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ponpo · Aug 2, 2017

https://unbound.com/books/japanese-video-game-obscurities

Japan has produced thousands of intriguing video games. For any number of reasons, not all of them were ever released outside of the country, especially in the '80s and '90s. While many of these titles have since been documented by the English-speaking video game community – and in some cases, even unofficially translated – a huge proportion of the Japanese game output is unknown outside of their native territory (and even, in some cases, within it).

Some of these games are oddities, the kind of uniquely Japanese title that wouldn't have been commercial viable outside of the country; others may have done well but were victims of circumstance. Plus, for quite a long time, the Japanese industry developed separately from American and European output, with their own landmark titles that created trends and inspired later games. Even the older games have a visual and aural style that make them distinct from similar games from around the globe.

Hardcore Gaming 101 Presents: Japanese Video Game Obscurities seeks to catalogue many of these titles – games that are weird, compelling, strange, cool or historically important. Some of these may be familiar if you've comprehensively read Hardcore Gaming 101 website archives (though the actual text for this book is completely original), but we've also included a large number of titles that aren't (currently) reviewed, and in some cases, have little to no English-language coverage whatsoever. Most of these games are Japanese exclusive, though we've also picked some that are suitably obscure outside of the country, or were only localized many years after their original release. In some cases, they're games that were hugely successful in Japan but barely made a mark in the West.

Beyond the individual selected games, we'll also be discussing the history of any larger series a game might be part of and any subsequent games it may have influenced. We've also picked games that represent a large number of genres – platformers, shoot-em-ups, role-playing games, adventure games – across nearly four decades of gaming, among arcade, computer and console platforms. We're covering titles from giants like Nintendo, Sega, Namco and Konami, along with smaller titles from long-forgotten publishers and developers. In other words, even if you're fairly well versed in Japanese video games, you're very likely to learn something interesting and new.

£10 for digital, £15 for Hardcover.

Publisher / shipping is from the UK so it's probably expensive to most places. They said on twitter they're looking into it though so maybe at some point it might lower.

purseowner · Aug 2, 2017

Oh wow - this is right up my alley.

Tizoc · Aug 2, 2017

Maybe I missed it in the site but when does this crowdfunding end?
I plan on pledging by the 17th.

ponpo · Aug 2, 2017

Tizoc said:
Maybe I missed it in the site but when does this crowdfunding end?
I plan on pledging by the 17th.

Just asked on Twitter, it seems they just run until funded unless it's clear it won't be funded then I guess the creators can cancel it.

Beartruck · Aug 2, 2017

They cover Tengai makyou IV in this? Niiiiice.

Zonic · Aug 2, 2017

OUCH, I would've gladly helped back this, but then found out for just the book, it's a whopping $23 for shipping, which is more than the cost of the book itself. Oh well, I'll keep an eye to see if this gets pledged.

gingerbeardman · Aug 2, 2017

I expected to find a list of the games they'll be covering?

Currently on the fence about pledging.

Rellik · Aug 3, 2017

So tempted.

Dandy Crocodile · Aug 3, 2017

I'll back it the moment international shipping isn't insane. $23 for a $20 book is a hard pass.

ponpo · Aug 3, 2017

Seems like a lot of people put off by the out of UK shipping. Maybe it'll get funded and a US publisher will pick it up.

tiebreaker · Aug 3, 2017

Price seems pretty fair for a crowdfunding book.

ranmafan · Aug 3, 2017

Very very tempted to pledge for this. Looks really nice what they've shown so far. I'm going to have to think about it, but I may want to get this.

AliasGreed · Aug 3, 2017

I was going to back this until I saw that shipping is $23 bucks. That's why to much. The book is $20.

Rellik · Aug 3, 2017

gingerbeardman said:
I expected to find a list of the games they'll be covering?

Currently on the fence about pledging.

Just added.

Hi all! Since a few people have asked, here's a tenative list of games that are planned to be featured here. Though the writing of the book is about half completed, I'm always swapping titles in and out based on whatever I dig up, so not every title might end up in the book (though all of the ones featured in the video and in the mock-up definitely will).

As the campaign continues, I'll be posting some previews, like the ones for Kuma Uta and others currently featured on the page!

