Japanese Unreal Engine studio Historia has unveiled REAL MOON Studio, a lunar digital twin recreating a 240km by 240km stretch of the Moon's south pole. Built on joint research with JAXA, it lets engineers rehearse rover routes, preview camera shots, and plan lunar bases - a look at how game-engine technology is quietly joining the global Moon race.
REGZA's spring 2026 anime ranking, built from 620,000 Japanese TVs, puts That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 4 at No. 1. We break down how this completion-based viewing data works and why it clashes so sharply with overseas fan polls.
BABYMETAL will headline Germany's Impericon Festival in Leipzig on June 26, 2026. We look at why a one-hour set matters, the band's tracks in Forza Horizon 6, and how far they have climbed in the European metal scene.
M2, the studio beloved by retro shoot 'em up fans, has cancelled Ubusuna, a shmup it spent 12 years building. The reason: the departure of Hiroshi Iuchi, the creator of Ikaruga and Radiant Silvergun. Here is what the cancellation means, and what it says about Japan's shrinking shmup scene.
Takara Tomy's Licca-chan is back in the US after 40-plus years. We unpack why it lost to Barbie as LISA in 1980, why the rival is now Labubu's kidult collectible market, and whether the anime-led comeback can work.
A full rundown of the Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2026 winners. My Hero Academia FINAL SEASON took Anime of the Year over Dandadan, the most-nominated title of the night. Here is how Japanese fans reacted to a result they call both fair and surprising.
Summer 2025's dark horse Takopi's Original Sin is getting a theatrical film, -Thank You, See You Tomorrow-, re-editing all six episodes with new scenes. Here is what the teaser shows, why the story hit so hard, and how overseas fans can watch on Crunchyroll and beyond.
In a new Billboard JAPAN interview, sailor-uniformed quartet ATARASHII GAKKO! reflect on entering their 11th year. We unpack their 'hamidashi' philosophy, how they perform for crowds who don't speak Japanese, and the 12-year bond between four members, from their 88rising debut to Coachella and beyond.
INSOMNIA, an esports club in Tokyo's Sumida ward, has launched INS×LAB, a joint research project with the University of Tokyo and other institutions. It pairs gaze-tracking cognitive science with sleep-log and acupuncture-based conditioning to make winning scientifically repeatable.
Japan-born global group XG will throw the first pitch at Dodger Stadium on May 31. We break down the newly announced seven North American dates of the XG WORLD TOUR: THE CORE, from venues and tickets to the TikTok-and-Billboard fanbase that made an arena tour possible.
Top shareholder Oasis Management is pushing to remove KADOKAWA CEO Takeshi Natsuno, triggering a full proxy fight ahead of the June 24 shareholder meeting. We break down the arguments over an 89% EPS drop, the 'isekai over-reliance' critique, and FromSoftware's monetization, and check how our earlier predictions held up.