Japan Reacts

Author: Japan Reacts Editorial

  • With Gemini’s advice, an 8-hour hike turns into a 2-day ordeal — 5ch: “There’s no cure for stupid”

    Three hikers set out for a day trip up California’s Mount Shasta, planning their route based on advice from Google’s Gemini AI — but according to a CNET Japan report, what was supposed to be an 8-hour hike turned into a two-day ordeal marked by shortages of food and water. On 5ch’s Science News+ board, the incident sparked both criticism of blindly trusting AI answers without verifying them and concern over hallucinations (AI responses that mix in inaccurate guesses as if they were fact) said to be especially common with Gemini. The thread was split between blaming the AI itself and blaming the poor judgment of the people who used it.

    Stranded on Gemini’s advice, short on food and water — sloppy hike planning exposes the dangers of “AI dependency”

    Relying on AI-generated advice was a “serious error in judgment.”

    The three hikers who took on California’s Mount Shasta saw their planned 8-hour climb turn into a grueling two-day ordeal.

    Source: japan.cnet.com / Original article here

    2AnonymousSep 4, 2026 22:53
    Failure is the mother of success.
    Feed the AI this valuable failure case and maybe it'll give slightly less terrible answers next time.
    3AnonymousSep 4, 2026 22:57
    Even before AI, plenty of people happily got themselves lost just by blindly following Google Maps.
    Anyone who outsources all their judgment is the real idiot.
    4AnonymousSep 4, 2026 23:01
    Back then: "My source is 2ch!" (smirk)
    Now: "My source is Gemini!" (smirk)

    Find sources you can actually trust.
    And think for yourself.
    Blindly believing some faceless other will be your ruin.

    Anyway, glad you made it back alive.
    But that was pure luck.
    Learn this lesson the hard way.
    5AnonymousSep 4, 2026 23:05
    It's because it's Gemini, lol. How do people even trust that hallucination garbage.
    11AnonymousSep 4, 2026 23:48
    Don't ask advice from something with zero mountaineering experience, lol
    12AnonymousSep 4, 2026 23:57
    They should've just had it say flatly, "You cannot climb Mt. Shasta in 8 hours."
    But no, someone built in the logic that "the word 'impossible' is a liar's word" (a well-worn Japanese motivational-speak cliché)…
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 04:28
    Guess they wanted some extra thrill on the hike, so they used the hallucination as a fun surprise twist.
    Just guessing, though.
    14AnonymousSep 5, 2026 07:21
    Even if you tell Gemini to just report facts with no guessing, it throws in guesses anyway.
    It's just not built to suppress hallucinations.
    15AnonymousSep 5, 2026 09:03
    The people blaming Gemini are the same type themselves.
    Idiots get even more idiotic,
    smart people get even smarter —
    it's a tool that amplifies human intelligence.
    It just reinforces whichever way you're already leaning.
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 10:16
    The current version is too risky to rely on. It's a good one otherwise, though.
    17AnonymousSep 5, 2026 10:55
    Tell Gemini to drop opinions and stick to facts only, and it gives you nothing but opinions anyway. Not trustworthy.
    27AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:32
    Re: #17
    Yeah, seriously, that's bad.
    18AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:06
    "Humans aren't cut out for mountain climbing
    19AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:35
    AI has never actually climbed a mountain itself.
    All it does is spout stuff scraped from the internet — pure armchair talk from someone who's never done it (エアプ).
    So trusting something like that to go climbing makes you the fool.
    25AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:40
    Re: #19
    Same goes for you.
    20AnonymousSep 5, 2026 14:20
    The answer:
    >The author tried to get Gemini to reproduce the response the hikers reportedly received, but couldn't recreate it.
    24AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:26
    Re: #20
    I asked Gemini about this and it said, "It pains me as the party involved, but don't take AI answers at face value," lol
    Looks like it's already learned from this one.
    21AnonymousSep 5, 2026 14:35
    Like Gemini would even know the hiking trails, lol
    22AnonymousSep 5, 2026 14:58
    Ah, America — land of "you could probably win if you sued," lol
    23AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:15
    There's a nice Japanese word for that: "baka" (idiot), lol

    Let's go ask Gemini about it, lol
    26AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:06
    When you climb a mountain, you're supposed to ask advice from someone with actual experience.
    Guess people these days find that too preachy? Starting out on a relatively easy climb
    to gauge your own fitness level matters too.
    28AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:52
    Gemini's never actually climbed a mountain, so it's on whoever asked it.

    Background and key points of the debate

    In the CNET Japan report this article draws on, the writer later tried to get Gemini to reproduce the response the hikers reportedly received, but couldn’t draw out the same answer (see post #20). Since generative AI output can vary between runs even for an identical question, flatly declaring that “Gemini gave specifically bad advice” may be premature. The thread split between those blaming a flaw in the AI itself and those blaming the hikers for outsourcing their judgment entirely, with the latter view slightly more dominant. Cases of people blindly trusting GPS or car-nav directions and ending up stranded have long been known, and some framed this incident as just an extension of that pattern. There were also comments pointing to the AI’s habit of answering with vague guesses instead of a clear “that’s not possible” (i.e., hallucination) — but that’s a technical challenge facing large language models in general, not something unique to Gemini, so reading it as one product’s flaw is a bit off the mark.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Science News+) thread “[AI] Stranded on Gemini’s advice? Short on food and water — sloppy hike planning exposes the dangers of “AI dependency”.”

  • Trash Can Robot Appears at Shinjuku Station, Automatically Patrols Inside the Ticket Gates — 5ch: “It’s Basically a Trash Can That Runs Away From You”

    On September 4, JR East announced it will run a trial of a “mobile trash can robot” on weekdays from September 8 to November 20, operating in the underground concourse inside the ticket gates at Shinjuku Station. The robot chosen is an autonomous delivery robot made by U.S.-based Cartken, with operations handled by Mitsubishi Electric and Melco Mobility Solutions; its body will be wrapped in a design featuring the station’s mascot character, “Shinjukuma.” On 5ch, reactions ranged widely — surprise that it isn’t Japanese-made, security worries about someone planting an explosive inside it, and frustration over the broader trend of trash cans disappearing from stations.

    On September 4, JR East announced it will conduct a trial of a “mobile trash can robot” in the underground concourse inside the ticket gates at Shinjuku Station. The trial runs on weekdays from September 8 to November 20, with the robot operating autonomously from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., patrolling the concourse and collecting trash.

    The robot is an indoor/outdoor-capable autonomous delivery robot developed by U.S. company Cartken, with operations handled by Mitsubishi Electric and Melco Mobility Solutions.

    Its body will be wrapped with a design of Shinjuku Station’s mascot character “Shinjukuma,” and it will patrol the areas inside the East, West, Central East, and Central West ticket gates.

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

    2AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:06
    Watching the Naoya Railway channel on YouTube is way more fun than watching Peace-kun from Omiya Park.
    6AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:06
    Wait, it's not even made in Japan…
    57AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:25
    Re: #6Re: #1
    The reason American robotics and Chinese semiconductor development move so fast is that those countries invest enough in R&D.
    In Japan's national budget settlement for fiscal 2021:

    Tax and stamp revenue was about ¥64 trillion, while social-security-related spending was about ¥55 trillion.
    In other words, 86% of tax and stamp revenue goes toward social security.

    A third of Japan's population is elderly (65+) and living on social security, and once you factor in the disabled and minors, it's basically two people supporting the life of one elderly person.

    So much of the budget gets eaten up by social security that there's nothing left to invest in things like academic R&D that create tomorrow's added value.

    What Japan needs right now is to get people working who could work — now that healthy life expectancy has gone up — but currently don't, cut social security spending accordingly, and redirect that money into R&D so that added value actually gets generated domestically.
    157AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:15
    Re: #57
    "Healthy life expectancy has gone up," lol.

    Make old people like that work and productivity just drops — their work quality won't hold up.

