/jp/ - Otaku Culture

Fuck off.

>>11702974
Get out. This is the otaku board!!

Is that also the place for prostitution?

I'm curious. What's there?

Is porn pedaled openly there?

I see あきばお- in there.
neat place. lots of variety, last time I checked it had all the windows touhou games, and a great deal of other doujin games.

秋葉原 is great and all but everything there is super expensive, you're better off buying it online if you can.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWyG_hs8LBs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns-o72u2pU4

>>11703001
>pedaled

They should start "pedaling" English dictionaries for people like you.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/monsterx-live%E3%83%87%E3%83%A2%E9%85%8D%E4%BF%A1

>>11703049
#wrecked

cant believe that popopure turned into yet another maidreamin

Is anyone actually in the area?

How's the new radio kaikan coming along?

When I went last year, it was already demolished, but I heard it'll be done next spring.

>>>/trv/

>>11703375
they finally started real construction a few months back. it's really tall

I couldn't imagine living there.

When you see videos of it, it is literally 24/7 in your face nonstop someone trying to get you to buy merchandise from something and anime girls.

It would kill my soul.

>>11703452
All cites are like that retard.
Saturating your view 24/7 with adds, and quite frankly I'd prefer to see adds for weeboo shit rather, than alcohol, clothes, perfumes and normie shit.
Shit even the net is like that, even with add block.

>>11703498

ill add a cinder block to your both of your feet and throw you into the pier

>>11703556
Lmfao if you threw him into a pier nothing would happen.

You probably couldn't throw him anyway suzi.

Akihabara is a piece of shit. Only dumbass weeaboos actually think there's anything interesting there.

>>11703452
2013 almost 2014 and you're not living the dream? A dream of sweet missery....

I went to a maid cafe there once but I ended up feeling kind of empty afterwards. I don't really like the 客層 of Akihabara in general.

>>11703887
Can you stop mixing languages?

>>11703934
I only switch languages when it makes things easier to express.

>>11703350
>http://www.ustream.tv/channel/monsterx-live%E3%83%87%E3%83%A2%E9%85%8D%E4%BF%A1

no sound?

>>11704244
It's low.

>>11703887
>客層

you really couldn't type demographics?

>>11703887
I call bullshit. Try typing an actual sentence in Japanese.

>>11703375
I was there a week ago and they are doing construction on it now. I didn't even know they were making a new one. For now, it's covered in grey plastic.

>>11704348
No, it's 駄目

>>11702966

I just watched both seasons of akibarangers. Are there any other shows based in Akiba or was that a first? Drama in particular, I've seen some anime use the setting but even that is kinda rare.

>>11703934

The man's got a right to express himself, and as long as he's not horribly off topic. If you don't like that, then you can forcibly insert a 陰茎 right up your 肛門 and 回る on it.

>>11704434

There's Akihabara@DEEP, which I do believe is based off a light novel or some such. Not a bad show.

Thread needs more pics.

>>11713121
Go to Japan and take them, you lazy sack of manure.

It's a place where everyone buys their Japanese animes.

Women don't go there.

>>11704357
なんでやねん

Is it true that Akihabara has more stuff related to eroge than anime?

I enjoyed it there, used to visit quite often.

Randomly found a queue of people so joined it having no idea what it was and being able to speak barely any japanese, I ended up getting a signed photo of one of the AKB48 girls which I have in a drawer somewhere.

Surprisingly large amounts of porn, also the second hand shops are great, was able to get a DS to replace my broken one for like 1000yen.

if I ever move back to Japan, will be fun to revisit.

I'm going to Japan for the first time in a little over a week and wanted to ask /jp/ for your advice but I didn't want to start a thread for it and this seems as good a thread as any to ask.

So do you guys recommend seeing anything in Japan and more specifically Akihabara?

>>11714187
>>>/trv/

>>11714256
I'll be honest I completely forgot that board even existed. I guess I'll give it a look.

>>11714187
This is not in Akiba, but Nakano Broadway is worth a look, especially if you're into more retro otaku-related stuff.
Also, make sure to try some curry.

>>11714273
/trv/ regularly gets threads asking about Japan so I presume they're more well versed than we are.

>Go to Tokyo for a week
>Want to visit the whole city
>End up walking around Akiba for most of the time & buying shittons of 2hu music and all fumos I found there.

Am I the only one?

>>11714114
>Surprisingly large amounts of porn
They're usually underground or on top floors.

>>11714187
Spend 2-3 days walking around and don't be afraid going into suspicious looking underground shops or small side roads. I found lots of 2hu shops that way and I explorer pretty much whole akiba.

And go to some of the shops with arcade games. I remember seeing one guy there playing 2-player mode beatmania alone himself on some high-ass difficulty. holy shit.

BTW, be prepared. Japs don't speak English for shit but even so they're very helpful.

lived in Tokyo for a year and never went to anything except a used electronics shop

really really good deals

>>11714614
Some underground "shops" are sketchy. Not talking about Akiba, but when I was in Ikebukuro, I got shown out from some place that said "18" on a sign outside. Not sure what happened there, some curtains were drawn and he said "Japanese only".

>>11714736
Foreigners don't get to enjoy japanese prostitutes.
Japan doesn't want sex tourism so those places go with no foreign sex at all.
If you want to get 3DPD you have to go through the normalfag routes.

>>11714757
Ugh, but I'm not normalfag enough to have normalfag sex.

>>11714757
someone posted a thread in /jp/ a while ago about going to a soapland

>>11714570
Looks really cool I'll be sure to give it a look. Also yes I can't wait to get some curry, and melonpan even though my world was shattered when I was told it doesn't actually taste like melon.
>>11714614
Hopefully I can bring myself to do as you say and check out some smaller shops but I'm not confident in my Japanese at all so I guess we will see how that goes.

>>11714712
The back lane of choudori is fucking awesome.
Got a headphones and tons of cheap stuff that they threw out on the box by the road side.

>>11714570
Love nakano. Prefer the mall concept.

>>11706312
Yeah I totally forgot about that one. I watched the show a long ass time ago (10 years maybe?) so it's time to watch it again. Thanks. But I don't remember it being as awesome as akibarangers.

I'm going to travel back in time and stop Akihabara from turning into otaku-ville

>>11715451
While drinking Dr Pepper?

>>11715456

EL PSY CONGROOOO

>>11715526

>>11703001
I was actually there once and this is pretty much true, it rains all the damn time there so I went to get one of those cheap clear umbrellas from this super market, after paying up my eyes caught a glimpse of some hantais in the magazine section, they were just sorta there "hidden" under the normal mags, it was a little surreal

I wish I could have a trip in the future to Japan and see Akiha with my own eyes.

>>11717015
Come with me if you want, dude.
I inherited 10K last week and I'm planning on blowing it all on a trip to glorious Japan.

>>11719474
Are you serious? Give me your email.

>>11719477
>>11719474

give me your email too

>>11719474
/jp/ road trip?
/jp/ road trip!

>>11719474
Email in field

>>11719508
this is a terrifying thing to imagine

>>11719526
Someone's gonna wake up missing a few organs.

>>11713190
>Women don't go there.
But that picture right there has two of them.

>>11719474
Wow, I'm jealous. I hope you have fun.

I was there last month, there is a store that has 6 floors of porn.

the higher you go the better it is, panty vending machines, male masturbation toys. DVDs of every niche available

Its jam packed so you gotta squeeze past the salary men if your both in the same aisle then its too tight to even do that.

Some dvds come with a signed (kissed) post cards of the star, there was also items of clothing zip locked with the dvd's or just on their own with a picture of the girl

then you have the normal model shops, the higher you get the more lewd.

Outside is full of qt maido's trying to lure you in for tea

>>11719782
i thought they didn't let howait piggu in the porn shops

>>11719803
Why would they not allow it? Costumers are costumers, after all.

>>11719803
I had no trouble for the whole trip.

Got into 2 pink salons and a nice strip joint

>>11719782
that place? https://www.google.co.uk/maps/preview?hl=en#!q=akihabara&data=!1m8!1m3!1d3!2d139.772525!3d35.697686!2m2!1f272.99!2f98.76!4f90!2m9!1e1!2m4!1sP2gOEfnZMyam_amGXHaFqg!2e0!9m1!6s%C2%A9+2013+Google!5m2!1sP2gOEfnZMyam_amGXHaFqg!2e0!4m15!2m14!1m13!1s0x60188ea73ea6f4ff%3A0x5eb9f1e50fe061e3!3m8!1m3!1d1696692!2d-6.802165!3d54.667775!3m2!1i1858!2i1103!4f13.1!4m2!3d35.7020691!4d139.7753269&fid=5

I think it's the only shop in akiba I didn't went into

oh and 2nd floor of white canvas...

