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Bishōjo
In Japanese popular culture, a , also romanized as ''bishojo'' or ''bishoujo'', is a cute girl character. characters appear ubiquitously in media including manga, anime, and computerized games (especially in the ''bishojo'' game genre), and also appear in advertising and as mascots, such as for maid cafés. An attraction towards characters is a key concept in the '' otaku'' (manga and anime fan) subculture. The development of the aesthetic in manga of the early 1980s marked a departure from previous realistic styles, and the emergence of the aesthetic of "cute eroticism" (''kawaii ero'') and '' moe''. History The character type emerged in the ''lolicon'' boom of the early 1980s, particularly in the works of manga artist Hideo Azuma. Azuma's characters combined the round bodies of Osamu Tezuka characters and the round and emotive faces of ''shōjo'' manga. At the time, the dominant style in seinen and pornographic manga was ''gekiga'', a realistic style characterized by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bishōjo Game
A or is "a type of Japanese video game centered on interactions with attractive girls". ''Bishōjo'' games are similar to ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books in the way of narrative, in which the game tells a story but the player may make choices to change how the story flows. History 1980s ''Bishōjo'' games began to appear in Japan in the beginning days of personal computers. The first ''bishōjo'' game commercialized in Japan appeared in 1982 as '' Night Life'' by Koei. The first ''bishōjo'' games were not too popular, being limited to graphics of 16 colors or less. At the beginning of the genre, almost all the games were pornographic. A notable landmark was Jast's '' Tenshitachi no gogo'' (1985), a precursor to the modern dating simulation. Among early ''bishōjo'' adventure games it had a degree of polish that previous games lacked. It was also the first to have recognizably modern anime-style artwork: its characters had very large eyes and a tiny nose and mouth bu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lolicon
In Japanese popular culture, is a genre of fictional media which focuses on young or young-looking girl characters, particularly in a sexually suggestive or erotic manner. The term, a portmanteau of the English-language phrase " Lolita complex", also refers to desire and affection for such characters (, "loli"), and their fans. Associated mainly with stylized imagery in manga, anime, and video games, ''lolicon'' in '' otaku'' culture is generally understood as distinct from desires for realistic depictions of young girls, or real young girls as such, and is associated with '' moe'', or affection for fictional characters, often '' bishōjo'' (cute girl) characters in manga or anime. The phrase "Lolita complex", derived from the novel '' Lolita'', entered use in Japan in the 1970s. During the "''lolicon'' boom" in erotic manga of the early 1980s, the term was adopted in the nascent ''otaku'' culture to denote attraction to early ''bishōjo'' characters, and later only to y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bishōnen
is a Japanese term literally meaning "beautiful youth (boy)" and describes an aesthetic that can be found in disparate areas in East Asia: a young man of androgynous beauty. This word originated from the Tang dynasty poem '' Eight Immortals of the Wine Cup'' by Du Fu. It has always shown the strongest manifestation in Japanese pop culture, gaining in popularity due to the androgynous glam rock bands of the 1970s, but it has roots in ancient Japanese literature, the androsocial and androerotic ideals of the medieval Chinese imperial court and intellectuals, and Indian aesthetic concepts carried over from Hinduism, imported with Buddhism to China. Today, are very popular among girls and women in Japan. Reasons for this social phenomenon may include the unique male and female social relationships found within the genre. Some have theorized that provide a non-traditional outlet for gender relations. Moreover, it breaks down stereotypes surrounding feminine male characters. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Visual Novel
A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustrations and a varying degree of interactivity. The format is more likely referred to as a visual novel game. Visual novels originated in and are especially prevalent in Japan, where they made up nearly 70% of the PC game titles released in 2006. In Japanese, a distinction is often made between visual novels (NVL, from "novel"), which consist primarily of narration and have very few interactive elements, and adventure games (AVG or ADV, from "adventure"), which incorporate problem-solving and other types of gameplay. This distinction is normally lost outside Japan, as both visual novels and ADV-style adventure games are commonly referred to as "visual novels" by international fans. Visual novels are rarely produced exclusively for dedicated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moe (slang)
, sometimes romanized as ''moé'', is a Japanese word that refers to feelings of strong affection mainly towards characters in anime, manga, video games, and other media directed at the ''otaku'' market. ''Moe'', however, has also gained usage to refer to feelings of affection towards any subject. ''Moe'' is related to neoteny and the feeling of "Kawaii, cuteness" a character can evoke. The word ''moe'' originated in the late 1980s and early 1990s in Japan and is of uncertain origin, although there are several theories on how it came into use. ''Moe'' characters have expanded through Japanese media, and the concept has been commercialised. Contests, both online and in the real world, exist for ''moe''-styled things, including one run by one of the Ethics Organization of Computer Software, Japanese game rating boards. Various notable commentators such as Tamaki Saitō, Hiroki Azuma, and Kazuya Tsurumaki have also given their take on ''moe'' and its meaning. Meaning ''Moe'' use ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Visual Novels