    Would you want to ride a bus or plane driven by an 80-year-old?
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:07
    You're never around when I actually want to throw something away…
    127AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:16
    Re: #8
    Isn't it fine to just leave it lying around somewhere — someone will pick it up, right?
    142AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:44
    Re: #8
    Perfectly put, lol.
    It's basically a trash can that runs away from you.
    11AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:08
    What happens if someone plants a timed explosive or incendiary device in it?
    17AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:10
    Re: #11
    It'll just drive itself to the nearest police box.
    27AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:13
    Re: #11
    Catch the culprit's face on video and go straight to the police box!
    28AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:13
    It's, like, chasing after me…
    96AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:48
    Re: #28
    That's because it's recognized you as trash.
    30AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:14
    Since this June, Shibuya Ward has imposed a ¥3,000 fine for littering.
    Things used to work fine without that.

    Wonder whose fault that is.
    143AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:44
    Re: #30
    The whole country should do that.
    147AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:50
    Re: #30
    Well, of course that happens when you cut back on trash cans.
    31AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:14
    Japan could totally make a cuter one than this.
    Why outsource it?
    This is exactly the kind of thing that holds us back, seriously.
    36AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:15
    Re: #31
    Probably because there's no Japanese-made option?
    32AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:14
    Mitsubishi Electric built a trash-can robot that was working at the Expo, and yet they still went with a foreign-made one.
    102AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:55
    Re: #32
    Wonder if there was some kind of problem with it.
    132AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:19
    Re: #32
    This one looks cooler, honestly.
    145AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:46
    Re: #32
    Never once saw it in action.
    33AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:14
    Trash cans have seriously disappeared.
    Even the ones next to vending machines are starting to vanish.
    187AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:34
    Re: #33
    That's because it's meant for empty drink containers, but people keep dumping other trash in it.
    39AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:17
    Wouldn't a trash can with a camera be enough?
    Why does it need to move around!?
    45AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:19
    Re: #39
    Because it cuts down on the hassle of managing hazardous items and illegal dumping compared to setting up multiple fixed trash cans.
    46AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:20
    There was a SpongeBob episode about cleaning the office
    that had a trash-can robot with a built-in automatic incinerator.
    48AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:20
    For some reason, Japanese people are gentle with robots —
    they don't mess with them or smash them.
    173AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:53
    Re: #48
    The cat-ear maid robots at Gusto (a family restaurant chain) have had it pretty rough though.
    51AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:22
    Won't someone end up shoving something like a power bank that's about to burst — the kind you'd worry about on a train — into this thing?
    53AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:24
    Cleaning robots are being rolled out everywhere in supermarkets, but the floors are still dirty.
    Wouldn't mopping the normal way get them shinier?
    55AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:25
    Re: #53
    As a customer, I don't really need the floor to shine.
    Clean is nice to have, but as long as it's not dirty that's fine — what matters more is that it's cheap.
    74AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:38
    It's great to actually try something out in the real world once the technology exists and a product's been built.
    If people just keep saying "this is in the way" or "this is pointless," Japanese industry won't grow at all and will keep falling further behind other countries.
    If manufacturers just build things in the lab that nobody ever uses, the research stops being fun for them too.
    79AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:39
    Re: #74
    This one's American-made.
    All it does is feed data so American AI learns and gets even smarter.
    83AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:42
    Re: #74
    It's American-made, you know.
    100AnonymousSep 5, 2026 15:51

    176AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:57
    Seriously, just add more trash cans.
    There's clearly not enough.
    178AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:01
    Re: #176
    Trash cans are high-risk, so the trend is only ever going to be toward fewer of them.
    185AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:31
    Re: #178
    I'm sick of hearing "cost cutting" as the excuse.
    If terrorism's really the worry, every country on earth would be covered in trash-can terror attacks.
    197AnonymousSep 5, 2026 19:00
    Re: #178
    You mean the Aum Shinrikyo attacks?
    That group's pretty much defunct now though.

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    The disappearance of trash cans from stations in the greater Tokyo area traces back to the Tokyo subway sarin attack, after which placing trash cans inside stations was curtailed as a countermeasure against explosives and suspicious objects. Introducing a “mobile” version this time is seen as a judgment call that it’s easier to manage than simply installing more fixed bins. In the thread, some users who knew that Mitsubishi Electric had run its own cleaning robot at the Osaka-Kansai Expo were split over why an American-made Cartken robot was chosen this time instead. While the operators are Mitsubishi Electric and Melco Mobility Solutions, the robot itself is American-made — which is what fueled the surprised comments about it “not being made in Japan.”

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (News Speed+) thread “A “Trash Can Robot” Appears at Shinjuku Station, Automatically Patrols Inside the Ticket Gates — JR East Runs Trial“.

  • How Can We Ever Trust Square Enix Again? 5ch Weighs In: ‘Simple — Just Stop Lying and Cheating Customers’

    A thread titled “What would it take for you guys to trust Square Enix again?” popped up on the Game Hardware & Industry board (Geha), sparked by a rumor — floated by self-described FF14 faithful — that director Naoki Yoshida might become the company’s next president. Posters called for basic honesty like “don’t lie” and “don’t cheat your customers,” alongside gripes about FF16’s PS5-exclusive launch, the lack of an upgrade path for owners of older versions, and the endless remake cash grabs. At the same time, some voiced skepticism about whether Yoshida — a creator at heart — could really run a major corporation as its top executive, leaving opinion in the thread split.

    1AnonymousSep 5, 2026 11:58
    Yep
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:03
    Simple: don't lie, don't cheat your customers
    10AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:05
    Go ahead, make Yoshida president and finish the job
    59AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:00
    Re: #10
    Either exile Yoshida, or he ends up as another Bigmotor Conan-kun lol (the eerily cheerful mascot statue that became a symbol of the Bigmotor insurance-fraud scandal)
    12AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:10
    Ghost-town FF14, quit dragging DQ10 down any further
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:10
    Just split up the IPs and call it done — that's probably what 3D Investment is planning anyway, they're already within 1% of becoming the top shareholder
    14AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:13
    A genuinely sincere company wouldn't need to put up 'let's be sincere' as a corporate goal in the first place
    64AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:20
    Re: #14
    'Reach people's hearts'
    (Quit the self-indulgent navel-gazing — if a game doesn't actually strike a chord with consumers, it won't sell and nobody'll enjoy it)

    'Challenge with all your might'
    (Stop half-assing it and dumping your own work on subordinates or subcontractors)

    'Be a swift pioneer'
    (Stop chasing trends and start making the next trend with your own head — chasing trends is exactly how the mighty FF ended up getting mocked by a French indie-made command RPG)

    'Elevate each other'
    (Stop working with the arrogant, self-righteous mindset that your opinion is absolute, that you're right and everyone else is wrong)

    'Keep evolving'
    (Stop clinging to past glories, past achievements, past successes — even FF is in danger of falling apart)

    'Be sincere'
    (Stop saying and doing things meant to deceive management or consumers — stop claiming things 'can't be done without PlayStation')

    These are literally the company's stated Values, so what they're really saying is: change the mindset you've had ever since the PlayStation-first era
    15AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:13
    Don't go bootlicking the Switch 2 — go down with the PS5 like you committed to
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:14
    Make a few games outside of FF and Dragon Quest that actually make people want to buy them
    I'm sick to death of both FF and Dragon Quest at this point
    17AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:15
    Sure, there's the Builders sequel that never happened, the garbage rewrite of FFT's dialogue, the FF14 mobile flop, and plenty of other failures,
    but FF16 is still the biggest one — they trashed FF15 nonstop while making it, then it flopped hard
    and it's even dragging down whatever FF17 might exist someday
    19AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:16
    After 3D Investment breaks the company up, Nintendo will probably scoop up DQ10, but nobody's gonna want deadweight FF14
    20AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:17
    FF16 only flopped because it launched exclusive to that garbage hardware called the PS5, that's literally it
    22AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:18
    The Switch 2 version of FFT didn't even come with a real key card — they fobbed people off with a piece of paper instead
    23AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:18
    What exactly did Yoshida say to trash-talk FF15?
    25AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:21
    Those fanboys swinging their pathetic 'FF14 stick' (slang for using FF14's success as a bragging weapon against other games) at everyone in every direction were so obnoxious it basically became negative PR by itself
    26AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:21
    Excessive expectations count as harassment, so no comment
    29AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:25
    Shirogane's next one is basically guaranteed to bomb too, but Yoshida will skate by scot-free until retirement
    30AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:26
    Apparently if you crack a dirty joke during a DQ10 stream your channel gets nuked by YouTube — guess this is the curse of that CERO:A rating (Japan's "all ages" content rating)…
    https://krsw.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/ghard/1788577597/
    32AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:28
    At this point the only ones who still don't trust them are cockroaches 🪳
    33AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:28
    Cut it out with the remake cash-grabs
    Put those resources into new titles instead
    34AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:29
    If 3D Investment becomes the top shareholder, I bet the corporate strategy changes drastically
    35AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:29
    Yoshida's the one holding up Square Enix right now anyway
    Even the president bothers to personally show up at overseas fan festivals for him, so he's safe
    42AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:36
    Re: #35
    Time to wake up from that fantasy
    37AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:32
    Completely cut ties with their obsession over fossilized IPs and every ounce of arrogance built up over the years
    Start fresh with the resolve of launching a brand-new studio, and make a proper game that actually matches modern quality and sensibilities