One day I will visit the promised land.

>>11719474

So about this?

>>11726587
The people doing the organ harvesting are out for the holidays until end of year. You'll have to wait for the scam to resume when they get back.

>29/11/2013
>went to Akiba in the OP's pic in the afternoon
>only couple of maids are on the street
>after hours of looking around akihabara, its time to head back to the train station to head back to the hotel
>walk back into that street
>suddenly, everywhere is full of part time schoolgirls asking men to head over to their maid cafes
>somejpw most of them were adorably cute

picture related, shot at like 2/3pm or so on that day...

I have couple more pictures of that street but im at work and now using my phone lol. can't browse 4chan.

Why is the board suddenly being flooded with tripcode retards from other boards?

>>11727075

also, schoolgirls also freely walks and browse freely into the 18+ manga section.

the male staff didn't bother to disturb the girls because they want the girls to support the hentai industry.

>>11727082

AKB48 cafe in akiba, pretty neat, food was okay and the girls are very cheerful but the counter girl was very pretty somehow hehe.

>>11727110

Aww yeah! Normie thread!

>>11727110

ah finally found this image, sorry for the shit quality. Touhou I can say quite 'rare' to be found in Akiba when I head there. All you see is IdolM@aster, Madoka, Infinite Stratos, EVA and K-on.

I bought a Chen keychain though.

>>11727124

well i guess thats it for now, might dump all the hentai section later on if anyone interested. will spoilerimage though.

>>11727124
Its been 1year since I was there.
Hows White Canvas? Are they still alive?
Does Toranoana 4th floor (touhou floor) still exist?

>>11727124
>>11727128
>>11727129

Who normal here?

>>11727129
I don't pay much attention to Touhou, but it should be there. If not, they expanded during this year, because when I was in Akiba in December, Toranoana had 3rd floor on the other side of Chuo Doori. From what I know, they moved the 105en section over there.

This is not your fucking blog.

weeaboos' chat in strange Japanese.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OKXeT9YdmE

>>11727434
Prove it.

weeb thread

>>11727434
>op post about akihabara thread
>some tripfag post pictures of akihabara
>blog

huh

Thread need more pics.

I literally just left Akihabara. We arrived in Osaka today, but we'll be staying in Akiba for a week starting in a few days. Akihabara is mostly porn, autism, and electronics. It's not really as great as you may expect.

>>11736489
>porn, autism, and electronic
>not great

>>11736489
>porn, autism, and electronics
That's the basics of otaku culture

>>11736489
literally go back to /v/

>>11736494
I can give a few examples of why it sucks. The people who show up in Akiba are generally disgusting, even to the slimiest of the Japanese. We're dressed respectably; not some sweaty nerds. We were turned away at almost every bar or cool place to hang out. We ended up eating at Coco's, which is "eh" food. The shit gaijin that show up (perhaps such as yourself?) kind of ruin the perception of being anything other than abnormal, and they don't want you there.

Furthermore, Akihabara is not that big. Its a few blocks of anime and electronics related stuff, and that's that. It's neat if you're into that stuff, and I am, don't get me wrong. But its not likely what you have imagined. Prepare to be disappointed if you show up.

>>11736505
>We were turned away at almost every bar or cool place to hang out.
because you probably look like a bunch of normalfags and they don't want you shitting up the place
like you are here

>>11736513
Most people there are normal fags. There is anime stuff there, but there are a lot of businesses and general day-to-day stuff in Akihabara. I'd say 95% of the people out and about seem relatively normalfag. I'm curious as to what you expect Akihabara to be like. Do you think it is massive, filled with nothing but anime related stuff, and has people just constantly gush gushing about Anime? If thats what you think it is, you're wrong and need to check dat reality. I'll stream you some Akiba if you want, but I'd probably just end up crushing your dreams and aspirations of what it is.

why do you hate curry

>>11736521
>>11736505
Why do you keep talking about anime on a touhou board? Please, im begging you, stop posting and go back to /v/.

>>11736534
Why are you posting about Touhou in an Akihabara thread? I'm begging you, go buy a police scanner to find the nearest fire to throw yourself in.

>>11736539
fucking moot getting rid of sage
stop bumping

>>11736544
?Sage still works bro. Just that it doesn't show up.

Bump

I will make a list of things to do when I go to Akihabara.
What should be the first item?

>>11747440
Refuse a flyer from a maid.

>>11747463
Then accept a flyer from the next maid in clear sight of the first one

I'll be there in a few months and I have no plan beyond "go to maid cafes and eat literally all of the omrice".

>>11736513
What's with anti-normals thinking that being bitter, overweight (or bony) or badly dressed makes them any better?

I want a place that feels like 2D come to life. Not just a place to buy 2D goods and services like Akiba - that feels too meta. I can buy merchandise online. No, I want a stylish place like Shibuya or Harajuku where instead of gyaru fashion you have cosplay. A place with lots of friendly people united by a love of 2D. Everyone would work hard to make it the most beautiful and lively part of Tokyo.

>>11727082
>buying manga

>>11747904
Physical manga in Japan cost less than the bandwidth needed to download them.

>>11747732
It's less about feeling superior about being "badly dressed" and more about feeling annoyed at people who waste a lot of time and money at being "well dressed" and then feel superior to others because of it. What makes it worse is that what ever is considered "well dressed" today will be the butt of jokes 5-10 years from now, which puts to question whether you were ever "well dressed" in the first place.

>>11747921
I don't think normals feel superior about how they look. Normals are by definition pretty average, and the average person doesn't spend that much time or money on fashion.

What I feel conflicted about is that, despite us spending all this time immersing ourselves in fantasy worlds, a large part of whose attraction is the aesthetics and personalities of the characters, we tend not to try to improve ourselves so much in those respects. I just can't relate to the kind of person who'd spend thousands on an otaku room but insist almost angrily that it's a waste to spend a fraction of that on own wardrobe, or the kind of person who rants online about 3D people with vitriol but has never put in the effort to make anyone else happy themselves.

It's self-centred and perhaps snobby for me to say this, but after all this exposure to 2D I just want nice, well-adjusted friends like in anime/manga/LNs/VNs who I can share my hobbies with. I'll be perfectly honest, I like cuteness and aesthetics in general in real life as much as in 2D. I'm not going to lie and pretend that when I meet someone who looks like Saizensen-kun my first instinct is that I want to become best friends. My idea of a good time is more dressing up and having a cute tea party at home rather than being a passive spectator at a maid cafe. I'm not stunning, I don't have many pretty/cool clothes at the moment, I'm too quiet and have some personality flaws (such as making obnoxious posts like this), but I try my best.

In the end I don't know what I want to say. I just wish real life were as great as 2D.

I'm on vacation in Japan right now and Akihabara is actually really close.
They sell some really high quality loli sex dolls there.
They cost a small fortune but I really want one but there's one thing standing between me and my little loli doll.
And thats the fucking customs at the airport when I get back home.
God I wish I could just stay here and be happy.

>>11747904
I buy porno manga

The quality of the book and print is really good. It's definitely worth $10. If you buy a book from that crocodile publisher you can see for yourself

>>11748107
You are cute. I would pat your head while you suck my cock.

>>11748107
Here's the thing: if I'm attracted to certain aesthetics, that means I'm attracted to those aesthetics specifically, not the whole concept of being considered aesthetically pleasing. But in the large majority of cases, those aesthetics are simply not achievable in reality.
So if aiming for what society generally considers "well dressed" (but is in reality just a big joke) won't bring me any closer to that aesthetic ideal, then it is indeed a waste of effort and resources.

>>11748107
Why would you care what your friends look like?

I mean I can understand it if they're legitimate fedora tippers with really bad hygiene or something similarly debilitating for you, but it's not like you meet friends to fuck them or anything, or maybe you do if you're gay, I'm not sure how it works.

>>11748212
Then stay in Japan and fuck that loli sex doll as much as you want

>>11748212
buy it, then dress it up in baby doll clothes and mail it to your address in america so itll be waiting for you when you get home

Went to Japan for 3 weeks over the summer, planning to travel the country. Probably spent a good week or so going through every store in Akiba...

>>11748991
they dont look very japanese

>>11748917
I'm just shallow. I'm literally incapable of making an emotional bond with someone I don't find cute, platonic or not. I've only ever experienced it with the opposite sex, but that'd always end up turning into a relationship.

I guess it doesn't help having some form of GID... it makes it hard to relate to normal guys. I mean, I kind of imagine myself as a girl with other girl friends, or at least feminine male friends I can go to cafes/go shopping/do cute cosplay with. It's hard to imagine an unattractive and/or masculine guy in that role for me.

