RocketNews24 / Bringing You Yesterday's News From Japan and Asia, Today (Page 68)

Curry Udon Topped With Whipped Cream!? It’s Better than You Think!

Nov 27, 2012 by Karen Bremer Masuda
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The dish in the photo above looks like a dessert, something sweet to eat after a meal. But wait! It is the meal! It’s udon noodles in curry sauce and topped with whipped cream, to be exact, and it is absolutely delicious!

According to our trusty reporter Mr. Sato (Food Queen Sato, as he calls himself on Twitter), that is, who went to the noodle shop Shodai in Ebisu, Tokyo to taste this revolutionary spin on curry udon.

Curry udon is a standard noodle dish that can be found at just about any udon shop in Japan. It mixes the flavor of udon and curried rice by ladling curry sauce over a bowl of udon noodles. Simple, yet effective.

Throwing whipped cream into the mix doesn’t sound like it would end well. Usually these kind of things don’t. But what did Mr. Sato think about this unlikely combination?

Check his full report below! Read More

We Take Our New Wii U for a Ride on a Bullet Train, Works Like a Charm

Nov 26, 2012 by Philip Kendall
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The Wii U — Nintendo’s first new home console in six years — may not be available until next Saturday here in Japan, but that didn’t stop our team getting hold of a North American unit and getting stuck into some quality gaming early.

Gamers among you will already know a little about Nintendo’s newest baby, but for the uninitiated, here it is in a nutshell: the Wii U combines the remote-wielding mayhem of everyone’s favourite Nintendo system with a unique new controller featuring a touch screen that can be used with or without a TV set, all topped off with a layer of gorgeous high-definition visuals. The idea is that the player uses the screen to interaxct with their games in a new way or, as we did here, use the gamepad screen in place of a TV set.

Sounds good, right?

But until we got our hands on a Wii U, we never fully appreciated just how much of a game-changer it was. We’ve played Sony PSP and Nintendo DS consoles on the go for years now, but imagine being able to take your actual home games console out on the road. Or how about on a high speed train…

Nov 26, 2012 by Philip Kendall
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A US Navy sailor has been arrested by Japanese police after wandering around naked and urinating in a manga cafe near Yokohama station, Kanagawa prefecture last Friday.

The incident comes just weeks after the US Military imposed a curfew between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. after two soldiers were arrested for the alleged rape of a woman in Okinawa, causing outcry in the Japanese media.

According to reports, the sailor admits that he urinated in the cafe, but absolutely draws the line at the despicable act of stripping off in a public place…

Nov 26, 2012 by Master Blaster
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As the global recession trudges along, unemployment rates remain high leaving many young men laid off or graduating without job prospects. Luckily a new avenue of employment for men has opened up in Japan.

Up until not long ago, nursing in Japan was exclusively done by women. Even as more and more women took on careers as doctors, the idea of a man being a nurse was about as absurd as a cow being one. However, nowadays more and more Japanese men are beginning to follow in the footsteps of Florence Nightingale.

So what are the pros and cons of becoming a male nurse?

Nov 26, 2012 by Michelle
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The electrical plug. Most of you probably handle one of these at least once a day and you probably have a few spares lying around. Why not gather them all together and turn something boring into something awesome! A

blogger in Mie prefecture created some amazing figures made completely out of electrical plugs. By combining these everyday household items together, he was even able to make a robot! Check out his story and the process he went through to create this awesome Gundam-style robot and other animals and objects made completely out of electrical plugs.

Nov 26, 2012 by Steven
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This might be what Toy Story would look like if it were made by Japanese nerds: amazing, fluid animation, incomprehensible story line. There’s even an appearance by Hentai Woody

Check the video, called “The Worst Thing”, below:

Nov 25, 2012 by Master Blaster
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South Korea has been enacting more stringent punishments for violent sexual crimes which appear to be on the rise in the country. As the government is recommending castration as a possible solution one citizen is doing his part to prevent these awful crimes.

His name is Hong Gwang Ui, a 43 year-old father of a four year old son, and using his knowledge as an engineer for the military he crafted a simple device which sets off an alarm if within 30 meters of a convicted sex offender.

Nov 25, 2012 by Steven
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You have to admit, Japan really knows how to raise money for a good cause. First there was the charity breast squeeze back in August, which managed to raise over 4,000,000 yen (US$48,500) in two days, all of which was donated to an AIDS charity.

Now, in honor of World AIDS Day, Japanese adult goods maker TENGA is asking men across the globe to take matters into their own hands by selling a line of limited-edition designer male sex toys and donating all the proceeds to AIDS awareness and prevention.

Nov 25, 2012 by Steven
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Japanese men hold their virtual girlfriends in high regard. Even among those who eventually find a real girlfriend and get married, there are some men who struggle to abandon their digital partner.

Especially after the release of Love Plus, an addictive open-ended dating simulator for the Nintendo DS that went on to sell over 250,000 copies in Japan, stories of men who were busted by their girlfriends or wives while playing—as well as stories of men whose wives played with them—became a common sight on the internet.

