[This page is still under construction]
INDEPENDENT BLOGS
All Time Bangers: https://alltimebangers.com/blog/
Sample: The Ancient Land of Ys
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/headfallsoff.com
ATB is Jackson Tyler’s short-form blog working its way through classic RPGs. As of now, Tyler has written about several early Western and Japanese Role-Playing games providing nuanced insight into how the genre evolved in its infancy.
Core Gamers: https://coregamers.substack.com/
Sample: Like the Baseless Fabric
BlueSky: @diebussy.bsky.social
Bruno de Figueiredo’s work encompasses criticism, history, scanlation, and translation. I find Figueiredo’s writing to be especially eloquent.
Date ‘em Ups: https://dateemups.com/
Sample: What makes a Japanese dating sim / adventure game / novel game, anyway?
BlueSky: @iiotenki.bsky.social
Thomas James is a Japanese-English translator whose writing covers the topics of Japanese dating-simulation games as well as their experience of working in the translation industry.
Kimimi The Game-Eating She Monster: https://kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com/
Sample: Baroque: Should you hope to survive, hold Baroque inside.
BlueSky: @kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com
The writing of Kerry Brunskill, also known as Kimimi, covers a swathe of games across countries, genres, consoles, and time-periods, including both Japanese and Chinese exclusive titles.
Kurisu’s Chronogaming: https://www.rpgblog.net/
Sample: Glory of Heracles
X: @DavZZGndm
Magnvs RPG Journey: https://magnvsrpgjourney.substack.com/
Sample: The Art of Hitoshi Yoneda, a Leap into the World of Watercolor Sci-Fantasy
X: https://x.com/MagnvsRPGJourne
Rough Edge: https://ontlogy.wordpress.com/
Sample: Game Spotlight: Gihren’s Greed Series
RPGamer: https://archive.rpgamer.com/
Sample: Princess Crown
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/rpgamer.com
A rich archive of reviews especially of imported titles. The current site can be accessed here.
Shmuplations: https://shmuplations.com/
Sample: Breath of Fire Dragon Quarter – 2002 Interview
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/shmuplations.bsky.social
Shmuplations remains one of the best resources for anyone even remotely interested in Japanese games. The repository of translations here covers everything from shmups to RPGs to adventure games. Required reading.
TehVidya: https://www.tehvidya.com/
Sample: JRPGs that still need localization in 2020
Tsundoku Diving: https://www.tsundokudiving.com/
Sample: Talking Games | Ridge Racer V
BlueSky: @cosmicspooks.bsky.social
Run by Baxter Burchill, at Tsundoku Diving you’ll not only find essays on Japanese games but also writings on Japanese cinema, literature, and music, as well as Burchill’s own original translations. The previous iteration of Tsundoku Diving can be found here.
VGDensetsu: https://vgdensetsu.net/
Sample: Rieko Kodama: A Life at Sega
BlueSky: @vgdensetsu.bsky.social
Zimmerit: https://www.zimmerit.moe/
Sample: Comic Margarita’s Daicon IV Travelogue
BlueSky: @sean.zimmerit.moe
Headed by Sean O’ Mara, Zimmerit is a research-based zine broadly focusing on Japanese otaku culture of the 1980s and 1990s.
BACKLOGGD
Blah_Blee: https://backloggd.com/u/Blah_Blee/
Sample: Valkyrie Profile
I came across Blah_Blee’s profile as they were the only user who had written reviews for many JRPGs from the 1980s, including Ken to Mahou (Koei, 1983) and Argo (Kuro Software Koubou, 1986). Browsing their profile, I learned that they run the “Improbably JRPG Marathon,” where they not only play through entire JRPG franchises but also cover early Western RPGs.
Cadensia: https://backloggd.com/u/Cadensia/
Sample: Final Fantasy XVI
BlueSky: @cadensia.bsky.social
Writing reviews on Backloggd, Cadensia’s writing couched games within their cultural and historical context, providing a fresh and much needed perspective on certain titles.
Cadensia also publishes writing and videos as the VTuber.
Miyabi Mitsuhara: https://library-past-present.neocities.org/
BlueSky: @mitsuharamiyabi.bsky.social
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MiyabiMitsuhara
YOUTUBE
Amelie Doree: https://www.youtube.com/@AmelieDoree
Sample: Revisiting the Denpa Game that “Invented” Visual Novels”
BlueSky: @speedynoelle.bsky.social
Archipel: https://www.youtube.com/@ArchipelDocumentaries/videos
Sample: The Dreamcast, remembered by eight Game Creators | Part 1
X: @SailToArchipel
Basement Brothers: https://basementbrothers.net/
Sample: Sorcerian – Falcom’s Never-Ending ‘80s Action RPG for Japanese PCs (PC-88 Paradise)
BlueSky: @basementbrothers.bsky.social
Bowl of Lentils: https://www.youtube.com/@bowloflentils
Sample: The History of Falcom
BlueSky: @bowloflentils.bsky.social
Dungeon Chill: https://www.youtube.com/@dungeonchill
Sample: The Unrelenting Insanity of KOWLOON’S GATE
BlueSky: @dungeonchill.bsky.social