Japan Reacts

Author: Japan Reacts Editorial

  • Even FF8 and MGS4 Make the List: 5ch Users Confess Their Favorite ‘Crap Games’ — ‘Air’s Adventure? Truly Just Hot Air’

    A thread titled “Tell me your personal ‘crap games,’ yo” on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry (Geha) board drew a flood of responses. Posters named everything from famous titles like Saga Frontier 2, FF8, MGS4, and GTA5 to obscure ones like The Lion King and Air’s Adventure, each explaining why they gave up on the game. Some even named critically acclaimed titles like Elden Ring and Dark Souls III, highlighting just how much people’s standards for a “crap game” can differ.

    1AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:20
    Saga Frontier 2
    The first game where I quit after like two battles thinking, 'nah, this isn't it'!
    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:22
    Super Monkeys
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:32
    Re: #1 Re: #2
    Take your ad-blog survey threads (aimed at content-scraping affiliate blogs) to the chat board, Kenmo, the Saiaku board, or your diary — go on, scram.
    14AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:33
    Re: #13
    So I'm eating at the Matsuya in Nakano-sakaue when a fat guy sits down next to me, his gut bumps my elbow, and I spill my miso soup — now what?
    3AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:23
    Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song — I just don't like Sif's hairstyle.
    7AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:28
    Wait, isn't Catherine one of those Toon Blast-type games?
    10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:31
    The Mystery of the Duo (Konbi no Nazo) isn't a crap game, don't even lump it in.
    20AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:39
    Kakefu-kun's Jump Paradise, Speed Hell
    25AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:43
    If you want a REAL crap game, go dig one up on the Wii.
    26AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:48
    Challenger — a game where literally the only fun part is riding the train.
    36AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:01
    I was shocked at just how much Baldur's Gate 3 was 'not for me.'
    37AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:02
    Killer7
    Got suckered by Famitsu.
    39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:03
    Re: #37
    Wait, you didn't find it fun?
    41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:07
    Replaying MGS4 right now and it's really hitting me all over again what a crap game it is.
    42AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:12
    Saga Frontier 2 is actually good. Unlimited Saga and SaGa Emerald Beyond are the real crap games.
    44AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:13
    Huh, still zero variety so far lol

    Sega Mark III's Highschool! Kimengumi
    45AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:15
    GTA5
    Stealing a car in the tutorial just felt gross, and the driving was so annoying to control.
    47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:19
    Random, but whenever someone talks like '…ssu' all I can think of is Hot Gimmick
    Well, it's a crap game anyway so who cares.
    69AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:11
    Re: #47
    LOL, even Crayon Shin-chan talks like that-ssu!

    Re: #62
    I want you to properly call me a fat pig ♡
    No wait, how many times do I have to say I don't even know that person (…etc)
    48AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:25
    Romance of the Three Kingdoms 13 arrived on release day, I stayed up all night playing it, thought 'this is bad, right?', and went to sell it the very next day.
    54AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:32
    The first Ace Attorney
    The comedic tone just didn't click with me, so I quit partway through.
    56AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:39
    FF8
    That's the one that made me stop buying FF games.
    58AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:46
    The first time I played Donkey Kong 64 I had no idea what was going on and thought it was a crap game
    But once I replayed it and actually understood it, I realized it's a masterpiece.
    60AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:48
    Hakai-Oh: King of Crusher
    61AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:50
    – Powerful Golf
    Controls are so hard it's basically impossible to clear.
    – Burnout Paradise
    Open world, sure, but the systems are way too clunky.
    – Smash Bros. Ultimate
    A letdown that made the controls, UI, and online worse than the previous game.
    63AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:54
    This one's Wii Sports
    The culprit that drove me away from Nintendo for good.
    64AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:59
    Vagrant Story
    A crap game, complete with the shock of being the first time Famitsu ever fooled me.
    73AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:33
    Re: #64
    It's not for everyone, but I think a 40/100 is fair for that one.
    67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:06
    Elden Ring and Dark Souls III, hands down
    Anything less than that, I couldn't say.
    71AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:18
    Air's Adventure
    Truly just air (a pun — the title literally has 'air' in it, and that's about all the game has).
    72AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:23
    SD Gundam G Generation Neo
    77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:51
    Seiken Densetsu 4 (Dawn of Mana)
    Seriously, 'What is even going on…?' perfectly summed up how fans felt back then.
    78AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:52
    The Lion King's difficulty is straight-up insane.
    79AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:54
    Honestly, if you're gonna make a thread like this, wouldn't a 'best games through the PS3/360/Wii era' thread be way more worthwhile?
    80AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:55
    The skateboard stage in Mega Man 8 was pretty rough too.
    81AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:56
    FF8 — I'm allergic to that visual-kei look, so I haven't bought a single Square game since.
    82AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:10
    Probably the SNES Dear Boys game
    Though the manga itself is a perfect 10/10.
    83AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:16
    Bahamut Lagoon
    Bought it because of the good reputation, but the vibe just didn't click with me at all.
    87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:01
    Re: #83
    Fasterrr than Salamander (a nod to the old shoot-'em-up meme).
    86AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:19
    No wait, Dear Boys
    There's actually a chance
    Surprisingly, a lot of people like it, right?

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    The term “crap game” (kusoge) doesn’t always mean a genuinely poorly made game — it’s often used to describe a personal experience of “this just wasn’t for me,” shaped by a mismatch with expectations or how attached someone was to a title. In this thread, even highly acclaimed games like FF8, MGS4, Elden Ring, and Dark Souls III came up, showing just how much the line between “good” and “bad” depends on personal taste and memories. Comments about Killer7 and Vagrant Story repeatedly mentioned being “fooled by Famitsu,” highlighting the gap between the magazine reviews of the time and players’ actual impressions after playing. Some, like the poster who initially gave up on Donkey Kong 64 only to replay it later and change their mind, showed that a “crap game” verdict isn’t necessarily permanent.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry, aka “Geha”) thread “[Nostalgia] Tell Me Your Personal Crap Games, Yo ♡.”

  • Shock Skid: Yokozuna Onosato Drops Second Straight, Falls to 3 Losses — Anseiki Holds at 3 as Title Race Goes Down to the Wire

    On day 14 of the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament, Yokozuna Onosato lost to Ozeki Kotozakura, picking up his second defeat of the tournament and falling to 3 losses. Meanwhile, Ozeki Anseiki held the line at 3 losses by beating fellow Ozeki Kirishima in an all-Ozeki bout, sending the championship race down to the final day, where Onosato and Anseiki will face off directly in the tournament’s closing bout. Maegashira Asanoyama also lost, dropping to 4 defeats and falling out of title contention. On the 5ch Geinou/Sports News+ board, threads mixed laments over the Yokozuna’s fragility in crunch moments with excitement over a rare tied-record showdown.

    Sports Nippon

    [September 26, 2026, 17:55]

    Day 14 of the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament was held on the 26th at Tokyo’s Ryogoku Kokugikan. Yokozuna Onosato (26, Nishonoseki stable) lost to Ozeki Kotozakura (28, Sadogatake stable), falling to 3 losses. Ozeki Anseiki (22, Ajigawa stable) won his Ozeki-versus-Ozeki bout against Kirishima (30, Otowayama stable) to hold at 3 losses, sending the championship cup down to the final day. Maegashira Asanoyama (32, Takasago stable) lost to Sekiwake Fujinokawa (21, Isenoumi stable), dropping to 4 losses.

