Undamned and Greg are heading to Japan!

[greg]

Early tomorrow morning, Undamned and I are heading for Japan for 2 1/2 weeks. First stop: Tokyo, of course. This is his first time to Japan, so it will be fun to show him around.

Already Radilgy and Under Defeat are waiting for me at my mother-in-law's house. We can update on our game hauls later on. The first place we'll be visiting is Akihabara, most likely. Neat stuff.

[SuperGrafx]

Lucky. I'm planning a trip for sometime in the late summer or early fall.

Enjoy your trip.

[judesalmon]

Lucky. I'm planning a trip for sometime in the late summer or early fall.

Enjoy your trip.

I'd suggest avoiding Japan in August/September as it gets unbearably hot and humid.

[DC906270]

Lucky. I'm planning a trip for sometime in the late summer or early fall.

me too, probably

have fun Greg and Undamned

[sven666]

have fun Greg and Undamned

indeed.. ey ud pick me up a cool game whydontcha hehe..

[GaijinPunch]

Swing by Roppongi at about 5AM after some booze. Let the Chinese "massage girls" whisk undamned away to a dark corner of the bowels of Roppongi. Go home and giggle yourself to sleep.

Disclaimer: Didn't meant to offended any Chinese people.

I'd suggest avoiding Japan in August/September as it gets unbearably hot and humid.

Ditto. June = Rain. July = STill some rain, and pretty hot. August = Damn hot. Go in October. It's beautiful. The one upside to the hot weather, is a lot of the girls tend to dress a lot sluttier.

[dave4shmups]

Swing by Roppongi at about 5AM after some booze. Let the Chinese "massage girls" whisk him away to a dark corner of the bowels of Roppongi. Go home and giggle yourself to speak.

Disclaimer: Didn't meant to offended any Chinese people.

I'd suggest avoiding Japan in August/September as it gets unbearably hot and humid.

Ditto. June = Rain. July = STill some rain, and pretty hot. August = Damn hot. Go in October. It's beautiful. The one upside to the hot weather, is a lot of the girls tend to dress a lot sluttier.

I'd love to go to the TGS in August, the flyer I picked up at the GDC says that there are two days this year that it will be open to the public.

I'd just love to go to Japan, in general; the only thing that would probably bother me is the humidity.

Have fun guys!!

[GaijinPunch]

TGS always has 2 days open to the public, FYI.

[judesalmon]

My first visit to Tokyo was December 2004 for the PSP launch, which was unusually warm, and was able to get away with short sleeves for the entire week-long trip.

My second time was in September 2005 to go to TGS, visited Kyoto also, and was almost killed by the heat and water lost through sweating. In just a few days I'd gone down a notch in my belt.

I went last month and it was lovely, quite sunny and reasonably warm - wished we'd waited a month to go this month to see the sakura blossoms, but my friend wanted to go out for his birthday.

[superhitachi4]

Sounds like a blast. Have fun guys.

[greg]

We have a computer in our hotel room. We're staying at a place called House Ikebukuro, and we're in an annex room with a computer and a very small kitchen. We arrived in Ikebukero from the Narita Express around 7pm last night (Tues), checked in, and hit the game centers until 11. I got some cool UFO catcher prizes, Keroro Gunsou and Rilakkuma! At the Sega Gigo Ikebukero, UD played Raiden 3 and Radilgy for the first time, I got a No Miss on the first two levels of Mushihime-sama for the first time (I really should get an arcade stick for home), and we saw Espgaluda 2 for the first time. Unfortunately, the guy playing it was a bit too talented, so we didn't get to play it. They had an Espgaluda 2 poster over 6ft tall though, must've been taller than me.

Today we'll hit Akihabara for a few hours, then meet up with my wife in Harajuku for 100 yen kaitenzushi (conveyor belt sushi), hit Snoopy Town and Kiddy Land in Harajuku, then head back to Ikebukero. Tomorrow we will tackle Nakano!

[GaijinPunch]

If you guys want more play and less eye-candy, go to the 50-yen arcade on Center-gai in Shibuya. It's pretty easy to find, and you can play Mushi & ESPGaluda II all day for 50 yen a pop... most likely uninterrupted. Very smokey though.

[iatneH]

greg. domo-kun paraphernalia. you know what you doing.

[greg]

Gaijin Punch, do you know what happened to Gamers? I liked that shop. It was in Ikebukero across the way from the Sega Gigo.

We will definitely work Shibuya into our itinerary. Probably after we see my wife off at the Shinjuku bus terminal. UD and I will remain in Tokyo until Sunday afternoon/evening. My friend Galen is visiting from Misawa, so it will be the three of us.

iatneH, we'll be looking for Domo-kun stuff in Kiddy Land today. Last year, my wife bought a big-ass Domo-kun doll off of YAJ that took up half my suitcase! And I have a bigger-sized suitcase.

