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Sunsoft, makers of the OG kusoge, are back!
The sun also softs. I’m a lot older now and often too tied down to keep up with new video games, so when someone talks about Elden Ring or Cyberpunk 2069, my eyes tend to glaze over. But bring up...
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Robot security guards patrol Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building
They look kind of like robot squid too. It was way back in 2018 when one of our reporters bumped into a robot security guard patrolling the platform of Seibu Shinjuku Station. While it looked more...
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Japanese government worried young adults aren’t drinking enough alcohol
This calls for a contest! The National Tax Agency (NTA) has a problem with the youth of today: They simply aren’t drinking enough alcohol anymore. According to an independent study, roughly half of...
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Real-time shade information added to walking app from Navitime Japan
Let Navitime throw you some shade. One of the many reasons that people hate summer in Japan is that there’s very little relief from the relentless sun. Walking down most streets in even moderately...
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Mr. Sato stops by 7-Eleven’s often overlooked fast food chain Poppo
From fries in bowls to ice cream dipped in shaved ice, they do things differently here. We often talk about the convenience store chain 7-Eleven here, but people outside Japan might not be aware that...
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Life-size giant freshwater stingray blankets to go on sale in Japan if enough...
You always said you wanted a giant stingray blanket, but now it’s time to put your money where your mouth is. The giant freshwater stingray of Southeast Asia is said by some to be both the biggest...
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Our writer falls victim to Katsuya’s new Full Power Egg
This egg is not for the faint of heart. One of our reporter Ahiruneko’s many beats is the fried meat cutlet specialty chain Katsuya. Having gone many times and learning their ways, he fancies himself...
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Mackerel chips coming to Japan…for gamers!
Not fish and chips, now the fish is the chips! The gaming world has certainly come into its own and businesses have responded by offering just about any product under the sun suited to gamer needs,...
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Japan’s newly identified species of flatworm is reminding people of octopus...
Wiener resemblance was not included in the peer-reviewed report. Nature truly is a wonder, and despite all the knowledge we’ve accumulated over the years, there’s still believed to be upwards of five...
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Yahoo! Japan finds most alphabetic and katakana words Japanese people want to...
GJ on YJ for TCOB. One of the first things you learn when studying Japanese is that the language incorporates four different styles of writing: the Chinese-derived characters known as kanji, the basic...
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Train driver’s locked tablet with forgotten password leads to big delay on...
Growing pains of digitizing trains in Japan. The punctuality of trains in Japan is sacred. Thousands of commuters rely on it so much that differences of less than a minute can cause a disruption and...
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Calendar of photos from often maligned train otaku community to be sold by JR...
Finally, some train photography without any head trauma or swearing. As we’ve talked about before over the years, among otaku subcultures the train photography enthusiasts, known as “toritetsu,” tend...
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Adult version of popular Japanese candy Nerunerunerune coming in September
Nary a Nerunerunerune like it. One of the more popular candy brands in Japan is Nerunerunerune, which is a kit containing various plastic trays and packets of powder. By adding water to the powder and...
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Saitama lieutenant calls subordinate’s lunch “garbage”, then loses job for...
Glass houses… When I was a teenager I worked at a fast food restaurant, and often at the end of the day there’d be unsold burgers left over. I remember asking the manager if I could take one but he...
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Getting a driver’s license in Japan the hard way: The End
All bad things must come to an end. Previously on “Getting a driver’s license in Japan the hard way”, I had managed to pass the second and much more difficult written test leaving me with only one...
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Sushi chef drops knives on the train, causes panic and delays
You should never take your work home with you. Given the general rarity of firearms in Japan, knives are frequently used by those looking to intimidate others or inflict violence. And among those,...
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Video game to detect early stages of glaucoma developed by Tohoku University
Vaporize meteoroids with a giant laser…for your health! Many of us as children have probably been scolded for playing too many video games with threats that it will “wreck your eyesight.” There’s...
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Zoo director begs people to stop screwing with air conditioner, setting it to...
The reptile house is no place for monkey business. Last year a giant python escaped from its owner and had a neighborhood in Yokohama on edge for about half a month. It wasn’t until Tsuyoshi Shirawa,...
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New trailer for Fist of the North Star musical released ahead of Tokyo and...
You’re already fabulous. There have been a lot of ambitious musical theater performances over the years, but I’m hard-pressed to think of one quite as ambitious as the live musical adaptation of the...
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Unlicensed drunk driver involved in hit-and-run, makes pathetic attempt to...
I blame Grand Theft Auto for making it look too easy. On 12 August, at approximately 9:20 p.m. on the rainy streets of Kiyose, Tokyo, a 54-year-old man was walking. Just as he moved to avoid a puddle...
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