>>11749052
That's because they're flips.

Attempting to visit all the big stores within a few hours is hell on your legs.

Guys Akihabara won't deliver on your hype. Go there once to see it but if you want a pleasant otaku experience go to Otaroad in Osaka. It's smaller but shops have more merchandise and the maids are prettier. You can get a more personal expierence in Otaroad. Akihabara is just a overcorweded otaku meatgrinder.

>>11749459
>Osaka
nandeyanen

>>11749459
Is that the road in Nipponbashi or whatever it's called? Because I've already been there.

>>11749222
Is /jp/ really this unfit?

>>11749995
Lots of stairs.

I'd be afraid going to such populated tourist-ridden places like Akihabara. Not only it is filled with crowds of people, you'll be more likely regarded like a gaijin fool to be taken advantage of, I think.

I'd be afraid going to such populated tourist-ridden places like Akihabara. Not only it is filled with crowds of people, you'll be more likely regarded as a gaijin fool to be taken advantage of, I think.

If you're tired of how touristy Akihabara is, try Nakano. It's on the Chuo line, not too far out from Shinjuku, and the shopping center right across from the station has a huge Mandarake, tons of figurine and collectable shops, and more.

I recommend it, especially because Akiba is so crowded and full of tourists.

I love walking around in Akihabara! You never know which among all of the people walking around you are really your toubros in disguise. Sometimes I wish it were easier to pick one another out of a crowd, but then I decide that would ruin some of the element of mystery and that it can't be helped.

>>11750031
Taken advantage of how? I don't think I've ever seen anything sold in Akiba that wasn't labeled, so it's not like they can mysteriously inflate the prices for foreigners and it's usually too busy for cashiers to afford any conversation beyond "hai, nisen en ni narimasu" (and then he turned into two 1000 yen notes... they lose more cashiers that way).
The worst you'll have to deal with is people from shady charities asking for money (and are strangely good at English).

>>11750031
get a load of this loser who thinks everyone is out to get him

>>11750100
> Taken advantage of how?
I a couple of people writing about having been ripped off and asked to pay for much more than they ate in maid cafés by the said maids in one of these threads. But perhaps it's just my sociophobic imagination. I hope it is. Besides, I can't but compare Akihabara to the shitty European sights filled with shops selling crap to idiot tourists for exorbitant prices.
> and then he turned into two 1000 yen notes
Did you have to buy more stuff for 10000 yen to turn him back?

> Taken advantage of how?
I remember a couple of people writing about having been ripped off and asked to pay for much more than they ate in maid cafés by the said maids in one of these threads. But perhaps it's just my sociophobic imagination. I hope it is. Besides, I can't but compare Akihabara to the shitty European sights filled with shops selling crap to idiot tourists for exorbitant prices.
> and then he turned into two 1000 yen notes
Did you have to buy more stuff for 10000 yen to turn him back?

>>11750135
Maid cafes are kind of a special case, because they can just pull a service cost out of their ass and it's hard to tell whether you're being ripped off because you're a foreigner or because that's just what cabaret cl... I mean, maid cafes do.

>Did you have to buy more stuff for 10000 yen to turn him back?
No, then he'll just say "ichiman en ni narimasu" and turns into Fukuzawa Yukichi.

>>11750145
Maid cafes are awful. Just avoid them.

maid cafes deserve a premium having to deal with foreign guests
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udaZMQv2Rng

>>11750211
i feel bad.
also what happens if we dont say otikaderamatsu before we eat?
do we get 50 lashes?

>>11748991
>Ferrari California
>attack on titan

How pleb can you get?

>>11715172

In Kyushu it's not a problem, apparently.

In Susukino I eventually just called a soapland, verified they wouldn't take foreigners, then asked for a recommendation of a place that *would* take foreigners. I got one, and a cab driver took me there.

I never did get delivery health, and I never did get to go to a pink club.

The girls were speaking Japanese with me, but it's possible they were actually cute young (early 20s) Chinese or Korean girls who had learned the language well.

Including a picture of Akiba simply because there are not enough pictures in this thread.

>>11703001

Openly?

There are porn stores all over, but I didn't see any magazines in racks on the street or anything.

There were girls wandering the streets in cosplay and passing out flyers/getting their picture taken.

...and there were people dressed (to my not-so-discerning eye) normally that belonged to both genders, walking as if they had somewhere to be. Women were in the minority, but were there.

sagepic

>>11714736

Here are reasons for the "Japanese only" shit.
Some are just excuses or outright lies, but some are valid.
* Foreigners don't know the culture, and either get surprised or angry when they realize they've been paying 6000 yen per hour "charm fee" (not including drinks and such) so that they could talk to the girls, swap phone numbers for texting, and maybe buy the girls overpriced drinks.
* Foreigners don't know that when you swap text numbers with the girls you're not actually going to meet or date; it's just a fantasy.
* Foreigners are from another country; the regulars will want to be on their best behavior in front of foreigners and won't be able to relax. Regulars, incidentally, are the only stable source of income.
* Foreigners think that paying large amounts of money means they're going to get sex. Or at least the right to grab a little ass.
* The staff doesn't speak English well, and won't be able to give good service.
* Even though the place doesn't look full, it's full enough that more customers would mean the staff wouldn't be able to give good service.
* Everyone in Japan reads the news, so when a visiting foreigner does something stupid and illegal in Fukuoka and people in Akita read it, those people in Akita get nervous about foreigners.
* This 'Snack' is members only. You're not a member. (This is probably a lie, but could be true.)
* The activities at this establishment are technically not legal, and foreigners won't know to keep their mouth shut. (Strip clubs.)
* This establishment does things that we don't want other countries to associate with Japan; they already think we're weird even though places like this are rare. (A themed bar where the waitresses dress like airline stewardesses and you're allowed to perform 'sexual harrassment' in the form of patting their bottoms (and nothing else) but you have to pay a hourly rate (which varies depending on whether you're in first class or coach.))

>>11736498
No fun allowed

>>11736513

An anecdote: I went to a maid cafe (the kind with maid waitresses, not the kind where you play games with the maids) in Akiba with some friends, we sat down and started looking at our haul, and although we were being quiet and unobtrusive, I noticed the waitress looked uncomfortable. ...and then the door opened, and some Japanese visitors poked their heads in, saw us, and left. I think gaijin drive away some business.

Anyway, back to the previous (why Gaijin get the "X") post I made above, there's some racism there, but much of it is rational. and especially frequent in adult establishments. If you never tried to go to a bar or sex-industry place you'd probably never see the "chome" ("X") that means you can't go in.
(I am still hurt whenever I see the X. Or the sign that says "Sorry, no foreigners allowed. Foreigners tend to make difficult requests." (like big dick in little hole?) or "Due to recent difficulties, we regret to say no foreigners are allowed in our establishment.")

>>11750473
How many barriers will open if you're wearing sunglasses and speak good Japanese?

>>11750486

My Japanese is mediocre. I think if you have no accent you'll get fewer barriers but there will still be some.

In a tourism mecca like Akiba you probably won't get any, but if you're going around in Kabukicho or Susukino or something (I never did anything sexy in Kabukicho. I look german, so I had an extra handicap in Hokkaido.) you'll have more trouble. The X is rare except at bars and stuff.

(White dude here, and I got the X at the "English Pub" in Tokyo. Weird.

>>11750499
>I look german, so I had an extra handicap in Hokkaido
Don't you mean 'I look Russian' then, if I'm understanding you right?

>>11750502

You understand me right. ...though I look German, so maybe I just thought I had an extra handicap and my real extra handicap was my ignorance and social skills. That'll happen.

>>11750508
I don't think Japanese can see the difference well between Russians, Germans, English, French etc, even if anime characters think otherwise.

what happens when Olympics comes

>>11750515
The whole country commits sudoku.

>>11750508
Cute and interesting picture. The morse code on the picture stands for the letter "L", I wonder the graffiti has some meaning I don't understand.

>>11750534
P.S. Or perhaps the Morse "L" is just the artist's signature...

>>11736544

Sage still works.

It's possible it doesn't work if you also post an image, but if you just sage a text post (like I am saging this one) it won't bump.

>all these photos from akiba in this thread
Well fuck, I'm coming back this year... again

>>11748107
This is why I like fashion, it just feels nice to cover yourself in things you find aesthetically pleasing.

>>11750484
Just curious. What gas would be produced if you prepare the mixture in the picture?

>>11750641
One that will take you to gensokyo.
Or kill you, if you took grade-school level chemistry at all.

>>11750641
http://chemistry.about.com/b/2010/08/20/why-you-shouldnt-mix-bleach-and-ammonia-bleach-and-ammonia-chemical-reactions.htm

I had a better shopping experience in Nakano Broadway than most of the Akiba shops.