[GaijinPunch]

Gaijin Punch, do you know what happened to Gamers? I liked that shop. It was in Ikebukero across the way from the Sega Gigo.

No clue. Same company as the one in Akihabara? To be honest, I've been out of Ikebukuro station a total of 2 times. One was years ago and I have no idea why. The other was my last trip to meet someone at Gigo (which isn't a bad game center). Way better than Shibuya Gigo. It was pissing rain and very cold, so I went straight to Gigo, then straight back to the station.

We will definitely work Shibuya into our itinerary. Probably after we see my wife off at the Shinjuku bus terminal. UD and I will remain in Tokyo until Sunday afternoon/evening.

Shinjuku is probably a bit better in terms of volume (gamewise). There's some half-decent used game shops, and several arcades, although I don't know of a 50-yen arcade there. If you're into Virtua Fighter, Sportsland Nishiguchi (by Yodobashi Camera and all that shit) has the single most concentrated collection of high level VF players in the world, each Friday night... although I'm sure it's died down a bit.

Mind the Earthquakes!

[PC Engine Fan X!]

The first time I visited Japan primarly for the Spring 2000 TGS, there were two very important lessons that I learned:

1.) The Japanese banking system is closed on Saturdays and Sundays. They're open for business at 11:00 to 19:00 (11am to 7pm) Mondays through Fridays. (I did not know this when I arrived on a Saturday evening.) Time is presented in 24 hour military fashion (would have to assume that due to the USA's help in rebuilding Japan after WWII, Japan took on the USA's military fashion of keeping time which holds true to this very day).

2.) Always, be sure to convert whatever $$$ to Japanese yen at the departing airport before arriving at the final destination. I did not do that and some monetary complications ensued but everything was sorted out on the first Monday morning at a major Japanese bank. I was surprised to hear a Japanese guy talk in perfect American English while conducting some money conversion tasks...I had reason to believe that he studied American English in the USA for a number of years -- it was flawless and no trace of accent, it sounded like perfect "Californian American English" to be exact. I couldn't believe it. At the lounge room section of the major Japanese bank I was in had a widescreen HD monitor showing an ultra-realistic fish aquarium...I'd have to say that it was considered more cost-effective to have a "virtual aquarium" than to have the "real deal" and deal with general upkeep duties of the fish, changing of the water, etc. It was an Toshiba widescreen 16:9 high definition flat screen monitor...a real beauty! ^_~

I really enjoyed the hot 'n' tasty donuts from the many "Mister Donut" shops while in Japan. Better tasting than the crap donuts that Krispy Creme serves in the USA any day! ^_~

I thought that it was cool to be able to buy video games at a local Japanese convienence store like 7-11, Sunkist, Lawson's, Circle-K, etc. All one has to do is grab a video game sale ticket from a video game turnstile display kiosk and present it to the sales clerk and he or she will get it for you. Nothing like that over at the convienence stores in the USA although USA based 7-11 company was seriously considering it but decided not to due to safety reasons. I can just see some fucking crazy loonies robbing a local USA based 7-11 store just for a handful of minty fresh brand new video games & some cash. Is life worth the risk getting shot at over some video games + cash? I think not!

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[sffan]

.

Ikebukuro narita keroro gunsou rilakkuma akihabara harajuku kaitenzushi nakano!

I wish I knew what the hell you're talking about. Must be nice being in Tokyo though. I'd love to go there myself, even if I could never learn all those words.

[GaijinPunch]

1.) The Japanese banking system is closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

I think this is true for most parts of the world... definitely the two countries I've lived in. And very few if any stay open until 19:00 (for anything other than withdrawals). Most close at 15:00 or 16:00.

I have a bad bank story... I will share sometime.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

1.) The Japanese banking system is closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

I think this is true for most parts of the world... definitely the two countries I've lived in. And very few if any stay open until 19:00 (for anything other than withdrawals). Most close at 15:00 or 16:00.

I have a bad bank story... I will share sometime.

For Gaijin Punch,

Please do share with us fellow shmuppers your bad bank horror story. I am sure it will be interesting. ^_~

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[No_not_like_Quake]

Hope you guys have a good trip. Cheers.

[GaijinPunch]

Please do share with us fellow shmuppers your bad bank horror story. I am sure it will be interesting. ^_~

I think I've typed it out and posted it somewhere.... I will look around.

[IlMrm]

7-11

I went to a 7-11 there and they were selling gashapon 7-11 toys. Even came in a green and red capsule.

