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A Dragon Quest slime glass draws near! What will you drink?

Casey Baseel
Jun 25, 2014
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Even though Dragon Quest has been one of Japan’s most popular video game franchises since its start in 1986, it doesn’t really have an iconic hero. Like many long-running role-playing game series, each installment brings in a fresh cast of characters, and despite the name, Dragon Quest doesn’t have an instantly recognizable recurring dragon, either.

Instead, the face of the franchise is the lowly slime, ordinarily the very first enemy the player encounters. The monster shows up in each and every Dragon Quest game, and now, it’s ready to show up in your kitchen, too, with this wobbling slime drinking glass.

Life-size Thomas the Tank Engine begins running on Japanese railroad

Casey Baseel
Jun 25, 2014

Japan is a country that loves its trains. For many rail enthusiasts, there’s nothing better than a getaway to one of the rural parts of the country to ride on and snap pictures of unique trains running through beautiful countryside scenery.

Some localities even drum up tourism by keeping old-fashioned steam locomotives in service, which are always a big draw. This summer, though, Shizuoka Prefecture’s Oigawa Line is going a step further by dressing up one of its trains as Thomas the Tank Engine.

We test our iPhone’s new protective sheet against the legendary sword Excalibur

Casey Baseel
Jun 25, 2014

The touchscreen is both the greatest and most annoying part of a smartphone. On the plus side, you’ve got clear images, vibrant colors, and the simplicity that comes from bypassing a bunch of buttons and menus. At the same time, though, you’ve also got to deal with unsightly scratches and cracks.

We recently heard about a new protective sheet that’s supposed to be able to withstand almost any kid of abuse, so we put it to the test against a variety of damaging instruments including what one shopkeeper told us was the legendary sword Excalibur.

Japanese girls are not just skinny any more!? Chubby girls are in!

Tokyo Girls' Update
Jun 25, 2014

Naomi Watanabe, a famous female comedian, has started a fashion brand for plus-sized girls named “PUNYUS”. PUNYUS has been in the spotlight since the brand launched this spring, because it is part of a new trend to focus on chubby girls, and also it is remarkable for a comedian to produce a fashion brand compared to the many slender fashion models that have their own brands.

Need a change of scenery? 3 Japanese cities now rank in list of world’s most livable cities

KK Miller
Jun 24, 2014

Everything has been coming up Tokyo lately. Recently ranked no. 1 on a Trip Advisor survey, Japan’s capital city has now come in at No. 2 on Monocle’s list of most livable cities for 2014. That’s two positions up from their ranking last year!

Cities across the world were ranked based on criteria such as economics, society, functionality, as well as ease of everyday living and happiness of people. But it’s not just Tokyo that’s feeling the love recently – two more Japanese cities made it onto the list of great places to live!

“Be a blank slate”: The way to get hired in Japan?

Fran W
Jun 24, 2014

As far as things not to say in an interview go, you’d think it’d be pretty high up on the list. But the young Japanese university student, rejected by all the other companies he’d applied to, was prepared to take the risk. “This company is the only option I have left,” he pleaded with the interviewer. “I’ll do anything!” An unusual strategy, certainly. But he got the job.

Japanese site Niconico News reports that the man is now entering his ninth year of employment with the company, so it seems the gamble paid off. But is the company’s positive reaction so unusual? Some Japanese employability experts are arguing that, for many companies, the ideal graduate recruit is a “hakushi” – a blank page that the company can do what they want with. When companies train new recruits extensively, an across-the-board willingness to learn is valued more than previous experience.

Lucky #18! Japan gets another UNESCO World Heritage site

KK Miller
Jun 24, 2014

Japanese people love visiting UNESCO World Heritage sites. Good thing there are plenty of sites in Japan for people to pilgrimage to–17 before this week started. With the addition of Mt. Fuji in 2013, World Heritage site “completionists” finally had a new location to travel to after two years of waiting.

Well, the list just got a little bit longer, as another site has officially been added to bring Japan’s UNESCO sites to a total of 18. Pack your bags, we’re heading to Gunma!