    Source: sponichi.co.jp / Original article here

    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:02
    If the Yokozuna blows a two-win lead and loses the title from here, that's beyond humiliating.
    4AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:02
    Onosato still can't deliver when it matters most.
    6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:04
    Now that Asanoyama's out of it, I've lost interest.
    7AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:04
    Seems like Ryoko Kuninaka's comment (the actress) really lit a fire under Kotozakura.
    10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:07
    Re: #1
    Get lost, sumo-thread-spam troll!
    12AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:08
    His approach was a bit too rushed.
    This is exactly the issue.
    At this point I'd recommend zazen meditation over sumo practice.
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:08
    Kotozakura's strong against the top guys but keeps dropping matches to maegashira — why is that?
    14AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:08
    Anseiki should just get promoted to Yokozuna already.
    If not for the injuries, he's the strongest guy out there right now.
    16AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:10
    Re: #14
    Better to make him Yokozuna and let the injury heal fully.
    Once he's a Yokozuna he can take all the rest he needs.
    17AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:10
    Tomorrow, final day, Yokozuna Onosato vs Ozeki Anseiki —
    whoever wins takes the top-division title at 12-3.
    Couldn't be simpler.
    18AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:10
    Would it be unprecedented for a wrestler with 3 losses to win the championship?
    26AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:14
    Re: #18
    First time ever — according to Google's AI, anyway.
    37AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:25
    Re: #18
    Sounds like Harumafuji did it before.
    19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:11
    Re: #16
    Onosato doesn't really look fully recovered either, honestly.
    21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:12
    A tied-record showdown in the final day's closing bout —
    a playoff match is great and all, but this kind of finish is the most thrilling.
    36AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:24
    Re: #21
    Apparently the first one since Kotozakura vs. Hoshoryu, two years ago.
    22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:13
    Onosato's basically Japan's Virat Kohli.
    23AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:13
    Ah, totally forgot sumo was even on
    Onosato, again?
    Get it together lol
    24AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:14
    He lost to Kotozakura?
    Hopeless…
    41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:31
    Re: #24
    Kotozakura's beaten Onosato plenty of times before, so it's not exactly a shock.
    28AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:15
    Sumo's turned into a boring world of just pulling back or pushing forward.
    29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:18
    He rushed the attack with just his upper body and his legs weren't driving forward.
    A Yokozuna shouldn't be losing like that.
    32AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:20
    Turns out even with the Mongolian-dominance era over, it's still boring.
    34AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:21
    Has anyone actually won a title with 3 losses before?
    39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:26
    Re: #34
    Tons of guys have, come on.
    35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:21
    He's the Yokozuna — he should just plant his feet, absorb the hit, and attack with composure, but he always gets caught out at the ring's edge.
    40AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:30
    Why did he even need to panic that much against Kotozakura?
    42AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:34
    A Yokozuna who's strong and fragile at once — though I feel like Anseiki's been weak against fellow Yokozuna.
    54AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:51
    Re: #42
    Exactly. He got his first win over a Yokozuna just last tournament. They haven't faced off much, so it's hard to say if he's really bad at it.
    My gut says Onosato keeps losing tomorrow too.
    45AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:36
    Re: #1
    Didn't catch it, but couldn't Onosato jump clear at the edge?
    47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:41
    Re: #45
    He did hop at the end.
    49AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:45
    Re: #45
    More like he stumbled forward.
    Fragile as ever.
    52AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:50
    Kotozakura (the son, formerly Kotonowaka):
    "Guess I gave you all something to remember, huh~."

    Sadogatake stablemaster (the father, also formerly Kotonowaka):
    "If you're gonna make a moment out of a weird spot like that,
    you'd better be doing things properly all the time."
    58AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:07
    Re: #52
    Seriously, this — does he get stronger once he's dropped enough matches to maegashira that the title-race pressure is off?
    64AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:18
    Anseiki's basically racked up 12 wins every tournament except his losing ones. That's what's impressive.
    83AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:17
    Re: #64
    Since his top-division debut people kept saying 'can't he ever notch 12 instead of just 11,' but yeah, lately he has.

    Background and key points of this story

    Grand sumo runs on a 15-day round-robin format, and if multiple wrestlers are tied for the most wins on the final day, a playoff bout decides the championship. This tournament, Yokozuna Onosato and Ozeki Anseiki are tied at 3 losses apiece, making the final day’s closing bout a de facto championship decider. One thread post asked whether a wrestler winning the title with 3 losses would be unprecedented, but replies pointed out that Harumafuji had a similar case in the past — a reminder that posts simply quoting an AI’s answer shouldn’t be taken at face value. Anseiki, a 22-year-old Ozeki, has drawn praise for consistently racking up 11-12 wins per tournament since his top-division debut, aside from his losing records. Onosato, meanwhile, has repeatedly stumbled down the stretch since his Yokozuna promotion, and many thread posters pointed to his fragility in crunch moments. This tied-record finale is said to be the first since Kotozakura vs. Hoshoryu two years ago, with posters voicing excitement over the rare head-to-head showdown.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[Sumo Day 14] Onosato Suffers Painful 3rd Loss With Second Straight Defeat; Anseiki Holds at 3, Championship Cup Down to Final Day; Asanoyama Drops to 4 Losses.”

  • AKB48’s Momoka Hasegawa Rejoins After 5 Years — 5ch: ‘So It Was Real After All?’

    On September 26, 2026, AKB48 unveiled four new 22nd-generation trainees at a concert held at K Arena Yokohama, and among the names was Momoka Hasegawa (19), who had previously served as Team 8’s Fukushima representative before withdrawing from activities in March 2021. Because her departure back then came abruptly — ending just two days after she’d stepped down as center — 5ch lit up with surprised comments like “I was sure that was a fake story.” Meanwhile, other posters in the thread pointed out several past cases of AKB group members leaving and later returning through a different slot, arguing that this rejoining isn’t without precedent.

    coki, 09.26.2026

    On September 26, 2026, AKB48 unveiled four new 22nd-generation trainees at a concert at K Arena Yokohama in Kanagawa.

    Among them was the name Momoka Hasegawa (19), who had served as Team 8’s Fukushima Prefecture representative since 2019 before withdrawing from activities in March 2021.

    Source: coki.jp / Original article here

    9AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:01
    Thought this might be a publicity stunt, but honestly the gap's way too long for that
    11AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:04
    Huh, so 'rejoining' is actually a thing that happens
    20AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:22
    Re: #11
    Ayaka Kikuchi came back once too
    25AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:23
    Re: #11
    Hitomi Komatani: AKB 1st gen → SDN 3rd gen
    Hana Toshima: AKB 1st gen → SDN 3rd gen
    Ayaka Kikuchi: AKB 3rd gen → AKB 7th gen
    Mika Saeki: AKB 4th gen → "Baito AKB" (part-timer AKB)
    Sara Fujimoto: AKB 4th gen → AKB 9th gen
    Satomi Muranaka: AKB 4th gen → AKB 8th gen
    Shihori Suzuki: AKB 7th gen → AKB 11th gen
    Nanami Nishikawa: AKB 8th gen → Nogizaka46 2nd gen
    Eriko Jo: NMB 2nd gen → NMB 4.5th gen
    Saori Katsumata: "Baito AKB" (missed the following 2nd AKB Draft Conference) → AKB Draft 3rd gen
    Momoka Hasegawa: Team 8 Fukushima 3rd gen → AKB 22nd gen
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:10
    This is it

    AKB48 Team 8's Momoka Hasegawa Announces End of Activities ★A Two-Day Reign
    https://kako.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/akb/1616769859/147
    15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:17
    So it was real after all, I was dead sure it was fake
    16AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:18
    Probably won't sell, and can she even keep up with members younger than her?
    18AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:21
    Got showered with attention but couldn't find anything else to keep the spotlight on herself, so back she comes
    19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:21
    Itomo and Hasemomo — the momo-momo combo (a pun: both members' nicknames end in "momo")
    22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:22
    This is rough for the 17th-gen-and-later members — a junior who's suddenly their senior (lol)
    29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:27
    Turns out she's an exact same-generation member as that (notorious) Fukudome
    31AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:29
    Probably just a stopgap gig until she signs with Cent Force (a talent agency)
    32AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:30
    Still got the photos saved, but posting them would feel like digging up old wounds, so I'll pass
    33AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:34
    Isn't this the first time in AKB history someone's quit and then come back through a full rejoin?
    36AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:41
    Re: #25
    Wasn't 8th gen basically all problem children or something?
    44AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:51
    Re: #36
    Not all of them were problem children, but none of them ever got promoted to full member before quitting
    45AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:54
    Re: #44
    Nah, none of 8th gen took lessons seriously — Togasaki himself said they were all satisfied just getting to use the AKB name
    65AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:27
    Re: #45
    Lmao nothing but problem children
    52AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:06
    Figured she'd use the beauty pageant and AKB as stepping stones to becoming a TV announcer — guess she was way more attached to being an idol than that
    55AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:11
    Re: #52
    It's just a stopgap until she becomes a TV announcer. If that doesn't pan out, it's Cent Force (talent agency)
    68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:32
    She was at that Budokan show last year where all the OGs (former members) got together, right?
    69AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:34
    Re: #68
    Probably being there made her want to be an idol again
    72AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:38
    So her penance is done? Guess that's fine by the group's standards
    76AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:43
    Re: #72
    Well, there wasn't a dating scandal involved, so maybe that's why she's in the clear

    Background and Key Points

    AKB48’s Team 8 launched in 2014 as a project built around one representative from each of Japan’s 47 prefectures, and as commenters in the thread note, it’s known for having many members end their activities without ever being promoted to regular member status. This article doesn’t reveal the specific reason Hasegawa withdrew from activities in 2021, so the thread’s speculation shouldn’t be taken as established fact. It’s also worth noting that most of the “return after leaving” examples listed in the thread involved moving to a different unit or slot entirely — such as SDN48 or the AKB Draft Conference — which is a different situation from Hasegawa’s case, where she fully ended her activities before coming back as a trainee within the same group.