46 Okunen Monogatari
Arcus
Asuka 120% Burning Fest
Battlemania Daiginjou
Binary Land
Bishi Bashi Special
Bokosuka Wars
Boku no Natsuyatsumi
Boogie Wings
Bulk Slash
Captain Rainbow
Chaos Seed
Choaniki: Kyuukyoku Muteki Ginga Saikyou Otoko
Daiva
Dancing Eyes
Dark Half
Days of Memories
Dead of the Brain
Densha de Go
Der Langrisser
Devil World
Dezeni World
Digan no Maseki
Emerald Dragon
Ever17
Gamera 2000
Ganbare Goemon: Boku ga Dancer ni Natta Wake
Garage: Bad Dream Adventure
Gekisha Boy
Geppy X
GERMS: Nerawareta Machi
Gimmick!
Ginga Fukei Densetsu Sapphire
Gokuu Densetsu - Magic Beast Warriors
Hanjuku Hero 2
Harmful Park
Holy Umbrella
Hybrid Front, The
Jagur 5
Joy Mecha Fight
Juushin Rogus
Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru
Kowloon's Gate
Kuma Uta
Laplace no Ma
Last Armageddon
Linda^3
Live a Live
LSD
Majyuuou
Maka Maka
Metal Max 2 (or 3)
Metal Wolf Chaos
Mizzurna Falls
Moon: Remix RPG Adventure
Muchi Muchi Pork
Mugen no Shinzou
Nanatsu Kaze no Shima Monogatari
Nazo no Murasamejou
Neko Samurai
Newtron (or Door Door)
Noro to Koku no Koubou Kiri no Mori no Majou
Numan Athletics
Ore no Ryouri
Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke
Pepsiman
Portopia Renzoku Satsujin Jiken
Shinrei Jusatsushi Taromaru
Pu-li-ru-la
Pulseman
Relics
Rent-a-Hero No. 1
Sakura Taisen
Segagaga
Segare Ijiri
Sengoku Turb
Slap Happy Rhythm Busters
Soma Bringer
Splatterhouse Wanpaku Graffiti
Square's Tom Sawyer
Star Cruiser
Super Galdelic Hour
Suzuki Bakuhatsu
Tengai Makyou The Apocalypse IV
The Screamer
The Silver Case
Time Twist
Tokimeki Memorial
Tong Nou
Trio the Punch
Umihara Kawase
Venus and Braves
War of the Dead
Wonder Project J
Xak
Xanadu
Yoake no Mariko
Yume Penguin Monogatari
Yu-No
Zill O'll
Zwei!!

discoalucard · Aug 3, 2017

Thanks for the topic ponpo!

I'm trying to figure out a better solution for shipping. the main issue is that the publisher/printer is in the UK and this seems to be one of the few projects from a US author (me!) I asked them if it's possible to have them dropship everything to me and then I can mail them out locally, but we're still working out if that's feasible.

djtiesto · Aug 3, 2017

Linda^3 and Tengai Makyou you say? Solddddd!

Zonic · Aug 3, 2017

I know what 20 of those games are, some "obscure" list!

Nah, but all seriousness, would some of the game have the same article if they were featured in a previous HG101 book, like Sakura Taisen & Segagaga which were in the Sega Fan Jam book?

discoalucard said:
I'm trying to figure out a better solution for shipping. the main issue is that the publisher/printer is in the UK and this seems to be one of the few projects from a US author (me!) I asked them if it's possible to have them dropship everything to me and then I can mail them out locally, but we're still working out if that's feasible.

That would be greatly appreciated if you can make that happen, especially since that seems to be the major factor for funding the book for US residents. It'd be a shame if it didn't get funded because of the expensive shipping.

ponpo · Aug 3, 2017

Wonder Project J instead of J2 and no 魔物ハンター妖子 第7の警鐘, smh. Cancel the funding!

discoalucard said:
Thanks for the topic ponpo!

I'm trying to figure out a better solution for shipping. the main issue is that the publisher/printer is in the UK and this seems to be one of the few projects from a US author (me!) I asked them if it's possible to have them dropship everything to me and then I can mail them out locally, but we're still working out if that's feasible.