Poll reveals fans’ top ranking Gundam series

Anime News Network
Jun 24, 2014

One of the most legendary and enduring anime franchises of all time is the quintessential mecha franchise Mobile Suit Gundam. But which entry to the franchise is really the greatest of all? Fan informational site Akiba Souken recently ran a two week poll from June 6 to June 18, gathering votes from 3,025 participants to decide once and for all which series, OVA, or movie is really the fan-favorite Gundam work, the top of which are as follow:

“I’ve fallen for a video game otaku–what should I do?” Woman appeals to internet for advice

Krista Rogers
Jun 24, 2014

One presumably hot day not that long ago, a young Japanese woman sat down at her computer, logged onto a website dedicated to giving advice to women, and sent out a request for help: “I’ve fallen for a video game otaku. How can I get close to him?”

The first-year university student had developed a crush on her classmate, who always seemed to be alone and playing video games. She wanted to know how to best approach him, so she took her inquiry online. It was soon met by a flood of diverging responses, from the straightforward to some shocking advice.

Read on to see what kinds of pointers they gave her, and whether you agree with them or not.

The Marathon Monks of Mt. Hiei: Better than Olympic athletes?【Part II】

Amy Chavez
Jun 24, 2014

In the previous article The Marathon Monks of Mt. Hiei: Better than Olympic Athletes? Part I, I explain the sennichi kaihogyo, or 1,000 Day Challenge, in which the Tendai Buddhist monks of Mt. Hiei, sometimes referred to as the “marathon monks,” walk the equivalent of one time around the earth–at the end of which they become living Buddhas.

In Part II, I trace the monks’ steps on the 30 km pilgrimage route, or gyoja michi, which passes through the sacred mountains and forests near the temple complex of Enryakuji. It’s a rigorous course that winds through the mountains, down into the town of Sakamoto, taking them past more than 250 spiritual places. This is the route they circumambulate for days on end over a seven-year period. For tips on the meaning behind the route, be sure to read Part I before continuing!

Rather than walking the course, I decided to run it. Running pilgrimages is a hobby of mine and I find it is a great way to combine the physical with the metaphysical. It brings joy to my runs and this fulfillment keeps the challenge. If you’re a skier, you’re always looking for more mountains. Sky divers jump at different locations. Runners look for new paths and new trails give running purpose. Leave it to your RocketNews24 running reporter to tackle the famed gyoja michi and reveal its intricacies.

I figured that running the 30-km course through the mountains would take the better part of a day. There is no map and from what I have read, Mt. Hiei can be fickle weather-wise. It has snow much of the winter and spring and there are bears. In June, when the weather was perfect, I set out with a small backpack fitted with a water bladder, some medical accoutrements and an extra pair of socks inside (for those inevitable foot and toe problems), plus an ultra light sleeping bag, just in case I got lost and had to spend the night in the forest (been there, done that!).

Bandai to release super-mega-retro-robot made up of Doraemon and friends

Cara Clegg
Jun 24, 2014

Some of Japan’s most famous characters created by legendary manga-ka Fujiko F Fujio have been turned into robots by Bandai, which can then be combined to create an even more epicly-super-cool robot of retro awesomeness!

The beautiful flowers of Hydrangea Temple: Possibly the best thing about Japan’s rainy season

Casey Baseel
Jun 24, 2014

As much as I look forward to summer every year, I’ll admit it can be a little hard getting excited about the early part of the season in Japan. The humidity rises, mosquitos come out in force (although we’ve got a secret trick for dealing with them), and the weather is rainy enough that going almost a week without seeing the sun isn’t that unusual.

Still, there’s at least one nice part about June in Japan, which is the blooming of the hydrangeas. The bundles of blossoms are blooming right now, and if you’re in the Tokyo area, there’s no better place to see them than at Meigetsuin Temple in Kamakura.

Columbia Records Japan changing name in support of national team’s game against Colombia

Casey Baseel
Jun 24, 2014

Things aren’t looking too good for Japan’s soccer team as it goes into its third and final game of group play at the World Cup. After a heartbreaking loss in its opener against Ivory Coast, and then a contest with Greece in which neither team’s shots could find the net, it’s do-or-die time for Japan, which is going to need quite a bit of help, and possibly luck, to advance to the Round of 16.