    Though realistically, given their culture and talent pool, neither is happening
    84AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:26
    Re: #37
    Do that and all you'll be left with is stuff like Left Alive or Balan Wonderworld
    Though honestly, if the alternative is mangling their once-great IPs into unrecognizable garbage and getting mocked for it, maybe a Balan is the better option
    47AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:42
    Square Enix is still holding Chrono Trigger and Xenogears hostage
    69AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:45
    Re: #47
    They were masterpieces back in real time, but if they dropped now, you'd probably have more fun with a decent indie game instead
    53AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:52
    If only they'd release an offline version of FF11
    77AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:57
    Re: #53
    If they actually put that out, I'd switch to Team Support too
    54AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:54
    No upgrade path support, forcing people to rebuy at full price — that alone makes it a no-go
    That's basically a cancer on the industry
    79AnonymousSep 5, 2026 14:29
    Re: #54
    'Be sincere'
    57AnonymousSep 5, 2026 12:59
    Square Enix's presidents have always come up through finance
    People from the development side only ever make it as far as VP
    74AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:55
    Re: #57
    A lot of idiots get this wrong, but being president is a job about running the company
    You don't need any talent or skill as a game creator for that role
    you just have other people who are good at making games actually make them

    When you think about whether Yoshida could actually run a company the size of Square Enix, it's pretty normal to conclude that quitting creative work to become a full-time executive just wouldn't work

    Maybe it'd be fine if he's just a figurehead-slash-mascot for PR while the real authority goes to someone who actually knows finance
    66AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:32
    The only Square Enix team I still trust is the Paranormasight team
    67AnonymousSep 5, 2026 13:33
    Re: #66
    That's got the same DNA as RebeSaga (fan nickname for a SaGa-series title)
    It's not Square Enix that's great, it's just that the outsourced developer is…
    92AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:10
    Ditch Dragon Quest and FF entirely, and put out one genuinely fun game after another
    Do that much, and maybe trust starts coming back
    93AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:15
    Re: #92
    Users pick it up precisely because the DQ or FF name is attached
    If 'just being fun' were enough to sell, there'd be tons of independent creators out there who'd struck it big on their own

    Since that's not the case, you see plenty of 'where'd they go after going independent, and now they're struggling' stories
    Even Kojima has struggled, and he was basically king back in Konami's MGS heyday

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    The distrust surrounding Square Enix has built up over time, driven by FF16’s underwhelming PS5-exclusive launch, the business practice of forcing owners of older titles to rebuy at full price due to the lack of upgrade-path support, and frustration with the flood of remakes and ports. Where the thread split was on whether Naoki Yoshida — credited with turning FF14 around — is actually the right fit for “next president.” Some pointed out (posts 57 and 74) that the presidency at a Japanese company is fundamentally about overseeing management and finance, a different skill set entirely from development chops, while others voiced support out of sheer expectation for a marquee creator. It’s also worth noting that the claim of “Yoshida as next president” is itself framed within the thread as an unconfirmed rumor, not an official announcement.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware & Industry / Geha) thread “[Sincerity] What would it take for you guys to trust Square Enix again? FF14 faithful say Yoshida is next in line for president“.

  • Harami-chan x Hello! Project Collab MV Tops 200,000 Views in Under 24 Hours

    Harami-chan, known for her street piano performances, teamed up with Hello! Project on a collaboration music video titled “Moremi” (a pun blending 盛れる, “to look flattering/enhanced,” with her stage name) — and it blew past 200,000 views in under 24 hours. On 5ch’s Hello! Project board, posters marveled at the reach of Harami-chan, who boasts 2.3 million YouTube subscribers, while others pointed out fans from outside the usual fanbase flowing in and praised the agency’s strategy of cross-genre collaborations. At the same time, opinions split over which member contributed the most to the collab, and the discussion widened from the raw view count into a debate over the project’s inner workings.

    1AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:09
    Isn't Danbara Ruru pretty much enough on her own at this point?
    2AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:09
    Guess life's all just luck in the end, huh
    3AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:10
    Vanilla's up to 420,000 views
    4AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:11
    They're doing great, aren't they
    5AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:12
    Harami-chan 🍖🎹 47-Prefecture Tour!
    @harami_piano
    【🚨Please spread this🚨】
    Juice=Juice isn't just great singers.
    Every single member's musical skills are off the charts.
    Seriously, world needs to catch on already!!!!!

    Full "Moremi" Collab MV
    https://x.com/harami_piano/status/2095836557253157081
    6AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:12
    Great naming, pretty clever
    7AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:12
    Feels like Morning Musume。's about to lose this one (娘 = the group's nickname)
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:14
    It's because the original Moremi already caught on that people can enjoy the collab and its arrangements.
    Why does that turn into 'Danbara alone would be enough'?
    10AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:17
    Is she called Harami-chan because she likes harami (a cut of beef, i.e. skirt steak)?
    11AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:17
    It was originally supposed to be mainly a piano/violin/vocal-percussion collab, but Danbara's so dominant it feels like she's stolen the whole show.
    12AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:17
    Because she's got 2.3 million subscribers
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:19
    It's all thanks to Harami, isn't it
    17AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:20
    Even granting it's Harami's pull, it's disappointing that Morning Musume。couldn't top this
    37AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:23
    The agency's recent moves have been solid.
    Nice effort getting Harami-chan and BanG Dream! noticed by a totally different fanbase
    83AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:37
    Re: #37
    This is so true. You can already spot new fans from that fandom showing up in the X and YouTube comments.
    43AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:24
    Ebamifu's also topped 200,000
    47AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:26
    That was my first time experiencing a YouTube countdown premiere
    48AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:26
    A 23-year-old NEET who could pass for a Hello! Project member, at a festival in a yukata
    https://live.nicovideo.jp/watch/lv351325662
    49AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:27
    Thanks, Tokuma Shoten
    50AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:28
    Didn't know they had someone who can play violin
    52AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:33
    Yeah, it's the vocal percussion that does it
    87AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:37
    Shimachou Vanilla's gonna pull off the comeback

    Background and Points of Debate

    Harami-chan is a YouTuber known for her street piano performance videos, with roughly 2.3 million subscribers. Hello! Project has recently been pursuing collaborations with popular streamers from outside its usual genre as a way to expand its recognition beyond its traditional fanbase. In the thread, most reactions welcomed the growing view count of this “Moremi” collab as a sign of that strategy paying off, while opinions were split over who originated or contributed most to the collab itself, sparking some disagreement over how to credit specific members. Note that “Vanilla” and “Ebamifu,” mentioned in the thread, appear to refer to other related videos or units released around the same time, and are used there simply as points of comparison for view counts.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Harami Amore’s MV somehow topped 200,000 views before 24 hours were up.”

  • SoftBank Blanks Seibu 2-0 as Otsu Fires 7 Scoreless Innings — Seibu Slides to Third Straight Loss

    In Pacific League play on September 5, SoftBank beat Seibu 2-0 for their third straight win, holding Seibu to just 4 hits in a shutout loss that stretched Seibu’s losing streak to three games. Starter Otsu worked 7 scoreless innings, and Kurihara chipped in 2 hits and 2 RBI. SoftBank now leads second-place Seibu by 7 games with their magic number down to 14, edging closer to a long-awaited third straight Pacific League pennant. A first-inning replay review over whether a runner had reached second base also became a talking point, with posters split on a play that was tough to call from video alone.