    *This article was compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “AKB48’s Momoka Hasegawa Rejoins After 5 Years — The Full Story from Her Center Withdrawal at 14 to Becoming a Trainee “From Scratch”.”

  • Shock Upset: Tomokazu Harimoto Falls to World No. 344 Iranian Player in Full-Game Comeback Loss

    At the Asian Games currently underway in Nagoya, Aichi, in the men’s table tennis singles quarterfinals, world No. 4 Tomokazu Harimoto (Toyota Motor) lost 3-4 in a full-game battle to world No. 344 Noshad Alamiyan of Iran. Harimoto had just won gold in the team event at this tournament, and the loss to an opponent ranked more than 300 spots below him was seen as a major upset. On 5ch, opinions were divided over the cause of the defeat — some pointed to fatigue from the team competition, others viewed the opponent as an experienced veteran, and some even suggested that world rankings don’t accurately reflect real skill.

    9/26 (Sat) 18:05

    ◆Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Day 8, Table Tennis (26th, Skyhall Toyota)

    In the men’s singles quarterfinals, ace and world No. 4 Tomokazu Harimoto (Toyota Motor) suffered a shock defeat, falling 3-4 (9-11●, 7-11●, 11-3○, 6-11●, 16-14○, 11-6○, 9-11●) to world No. 344 Noshad Alamiyan (Iran).

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:39
    Re: #1
    Kinda like beating Sannoh and then losing the very next match (Slam Dunk reference)
    7AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:39
    Alamiyan's serve alone might be the best in the world
    9AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:39
    Harry's weakness is that he panics the moment things go wrong
    But when he's on, he's genuinely strong
    10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:39
    Probably just burned out
    87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:13
    Re: #10
    Same as Shohoku after they beat Sannoh (Slam Dunk reference)
    11AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:39
    Way too inconsistent
    Can't really call him top-tier
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:40
    Kind of like Nishikori losing to Taro Daniel
    15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:41
    He burned out after winning team gold
    21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:43
    That's just posturing to mask a weak mental game — he can't pull himself back together once the momentum turns against him.
    39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:47
    Re: #21
    That's really a stretch
    He's turned the momentum around in tons of matches before
    Stop saying stuff that doesn't even make sense
    23AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:43
    His 'Chorei!' shout was annoying anyway, good riddance (Harimoto's signature victory yell)
    26AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:45
    The team event is just a warm-up, the singles is the real deal — no way he burned out lol
    Nothing but dumb excuses and fanboying
    Even world ranking points only come from singles, not the team event
    27AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:45
    He put his effort into the wrong thing.
    The team event is basically just foreplay compared to this.
    30AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:45
    The Iranian guy had the win in hand once already but got called for a service fault, and I figured he'd totally fall apart after that
    He kept his composure and pulled through anyway. Genuinely impressive.
    31AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:45
    Lol, kind of funny
    Though I guess it's no laughing matter for him…
    32AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:45
    Harimoto is just way too inconsistent
    Even when he's ahead early, he often lets it drag to a full set and loses
    33AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:46
    I just want to stay lost in those sparkling moments (´・ω・`) (looks like a lyric quote)
    46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:50
    Thought it was a rising star, turns out he's a veteran
    47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:50
    Same thing happens in fighting games — some mystery Iranian player shows up, dominates, and takes the title
    49AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:51
    Losing at a Japanese tournament, and one held in his own home turf of Aichi where his team Toyota is based — that's impressive in the worst way
    Usually it'd go the other way
    50AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:51
    He must've been completely exhausted
    Motivation was probably low too
    51AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:52
    Regretting isn't so bad
    You're not alone in it (´・ω・`) (looks like a lyric quote)
    53AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:52
    Maybe nobody had him scouted, so there wasn't enough prep done against him
    57AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:54
    Guess it just shows how much he poured into the team event
    58AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:54
    Wait, the Asian Games was even happening? lol
    59AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:54
    If he made it to the quarterfinals, he's probably not really playing at a No. 344 level
    66AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:58
    Re: #59
    Maybe the top 300 are mostly Western players
    60AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:55
    Is this the guy known for that beast-roar celebration?
    68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:59
    This is probably more a case of the other guy improving fast
    It's not like a player who's genuinely still No. 344 level could make it to the quarterfinals anyway
    77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:07
    Re: #68
    The opponent is a real veteran
    So it's not exactly a sudden rise
    He's decently strong
    Not sure, but the low ranking's probably just from not playing many international matches lately
    82AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:09
    Re: #68
    Player rankings rise and fall based on results at high-point international tournaments, so players who lack the funding to travel and compete abroad end up ranked lower than their actual skill
    89AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:13
    From team gold to a singles quarterfinal exit
    Heaven to hell, huh
    91AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:14
    Re: #89
    Not even sure the team event counts as 'heaven' to begin with

    Background and Discussion Points

    Table tennis world rankings are calculated from points earned at ITTF-sanctioned international tournaments. Because opportunities to travel and levels of federation support vary widely, players who are skilled but face financial barriers to competing abroad can end up ranked well below their actual ability. In the thread, theories for the loss ranged from “burnout after the team event” to “the opponent’s rapid improvement,” but neither is confirmed by the article or the tournament organizers — both are simply speculation from posters. Opinions in the thread were also split on whether Alamiyan, the opponent, is an “experienced veteran” or “a player who’s improved in recent years,” and his actual career history can’t be verified from the article text.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Geisports Sokuho+) thread “[Asian Games] Table Tennis: Tomokazu Harimoto Stunned — Shock Upset in Singles Quarterfinal, Full-Game Loss to World No. 344 Iranian Player.”

  • Wolverine’s New Reviews Are Tanking Across the Board — 5ch: “Guess You Can’t Even Buy a Metascore Anymore?”

    Marvel’s new action game “Wolverine” (developed by Insomniac, a PS5 exclusive) launched to a string of glowing reviews, but every review added to Metacritic since then has scored low. Of the last 10 reviews, only one topped 76 points, and the overall score has slid down toward 75 — the cutoff between the green and yellow color bands. There are even reports that used-game retailer GEO cut its trade-in price by ¥1,500 just 10 days after launch. On 5ch, opinions split over the sudden drop: some suspect the early high scores were promotional favors, while others point to Insomniac’s layoffs and the resulting shake-up as the cause.

    Last 10 reviews

    70 points

    40 points

    Source: metacritic.com / Original article here

    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:43
    Has Sony lost the ability to even buy a Metascore now? Weird, considering they're posting record profits.
    3AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:44
    The PS Store rating's been quietly sliding too.
    4AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:47
    Only 1 of the last 10 reviews scored above 76.
    What's up with this pattern where only the first reviews are high and everything after tanks?
    6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:48
    Whether you pay ¥980 or get it free,
    if you think of it as killing 12 hours when you're bored out of your skull, 76 is fair.
    7AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:49
    The user score dropped to 6.8 too, lol.
    Keep up the good work, Sony's review-bombing squad.
    8AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:52
    They'll probably give it away for pocket change too, like they did with Spider-Man ("Da-man").
    10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:54
    They don't want to waste extra money on a business they're about to shut down, right?
    11AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:56
    Ghost of Yotei ("Ugly Yotei") clearly had a smaller map too.
    No doubt Totoki (Sony's cost-cutting exec) is squeezing the budgets hard.
    12AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:01
    Right after launch, the high scores from outlets on Sony's payroll all got posted at once,
    but outlets that post their reviews later don't have to kiss up, so of course it ends up like this.
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:02
    Just a bit more and it hits 75…

    …and it turns yellow.
    17AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:04
    Re: #13
    Green goes down to 75 and yellow starts at 74, so it might just barely hold on.
    There are already 140 reviews, so it should level off soon.
    15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:03
    Wait, they seriously spent $300 million on this?
    16AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:04
    Just from this you can already tell it's a bad game that doesn't even reach mediocre.
    18AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:08
    They spent $300 million
    and this is the best they could make…

    Are they even going to recoup the costs?
    19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:09
    Re: #17
    In the end, whatever pressure padded the early bonus scores is coming back to bite them.
    Squeaky wheel gets the grease, I guess.
    20AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:09
    Oh no…
    Silent Hill's scores are dropping too.
    None of the big-name titles are really taking off lately.
    21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:09
    First red score, huh. Figured there'd be more by now — guess they were holding back a bit.
    35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:16
    So if you strip out Sony's launch-day bonus points,
    the real average is probably in the 60s, right?

    That's rough.
    39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:17
    HD-2D games keep pulling off hit after hit at the 3-million-unit level,
    and they're fast and cheap to make too.