But all of the myriad tie-breakers Japan needs to go its way won’t mean anything if it can’t defeat group powerhouse Colombia, which currently has a 2-0 record. With all of Japan hoping for a victory over the South American nation, Team Japan is getting a little bit of extra moral support as the Japanese arm of Columbia Records is changing its name to help cheer on its local sports heroes.

Fried Godzilla with a side of Mothra: a plate of epic proportions

Oona McGee
Jun 24, 2014

Since his first appearance back in 1954, Godzilla has cut his teeth on dozens of films and taken down a number of enemies in the process. When it comes to the battle of the batter, however, it seems Godzilla and his mate Mothra have walked away defeated, as there’s no shaking off a coat of oil and Japanese breadcrumbs.

Cat takes a trip on a train, just like in a Studio Ghibli movie!

Joan Coello
Jun 24, 2014

Ever felt the sudden urge to go on a solo journey to some place unknown, or just to wander around aimlessly to take a break from the sights and sounds you’re accustomed to? This cat in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, seems to have caught the wanderlust bug too, and hopped on to a local train for a ride!

4 Japanese beauty fads that Westerners just don’t understand

Cara Clegg
Jun 23, 2014

Beauty standards and trends differ from culture to culture, so something that’s fashionable and pretty to one woman can be completely can be bizarre, sometimes even ugly, to another half the world away. This is especially true in the case of Japanese beauty fads, which often leave Westerners thinking, “Why on earth are you doing that to yourself?!’ while Japanese fashion magazines insist that it’s the path to ultimate kawaii-ness.

Read on for four Japanese beauty fads that are all the rage among Japanese girls, but which are hard to understand from a Western perspective.

15 beautiful Japanese sweets to cool you down this summer

Oona McGee
Jun 23, 2014

Japanese summers are hard to bear. With high humidity levels, the energy-sapping heat has such an overwhelming effect on the body there’s even a word for summer lethargy in the Japanese lexicon: natsubate.

Luckily for us, Japan has developed a number of unique ways to fight the summer heat. One of the best ways to cool down is in the sensory pleasure of traditional Japanese sweets featuring watery wonderlands, night skies and gorgeous hues of blue. We’ve found 15 of the best summer sweets that are so amazing they’re more like edible works of art.

Attack on Titan real escape game heads to Saitama

Anime News Network
Jun 23, 2014

The Attack on Titan real escape game series, “Escape from a Certain Fortress Town,” has proven very popular — no surprise given the popularity of both its tie-in manga and the real escape game series in general. The games scheduled for Tokyo in August have already sold out. To meet this demand, SCRAP (the games’ organizer) will hold two more Attack on Titan real escape games in Seibu Dome in the Tokyo suburb of Saitama on July 5 and 6.

Tonight vs Hotel Tonight – Did GREE just rip off one of America’s most popular hotel apps?

Angelina Lucienne
Jun 23, 2014

Smartphones and tablets improve almost faster than consumers can keep up with, and the apps designed for them change even more quickly. That means that there is a lot of opportunity for plagiarism. But surely sometimes it’s just a coincidence, right? It’s not out of the question that two developers could realistically be trying to fulfill the same need.

This week has brought us one more heated internet debate: Is hotel application Tonight by Japan’s GREE a rip-off of North American app Hotel Tonight, or are their similarities just coincidence?

Time to fight! Japan-only Hyrule Warriors special editions come with awesome Triforce clock

Philip Kendall
Jun 23, 2014

I’ve never really been one for special editions of video games. At first they seem like a great idea, with terms like “rare” and “collector’s edition” making us feel like we’d be missing out if we didn’t pick one up, but when you later realise that there are thousands of other people out there with the same cheaply made “limited” trinkets – most of which are likely to end up in landfills a few years down the line anyway – that Master Chief helmet or deluxe orc statue suddenly doesn’t seem quite so essential.

The Triforce clock that comes with special editions of upcoming Wii U hack and slash title Hyrule Warriors, however, is by far the coolest gaming goodie we’ve seen in years, and for once I’m actually considering paying extra money for the additional chunk of plastic.