Japan

Feature

Why are Japanese developers not undergoing mass layoffs?

After Microsoft shut down Tango Gameworks, we look at the reasons why Japan has otherwise been sheltered (but not immune) to many of the layoffs and trends seen further afield

July 1, 2024 Alicia Haddick

News

Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes is April's best-selling game | Japan Monthly Charts

Sony's Stellar Blade was the second top-seller with only three days of sales

May 15, 2024 Jeffrey Rousseau

Feature

Japanese indie publishers steer Tokyo Indie Games Summit: "Companies are paying attention"

The event offered a fascinating look into the state of games publishing in the growing Japanese indie industry

May 10, 2024 Alicia Haddick

News

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth leads surge of new hits | Japan Monthly Charts

Square Enix's RPG nearly tripled the sales of next biggest releases, Princess Peach: Showtime and Unicorn Overlord

April 15, 2024 James Batchelor

Feature

Japan's Galapagos Syndrome shows signs of globalization

Niko Partners' Darang Candra helps us explore some of the biggest changes that have occurred in the Japanese market

April 3, 2024 Alicia Haddick

News

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry launches So-Fu accelerator

The program aims to provide mentorship and project management support to indie game developers

March 25, 2024 Jeffrey Rousseau

Feature

The creative sparks ignited by Global Game Jam

From Tokyo to Newcastle, jammers talk about the power of the event, from building bridges between languages to offering students a chance to hone their skills

March 14, 2024 Alicia Haddick

News

Persona 3 Reload is February's top-selling title | Japan Monthly Charts

The Atlus RPG is the first PlayStation 5 title in eight months to take the top of the sales charts

March 12, 2024 Jeffrey Rousseau

News

Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth fails to dethrone Momotaro Dentetsu World | Japan Monthly Charts

Sega's latest title settles for No.3 as Konami's digital board game reclaims top spot

Feb. 13, 2024 Sophie McEvoy

News

Japanese physical sales neared $3bn in 2023 | Japan Annual Report

Tears of the Kingdom was the best-selling game at retail, with Switch OLED the best-selling console

Feb. 5, 2024 Sophie McEvoy

News

Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince at No.1 | Japan Monthly Charts

Super Mario Bros Wonder and Momotaro Dentetsu World rounded out the Top Three

Jan. 12, 2024 Sophie McEvoy

News

Nintendo continues run as top publisher | Japan Monthly Charts

Momotaro Dentetsu World: The Earth Spins with Hope debuts as the number-one-selling title for the month

Dec. 11, 2023 Jeffrey Rousseau

News

Super Mario Wonder leads a raft of new releases | Japan Monthly Charts

Detective Pikachu Returns and Spider-Man 2 finish second and third in an October marked by big new games

Nov. 14, 2023 Brendan Sinclair

News

Pikmin 4 holds at No.1 for the third consecutive month | Japan Monthly Charts

Xbox Series X|S finally reaches an install-base of 500,000 players in the country

Oct. 10, 2023 Marie Dealessandri

News

Pikmin 4 defends No.1 spot from Armored Core 6 | Japan Monthly Charts

Switch title has already smashed series' boxed sales record after two months

Sept. 12, 2023 James Batchelor

News

Switch hits 30m lifetime unit sales during July | Japan Monthly Charts

Pikmin 4 debuts as the best-selling game, while Nintendo boxed sales comprised 55% of the market

Aug. 14, 2023 Jeffrey Rousseau

News

Q-Games alumni form Denkiworks

The new Kyoto-based studio's debut title will be a "love letter" to Japan

July 11, 2023 Marie Dealessandri

Feature

A decade of championing Japan's indies: The story of BitSummit

As Kyoto's annual convention returns this week for its 11th edition, co-founder John Davis reflects on the event's growth and future

July 10, 2023 Alicia Haddick

Feature

A night at Tokyo Indies

We explore the origins of the Japanese indie scene, and how the monthly meetup is helping to drive it forwards

June 15, 2023 Alicia Haddick

Feature

Indie spirit in Japan and Switzerland: Rinaldo Wirz on captaining Momo-pi

We talk to the co-founder about cross-cultural experiences, indie development in Japan as a foreign developer, and working on Shueisha IP

May 9, 2023 Alicia Haddick

News

Xenoblade developer Monolith Soft raises wages

Nintendo-owned studio says base salary increase is "in line with rising prices"

May 2, 2023 James Batchelor

Feature

Shueisha Games' quest to become the "Japanese Devolver"

Indie publisher’s Michiharu Mori and John Davis on working on IP old and new, and avoiding being pigeonholed

May 2, 2023 Marie Dealessandri

News

Switch reclaims top spot in March for consoles sold | Japan Monthly Charts

The latest Kirby remains the best-selling software title, while Nintendo boxed sales comprised 31.5% of the market

April 11, 2023 Jeffrey Rousseau

News

Microsoft's Activision acquisition approved by Japanese regulator

Japan Fair Trade Commission does not believe merger would "substantially restrain competition"

March 29, 2023 James Batchelor

News

US Members of Congress slam Sony's "monopoly" in Japan

PlayStation accused of anti-competitive practices over the "high end" games market in the country

March 28, 2023 Marie Dealessandri