    Sony's obsession with high-end graphics shows they don't get where the industry's heading.
    59AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:53
    This is just Fire Emblem fanboys astroturfing, isn't it?
    62AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:57
    Re: #59
    This is the Metascore, not the user score, though.
    So you're saying Fire Emblem fanboys have infiltrated every gaming outlet to rig it?
    You good? Need a tinfoil hat?
    68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:19
    Re: #1
    Ranked 4th on the PS Store this year for ratings.
    https://ps-store-db.live/static/cards/shared/2026-09-26-af7d7ca55b0a00bb.png
    76AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:33
    GOTY always just comes down to how much Sony pays to buy it, honestly.
    Wonder if this year they'll actually run GOTY on merit alone, without buying it.
    83AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:40
    Re: #76
    GOTY's become nothing but paid promotion and an outlet for nationalist propaganda at this point.
    The whole thing's existence is already sketchy.
    87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 17:55
    By the way, it's been about 10 days since launch — still no sales figures for Wolverine?
    Same studio's Spider-Man 2 announced its numbers within 3 days.
    91AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:10
    Re: #87
    You already know why, lol.
    92AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:12
    As for GEO's trade-in price, it's down ¥1,500 in just 10 days since launch.
    93AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:14
    Re: #92
    Used-game trade-ins are about to dry up too, so more people will wait and see — buyers holding off will only pick up speed.
    97AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:58
    Didn't Insomniac have layoffs too?
    If a bunch of key members left, that would explain the brutal gap compared to Spider-Man.
    100AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:01
    This has to be this year's Worst Game of the Year.
    If they weren't pulling strings, both the user score and Metascore would probably be half of what they are now.
    101AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:13
    Re: #100
    The publisher's attitude — dump-and-run sales tactics, pressuring reviewers — is absolutely KOTY (Kuso-Game-of-the-Year) tier.

    Background and Key Points

    Metacritic scores are a weighted average of reviews out of 100, color-coded green at 75 and above, yellow from 50–74, and red at 49 and below. It’s common for scores from major outlets with early access to cluster right after launch, with scores trending harsher as time passes — a pattern seen repeatedly with big-budget titles, not something unique to this game. Words like “manipulation” and “pressure” are flying around in the thread, but these are all speculation; nothing in the thread actually shows the publisher influenced the reviews. Developer Insomniac has previously dealt with a major data leak and layoffs, and some suggest the resulting organizational changes may have affected the scores, but this too lacks any numerical backing. Concrete figures like the drop in used-game trade-in prices reflect market reaction, but don’t directly prove anything about the game’s quality.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry (Geha)) thread “[Sad News] Wolverine’s newly added Metacritic reviews are all scoring low, and it’s bad“.

  • Mina Tanaka Confesses She’s a Neat Freak: “Can’t Even Share Toothpaste with Family” — 5ch: “Sakagami Said the Exact Same Thing”

    Actress Mina Tanaka (39) appeared on TBS Radio on the 26th and revealed she’s such a neat freak that she can’t even share toothpaste with her own family. The confession, which touched on an episode from “Kichijoji Losers” with co-star Jin Katagiri, sparked reactions on 5ch’s Geisoku Sokuhou+ board like “that character again?” and “she said the same thing on Sakagami’s show,” turning the discussion toward whether this is a genuine trait or just her go-to bit. Commenters also debated whether having kids would change her sense of cleanliness, and the thread veered off into a tangent about the term “toothpaste powder” itself.

    9/26 (Sat) 7:34 PM

    Actress Mina Tanaka (39) appeared on TBS Radio’s “Mina Tanaka’s Warm Time” (Saturdays, 6:30 PM), airing on the 26th, and revealed her neat-freak side.

    The guest that day was actor Jin Katagiri. Tanaka said she “really loved” playing the role of Sakura Oba in the 2022 TV Tokyo drama “Kichijoji Losers,” in which she co-starred with Katagiri.

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:55
    Watching an Osaka night-view video channel beats watching Peace-kun at Omiya Park on YouTube any day (Peace-kun: the zoo mascot at Omiya Park).
    4AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:56
    Kaminari (the comedy duo): "For someone who hates spit flying around, she sure talks a lot."
    6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:57
    Seriously, how long is she gonna milk this character?
    Sakagami said the exact same thing (lol)
    8AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:57
    Yeah, not sharing toothpaste with my family either, yo (wrote "shaa" instead of "share" — a cheeky nod to Gundam's Char Aznable).
    11AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:57
    Have a kid and it's a straight shot to divorce
    Living with a neat freak just isn't doable
    13AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:58
    No way I could share with my parents
    My own kid, though? Totally fine
    Still keep separate tubes so cavities don't spread between us
    19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:59
    Doesn't it get exhausting later if you pile on too many of these "quirks"?
    Feels like a thing attention-seekers do a lot
    21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:00
    Kids are filthy though
    If they puke, the parent's the one who has to clean it up
    Drool and snot are way too gross for her to handle, surely
    38AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:03
    Re: #21
    Your own kid's bodily fluids just feel like your own, so it doesn't bother you
    Not sure if Mina Tanaka would end up feeling that way too though
    28AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:01
    Sharing toothpaste is just a bad idea, period
    Your disease risk goes up several times over
    Gum-disease bacteria and viruses can spread through it
    29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:01
    There was a filthy old guy at my old job who was actually a total neat freak
    Couldn't take a dump in the toilet unless he stripped completely naked first
    48AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:06
    Re: #29
    I can picture that guy's whole routine perfectly lol
    First he folds his clothes and ties them to his head with string (or disinfects wherever he sets them down with alcohol)
    Then after he's done, he wipes his entire body with shower wipes he brought before getting dressed
    68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:10
    Re: #29
    What kind of bondage routine is that
    Sounds like way too much effort
    31AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:01
    Really makes you realize what a handful she must be.
    34AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:02
    Eh, having a kid will probably change that.
    35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:02
    Isn't sharing toothpaste gross for literally everyone?
    41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:05
    With hot pot, the splashing's bad enough, but there's always some guy who starts double-dipping his chopsticks straight into the pot — that's the real gross part
    77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:13
    Re: #41
    Whenever I'm running the year-end party, there's always someone who double-dips their chopsticks
    So I steer clear of hot pot as an option

    Also skip tatami rooms since some guys walk around with sweaty feet. Guess that makes me a neat freak too.
    56AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:07
    "Toothpaste powder"… what a nostalgic phrase. Takes me back to Lion's old "Zact" toothpaste.
    61AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:08
    Re: #56
    It's "toothpaste paste" these days, right? Same with curry powder — nobody actually cooks with powder for curry anymore either
    66AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:10
    Re: #61
    Curry powder is just literally powdered spice though
    Aren't you mixing it up with curry roux?
    72AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:12
    Re: #66
    I know curry powder is sold in stores. But most people use solid blocks like Vermont Curry, so it's not powder for them
    67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:10
    Other people using your toothpaste is objectively gross, and you'd only eat hot pot with people you're actually close to anyway
    The guys complaining about this are just the careless ones
    84AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:15
    Re: #67
    You've clearly never left the house
    Travel to a few non-developed countries or go camping regularly and this stuff stops mattering to you
    87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:15
    Modern toothpaste isn't actually a "powder" anymore
    But apparently there's no easy way to rename it
    91AnonymousSep 26, 2026 20:16
    Re: #87
    Just call it "toothpaste paste" and be done with it

    Background and Key Points

    Mina Tanaka has repeatedly brought up her “neat freak” persona on variety shows before, and posters on the thread pointed out she’d said the same thing on Tadanori Sakagami’s show and elsewhere. Celebrities leaning on a signature character trait again and again isn’t unusual, so the thread’s real interest wasn’t whether it’s true, but whether it’s become her go-to “bit.” Another point of discussion was balancing neat-freak tendencies with raising kids — several posters shared that their own child’s vomit or bodily fluids start to feel like an extension of themselves and stop bothering them, an interesting observation that cleanliness standards can shift depending on whether it’s a stranger or your own family. There was also a tangent about the term “toothpaste powder” (歯磨き粉, literally “tooth-polishing powder”) itself, since modern products are pastes rather than powders and the name no longer matches the product — a bit of wordplay trivia that spun off separately from the main story.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geisoku Sokuhou+) thread “Mina Tanaka, the neat freak who can’t even share toothpaste with family, on hot pot: “the splashing…” — Jin Katagiri: “I’m having a baby!” met with “oh, that’s fine”.”

  • Ferrari Rentals at ¥300,000 a Day Are a Hit with Tourists in Japan — Because the Drive Itself Is the Whole Point of the Trip

    Luxury car rental services aimed at foreign visitors to Japan are gaining popularity. Some tourists reportedly rent a Ferrari or similar car for around ¥300,000 a day and tour Hakone, Kyoto, Naoshima, and other destinations at their own pace. On 5ch, reactions to the price tag were split — some said “that’s pocket change for rich people over there,” others argued “it just looks cheap because of the weak yen” — and the conversation spread to how rental insurance works, road sign wording, and comparisons between Japanese and foreign cars.