Seems like that would get more people to fund but dang, lots of work for you.

discoalucard · Aug 4, 2017

Zonic said:
I know what 20 of those games are, some "obscure" list!

Nah, but all seriousness, would some of the game have the same article if they were featured in a previous HG101 book, like Sakura Taisen & Segagaga which were in the Sega Fan Jam book?

That would be greatly appreciated if you can make that happen, especially since that seems to be the major factor for funding the book for US residents. It'd be a shame if it didn't get funded because of the expensive shipping.

Nah, the writing is totally new. They're actually relatively short in comparison (about 250-350 words each), you can get an idea of what the proportions would be by the mockups. The write-up for Sakura Taisen would focus on the PS2 remake, at least visually.

I discussed with the publisher about the possibility to dropshipping here but the costs didn't really make sense. We're still working on something to get that cost down a bit. The main thing is that since these are pledges for limited edition first print runs, they need to be sent securely with tracking and confirmation, because if one goes missing there may not be any replacements available.

ranmafan · Aug 4, 2017

discoalucard said:
Nah, the writing is totally new. They're actually relatively short in comparison (about 250-350 words each), you can get an idea of what the proportions would be by the mockups. The write-up for Sakura Taisen would focus on the PS2 remake, at least visually.

I discussed with the publisher about the possibility to dropshipping here but the costs didn't really make sense. We're still working on something to get that cost down a bit. The main thing is that since these are pledges for limited edition first print runs, they need to be sent securely with tracking and confirmation, because if one goes missing there may not be any replacements available.

Nice list, and very interesting to go with the ps2 version of Sakura Taisen visually. For the book it's probably a good idea since that version pretty much seems to have been forgotten compared to the Saturn/dreamcast versions.

I really want to pledge for this, but probably gotta wait a couple of weeks myself before I can. Hopefully it will still be available to pledge then when I can do it later in the month.

MrT-Tar · Aug 5, 2017

Found out about this last night, just pledged for a hardback copy.

I'm really looking forward to this. I'm still amazed that I've only heard of just over a quarter of the games listed and I consider myself a knowledgeable enthusiast! I absolutely love HG101's Book of 200 Greatest Games and can't wait for this.

discoalucard · Aug 8, 2017

Good news! The publisher figured out a way to get the shipping costs down to US buyers, so now it'll only cost about $10 shipping instead of $23, bringing the total price to $30 for the hardcover.

For anyone that already pledged, they'll be sending out an email shortly with the details, but basically you can get the most recent HG101 ebooks PDFs/Kindle files or opt for a refund of the difference in shipping costs.

Barrel Cannon · Aug 8, 2017

Really nice looking layouts in that gif

Zonic · Aug 8, 2017

discoalucard said:
Good news! The publisher figured out a way to get the shipping costs down to US buyers, so now it'll only cost about $10 shipping instead of $23, bringing the total price to $30 for the hardcover.

$30 total is much more doable. Though how long do I have to pledge & when would I get charged? Sept. is packed for me & I'm trying to work out my budget.

discoalucard · Aug 8, 2017

Zonic said:
$30 total is much more doable. Though how long do I have to pledge & when would I get charged? Sept. is packed for me & I'm trying to work out my budget.

It basically runs until it's funded. I can believe you can still pledge after it's funded (but only until it's printed, at least if you want your name in it). You do get charged at the time of pledging.

PaulLFC · Sep 20, 2017

Found out about this recently and backed, hopefully it gets funded although it's only at 27% currently.

fortunato · Sep 20, 2017

No shipping outside US?

Dandy Crocodile · Sep 20, 2017

fortunato said:
No shipping outside US?

??
It's a UK-based operation that ships to US and the EU.

discoalucard · Sep 20, 2017

fortunato said:
No shipping outside US?

No there is! You have to pick the third option, below the US shipping one.

Been thinking of swapping a few other titles out to add some different ones - namely, the Dreamcast games Despiria and Napple Tale, the Saturn game Princess Crown (since I was playing the Odin Sphere re-release recently), and the PS1 platformer Chippoke Ralph no Daibouken.

fortunato · Sep 20, 2017

discoalucard said:
No there is! You have to pick the third option, below the US shipping one.

