We're pleased that we were able to allude to various stories from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south in the Doodle. Besides drawing inspiration from stories known across Japan, we also hoped to convey the rich and diverse natural beauty of the country, including underwater, sandy tropical beaches, forests, and snowy mountains. Sport: Table tennis! The combination of Tengu and table tennis is not something you'd find in the traditional folktale, but we think it was a fitting combination given the nature of the Tengu, who holds a fan and moves swiftly. Over the next month, players from the national teams of 32 countries will compete in a series of elimination games, culminating on December 18, when one national team will be crowned the 2022 World Cup Champion.

Mark Ivey, Eric Arnold , Daniel Dovali, David Lu, Audrey LoVan, Conner Lane, Jacob Katzeff, Jacob Howcroft, Kathy Lee, Stephanie Gu, Leah Sandacz, Jonathan Shneier Let the 2022 World Cup games begin! The tournament takes place every four years and attracts football (or “soccer”) fans from all over the globe. This is the first-ever World Cup to take place in the Middle East. Google Doodle games have become a delightful source of entertainment, enchanting users with their playful nature and captivating gameplay. Over the years, Google has introduced numerous popular Doodles that have captured the hearts and imaginations of players worldwide. Let's embark on a journey through some of the most beloved and memorable Google Doodle games that have brought joy and excitement to millions. Before joining How-To Geek, Joe worked at XDA-Developers as Managing Editor and covered news from the Google ecosystem. He got his start in the industry covering Windows Phone on a small blog, and later moved to Phandroid where he covered Android news, reviewed devices, wrote tutorials, created YouTube videos, and hosted a podcast. Doodle Soccer 2012 was a Google Doodle game released during the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, which was held in Poland and Ukraine. The game featured an interactive soccer game where players could use their mouse to control a team of players and try to score goals against the opposing team.

Where this Doodle appeared

In-between | Miyu Nakazawa, Chiharu Haraguchi, REVOROOT, qIXIE STUDIO, studio Hibari Osaka studio, STUDIO GIMLET, STUDIO MASSKET, STUDIO・MOO, M.S.C, StudioL, OLM Asia Character: The stone guardians. They can be a bit scary given that they’re lions, but we love how charming they are in the game’s final design. We think the fact that they serve as gatekeepers in Japanese culture made it interesting to have them serve as guides in the game. Inspired by the visual and audio artistry of Oskar Fischinger, the Fischinger Doodle allowed users to create their own mesmerizing musical compositions. By simply moving their cursor, players could generate beautiful, harmonious visuals and experiment with different sounds and patterns. This interactive Doodle showcased the blending of art and music and encouraged users to explore their own creativity.

The cutscene animations and characters for Doodle Champion Island Games were created by Tokyo, Japan-based animation studio, STUDIO4°C. Below they share their thoughts behind the making of this Doodle:Popular Google Doodle Games have become a beloved and anticipated feature that brings joy, entertainment, and educational value to users worldwide. From iconic classics like Pac-Man to educational endeavors like Coding for Carrots, each Doodle game offers a unique and memorable experience. Go behind-the-scenes of today’s interactive Doodle, made in partnership with Tokyo-based animation studio, STUDIO 4°C! From smartphones to Bluetooth earbuds to Z-Wave switches, Joe is interested in all kinds of technology. After several years of jailbreaking and heavily modifying an iPod Touch, he moved on to his first smartphone, the HTC DROID Eris. He's been hooked ever since. Joe Fedewa has been writing about technology for over a decade. He has been covering Android and the rest of the Google ecosystem for years, reviewing devices, hosting podcasts, filming videos, and writing tutorials. First, we identified stories and folktales from all over the country with characters that are highly recognized. Next, we connected those folktales and characters with each of the sport events included in the game. In the design process, each event champion was selected from those unique stories. The team mascots and the characters in the city such as Kappa, Yatagarasu, lion dance, were also chosen as they are very well known across Japan. Each character’s design was based on their original story image, but then adapted for the game.