eight, being edged out by France…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
First Look at the Upcoming Lost Planet Spin Off
Newly announced action shooter E.X. Troopers might not be familiar yet, but its setting should be. The Capcom game shares the same world as sci-fi game Lost Planet. However, Ex Troopers looks very different. The game has an anime look (see above) and is set against a military academy. While it looks vastly different from…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
When Diablo III Doesn’t Speak Your Language
You will get online. It will happen. All these launch Diablo III troubles will vanish. But when they do, there could still be a group of players who are screwed. Diablo III, you see, does not speak their language. Meet Error 84. Blizzard decided not to allow players the ability to change their language and…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
Waldo Photobombs these Bikini Ladies
Always be prepared. Always. In Japan, this Western Waldo cosplayer certainly was, and he can prove it. While this photo series isn’t brand new, it still is very much a meme in Japan, doing the internet rounds. 名無しにかわりましてVIPがお送りします [キニ速]
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
Lining Up To Buy a Game for Those You Love
People line up to buy video games for various reasons. Maybe they actually want the game. Maybe they want to sell the game. And maybe they’re just being nice to the ones they love. The boxed limited edition of Diablo III was reportedly hard to come by in South Korea, but website ThisIsGame went out…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
Famed Shoot’em Up Studio Just Unloaded Two PS Vita Titles
Cave, the studio behind several classic shoot’em up games, just apparently stopped development on two games: one was social game Shirotsuku and the other was an untitled shooter. [ゲーム情報！ゲームのはなし]
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
Online Dating Leads to Jealous Boyfriend and Computer Wire Horror
Be careful who you meet online. On May 8 in China’s Henan province, Gao Xin (not his real name) found out the hard way after going out with a woman he met on the internet. Later, the woman’s pissed off boyfriend approached Gao. The boyfriend, along with several friends, attacked him and inserted a 1.2-meter…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Kotaku East
Butter Your Bread with Pokémon and Hello Kitty
Toast isn’t just something you eat at breakfast. Oh no. It’s also a canvas for cute character art. Why just spread jam on your bread, when you can cover it in Pikachu? The trend first started to pick up steam in 2008, but existed before that. New Zealand artist Maurice Bennet was exhibiting toast art…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 -
UncategorizedThe “Best” of the Worst Diablo III Anger
The rigamarole is always the same: Big game is released, problems ensue. But for Diablo III, the launch was bigger—twelve years in the making. And the problems? They seem bigger, too. And when that happens, people get angry As previously detailed, Diablo III’s “always-online” feature was problematic to say the least, and players have been…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
A History of Gender in…LEGO Minifigs
There was a bit of an uproar earlier in the year when LEGO introduced a line of modified products targeted exclusively at girls. To provide a little context for that uproar, social media marketer and LEGO fanatic David Pickett has written a great feature breaking down the history, and statistics, of just how many LEGO…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
Journey, Now Available for Cats
While this is on one hand the very worst the internet is capable of conjuring, namely putting human clothes on cats, I don’t care. This is Journey cosplay. For cats. Since the guys in Journey aren’t really humans – humans have arms! – that’s how I’m convincing myself this is OK. No idea how they…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
Don’t Travel Through Hell, Play With Jesus Instead
Looking mildly like Zynga’s first foray into religious Facebook scamming, Journey of Jesus is Lightside Games’ attempt to get us all putting down our other social games and start playing one where we can learn about Jesus instead. As a game, it’s horrific. It turns an educational yarn about the Bible into a grinding Facebook…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
You’ll Never Guess What This Incredible Iron Man Suit is Made From
May is International Iron Man Cosplay Appreciation Month. Which means we get to see suits that actually light up and move, sure, but also things of a slightly quainter nature. Like this suit. Made by Englishman Mark Pearson, it looks like it fell straight out of a movie, but is actually made of cardboard Pearson…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
The Amazing, Official Art of Diablo III
To celebrate the release of what will probably be the biggest PC game of the year (sorry Crusader Kings II, I still love you), here’s a big collection of concept and promotional art from Diablo III You’ll find character art, environment art, images that appeared on things like magazine covers, and even some amazing class…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 16, 2012 - Uncategorized
Right Now, a Final Fantasy VII Remake Isn’t The Most Important Thing
Not for Square Enix. Final Fantasy VII character designer and current Square Enix bigwig Tetsuya Nomura spoke with Japanese game magazine Famitsu about the much desired FFVII In the interview, Nomura stated that the Final Fantasy must surmount the old FF games. Nomura acknowledged that there was considerable fan interest in a Final Fantasy VII…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 16, 2012