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We design and field-test a hands-free burger holder

Here at RocketNews24, we like to keep abreast of the pioneering developments in the separate but equally important fields of technology and hamburgers. Having already marvelled at the fries holder from McDonald’s and recently hearing that Burger King had developed a hands-free Whopper Holder, we were immediately filled with a level of avarice that usually makes people buy a pair of overalls and move to the Yukon to pan for gold.

Unfortunately, Burger King’s shoulder and neck-mounted hamburger holder is only available as a giveaway for customers lucky enough to win one, and since the promotion isn’t being held in Japan, we were left with only one option: design and built one of our own.

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We try 400-year-old Ghost Child Care Candy – so good it’ll raise the dead

In the Higashiyama area of Kyoto City stands a candy shop which boasts a unique regular customer, the specter of a woman who comes for their candy. The legend began in 1599 and has been handed down from generation to generation to the present day.

The shop, now called Minatoya Ghost Child Care Candy Main Office, only sells its legendary Ghost Child Care Candy. RocketNews24’s Kuzo decided to head down to Kyoto to investigate the bittersweet story behind this candy shop’s connection to the other side.

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Despite its image as a high-tech country, a lot of Japan’s government paperwork still takes the form of bound collection of hard copies of legal documents. The National Diet Library has the responsibility of housing countless numbers of these collections.

However, like a fiery balrog, water is the bane of physical printed documents (which admittedly have a bit of a problem with fire, too). The National Diet Library occasionally has to deal with restoring books that have become wet before water damage sets in. Recently, the library revealed its simple, easy to copy technique for properly drying out a soggy book.

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The restaurant that powered the team behind one of Nintendo’s biggest hits

Kyoto has a long-standing reputation as a center of traditional culture, justified by its numerous significant temples and shrines, not to mention the artwork they house and their surrounding gardens. However, the city is also home to a site of great importance to modern pop culture: the headquarters of video game maker Nintendo, responsible for many of the titles that shaped modern gaming.

There’s a saying in Japan, though, that you can’t win a battle on an empty stomach, and that goes for designing great games, too. We recently visited the restaurant that powered the development team of one of Nintendo’s biggest hits ever.

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Unfortunate Google employee forced to wander alone on eerie abandoned island for Street View photos

Google Street View seems to have its priorities all out of whack. While only just getting around to snapping the more remote areas of mainland Japan and having yet to cover the majority of Canada, Google sent out one intrepid employee to explore the completely abandoned Japanese island of Gunkanjima.

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Despite “dragon” being right there in the title, the Dragon Quest video game series doesn’t really have an iconic dragon. Japan’s most widely-loved role-playing franchise doesn’t feature a particularly popular protagonist either, as each installment features a new, mostly mute hero.

Instead, mascot duties fall to the weakest enemy in each of the games, the lowly slime. Because of its cuteness and the almost complete lack of threat it poses to the player, the slime has become a fan favorite, with a shape as instantly recognizable as a Coca Cola bottle.

The franchise’s numerous titles for home and handheld consoles allow gamers to get their fix from the sofa or on the train, but now there’s even a way to enjoy Dagon Quest at your kitchen table.

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Stay cool guys! Just in time for summer, we find the best deodorizing sheets

Right now, the temperature and humidity in Tokyo are in a race to see which can climb faster. Yes, Japan’s hot, sticky midsummer is on the way, and for most of us, the deodorant we put on before we leave the house isn’t going to last more than a few short hours before it washes away in the rivers of sweat pouring off of our bodies.

Thankfully, men’s grooming product maker Gatsby is here to help with their deodorizing sheets. One of our reporters recently tried out several items from the company’s curiously extensive lineup of “body paper,” as the products are called in Japan, and then gave us his impressions on which is the best to keep yourself from smelling like the locker room after the annual joint training session of the varsity Greco Roman wrestling team and hot yoga club.

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When sitting around drinking late at night, the conversation inevitably turns to superpowers and which one everyone wants.

Aside from a super healing factor and flight, one of the top picks is surely invisibility–though usually for some pretty diabolical reasons, like stealing your neighbor’s newspaper.

While we’re still not quite at the level of full-on invisibility cloaks, scientists have developed a way to make cells transparent! Invisible Woman this isn’t, but maybe it’s enough to sneak a midnight snack?

(Warning: some images may not be for the squeamish.)

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Stop motion car chase has all the thrills of a Hollywood action film

Through some elaborate camera work, realistic sound effects, and the use of small figures and buildings, this stop motion video made by YouTube user LUXE37 is impressing netizens around the world. Filmed in a retro-style with cars from the 70s and 80s, this superb stop motion film is a throwback to the golden era of car chase scenes.

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Lotteria’s new Twin Burger is not to be confused with a double burger

With so many hamburger chains in Japan, each has to find a way to differentiate itself from the others. For example, MOS Burger prides itself on its high quality ingredients, and Freshness Burger tells diners right up front where its priorities lie.

With Lotteria, there are two things we’ve come to expect; multiple patty sandwiches, like the nine-layer Evangelion Q burger, and unconventional ingredient pairings, as seen in the chain’s ramen burger. But Lotteria’s newest offering combines both of the restaurant’s signature sales points.