    1AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:05
    Luxury car rentals are gaining popularity among wealthy tourists visiting Japan. They take the wheel themselves, savoring the country's scenery and culture at their own pace.
    The journey itself has become the highlight of the trip.
    A young couple who visited from France in August spent three weeks touring Hakone (Kanagawa Prefecture), Toba (Mie Prefecture), Kyoto, and Naoshima (Kagawa Prefecture), starting out from Tokyo.
    2AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:06
    ¥300,000 probably feels like ¥3,000 to those guys.
    Japan's turned into a cheap country.
    142AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:56
    Re: #2
    Is the average salary over there ¥400 million or something?
    5AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:08
    Fyu-rari, Testa-ossan, donai shite mannen (a joking, slurred mangling of "Ferrari Testarossa" done up in exaggerated Osaka dialect, roughly "how's it goin'")
    211AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:50
    Re: #5
    Ma-ku Soo-zu (more nonsense gibberish riffing on the same joke)
    12AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:11
    ¥300,000 x 21 days — that's way beyond the average Japanese person's annual salary.
    56AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:22
    Re: #12
    Overseas, that'd be less than a month's salary.
    176AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:22
    Re: #12
    In America, that's about what a part-time office cleaning lady makes in a year.
    15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:11
    Apparently the Shuto Expressway has this futuristic cyberpunk vibe.
    22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:13
    Re: #15
    Japanese urban planning just threw math out the window and did whatever it wanted, so of course it feels like another world lol
    30AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:15
    Re: #15
    Actually it's the opposite — it's popular because it's a dated, 50-year-old relic with retro charm.
    24AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:13
    Is there even an insurance company that'll cover this?
    Unknown drivers, unknown skill level, foreign nationals — isn't the risk too high to insure?
    29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:15
    Re: #24
    There's a kind of throwaway term insurance made for rental cars.
    Minor damage falls under the deductible, so it's a scheme that keeps the insurance company nicely profitable too.
    35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:17
    In Chiba you can actually pass a luxury car on a bicycle lol
    There are so many traffic lights that even after it passes you, it's stopped again at the next light — cracks me up
    83AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:31
    Re: #35
    First time seeing this one — is it copypasta?
    If it's not copypasta, I seriously hope I never end up thinking like that.
    39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:18
    Just rent the car and sell it overseas.
    45AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:19
    Re: #39
    You'd have to strip it down and ship it piece by piece by sea freight, so that's not happening.
    40AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:18
    Apparently Xiaomi holds the fastest production-car Nürburgring lap now.
    Those days of Japanese fans gloating over the GT-R are long gone.
    62AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:24
    Re: #40
    To begin with, Japan hasn't really built a proper sports car in like the last 20 years.
    It's all stuff like slapping a new body on a German car and calling it a Supra.
    69AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:25
    Re: #40
    With the GT-R, Nissan was pulling shady stuff like bringing non-stock cars in for testing, so I can't stand Nissan.
    76AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:28
    Re: #40
    As of September 2026, both the "fastest production car at the Nürburgring" and the "fastest production EV" records are held not by Xiaomi but by the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT (with the Manthey Performance Kit).
    "Xiaomi apparently holds the fastest production-car Nürburgring lap now" was accurate as of mid-2025, but by 2026 that's already a generation out of date.
    43AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:19
    Honestly makes no sense to let foreigners drive here.
    They can't even read the road signs.
    77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:29
    Re: #43
    That's why there's a push to internationalize road signs too.
    With the weak yen, Japan can't survive without inbound tourism money.


    Writing it in romaji doesn't help if it's not actually in English! How road sign wording has quietly been changing as more foreign tourists visit
    https://www.webcartop.jp/2024/09/1438508/amp/
    120AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:43
    Re: #43
    Plenty of Japanese people drive rental cars when they travel abroad too, though.
    46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:19
    Expressways and the big national highways are better paved and maintained than roads overseas, so they're easy to drive.
    Way more legit than those Mario Kart street-go-kart tours anyway.
    63AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:24
    Re: #46
    If you take a Ferrari on the expressway, isn't it too low to the ground to actually see the scenery?
    Seems like a minivan would give you a better view.
    60AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:23
    It's the weak yen.
    For a Japanese person it'd feel more like ¥30,000.
    65AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:24
    Re: #60
    I hear a small bottle of Coke can run about ¥1,700 overseas.
    I'd call this a bargain.
    73AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:26
    A big, chunky classic American car looks cooler than a Ferrari or Porsche any day.
    85AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:31
    Re: #73
    The 1964 Dodge 330 that inspired 'Christine'
    https://ailovei.com/?p=86795
    A notorious car whose owners reportedly died — 14 of them.
    95AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:35
    Re: #73
    https://w.atwiki.jp/niconicomugen/pages/11680.html
    'The Car' — Lincoln Continental
    'Christine' — Plymouth Fury

    Gotta love it. Modern America's rotting away with nothing but SUVs.
    Give me the good old sedan era any day.

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    Luxury car rentals for foreign visitors have expanded alongside the growth of experience-based inbound tourism spending, and tourists holding an International Driving Permit (IDP) can get behind the wheel on public roads as soon as they arrive in Japan. Commenters on the thread repeatedly pointed out that the ¥300,000-a-day price tag looks relatively affordable to wealthy travelers from abroad given how sharply the yen has weakened. Rental companies structure dedicated insurance policies to cover an unspecified pool of drivers, typically charging higher premiums in exchange for a lower deductible — coverage isn’t determined by a driver’s nationality. There’s also a broader push across Japan to add more English and romanized text to road signs as the number of foreign visitors grows, and the article a commenter linked to is one example of that trend. That said, how affordable the price feels or how driving manners are judged varies a lot by individual perspective, so some of the thread’s more definitive claims should be taken with a grain of salt.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Breaking News Plus) thread “[Inbound Tourism] Ferrari Rentals at ¥300,000 a Day a Hit with Visitors to Japan — The Drive Itself Is the Highlight of the Trip.”

  • Hiroshima Eyes Bid to Become Japan’s ‘Secondary Capital’ — Governor Yokota: ‘We Have Ample Qualifications’

    At a session of the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly on the 25th, Governor Mika Yokota signaled a positive stance toward having Hiroshima put itself forward as a candidate for Japan’s proposed “secondary capital.” Citing the need to correct Japan’s over-concentration in Tokyo, she said “our prefecture is fully qualified to take on this role” — effectively throwing Hiroshima’s hat into a ring that already includes Osaka, Aichi, and Fukuoka, which have floated their own bids. On 5ch, the remark drew a mixed bag of reactions: some pointed to Hiroshima City’s geographic constraints and poor airport access, others argued that relocating the capital outright would be more meaningful than merely designating a “secondary” one, and still others scratched their heads comparing Hiroshima to other prefectures, asking “why Hiroshima?”

    At the prefectural assembly session on the 25th, Governor Yokota indicated a positive stance toward bidding to become a candidate site for the “secondary capital” initiative — a plan for certain cities to take over some of the capital’s functions — stating that “Hiroshima Prefecture is fully qualified for this role.”

    [Governor Mika Yokota]

    “I have long argued that, for the balanced development of Japan as a whole, we need to correct the excessive concentration of everything in Tokyo, and I believe our prefecture is fully qualified to take on the functions of a secondary capital.”

