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entertainment

Budget entertainment: 12 fun things to do in Tokyo that will cost you absolutely nothing

Enjoy free foot spas or amazing views of the cityscape and save money while you’re at it.

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What is Japan’s most used on-demand video streaming service?

In the relatively new market of video services in Japan, one clearly stands above the rest. But you might be surprised what it is.

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Taiwanese food stall becomes Internet sensation after hiring sexy model to boost sales

Tons of customers queued in line for a chance to see the “Braised Sister” up close.

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40 ways foreign and Japanese TV dramas are different, according to our Japanese-language reporter

A lot’s been said about how foreign audiences feel about Japanese TV dramas, but what if we flip the script?

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Enjoy karaoke while high! High up in a Ferris wheel that is

Our skeptical writers wonder if the combination of singing and elevating is a winner or a bust.

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App lets you dance til you drop in Tokyo, with unlimited access to nightclubs for a flat rate

The self-proclaimed “Netflix of nightclubs” lets you enjoy Tokyo’s nightlife for a great price.

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Oh God It’s Friday: Japan hammers tabloid for driving popular actor to early retirement

Some of the more civilized comments against the tabloid Friday include “Die” and “Do you feed your families with the money you squeeze out of people’s souls?”

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The inevitable march of Pokemon Go clones continues as Korean publisher announces “Pororo Go”

The production house behind Korea’s hit kid’s show Pororo the Little Penguin recently announced a partnership with a developer to release an augmented reality game called Pororo Go.

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Hollywood reportedly wants to make a Pokémon live action film because of, you know, that one game

Thanks to Pokémon GO, Hollywood executives are reportedly super-interested (again) in the idea of a live-action Pokémon movie.

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Japanese radio host arrested after beating female co-host with microphone during live broadcast

67-year-old entertainer flies into violent rage during regular afternoon talk show.

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Get your battle armor ready for the interactive “hottie” Samurai & Ninja Show coming to Tokyo

Next weekend, handsome versions of some of Japan’s most prominent historical military figures will grace the stage in Asakusa for an interactive, foreigner-friendly show!

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Get ready for excitement, Japan—Steve Wozniak’s Comic Con is coming to Tokyo in December 2016!

Comic Con, a festival of pop culture and entertainment, will be coming to Tokyo next year, and they’ve already put on a huge announcement bash!

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How to do Japanese karaoke the right way: Six tips for newbies, mic hogs and nervous singers

Karaoke in Japan tends to be a little different from in the west, and it comes with its own set of rules and etiquette that it’s a good idea to learn if you want to keep being included in karaoke parties.

Whether it’s your first time ever singing in (semi-)public or you’re a seasoned karaoke veteran back home, these six tips for not being a total karaoke bore will help make your singing sessions super special (and not at all humiliating…).

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Taiwanese student self-immolates after argument with father over video games

A Taiwanese college student tragically chose to set himself on fire recently after an apparently pretty harsh argument with his father over video games.

Xue Zhenjun, a student of Taiwan’s Chienkuo University of Technology, reportedly chose to end his own life in one of the more horrific ways imaginable because his father told him to get some sleep instead of staying up all night playing an online game.

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Here’s a newly-revealed character list for the 2015 Dragon Ball Z movie to geek out over

Much to the delight of series fans, Dragon Ball Z is still going strong in the form of feature-length animated films released sporadically over the years since the original series ended its run way back when people still wore Hammer pants and JNCOs.

Fans were surely pants-wettingly ecstatic, then, to learn recently that the 19th feature-length film in the series will hit theaters in 2015 and will apparently be only one of the two films personally supervised by series creator and lover of food-themed character names, Akira Toriyama.

Now more details are being released about the film, Dragon Ball Z: Fukkatsu no F, in the form of a detailed character cast sheet.

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Puzzling, ludicrously hard Touei Animation employment test proves animators deserve a raise

If you’ve been following behind-the-scenes entertainment news for a while, you’ve probably heard the reputation that animators have as low-paid peons that, despite providing a valuable and necessary service for both the obvious animated films as well as any movie that relies heavily on computer animation, often get paid meager wages and work hellishly long hours.

Some, then, might reverse that logic to assume this is all because animators are basically the burger-flippers of the entertainment world; cranking out a desirable product through simple, mindless repetition. Hence the low pay, right?

Well, if this Touei Animation employment exam “question” – among myriad other evidence – shows us anything, it’s that animation is hard work that requires creativity, sure, but also a fair bit of mental agility in addition to all those long hours.

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Heads up Aussies, Shinjuku’s insane Robot Restaurant is paying you a visit next month!

Shinjuku’s Robot Restaurant is the stuff of legend the world over. An epic music and light show with a dash of burlesque flair featuring enormous robots, exotically dressed dancers and more neon than the original and 2010 sequel to Tron put together, it’s a must-see for anyone visiting Tokyo and looking for a dose of quintessential “WTF Japan?” weirdness (no, seriously, just check out its website).

But what if you’re not a trust-fund Toby or a highly successful business magnate with the cash to splash on weekend trips to Japan? Those plane tickets don’t come cheap, and Tokyo is known for being on the pricey side, so short of a wealthy aunt popping her clogs or your idea for edible cutlery coming to fruition, you may never have the chance to see this baffling spectacle of awesomeness. If you happen to live in or near Sydney, though, your feet won’t even need to leave terra firma for you to experience it, thanks to a unique event coming up in February.

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Mock game box imagines what a Japan-produced, moe “Call of Duty” might look like

Back in the day, Japanese console games were king. What late-20s gamer doesn’t fondly remember the classics like Final Fantasy VII, Tactics Ogre, Street Fighter, Metal Gear, the original Super Smash Bros, and the spate of Japan-produced side-scrollers owing their lineage to Mario?

Unfortunately, while great Japanese games do exist and are still being made, general consensus on English-language gamer forums is that the vast majority of modern Japanese games have devolved into 25-hour, barely interactive CG films and creepy boob-ogling simulators.

And, with this widening rift between Japanese game fans and Western gamers, the darker, dirtier corners of the Internet can get a bit cheeky with their memes.

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Street Fighter II creator Yoshiki Okamoto talks games and his new project, Monster Strike 【Interview】

When Street Fighter II creator and retro gaming legend Yoshiki Okamoto announced two years ago that he was leaving console games forever to pursue mobile gaming projects, many probably thought he was joking. A lifelong arcade and console game creator abandoning ship to work in the much loathed and parodied mobile platform? This must be some kind of pre-retirement prank, surely?

As it happens, Okamoto was dead serious, and – far from having retired – has made good on his promise to focus on mobile games, working with a protege to crank out one of the most successful mobile games of all time: Monster Strike.

Monster Strike has reached over 16 million players in Japan and Taiwan, exceeding all expectations and becoming a cultural institution in the game’s native Japan. Sensing it was time to strike out into other territories, Okamoto, game producer Koki Kimura and his team are now working to expand the game into the west and beyond. We caught up with Okamoto and Kimura in San Francisco at Monster Strike’s North American launch party to talk about the game and the industry in general:

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Asada sisters nail it with “Let it Go” figure skating routine

It can’t be overstated just how in love with Disney’s Frozen Japan is. The return to classic “princess tale” Disney form was received especially well by the Japanese – notorious consumers of all things cute that they are.

Of course, this means that you can’t go five minutes in Japan without hearing either the English or popular Japanese version of the film’s hit single, “Let it Go.” It’s long since become grating to hear and we really wish they’d just, er… stop.

But if there’s one way to send the song out with a bang before everyone mercifully, um… gives it up, it’s this awesome figure skating routine by Japan’s Asada sisters.

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