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Put your kitsune up! BABYMETAL is set to dominate the world with ‘dangerous kawaii’【Interview】

In 2011, the world was first baffled and then enthralled by the release of BABYMETAL’s “Doki Doki☆Morning” music video.

Not quite metal, not quite idol music, the video of three “dangerous kawaii” Japanese middle school girls singing and dancing to heavy metal music was difficult for some to comprehend. Were they for real? Was it okay for us to like them? And why couldn’t we stop listening to this song?

Two years later, the group has proved themselves to be anything but a joke, with legions of fans both in Japan and abroad. This Wednesday (June 19), they released their second major-label single, titled “Megitsune,” so we sat down with the group for an exclusive interview to learn more about them.

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In a move that has at once shocked and thrilled gamers across the globe, Microsoft announced earlier today that it is to scrap controversial plans to inhibit the trading and sharing of games for its upcoming home system, Xbox One. The company also assures consumers that they will no longer be required to connect their console to the internet every 24 hours to validate their software.

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Giant sea eel: fearsome monster or delicious lunch?

The restaurant Fukugawa Tsuribune is famous for tempura, especially its anago don, tempura saltwater eel served over a bowl of rice. The restaurant’s version of this Japanese standard draws fans from all over the Tokyo area to its location 35 minutes by train west of downtown.

Needless to say, the restaurant must be doing something right, and once we heard the rumors that the anago portions are extremely generous, we couldn’t keep ourselves away and made the trip out to the restaurant to try it for ourselves.

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Yes, Zima’s robot band will play metal and electronica, as long as you compose it for them

Zima never really took off in the U.S.. Molson Coors’ clear malt beverage never even made it out of puberty in its home market, lasting just 15 years before the last Zima made for American consumption shipped in 2008.

In Japan though, it’s been a solid hit, particularly at clubs. The company recently asked the lofty question of whether the way human beings party is advancing at the same rate of other aspects of our modern lifestyle, and has decided to give it an evolutionary kick in the backside by creating a robot party band.

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Designer of Gamecube oddity ‘Doshin the Giant’ wants your money, will put you in his new game

As a big fan of Doshin the Giant, one of the quirkier titles to appear on Nintendo’s 64DD and Gamecube platforms, I literally felt my ears prick up when a member of the RocketNews24 staff uttered its name earlier today. Although we haven’t heard much from the game’s designer, Kazutoshi Iida, in the past few years, his latest crowd-funded indie title Monken is attracting a lot of attention online, with the creator offering investors a ton of freebies as well as the chance to appear in the game itself.

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Mention Honda to most people, and they’ll think of a successful car company, if still a few rungs below giants Toyota, GM, and Volkswagen in sheer size. But Honda just happens to be the biggest engine manufacturer in the world, providing power for not just for passenger cars, but also motorcycles, scooters, boats, jet aircraft, and even lawnmowers.

Honda’s most die-hard fans point to the company’s racing pedigree and ease with which its engines can be tuned to make more power, both of which factor into its current project of building the world’s fastest riding mower.

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Each of Japan’s seasons has its own unique charm. Whether it’s the cherry blossoms of spring, fireworks on the beach in midsummer, crimson maple leaves in the fall, or a hot spring surrounded by winter snow, there’s something to enjoy at almost any point of the calendar.

The glaring exception, though, is the few weeks of rainy season during June, when the constant threat of sudden squalls make the weather report about as reliable as a third-rate palm reader. You’re pretty much guaranteed of getting caught in a shower at some point, and if you’re not lucky enough to be around a 100 yen shop at the time, you’re stuck ducking into a convenience store and paying a premium for a clear plastic umbrella you’ll probably throw away as soon as you get home and can swap it for your sturdier regular one.

Thankfully, convenience store chain Family Mart has a new product to take some of the sting out of that situation.

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Small, fast, and ‘crazy rickety’ – Cambodia’s breakneck bamboo train 【Video】

Shot by a couple during a visit to Cambodia and uploaded to YouTube just last week, the following video treats us to a ride on one of Cambodia’s “bamboo trains” — worryingly shaky, home-made bamboo pallets balanced on a pair of train wheels and fitted with a disconcertingly large engine.

After all, what trip abroad is complete without experiencing some potentially perilous activity that you’d never dream of doing in your own country?

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While travelling in Thailand, I was surprised by the large number of unattended dogs roaming about town. Much like the country’s citizens, though, they’re generally good-natured, and you’ll often see the laid-back pooches sleeping peacefully in plazas, next to temples, and along riverbanks.

Thai society appreciates the value of a good nap, but one canine in the city of Ayutthaya has more than just cultural justification for taking a snooze. Pui the Bangkaew dog has earned himself a little bit of rest and relaxation by saving a baby’s life.

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Nintendo’s two new Smash Bros games have one of the coolest trailers ever

For many fitness enthusiasts, exercising in front of a TV while perched a Nintendo Wii balance board might seem like a bit of a joke, and we’re sure that yoga is the last thing on many gamers’ minds when they power up their machine. So when we first caught sight of the following video from Nintendo we weren’t quite sure what to make of it. As it turns out, though, as well as introducing not one but two new Super Smash Bros games for Wii U and 3DS, with new characters to boot, the video itself is actually quite awesome.

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