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October 09, 2025
 

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GAMES

A trade fair for video games in Paris in 2023. The games industry in general has struggled in recent years, with players spending more time on existing titles and not taking as many chances on new ones.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 5, 2025
Xbox’s hike on Game Pass shows cost of lost Call of Duty sales
The price hike and other changes are a sign that Xbox’s big streaming push is still not generating the revenue it would like eight years after launch.
Racehorse Oguri Cap, a superstar stallion of the late 1980s, is reimagined in anime form as a teenage schoolgirl who must perform upbeat idol-pop songs after every victory in “Umamusume: Cinderella Grey.”
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Oct 4, 2025
‘Cinderella Grey’ gallops past the other sports documentaries
Mixing real horse-racing history with idol-pop fantasy, “Cinderella Grey” proves anime can outpace today’s flat sports shows.
The Esports World Cup 2025 at Boulevard City Arena in Riyadh on Aug. 2. Saudi Arabia is focusing on gaming as part of a national strategy to create tens of thousands of new jobs and diversify the kingdom’s economy away from oil.
BUSINESS
Sep 30, 2025
Saudi plans for video game hub grow with $55 billion EA deal
The kingdom’s Public Investment Fund is part of a group of investors acquiring the video game giant to take it private.
Professional models cosplay characters from Persona 5: The Phantom X, one of many titles on display at Tokyo Game Show, Japan's largest gaming industry event.
LIFE / Digital
Sep 26, 2025
Tokyo Game Show 2025 leans into renewal and rebirth
Japan’s largest games industry show returns with its largest spread of exhibitors yet.
The Tokyo Game Show opened Thursday in the city of Chiba with 521 Japanese exhibitors and 615 exhibitors from overseas — the largest share yet.
BUSINESS
Sep 25, 2025
Tokyo Game Show kicks off with largest lineup yet
The four-day event is hosting a record 4,157 booths and 1,136 exhibitors, more than half of which are from overseas.
American saxophonist Patrick Bartley is the leader of J-Music Ensemble, a jazz-fusion band specializing in instrumental covers of Japanese music.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 25, 2025
Finding jazz in J-pop: Patrick Bartley’s musical second language
The J-Music Ensemble leader translates Japanese culture into a classic American musical tradition.
Signage in Nagoya counting down to the start of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games earlier this month.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 18, 2025
Japan considering North Korea's participation at 2026 Asian Games
The neighboring countries have no diplomatic ties and North Korea was a no-show when Japan last hosted the Asian Games in 1994.
Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium, which is scheduled to open in March next year, will be one of the main venues for the 2026 Asian Games.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 18, 2025
Japan seeks to ramp up Asian Games buzz with one year to go
Host Japan hopes next year's event will make a splash similar to that of the pandemic-delayed 2023 edition in Hangzhou, China.
Super Mario soft toys in various sizes at collector Kikai's residence in Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Aug. 19
LIFE / Digital
Sep 12, 2025
'He's a regular man, not unlike us': Marking 40 years of Mario games
Super Mario Bros., released for Nintendo's home consoles in Japan on Sept. 13, 1985, was a landmark of early video gaming.
Melos Han-Tani is a game designer of eclectic interests whose upcoming releases, Angeline Era and Danchi Days, are set in alternate-history Ireland and a public housing complex in Japan, respectively.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Sep 12, 2025
Melos Han-Tani: ‘Figuring out what you value is valuable for any artist’
A designer, programmer and composer, Han-Tani draws inspiration from a wide range of sources and channels his creativity through games, music and writing.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby is the latest overnight success to come from the world of Japanese video games — never mind it was originally released in 2021.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Sep 6, 2025
Racehorses, anime girls and gambling: Umamusume’s recipe for success
The latest overnight hit from Japan’s gaming world relies on a quirky mix of elements from the worlds of pop culture and sports.
The Indian national flag is projected onto a balloon during the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in New Delhi on Oct, 14, 2010.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Sep 2, 2025
2030 Commonwealth Games to be held in India or Nigeria
Canada, which hosted the first Commonwealth Games in 1930 in Hamilton, was expected to be in the running but did not bid.
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance makes excellent use of stages dripping with atmosphere to punch up the feel of its tight combat mechanics.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Aug 25, 2025
Sega's ninja-themed Shinobi series is back from the dead
The long-running series hasn’t had a console release since 2003, but the new title is nearly enjoyable enough to make the wait worth it.
The Saudi Arabia delegate waves the OCA flag during the closing ceremony of the Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China, on Feb. 14.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 25, 2025
