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The "Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2016 with Aruaru City" will be held over 2 days, from Saturday 5th to Sunday 6th November 2016. With the West Japan General Exhibition Center and Aruaru City providing the main venues, this is the third time that the biggest pop culture event in Kyushu will be held.

The theme for this year will be "COOL KITAKYUSHU." Aiming to let people know about all the COOL things that Kitakyushu has to offer, there will be 3 concepts helping to define the contents of the event, these are "Wakuwaku Taiken" (lit.: "Exciting Experiences"), "Tsukuru / Sodateru (lit.: "Create / Nurture") and "Ganbarou Kyushu (lit.: Stay Strong / Cheer up Kyushu)." Some of the major talking points at last year's event included the "LoveLive! Nebuta" illuminated floats, the "World Cosplay Summit 2016 Japan Preliminary-Kyushu Qualifying Round," as well as the 26 idol acts that took to the stage to perform at "POP FES." And with even more excitement than the first time the event was held, last year's festival proved to be a huge success. (Click here here to read more about the 2015 Kitakyuhsu Pop Culture Festival.)

Ingress's official "Mission Days" event, which is created by Niantic, Inc., the software development company that creates augmented reality (AR) games and is well-known for having brought us "Pokémon Go" earlier this year, is due to finally hit Kyushu! Not limited to just the venue, if you join in you will get the chance to explore the city. And with missions taking places at several participating locations around Kokura Station, you'll get the chance to clear the different stages while actually walking around the city center! Before things get under way, a "Mission Kick-off Meeting" is scheduled to take place at the Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival stage (West Japan General Exhibition Center Annex), which will explain what's going on to people who haven't experienced "Mission Days," so if it's your first time at this kind of event there's absolutely no need to worry. Those who complete the mission will receive a present to remember the day and with no participation fee required, the only thing you have to worry about is tackling the challenges. Get involved and give it a go!

The winner of last year's Kyushu Qualifying Round, went on to shine as representatives of Japan at the World Cosplay Summit, and with their success fresh in our minds, this year visitors will be treated to a jam-packed program that will feature the "World Cosplay Summit 2017 Japan Preliminary-Kyushu Qualifying Round." There will also be a special shop that will only be open for a limited amount of time called the "Release 1 Shunen Kinen Event Ensemble Stars! Welcome to Festa!" (lit.: Event Celebrating 1 Year Since the Release, Ensemble Stars! Welcome to Festa!," as well as 10 exciting live performances by idol groups, including the likes of "BATTEN SHOW JO TAI" and "LinQ." And with a "Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure!" show also in the lineup, there will be all kinds of manga, anime, games, and idols for fans to enjoy! Be certain not miss-out on any of these must-see events by taking a look at the event schedule on the official website (link provided below).

asianbeat will be running a booth inside the West Japan General Exhibition Center Annex on both days of the event, so make sure to stop by and say hello if you are at the event. (Editorial Dept.: canna)