japan

Sushi for dindins with the members of vividblaze. Can you name all the sushi in these photos? デイナーは好きな寿司と好きなグループvividblazeと一緒。

I mentioned last week that I’d be a guest this week on game developer Grasshopper Manufacture’s podcast (Flower, Sun, & Podcast), and the episode (5) is now up and you can download it here (it should be on iTunes too). Check it out if you want to hear me ramble (and ramble) about mostly game-related topics.

Pictured, the Grasshopper conference room — complete with ping-pong table — where we recorded the episode. Big thanks to Grasshopper producer Esteban Salazar for inviting me on the show.

Claire Tanaka continues her series of interviews with creative people living in and around her home prefecture of Tokushima.

The latest in a series of graphic design tools from Néojaponisme: a number of red, white, and black patterns based on Modern Japanese graphic design from the 1950s.

Coo Planning has designed a house in Osaka that features an interior completed covered in timber boards.

Kyoto-based essayist and designer Bianca Beuttel has recently started taking traditional Japanese tea ceremony classes, and as a result has started a series on her blog in which she brings up observations that often relate to the world of design.

If you pick up the latest issue of Wallpaper (August 2010), you'll find a paper cut-out -- it forms a house -- designed by architect Ryuji Nakamura.

Sea-faring peoples of the South Pacific were the first to navigate by the stars, and their ancient skill is still passed down from generation to generation in places like Micronesia to this day. It is my life’s work to study the voyages undertaken by those who set out to sea in canoes, without maps or compasses, unable to even see the distant islands they were aiming for.

We spotted this great LED light display at the basement entrance to the Seibu department store in Ikebukuro.

The Hikari no Tokei (”Light Clock”) is created by Yugo Nakamura and Yukihiro Takahashi, making use of eleven thousand LED bulbs. When the store opens and on the hour the clock also plays music.

Apologies for the noisy video; there was a loud promotion happening right in front of Seibu and I couldn’t shoot video actually inside the store. Though you can’t hear the music, it still looks pretty impressive and certainly has a way of beguiling passers-by…

The sounds, supplemented by those from the encroaching city,

and the common sights,

of a temple in Tokyo.

Asahi TV reporters Sahel Rosa and Alain visit an antique photo studio in Karuizawa and try on some costumes:

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Makuhari Messe is one of the biggest convention centers in Japan. Located in the west of Tokyo near Tokyo Disney Land, events like the Tokyo Game Show and Auto Salon are held here. Up until the escalator accident that happened in Summer 2008, the Wonder Festival took place at Tokyo Big Sight. Neither Tokyo Big Sight, Kaiyodo or the escalator company wanted to take responsibility for the accident - which is why the Wonfes now always takes place at the Makuhari Messe.

Folks heading to Makuhari for any events (Chara Hobby up soon) should get off at Kaihin Makuhari station - map here.

Anyway, some final photos taken at the Wonfes last Sunday of the hall - before, during and after the event. Wonder Festival is the worlds biggest figurine event and even though you got 7 hours, there is simply not enough time to go and see everything if you plan to eat or take a pee break.

Comrades at the Good Smile booth before the crowds were let loose - can you guess what they are up to?

All Wonder Festival 2010 Summer posts being tagged "wonfes."

It looks like Softbank is planning to bring social games like Farmville to Japan:

Zynga, the online gaming company best known for its Farmville Facebook game, has received a US$150 million investment from Japanese Internet company Softbank.

The two companies plan to form a joint venture, Zynga Japan, that will develop and distribute social games across Japan, they said in a statement.

Softbank, which holds the iPhone monopoly in Japan, has been beating out competitors in the battle for new subscribers.

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• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Panasonic will soon be selling a 3D digital camcorder:

On July 28th, Panasonic detailed the “world’s first 3D consumer camcorder[s],” the HDC-TM750 and HDC-TM650, in a series of press releases. The two products are fully functioning standard HD video cameras aimed at normal consumers in Japan, however consumers will be able to buy an attachable 3D conversion lens, the VW-CLT1.

The camera and lens set will cost about $2,000. The Asahi TV news video clip states that you will need to buy a 3D television set if you want to view the fancy 3D images that the camcorder can record.

3D Video Cameras & Televisions:

• The Future of Home Entertainment
• A Stupid Fad/Gimmick

View Results

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• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

You saw both of these at the Wonfes last weekend and now they are up for pre-order - Figma Mikuru Asahina and Nendoroid Yuki Nagato.

Mikuru is due out this October and will retail for 2,800 yen > details at Good Smile. Yuki is due out this November and will retail for 3,500 yen > details at Good Smile.

Both or either get? As for me - very much looking forward to Mikuru - berry kawaii. There is a poll embedded in this article.

Pre-order info should be up at the usual bunch of trusted online retailers - recommended if you don't want to end up with a bootleg. http://hlj.com http://www.amiami.jp/shop/?set=english http://toylet.net http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/ http://archonia.com http://hobbystock.jp http://kidnemo.com http://jlist.com

© 2007、2008、2009 谷川流・いとうのいぢ／SOS団　※画像は監修中のものです。

Pre-order details for the Black Rock Shooter Blu-ray+DVD set are up at Good Smile! And yep you guessed it - it will come with these adorable BRS girls double pack - Black Rock Shooter and Dead Master.

The Blu-ray and DVD will be out this December and retail for 4,200 yen. Format is 16:9 and will come in 7 different language subs too. The initial batch will come with a double jacket and feature some Huke illustrations while the standard version will still come with a 36 page illustration booklet.

The Blu-ray and DVD will also come with the 30 second Black Rock Shooter Stop Motion pilot and the making of BRS too.

Keep yer mince pies on one of the trusted online figure retailers for that pre-order info. http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/ http://www.amiami.jp/shop/?set=english http://toylet.net http://hlj.com http://archonia.com http://hobbystock.jp http://kidnemo.com http://jlist.com

There is a poll embedded in this article.

PayPal, the online payment unit of Internet commerce firm eBay Inc., is planning to break into the Japanese market — the first time it has entered a region without eBay's powerful auction business. Acquired by eBay in 2002, PayPal in most markets relies on its parent company's online auction behemoth for a steady supply of buyer and seller accounts, plus the lucrative transactions and brand recognition that follow.

Bad weather hampered the search Thursday in Hokkaido for a missing single-engine plane with two men aboard. The Cessna TU206G, registered with Aichi Prefecture-based Nakanihon Air Service Co., disappeared from radar around 10:40 a.m. Wednesday while flying at an altitude of about 670 meters over the southern part of the Oshima Peninsula, according to the transport ministry.

Softbank Corp. announced Thursday it will jointly create a new company with U.S.-based Zynga Game Network Inc. and provide "social game" services on the firm's mobile devices later this year. Softbank, the exclusive provider in Japan of Apple's iPhone and iPad, also said it posted a record ¥700.8 billion in sales and a record ¥156.6 billion operating profit, up 45 percent from the same period the previous year in the April-June quarter, thanks to sales of the two products.

Sony bounced back to profit last quarter and raised its full-year earnings forecast, fueled by stronger demand for its PlayStation 3 game consoles, personal computers and televisions. The Tokyo-based electronics and entertainment giant said Thursday it booked a net profit of ¥25.7 billion — or $294 million at current exchange rates — for the April-June quarter. That was a sharp turnaround from a ¥37.1 billion loss a year earlier. Revenue grew 3.8 percent to ¥1.66 trillion.