>>11749995
Kotobukiya has 5 floors, Animate has 7-8, Gamer has like 5, forgot what the others have but it's a serious workout.

>>11736544
Sage is now invisible, but still works. Moot was trying to get rid of the negativity around saging for some stupid reason.

bump

Probably Akihabara is a good place to visit, but the problem is that we don't know which store or shop to go.

>>11750690
I would imagine that people would be more bothered by gaijin in areas outside of Akiba. I wouldn't leave so as to not bother anyone.

As a terrible wee who's been to Japan 7 times in the last 10 years, here's some Akihabara tips:

Unfortunately, Akiba is very greatly becoming NON-otaku in the last 2 years- many otaku goods shops are being run out or pushed back from Chuo-dori by electronics and clothing retailers and redevelopment, Radio Kaikan is just the most obvious example.. such as how Akihabara really never needed THREE Sega arcades. Most smaller stores I knew 5 years ago are no longer there, or moved since.

1. Explore every open doorway at least once. Expect this to take ~3 days.

2. Never buy a doujinshi, manga, model or figure you want at the first place you see it. Unless it is a brand new release, it will be available somewhere else for less.

3. Check the used-goods stores first for items you want, they will be in near-perfect condition. Mandarake, Toranoana, Super Potato, etc.

4. Doner kebabs are delicious and cheap! Also, always buy your drinks from vending machines off Chuo-dori to save up to 50 yen!

5. Internet access is your friend. If you can afford it, make sure you have a SIM card in your phone with data coverage for maps, translation and data lookups. Japanese carriers finally offer limited-use disposable SIMs for visitors with 1Gb of use if you can't rent a phone/SIM before traveling.

6. Make sure you don't get a hotel halfway across Tokyo. Though Shibuya or Shinjuku might seem more lively, there are plenty of hotels right nearby in Ueno or Kanda for just as cheap.

7. Buy a Suica card. The JR tourism offices at Narita offer them with a N'Ex train ticket for cheap, and all you need to do is charge it with a few bills at any station. It sure beats scrounging for change every time you go through a station. The stored value is valid for FIVE years too.

8. If you have more time and money to waste, Denden town in Osaka is as good shopping with more esoteric products. You can even daytrip it from Tokyo if you have a JR pass- 3 hours each way by shinkansen!

>>11755380

9. Most smaller shops in Akihabara open late at 10am and close early, around 7-8pm. It's only the major retailers like Sofmap, Yodobashi Camera, Gamers, etc that stay open until 9-10pm.

10. As a foreigner, 7-11 is your best friend for the cash monies. 7-11 and the JP Post offices are the only locations that will consistently have international ATMs for withdrawals from your home bank account, and JP offices only have regular business hours. That said however, Visa and Mastercard are far more widely accepted today than they were even 5 years ago.

11. Always remember that nominally, Japan Rail and the subways shut down at midnight. If you're not already on a train, don't expect to get one. Either call a taxi, or find a capsule.

>>11703952
when most people: 1) use translation 2) don't bother, you're better off using English

>>11755380

if you're looking for non-anime goods, you'll find a lot of them have moved away from Akihabara in the last few years when it used to be a haven for ANY sort of otaku from airsoft to Formula One to Doctor Who.

Nakano Broadway is a good location for western Sci-fi and pop-culture goods as well as any anime that's more than about 4 years old.

Otome road in Ikebukuro is the fujoshi/gay centre for anime and manga, if that floats your boat.

>>11755380
Best places to shop for idol goods? I've heard general music stores are good, but I'm more looking for photos, books, etc.

>>11755406
Kinda unrelated but I'm actually terrible at informal English in real life. I can only talk the way I type really from lack of social interaction in that language, even though it's my native language.

I feel so much more comfortable and less socially anxious in Japanese.

name please.

>>11755464
owada nana

>>11755512
thank you very much

Akihabara was pretty disappointing overall. I explored some shops and walked around, but I expected much more. The only good thing, really, was the okonomiyaki I had at the north end of the UDX building. They cooked it right in front of me at my table and it was delicious!

It's interesting to see, I guess. Just don't get your hopes up.

White people stay the fuck out of akihabara

>>11755380
>Akiba is very greatly becoming NON-otaku

Though I've only been there recently, I can see how this is.

I went to Nipponbashi and it felt quite a bit different from Akiba. This must have been how the old Akiba felt?

>>11755721
I went to Nipponbashi and it felt quite a bit different from Akiba. This must have been how the old Akiba felt

>nihonbashi
>like akiba

what the fuck? nihonbashi is like the finance district, it's the complete opposite of aki in absolutely every way

>>11755721
>>11755738
My bad, I meant Den Den Town!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeRaMbYEXTo
>Map will never be finished
Glorious Katakana, folded over 1000 for superior strength to gaijin weapons.

>>11755643
No prob.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/10032296/White-Britons-will-be-minority-by-2066-says-professor.html

>>11755643
Would you prefer blacks?

Has Akiba become a containment area for gaijin? Are gaijin more annoying in Akiba than other otaku cultural centers? Thank you.

>>11755738
You are confusing the two places. Nipponbashi is in Osaka.

>>11704434

There are shitloads of anime set in Akihabara, there's been a few drama including the massively popular Densha Otoko which took Japan by storm nearly ten years ago (Jesus).

Akihabara has never been the same since Densha, but it's only gotten worse. Last time I went to Akiba I was with a few Japanese friends and we all vowed never to go again. If you want to see a sad deconstruction of a once interesting and unique culture Akiba is the place to go. It's like seeing your grandpa's farm leveled out and turned into a shopping mall full of things you hate.

I might try going back once the olympics in Japan is over and Abe has wiped the slate clean, by god it needs it. Akihabara is an animal that needs to be put out of its misery for a good few years.

>>11758527
But there's tons of merchandise around. Isn't that more than enough?

>>11758593
He means it's too popular and lost underground cred.

>>11758593

Yes: >>11758599 is right

The merchandise is meaningless because it's feverishly churned out, low quality and normally from franchises and series which are just rehashes of series before, you don't feel like you can 'score' anything in Akihabara anymore, you're just picking up what you can find online just as easily and what's online isn't much better either. One of the aforementioned friends worked in GAMERS for years and said he quit when he lost passion for the goods he was selling and got tired of having foreigners, couples and high school kids come in and pose for photos with the anime figures or cardboard statues. The whole atmosphere was ruined years ago and never had a chance to recover, now it's just a tourist trap. There are better places to go that feel slightly more like old akiba but in reality the roots of the culture is gone no matter where you go.

>>11758617
Are we doomed then? Is there any hope?

>>11758631
>Are we doomed then?
If you've never been there, what's the difference to you?

>>11758662
Because inevitably I will go there, and to know that I would have been able to enjoy it much more if I did it earlier, is sad.

>>11758674
Earlier means like a decade ago, dude. How old are you? Did you dream of going to Akiba 10 years ago?
I don’t mean to be rude but the reality is that you might not have wanted to go to Akiba in the first place if it never got so commercialised.

I swear to god you guys would eat human shit if I told you it came from a japanese person's asshole.

>>11758716
What if I were German and this would thusly be my fetish?

>>11749119
you are very fucked up. you're being called "fucked up" on 4chan. enjoy your day

>>11750702
who fat/jp/sie here?

>>11758631

Yes this person is right once again:

>>11758684

If you don't know any different, it's hard to really see what 'went wrong' or to assume anything did go wrong. That's the saddest part, actually. Akibaranger touched on it pretty well and some well known Akiba icons have spoken out about it, but apart from that most people have no idea.

Look at this thread, people are told that Akihabara is the land of anime merchandise and maid cafes - that is the standard they expect so they go there and their expectations are met.

If you were not there in the beginning then you're not going to understand. I first went in the latter half of the 90s and it had a unique vibe and community feeling unlike anywhere else in the world, another of my friends has lived in Akihabara before anime and gaming hit it hard and remembers it as an electronics district home to otaku who cared more about electronic components than anime. Many residents his age moved out or have a general dislike for the place now. But even they agree that while anime and video games hit akiba hard in the 90s, it wasn't until densha otoko, yodobashi camera and the private rail opening that it lost its community spirit.

All we can do is hope that the shift in interest from Japanese to Korean entertainment and the olympic clean-up bid puts it off the map for a while. It's bad for big businesses, but great for the community.

As others have mentioned in the thread, Denden is the place to be if you're looking for the old akiba feel. It's not quite the same and I fear that now it's becoming common knowledge it'll lose the appeal, but it's a lot more like old Akihabara than new Akihabara is. The fact that it's easier to find with GPS instead of having to get directions from the station means it's more accessible though. The moment denden is mentioned in an anime it'll all go out the window and turn into diet akiba for people who can't afford to go to Tokyo, keep it on the low down at least.

