How Japanese video games made a comeback in 2017

After scouting the show floor at Tokyo Game Show 2009, Keiji Inafune came to a grim conclusion: “When I looked at all the different games on the event floor, I said, 'Man, Japan is over. We're done. Our game industry is finished.’”

The famed game designer, who cut his teeth on the Mega Man series and later launched the AAA franchise Dead Rising, realized in the sprawling halls of the Makuhari Messe convention center that his home nation of Japan, once the leader of the video game industry, had fallen. In its place atop the market — and across the venue — stood Western-made blockbusters like Assassin’s Creed and Call of Duty.

But as Tokyo Game Show 2017 approaches, a different scene is expected. This year, Japanese video games aren’t...

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