Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Japanese Nintendo downloads: Parodius, Genius Personal dictionaries]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/12/japanese-nintendo-downloads-parodius-genius-personal-dictionar/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/12/japanese-nintendo-downloads-parodius-genius-personal-dictionar/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/12/japanese-nintendo-downloads-parodius-genius-personal-dictionar/#commentsThough today is a fairly low-key day for downloads on the Japanese Wii and DSi Shops, there are a few things available that we'd love to see in North America but never will. The Virtual Console has MSX releases of two wonderful shooters, the Gradius/Twinbee/octopus mashup cute-em-up Parodius, and Salamander, which we know as Life Force. The MSX ports are inferior to most other versions, so maybe we can live.

The other programs we desperately want but won't have: the Genius Personal series for DSiWare, which allow you to write a word in English or Japanese (depending on which version you download) and get a translation and definition. Perfect for people who have to read and translate Japanese DSiWare titles all the time!

JoystiqJapanese Nintendo downloads: Parodius, Genius Personal dictionaries originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>atchessdictionarydsiwaregenius-personalgg-seriesjapanparodiuspinball-attacksalamandervctuesdayvirtual-consolewiiwareTue, 12 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[There are 22,802 words in Scribblenauts]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/12/there-are-22-802-words-in-scribblenauts/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/12/there-are-22-802-words-in-scribblenauts/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/12/there-are-22-802-words-in-scribblenauts/#comments Some scurrilous vagabond somehow managed to get their hands on the supposed complete dictionary from 5th Cell's upcoming everything generator, Scribblenauts. We sincerely urge you not to go through the illicitly obtained list, looking for particular nouns of interest and internet memes -- why not save that fun for the actual game? However, everyone should absorb the final tally of words present in the final build of the game: 22,802.

Also, if the list is legit, then "Plumbob" finally made it into the game -- as per our suggestion from E3. As we see it, we're owed around 0.00005 percent of Scribblenauts' total profits. We'll be waiting on the check, 5th Cell.

JoystiqThere are 22,802 words in Scribblenauts originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 12 Sep 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>5th-celldictionaryDSNintendoplumbobpuzzlescribblenautsWarner-Bros-Interactive-EntertainmentWBIESat, 12 Sep 2009 14:30:00 EST<![CDATA['Fanboy' gains respect, enters Merriam-Webster dictionary]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/07/fanboy-gains-respect-enters-merriam-webster-dictionary/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/07/fanboy-gains-respect-enters-merriam-webster-dictionary/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/07/fanboy-gains-respect-enters-merriam-webster-dictionary/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,


The word defining folks over at Merriam-Webster Inc. have added "Fanboy," along with 100 other words, to the newest edition of its Collegiate Dictionary*. Fanboy is actually one of the "oldest" of the "new" words, with its origins dating back to 1919. The wordsmiths define fanboy as a "boy who is an enthusiastic devotee, such as of comics or movies." Fanboys should feel free to write with self-righteous fury to MW and let them know it can also apply to video games ... tell them you'll never read their dictionary again if they don't correct this grievous oversight (also make an online petition).

This isn't the first time in recent memory some bit of gaming culture seeped its way into the good word book at Merriam-Webster; "w00t" became the company's word of the year in 2007. So, w00t to all the fanboys out there, the dictionary acknowledges your existence.

*OSX users will find the Dictionary widget, which uses The Oxford American Dictionary, already defines "fanboy." Merriam-Webster is a different company.

Joystiq'Fanboy' gains respect, enters Merriam-Webster dictionary originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dictionaryfanboymerriam-webstermerriamwebsterPS2PS3PSPWiiXbox-360Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:30:00 EST<![CDATA['w00t' is Merriam-Webster's word of the year]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/12/w00t-is-merriam-websters-word-of-the-year/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/12/w00t-is-merriam-websters-word-of-the-year/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/12/w00t-is-merriam-websters-word-of-the-year/#commentsFiled under:


Merriam-Webster (you know, that dictionary company) announced its word of the year is "w00t." And that sound you now hear is millions of English teachers screaming out in terror. The leading US dictionary stated that the word is like saying "yay" and was selected after Merriam-Webster website users were invited to vote on 20 words frequently looked-up or submitted by readers. The runner-up word was "facebook" as a verb, which means to add or search for a person on a social networking site.