I just bought Densha De Go! Final for the PS2. I will soon know the stations of the Yamanote Line by heart.

For money, I bought a bunch of traveler's checks and once I arrived I went to a post office to exchange it.

Greg and UD - Have a great time.

[Dave_K.]

Greg & UD, not really sure if this is near by to you guys, but according to InsertCredit's 4/26 post, Kidou Senshi Gundam: Senjou no Kizuna arcade game will be on location test at Plabo (Nakano) from April 29th until May 7th. This is the one with the Namco O.R.B.S pod (180 degree immersive viewing screen). Hope you both are taking lots of pics!

[GaijinPunch]

I stumbled across this in my monthly trip through the Insert Credit forums.

[NTSC-J]

Shinjuku is probably a bit better in terms of volume (gamewise). There's some half-decent used game shops, and several arcades, although I don't know of a 50-yen arcade there.

There's one a couple of blocks from the train station, Amusement Forum More I think. Not every game is 50 yen, but most are, including Ketsui, DOJ, older Capcom stuff, Tatsujin, some fighters, and Mushihime. The 100 yen games are the real new stuff, Under Defeat, Galuda II, Shiki 3, and Pink Sweets.

As far as the banks go, for the first couple of weeks I was having a hard time but now that I know where all the international ATMs are at it's all good. The Citibank in Shinjuku has a 24 hr ATM, and even took my debit card from my free checking account in America. My bank has only charged me once for using it, although I've been at least a dozen times.

One important bit is if you need to exchange currency do it either at the airport or at a bank. Hotels will rip you off hard.

[greg]

2.) Always, be sure to convert whatever $$$ to Japanese yen at the departing airport before arriving at the final destination.

If you fly into Japan on a weekday and before the banks close, it is better to exchange money when you get to Japan because the rates are better. Why would a US bank want to buy US currency? A Japanese bank would want to, however. Therefore, you get a better rate in Japan.

It took awhile before I was able to get access to the Net again. I'm staying at my mother-in-law's house now, and she has high-speed Internet access. However, her brother has some stupid "Virus Buster" software that acts as a proxy to cleverly filter out websites that may contain viruses. Say, for example, THE ENTIRE FREAKING INTERNET! It wouldn't let me just type in www.shmups.com because it was recognized as a gaming site. However, I did a search for the forum and was able to get in that way. Sheeze.

Anyhow, Undamned left on Wednesday to go tour Kyoto and Osaka. We will meet back up on Sunday night, wrap things up on Monday, and then return Tuesday. I have so much neat crap that it will not fit in my suitcase, and that's even after taking out my clothes and putting them into a duffel bag. I will have to send some stuff in the mail to myself on Monday (probably surface). I bought a bunch of games, but I probably paid more money on other stuff. Macross and Gundam models, various figures and toys, posters, etc.

Undamned picked up Harmful Park for only 5,000 yen! It didn't have the spine card and the instruction booklet was a bit faded, so it was discounted steeply. I got Spriggan Mk.2 for the PCE for only 4,000. The instruction manual was slightly bent yet hardly noticeable, and the disc supposedly had a "scratch" which I couldn't find. We went to G-Front and the Try shop so that UD can check out the PCBs. He got PC Genjin for about 20,000 yen. He says it is hard to come by and expensive.

I can list my loot later on.

[UnscathedFlyingObject]

You should post some pictures for our amusement .

[GaijinPunch]

One important bit is if you need to exchange currency do it either at the airport or at a bank. Hotels will rip you off hard.

This is great advice in general. Japan has really low FX rates, although I'v never had to exchange in a hotel, so wouldn't know. Even the airport is less than half the service fee of using a bank/airport in the US, and even more savings than that fucking ripoff country called Great Britain.

As for foreign and 24 hour ATMs... you should really not count on them. Just feel glad if they are 24 hours, and know that it was not that long ago that they all closed at 7PM! Yes, in other words, Japan completely misunderstands the reason for the ATM machine.

[Specineff]

ATM machine.

Sorry for being a jerk, but you also misunderstood the meaning of "ATM".

[greg]

Not only that, but I was always charged a 150 yen fee for using an ATM on a weekend. Pretty stupid. They always closed at 7pm when I lived here before (2000-2002). And banker's hours were TRULY banker's hours! 10am-3pm. Sheesh.

By the way Spec, I still haven't found an MD carry case for you yet. And I was not able to track down that IDE to USB converter while I was in Akihabara. I am going to an electronics store today, so I will look for it there. Lou showed me the box, and it is a fair size. My suitcase is already pretty crowded, but I'll see what I can do if I find it.