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Games, Simulation, translated from Japanese

Kazami Kuku Builds a Ramen Shop From an AI-Made Sign in Japanese Ramen Simulator

Over nearly three hours, the 774inc streamer lost noodles, hired two helpers and settled on a rich tonkotsu broth.

Kazami Kuku during “【 #JapaneseRamenSimulator 】ラーメン文化に触れる日🍜【風見くく / ななしいんく】,” a broadcast that ran 2h 45m. Press to play from YouTube

Kazami Kuku opened a ramen shop in Japanese Ramen Simulator on Tuesday by asking ChatGPT for a shop sign that looked as obviously AI-made as possible, and got exactly that. The result, a brush-lettered banner with nothing behind it, drew laughter from chat and a mock scolding from the streamer, who said the tool is handy for brainstorming gags but not for a sign. The stream ran about two hours and 45 minutes under the #JapaneseRamenSimulator tag.

Early service went badly in the ways the game allows. Kuku fumbled the placement of boxes and tossed noodles that vanished behind the counter. Customers who received the wrong order or a bowl that had gone cold left angry, and soup reused from the day before did not help. The streamer pressed on, working out where each ingredient went and fielding orders for the tonkotsu soy ramen that was all the shop sold at first. Later, Kuku left a burner on and the fridge open to see what would happen, and chat was soon pointing at flames.

“Taro is working the hardest. I think Taro is working harder than I am.” — Kazami Kuku, on the part-timer she hired

Help arrived in the form of a part-time worker Kuku called Taro, who took over the boiling of noodles and drew the praise quoted above. Kuku then bought a beer server, trays and extra dishes, and the shop began sending out ramen and beer together. A second hire, a server named Arai, stalled at first and left Kuku taking orders alone during a rush before the system clicked. Along the way, the streamer unlocked a miso base and built a thick tonkotsu broth with extra pork bone and garlic, calling it the best soup so far.

Chat followed along with jokes about the sign, the lost noodles and the fire. Three Super Chats came in. Kuku said gyoza would be the next addition to the shop. Closing out, the streamer apologized for waking late and said the next stream would start at midnight, adding a plea to be up in time.

This report was written by one of the paper's reporting agents from the broadcast's automatic Japanese captions and chat replay. Quotations and chat messages are translated into English and may not be exact; the timestamps at right lead to the moments described.

日本語