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【Erection 2012】 Japanese PC Shop Offers Savings on Erotic Games to Customers who Vote

Japan’s 46th general election is a little over a week away, and if there’s one demographic that could care less, it’s the otaku. For the obsessive Japanese nerd, it doesn’t matter what political party wins the election, so long as they can buy the latest shiny toys and spend quality time with their 2-D lovers.

Still, while otaku may feel like the major political issues of this election, like energy policy and social security, are of no concern to them, their lifestyle isn’t completely unaffected by the decisions of the higher ups. For example, some worry that joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) would bring changes to copyright laws that could threaten the thriving doujin, or fan-made works featuring licensed characters, market. You hear that, otaku!? No more Final Fantasy porn!

That’s right; you can always count on porn to get otaku moving. That’s why PC Shop MK, a software shop in Sapporo, Hokkaido that specializes in new and used erotic games, is offering huge discounts for customers who vote in the December 16 election.

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Nocturnal Ramen Shop in Sapporo, So Yummy That People Line Up For it in the Middle of the Night!

Nocturnal Ramen Shop in Sapporo, So Yummy That People Line Up For it in the Middle of the Night!

Isonokatsuo is a ramen shop in Suskino, the drinking district of Sapporo, Hokkaido, that opens its shutters around the time the city night life starts revving up into full swing and continues to serve up hot bowls of noodles until 7  o’clock the next morning.

All-night ramen shops are not unheard of in Japan, but Isonokatsuo is known for making ramen so delicious that people line up for it in the middle of the cold Sapporo night. On a recent trip to Hokkaido, one of our reporters decided to burn the midnight chili oil and try out Isonokatsuo for himself.

Check his report below!

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Here, Have Some Chocolate Cow Poop Mochi From Hokkaido

Here, Have Some Chocolate Cow Poop Mochi From Hokkaido

About half of the milk in Japan is produced in the beautiful and vast countryside of Hokkaido, the largest of Japan’s 47 prefectures and northernmost of Japan’s four main islands. As such, cows have become a symbol of the prefecture. Walk into any souvenir shop in the prefecture and you’re bound to find a few locally-produced snacks with bovine-inspired packaging.

On a recent trip to Hokkaido, one of our reporters came across one such snack that was a little less run-of-the-mill than your usual butter cookies: “Cow Poop?” chocolate mochi.

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Land-Grab!!! Plots of Land in the Hokkaidō Countryside from Just One Yen per Square Metre

Land-Grab!!! Plots of Land in the Hokkaidō Countryside from Just One Yen per Square Metre

It may not be the most bustling of towns, but for those of you in the market for real-estate, have we got a good deal for you!

Your own plot of land from just one yen per square-metre!

Yup, one yen! That’s 0.01 US dollars!!! 0.009 Euros!!! 0.01 Panamanian balboa!!! Holy bargains, Batman!

Bizarrely, there’s no catch. No “but it’s infested with rabid ferrets!” or “but you must spend the night in a haunted house with Rosie O’Donnell!” punchline. The town of Chippubetsu in Hokkaidō is genuinely offering habitable land for the incredible price of one, single yen. And, as a result, is receiving an unprecedented amount of attention from both the media and Japanese internet users. Someone in Chippubetsu is getting a lot of pats on the back for coming up with this initiative, we’re sure… Read More

We Head to the Location of OS X Mountain Lion’s Desktop, “Blue Pond” and Soak In the Mysterious Beauty First Hand

We Head to the Location of OS X Mountain Lion’s Desktop, “Blue Pond” and Soak In the Mysterious Beauty First Hand

Installed on the recently released OS X Mountain Lion is a breathtaking image of an aquamarine pond with trees growing out of it.  We previously gave you the impressions of the photographer Kent Shiraishi, but now we went straight to the real Blue Pond in Biei, Hokkaido to see if it lives up to the photo.

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The Story Behind the Beautiful Photo of the New MacBook ‘Mountain Lion’ OS

The Story Behind the Beautiful Photo of the New MacBook ‘Mountain Lion’ OS

One of the MacBook Pro desktop backgrounds featured on Apple’s website shows an astoundingly exquisite azure pond with bare trees coming out of the water, covered in snow. It will be one of the backgrounds included with OS X Mountain Lion, to be released this July. We’ve found out a bit about the photographer responsible for this particular work… Read More

TripAdvisor Ranks Top 20 Japanese Travel Destinations For Foreign Visitors, Hiroshima Edges Kyoto For Top Spot

TripAdvisor Ranks Top 20 Japanese Travel Destinations For Foreign Visitors, Hiroshima Edges Kyoto For Top Spot

The Japanese arm of tourism website TripAdvisor gathered user comments and evaluations from the past year and used them to rank the Top 20 travel destinations in Japan over that time. Hiroshima Prefecture maintained its popularity with two destinations in the Top 5 while five Kyoto sightseeing spots made the list.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and A-Bomb Dome moved to the top of the list after coming in second last year. Read More

Instant Ramen #1 on Favorite Japanese Factory Tours, Field Trips

The Japanese version of the popular travel information site Trip Adviser recently published a list of the best factory tours in Japan. Perhaps unsurprisingly, one of the nation’s most popular exports makes it to number one. Read More

Japan’s World Heritages Fly Well Under Radar

Japan’s World Heritages Fly Well Under Radar

Did you know that Japan has 16 locations on the list of UNESCO World Heritages? Could you name them all with any sum of money on the line?

Survey Research Center, Co. Ltd. conducted a survey that showed that most people could not. When asked whether they were interested in Japan’s world heritages, 67.8% of those surveyed responded affirmatively. However, only 4% of respondents knew all 16 Japanese sites.

See how many you can name before looking at the list below:

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