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video games (Page 125)

Kobe video arcade gets gamers in the fighting spirit with taunting subway posters

Mike
Oct 9, 2014
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Every gamer knows that one of the best ways to get another gamer frustrated and seeking sweet, bloody in-game revenge is a well-placed “your mom” joke or other taunt or insult involving one’s relatives, girl/boyfriend, dog, cat or the size of certain parts of the target’s anatomy.

Which might mean that this Kobe video game arcade – which, remember, are still quite popular in Japan – may have struck marketing gold with this new ad campaign featuring insulting posters plastered all over the subway.

Japan
(Arcades • entertainment • Kobe • travel • video games)

Nintendo fan’s Super Mario kimono is an awesome mix of retro gaming and historical fashion

Casey Baseel
Oct 8, 2014

You could make the argument that Nintendo is the most “Japanese” of the major video game companies. Obviously that’s a label you can’t apply to Microsoft, but even compared to internationally focused Sony, with design studios and production teams all over the world, more of Nintendo’s products are developed domestically, and many in Kyoto, the quintessential Japanese city.

So it’s kind of ironic that the company’s best-known character, Mario, is Italian. Still, the video game hero is one of the best choices for a symbol of Japanese pop culture, and now he’s been combined with Japanese traditional culture in an awesome Mario kimono.

Japan
(cool • culture • fashion • kimono • nintendo • Super Mario • video games)

Dressing up as Final Fantasy’s Squall for Halloween? You need this real-life gunblade 【Video】

Casey Baseel
Oct 8, 2014

Back at the start of the year, we all had the urge to go out and fight some monsters when we saw Hollywood blacksmith Tony Swatton recreate the massive sword wielded by Final Fantasy VII’s Sephiroth. Of course, Sephiroth is just one member of the gigantic collective cast of the long-running video game franchise. With so many more iconic weapons to choose from, it was only a matter of time until craftsmen went to work on armaments from the other games in the series, and next up is a real-life version of Squall’s gunblade from Final Fantasy VIII.

Internet, Japan, USA
(awesome • cool • cosplay • Final Fantasy • Square Enix • video games)

Video shows 13 experiences every Japanese gamer had with Nintendo’s Famicom

Casey Baseel
Oct 7, 2014

I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that a lot of our readers have fond memories of the glory days of the Nintendo Entertainment System. As nostalgic as the iconic piece of 8-bit hardware is for North American and European gamers, though, it’s even more so for Japanese fans, who got the equivalent Famicom years before the NES launched overseas.

Japanese humor website CuRAZY recently stopped to take a look back at all the time they spent with a tiny red controller in hand during their formative years, putting together this video of 13 Famicom experiences pretty much every Japanese gamer had.

Japan
(famicom • NES • nintendo • retro games • video games)

6 creative uses for old video game hardware

Philip Kendall
Oct 7, 2014

Dedicated collectors will pay vast sums of money for boxed, mint-condition gaming hardware or rare game cartridges. But with so many millions of units having been produced over the years, the sad truth is that much of the gaming gear we once adored or spent months saving up to buy now sits broken, gathering dust on a shelf somewhere.

So why not turn this old junk into something more useful? Recently shared by Japanese news site Naver Matome, these six creative uses for old gaming hardware range from the simple-but-effective to genuinely impressive, and may just inspire you to dust off that NES your brother spilt Coke over all those years ago.

Internet, Japan
(DIY • life hacks • video games)

Tetsuya Nomura draws Sora for Kingdom Hearts -HD 2.5 ReMIX- release

Anime News Network
Oct 6, 2014

Square Enix began streaming a video on Thursday of Kingdom Hearts series director Tetsuya Nomura drawing Sora to promote the release of the Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX game. The game shipped for the PlayStation 3 in Japan on Thursday.

Japan
(Anime News Network • Kingdom Hearts • Tetsuya Nomura • video games)

We raid the new Final Fantasy restaurant on our quest for drinks, desserts, and blue ramen

Casey Baseel
Oct 5, 2014

Earlier this year, we stopped by Artnia, the café run by video game publisher Square Enix, to munch on buster sword chocolates and drink material cocktails. Just as you’d expect from the company behind some of Japan’s biggest RPG franchises, though, there’s now an upgraded sequel, the Eorzea Café, with an even larger menu of Final Fantasy themed foods.