The etymology of "w00t" is still a little messy. Some say it's a combination of wow and loot, others say it comes from hoot, but the zero replacing the letter o definitely comes from l33t speak. English sticklers can rest easy for now, but the day will come when companies pwn each other in the Wall Street Journal and someone makes a newb of themselves on the front page of the New York Times. w00t!

Joystiq'w00t' is Merriam-Webster's word of the year originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 12 Dec 2007 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dictionarymerriam-websterw00twootWed, 12 Dec 2007 06:00:00 EST<![CDATA[DS Daily: Common usage]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/19/ds-daily-common-usage/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/19/ds-daily-common-usage/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/19/ds-daily-common-usage/#commentsFiled under:

I don't understand...It'd be cool to live in Japan, we've always said. The food, the culture, the fact that by 2011, 89% of the Japanese will own a DS ... wait, what?

That's insane. Ridiculous. Incomprehensible. We're quite sure that not even close to 89% of Americans have a web-connected computer (2003 U.S. census figures showed 55%), and it's almost assumed in today's society that you've got access to the internet at home.

With such a ubiquitous, portable, and interactive device, it's amazing that the Japanese haven't truly capitalized on its potential. They've got English dictionaries and day planners and all that, but everyone's got one! Why not introduce eBooks, or DS-enabled fast food drive-thrus, or ...! Well, we're maybe not so good at this. What would you guys do with that ridiculous penetration rate?

JoystiqDS Daily: Common usage originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dictionarydrive-thrudsdeBookhouseholdJapanpenetrationpercentratereferenceTue, 19 Jun 2007 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Learn Japanese with homebrew DS app]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/31/learn-japanese-with-homebrew-ds-app/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/31/learn-japanese-with-homebrew-ds-app/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/31/learn-japanese-with-homebrew-ds-app/#commentsFiled under: ,

Japanese gamers can learn English with their DS. There's even a Japanese-English dictionary for the system. Now it's time for us poor monoglot anglophones to expand our linguistic horizons. A coder known as Zoelen has just released an early version of Project JDS. The app teaches you to recognize and write both hiragana and katakana characters, even listen to their pronunciation. And if you're really nice, you can use the touch screen to draw characters and get berated for using the wrong stroke order!

It isn't much to look at, but it gets the job done and is surprisingly feature-rich for a homemade app. Now if only it had a catchy name. Something like ... Touch Dic.

[Via DrunkenCoders]

JoystiqLearn Japanese with homebrew DS app originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 31 Mar 2007 06:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dictionarydsedutainmenthomebrewjapaneselearnnintendoSat, 31 Mar 2007 06:57:00 EST<![CDATA[DS gets wordplay, Japanese-English dictionary]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2006/04/13/ds-gets-wordplay-japanese-english-dictionary/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/04/13/ds-gets-wordplay-japanese-english-dictionary/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/04/13/ds-gets-wordplay-japanese-english-dictionary/#commentsFiled under: ,

Kanji Sonomama Rakubiki JitenKanji Sonomama Rakubiki Jiten was released for the DS in Japan today, bringing an affordable electronic Japanese-English dictionary to the masses. KSRJ's major selling point is its stylus functionality, allowing users to input kanji (stroke-sensitive) and kana onto the touch screen. Japan Chronicles compared Nintendo's new toy tool to Canon's pricey ($299-$470) Wordtank V80 Chinese-Japanese-English dictionary, which also allows kanji inputs via a stylus. Here's what the site liked about KSRJ:
  • Price*
  • Same J-to-E and E-to-J dictionaries
  • Word search by kanji
  • English pronunciation
  • Very readable, especially on a DS Lite
  • Easy-to-use search history
  • Useful quiz modes
  • World clock
  • Calendar
Here's what Wordtank V80 does better:
  • Vastly superior navigation
  • Superior Japanese dictionary (Super Daijirin vs. Meiky%u014D)
  • Includes Chinese dictionary, as well as dedicated English and Kanji dictionaries
  • Stylus-controlled navigation
  • Includes real (not virtual) keyboard
*We're not sure what the official retail price for the dictionary software is, but we found KSRJ for as low as $48 at goldenshop.com.hk.

JoystiqDS gets wordplay, Japanese-English dictionary originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 13 Apr 2006 13:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CanonChinesedictionaryDSEnglishJapaneseKanji Sonomama Rakubiki JitenKanjiSonomamaRakubikiJitenstylusWordtank V80WordtankV80Thu, 13 Apr 2006 13:55:00 EST