NicoNico Douga ( ニコニコ動画 – nikoniko douga) currently known simply as nico nico is a popular Japanese video sharing site in Japan. The word niko niko indicates the onomatopoeia of laughter while douga literally means video. The site gains a lot of attention because of its real-time comment system where they appear over the video. The site is also famous for streams and live broadcasts, especially among otakus and Japanese gamers.
The site was founded by Niwango and launched in 2006 using YouTube as video hosting. The site grew so much that YouTube was forced to block access and Nico Nico had to create its own video hosting service. Nico Nico Douga was the first site to introduce a way to embed tags and comments directly into videos, allowing comments from 2channel and YouTube to be displayed simultaneously.
While Japanese people look to YouTube for quick news and information, Nico Nico Douga is the real place where Japanese people can enjoy jokes, vocaloid, game covers, dances, live streams, music, anime scenes, and much of Japanese pop culture. The Nico Nico site already has over 53 million registered users, receiving more than 338 million monthly visits. The niconico site is perfect for mingling with Japanese people and learning Japanese!
Getting to Know Nico Nico Douga
To access the nico nico douga site you must go to the link https://www.nicovideo.jp/
To upload, comment, and watch videos you need to register and be logged in. To see Japanese comments on the video, you need to change the site language to Japanese at the bottom of the page. Watching videos on Nico Nico can have a lot of visual clutter, but that’s the intention! You will find a flood of comments appearing on the video, and you can make yours at the right moment! Although it may seem strange, this comment strategy ends up keeping people on the site longer.
The real-time comment system on the screen allows users to exchange and share their emotions at the exact moment happening in the video. Niconico comments tend to contain many cross-references and inside jokes. The site is also a great source of viral content and memes. The sense of otaku community is the main reason for the success of Niconico Douga. This is because it is difficult for some adults to admit or talk in person about anime, while niconico allows them to do so.
NicoNico also has a mylist system where users can create up to 25 folders as a kind of bookmarks. The site also has an exclusive section for live broadcasts called niconico live, a community of illustrators called niconico seiga, and an encyclopedia section called niconico pedia.
You can comment at any time through the text box below the video and specify the position where the text will appear, font size, and color. You also follow a list of comments next to the video and the time they appear. The site also has a premium member system that allows for some features and perks.
Terms Used on NicoNico
Niconico users tend to use a unique vocabulary, a set of phrases and characters that are widely used on the platform. If you are a newcomer to niconico, you may get confused. That’s why we prepared a guide of terms and vocabulary for you to understand what people are commenting.
- Shoken (初見) = First time watching a video;
- Namanushi (生主) = Live broadcast – abbreviation of 生放送主;
- WWWWWW = Laughter
- BBA = Abbreviation of babba meaning old woman;
- 888888888 = Means applause, the reading is pachi pachi which forms an onomatopoeia of applause;
- KP = Kanpai meaning a toast, cheers;
- こy = A mix and abbreviation of kowaii from Japanese and scary from English meaning scary;
- おk = Means “Ok”;
- おこk = Another way to say OKOK;
- ひy = Abbreviation of hiwai meaning obscene, crazy;
- Arashi (荒らし) = Troll;
- NG = Not good (no good);
- ggrks = Abbreviation of guuguru kensaku (search on google);
- JK/JD/JC/JS = Joshi (girl) of (Kou) High school, (Dai) College, (Chu) Junior high, (Shou) Elementary;
- 実況プレイ = Game Play;
- 演奏してみた = Musical performance;
- 歌ってみた = Attempt to sing a song, cover;
- 踊ってみた = Attempt to dance to a song;
Have you had the chance to use this very popular site among Japanese people and otakus? What is your experience with it? Have you seen any references in anime? I hope you enjoyed this short article, we appreciate comments and shares.
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