• Kotaku East

  Xbox Booth Babes Bundled Up with Scarfs and Sweaters

  Say what you want about Xbox Japan—how it struggles and has a rough time—but one thing it does better than any other Japanese operation is dress its event companions. It’s not that Xbox event companions wear super revealing outfits, but rather, that they wear sensible outfits they feel comfortable in. That, as Xbox Japan told…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  The Three Biggest Gaming Companies You’ve Never Heard Of!

  The Big Three, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft are names that almost every gamer recognizes. However, in China there are three companies that are just as big as those, and you probably have never heard of them before. Tencent, NetEase, and Shanda, three major Chinese companies that are expanding their reach beyond China. Combined, they capture…

  By Eric Jou Published February 27, 2012
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  Kotaku East

  Unboxing Nerdy Stuff. In the Bathtub.

  In my day, I’ve seen loads of unboxing videos—you know, those clips in which people remove products from, well, their boxes. I thought the strangest one I’d ever see depicted shirtless fat men unboxing Skyrim. I was wrong. This is YouTube user Nervli (aka Melonpan). He unboxes otaku stuff in this bathtub. However, I worry…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Sine Mora Shoots Up a Release Date

  Digital Reality and Grasshopper Manufacture’s shooter Sine Mora will released on Xbox Live Arcade March 21 for 1200 Microsoft Points, Grasshopper revealed today.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  An Elevator TO SPACE

  If you thought you were going to have to wait until 2307 for Gundam 00 style space elevators, good news! You might only have to wait until 2050. That is, if a Tokyo-based company gets its way. Obayashi Corp. hopes to construct an operational elevator, able to whisk passengers 36,000km above Earth. According to the…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  How One Photographer Conquered Chinese Cosplay

  A few weeks ago Kotaku showed you some cosplay photos from photographer Mengjie Luan. Meng, a 29 year-old web editor, has been snapping off pictures of Chinese cosplayers over the last 5 years. Meng sat down with me last week to show off some of his photos and to talk about the Chinese cosplay community.…

  By Eric Jou Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Mass Effect Explained with Cute Schoolgirls

  As far as space operas go, Mass Effect‘s storyline isn’t *that* hard to follow. But if you are a latecomer to the series, you might need a primer. So what better way than with Asari schoolgirls wearing sailor uniforms? Japan’s Dengeki Online is serializing the manga, which is titled “Teach me! Professor Mordin!”. Drawn by…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Unusual Anime Promises Unusual PSP Game

  Bakemonogatari, the famous anime series based on novels by Nishio Ishin, will have its own PSP game, Bakemonogatari Portable, released in Japan this August. There’s a limited edition version with its own PSP case, a DVD and CD with bonus content, and a special booklet with gaming info. Aiming to keep the anime series’ unique…

  By Toshitaka Tachibana Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Fake iPhone Gas Stoves Seized in China

  Apple makes a lot of different things, such as laptops, displays, and phones. It does not make gas stoves—regardless if the Apple logo and iPhone brand seem to indicate otherwise. I know better, you know better, and the Chinese government knows better. On Feb. 23 in Wuhan, authorities raided a warehouse with stacks of green…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Kotaku East Starts Now

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

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Brazilians Shake Their Asses to Mario

  Brazil’s Carnival parades are some of the biggest, and certainly the danciest shindigs on Earth. Especially when they draft the Mushroom Kingdom in to help out. Reader Marcelo sends us these clips taken over the weekend in the Rio suburb of Santa Teresa, as a Mario-themed posse shakes their way down the streets. I’ve seen…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 27, 2012
• Uncategorized

  The Very Best In Cosplay: Beethy

  Our running focus on the very best in cosplay is not, as some may have noticed, just looking at models/costume builders. We’ve also been looking at the people behind the camera, like LJinto and Eric Ng Or, in today’s case, Australian photographer Benjamin “Beethy” Koelewijn. Beethy has most recently been taking snaps of the new,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 27, 2012
• Uncategorized

  The Dog from the Oscars Also Works for Nintendo

  This month is Responsible Pet Owners Month. And to mark it, Nintendo hired Uggie, the Jack Russell terrier from The Artist, as its official spokesdog. This month is also the Academy Awards. During last night’s Oscar presentation, Uggie was on stage as The Artist won the Academy Award for Best Picture. He donned a bowtie…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 27, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Minecraft, now With 100% Added Salt

  Bashir Sultani, who in all seriousness I am about to label a salt artist, likes to draw things using salt. Like Minecraft creepers. We saw him last year going all Modern Warfare on us, but I think I like this better. It’s quainter. Which fits, since the dude is drawing pictures with salt. Which is…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 27, 2012
• Uncategorized

  The Anatomy of Amazing LEGO Pokémon

  LEGO builder Mike Nieves has put together these two awesome Pokémon models, one showing Gyarados ready to bite someone’s face off, the other a Magikarp stripped bare to the bones. Literally. So if you’ve ever fancied yourself as a Pokémon osteologist, a rare but dignified branch of Pokémonology, take notes. retinence’s photostream [Flickr, via Brothers…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 27, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  The Perfect Moves of an Asshole Video Game Bad Guy

  I want to talk about the medusa head, an enemy that has appeared in at least as many games as the goomba in Super Mario, but which moves in a more complex way. The pattern it follows is called a sine wave, and it was inevitable that a memorable entity in one of the most…

  Hamish Todd Published February 27, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Please do not get Excited Over This Sonic 4: Episode 2 Footage

  So Sonic 4: Episode 1 was a bit of a disappointment. Which should have surprised nobody, but hey, you can’t rely on Sonic fans (which, really most of us are, deep down) for rational expectations of upcoming products So it’s with trepidation, and not excitement, that we take a look at this gameplay footage from…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 26, 2012
• Reviews

  FIFA Football Vita: The Kotaku Review

  I’m still a little shocked. I mean, I love my football and I generally love my FIFA, but if you’d told me two months ago that the single best game available at the Vita’s launch would be this, a handheld port of a game that’s just in time for the end of the European season,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 26, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Mass Effect 3’s Live-Action Trailer is the End of the World as we Know it

  This is a new live-action trailer for Mass Effect 3. Because an expensive pre-rendered one last week wasn’t enough! Kind of wish it had stopped at the collapsing roof. The “end of the world” stuff from the perspective from Joe on the Street is a neat angle to show a bombastic sci-fi game from, so…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 26, 2012
• Uncategorized

  R2-D2 Birdhouse? R2-D2 Birdhouse

  I Bet Birds Actually Understand R2 | Hand-painted R2-D2 birdhouse by Nirdhouse of Etsy. NirdHouse also has C-3PO and Mario designs. (via Neatorama) Pokémon Black 2, Pokémon White 2 Coming This Summer As promised, Junichi Masuda, the director of Pokemon Black and White appeared on Japanese TV show Pokémon Sunday today to announce the next…

  By Owen Good Published February 26, 2012