By Dr. Serkan Toto – On Japan's Game Industry
Puzzle & Dragons, developed by Tokyo-based GungHo, is holding its No. 1 position among the top grossing apps in the Japanese App Store. After a short drop a few days back, the social game is back on the spot it has now been occupying for the last 8 weeks. Puzzle & Dragons is a social game...
Social games in Japan are usually being played on mobile devices, on Mobage, GREE, Mixi, or Hangame. The mobile web has “historically” been larger than the fixed web, which is why PC-based social gaming platforms don’t play a big role over here. Japanese users usually visit Yahoo...
Japan has another social game maker that went IPO at the Tokyo Stock Exchange: Ateam, a Nagoya-based company, got listed in the Mothers section (code: 3662) yesterday. As many domestic social gaming companies (i.e. Klab), Ateam didn’t start with a focus on these games: the company was founded...
When do you know a country’s gaming market has gone into overdrive? When a publisher goes and introduces a printed magazine entirely dedicated to social horse racing games (yes, those exist). Keiba Keita Game Collection (“Mobile Horse Racing Game Collection”), which is available...
Tokyo-based Shift is running a clever, so-called “software test marketing site” called Mintest that can best be described as a platform for social game makers to test titles and acquire the first users at the same time. For social game makers, Mintest serves as a way to get actual...
A total of six top Japanese social game makers and platforms formed a council to self-regulate their monetization models, specifically with an eye on protecting younger players. The list includes: arch enemies GREE and DeNA Japan’s largest social network Mixi (which operates a social gaming...
By Dr. Serkan Toto – On Japan's Game Industry