There’s many ways to measure the success and philosophy of a company, specially in the gaming industry; however, one of the weirdest ones has to be judging it by its snack bar. In this student video filmed at Valve HQ we get both a look at Valve’s history as well as the history of, you guessed it, its snack bar.

As if it weren’t enough that Hello Kitty was taking over every other aspect in our lives, Sanrio saw fit to invade one of the last frontiers: pancakes. That’s right, this store in Harajuku is selling Hello Kitty themed and shaped pancakes. It’s not clear if these are western pancakes or some sort of Okonomiyaki but one thing’s for sure: once The Mouthless One enters your digestive system it will never leave, those love handles will one day sprout whiskers and suddenly you will find your whole abdomen is now a giant cat face.

Enjoy the nightmares!

[Boing Boing]

Here’s a quick and good one! Someone made one hundred gaming themed cupcakes for a party. Figure out what game they represent and you score a point. Now you can play at home thanks to the magic of the interwebs! Go forth and be amazed! Some of these are quite charming like the Zork one. Other ones… Like our ol’ pal Link up there… well, not so much.

Let us know how you do!

[100 Cupcake Quiz]

In an effort to find a more humane alternative to dissection, Japanese scientists have produced transparent Goldfish. With a possibility of growing up to 10 inches and weighing in at 5 lbs, it’s only a matter of time until we see transparent edibles such as these appear on Iron Chef. Imagine the not too distant future of sitting down at your favorite sushi house, only to marvel at a supposed empty plate.

[F*ckedGaijin]

Nothing gets me more in the mood for Christmas quite like home made cookies and the fact that the death are walking the earth should be no reason to dampen de mood. You know, Jesus came back from the dead as well so… it’s not that much of a stretch to Zombies. That must have been the reason behind these Left 4 Dead 2 gingerbread cookies, they look so delicious! Just look at the tank,it’s begging for a bite. Heh, get it? Bite Zombies? It’s funny because usually THEY bite YOU! Get it? No? Ok, I’ll stop.

[Wonderland]

Bento boxes are known for having flair. Mundane ingredients combined into life like art, transforms the lunch hour into a epic battle between you and your food. Alternatively, if you want to show a little love in your stir fry, an agricultural cooperative have developed a way to grow cucumbers in both star and heart shaped varieties by using a plastic mold attached to the stem of the bud.

I can’t say I care much for vegetables and until scientists make them taste like steak I don’t see myself eating many of them, however, this does add a cuteness factor that just makes them irresistible. And that’s how they get ‘cha…

[Weird Asian News]

Toshio Okada, founder of Gainax, a prominent figure behind some of the most important shows and movies in the anime world. He even calls himself the Otaking. He’s lectured on universities worldwide about japanese pop culture and written many books for and about the otaku. The otaku community is very much indebted to this man, but that’s not enough for good ol’ Toshio, he had to do more. So he went ahead and wrote a weight-loss book for the otaku.

Sayonara, Mr. Fatty!: A Geek’s Diet Memoir is precisely that, a chronicle of Mr. Okada’s own struggle with his weight and the very geeky way he found to beat it. The book just recently went on sale in english, so if you are struggling with your weight and the tips from all those jocks on late-night infomercials aren’t cutting it’; why not turn to the Otaking himself for some advice?

He found a way to make every otaku feel like an intellectual with Evangelion’s crammed symbolism, I’m pretty sure he can at least make you feel skinny.

[Sayonara, Mr. Fatty! At Amazon / Via Tokyomango][

While an actual Mario mushroom can make you go crazy and jump down buildings, there’s still hope for your dreams of eating the iconic fungus. Ana The Red, an american bento expert, teaches us how to make this awesome mushroom replica out of a radish and some seaweed. If you want to make a 1-UP mushroom and wait until the radish turns green before cutting it… you might end up subtracting a life rather than adding one after you eat it.

[Ana The Red / Via Offworld]

There are times when you just need a drink. The frustration rises after hours of grindage and the sweet taste of cola just doesn’t hit the spot. You want something stronger, maybe a Lavos, Magus, or R-66Y…are these the drinks you seek  or distant memories calling forth the silent hero within you?

Students of the IT University of Copenhagen have once again introduced us to some videogame themed fare. This menagerie of drinks pools together Denmark’s expertise in alcohol with their love of games into 12 unique elixirs.

As a friendly gesture to all our readers I’ve gone ahead and converted the bar measurements to ounces. After tossing a few of these back I wouldn’t want to force you to convert centiliters in your inebriated head. I expect you all to make some of these at your next party. Send us some pics.

Full list of drinks and a handy printable table after the break.

[Scrollbar.dk] (Check out their past themed parties.)

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You know the saying, I scream, you scream, we all scream for (non-melting) ice cream. Developed entirely by accident, Healthy Lab Japan claims to have found the secret formula to producing ice cream that will stay in ice form for up to an hour at room temperature. Made with okara, which is a byproduct during tofu production, the soft serve is low in calories and can be purchased through Japan Seaweed Foods Lab. here.

With heart shaped watermelons, green tea colas, and a large assortment of unusual candy, I waiting for the Japanese version of Willy Wonka’s candy factory. Where’s my everlasting gobstopper?

[Yomiuri via F*ckedGaijin]