Been thinking of swapping a few other titles out to add some different ones - namely, the Dreamcast games Despiria and Napple Tale, the Saturn game Princess Crown (since I was playing the Odin Sphere re-release recently), and the PS1 platformer Chippoke Ralph no Daibouken.

I picked that one but during the checkout was still saying "US shipping only" or something like that. I will check again.

Breakage · Sep 20, 2017

Is the digital version available via Kindle? I can't find any info about it on the site.

dawgparty · Sep 20, 2017

Backed! Fucking love Hardcore Gaming 101, been entertaining me for years.

atomic moth · Sep 20, 2017

Backed with the new shipping price.

It will charge you at the time of backing and the time frame for backing is open-ended, so that's something to consider.

discoalucard · Sep 20, 2017

Here's a some pics/small write-ups of some of the games I'll be featuring.

Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke

PS1/PSP RPG where you're a family cursed with living a short life span, and can only exact revenge by mating with gods to create new offspring. Fundamentally a breeding/dungeon crawling sim, though it takes place in feudal Japan. The sequel for the Vita was localized under the name Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines, but it was a disappointment in Japan and roundly ignored here. It's the kind of off-kilter game you'd expect out of Nippon Ichi rather than a larger publisher like Sony. (it was actually developed by Alfa Systems). Designed by Shoji Masuda, who also worked on other unusual games like Linda Cube, which will also be featured in this book.

Garage: Bad Dream Adventure

Windows point-and-click adventure where you control a...weird alien-head thing on a cart as it rolls around a dilapidated, nightmare world. Extremely rare and only recently preserved, as copies are extremely sparse, and the last listing I saw pegged it at about 300,000 yen ($2750).

Jagur 5

An action-RPG for the MSX from Compile, one of my favorite developers from the era. Interesting that it focuses on a group of commandos in a Southeastern Asian jungle, more of an 80s movie setting than other RPGs.

Mugen no Shinzou II

The missing link between Wizardry and Dragon Quest...if you Google around you'll find Japanese blogs arguing whether Dragon Quest is actually a rip-off of this game. Not very well known though, since it never received a console port. Developed by Kazunari Tomi, who later founded Studio Alex, the studio that co-developed Lunar with Game Arts.

Yoako no Mariko

Voice acting simulator for the PlayStation 2, with designs by Spümcø, the studio run by Ren & Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi.

Soma Bringer

Action-RPG from Monolith released for the DS. Really unfortunate it was never localized, since feels ahead of the curve in the way that it borrows from Western-RPG designs (character creations, quests, etc.) The visuals are gorgeous considering the low res screen and has an excellent soundtrack by Yasunori Mitsuda.

Breakage said:
Is the digital version available via Kindle? I can't find any info about it on the site.

You know, I don't actually know either. Typically this publisher does release via Kindle but I'll double check.

DrFunk · Sep 20, 2017

Might bite

Breakage · Sep 20, 2017

discoalucard said:
You know, I don't actually know either. Typically this publisher does release via Kindle but I'll double check.

Thanks man.

Haruka · Sep 20, 2017

discoalucard said:
Mugen no Shinzou II

The missing link between Wizardry and Dragon Quest...if you Google around you'll find Japanese blogs arguing whether Dragon Quest is actually a rip-off of this game. Not very well known though, since it never received a console port. Developed by Kazunari Tomi, who later founded Studio Alex, the studio that co-developed Lunar with Game Arts.

Being in the midst of playing this game, I strongly agree with the claim that Dragon Quest ows a lot to it, even if the developers themselves don't seem to acknowledge its influence. Calling it a rip-off seems a bit much, though.

By the way, there's a Japanese website that makes a very strong case for the developers of Dragon Quest being inspired (either consciously or unconsciously) by Mugen no Shinzou II. It's an essential read for JRPG historians:

http://www.geocities.co.jp/roomhakase/PCRPG/PCSCENARIO.html

gpn · Oct 17, 2017

Just saw this on IGN. Looks pretty cool, so order placed.

Dunnymeister · Oct 17, 2017

This look great! ...except shipping to Australia costs more than the book!? It's weird because shipping books/games here from the UK/Europe is generally very cheap.

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