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New York, 6:55 PM
Sun Nov 22
23 posts in the last 24 hours

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  • posts about #kotaku more →

    Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality

    Why Is Marketing To Female Gamers Considered Challenging?

    Amazon Drops Rape Simulation Video Game

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    Dsmvwl  Admin  Promote to frontpage Approve user Ban user ×
    Image of braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. braak: You are, as usual, completely correct.
    11/03/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Also, how much of a disaster is it for a declining population? A lowered GDP is bad, okay, but if the population is declining, doesn't that mean that the per capita domestic product is actually higher? #capcom
     Reply
    braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was starred braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was unstarred
    Image of Cynicalbard Cynicalbard
    11/03/09

    @braak: Yes but that higher GDP per capita is an artifact of the decline in population. The GDP itself has not grown(stagnation) and may actually be declining(deflation).

    Also, declining population translates to increased burden on individuals (due to a decreasing tax base). #capcom
     Reply
    braak promoted this comment Cynicalbard was starred Cynicalbard was unstarred
    Image of braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. braak: You are, as usual, completely correct.
    11/03/09

    @Cynicalbard: But it also translates to a higher share of the GDP per individual. I mean, I'm not concerned why it's happening. Does it matter what the country's gross product is, or does it matter how much money there is per person? Yes, the tax burden increases, but if the relative share of the GDP increases, it doesn't necessarily matter because it's a proportional change.

    @arginusae: That's a good point, and a problem that we're likely to run into here, too; I suppose there are valid reasons to be concerned about a declining population (and a higher proportion of older citizenry), I'm just suspicious of arguments that present a declining population--or even a drop in GDP, as implicitly bad. #capcom
     Reply
    braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was starred braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was unstarred
    Image of braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. braak: You are, as usual, completely correct.
    11/03/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Japan has...well, okay, I don't know really about Japan, this is just something I remember from English class, so don't take me too seriously...Japan also has a cultural "re-enchanment" issue going on. Unlike a lot of Western cultures, Japan's past and present are so sharply contrasted, and its samurai history so strongly fetishized, that there ends up being a strong cultural movement to re-capture that stuff. #capcom
     Reply
    braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was starred braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was unstarred
    Image of CrapCommentFromADude CrapCommentFromADude
    11/03/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Just so we're clear, the whole 'grass eating men' thing in Japan is basically media bullshit hype along the lines of the NYT trend pieces we've all grown to love. I've lived in Japan, I live in Asia currently, I've got plenty of contacts in Japan, and the uniform reaction is amusement that this fake trend (fauxnomenon?) is getting serious play in the West.

    There are broader trends in Japanese society toward a more suitable work/life balance for men, but it's not some big trend-piece movement. #capcom
     Reply
    Kilotwat promoted this comment CrapCommentFromADude was starred CrapCommentFromADude was unstarred
    Image of Arginusae Arginusae
    11/03/09

    @CrapCommentFromADude: I didn't want to comment on this thread precisely because I'm always wary of these articles that claim to identify significant societal tendencies in a foreign country. I grew up in West Africa, I live in France, and I cringe every time I read these generally very reductive articles about, I don't know, aid in Africa, or immigration in France, or the hijab issue and its conflict with the way we see and live secularism here, because they show a stunning ignorance of the general context of the society they're speaking of. (It's sometimes deliberate, because the articles are generally fairly short and it would take too much time to explain the complexities inherent in the way such things play in France, or Senegal, or in this case, Japan.)

    So when I read this, despite the fact that I've never been to Japan (and in large part because I've never been), I decided to take it with a huge spoonful of salt. #capcom
     Reply
    Kilotwat promoted this comment Arginusae was starred Arginusae was unstarred
    Image of CrapCommentFromADude CrapCommentFromADude
    11/03/09

    @Arginusae: :) Glad to hear it.

    Since we're both in greyed-out comment land and hopefully it's not too much of a comment thread derail, could I trouble you for your quick two cents on the hijab issue?

    My basic, only-quasi-informed take on the matter is that there's often a higher degree of support for a ban among immigrant women from the cultures that push the range of coverings than Western feminists would expect, because having the 'free choice' in practice too often means 'the choice of the brothers and fathers' who enforce a certain standard at the micro level.