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

    11AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:18
    If Hiroshima becomes the secondary capital, it'll need all sorts of new facilities — but the Atomic Bomb Dome makes that tough, since it restricts a lot of new construction nearby.
    112AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:03
    Re: #11 It'll probably end up centered on Higashi-Hiroshima rather than Hiroshima City itself — there's no open land left downtown in Hiroshima City anymore.
    22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:36
    No worries, soon it'll all just be 'Japan Province' anyway (a recurring 5ch joke about Japan being annexed as a province of China).
    23AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:38
    Re: #22
    Beijing ("Northern Capital")
    Nanjing ("Southern Capital")
    Tokyo ("Eastern Capital")
    47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:07
    Re: #22
    Though at this rate Japan can't even manage to annex Taiwan.
    28AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:44
    Hiroshima's airport is far from the city and there's little room to develop
    (even carving into the mountains would be risky, since the soil there is crumbly decomposed granite prone to landslides),
    and the ground in the city center is weak too.
    If it has to be Hiroshima, Higashi-Hiroshima or Fukuyama would be a better fit than Hiroshima City.
    35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:49
    Re: #28
    Hiroshima Airport was built deep in the mountains of Mihara thanks to the political muscle of Shizuka Kamei,
    and the area around it is still practically empty to this day.
    41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:58
    Re: #1
    That's why I keep saying: pick a "new capital," not a "secondary capital"!!
    There's no rule saying Tokyo has to be the capital, right? It's been the capital for over 150 years now, so it's about time to move it somewhere else.
    And for fixing Tokyo's over-concentration, relocating the capital outright would be way more effective than some "secondary" capital.
    44AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:01
    Re: #41
    Fair point.
    Cheaper than pouring more investment into Tokyo.
    190AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:00
    Re: #41
    Just moving the capital alone won't cut it, though.
    Tokyo only got this concentrated because bureaucrats pressured companies into relocating their headquarters there, and the media brainwashed the public with nonstop "Tokyo is the best" messaging.
    45AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:01
    It'd be funny if they rejected all these municipalities jumping in late with such obvious ulterior motives, and just picked Sendai instead.
    46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:06
    Re: #45

    Huh? So we'd just calmly sit and watch North Korean missiles fly over? lol
    49AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:09
    Re: #45
    It's too far from the other major cities — anywhere north of Tohoku is a no-go.
    114AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:06
    Re: #45
    It's already been decided from the start — it's Keihanna (the science-city area spanning Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara).
    A new maglev station is coming there too, and there are several international airports nearby.
    Every other region floated is just a decoy.
    67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:30
    During the First Sino-Japanese War, Imperial General Headquarters was set up in Hiroshima,
    Emperor Meiji himself moved there and a temporary imperial palace was even established in Hiroshima,
    and during that period the Imperial Diet also convened there —
    so Hiroshima has actually served as Japan's capital in a legal sense before.
    113AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:03
    Re: #67
    Hiroshima City as the "secondary capital" is basically the sentimental pick
    — like wanting to relive that rising-sun era when Hiroshima was the imperial capital during the Sino-Japanese War and everything in Japan was going well.
    69AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:38
    Re: #44
    Building a brand-new, state-of-the-art city from scratch somewhere else would definitely be cheaper than endlessly redeveloping Tokyo bit by bit!
    I'm a Tokyoite myself, but if we're going to do something as half-baked as a "secondary capital," I'd much rather just relocate the capital outright.
    75AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:48
    Re: #69
    Packed trains,
    restaurants with no seats —
    if it means being freed from the crowds, sign me up.
    80AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:03
    Re: #1
    Are you kidding me.
    Route 2's congestion still hasn't been fixed,
    the Route 5 tunnel still isn't open,
    the Astram Line extension is stalled,
    and outmigration is still outpacing inflow as always.
    Don't get ahead of yourselves.
    83AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:10
    Re: #80

    That's not very "Hiroshima" of you.
    88AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:17
    Hiroshima's airport is absolute garbage.
    Never want to go back.
    90AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:19
    Looking at the prefecture as a whole there might be suitable sites,
    but you can't exactly do large-scale excavation of hillsides for development these days,
    so Hiroshima City itself just doesn't have the flat land to take on anything extra.
    93AnonymousSep 26, 2026 14:21
    Re: #90

    Right, that's why there's plenty of land lying around Higashi-Hiroshima.
    Hiroshima University is out there too, so why not just develop that area?

    No need to force everything into Hiroshima City. It's only about 30 minutes by train — Saijo, for instance. Plus there's the sake.
    118AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:11
    Secondary capital candidates

    Osaka = makes sense
    Kyoto = makes sense
    Aichi = I guess, sure
    Fukuoka City = hmm
    Nara = uh… yeah…

    Hiroshima City = huh??
    120AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:15
    Re: #118

    Kyoto would probably end up wrecking its own scenery, though.
    121AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:18
    Re: #118
    Nara's the bigger "huh??" if you ask me.
    126AnonymousSep 26, 2026 15:33
    Re: #118
    Kyoto's own governor already said, "We don't need to be a secondary capital — we were originally the capital,"
    so they haven't entered the race, and there's zero chance they will.
    149AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:39
    I wonder if they'd build a temporary Diet building at the secondary capital?
    150AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:41
    Re: #149

    That's not really about emergency capital functions, so
    it wouldn't be needed right away, would it?

    At most, maybe some ministry relocation — there was some talk about Tokushima or something along those lines,
    but that seems to have fizzled out.
    156AnonymousSep 26, 2026 16:48
    Re: #149
    I think it'd be for everyday use, not just emergencies.
    It'd be used for something at all times, with the Diet occasionally convening in Hiroshima.

    If you built it just for emergencies, it'd get criticized as a waste of maintenance costs and tax money instead.

    Background and Key Points of This Debate

    The “secondary capital” concept is about dispersing some of Tokyo’s functions to guard against risks like a major earthquake directly beneath the capital, and it’s distinct from relocating the capital itself. The national government hasn’t laid out any official selection criteria or process — at this stage, several municipalities including Osaka, Aichi, and Fukuoka have simply put themselves forward independently, and Governor Yokota’s remarks fit into that same pattern. Disagreement in the thread centered on two main points. The first was whether to treat “secondary capital” and “capital relocation” as separate ideas: some argued outright relocation would be more effective for correcting Tokyo’s over-concentration, while others countered that the Kanto Plain’s location itself gives the capital’s functions a practical rationale. The second was Hiroshima City’s actual suitability — commenters pointed out that the Atomic Bomb Dome, as a UNESCO World Heritage site, is subject to buffer-zone restrictions that effectively limit large-scale development downtown, a real constraint that led many to argue Higashi-Hiroshima would be more realistic than Hiroshima City itself. This regulatory point was only mentioned piecemeal in the thread, making it an easy detail to miss.

    *This article was compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (News Speed+) thread “[Hiroshima] Governor Yokota Signals Willingness to Bid for ‘Secondary Capital’ Candidacy: ‘We Have Ample Qualifications’.”

  • No-Nori Rice Balls and 500-Yen Combo Meals Become the New Normal: 5ch Buzzes Over ‘Japan’s Impoverishment’

    A thread titled “Japan is genuinely becoming impoverished” on 5ch’s Newsoku VIP board kicked off with everyday observations: convenience store rice balls now come with less seaweed (nori), and McDonald’s has rolled out a bargain 500-yen combo set. From there the discussion expanded into a clash over whether poverty is a matter of personal responsibility or political failure, a gap between reported wage growth and what people actually feel in their wallets, and even the observation that “it’s always the vulnerable who attack the vulnerable hardest.”

    1AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:11
    ・A poverty bento called "bodakko" (a cheap salted-salmon product) is trending
    ・Nori is vanishing from convenience store rice balls (too expensive)
    ・McDonald's rolls out a cut-rate 500-yen set for the broke
    50AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:44
    Does Japanese society really have an obligation to
    support even people who don't even try?
    52AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:45
    Re: #50
    Oh? So you're against welfare (seikatsu hogo)?
    54AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:45
    Re: #50
    Wait, what even counts as "support" here?
    The state "supporting" people?
    63AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:49
    Re: #52
    Welfare is for people who did everything they could
    but still ran into hard circumstances
    It's not a system for people who barely try to lean on
    68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:51
    Re: #63
    What about people who couldn't try because of a mental illness?
    69AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:51
    Re: #68
    There's no such thing as "a sick heart"
    There are diagnosed mental illnesses, sure
    81AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:56
    Re: #68
    If it's not "claim it and you win" or "become it and you win,"
    a real mental illness can't be helped
    65AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:50
    The funny part is the ones bashing the vulnerable
    are often vulnerable themselves
    The weird thing about this era is that the vulnerable don't even want the vulnerable saved
    67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:50
    Re: #65
    Yeah, you notice that a lot browsing the internet
    88AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:00
    Re: #65
    Both online and in real life, it's always the vulnerable who attack the vulnerable hardest
    The strong tend to be generous
    77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:55
    Re: #60
    This thread title conveniently ignores the poster's own responsibility to Japanese society

    It's basically "you all fix this,"
    not "so I'll try harder too"
    80AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:56
    Re: #77
    To me it just reads as stating a fact

    If you want to say "so I'll try harder!" why not just say it yourself?
    I don't get any sense of you trying harder from your post either
    84AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:58
    Re: #80
    So why don't YOU say "I'll try harder"?
    86AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:59
    Re: #84
    Why would I need to declare that to you specifically?
    Creepy
    91AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:01
    Re: #90
    Then what was your post at Re: #84 about?
    Whatever, I'll just post however I want
    82AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:57
    In the '80s plenty of families were poor
    and lots of kids couldn't afford a Famicom
    It's kind of like that
    85AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:59
    Re: #82
    I don't know about that era, but by my time there wasn't a family that couldn't afford a PS1 or PS2

    Everyone who wanted one just had one, no question
    I always thought it was weird in Doraemon when everyone crowds around Suneo just because he bought a new game
    87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 18:59
    Re: #82
    Even so, back then there probably wasn't this kind of trend
    of complaining about Japanese society as a whole like there is now
    92AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:02
    "Japland" is finished
    Right now it's only held together by sacrificing the small and mid-sized firms that can't keep up with the spring wage talks (shunto)
    Even big corporations don't have the strength to keep handing out full pay-raise responses year after year going forward
    94AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:02
    Re: #92
    The last few years have had base pay hikes of like 6%, though
    99AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:04
    Re: #92
    South Korea's economy is doing well, so just move there and naturalize
    Abandon a Japan like this
    101AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:05
    Honestly, as long as you cut costs you won't go hungry
    But once even middle-class households end up stuck at that bare-minimum line as the norm
    businesses selling stuff people buy just for show won't survive anymore
    108AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:08
    Re: #101
    Articles about Japan's impoverishment or the economy usually argue that both the rich and the poor are growing, i.e., polarization is advancing
    That's probably why businesses targeting the wealthy are expanding
    High-rise condos, luxury watches, foreign cars — they're all selling like crazy, right?
    110AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:09
    Re: #101
    Businesses selling status-symbol stuff exist even in not-so-rich countries, so no need to worry!