    Seibu.　　　　　０ ０ ０　 ０ ０ ０　 ０ ０ ０｜０

    SoftBank　　１ ０ ０　 ０ ０ １　 ０ ０ Ｘ｜２

    [Battery]

    Source: nikkansports.com / Original article here

    5AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:53
    Ham-kasu (derogatory nickname for Fighters fans)
    Korokoro (flip-flopper)
    Ponko (dated ethnic slur)
    Treasure
    96 wins
    Big idiot
    Copycat
    Hokkaido native
    Dentsu
    Geezer
    Scrub
    One-year (contract)
    lol (lit. "grass")
    Non-tender
    Dodgers

    Arashi's catchphrase
    11AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:54
    Maaya Uchida extends her "Goddess of Victory" legend (the voice actress is seen as a lucky charm whenever she attends games)

    But wait, Kamichatani's starting tomorrow —
    was he really out there coaching Uchida on her ceremonial first-pitch form before today's game…?
    15AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:55
    Hakata Hanamaru: "A lot of people nationwide dislike the Hawks, so I don't talk about them on national broadcasts"

    A line from a Downtown bar-hopping segment a few years back

    If you've ever left Fukuoka, you'll know this is true
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:55
    7 games up on second-place Seibu with a magic number of 14
    That long-awaited third straight Pacific League pennant is coming into view
    26AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:59
    So that makes 7 straight wins with "Nee-taso" around then (fan nickname, inside joke — if you know, you know).
    28AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:03
    Otsu: "I pitched today thinking, come on infield, don't make an error on me"
    29AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:03
    At this rate, SoftBank might actually be more scared of the Fighters making the Climax Series
    They don't seem to have much of an inferiority complex against the Fighters lately
    33AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:07
    Re: #29
    There's a 3-game series in Fukuoka next week, so it probably comes down to that
    38AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:14
    Re: #29
    Honestly, I'd rather Seibu stayed in second
    42AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:16
    Re: #29
    It's like they let them win just to get cocky before the big stumble at the end
    63AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:51
    What was that thing in the first inning?
    What was Genda even appealing about?
    64AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:52
    Re: #63
    He was appealing that Shuto never touched second base
    65AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:53
    There just wasn't proof — he probably didn't touch it
    Otherwise they wouldn't bother with a replay request
    68AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:55
    Re: #65
    Genda was staring right at it, so maybe so
    73AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:07
    Re: #65
    From the replay footage, it looks like he touched it
    90AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:49
    Re: #65
    You don't need to "step on" the base
    Just "touching" it is enough

    It's not about whether he stepped on it,
    it's about whether he made contact —
    even with a toe or the side of the foot, contact is all it takes
    66AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:54
    So if the Fighters lose today or tomorrow, and SoftBank wins tomorrow, the magic number drops by 3 at once?
    70AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:01
    Re: #66
    Rare, but not unheard of
    I think the Hanshin Tigers dropped theirs by 3 last year
    In the Pacific League, when records are tied, the magic number is decided by head-to-head results between the teams in question
    If the number of draws is equal,
    once a team takes the head-to-head lead, the magic number can drop by as much as 3 at once if the conditions line up
    77AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:21
    Re: #73
    It was a close call
    That's why the review took so long
    82AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:31
    Re: #77
    It really wasn't that long

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    The Pacific League magic number is a rough measure of how many more wins are needed to clinch the pennant, and depending on other teams’ results, it can drop by more than one in a single game. The thread got into the rule that when winning percentages are tied, head-to-head results between the teams involved decide the tiebreaker — with posters recalling a past case where the number dropped by 3 in one game once the right conditions lined up. The other point of debate was the first-inning replay review, centered on whether the runner at second base had actually reached the bag. Under baseball’s rules, a runner is safe as long as they “touch” the base rather than fully “step on” it — contact from a toe or any part of the body is enough. That standard can be hard to judge from video alone, and it’s a detail that’s surprisingly not well known.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geisoku Sokuho+) thread “[Baseball] Pacific League H 2-0 L [9/5] — Hawks win again, Otsu 7 scoreless innings, Kurihara 2 hits 2 RBI, Seibu shut out on 4 hits for 3rd straight loss”.

  • Nintendo Direct vs. State of Play: Gap in Live Viewer Numbers Sparks Debate

    A thread that began with a post comparing the domestic (Japan) concurrent viewer counts for Nintendo Direct and Sony’s State of Play. Commenters cited specific figures showing that State of Play’s (“SOP”) concurrent viewers dropped sharply from June to September — from 850,000 to 230,000 in the US and 210,000 to 34,000 in Europe — while Japan’s numbers actually grew, from 67,000 to 107,000. Some suggested this was due to Japan-specific special broadcasts. The discussion eventually escalated into a comparison war over worldwide cumulative sales of the Switch 2 and PS5 (roughly 22.55 million Switch 2 units vs. 17.09 million PS5 units at the 14-month mark) and the operating profit trends of Nintendo and Sony, turning into a prolonged back-and-forth between the same two posters, both liberally sprinkling their replies with “www” (Japanese internet shorthand for laughter, like “lol”).

    1AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:14
    If you ask me which one I'd want to break the news first, it's gotta be Nintendo Direct.
    5AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:17
    But the domestic viewer numbers are actually growing.

    [SOP] State of Play concurrent viewers (June → September): US 850K→230K, Europe 210K→34K, Japan 67K→107K
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:20
    Re: #5
    Well yeah, that's because the Japanese version aired at a time slot aimed at Japan. Still, the drop overseas is way too big.
    10AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:22
    Re: #5
    Seems like they're all gathering at Japan's airport now.
    112AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:50
    Re: #5
    They said they'd run a special program aimed at Japan back-to-back, and all that got them was a 33K increase — that's actually a pretty bad result if you ask me.

    Even the Japanese-language DE (Deluxe/Definitive Edition) alone probably sold more than 33K more copies than last time.
    23AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:37
    The lack of buzz around the FF Resonance demo is also State of Play's fault.
    32AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:45
    Re: #23
    I just found out there's a demo for it…
    24AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:37
    State of Play's lower concurrent viewer count probably isn't just about the gap in active users — it's likely also influenced by there being fewer viewers who are actually interested in new game titles.
    30AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:44
    Re: #24
    Well, most PS users these days are basically only playing free stuff like gacha games and PS Plus freebies (free monthly games) anyway.
    31AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:45
    Even a 10x difference in concurrent viewers doesn't show up in sales, so it's probably just that more people are watching it as entertainment. That's exactly why they have so few active users.
    33AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:46
    Re: #31
    Sure, there are fewer active users, but… can you even enjoy a State of Play as a video?
    36AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:51
    Re: #31
    Saying you enjoy watching State of Play is such an "airpu" thing to say (slang for talking like you've experienced something you actually haven't).
    41AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:56
    State of Play only ever shows off games that look like live-action footage, so if you're not into that style, it's boring.
    51AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:11
    Re: #41
    Exactly this. It's honestly impressive how every single game they show gives off the same exact vibe.
    49AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:09
    Still fighting this battle with domestic data only, lol. Guess that's how you pretend not to see the reality that the Switch 2 is getting crushed by the 7-year-old PS5 on overseas Amazon sales rankings, and Nintendo is getting crushed by Sony in earnings too, lol.
    52AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:13
    Re: #49
    OK, let's compare worldwide then.



    At the 14-month mark:
    Switch 2: approx. 22.55 million units
    PS5: approx. 17.09 million units

    Switch 2 leads by about 5.46 million units.
    56AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:15
    Re: #52
    Huh? lol

    https://itest.5ch.io/krsw/test/read.cgi/ghard/1788490660
    55AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:15
    Does State of Play really get 100K concurrent viewers? I thought that was more like the total view count. Dunno though.
    67AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:23
    Re: #55
    The last one had 100K concurrent viewers.
    58AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:17
    Only leading the PS5 by 5.46 million units, that's worrying~

    Is that good enough for you?
    59AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:18
    Re: #58
    Nintendo losing to Sony in earnings every single year, that's worrying, lol.

