“The most powerful buff meal for gamers, containing the ingredients of an energy drink,” one wrote on X, previously known as Twitter. The news was met with enthusiasm from some Japanese users on social media. The noodles will be released in Japan starting September 18, with the garlic and black pepper flavor priced at 280 yen (about $1.90) and the curry flavor sold at 298 yen (about $2). It added that the noodles were “the strongest ‘buff meshi’ ” - combining the words for “buff,” meaning “an increase in one’s attack, defense, recovery or movement speed in a game,” and “meshi” meaning meal.

The caffeinated noodles will come in two flavors: garlic and black pepper yakisoba - which contains shrimp, pork, egg and cabbage - and curry, which uses a base of pork and vegetables.īoth products are sauce-based and “soup-free, so there is no need to worry about getting your hands or peripherals dirty, making them the perfect meal in between game-playing sessions,” the release said. “To meet this demand, Nissin Foods is launching a new ‘gamer-friendly’ product for the first time in its history from its flagship brands Cup Noodles and Nissin Curry Meshi.” “The gaming population in Japan is growing year by year, especially among young people, and the number is said to have surpassed 50 million,” the company said in a Monday news release. Noodle maker Nissin says it has the answer: caffeinated Cup Noodles. For dedicated gamers across Asia, late-night sessions often mean chugging cans of Red Bull or snacking on fast food to stay awake.īut what about the greasy fingerprints left on keyboards? Or the danger of keeping drinks near gaming equipment?

Beer and coffee infographic