    Am I completely off base? I'd love to be filled in by someone with more perspective. #capcom
     Reply
    Kilotwat promoted this comment CrapCommentFromADude was starred CrapCommentFromADude was unstarred
    Image of roxythekiller roxythekiller
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    The reason (most) women like this game can be summed up in one word: yaoi.
    And I love me some quality yaoi.
     Reply
    Adora Belle Dearheart promoted this comment Edited by roxythekiller at 11/02/09 11:28 PM roxythekiller was starred roxythekiller was unstarred
    Image of Pizza!Pizza!Pizza! Pizza!Pizza!Pizza!
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    So all these women get are guys who don't care about fast cars or objectifying women and instead treat them like friends, friends they might like to shop with at boutiques before having a nice bit of cake? Oh the poor darlings! #capcom
     Reply
    Pizza!Pizza!Pizza! was starred Pizza!Pizza!Pizza! was unstarred
    Image of limber limber
    11/02/09

    @Pizza!Pizza!Pizza!: I wonder if there'll be any sort of marriage-of-convenience trend, where the herbivore men and their cake-eating galpals end up forming families? Because if anything can make the impossible seem probable, that thing is cake. #capcom
     Reply
    limber was starred limber was unstarred
    Image of heavysyrup heavysyrup
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    actually, it's funny that this article is posted.
    i haven't played this game, but am intrigued by it.

    one of the dramas of the season i am watching is called Samurai Highschool.
    it stars a popular young actor who is a herbivore type, but transforms into an ancient samurai when in danger.

    so, yes, i would say this is definitely a trend. (and i enjoy it)

    interestingly enough, japanese female fashion is changing from a cuter pastel style to a more rock'n'roll aesthetic. #capcom
     Reply
    Adora Belle Dearheart promoted this comment heavysyrup was starred heavysyrup was unstarred
    Image of Adora Belle Dearheart Adora Belle Dearheart
    11/03/09

    @heavysyrup: I love miura haruma more than cake. The end. :) #capcom
     Reply
    Adora Belle Dearheart was starred Adora Belle Dearheart was unstarred
    Image of MondayMorningGlow MondayMorningGlow
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Re: "meat as a stand-in for manliness"
    I read about these guys before in a CNN.com article. The Japanese woman (!) who coined the term said, "In Japan, sex is translated as 'relationship in flesh,' so I named those boys 'herbivorous boys' since they are not interested in flesh." #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker promoted this comment MondayMorningGlow was starred MondayMorningGlow was unstarred
    Image of boxspelunker boxspelunker
    11/02/09

    @MondayMorningGlow: Most people say "sexxu o suru" which is "to do sex". I have never heard of another term. I'm sure there is one, since "sex" is taken from English, but it seems that no one uses any other term.

    Did she happen to say what it was? #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker was starred boxspelunker was unstarred
    Image of Anycah Anycah
    11/02/09

    @boxspelunker: She's referring to the term "nikutai kankei" which literally means "relationship in/of the flesh," which I'm assuming is a more literary/scholarly term than a colloquial loan-word expression. The term used to refer to the body in Japanese uses the same character and pronunciation as that of "meat." (and to nitpick, the romanization you're looking for is "sekkusu")

    See also: nikutai literature, or "carnal literature"/"literature of the flesh" in the immediate postwar period, stories of very, erm, physical and sexual experiences after living under censors and sensory deprivation during the war years. #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker promoted this comment Anycah was starred Anycah was unstarred
    Image of boxspelunker boxspelunker
    11/03/09

    @Anycah: Thank you! That is very, very helpful.

    I remember asking my friends about it - as I said in my first comment, because "sekkusu" (duh, self) is obviously an English-based loanword, but none of them knew anything. They just shrugged and said, "It's always 'sekkusu'."

    And narf, yes, you are totally right on the spelling. A+, self, for spelling with letters that don't exist! :D #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker was starred boxspelunker was unstarred
    Image of Rooo sez BISH PLZ Rooo sez BISH PLZ
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    *sigh*
    With this, I also see Japanese culture succeeding near as spectacularly as Americans -- both South and North -- at that other widespread and transnational game, "Blame the Women".
     Reply
    Edited by Rooo sez BISH PLZ at 11/02/09 8:12 PM Rooo sez BISH PLZ was starred Rooo sez BISH PLZ was unstarred
    Image of token_illiterate_commenter token_illiterate_commenter
    11/02/09

    @Rooo sez BISH PLZ: I think in this case it's a game of "Blame the Young". The young men have are being criticized for not being manly enough. They're being told the Japanese equivalent of "Sack Up".
     Reply
    Edited by token_illiterate_commenter at 11/02/09 8:48 PM token_illiterate_commenter was starred token_illiterate_commenter was unstarred
    Image of dropkickninjas dropkickninjas
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Um no. I like this game and various incarnations because of the gameplay, artwork (check out the detail in the character's costumes), characters and humour.

