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September, 2013 (Page 8)

Japan waits with baited breath for local distributor of spreadable beer

Rachel Tackett
Sep 10, 2013
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These past few days, the Internet has exploded with word of Italy’s new beer spread. For a land like Japan, where beer is more than just a popular choice of beverage and is more-or-less central to their lifestyle, the invention of spreadable beer is cause for great excitement. Soon, rather than have a handful of snacks with their mugs full of beer, they’ll be spreading blobs of beer over their favorite snacks!

Europe, Japan
(beer • Birra Spalmabile • cool • food • Italy • jelly)

China’s latest smartphone pushes the boundaries of innovation with its direct plug-in connectivity

Andrew Miller
Sep 10, 2013

Smartphones on the market today allow users to do all sorts of things that would have otherwise been unimaginable even a decade ago. You can listen to music while surfing the net or writing an email, watch movies, get live weather reports, and let’s not forget the phone’s original purpose of talking to people.

The bane of the average smartphone user’s life, however, is their device’s short battery life. And anyone looking to save their beloved device from a sudden black screen of death has to either cut down on the heavy-duty apps or carry a charging cable or battery charging unit with them. But what if we told you that you could cut out the middle man and attach your phone directly to the power outlet whenever and wherever you were?

China
(battery • gadgets • plug-in connector • smartphone • tech)

2013 Fall Anime Preview – Part 2

Cara Clegg
Sep 10, 2013

Carrying on from Part 1, here’s the rest of the Fall anime line-up! We hope you’ve brought your notebooks!

Japan
(anime)

Best job ever? Japanese man makes 1 million yen for three months of gaming

Rachel Tackett
Sep 10, 2013

For all you fellow gamers out there, both hardcore and casual, how many hours have you wasted away powering up the pixels on your computer screens and game consoles? How many paychecks have disappeared into the latest expansion packs? How many hours of sleep have been lost to an addiction to online multi-players? Society doesn’t always understand, but we know it’s worth the time and the money when we get the fierce gratification of overcoming an in-game challenge. If we could, I’m sure many of us would love to make a living off of the lives we lead in the virtual world.

For one Japanese man, referred to by his handle name, Moru-chan, that dream is a reality. Moru-chan spends approximately 12 hours a day doing nothing but gaming for a paycheck of one million yen (US$10,043)! He’s earning this money by basically living out three months of his life in the online world of fantasy role-playing game, ArcheAge. RocketNews24 has the scoop here in an exclusive interview with this very lucky man at the one-room apartment provided to him by his company.

Japan
(ArcheAge • cool • gamer • MMORPG • niconico • video games • wow)

Mario, Luigi, Link to appear in Capcom’s Monster Hunter 4

Mike
Sep 9, 2013

Sadly, there are very few ways to make money spontaneously appear in your pockets. We hear animal sacrifices work, but there’s all kinds of ethical complications, plus you need a rock solid alibi when your neighbor comes asking if you know where her poodle went.

But game manufacturer Capcom has found a simpler way that won’t get them arrested: adding Nintendo mascots into their games.

Global, Japan
(Capcom • cool • nintendo • video games)

Forget makeup or plastic surgery! This product is guaranteed to make you beautiful in an instant

Andrew Miller
Sep 9, 2013

For many women, the act of putting on makeup gives them the opportunity to enhance their natural features and make themselves look more attractive. For anyone short on time, though, busting out the makeup kit before heading to work or out to meet friends can also be rather bothersome. With this in mind, reporter Anji, over at our sister site Pouch, did a bit of research to see if the process could be made any easier. What she found was a product called “Uniface” which is a mask that is designed to look exactly like a woman’s beautifully made-up face. Well, that’s the idea anyway…

USA
(culture • health and beauty • make-up • mask • Uniface)

Tokyo Olympic stadium looks like aliens landed downtown

Mike
Sep 9, 2013

As we’re sure you’ve heard, Tokyo was selected by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

Of course, no host city would be complete without a ludicrously over-designed Olympic stadium that looks like a race of aliens that watched Blade Runner on VHS one too many times took a wrong turn somewhere and landed their space ship downtown. Welcome to New National Stadium!

Japan
(cool • Olympics • Tokyo)

Going round in circles: Japan considers introducing roundabouts

Jessica
Sep 9, 2013

We recently talked about some changes the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism was making to street signs ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, but it seems they are not content with superficial changes. They have apparently started looking into the plausibility of introducing signal-less roundabouts to Japan, something that could have drivers feeling very grumpy.

Japan
(roundabout • traffic)

PlayStation 4 not launching in Japan until 2014

Philip Kendall
Sep 9, 2013

Despite launching in Europe and North America this November, Sony’s next generation console, PlayStation 4, will not launch in its homeland until 2014, it has been revealed.

Japan
(launch • news • Playstation 4 • video games)

Why Puppeteer is one of the grandest romps ever to grace the stage 【Review】

Philip Kendall
Sep 9, 2013

We have to admit we fell quite in love with Puppeteer‘s visual style from the very first moment we saw it. Although essentially a 2-D platformer, the game is presented as a live puppet show, heavily influenced by Japanese Bunraku puppet theatre, with a healthy dose of pantomime thrown in for good measure, and it looked positively spellbinding.