I wish I could have lived in the golden times and had the opportunity of knowing the truakihabara

>>11758919

I've gotta say that I had a better time exploring Denden over Akiba when it comes to shops. However, Akiba has way more game centers in a small area.

It's a bit of an internal conflict. Yeah, experiencing a purer form of otaku community is great and all, but all those candy cabinets make me happy to be alive. If I'm able to go back again I'd definitely choose Akiba. You can call me trash but I have chosen my passion

>>11755789
I love chocolate.

>>11727129
I was in Akihabara in November, White Canvas was there still. Although I've heard white canvas praised for its Touhou goods, I'd say there are better stores. If you're looking for porn and weird ass sex shit though, the top floor is the most loaded place I've seen for that.

>>11727124
You aren't looking in the right places. D-stage and K-books are good. There were two other stores I'd have considered very good but were small and well hidden away. After going in once I couldn't remember where they were again. I think both were underground though.

>>11755380
Man I rememeber that doner kebab stand. Was pretty refreshing to see something like that around. Denden town sounds like a good tip, I'll remember that if I travel Osaka anytime.

>>11754901
If you're looking for doujin look for this - 同人
Also, Don't stay on the main strip. Walk down the alleys behind the main strip and you'll find much better places - for anything.

Thing I thought was most awesome there is the electronics stores. Never seen so many different kinds of development boards and robotics parts in single shops. If I could actually read the bags and boxes of pieces, I'd have found heaven there. Closest we have at home is Maplin, and thats just not the same.

>>11758919
I went to denden before.
There is white canvas there too and the volks building there is fucking huge compare to the Akiba. The only thing it has less is maid cafe and girls giving out flyers.

I believe when you are talking about the community feeling, you mean small shops operate by individual and not huge corporation like yodobashi, bic camera, animate, gamers and etc right?
I have been akiba many times and I actually do prefer the chuodori backlane compare to the main street.

Free ロリ

>>11760444
When was this picture taken? I can't ever remember Akihabara being this full. Then again, I always go in the winter, maybe there is a difference.

>>11760437
>>11760440
>>11760444

What the fug..

>>11760479
>>11760506
new years eve and day have stores selling goodie bags (you don't know whats in them and you buy at a fixed prices, sometimes got some good expensive stuff) and always draws a huge crowd.

>>11760317
>I believe when you are talking about the community feeling, you mean small shops operate by individual and not huge corporation like yodobashi, bic camera, animate, gamers and etc right?

Not just that, the street parades in Akiba were a big thing. Being in Akiba beforehand was a weird sensation, it had much more of a community feeling and felt like you were a part of a strange musical all the time. You'd have otaku in pseudo-cosplay dancing in the street, calling out references to various anime, manga and games. You could get two guys having a trading card battle, calling out attack names and everyone would gather around and clap and cheer. People would call stuff out and everyone would have a good laugh, it wasn't cameras constantly flashing, stars posing in elaborate cosplays promoting material and maid cafes where you are made to feel like a number. It had a totally different feeling, if something happened to a vital community point, everyone would know about it and tend to it, even if they didn't live there. The residents liked that and it make Akiba feel like a homely place. If you ever went to the old maid cafes it was very different from what you get now, first of all there wasn't actually many maids - but a lot of cosplay and second of all instead of being sold some kind of cheap service for thousands of yen, if you ate there, one of the cosplayers may occasionally get on the piano in the corner and play songs which everyone would sing along to. There was also a lot of pirate radio in Akihabara and private TV 'studios' which filmed talk shows with a live audience which were then downloaded or distributed on DVD for people who didn't go.

People forget that cities aren't just transparent places for transparent people, they have communities of their own which need to be maintained and Akihabara's is in the dust.

>>11760317

And yes, denden does have those, it also has Melonbooks, Animate, Kotobukiya etc.

Make no mistake, it's not some kind of glorious throwback to the 'good old days' or something. Denden was just a watered down Akiba in Osaka, but as of now (or at least 2 years ago) it had much more of a community spirit than Akihabara has had in years. Maybe it's the fact that Osakans are naturally good hagglers which brings a more human element into shopping or perhaps it's that giant gundam store which just brings a better/more nerdy clientele of otaku. But all that matters is that if you want to catch a sliver of what Akiba used to be like, it's the closest thing right now. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that there are a lot of IT workers who work near/in nipponbashi and routinely pop down to denden in their lunchbreak to pick up hardware which keeps the back-alley component shops from being swamped by the anime merch.

>>11760559
>Maybe it's the fact that Osakans are naturally good hagglers
To the point where it's unnatural not to haggle in even supermarkets like in China?

>>11760479

Akiba was jam packed when Tokimeki Memorial 2 came out. I think it was 1998 or 1999, but it made the news because at the time it was one of the biggest game releases (if not the biggest) to date.

>>11760573

I don't think they're that bad but Osakans have always had the stereotype for being stingy hagglers. It's probably toned down a fair bit now but I believe actually that very mentality of haggling is due to some kind of relationship Osaka had with China years ago.

>>11760591
I saw a video of that on YouTube. If I remember correctly, it was posted in one of these threads, but that one was about old Akihabara.
>>11760521
Ah, I usually leave before Christmas. Looking at that picture, it seems to be a good idea.

>>11760595
Haggling makes me feel really embarrassed. I'm too autistic for that.

>>11760573
I dunno about haggling in supermarkets in China. Grocers, maybe. Tbf though you can Haggle at almost any shop in China as long as it isn't a big chain. Department stores are a no no for haggling there. I never tried in a supermarket but I wouldn't recommend it.

Tangential topic, but thought I'd add something on that.

>>11750429
it's a 458

>>11750118
w-what happens on those floors?

>>11755721

Well, Chuo-dori (the main road through Akihabara) was the first and most obvious change. Several large anime goods stores and buildings with smaller retailers have closed up/been renovated/torn down in the last 5 years.

I think it started with the redevelopment and building of the Mitsubishi bank building 5 years ago, then suddenly Sega expanded from one site to three.. Radio Kaikan was torn down forcing K-Books and other retailers to move..

>>11758617

This is SO true. Even in the last ~7 years I`ve seen this. 7-8 years ago, you could walk into a store in Akiba and find new content, and be guaranteed to find any old standards - Gundam, Macross, whatever. Since about 2006é2007, it`s gotten progressively worse. Fewer nice retailers, fewer choices, more generic merchandise churned out with the character-of-the-month from the show-of-the-month, and 3 months after the show is off the air, GONE without a trace.

>>11760521


I`ve been to Japan for Fuyucomiénew years multiple times. The New years`grab bags are occasionally VERY good - a few years ago at Sofmap I got a portable NAS and 2x750Gb hard drives for 25,000円.

>>11760528

>>People forget that cities aren't just transparent places for transparent people

But how will transparent people PAY for things?? Unless you replace all these niche events and goods with conformity, housewives and teenagers will never come there to spend, spend SPEND!!

I'm lost /jp/

I never seem to hear anythnig good about japan anymore, is this whole otaku culture thing just a lie now? the anime is dying, the vidya is dying, and now the touhou is being pillow suffocated by heartless commercialized crap.

>>11762073
This includes everything. If you're able to enjoy otaku culture being intensively commercialized, you're fine.

>>11761727
I've been there, basically shelves of onaholes, inflatable dolls etc.
Lower floors are dildos and kinky cosplay

>>11762073
The anime is stronger than ever, the vidya constantly expands to new niches and Touhou is still the biggest thing around by a large margin.

Doomsayers have been around for decades. Sometimes, they're right, in the same way a broken clock shows a correct hour twice a day. Ignore them.

Bumping because it appears we don't have an Akihabara thread on the first page yet.

Lately I've been into videos of people just walking around Otaku shops in Akiba in sort of a first-person view. Browsing, talking about merch and stuff.

There aren't too many that I found. Can anyone recommend some videos like this?

>>11768140
No but check this out:
http://www.google.com/landing/japanview/#akihabara

You can enter some shops.

>>11768140
Could you post some of the ones you have found?

>>11762109

No, anime is terrible now and has long become a caricature of itself. There's nothing 'strong' about the shit that gets aired on TV every week nowadays, the only reason it's selling is because 'otaku' is currently the cool thing to be (and it's a trend which is quickly dying, so expect to see anime series grasping at serious straws soon).

Video games aren't so bad, unless you're talking about eroge in which case...eroge has been shit for almost a decade now, business as usual.