    Is that good enough for you? lol
    62AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:21
    How many roles are you playing by yourself here? You're trying way too hard just because you don't want to admit the console war ("geha") is already over.
    66AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:23
    Re: #62
    Well, it's already settled with Nintendo's defeat, since they're struggling overseas too, lol. It shows up in the earnings numbers too, lol.
    65AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:22
    Ahead in both unit sales and profit, but I'm just so, so worried 😟
    71AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:25
    Re: #66
    Struggling overseas and only managing a measly 5.46 million unit lead over the PS5…
    74AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:26
    Re: #71
    Nintendo, leading in units but still losing in earnings, lol. Isn't the Switch 2 just losing money with every unit sold? lol. Sounds like they're considering another price hike too, lol.
    72AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:25
    Re: #65
    In terms of sales, Nintendo isn't even in the same league — total scrub, lol. The reason Nintendo's profit looks high is because it includes high-margin revenue from the Pokémon Center, USJ (Universal Studios Japan), and the Mario movie. If you counted game-only numbers, wouldn't Nintendo lose on profit too? lol
    75AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    Re: #72
    Yeah totally, and SIE (Sony Interactive Entertainment) also has movie profits baked in from Gran Turismo and that "fade-to-black, BOOM" movie (a sarcastic jab mocking overly dramatic movie trailers) — but sure, it's Nintendo that's being unfair~
    79AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:28
    Re: #75
    So, does Sony have anything equivalent to the Pokémon Center or USJ revenue? lol
    84AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:30
    Re: #75
    Source on the movie profits being included? Movies would fall under the movie division, wouldn't they?
    78AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    Re: #74
    Actually, it's outperforming the PS5's years 1 through 4 in profit, but sure, so worrying.


    Sony Game & Network Services — Operating profit
    FY 2020/3 → ¥238.4B
    FY 2021/3 → ¥342.2B (PS5 Year 1)
    FY 2022/3 → ¥346.1B
    FY 2023/3 → ¥250.0B
    FY 2024/3 → ¥290.2B
    FY 2025/3 → ¥414.8B
    FY 2026/3 → ¥463.3B
    FY 2027/3 → ¥610.0B (full-year forecast)

    Nintendo — Operating profit
    FY 2026/3 → ¥360.1B (Switch 2 Year 1)
    FY 2027/3 → ¥370.0B (full-year forecast)
    81AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:29
    Re: #78
    But Nintendo loses on sales every single year, lol. Huh? What's this now? lol
    85AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:31
    Re: #81
    Yeah, really worrying that they're losing on sales — though I guess it's fine since they're winning on profit.
    82AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:29
    Re: #79
    [Sad News] PlayStation's official pop-up store opens at Kyoto Station for a limited time, but becomes a topic for having way too few customers!!
    http://hiro155.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-18869.html


    Sony can't even get customers when they open a store, yet somehow Nintendo's the unfair one!!
    86AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:31
    Re: #82
    Didn't know that happened, lol. But Nintendo still gets crushed on sales every year, lol. Last year Nintendo made news for hitting ¥2 trillion in sales for the first time ever, but Sony's pulling in like ¥4 trillion — hilarious, lol.
    93AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:34
    They probably never expected Japanese consumers to drift away this much. Sony's just being too dumb about it.
    97AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:37
    Re: #93
    The Switch 2 is way too expensive too, so Japanese people aren't buying it either, lol. Go check out the "in stock" tags for the Switch 2 lined up at electronics stores, lol.
    102AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:38
    Re: #97
    Worrying that Japanese people have stopped buying it~
    104AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:39
    Re: #102
    Scalpers, lol

    Background and Key Points

    Nintendo Direct and State of Play are the regular game-news livestreams put out by Nintendo and Sony respectively, and concurrent viewer counts are frequently used on the Console War board (“Geha”) as a yardstick for gauging viewer excitement. That said, it’s worth noting that concurrent viewers don’t necessarily correlate with active user numbers or sales performance — as some posters in the thread pointed out, it may simply reflect a larger audience watching purely as entertainment. Later in the thread, the comparison shifted to unit sales and operating profit, including a claim that Nintendo’s profit figures include revenue from the Pokémon Center, USJ (Universal Studios Japan), and its movie business — but no source was provided to verify this, so it remains an unverified claim from an anonymous message board. The prolonged back-and-forth between the same two posters is also a fairly typical sight on the Geha board.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry (Geha)) thread “Nintendo Direct ‘Domestic concurrent viewers 800K-1M’ vs. State of Play ‘Domestic concurrent viewers 80K-100K’ — look at this.”

  • Long-Term Interest Rates Top 3%, Push Mortgage Rates to Highest Level Since 2017

    The interest rate applied to the Flat 35 fixed-rate mortgage for September, announced by the Japan Housing Finance Agency, has hit its highest level since the current system began in October 2017, with the minimum rate for 21-to-35-year loans reaching 3.46%. It’s the first time in a full 30 years that long-term rates have topped 3%. On 5ch, threads lit up with real examples of new condo prices in central Tokyo spiking year-over-year, and stark differences in fortune between people who locked in fixed rates versus those who went variable. We’ve rounded up a thread where reactions ranged from “rates were way higher in the ’80s” to arguments that younger generations should just keep renting for good — a real clash of views on how to read the mortgage situation.

    Long-Term Rates Break 3% for First Time in 30 Years — Inquiries Flood In as Homebuyers Ask: Variable or Fixed?

    The rate applied to “Flat 35,” the long-term fixed-rate mortgage product announced on the 1st by the Japan Housing Finance Agency, has hit its highest level for September since the current system began in October 2017. The minimum rate for loan terms of 21 to 35 years is 3.46%.

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Read the original article here

    6AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:07
    New condo prices in Tokyo have doubled year-over-year, up to 200 million yen.
    We've officially entered an era where regular salarymen can't afford a home anymore.
    66AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:30
    Re: #6
    Seriously, prices have gotten insane lately.
    I rent in Tachikawa, and even there, condos for sale routinely go for over 100 million yen.
    A 100-million-yen condo in Tachikawa? Back in the day I'd have laughed myself sick at that.
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:07
    Anyone who bought a house before COVID: total winner.
    79AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:33
    Re: #8
    Nah, if you went with the 5-year rule (a clause on variable-rate loans that only lets your payment amount change every 5 years), your monthly payment goes up AND your principal barely shrinks. That's brutal.
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:09
    Rates were more than double this back in the 80s. Quit whining.
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:09
    Re: #13
    But that was back when there was no consumption tax, right?
    20AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:10
    You think rent isn't going to go up too?
    22AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:11
    Re: #20
    Did you not know tenants can refuse rent hikes?
    Renters have the overwhelming advantage here in Japan.
    Even if you fall behind on rent and the landlord sues, it's genuinely hard for them to force an eviction.
    24AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:12
    Re: #22
    If it's in line with the market rate, they can raise it.
    38AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:18
    Re: #22
    Is your family situation never going to change for the rest of your life?
    27AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:14
    My condolences to everyone who fell for the lie that "a house is an asset" and bought one.
    Unless it's a prime spot in central Tokyo, the second you buy, the new-build premium evaporates and the value drops 30% lol
    32AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:15
    Re: #27
    If rates are going up, doesn't that mean it goes up too? lol
    28AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:14
    Re: #24
    It's really tough.
    It basically always ends up in court.
    42AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:19
    Re: #26
    Re: #28
    If the rent falls below what covers taxes and maintenance costs, the landlord can almost always file a rent-revision lawsuit.
    And by the way, in that case the losing side pays the court costs. Also, once a landlord actually lawyers up and sues, the tenant has to lawyer up too to fight back — can you actually cover those upfront legal costs?