A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustrations and a varying degree of interactivity. The format is more likely referred to as a visual novel game. Visual novels originated in and are especially prevalent in Japan, where they made up nearly 70% of the PC game titles released in 2006. In Japanese, a distinction is often made between visual novels (NVL, from "novel"), which consist primarily of narration and have very few interactive elements, and adventure games (AVG or ADV, from "adventure"), which incorporate problem-solving and other types of gameplay. This distinction is normally lost outside Japan, as both visual novels and ADV-style adventure games are commonly referred to as "visual novels" by international fans. Visual novels are rarely produced exclusively for dedicated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maid Café
are a subcategory of cosplay restaurants found predominantly in Japan and Taiwan. In these cafés, waitresses, dressed in maid costumes, act as servants, and treat customers as masters (and mistresses) as if they were in a private home, rather than as café patrons. The first permanent maid café, Cure Maid Café, was established in Akihabara, Tokyo, Japan, in March 2001, but maid cafés are becoming increasingly popular. The increased competition drove the cafes to employ more diversified themes, gimmicks and even unusual tactics to attract customers. They have also expanded overseas to several countries, including the United States. History Maid cafés were traditionally associated with Akihabara (秋葉原), a district in Tokyo famous for its extensive electronics and anime/manga related stores. Commonly a place for otaku to visit, Akihabara contains several themed cafes, including maid cafes. However, with the increasing media attention on these cafes, they have develope ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dating Sim
Dating sims, also known as dating simulation games, are a video game subgenre of simulation games with romantic elements. While resembling the visual novel genre in presentation, true dating sims utilize an additional statistical and time management layer in their gameplay. The player is given a specific amount of time on an in-game calendar, while scheduling dates, correctly answering questions, and performing various activities will increase a certain character's attraction to the player until the player gains their love. The additional subgenre of erotic dating sims are a form of eroge, and include sexually graphic cutscenes. The idea that love can only be earned through time and attention has prompted concern that it oversimplifies romance and depicts a " nice guy" view that may lead to unrealistic expectations from women. Dating sims, typically in the form of ''bishōjo'' games with a male protagonist and female supporting characters, are extremely popular in Japan, taking u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Touhou Project
The , also known simply as , is a bullet hell shoot 'em up video game series created by Indie game, independent Japanese Doujin soft, soft developer Team Shanghai Alice. The team's sole member, ZUN (video game developer), Jun'ya "ZUN" Ōta, has independently developed programming, graphics, writing, and music for the series, publishing 19 mainline games and 13 Spin-off (media), spin-offs since 1997. ZUN has also produced related Doujinshi, print works and Doujin music, music albums, and collaborated with developer Twilight Frontier on seven of the official spin-offs, six of which are fighting games. The first five games were developed for the Japanese PC-98 computer, with the first, ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'', released in August 1997; the series' signature mechanics were introduced in the second game, ''Story of Eastern Wonderland'' (also 1997). The release of ''Embodiment of Scarlet Devil'' in August 2002 marked a shift to Microsoft Windows. Numerous sequels followed, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nausicaä Of The Valley Of The Wind (manga)
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hayao Miyazaki. It tells the story of Nausicaä, a princess of a small kingdom on a post-apocalyptic Earth with a toxic ecosystem, who becomes involved in a war between kingdoms while an environmental disaster threatens humankind. Prior to creating ''Nausicaä'', Miyazaki had worked as an animator for Toei Animation, Nippon Animation and Tokyo Movie Shinsha (TMS), the latter for whom he had directed his feature directorial debut, '' Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro'' (1979). After working on an aborted film adaptation of Richard Corben's comic book ''Rowlf'' for TMS, he agreed to create a manga series for Tokuma Shoten's monthly magazine ''Animage'', initially on the condition that it would not be adapted into a film. The development of ''Nausicaä'' was influenced by the Japanese Heian period tale '' The Lady who Loved Insects'', a similarly named character from Homer's epic poem ''Odyssey'' and the Minamata Bay me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shōjo Manga
is an editorial category of Manga, Japanese comics targeting an audience of adolescent girls and young adult women. It is, along with Shōnen manga, manga (targeting adolescent boys), Seinen manga, manga (targeting young adult and adult men), and Josei manga, manga (targeting adult women), one of the primary editorial categories of manga. manga is traditionally published in dedicated List of manga magazines, manga magazines, which often specialize in a particular readership age range or narrative genre. manga originated from Japanese girls' culture at the turn of the twentieth century, primarily (girls' prose novels) and (Lyricism, lyrical paintings). The earliest manga was published in general magazines aimed at teenagers in the early 1900s and began a period of creative development in the 1950s as it began to formalize as a distinct category of manga. While the category was initially dominated by male manga artists, the emergence and eventual dominance of female arti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
