Recently, I took a week to visit my brother who teaches English at a Japanese university near Nagoya. Hundreds of thousands of words could be used to describe the wonderful food, the beautiful temples, and the unique culture of the country. But being a life-long gamer, I paid special attention to the distinct connection between the country and the gaming scene we all know and love. For the Top 5, I usually come up with a topic, then list the top five items for that topic in order. For this edition, it was truly difficult to narrow it down to only five. With that in mind, here's my best attempt at listing the Top 5 gaming elements of my time in Japan.
The Top 5 is a weekly feature that provides us with a forum to share our opinions on various aspects of the video game culture, and provides you with a forum to tell us how wrong we are. To further voice your opinions, check out What Are You Playing?, submit a vote in the Wii Fanboy Poll, and take part in the daily discussions of Wii Warm Up. 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-18-2008 @ 1:10PM
Mr Khan said...
You might catch hell from the growing group of people who think that Japanese gaming has become a niche market, and that everything worthwhile is made in the West
Not that i agree with that (far to the contrary), just a heads-up
Also: I too have felt the sting of having my ass kicked by the Japanese, especially in Mario Kart Wii
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8-18-2008 @ 1:12PM
ChunkyB said...
You forgot Club Nintendo. Those freaking super famicom classic controllers are the hottest thing ever.
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8-18-2008 @ 2:14PM
SoshiKitai said...
As much as I love Japan, their history, their culture, and their technology... I don't see Japan as the ultimate MUST for gamers.
I've seen and faced Japanese gamers... I've seen their awesome skills, especially in the arcades.
... but I think the most insanely skilled gamers come from South Korea.
...which is funny, cuz I have had SEVERAL bad experiences from Koreans. :P Call me racist, but I've just had it with them.
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8-18-2008 @ 2:43PM
buffalo_aaa said...
I went to an Asian mall in downtown LA for a friends birthday (best sushi in the city) and to my love and surprise there is an arcade filled with craziness. Unfortunately I couldn't stay long, but all I can say is there are mysteries in there that I need to go back and decipher. So many unrecognized characters!
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8-18-2008 @ 3:43PM
SoshiKitai said...
Oh... do you mean the Japan Arcade?
Yeah, you shoulda' seen it in the 90s... everyone from LA and around it, went there... a really famous Arcade back in the day...
*sigh* Just like the Pac-man arcade...
The arcade days have left, and I still miss 'em. :(
:D I still go to the Japan Arcade though... two or three times in a month. But I usually don't have the change to go there, since I usually spend all my cash at the shopping plazas around it.
8-18-2008 @ 11:43PM
Kralos said...
Beaten, but yeah, Japan Arcade. I went there a couple weeks ago while visiting my friend in LA, I loved Little Tokyo. Spent way more money than i should on various japanese stuff and sushi, but it was worth it. Don't know which restaurant you went to, I don't remember one being IN the mall, but I recommend you try Frying Fish, in the Village Plaza or whetever.
8-19-2008 @ 2:53AM
buffalo_aaa said...
we might be thinking of different places if you don't remember restaurants. This was at 7th and Alameda in a big cement mall with cheap parking. The mall was made up of mostly restaurants - sushi and korean. On the first floor is a HUGE asian supermarket, which is always great to go into for tea. I think the arcade is on the second floor. I definately need to go back, if only for the sushi. There was also a game store that wasn't open (!) so I have to go back and check on that.
8-18-2008 @ 2:44PM
samfish said...
I'm supposed to go to Japan in October to meet my girlfriend's parents (but until I have the plane ticket in my hand, I won't believe it), but I've already made it clear to her that our TRUE number one priority is going to be visiting some of those fabled Japanese arcades!
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8-18-2008 @ 3:44PM
SoshiKitai said...
Can you do something for me... can you see if Neo Geo Land still exists in some way? :(
... oh the fabled Neo Geo Land... how I wish I could have sat in one of your tiny-tiny seats.
8-18-2008 @ 2:47PM
Peter said...
/me starts pricing tickets to Japan online
Oh, wait. I'm unemployed.
D'oh.
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8-18-2008 @ 5:20PM
ChromeAlchemist said...
cant lie, the sf story was amazing to read for some reason
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8-19-2008 @ 7:41AM
tacoman said...
Street Fighter 4 has definitely been a defining moment of gaming for me here in Japan, and I have almost no background with the series; as soon as I saw someone pull off Zangief's ultra move, I knew this was something special.
Second would be going through the closet and finding a SFC with Link to the Past and Mario World.
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