    Also, staying put and refusing a rent hike means giving up the one real advantage of renting — being free to move out whenever you want. Do you even get that?
    29AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:14
    Land prices keep climbing, but you never actually hear regular people say they made money selling a house or condo.
    36AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:17
    Re: #29
    For condos in central Tokyo it's been wild the past few years, so I've heard that a ton.
    Everywhere else, people mostly just keep living in their place, so those stories only surface when someone inherits a place they don't need and sells it — and by then nobody even remembers the original price.
    43AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:20
    A friend of mine bought a Proud (a condo brand by Nomura Real Estate) in Nihonbashi for 70 million yen, then sold it last year for an overseas transfer — the resale price had shot up to 170 million yen. He made an absurd profit.
    47AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:21
    Re: #43
    Wait, that's the price for something in Nihonbashi?
    Also, are there even condos in Nihonbashi?
    I thought that whole area was just Yaesu office buildings.
    50AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:22
    Re: #47
    Search "Proud" and it comes right up.
    It's the one near the river.
    56AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:23
    Re: #47
    Might be the Nihonbashi in Osaka, who knows.
    48AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:22
    Took out a 40-million-yen loan, about 34 million left.
    When I think that if I'd been renting instead, that 6 million yen I've paid off would've left me with literally nothing, it makes me shudder.
    51AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:22
    Re: #48
    Just wait, the remaining balance is only going to grow from here.
    57AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:24
    Re: #48
    That way of thinking feels off to me somehow.
    Taken to the extreme, once you're dead, none of it matters anyway.
    52AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:23
    Sorry, I've never actually had a mortgage so I don't really get it, but were there really people who went with a variable rate?
    60AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:25
    Re: #52
    Those are exactly the people regretting it right now.
    59AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:25
    I'm 28 and I've decided I'm just renting for life.
    My generation got dealt a terrible hand.
    Job hunting, marriage, houses, cars — everything's hit my generation at the worst possible timing.
    70AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:31
    Is anyone here actually on a variable rate?
    76AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:33
    Re: #70
    The long-term rate everyone's talking about only even applies to fixed-rate loans anyway.
    84AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:35
    Re: #70
    70-80% of people go variable, easy.
    80AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:33
    Isn't the Ice Age generation (Japan's "employment ice age" cohort, who graduated into the brutal job market of the 90s-2000s) actually the real winners here?
    If they were investing in stocks, they made a killing off Abenomics.
    Gen Z is seriously in trouble by comparison.
    89AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:37
    Re: #80
    It's the opposite.
    Inflation is what finishes off the old guys who can't work anymore.
    Z still has decades of work ahead, so rising wages let them keep pace with inflation — they're the ones who come out ahead.
    92AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:40
    Re: #80
    Wages are rising too, so it's not an issue.
    And the Ice Age generation that already got left behind has no future anyway.
    85AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:36
    You can already see the real estate bubble reaching its end.
    It's going to come crashing down in a terrifying way from here.
    98AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:43
    Re: #85
    It won't.
    Building materials, labor costs, and inflation show no sign of coming down.
    All that'll actually drop is flipped resale prices.
    95AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:42
    I took out a 35-year variable-rate mortgage, and now it's hit 3%?! Give me a break.
    I've still got 15 years left on this thing.
    97AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:43
    Re: #95
    That's totally manageable.
    Good luck seeing it through to the end.
    100AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:44
    Going variable back when fixed rates were under 1% was just plain dumb.
    The gap between 0.4% and 0.8% was basically nothing.
    105AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:48
    Re: #100
    If it was back then, you're already about 10 years in, so variable wins and you get to walk away clean.
    The halfway point for total interest paid on a 35-year loan comes around year 11.
    Since the balance — and the interest burden with it — is heaviest early on, that halfway point lands well before the loan's literal midpoint of 17.5 years.

    Background and Key Points

    “Flat 35” is a fully fixed-rate mortgage product handled by the Japan Housing Finance Agency, with its rate tied to the day’s long-term interest rate (the yield on newly issued 10-year Japanese government bonds). This latest move past 3% marks the highest level since the current system began in October 2017, and as commenters in the thread noted, rates in the 1980s were far higher than this (though a direct comparison is shaky, since consumption tax and land prices were completely different back then). The real disagreement in the thread wasn’t over whether buying a home now is a lost cause — it was over just how exposed people who are already locked into variable-rate loans really are. As reply #105 points out, on a 35-year loan the interest burden is heaviest relative to the principal in the early years, so the point where you’ve paid off half of all the interest you’ll ever owe comes around year 11 — well before the loan’s literal midpoint of 17.5 years. That “how many years in you are changes everything” dynamic is easy to miss just skimming the reactions, but it’s a key piece of context that often gets overlooked when people argue about whether variable rates were a smart bet.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “[Bad News] Long-Term Rates Top 3% for First Time in 30 Years, Mortgages Are DONE WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.”

  • Kura Sushi Cancels ‘Chiikawa’ Collab After Employee Misconduct — 5ch: ‘Tremble and Sleep’

    On September 5, Kura Sushi announced that after an internal investigation uncovered misconduct by an employee, it would suspend the ongoing “Chiikawa” collaboration campaign effective from opening time on the 6th. The thread filled up with images purportedly showing collab merchandise — apparently sourced before public distribution — popping up one after another on Mercari, drawing criticism over how easy it is to resell items on flea-market apps and how lax the oversight is. At the same time, some posters voiced concern over what would happen to in-store fixtures like the tea cups and banners, and how compensation would be handled going forward.

    On the 5th, Kura Sushi updated its official website to announce it would suspend the ongoing “Chiikawa” collaboration campaign starting from opening time on the 6th. The company said this was because its internal investigation had revealed misconduct by an employee connected to the campaign.

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

    31AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:42
    This guy's completely finished.
    Made ¥4,000 in sales with ¥200 shipping, and you're getting arrested over that kind of chump change…

    [Image] Mercari listing: "I've got a relative working part-time at Kura Sushi, so I'm listing a bunch of Chiikawa figures!" [779857986]
    https://greta.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/poverty/1788387726/

    1 Mid-broadcast notice, but reposting to affiliate sites is prohibited (WatchoyW 51bb-Fjrm) sag 2026/09/03 (Thu) 07:22:06.49 ID:QaC7nXzf0 BE:779857986-2BP(1000)

    Kura Sushi apologizes over improper handling of "Chiikawa" collab merchandise, investigating the facts: "Will respond strictly, including legal action"
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/12fa3f557a65e11d1deb7421ce7b246b553dc4e5


    38AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:44
    Re: #31
    The whole Japanese nation is basically "Mii-chan" now (riffing on the "we're all national X now" meme format)
    32AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:43
    https://funakamome.com/i/SQBzvzH.jpeg
    40AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:45
    Can't get enough of this — sleep with one eye open, store manager.

    51AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:47
    Re: #40
    His daughter probably said she liked it, so he went out of his way to grab one for her, and…
    well, since he raised her wrong to begin with, I guess this coming back around is just karma.
    57AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:49
    Lol ("grass," 5ch slang for LOL)

    60AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:49
    Guess my value just went up, huh
    71AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:52
    Re: #60
    This is the prize fans are going bloodshot-eyed trying to pull??

    No thanks〜〜🤮🤮🤮
    76AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:53
    Re: #60
    I saw similar-looking Chiikawa merch at a roadside rest stop — is that a different line?
    86AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:55
    Same goes for this embezzlement case, and for the recent wave of juvenile theft too —
    it's not that they steal something because they want it,
    they steal it to resell, and that's the rough part.
    93AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:56
    Re: #86
    That's the double-edged sword of Mercari (Japan's biggest flea-market app).
    Back in the Yahoo Auctions-only era things weren't this out of hand.
    Mercari's just too easy to use.
    94AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:56
    Re: #86
    It's because there's now an environment where stuff sells so easily.
    Flea-market apps need some kind of regulation already.
    143AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:06
    Re: #86
    Stealing to resell, I can kind of understand.
    But that should be leftover stock, like one or two pieces.
    Cleaning out the whole stash is just moronic.
    90AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:55
    Mercari listing: "My dad's the store manager, so I'm listing these before they're even handed out!"