>>11762073

Japan's economy is going/gone down the shitter. Abenomics aren't working, the earthquake/tsunami messed the country up big time and the tourists are decreasing, probably thanks to the threat of Nuclear waste being spread around by scaremongers. The birthrate is declining and some of the biggest markets in Japan cater to the 60+ agegroup.

South Korea is the new cool asian place, Gangnam Style and Apple vs Samsung wars have put it on the map for the average idiots.

Right now I'd say Koreaboo-ism is at a popularity level of about 2005-2006 weaboo-ism.

South Korea is making huge tech breakthroughs, K-Pop is capturing pop music fans all across Asia and K-Dramas are massively popular while Korean fashion is being exported all over the world and inspiring designers left right and center. Seoul is the tourist hotspot of Asia and, most sad of them all - South Korea is making bigger breakthroughs than Japan in robotics.

Japan is basically being cast away like an old sock while everyone fawns over South Korea. PSY is nothing in comparison to what the South Korean foreign ministers have planned to push the Korean wave further.

Korea's got it good, the kids are growing up knowing they've got it way better than their parents. Dancing all night, wearing ultra fashionable clothes and being *the* happening place.

Japan can't compete with that, the olympics is the last chance for relevance before plunging into a cryonic state for a good few years before it's J-Mania again.

>>11769890
But this whole thing about being "shit" or not really depends in one's tastes. Not everyone needs "deep" and "intricate" plots to have fun. I may agree with you that Japan is losing space due to South Korea's popularity, but decline in quality regarding eroge / anime isn't something that you can't just call "shit". Taste isn't objective like that.

>>11769913

It's pretty plain to see in anime and absolutely undebateable in eroge, even eroge fans will tell you that. I still play the latest releases but I don't pretend that they're pushing some kind of boundaries because they're absolutely not.

Same applies to anime and I don't know where you're getting this 'deep' or 'intricate' thing from, I didn't mention that and some of the best anime from any year has not been either of those things.

Anime is creatively stagnated and recycles re-re-done formulas far too much. In 2007 we reached the peak of stereotypical character tropes to the point where parody shows were springing up all over the place to make fun of the situation. Then in 2009 we got another wave of 'Otacool' and we've been forced to retread old ground ever since. It's not really about 'taste', anyone with a brain knows that everyone likes different things, but what we've been seeing for the past 5-6 years is something that cannot even be masqueraded as 'taste'. The reason Akihabara is is the way it is today is because of this stagnation, the people who buy into the 'otaku' fad are not looking for amazing anime that pushes boundaries or is clever and witty, they want anime they feel they should be watching in order to live up to the 'otaku' label they plaster on themselves. That's why it's overdone tropes, cliches and stereotypes everywhere with painfully obvious recycled plots, characters and gags.

I get where you're coming from, and you'd be right to say it about 6 years ago, but it's gone beyond that now and is unashamed to do so so long as the poseur-bucks roll in.

>>11769890
Abenomics is working according to Krugman and a bunch of other Nobel prize winners.

It's not DOLLAR STRONG working, but it's solving some demand problems Japan has had for a while.

>>11769970
>>11769970
Pro-tip: nothing Krugerman has suggested has worked, either. The economists are wrong. Increasing debt does not spur growth. You cannot buy growth. Abenomics is circuses and bread for Japan, a last ditch duck and run effort.

>>11769998
>You cannot buy growth.
I'm not going to weigh in on Keynesian spending, but people buy growth all the time, it's called investment.

Akihabara is a shit now.
It was so good back in the days of this photo.

>>11770181
Do you have more pics of old Japan?

>>11769890
The macroeconomy of Japan doesn't really matter to me. I have a good job here and that's all that matters as far as my well being is concerned. Akihabara isn't going to disappear any time soon.

Tell me when Korea or China reaches the same cultural level as Japan then we'll talk. Every country has pop music. Just because Korea's has become a fad doesn't make it worth visiting or moving permanently.

>not going to Ikebukuro or Shinjuku

Otaku culture didnt decline
Manga did not decline in quality
Anime did not decline in quality
Eroge did not decline in quality
Touhou did not decline in quality
You grew up, you are not longer amuse by the above entertainment medium because they are actually for kids.

>>11770213
Don't get that retard started.

>>11769890
Jeff?

>>11770603
>they are actually for kids.

Agreed with everything except for that section.

>>11770603
>You grew up
I grew older but I didn't grow up.

>>11770603
Amongst actual anime Otaku (adults) I get the impression that anime is on a decline.

Still, with all the jarring CGI and moe, at least anime otaku still have a hobby on life support. The Tokusatsu medium is pretty much dead and Ultraman otaku are in tears right now.

>>11770723
>I get the impression that anime is on a decline
Blame the LN adaptations. That is because there are more anime nowadays compare to yesteryear.
So the number of shit anime also increased.

>>11760528
What are you doing to make things better then?

What do you expect from a subculture filled with people who take pride in being antisocial and being obsessed with consumption of comics, figures and other trinkets...

It's funny how I hear certain people speak of the Olympic clean up like it's the worst thing ever and now other Akihabara enthusiast are looking forward to it? Bizarre.

>>11760528
I'm sorry but what does "transparent people" mean?

It's weird, I live in Japan and am a moderately active otaku, but every time I go to Akiba/Denden/etc. I just feel kind of bored. If there were something I wanted I would have likely bought it nearby or online already and things like maid cafes are annoying. Even going to Comike seems like a meaningless chore since almost everything I'd want will be in the stores afterwards and even I went with others it'd end up with us doing our own thing separately.

Besides, most otaku moved from real life communities such as in Akiba to 2ch for a reason - mutual realization that being around each other isn't too rewarding, and from physical stores to net shopping out of convenience. Shops for things that you don't have to try on or inspect before buying are really old fashioned in this day and age. The existence of manga/doujin stores where you can't even peek inside before buying is silly.

You are late Anon. Akihabara was cool in the 90s. Should have done those reps back then!

>>11770968
I was born in the 90s.

I've heard akihabara is full of sinners. Is it true?

>>11770603
Anime DID decline.
Eroge otherhand hasn't.

>>11770970
I was never interested in electronics components so I don't think I would have been interested in old Akiba anyway.

>>11770974

>Anime DID decline

Only normie Westerners think this.

>>11770776
The former are trolls. The latter are nostalgiafags. Neither are representative of the apathetic general population. >>11770958 is.

>>11770996
>neither represent the people who are actually getting money from olympic contracts.

>>11769890
>eroge has been shit for almost a decade now, business as usual.
While you can say a lot of things about various otaku hobbies, this simply isn't true. It may be true for the last couple years (which were overall pretty bad for eroge despite some good titles), but the entire era from 2000 to a couple years ago was completely revolutionary for eroge, generating most of the titles we now see as 'kamige' and setting standards for pretty much every eroge genre. You say last decade was shit, but 2004 might have just been the most successful year in eroge EVER.

>>11771049
What great games came out 2004? Muv-Luv?

>Anime DID decline.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyRoF689VRE

>>11770958
Yes, it's very likely that for people being so negative about everything and saying everything used to be better is just a matter of dreams giving way to reality. When you have incomplete knowledge, you assume the most positive results; living in Akiba would be wonderful! But as you get more familiar with whatever you're being overly optimistic about, you start to notice it flaws and mistakenly point out that the time when you were wrong was better.

Though not directly Akiba-related, I've had a similar experience myself. I lived in a small village in the middle of nowhere for the first 18 years of my life. I could only buy the latest video games at the local toy store, the bookstore had only the newest manga that was translated to my local language (we're talking about only getting Naruto/Inuyasha/etc), and for trading card games I could only buy the latest booster packs from the local toy stores. In the rare occasions I went to a big city, I was able to buy a huge variety of games for all platforms, new and used, recent and old, in special game stores, I could buy all kinds of manga at comic stores, and I could buy single cards as well as boosters from many older sets for trading card games. Wouldn't it be amazing if I lived there and could buy those things any time I wanted?

I now live less than 5 minutes walking distance from a store that sells a large variety of manga and trading card game singles/boosters. Further down the road is a large store filled entirely with mostly used games for all platforms. But in practice, I haven't bought manga from that store in ages, I only buy cards when I really need them quick, and I rarely visit the game store. In practice, the internet is generally both more convenient and cheaper.

>>11770958
>I live in Japan
Sure you are. Keep dreaming weeb.

>>11771054
Mainly Fate/stay night and Clannad, two of the most successful games ever in the genre (I know it isn't eroge, but same genre). Also games like Rance VI and Forest, but in general the average quality of games was very high in that year. (It had a lot of titles that aren't considered kamige but still notable, such as Duel Savior, 3days, Mindead Blood, Carnival, etc.)