    I do admit samurais are cool - real life ones, historically. But as hotties? No.

    I don't think many women actually admire or fantasize about historically inaccurate video game characters. Have you actually seen what Sanada Yukimura or Date Masumane actually look like in real life?
     Reply
    token_illiterate_commenter promoted this comment Edited by dropkickninjas at 11/02/09 8:07 PM dropkickninjas was starred dropkickninjas was unstarred
    Image of sleepeatread sleepeatread
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    The name Kobayashi will always mean The Usual Suspects to me. #capcom
     Reply
    keldo promoted this comment sleepeatread was starred sleepeatread was unstarred
    Image of salthegeek salthegeek
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Some men are playing something called Love +. Which is a dating girlfriend sim video game. The level of devotion to that game is disturbing.
     Reply
    Edited by salthegeek at 11/02/09 7:56 PM salthegeek was starred salthegeek was unstarred
    Image of Rooo sez BISH PLZ Rooo sez BISH PLZ
    11/02/09

    @salthegeek: And I'll bet that started before this did. #capcom
     Reply
    Rooo sez BISH PLZ was starred Rooo sez BISH PLZ was unstarred
    Image of salthegeek salthegeek
    11/02/09

    @Rooo sez BISH PLZ: Yes it did. There are a couple of post on Kotaku about it.
    It's really scary #capcom
     Reply
    salthegeek was starred salthegeek was unstarred
    Image of yvanehtnioj yvanehtnioj
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    The phenomenon may also reflect a bigger issue: young women failing to find marriage partners. Since the 1970s the number of men and women marrying in their 20s and early 30s has fallen sharply,

    If the number of men and women marrying young has fallen sharply, why is young women failing to find marriage partners the bigger issue? Isn't it young people failing to find marriage partners? Or is being single only an issue if you're a woman? Grrr. #capcom
     Reply
    yvanehtnioj was starred yvanehtnioj was unstarred
    Image of Anycah Anycah
    11/02/09

    @yvanehtnioj: Men don't birth babies. =/ #capcom
     Reply
    yvanehtnioj promoted this comment Anycah was starred Anycah was unstarred
    Image of yvanehtnioj yvanehtnioj
    11/02/09

    @Anycah: And women don't make them alone. Even if you frame this in terms of procreation there's no reason for the slant. #capcom
     Reply
    yvanehtnioj was starred yvanehtnioj was unstarred
    Image of Anycah Anycah
    11/03/09

    @yvanehtnioj: Oh I know that, but the easiest way for the powers that be to wring their hands over the issue without calling for men to actually change in some fashion is to ignore them entirely. #capcom
     Reply
    Anycah was starred Anycah was unstarred
    Image of pond-side-over pond-side-over
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    As a heterosexual male on the dating scene, I for one secretly desire for a trend back towards boots, tights and intensely colorful tunics. #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker promoted this comment pond-side-over was starred pond-side-over was unstarred
    Image of boxspelunker boxspelunker
    11/02/09

    @pond-side-over: I think this sounds like fun :D Let's do this thing! #capcom
     Reply
    boxspelunker was starred boxspelunker was unstarred
    Image of salthegeek salthegeek
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality
    Not going to lie, I have read and bought a bunch of Ouran High School Host Club. It's a fun story and the covers are really cute. #capcom
     Reply
    salthegeek was starred salthegeek was unstarred
    Image of Haystacks Haystacks
    11/02/09

    @salthegeek: You can watch the anime free on youtube. #capcom
     Reply
    salthegeek promoted this comment Haystacks was starred Haystacks was unstarred
    Image of salthegeek salthegeek
    11/02/09

    @Haystacks: Eh, I like manga a bit better. #capcom
     Reply
    salthegeek was starred salthegeek was unstarred
    Image of Haystacks Haystacks
    11/02/09

    In reply to Samurai Fantasies Helping Japanese Women Escape Dating Reality

    I can't tell you how much I love that you dropped in "Ouran High School Host Club"

    It filled me with joy. #capcom
     Reply
    salthegeek promoted this comment Haystacks was starred Haystacks was unstarred
    Image of LatoyaPeterson LatoyaPeterson
    11/02/09

    @Haystacks: That was my shit! I miss that series with a passion. #capcom
     Reply
    LatoyaPeterson was starred LatoyaPeterson was unstarred
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