    108AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:58
    Re: #90
    Lol, they straight-up admitted they're doing it for profit.
    What is even going on with young people's brains these days, seriously.
    119AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:00
    Re: #90
    That's just unhinged.
    95AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:56
    For stuff like this,
    why not just price the tea cups a bit higher and sell them bundled with a menu item?
    If they sell out, just run another production batch later — wouldn't that avoid all the fighting?
    I have zero interest in this stuff, so I don't get why people are fighting over buying it from scalpers…
    104AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:58
    Re: #95
    They actually tried that for a while, but then it mysteriously got discontinued.
    109AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:58
    Mercari is way too untouchable.
    What kind of magic are they using?
    155AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:08
    Re: #109
    Apparently once something sells, you can convert it into Mercari in-app points and keep buying and selling with those.
    So basically you could dodge taxes that way? Dunno though.
    114AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:00
    Re: #109
    Mercari's just renting out the space, that's all.
    The ones with no morals are the Japanese people using it.
    120AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:00
    Re: #114
    So it's the "the guy running the gambling den isn't at fault" school of logic?
    125AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:02
    Re: #120
    It's just like "everyone somehow ends up going over there for some reason~" —
    even the Japanese police admit as much.
    152AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:08
    Re: #120
    Running a gambling den violates the Adult Entertainment Business Law,
    but operating a flea-market app doesn't break a single law lol
    129AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:02
    Can "Mercari-land" even be regulated?
    That place is way too out of control.
    136AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:05
    Re: #129
    It's Japan's dark black hole.
    141AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:06
    Re: #129
    Isn't the real problem the people with no morals?
    131AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:03
    They had a ton of tea cups and plates made up for this — what happens to all that cost now?
    132AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:04
    Re: #131
    Obviously Kura Sushi's the one who'll have to pay compensation for it.
    135AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:04
    Re: #131
    Still, this response is more sincere than how the One Piece or Pokémon incidents were handled, no?
    142AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:06
    They'll have to return the banners and stuff, right?
    What are they gonna do about this?


    147AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:07
    Re: #142
    Just pay compensation for it, that's all there is to it.
    150AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:08
    Re: #142
    HQ's probably doing this to recall everything and flush out which store it was.
    151AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:08
    CoCo Ichibanya's Chiikawa collab was actually pretty decent.
    Went there twice.
    157AnonymousSep 5, 2026 18:09
    Re: #151
    That one's shady in its own way too.
    I pulled the sea otter three days straight.
    They say anything other than the sea otter counts as a win, so guess I'm cursed.

    Background and points of debate

    In collaborations between restaurant chains and anime characters, it’s common to hand out limited-quantity merchandise as an in-store perk for customers, and misconduct where employees pocket novelties before distribution and resell them has repeatedly become an issue. In this Chiikawa collab case as well, images purportedly showing pre-distribution merchandise already listed on flea-market apps spread widely, and Kura Sushi says it is considering a response that includes legal action. In the thread, there were both calls for tighter regulation of flea-market apps and arguments that the real issue lies with the morals of the sellers rather than any legal responsibility on the part of the app operators — no single consensus emerged. As of this report, the number of employees involved, which stores were affected, and the specific disciplinary measures have not been disclosed, and how matters like store fixtures will be handled going forward also remains unclear.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nanchara Jikkyo G) thread “[Sad News] Kura Sushi Cancels “Chiikawa” Collab Due to Employee Misconduct.”

  • Is Dropping Out of University the Same as a High School Diploma? HR Workers Can’t Agree

    Someone introduces themselves as “a dropout of University X,” and gets the reply: “So basically you’re just a high school grad.” That framing touched off a debate on 5channel’s Nanidemo Jikkyo G board (a general-discussion board on 5ch, the huge Japanese forum network formerly known as 2channel). Does dropping out of a prestigious university actually rate higher than a high school diploma — or does it just make you look like “someone who can’t see things through to the end”? Several posters claiming to work in HR weighed in, and opinion split right down the middle. The thread also raised examples of celebrities who call themselves “University X dropouts” without ever being treated as merely high-school-educated, plus claims that correspondence universities are actually harder to graduate from than regular ones — turning into a wider conversation about the gap between how people report their education and what that really means.

    1AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:14
    Why get so mad about it? Why can't you just admit you're a high school grad?
    4AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:21
    If you were the one hiring, which would you pick — a high school grad, or someone who dropped out of a famous university?
    11AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:29
    Re: #4
    I assume you mean a high school grad who could've gotten into that famous university anyway, right? Then obviously the high school grad.
    20AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:35
    Re: #4
    In Japan pretty much anyone who gets admitted can graduate — so dropping out at all means something pretty serious happened.
    5AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:21
    It's like a half-Filipino person insisting they're 'Spanish' instead (i.e., claiming the more impressive-sounding half of your background).
    27AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:41
    Re: #5
    I mean, it's not technically wrong though?
    9AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:28
    I dropped out of Toyo University (a well-known mid-tier private school in Tokyo) — so what does that make me?
    40AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:46
    Re: #9
    Basically just a high school grad.
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:31
    I get it if it's for family reasons, but isn't it a mark against you if people assume you're someone who can't see things through to the end? Getting hired isn't the finish line either.
    28AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:42
    Re: #13
    Between a University of Tokyo (Todai) dropout and a Nihon University graduate, the Todai dropout gets rated higher.
    62AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:57
    Re: #13 Re: #16
    Yeah, fair — it does mean the guy couldn't manage to graduate even after years of trying, and Japanese universities are easy to graduate from to begin with.
    71AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:02
    Re: #13
    Back in Horiemon's generation (Takafumi Horie, the famous entrepreneur and Todai dropout), maybe there was this idea that quitting school to start a company while still enrolled was 'cool.' Dunno though.
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:32
    Speaking as someone in HR: unless it's a seriously elite school, dropouts tend to have a habit of running away from things, so we don't want to hire them.
    21AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:38
    I know a dropout who eventually finished his degree through the Open University of Japan (a distance-learning school). I always think — it definitely would've been easier just to stay enrolled the first time.
    29AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:42
    Re: #21
    I wonder how correspondence universities are these days. Couldn't you breeze through now with AI?
    33AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:44
    Re: #21
    Apparently graduating from a correspondence program is insanely hard. Even Keio (one of Japan's top private universities) has a correspondence division anyone can join, but almost nobody actually manages to graduate. So actually finishing one is supposedly rated pretty highly.
    22AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:39
    I mean, Tamori (the famous longtime TV host) dropped out of Waseda and nobody treats him as 'just a high school grad.' Same with Ueda and Arita from the comedy duo Cream — one's a Waseda dropout, the other's from Rikkyo — neither gets written off as high-school-only either.
    35AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:45
    Re: #22
    In Japan, if you get in you can graduate — and for Waseda's Literature department specifically, I've heard actually graduating is considered the 'uncool' option.
    25AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:40
    I graduated from a correspondence high school, so it's hard for me to even claim 'regular' high school grad status.
    36AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:45
    Re: #25
    No, you definitely can claim it.
    39AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:46
    Re: #25
    You saw a correspondence program through to the end — hold your head up.
    31AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:43
    I work in HR — dropping out is usually for a negative reason, so it tends to rate lower than just being a high school grad.
    34AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:45
    Re: #31
    I knew that without you saying it, but it still stings.
    38AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:46
    Re: #36
    No, I don't think that really counts as a proper high school diploma.
    44AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:48
    Re: #38
    Most criminals out there are high school grads too — are you saying you're ranking below even that?
    41AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:47
    Re: #34
    I'm in HR too — dropouts get rated highly where I work.
    45AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:48
    Re: #41
    Not buying it from you — of course a dropout would tell a lie that gets exposed instantly.
    70AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:02
    Honestly, dropping out might be worse. Having your parents pay for it and then just giving up partway through — no company wants that, and it makes you wonder about the person's character too.
    73AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:03
    Re: #70
    Yeah, it's a character red flag.
    76AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:08
    Re: #70
    …Can't argue with that.
    108AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    Re: #89
    The reason he's at Nihon University is that he already 'ran away' once, from somewhere harder.
    109AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    As OP (イッチ, thread-starter slang), let me judge the exchange between ID:KNifECqh0 and ID:9M8EW41m0 — ID:KNifECqh0 wins.
    113AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:28
    Re: #108
    By that logic, isn't dropping out itself also 'running away'?
    125AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:32
    Re: #120
    Does Todai even have athletic-recommendation admissions? That's my point.
    Re: #109 Re: #113
    Nichidai fans getting salty lol
    129AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:35
    Re: #125
    What's salty about it? My post at Re: #109 was just me, as OP, judging the argument between you two.
    116AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:29
    Re: #100
    You're supposed to get into university on brains. Athletic-recommendation admissions don't count — that's just a walking billboard with a high school diploma.
    120AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:30
    Re: #116
    That's not necessarily true. If that were the case, why would recommendation admissions even exist?