Due to go on sale both on disc and as a digital download via PlayStation Store in North America and Europe this week, the game was in fact released in Japan on September 5, so naturally we rushed out to grab a copy right away. Three days of platforming, applause and magical scissor snipping later, we’re delighted to say that Puppeteer is not just a superb platformer, but one of PlayStation 3’s most inspired titles to date.

Internet
(playstation 3 • Puppeteer • review • video games)

We check out an enchanting gold mining town in the mountains of Taiwan, and hope you do too

Master Blaster
Sep 9, 2013

Jiufen is a well-known tourist attraction in Taiwan. Many Japanese tourists especially have flocked to this location after rumors circulated that it was the inspiration behind the hit animated film Spirited Away. Even though those rumors now appear to have been mistaken the place still draws visitors with its colorful lights and rolling hills.

While it’s largely agreed that Jiufen is beautiful, our reporter Kuzo had his sights on another destination. A place largely obscured by the bright lights of Jiufen but equally beautiful. He was on his way to the old gold mining town of Jinguashi.

Taiwan
(Iinguashi • Jiufen • mine • travel)

Unlimited eggs for a $1! But there’s a catch…

Master Blaster
Sep 9, 2013

Recently popping up on Twitter, a supermarket ad declaring a unique event has received a lot of attention here in Japan. However, as the person who originally tweeted it comments, this advert may also be a “premonition of disaster.”

Internet, Japan
(advertisment • eggs • sale • twitter • weird)

You’re probably not as genki as this old lady!

Preston Phro
Sep 9, 2013

How limber are you? If you’re like me and you sit in an office chair all day hunched over a computer, you’re probably not too flexible. But, you know, that’s what happens with age, right? You start getting older and all of a sudden your body just goes kaput. I mean, it’s not like there are old women doing sideways somersaults and throwing their legs over their heads with reckless abandon, right?

Oh, wait, of course there are!

Internet, Japan
(Aussie Beef • flexible • old people • wtf)

New design for beloved character Hello Kitty! Now she’s the cutest… tooth on the block?

Paula Gerhold
Sep 9, 2013

The Sanrio brand’s most recognized and beloved character, Hello Kitty, has been through thousands of incarnations in the past. But, one of the more recent ones has Kitty collectors and enthusiasts scratching their heads.

Japan
(Hello Kitty • tooth)

Supermarket rampage leaves 103 groceries in critical condition

Master Blaster
Sep 8, 2013

A tragic scene unfolded in a supermarket in Kurashiki, Okayama last Thursday as 32-year-old Shinji Kuroki went on a mass poking and squishing rage inside. Details of the total damage are sketchy but we received reports that packs of meat had holes poked in them with a finger and loaves of bread have been seen lying on the ground, smashed in cold blood.

Japan
(crime • Okayama • supermarket)

Don’t piss away your money! Use Pee Trajectory Corrector!

Master Blaster
Sep 8, 2013

As we reported in August, the city of Shenzhen, China enacted a pee-control policy in its public toilets. Anyone caught peeing outside of the appropriate receptacle can face fines up to 100 yuan (US$16).

But when life hands you urination regulations, the true entrepreneur makes sweet golden urination regulation-aiding merchandise! That’s just what two opportunists did with their Pee Trajectory Corrector. Look for them conveniently on sale outside of a public washroom in Shenzhen.

Japan
(business • law • Shenzhen • toilet)

Highlights of Hayao Miyazaki’s retirement press confrence

Preston Phro
Sep 8, 2013

Last week, Studio Ghibli announced Hayao Miyazaki’s plans to retire, leaving The Wind Rises as his final film. The news, obviously, caused quite a stir, though many were somewhat skeptical as the director has “retired” before. Perhaps in response to those skeptics, the 72-year-old director scheduled a press conference, which was streamed live on the popular Japanese video website Nico Nico Video.

We’ve compiled the highlights of the press conference below for you to check out.

Japan
(Hayao Miyazaki • Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind • press confrence • retirement)

Man walks 1,400km home after getting mugged on the other end of Japan

Master Blaster
Sep 8, 2013

The mother of a 25-year-old man was stunned to see him arrive home after he was declared missing for several days. When she last saw him he left his hometown of Sendai to attend a national trading card game competition in Kitakyushu city on 23 August.

However, when he never made his return flight on 25 August, she got worried. It turned out that her son was robbed of his wallet and mobile phone and spent the following 11 days traveling back to Sendai on foot. Upon his return the son said, “I never wanted to make a fuss. I’m sorry to everyone I inconvenienced.”

Japan
(crime • Kitakyushu • Sendai • wtf)

2013 Fall Anime Preview – Part 1

Cara Clegg
Sep 8, 2013

It’s almost that time again! The Fall 2013 anime season is absolutely jam-packed with something for every kind of fan. There’s no way you can watch all of these though, so have a skim through this list (put together by Gigazine and translated by yours truly) to pick out the ones you’ll be following.

Read on for the first 20 series that will be hitting screens next week.

Japan
(anime • TV)

Cyclist in Tiger Mask outfit donates $1,000 to tornado-struck school, disappears

Preston Phro
Sep 7, 2013

What a week, eh? Hayao Miyazaki’s retirement was announced, the creator of Attack on Titan has annoyed fans with his “poor” drawings, a massive boulder nearly smashed a car, and, worst of all, a freaking tornado ripped up a chunk of Japan! We sure could use some good, light-hearted news.

Well, how about this story of a man who donated 100,000 yen (US$1,000) to one of the elementary schools ravaged by the tornado…in one of the most unusual ways ever!