Olympic Council of Asia says Asian Winter Games in Saudi Arabia 'on schedule'
Saudi Arabia is supposed to host the next edition of the regional winter competition in a move derided by environmental groups.
Trojena, the ski resort that is scheduled to host events during the 2029 Asian Winter Games, is part of the planned Saudi megacity of NEOM, which has faced a string of challenges in recent years.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 24, 2025
Saudi Arabia and Olympic Council weigh moving Asian Winter Games
The event is seen as a key marker for Saudi Arabia’s global ambitions and the kingdom could eventually simply choose to scale back plans for the planned ski resort.
McDonald's Japan has canceled its plan to bundle "One Piece" trading cards with its Happy Set meals, after a similar Pokemon-themed campaign sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 21, 2025
McDonald's Japan to skip 'One Piece' Happy Meal promo
The cancellation follows a similar Pokemon-themed campaign that sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
Eighth dan go player Kazuko Sugiuchi during a match in Tokyo in January last year
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2025
Time to go: Japan pro board game player retires at 98
Kazuko Sugiuchi turned professional in 1948, and she is set to be promoted to the rank of ninth dan after retiring, becoming the first woman to reach that level.
Members of Italy's delegation wave their country's national flag as they take part in the athletes' parade during the opening ceremony of the 2025 World Games at the Tianfu International Convention Centre in Chengdu, in China's southwestern Sichuan province on Aug. 7, 2025. Italian orienteering athlete Mattia Debertolis died at the Games on August 12, 2025 after collapsing during competition, organizers said.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 12, 2025
Italian orienteering athlete dies at World Games in China
Mattia Debertolis was rushed to hospital after being found unconscious during the men's middle-distance competition.
Cosplay fans hold small fans to cool down while outside the World Cosplay Summit in Nagoya on Aug. 3, 2024.
JAPAN
Aug 7, 2025
Japan's World Cosplay Summit to escape summer heat in 2027
The annual extravaganza, usually held in Nagoya, sees thousands of people from all over the world embody their chosen anime, manga and gaming stars in elaborate costumes.
Merchandise are pictured for sale at a Nintendo store in central Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 2, 2025
Nintendo to raise U.S. pricing of original Switch hardware
Nintendo attributed the changes to "market conditions," a hint at the impact of the Trump administration’s tariffs.
How China waged an infowar against U.S. interests in the Philippines
Association for Philippines-China Understanding (APCU) Chairman Raul Lambino shakes hands with guests during a ceremony for the Award for Promoting Philippines-China Understanding at The Manila Hotel in Manila in June.
‘We have drawn lessons,’ Indian Army chief says of brief clash with Pakistan
Indian Army chief Upendra Dwivedi waves as he arrives to attend the ceremonial reception of Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi in May.
Typhoon Halong to cause windstorms, heavy rain and high waves on the Izu islands
Typhoon Halong is moving north near the Izu Islands, with strong winds, high waves and heavy rain expected as it passes early on Thursday, prompting warnings from the weather agency.
Takaichi's leadership lineup favors Aso and his allies while shutting out rivals
The LDP's newly-appointed election chief Keiji Furuya (far left), general affairs council chair Haruko Arimura (second from left), vice president Taro Aso (center left), president Sanae Takaichi (center right), secretary-general Shunichi Suzuki (second from right) and policy chief Takayuki Kobayashi in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Qilin cybercrime gang claims hack on Japan's Asahi
The Asahi Group headquarters complex in Tokyo
OpenAI’s Sora 2 is drowning in Japanese 'AI slop'
OpenAI has rolled out a social app powered by Sora 2, its artificial intelligence video generator, which was quickly flooded with videos featuring iconic Japanese intellectual property.
Trump has his eyes on the prize — but a Nobel win looks unlikely
A protester holds a sign with an image depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and the words "Nobel" written on it, as supporters and family members of hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas, demonstrate to demand the immediate end of the war and the release of all hostages, outside the U.S. Consulate in Tel Aviv, on Sept. 2.
‘Takaichi trade’ stalls as political reality calls for wait-and-see approach
Tokyo stocks staged a powerful rally on Monday. On Tuesday, they rallied again, then retreated.
‘We have drawn lessons,’ Indian Army chief says of brief clash with Pakistan
Indian Army chief Upendra Dwivedi waves as he arrives to attend the ceremonial reception of Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi in May.
How a family-run landscaper turned the Osaka Expo green
The team at Ryokukou Garden consists primarily of a single family, including Toshiki Tanisaki (second from right), who led the company's efforts at the Osaka Expo, Chikako Tanisaki (fifth from right), who performs daily maintanence at the expo, and Takeshi Tanisaki (fourth from right), who added a nursery to the family farm more than 50 years ago.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?
By Alex K.T. Martin

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