While everyone has their own level of tolerance for 2D infidelity, you’d have to be one hell of a woman to allow you husband to bring his virtual girlfriend to your most important day as a couple: your wedding.

Nov 25, 2012 by Master Blaster
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Japan currently stands among the oldest populations on the planet with around one quarter of its people over the age of 65. The effect this has on trends in media, fashion, and even love hotels can be seen everywhere in the country.

Even the porn industry is experiencing an unprecedented shift in demographics and taste. Currently fans of adult videos in Japan are clamoring for one thing only – more MILF porn.

Nov 25, 2012 by Steven
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Maid cafes have become a quintessential symbol of Japanese otaku culture and many foreigners who visit Japan make a trip to one an essential stop on their travel itinerary.

In recent years, some enterprising foreigners have even opened maid cafes back home, though some argue that they don’t translate well into other cultures and that foreign girls look awkward trotting about in stylized French maid costumes. In some cases, it is (see the video at the end of this article).

However, doubters need only look to Moscow’s first ever maid cafe, Otaky, which boasts a staff of young Russian maids so cute that even Japan acknowledges they’re doing it right.

Nov 25, 2012 by Michelle
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You, Me, And a Tanuki is a weekly featured blog run by Michelle, a Californian who is currently one of only two foreigners living in Chibu, a tiny fishing village on one of the Oki islands in Japan. Check back every Saturday for a new post or read more on her website here!

Did you know that July 4th was Pear Day and October 8th was Tofu Day? If you live in Japan, you may have seen special sales on Yakiniku (grilled meat) on August 29th, Yakiniku Day. Read More

New Site Lets You Critique Online Japanese Underwear-er, Fashion Models

Nov 24, 2012 by Steven
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Fashion models who appear on online shopping sites get a lot less attention than their counterparts on the runway and in print. Industry and magazine models are chosen to represent well-known brands; there’s a sense of distinction to be had in saying you were on the cover of Vogue and walked the runway for Gucci, and you can pose confidently knowing that eyes go to you first and the product second.

Models on online shops, however, are seen by designers as nothing more than fleshy mannequins, employed to make their clothes look good.

But no longer! Now there is a Japanese website that shines the spotlight on internet retail fashion models, proving to the world that they’re more than just another pretty .jpeg!

Nov 24, 2012 by Master Blaster
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You know those claw or crane games that are usually found in the corner of a bowling alley or Chuckie Cheese’s? In Japan, they’re widely known as UFO catchers and are a huge industry. In most places you can find entire rooms packed with them offering prizes ranging from key chains to iPads.

A video put up on YouTube revealed the ultimate claw game found in Russia. In this game, the prizes fight back.

Nov 24, 2012 by Steven
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Minimalist Pixel Art is the term given to a series of simplified, multi-colored block representations of iconic characters. They quickly achieved meme status after appearing on the web in 2010, and were even given physical shape with a German ad campaign for LEGO earlier this year.

The original images have also made the rounds in Japan, where they are known as “pictures that people well get if they know them”, and have recently inspired some Japanese netizens on internet message board 2channel to start a minimalist pixel party of their own.

Take a look at the images in the gallery below, and don’t feel bad if a few fly over your head: you’ll need a pretty firm grounding in Japanese culture to recognize a few of them.

Nov 24, 2012 by Philip Kendall
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Now here’s something you don’t see every day.

Not wanting to be outdone by the pure white heart fish spotted in Ishikawa prefecture, representing the skies this week is a pure white crow spotted in the Chūgoku region of Japan. With dazzling white feathers and clear blue eyes, this feathered fellow has even managed to find his way into the local media.

Nov 24, 2012 by Steven
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Horses are perhaps the most underrepresented demographic in modern gaming.

They respond to our calls, carry us across vast lands, and even sacrifice themselves so that we may keep fighting (Agro!), but when was the last time a horse was made the hero?

When was the last time the horse got the girl?

2011, actually, with the browser game My Sweet Umadonna ~I am Your Horse~, a Japanese visual novel where you play a rookie steed who strives to become a race horse under the care and training of three beautiful young women.

Nov 24, 2012 by Philip Kendall
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You see it at almost any busy shopping mall, nightclub or bar: long lines of women waiting to use the toilet, playing with their phones or staring directly ahead in a vain attempt to hide the fact that they’re worried what might happen if they have to wait much longer, all the while watching us guys stroll by and enter the men’s room with minimal fuss.

“You men are so lucky! You can pee standing up!” my female friends often cry.

Well, yes, we can. And now, thanks to the world’s newest beginning superpower, so can you!

Nov 23, 2012 by Master Blaster
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Things are getting busy for the unsung hero of clothing, underwear. In recent years developments in the underwear technology sector have been coming in fast and furious.

The following is a report of some progressive underpants that promise to cut smells, back pain and will rub your belly while you sleep.