Led by our sense of adventure and gnawing appetite, we journeyed to the strange and wonderful land of Tokyo’s Akihabara to check it out.

Japan
(awesome • Final Fantasy • food • restaurants • Square Enix • sweets • video games)

Datel Japan reveals headphones with Game Boy-themed in-line mic, we reach for our Christmas list

Philip Kendall
Oct 3, 2014

Heads up, gamers and audiophiles! Datel Japan has just announced that its latest gaming hardware-themed accessory, dubbed the “Retro GB earphone mic”, will go on sale next month. And it is truly a thing of tremendous, geeky beauty.

Internet, Japan
(earphones • Game Boy • tech • video games)

Limited edition Psycho Break/The Evil Within PlayStation 4 consoles unveiled

Philip Kendall
Oct 2, 2014

Resident Evil 4 director Shinji Mikami’s upcoming survival horror title Psycho Break (The Evil Within in the West) is now just a couple of weeks away from release, and its makers have just announced a pair of limited edition PlayStation 4 consoles featuring the game’s title and an image of the insane asylum in which it is set.

Japan
(Playstation 4 • Psycho Break • The Evil Within • video games)

Of course Japan wants you to use the Oculus Rift to look up girls’ skirts

Mike
Oct 2, 2014

Today in the most unsurprising non-news possibly ever: Yes, Japan is working on yet another creepy, borderline pedophilic virtual reality “game” where you interact in new, sleazy ways with a possibly underage girl.

This time, the new program in question is an Oculus Rift (the newer DK2, of course) game where the goal is to blow into a microphone and upturn virtual reality hottie Hatsune Miku’s skirt with your comically powerful virtual breath.

Japan
(culture • Oculus Rift • video games • VR • wtf)

There’s going to be a Tetris movie! And it’s going to be a “sci-fi epic”!

Fran W
Oct 2, 2014

It might not be the most obvious choice for a Hollywood blockbuster, but ’80s classic Tetris will be getting a movie adaptation “sometime in the near future”, the Wall Street Journal reports. And Larry Kasanoff, chief executive of Threshold Entertainment, says the film will be a “sci-fi epic”!

Threshold Entertainment is the movie company behind Mortal Kombat, and they’ll be working together with The Tetris Company to develop a sci-fi film based on the classic game. “Everyone knows that Tetris is one of the best known, most beloved brands in the world,” Kasanoff said. “What everyone doesn’t know yet is this epic sci-fi story that we’re going to tell. That’s what’s really exciting.”

Global
(movie • sci-fi • Tetris • Threshold Entertainment • video games)

We try bright blue Dragon Quest slime curry, live to tell the tale

Jessica
Oct 1, 2014

A few weeks ago, we told you about Village Vanguard’s launch of Slime Curry, a rather curious blue foodstuff inspired by the bad-guy blobs of the Dragon Quest series. Not content with just informing you of its existence, one of the Japanese reporters at our sister site Pouch bravely volunteered to try the curry for herself and report back if she survived. Here’s what she had to say.

Japan
(Dragon Quest • food • slime • video games • weird)

Make your own chocolate, cake or popsicle game controllers with these molds from ThinkGeek

Philip Kendall
Sep 30, 2014

If there’s one thing that makes video gaming even more fun than it already is, it’s appropriate snack food. And while we’d never normally suggest that chocolate and controllers could possibly be a good combination (seriously, greasy controllers are a big no-no), we can safely say that you won’t find a more appropriate gaming fuel accompaniment than a plate of tiny, edible classic controllers.

Internet, USA
(controllers • cool • Mega Drive • NES • playstation • ThinkGeek • video games)

New Nintendo 3DS ad flaunts the incoming console’s spiffy new features 【Video】

Philip Kendall
Sep 25, 2014

With just a few weeks to go until its launch in Japan, Nintendo has begun streaming an introductory ad for its new, analogue nub-toting 3DS.