    Even if that kind of business vanished, it wouldn't really matter
    106AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:08
    Re: #99
    South Korea seems pretty harsh toward Japanese people though
    111AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:09
    Re: #106
    Why is this even functioning as a conversation

    It's kind of scary
    120AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:16
    One argument going around that really gets to me:
    "If all you can do is blue-collar work, it's because you didn't study hard enough, and that's on you — tough luck if life is hard or you can't afford kids"

    Realistically, unless even blue-collar workers can afford to have kids, the country can't sustain itself, lol
    Well, lately there's actually a reversal happening where blue-collar work is becoming more livable
    But if the industrial structure is set up so certain jobs simply can't support a living, that's a failure of politics, not the individual's fault
    123AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:16
    Re: #120
    It's scary that we're now in an era where saying "it's the government's fault"
    gets you dogpiled
    124AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:17
    Re: #120
    Oh, that comment makes it sound like blue-collar pay is garbage
    126AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:18
    Re: #120
    This is exactly right
    But that segment keeps losing jobs to dumping-priced labor like the foreign technical intern trainee program

    There are plenty of structural changes in society that can't be chalked up to "personal effort"
    136AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:25
    "Life is tough…"
    →"The economy's improving! My income went up! If you don't feel it, you're just not trying hard enough!"

    That kind of logic doesn't hold together
    139AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:29
    Re: #136
    "My income went up!" — you only ever see that line on the internet, honestly
    144AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:31
    Re: #139
    Mine's actually risen three years straight
    The only people whose pay isn't rising now work at small or mid-size companies
    149AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:32
    Re: #139
    Looking at real wage growth rates is probably the realistic approach
    That, or how starting salaries for new grads have risen, since that tends to make the news

    Just citing raw annual income figures — "it went up," "it went down" — isn't great either
    but unless someone says something like "it doubled in five years," these internet types never actually specify what point in time they're comparing to or by how much it rose
    137AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:28
    Isn't it scarier if the government suddenly said, "You're right, the fact that citizens' earnings are bad is entirely our fault, so we'll fix it ourselves from now on"?
    That sounds like it could end with human rights getting suspended
    140AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:29
    Re: #137
    Who's even saying that?
    164AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:51
    My solo dinner (eating alone)
    167AnonymousSep 26, 2026 19:54
    Re: #164
    That looks kind of gross

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Reports of wage increases in recent years have mostly referred to the results of major corporations’ spring wage negotiations (shunto), with base pay hikes of around 5-6% reported one after another since 2024. At the same time, real wages — factoring in small and mid-sized businesses and non-regular employment — struggle to keep pace with rising prices, creating a structure prone to a gap between the numbers and how life actually feels. The thread shows exactly this: the sense that “we’re becoming impoverished” surfaces right alongside observations that “high-rise condos and luxury watches are selling like crazy,” which likely reflects a polarization where spending grows at both the low and high ends while the middle shrinks. The debate over whether this is personal responsibility or political failure is also hard to reduce to a simple either/or, given that structural factors behind the wage gap — such as low-wage labor tied to the Foreign Technical Intern Training Program — can’t be explained by individual effort alone.

    ※This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary from the 5ch (Newsoku VIP) thread “[Sad News] Japan Is Genuinely, Seriously, No Joke, Becoming ‘Impoverished’…….”

  • Ashio Copper Mine, Hokkaido University Floated as Next World Heritage Candidates — 5ch: ‘Hokudai Is Older Than Todai’

    A thread on 5ch’s “Nandemo Jikkyo” (Live Sports/News) board asked which Japanese cultural properties and natural sites should be registered as World Heritage Sites next. The thread starter proposed candidates like the Ashio Copper Mine and Hokkaido University, and asked other posters to suggest one more. Some argued the Ashio Copper Mine — the site of Japan’s first major pollution disaster — should be registered as “negative heritage,” much like the Atomic Bomb Dome, while others pointed out that Hokkaido University is “Japan’s first modern institution of higher education, older than the University of Tokyo.” From there the discussion expanded to Ise Grand Shrine, Kamakura, Tokyo Station, Mt. Takao, and Mitsumine Shrine, with posters disagreeing over just what counts as “World Heritage-worthy.”

    1AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:46
    What do you think the last one should be?!
    3AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:46
    By the way, here's the current list of Japan's World Heritage Sites (as of September 2026)
    ※★ = Natural Heritage, ● = Sites of Japan's Meiji Industrial Revolution, no mark = other Cultural Heritage

    【Hokkaido】
    ★Shiretoko　(Jomon Prehistoric Sites)

    【Tohoku Region】
    ★Shirakami-Sanchi　Hiraizumi/Chuson-ji Konjikido, etc.　●Kamaishi/Hashino Iron Mining and Smelting Site　Jomon Prehistoric Sites

    【Kanto Region (excluding islands)】
    Tomioka Silk Mill　Shrines and Temples of Nikko/Nikko Toshogu, etc.　National Museum of Western Art

    【Kanto Region (islands)】
    ★Ogasawara Islands

    【Hokuriku Region】
    Shirakawa-go　Sado Island Gold Mines

    【Tokai Region】
    ●Nirayama Reverberatory Furnaces

    【Kinki (Kansai) Region】
    Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto　Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara　Horyu-ji Temple　Asuka-Fujiwara Capital Sites　Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Tumulus Clusters　Himeji Castle　Kii Mountain Range/Kumano Kodo

    【Chugoku Region】※Note: Shikoku Region has none
    Atomic Bomb Dome　Itsukushima Shrine　Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine　●Hagi Reverberatory Furnaces, Shokasonjuku Academy, etc.

    【Kyushu Region (excluding Nansei Islands)】
    Munakata/Okinoshima　●Yahata Steel Works　●Miike Coal Mine　●Mietsu Naval Dockyard Site　●Nagasaki Shipyard　Hidden Christian Sites in the Amakusa Region　●Former Shuseikan

    【Nansei Islands】
    ★Yakushima　★Amami-Oshima, Tokunoshima, northern Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island　Ryukyu Kingdom/Shuri Castle, etc.
    4AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:47
    Re: #3
    By the way, by prefecture, Iwate and Nara have the most (three World Heritage Sites each):
    ・Iwate: Hiraizumi, Hashino Iron Mining and Smelting Site, Gosho-no Site (Jomon)
    ・Nara: Horyu-ji, Ancient Nara, Asuka-Fujiwara

    (Note: If Yahata and Miike get counted separately, Fukuoka would also have three — the other one being Munakata.)
    46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:04
    Re: #4
    Kumano Kodo runs through Nara too, so that makes Nara four.
    58AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:12
    Re: #4
    Kagoshima has three as well:
    Yakushima (Natural Heritage) — registered 1993
    Amami-Oshima, Tokunoshima, northern Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island (Natural Heritage) — registered 2021
    Sites of Japan's Meiji Industrial Revolution (Cultural Heritage) — registered 2015
    5AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:47

    ・Ashio Copper Mine (Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture; formerly Ashio Town, Kamitsuga District)

    Because it was the site of Japan's first pollution disaster.
    It should be registered as "negative heritage," like the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima.
    6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:47

    ・Lake Chuzenji (Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture)

    The Shrines and Temples of Nikko (Nikko Toshogu, Nikkosan Rinno-ji, etc.) are already registered as Cultural Heritage, so I'd like Lake Chuzenji registered as Natural Heritage too.
    By the way, the lake originally had no fish at all, but it's now famous as a trout habitat.
    8AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:47

    Hokkaido University (formerly Sapporo Agricultural College)

    Because it's Japan's first modern university.
    It was actually founded before the University of Tokyo (Todai).