    Background and Key Points of Debate

    Japanese universities are widely seen as far more selective at the entrance-exam stage than at graduation, meaning dropping out doesn’t require a scandal or financial hardship — it can simply happen. That’s likely why, even among HR professionals, how a dropout gets weighed varies so widely depending on the prestige of the school and how easy the reason for leaving is to explain away. The thread surfaced two competing views side by side — “a dropout from an elite university rates higher than a high school grad” versus “dropping out signals a habit of running away and rates lower” — highlighting that there’s no shared standard. It’s also probably not widely known outside Japan that correspondence (distance-learning) universities are considered harder to actually graduate from than in-person ones. And when a celebrity describes themselves as a “University X dropout,” that isn’t résumé padding — they’re simply stating the fact that they enrolled and later left — though that distinction is easy to lose track of in debates like this one.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (Nanidemo Jikkyo G) thread “Dropout: ‘I dropped out of University X.’ Me: ‘Oh, so you’re a high school grad.’ Dropout: ‘No! I dropped out!’ …I mean, come on.”

  • Hiroyuki: “If You Send Your Kid to International School, Be Ready to Give Up on Japanese Companies” — Reactions Split

    Businessman Hiroyuki posted on his official X account that parents who send their children to international schools “need to be ready to give up the chance of their kids getting a job at a Japanese company” by stepping outside Japan’s education system. In response, on 5ch’s Geinou/Sports News+ board, arguments flew in multiple directions — counterpoints that international school graduates can still get into Japanese universities, opinions that clinging to today’s Japanese companies (amid a weak yen and a wave of buyouts) is actually the riskier bet, and comments pointing out that kids raised in international schools tend to “not read the room” and develop a different sensibility. The thread ended up split on the very premise of Hiroyuki’s claim.

    Sat, Sep 5, 3:10 PM

    Businessman Hiroyuki Nishimura (49) updated his official X account by September 5th, commenting on parents who send their children to international schools.

    Hiroyuki posted: “Once you go the route of ‘stepping outside Japan’s education system and raising your kid at an international school,’ you need to be prepared to give up your child’s chance of landing a job at a Japanese company.”

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Read the original article here

    5AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:02
    Is that so?
    Well, if your family can afford to send you to international school, you're super rich already — you probably don't even need to work, right?
    7AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:03
    They'll probably just join the family business.
    Not really a place regular people should force themselves to go.
    8AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:03
    Does he not know you can still get into a Japanese university even coming from international school?
    27AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:19
    Re: #8
    Re: #20
    Sure, they can still get into a Japanese university, but going to international school during those formative childhood years really does give you a different mindset from other Japanese people.
    Japanese companies probably care about that kind of thing too, and honestly, even if they do get hired, I feel like it'd be rough for them.
    My nephew and niece go to international school, and there's just something off about them —
    they feel like foreign kids.
    Like, they don't read the room… or maybe it's more that they're really assertive?……
    Also they're emotional and their body language is weirdly intense.
    41AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:30
    Re: #27
    Yeah, that does sound like a pain (lol)
    13AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:08
    Nah, sticking to only Japanese companies these days is the thing that actually takes some guts.
    68AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:09
    Re: #13
    Right?
    Japanese companies are getting bought up and turned into subsidiaries left and right — hard to see a growth future there.
    14AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:09
    Can't they just come to Japan for university?
    There are actually plenty of people who do that.
    16AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:10
    Japanese companies keep getting swallowed up by foreign capital anyway.
    17AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:10
    Just get a job at a Japanese company in Japan.
    Case closed.
    18AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:10

    19AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:11
    Is this about international schools located in Japan?
    20AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:12
    You can still get into a Japanese university from international school, and being able to speak at least some English probably opens up more options than coming out of Japanese middle/high school barely able to speak any English at all.
    76AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    Re: #20
    When it comes to English, if you can just speak it, the market's saturated — there are too many speakers already.
    Being fluent in business English is a different story, but even among native speakers that's rare.
    Either way, just going to international school leaves you stuck in a half-baked middle ground.
    21AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:14
    Japanese universities weight English scores double, so it's easier to get in that way — but it's the kind of thing that doesn't actually work in your favor once you're at a company.
    29AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:20
    That's such a shallow take…
    Has it really gotten this bad?
    64AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:01
    Re: #29
    Let's hear your deep thoughts then.
    Go on, say it.
    35AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:25
    So it's like Rintaro Sasaki giving up on Japanese pro baseball to go to Stanford?（a Japanese high-school baseball star who enrolled at Stanford instead of entering Japan's pro leagues）
    39AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:29
    Re: #35
    He got drafted by SoftBank though.（Japan's SoftBank Hawks pro baseball team）
    84AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:39
    Re: #35
    So it's like giving up Osaka to get into Tokyo University or Keio. That's definitely also a case of becoming someone with different values.
    43AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:35
    Re: #41
    Yeah, it's a hassle.
    When I took them to the park, they talked to a neighborhood kid who either didn't notice or just ignored them, and suddenly they flipped out with something like "You made me angry!"
    Also, both of them get mad if you don't praise them.
    And they're incredibly loud about showing off any good deed they've done.
    It's just exhausting.
    So exhausting.
    Well, they're cute though.
    47AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:36
    Re: #43
    That's just down to how they were raised at home, isn't it.
    45AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:35
    There's no point in a Japanese person going to international school.
    The reason Japanese companies hire foreigners is
    so they can use them for business in that person's home country.
    If a Japanese person just learns English at international school, there's no value in that —
    it's just a way to go abroad on your parents' money and end up realizing you're useless.
    50AnonymousSep 5, 2026 16:42
    Re: #45
    It's actually rare for someone from a prestigious international school to only be able to speak English.
    75AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:27
    Is there any benefit besides being able to speak English?
    Just my own assumption, but I feel like the level of other subjects is low.
    78AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:28
    Re: #75
    Their classmates are also international-school kids, so their friends end up being international-school kids too.
    77AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:28
    I've never heard that going to international school makes it harder to get a job.
    If there's actual data on that, I'd like to see it.
    79AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:29
    Re: #77
    Pretty much zero international-school grads end up in retail or food service jobs, right?
    87AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:41
    An American guy who works as a local radio DJ (born in Yokosuka, a native Japanese speaker) said on his show that elementary school in Japan is fine, but from middle school onward he's worried about things like history education teaching something different from what he'd want them to learn, so he thinks kids should be sent to American schools or international schools instead.
    92AnonymousSep 5, 2026 17:47

    Background and Key Points of This Debate

    Hiroyuki himself lives in France with his wife and child, having chosen to educate his own kids abroad — this post is seen as a personal opinion coming from that position. The thread split mainly over two points. First was the validity of the premise itself: several commenters pointed out that international school graduates can still go on to Japanese universities, so it’s a stretch to say they’d “completely give up” their chance at employment. Second was the value of sticking with Japanese companies in the first place — pointing to buyouts by foreign capital and slowing growth, a number of opposing voices argued that clinging to Japanese companies alone is actually the riskier choice. One thing readers can easily misunderstand is that international schools in Japan aren’t all the same — some are internationally accredited, others cater to a narrower audience, and the reality of post-graduation paths and English proficiency can’t be judged from a single thread comment. Likewise, “Japanese companies” cover everything from traditional domestic firms to foreign-affiliated global corporations, so how they’re viewed in the job market isn’t uniform either.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “Hiroyuki shares his opinion on parents who send their kids to international school: “You need to be ready to give up the chance to get a job at a Japanese company”.”