>>11771049
Like?
Before EGS went down, I think the only modern eroge at the top is WA2.
They are still holding on the old type-moon, elf, key and leaf past glory.
When was the last time age release anything?
It took type-moon almost 10years to release a new game after FSN. Creativity is dead.

>>11771093
>Before EGS went down
What? You made me check, dude.

Also...

>>11771079
It's nothing unusual, Anon. Roughly 130 millions of people do that.

>>11771111
We can clearly see, 2009 has been the best eroge year.

>>11771087
Forest was pretty fun too.

>>11771165
Never mind, I'm dumb and you mentioned it. But yeah, 2004 was fun. That Light game too, with that light-blue haired girl, was also interesting. Dear My Friend, if I recall correctly.

>>11770603

If that were true then it wouldn't be possible to enjoy anime/eroge/manga etc. from as recent as just a few years ago (which it is). These kind of arguments are just sweeping generalizations made by people who aren't observant enough or don't know what's been going on in Japan. It's not rocket science, it's just a simple matter of Thing goes mainstream -> Quality of thing declines.

There's a reason lots of people don't like their favorite bands becoming mainstream and it's not always to do with being 'hipsters' a lot of the time commercial and/or mainstream success will ruin something good. Even 4chan is good example of this, video games are a good example of this, the internet is a good example of this. It's just a fact that more attention and more money doesn't actually make a thing better and can often make it worse.

>>11770737

Consumption has never been what otaku culture is about, that's a myth propegated by people who don't know any better. Otaku may be antisocial to the public, but not around their own. Akihabara was a very sociable place and wasn't all about consumption, that's something that big otaku-targeting industries have encouraged to make more money from the mainstream boom. Being otaku has always been about being productive rather than consuming merchandise. Just 15 years ago (Maybe even 10 if we eliminate gachapon) the majority of the 'figure market' (or rather, anime/game/etc figures in circulation as it wasn't much of a market) were garage kits made by otaku, not Good Smile Company mass produced tripe.

>>11770958

Akiba (and denden much less so) are boring now because all there is to do is spend money.

You're wrong about 2ch though, otaku didn't move from Akiba to 2ch, they were in both and then moved away from both when the mainstream kids moved in.

>>11770974
>>11771049

Eroge has definitely declined, I think all the way up to the top 10 highest selling eroge to this day (Even with the advent of more marketing brunt, easier distribution, more places to buy and more people owning computers) are all from the 90s/early 2000s.

>>11771087

F/SN wasn't exactly great and Clannad isn't an eroge. Not to mention Clannad didn't cover any ground Kanon hadn't done already. The 'crying game' wave of visual novels had already started with Kanon and there hasn't been a revolutionary Eroge or VN since. It's just been retreading old ground, just like anime - no coincidence here, though Eroge has always done this even back in the 90s

>>11771836
Everything is an example of this. That's what capitalism brings out on the world. What gets famous is what sells, and what sells is what appeals to the biggest number of people, and what appeals to the biggest number of people is usually of horrible ~ mediocre quality (yes, I realize this is subjective) so several people will be able to enjoy it without putting much effort, or receive what they usually expect, which would contain generic elements which are usually rehashed until death.

Labelling the eroge/anime/manga/etc industry as "childish" is just stupid because what's happening with said industries is the same as what happens with every kind of entertinment capitalism touches.

>>11771859
I thought 2009 was one of the best eroge years in terms of quality. (not sure if the japanese agree with this, but I do see great titles that were released at that point) I understand when you say that in terms of sales, it has declined, but to stretch as far as saying that it's quality has gone down over the years is stretching the whole thing too much. Sure, there are hundreds of awful titles out there which are released every year, but the number of well regarded games is still considerable, which might not be the same for anime.

Oh man I cant wait for the next big thing and you are all so full of shit you cant enjoy it.

Thing is popular so the quality is no longer good waaaaahhhhhh

>>11771859
Do explain to me what's productive about playing bad STGs and jerking off to underage idols and I may take your word seriously on this board.

>>11772922
>implying those two things aren't productive

>>11771111
where's monmusu quest! this chart's incomplete

>>11772922

Have you seem the amount of stuff the touhou otaku produce? Or just comiket in general?

>>11772953
I seriously hope you're being ironic.

>>11771160
>>11771873
2009 really was the best year. And 2008-2010 weren't bad either.
Someone here should really take off his nostalgia goggles.

Toy otaku produce a ton of great photos despite consuming mass-produced "tripe"

>>11769890
Five bitcoins say Hong Kong is the next big fad in 3-5 years.

>>11771873
>Labelling the eroge/anime/manga/etc industry as "childish" is just stupid because what's happening with said industries is the same as what happens with every kind of entertinment capitalism touches.

I never used the word childish at all.

And 2009 was an insignificant year for Eroge. I don't think a single good title came out, in fact. The same could be said for Anime. It's hardly 'nostalgia goggles' when it was only a few years ago when things were decent (in the case of anime, anyway). You can't be nostalgic about 2007 unless you're very young. People just like throwing about useless buzzwords and catch-all phrases because they don't like the idea that their favorite anime or eroge actually isn't that great and is the result of a heavily diluted 'geek-chic' culture.

>>11772922

That's kind of the point, the people doing that kind of thing aren't a representation of what otaku culture used to be like. You won't find otaku on /jp/ and you'd be hard pressed to find them in Akiba nowadays

>>11773635
What about Madoka?
What about White Album?

You really think old stuff like to heart or kazoku keikaku can stand up to modern eroge?

>>11769970
>DOLLAR STRONG working
It's honestly better to have a weak yen anyways.

But it won't matter at all when the PRC economy implodes.

>>11773635
Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, Chihayafuru, Uchuu Kyoudai, Hyouka, Madoka, Penguindrum...

>>11773635

> You can't be nostalgic about 2007 unless you're very young.

I don't think you have any idea what 'nostalgia' means. You can be nostalgic about anything which happened in the past.

>>11773635
>And 2009 was an insignificant year for Eroge. I don't think a single good title came out, in fact.

Name your top five favorite eroge. I want to know just how full of shit one man can be.

>>11773641
So what's your point, culture changes?

>>11769890

This is truth. Where's your Evangelion? Where's your Lupin? Where's your Gundam?

Oh right. These ARE the same rehashed titles again and again, because there's nothing original with any longevity.

If you go to Akiba regularly over the last 5 years, you've seen the product cycles getting shorter and shorter and more disposable every year.

This is actually literally true. Take any english-language Anime-goods site as an example. Go see what they have in stock vs what they're preordering for 6 months ahead. I guarantee you, by the time a show even hits the TV channels the merchandise is already up for preorders. Conversely, pick any show you watched a year ago. Now try to find products for it.

>>11774023
maybe the product cycles are shorter because they are selling all their stock faster.

>>11770979

are you fucking retarded? Just look at the shit they produce. It isn't about story or plot, or even selling the anime itself it's about generating interest in the shitty merchandise they can shovel out in a 6-month window.

Why do you think the studios are so lazy nowadays that they can barely even shit out TWELVE episodes of a show most times before a hiatus? So they have time to pump and dump the merchandise in case it flops- it's the exact same tactic used with penny stocks in the shitty stock markets.

>>11774023
>the product cycles getting shorter and shorter and more disposable every year
>Conversely, pick any show you watched a year ago. Now try to find products for it.
It doesnt work like this. The product cycle is short is because they only do limited print and once it is sold out, tough luck finding it on the after market with huge marked up price. If they flood the market mass produced goods, all of these small shops would closed down.
It is still a niche culture after all. one piece, gundam and eva are mainstream titles compare to your eroge that sold 10k copies or late night 2am anime that no one watched. So of course you are going to see their merchandise on all the ufo machines.

>>11774037
When was the situation ever not that? It can't decline when nothing has changed.

>>11774023
>Evangelion?
1995.

>Where's your Lupin?
1971.

>Where's your Gundam?
1979.

The most successful titles of a specific 24-year interval in anime history don't match up to the average titles of the past couple years. What a surprise!

If anything, it's surprising how close shows like Haruhi, K-On and Madoka came. (In terms of success, nobody will argue that K-On is terrible.)

>>11774543
Funny enough I actually hate moeshit, but for whatever reason I was really into the two seasons of K-On. Same for Ika Musume, though the latter definitely has more artistic integrity.