    Its flagship faculties are Agriculture, Veterinary Medicine, and Fisheries Sciences (though Fisheries is based in Hakodate).
    The Veterinary Medicine faculty in particular is said to be on par with Todai's Science II track, and harder to get into than some mediocre medical schools.
    9AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:48
    Re: #8

    People sometimes say "Hokkaido University (Sapporo) is a branch campus of Tohoku University (Sendai)," but strictly speaking the school itself actually existed in Sapporo first — it just relocated its headquarters to Sendai.

    By the way, Tohoku University is strong in the sciences (especially engineering), but not so strong in the humanities…
    (In fact, Akita International University (AIU) is considered a higher level, so Tohoku University isn't even the top school in the Tohoku region.)
    10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:48
    Re: #8
    Why? That'd make sense if we were talking about the Tokaido Main Line or Tohoku Main Line, but…
    61AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:13
    Re: #8
    Isn't this one weirdly weak compared to the rest?
    14AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:49
    Kintetsu Yamato-Saidaiji Station
    50AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:06
    Re: #14

    Yamato-Saidaiji Station (Nara City, Nara Prefecture)
    51AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:07
    Re: #50
    Yeah, true… I always pictured Shikoku as having more historical heritage than Tohoku (aside from Iwate) or Hokkaido, though…
    15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:49
    Re: #9

    Also, the admission difficulty (hensachi) for the Faculty of Letters is actually higher at Hokkaido University — even though Hokudai has a reputation as the weakest of the old imperial universities.
    (Though that's partly because Tohoku University requires math on its second-stage exam even for the Faculty of Letters, while Hokkaido University lets you compete using history/geography instead.)
    19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:51


    ・Nihombashi Mitsukoshi Main Store (MITSUKOSHI)

    Because it was Asia's first full-fledged department store! Its contribution is huge.
    The building itself is a work of art — a lion statue stands at the main entrance, and there's a massive sculpture in the central hall. It's not just a department store anymore, it's the "King of Department Stores."
    By the way, the Mitsukoshi main store is also one of the few department stores designated an Important Cultural Property by the government! (The other is Nihombashi Takashimaya.)
    20AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:51
    Re: #19

    The magnificent escalators of Mitsukoshi Main Store


    The lion statue at the main entrance


    The massive sculpture in the central hall, the "Tennyo (Magokoro)" — "Celestial Maiden of Sincerity" — statue
    21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:52

    ・Nagasaki Peace Park

    I think it's strange that Hiroshima's Atomic Bomb Dome is registered but Nagasaki's isn't.
    22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:52

    ・Okawa Elementary School (Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture; formerly Kahoku Town, Monou District)

    To pass down to future generations the damage from the massive tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake (the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake), and the lesson of what happens when disaster response goes wrong.
    It should be registered as negative heritage alongside Hiroshima's Atomic Bomb Dome.
    23AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:53

    ・Usui Pass Railway Facilities (Annaka City, Gunma Prefecture; Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture)

    The Abt rack railway that conquered Japan's steepest grade was a huge achievement.
    Though its job is done now that the Hokuriku Shinkansen (formerly the Nagano Shinkansen) has opened.
    24AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:53
    AI illustrations of Mabel-chan and friends visiting Shirakami-Sanchi, Honshu's only Natural Heritage site


    Rabbit girl "Mabel-chan"
    (kimono version)


    Rabbit girl "Pacifica-chan"
    (Dragon Ball-style [Akira Toriyama-style] AI art)


    Rabbit girl "Wendy-chan"
    (Dragon Ball-style [Akira Toriyama-style] AI art)
    25AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:53
    Re: #24
    Tetsugaku News! (a well-known 2ch/5ch aggregator blog)
    Please do a write-up on this one!
    26AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:53
    Forget Hokudai, it should be Yoshimi Hyakuana.
    27AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:55
    Re: #26
    But Hokudai is Japan's first modern institution of higher education — the first school where you could earn a bachelor's degree (i.e., a university).
    It's older than the Imperial University of Tokyo.
    28AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:55
    Re: #26
    Isn't Yoshimi in Saitama Prefecture?
    59AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:12
    Re: #26

    Yoshimi Hyakuana (Hundred Caves) (Yoshimi Town, Hiki District, Saitama Prefecture)
    29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:56

    Goryokaku (Hakodate City, Hokkaido; formerly Kameda City)
    30AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:58

    ・Ise Grand Shrine⛩ (Ise City, Mie Prefecture)

    Because it enshrines Amaterasu Omikami, ancestor of the Imperial family (the Emperor), making it Japan's most sacred shrine.
    31AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:58

    Ancient Capital of the Samurai — Kamakura (Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture)

    Because it's the birthplace of Japan's first samurai government, the Kamakura Shogunate.
    If Ancient Kyoto and Ancient Nara made the cut, I think Ancient Kamakura should too!
    32AnonymousSep 26, 2026 12:58
    Re: #11

    ・Lake Inbanuma

    A lake/marsh located in Inzai City, Chiba Prefecture, and surrounding areas.
    If registered, it would be Chiba's first World Heritage Site.

    By the way, it's also famous for eel.
    That's actually why eel is one of Narita City's local specialties.
    47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:04
    Re: #41
    The one in Aichi Prefecture would be fine, though.
    55AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:10
    Re: #47

    Oh, the one in Gamagori City! Isn't that a National Natural Monument?
    70AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:20
    It's weird how Shirakami-Sanchi is a World Heritage Site but Okuchichibu isn't.
    72AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:23
    Re: #70
    Well, there's Mitsumine Shrine there…
    Though if it goes the "Mt. Fuji route" (aiming for Cultural Heritage instead of Natural Heritage), Okuchichibu might have a shot too.

    Also, Shirakami-Sanchi does tend to feel overshadowed next to the other Natural Heritage sites…
    Though it is technically Honshu's only Natural Heritage site.
    79AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:30
    Re: #70
    Maybe because Chichibu just isn't that impressive?
    80AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:30
    Re: #70
    Shirakami-Sanchi is an old-growth beech forest.
    Though unlike Shiretoko and places like it, it's not really developed for tourism, so it's a bit lackluster as a sightseeing spot…
    81AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:30

    Mitsumine Shrine⛩ (Chichibu City, Saitama Prefecture)
    85AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:33
    Re: #81
    What exactly about this is world-class heritage?
    90AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:38

    ・Tokyo Station (Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo)

    Japan's premier mega-terminal station.
    It's the starting point for the Tokaido/Sanyo Shinkansen, Tohoku/Hokkaido Shinkansen, Joetsu Shinkansen, Hokuriku Shinkansen, Chuo Main Line, Sobu Rapid Line, Yokosuka Line, Keiyo Line, and more.
    Also, there are only three stations in Japan designated as Important Cultural Properties: Tokyo Station, Mojiko Station (Moji Ward, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture), and Taisha Station (Shimane Prefecture).
    92AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:40

    ・Mt. Hakodate (Hakodate City, Hokkaido)

    Because it offers the most beautiful night view in Japan!
    95AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:42
    Mt. Takao
    With that much name recognition and a decent amount of history, nobody would complain.
    99AnonymousSep 26, 2026 13:46
    Re: #95

    Well, it definitely draws way more tourists than Shirakami-Sanchi or Hiraizumi, and it's easy to reach too (thanks to the JR Chuo Rapid Line and the Keio Line).

    (Though to be fair, you can also reach Hiraizumi by switching to the Tohoku Main Line from the Tohoku Shinkansen at Ichinoseki or Kitakami Station.)

    Background and Talking Points

    A site only becomes a World Heritage Site after the government first places it on a “Tentative List” and it then clears UNESCO review — simply being named in a forum thread doesn’t make it an official candidate. The idea of preserving the Ashio Copper Mine, the origin point of Japan’s pollution problems, as “negative heritage” — and the push to keep ruins like Okawa Elementary School as a reminder of the lessons from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami — echo real, ongoing debates happening across Japan, with the Atomic Bomb Dome as a precedent. At the same time, while some posters championed the historical value of places like Hokkaido University and the Nihombashi Mitsukoshi main store, others were skeptical about Mitsumine Shrine, asking “what exactly about this is world-class heritage?” — and that gap in what counts as “World Heritage-worthy” is a big part of what fueled the discussion. The little-known fact that Hokkaido University predates the Imperial University of Tokyo also caught people’s attention as a surprising bit of history.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo) thread “[Top 4] Japanese Cultural Properties and Nature That Should Be the Next World Heritage Site: “Sanriku Coast,” “Ashio Copper Mine,” “Hokkaido University”.”