In Japan, they’re called “otokonoko” or “otoko no musume” (男の娘), which literally means “male daughter”. They dress as females, but they’re not necessarily gay—or straight, even—for that matter. While certainly not mainstream, the otokonoko subculture has garnered fans in geek areas like Akihabara, spawning magazines and even a cafe staffed by otokonoko. So when gamers…
Japanese pop groups—male or female—relay on cute. Momoiro Clover Z does, too, but the group has a different set of weapons at its disposal: super hero iconography. The troupe taps the Power Rangers (Super Sentai, in Japan), right down to each member having her own color, to connect with old and young alike. Momoiro Clover…
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Mos Espa is the Tatooine spaceport that not only Anakin Skywalker called home, but also held the podrace in Star Wars: Episode I. The location is fiction, but the people who live there right now are very real. After George Lucas and his crew wrapped filming, they left the set standing—much like they did with…
Project X Zone is an upcoming collaboration between Sega, Capcom, and Namco Bandai. The trailer is a collaboration between you, your computer, and ten minutes of your life. The game is slated for the 3DS, and it will be out in Japan this fall. Project X Zone does look kind of neato. 『PROJECT X ZONE（プロジェクト…
Japan’s Neon Opera Tokyo describes itself as connected to Tokyo via sci-fi, manga, anime, and romance novels. Oh, and underwear. This batch of made-in-Japan skimpies is part of Neon Opera Tokyo’s “manga girls” line and features, well, manga girls. Neon Opera Tokyo’s threads are not cheap: a manga girls kimono gown will run you over…
First, the good news: fighting game Persona 4: Arena has between 30 to 40 hours of story mode. The bad news? The PS3/Xbox 360 game is apparently region locked. [Persona 広報 Blog and Atlus]
Good news! Newly released Japanese role-playing game Atelier Ayesha is getting an English localized version. [Siliconera]
In Dragonball, Saiyan is the warrior race, and “Super Saiyan” is a super powerful, badass transformation that occurs when a Saiyan reaches a high level of power—indicated by their blond hair that sticks up. Fantasy, you say! Well, just. But if it were real, it would look something like this—minus the white collared shirt. Magnificent…
A “see through lens” app is raising the ire of Japanese iPhone owners. The app claims to allow users the ability to see through clothing by turning the iPhone’s camera into an infrared camera. And people are pissed—pissed that it doesn’t work. For a while now, pervs have used infrared to see through people’s clothing,…
Namco Bandai has a site up for “All Star Battle”, and it reads “3 Days”. Are you excited? Um… [Namco Bandai]
Last month, internet collective Anonymous (or a group claiming the Anonymous moniker) launched Operation Japan, which was designed to protest the country’s strict copyright law. In the wake of the operation, several Japanese governmental sites were hit. However, there appears to have been a snafu—a blunder, if you will. According to reports, Anonymous allegedly bungled…
Late last month, the open beta for Phantasy Star Online 2 kicked off. And like most open betas, PSO2 has its fair share of bugs—bugs like boobs going absolutely mental. This isn’t a first. During the closed beta this past spring, a similar bug showing the breasts going crazy in the character creator was discovered.…
Earlier this year, the iPad fell into a legal gray zone in China. A legal brouhaha meant that in some Chinese shops, the iPad was yanked from shelves. The reason was that the Mainland already had an iPad, and it wasn’t Apple’s. Years before Apple ever released the iPad, a Chinese company named Proview trademarked…
First revealed last fall with a concept trailer, 3DS title Monster Hunter 4 is roaring out spring 2013 in Japan. The above trailer provides a look at what 3DS owners can expect (hint: hunting monsters). Remember to bring those extra Circle Pad Pros—large and regular sized! 3DS「モンスターハンター4（フォー）」は2013年春に発売。カプコンサマージャムのステージイベントで明らかに【写真追加】 [4Gamer]
Earlier this week, workers rioted in China’s Shaxi, a manufacturing town in Guangdong province. Before that, there were reports of riots at a Foxconn plant in Chengdu. Make no mistake, China doesn’t appear to be near a tipping point; however, there seems to be something in the air. While certainly not widespread, some people do…
With the Xbox Live version of Minecraft, anime fans thought now would be as good a time as any for this. What’s this? This is anime Haiyore! Nyaruko-san mashed with Minecraft. The original light novel and anime stars a Cthulhu deity named Nyaruko and the title refers to “crawling” or “creeping”. Fittingly, the mash-up is…
In the wake of this week’s Germany vs. Italy Euro 2012 match-up, there’s one image that’s making the rounds online in Japan: two of Italy’s biggest fans cheering on their team. Italy defeated Germany 2-1, and we’re left mesmerized by the GIF below, courtesy of SB Nation Pipe Dream: Super Mario Bros. Fans Rally Italy…
This year, a Super Sentai (aka Power Rangers) parody series called Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger launched in Japan along with the new “official” series Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters. For decades now, young Japanese boys have grown up with Power Rangers, which gets a new incarnation every year. Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger is from the folks who make the…
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