>>11774543
>hurr durr
kill yourself

>>11774545
>moeshit

>>11774543
When people argue about the anime of today, they always jump to moeshit. I liked the Clannad anime, at least the first season. I think it was no moeshit and well done in every way. Or let us talk about Geass. That was worshipped as the show of the century here on 4chan.
In my opinion the "problem" is that the internet delivers the next load before a show can develop a "cult" like it was possible in the past. There is a constant stream of content from Japan, preventing that people focus to much on a single anime. For many people, Evangelion or Lupin were the first "major" anime show they got their hands on, and they had nothing else in the time before the internet (or at least the download speeds of today).
It's like when there is a cult on old cars, old movies and old music. I would not want to drive an old car instead of a modern one. And I bet if the original Star Trek or Episode 4 of Star Wars (the 1st movie made) were appearing today on the screens as something new, people would say "oh wow what a load of rubbish". Today, people always expect "something big and new", and when the authors try something new, they bitch about it. Like people bitching about the style of Panty & Stockings. And it's a fact that when Evangelion was just out, people bitched about it, about the low budget and the end. Some people needed years to understand that it's a great piece of work.
For me, the point of anime is to entertain. And as of now, I am by far better entertained by Kill la Kill than by the xxxxxxth edition of large toy robots trashing each other or the xxxxxxth version of "Wow look what a clever guy Lupin is".

>>11774579
What else do you want me to call K-On and anime similar to that?

>>11774606
>That was worshipped as the show of the century here on 4chan

For the wrongs reasons

>>11774626
>asking for advice on the internet
You are just full of stupidity.

>>11774545
you only like K-ON because its well animted. The story and characters are fucking garbage.

>>11774626
With terms that actually describe them.

>>11774023
It didnt decline. Anime changed for the better.
The new Eva sucks.
The new Lupin sucks.
The new Gundam is a toy commercial.
Nobody want to watch another mecha show where a high school kid hijack a mecha and beat up the baddies.

>>11774023
Hello /jp/ Tomino.

>>11773704
>PRC economy implodes

You keep thinking that.

Average anime quality HAS DECREASED.

80s and 90s: Lot of average anime, few very good memorable anime.
00s and 10s: Lot of garbage, few average anime, no very good anime at all.

Let's test:
You guys have 10 seconds to name at least anime one from 00s and 10s that will remembered after +20 years like Lupin, Gundam, Evangelion, Yamato, Minky Momo. Logh or hell even like Slayers, Sailor Moon or Tenchi Muyo . You can't.

>>11774755
Madoka
Checkmate

>>11774757
Terrible joke.

>>11774646
Your picture contradicts your post. Though on a rational level I know it's bullshit, at times like these I feel emotionally like anime is doomed.

1. Generic cute girls doing cute things (ep1 is not representative, from ep2 onwards it becomes terrible)
2. Railgun
3. Shingeki no Kyojin
4. Cute girls doing cute things WITH A TWIST
5. Cute girls doing cute things
6. Low-brow comedy anime
7. (Here I must admit I've never watched Tamayura and I've barely heard anything about it; surprised it's this high)
8. Generic fanservice fest
9. Cute girls doing cute things
10. Badly written shonen anime (I enjoyed it as well, but it definitely doesn't deserve such a high spot. Even in its own subgenre ("trapped in an MMO") Log Horizon beats it by far)
11. Typical fujoshi bait
12. Watamote (I didn't like it at all, but I can't deny it's something unusual)
13. EXTREMELY low budget naval mecha show (the CGI runs at half the framerate of the rest of the series)
14. Little Busters! Refrain
15. Generic loli fanservice fest
16. Fujoshi fanservice fest
17. Cute girls doing cute things (with a Mahjong theme)
18. Generic incest romance comedy/drama
19. HORRIBLY written battle harem series
20. Kara no Kyoukai

This isn't even representative of what this year had to offer.

>>11774755
>You guys have 10 seconds to name at least anime one from 00s and 10s that will remembered after +20 years like Lupin, Gundam, Evangelion, Yamato, Minky Momo. Logh or hell even like Slayers, Sailor Moon or Tenchi Muyo . You can't.
My '10 seconds' answer was .hack//Sign, which is still recommended and watched 12 years after airing; another 20 years probably won't change that. For a more extensive answer: Noir, NHK ni Youkoso, Akagi, Kaiji, Baccano, Durarara, Higurashi (as terrible as it was), Paranoia Agent, Madoka, Spice and Wolf, Shakugan no Shana, K-On, Haruhi, Shingeki no Kyojin, Naruto, Bleach, Death Note, One Piece. There's probably tons more examples I'm less familiar with.

I'm not making any assertions about the quality of the above titles, but they will probably be remembered 20 years from now.

>>11774772
Iis 'generic' or 'typical' somehow bad?

>>11774802
When I say 'generic' or 'typical' it means that it is so similar to previous works that if you have seen the previous works it copies, your enjoyment of the work decreases, usually to the point where it's only good if you haven't seen the works it copies before. There's nothing wrong with taking something that has been done before and doing it in a new way, but those shows just take something that has been done before and do it in the exact same way.

>>11774849
But there has been nothing original and successful in anime since 2002. You could put 'generic' or 'typical' in front of every title of last decade.

Maybe you are into wrong hobby. In modern anime (or otaku media in generally), enjoyment comes from because anime is 'generic' and 'typical'. Those who try to be original, end up like Aku no Hana.

>>11774755
Aria, Mushishi, Haibane Renmei, Nodame Cantabile, Honey and Clover, Madoka

You are definitely not serious, why do you even do this?

>>11774900
Ugly animation doesn't count as originality.

>>11774900
>In modern anime (or otaku media in generally), enjoyment comes from because anime is 'generic' and 'typical'.

Is that what Mr. Goldstein at corporate HQ convinced you of?

>>11714570
Thanks for the recommendation by the way. I went yesterday and had a much better time than Akiba, tons of cool merch and way less crowed. Only disappointment was that after seeing a bunch of older stuff there I thought there might be some Slayers merch but I couldn't find any.

As for Akiba I found a pretty cool 2hu store that had the stairwell covered in fake flowers it was like walking through a portal to Gensokyo I wish ;_;

Also I never understood Japans obsession with Steve Jobs.

>>11749135
Or Thais, Malaysians, or Singaporeans.

>>11750473
QFT.

>>11769890
10 bitcoins that koreaboo mdo7 will quote this as fucking gospel.

>>11773705

None of those were good except perhaps Chihayafuru

>>11773661

You really think modern eroge can stand up to ToHeart? It wouldn't exist if not for ToHeart, so it lends its creativity and success to ToHeart. ToHeart did not lend creativity or success to anything, it stood on its own and it still sold better than just about everything that comes out today.

>>11774802

It is to anyone who has been watching anime for more than a decade. It wouldn't be so bad if they excelled at being 'typical' but they don't even manage that. His post is correct, anime has sucked for a good few years now.

>>11774904

Mushishi is the only one of those that will be remembered, maybe Aria too (Although Aria is only really kept alive in the memory of westerners).

I think there are great anime from the 00s (Not the 10s though) but those examples you picked are terrible.

>>11774772
Can I ask how you thought that the first episode of NNB was non representative? The whole show portrayed the main themes that were put out in the first episode perfectly and even wrapped it up by the end. The secluded country theme gave us many more important aspects regarding family and friend relations than what your stereotypical cute girls doing cute things show would have you expect.

>>11778748
Baka howaito piggus have a different mentality toward anime. They think all anime must be like Akira, Bebop, GiTS, BBG Crisis, Gunm, Ninja Scroll and etc. What they dont realize is, the anime medium is first and foremost about cute things. Why else would you watch anime? It is hard to portray cutesy with the 3D medium.
Him having a neutral opinion toward failgun and titans should give you an idea what his taste is like.

>>11774755
Mind Game was the greatest anime movie in a long time, a real paradigm shift, representative of the art that is animation in Japan in 2003/4, and the whole 00s decade.
Furthermore, the all star animators of the late 80s and 90s who have their cuts present in all the sakuga MADs have become auteurs in there own right, many moving into direction or solo work. The amount of experimental or artsy animation that is still "anime" has increased since your golden age. I hope that last point makes sense.

>>11778862
I watch anime for the same reason I watch any kind of animation. Different things can be expressed due to its lack of certain limitations and the presence of others that are unique to the medium and other circumstances.

>>11778748
The style of the first episode was entirely different from the rest of the series. The first episode focused on the serene country lifestyle, simply showing the various aspects of life there at a very calm pace. The character interactions in episode 1 are just a vehicle to show that calmness to the viewers. Then from episode 2 onwards, the pace increases by 300% and the show focuses almost entirely on the interactions between the characters, using the country lifestyle as a vehicle for making the characters interact with each other rather than vice versa. It's not bad if you're into cute girls doing cute things, but it's entirely different from the unique calm style presented in ep1.

>>11774772
I agree with you on everything but Kara no Kyoukai. Also, you might like the Watamote manga a lot better.