Check out the video in full after the jump.

Japan
(ad • New 3DS • nintendo • tech • video • video games)

Sad 3DS user wants Gamecube peripheral for Smash Brothers, genius tinkerer provides

Mike
Sep 25, 2014

There are few things in life more competitive than Super Smash Brothers (and, like, hot dog eating contests with hamsters). So, even though you can now Smash Brothers on the go with the new 3DS version, truly competitive players don’t want to settle for the 3DS’s inferior, cramped D-pad and button layout.

A clever Japanese Twitter user recently openly dreamed of a better way to Smash Brothers on his 3DS by connecting an old-school Gamecube controller to the portable handheld and, shockingly, another even more genius Twitter user responded with a real-life prototype he made with plentiful engineering skills, his own two hands, and what appears to be a bunch of fresh spaghetti.

Internet, Japan
(3DS • controller • funny • Gamecube • technology • twitter • video games)

Leg-based marketing campaign at Tokyo Game Show catches eyes, leaves attendees scratching their heads

Casey Baseel
Sep 20, 2014

On our visit to the Tokyo Game Show, it seemed like just about every flat surface outside and around Makuhari Messe, the event’s venue, was plastered with ads for upcoming horror title Psycho Break. Inside nearby Keihin Makuhari Station, though, there was a different advertising blitz going on.

Adorning the train station’s walls was a series of posters showing nothing but legs. We’re sure they caught the eyes of plenty of male attendees, but just what the heck are they advertising?

Japan
(anime • Tokyo Game Show • video games • weird)

A look around this year’s Tokyo Game Show 【Video and photo dump】

Philip Kendall
Sep 19, 2014

As you’ve no doubt already heard, the annual Tokyo Game Show is currently underway at the Makuhari Messe exhibition centre in Chiba Prefecture (yup, just like Tokyo Disneyland, TGS isn’t actually in Tokyo…).

It’s fair to say this year’s show is a little smaller than in years gone by, but there’s still plenty to see and do. If, however, you’re one of the millions of poor souls who can’t simply hop on a train to check it out, or only ever have a chance to see the show on its much busier public days, we have a little treat for you today: three minutes of video and a whole host of photos taken at Tokyo Game Show by our very own staff.

Japan
(GREE • Microsoft • Sony • Tokyo Game Show 2014 • video • video games)

Welcome to Tokyo Psycho Break Show 2014! 【Tokyo Game Show】

Philip Kendall
Sep 18, 2014

Good morning from Tokyo! We’re here at the Makuhari Messe exhibition centre bright and early to stand in line to play video games all day. Because we love you.

If you happen to be at the show today or are even in the area, be sure to give us a wave if you see us rocking our RocketNews24 press passes. If you’re new to the game show, we should warn you: despite the enormous number of ads for upcoming horror title Psycho Break, there are actually other games due to be exhibited at this year’s TGS…

Japan
(Psycho Break • The Evil Within • Tokyo Game Show 2014 • video games)

Super Smash Bros for 3DS sells over a million copies in just two days

Philip Kendall
Sep 16, 2014

You have to hand it to Nintendo. While behemoth publishers like EA and Activision are constantly badmouthed for releasing sequel upon sequel, year after year, the house that made Mario somehow not only still commands tremendous respect from its fans, but, if sales data released earlier today is any indication, manages to make stacks of cash by releasing updated versions of games many of us first started playing more than a decade ago.

Japan
(3DS • nintendo • sales • Super Smash Bros. • video games)

Fighting too hard? Super Smash Bros 3DS players in Japan are reporting broken slide pads

Philip Kendall
Sep 15, 2014

It may not arrive in the West for another couple of weeks yet, but Japanese gamers are already tearing their way through Super Smash Bros for Nintendo 3DS following its release last Saturday, and by all accounts the game was well worth the long, teaser-filled wait.

There is, however, a little bit of worrying news regarding the 3DS’s suitability for a game of Smash Bros‘ frenetic nature. After just a few days of smash-tastic gameplay, a number of 3DS owners have begun uploading photos showing their consoles’ circular Slide Pads torn clean off.