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Pay to Play: The Price of Local Multiplayer in Japan

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We’ve all heard the term “Galapagos syndrome” paired with Japan before. It’s the idea that something (usually technology) that is available globally grows into something different when it becomes isolated. Some things that work for Japan don’t always work out abroad, and not just with technology. Sure, ear cleaning salons might be a thing in Japan (as well as some other Asian countries), but goat cafes? Stuffed animal travel? They’ve made appearances outside of Japan, but rarely to much success.

Other times, ideas stick. As an adult gamer and a teacher, it can be hard for me to meet other gamers offline, so when I found out about game cafes hosting “real meets,” I was intrigued. These “real meets” are usually just people playing games at game cafes, which are pretty much just internet cafes for gaming purposes. There are also more highly organized meets, like the Monster Hunter group I found last year. I decided to try a spectrum of “real meets,” and they ranged from the highly organized group I experienced before to a much more casual “do what you want” style of cafe.

Mobile Gaming Takes Over

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Photo by: Joseph Choi

Our own Nathaniel Edwards touched on this a bit when discussing the less than stellar performance of the Playstation 4’s ability to attract Japanese buyers, but consoles, especially home consoles, aren’t doing as well as they used to. A quick look at the weekly hardware sales charts for games in Japan shows the 3DS and PS Vita selling at nearly twice as many units as the best selling home console for this generation.

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Source: VGChartz, October 23, 2014

This shouldn’t be surprising for anyone familiar with modern Japanese culture. We’ve all heard about the long commutes, longer work and study hours, and required work “parties,” all of which means less time for console gaming. With that in mind, it also shouldn’t be too surprising that as mobile gaming is able to make deeper and more complex games, people shift to them. Even in the states I know people who are playing PC and console games less and less as their adult lives get busier and busier.

A solid example of this movement in gaming culture is the Monster Hunter series. Kotaku has a great article on why the series is popular in Japan, but it makes several points:

  1. Population density. Japan may not be one of the top ten most densely populated countries, but it is still in the top 40 .
  2. Mass, affordable, convenient public transportation. I can’t play games if I’m driving, but when Shinjuku is conveniently only 2 hours away by train, it means I have 2 hours of Smash Bros for 3DS to play.
  3. It’s a form of social interaction. Many people get into MH because one or many friends play it. Kotaku even spoke to a guy who went on a trip with 15 other friends and was the only one not playing MH. Poor guy really felt left out.

The article also mentions how, in the west, gaming is still a bit more of a solitary hobby. While MH does provide a single player mode, it’s mostly there to prepare you (both in terms of practice and gaining items) for multiplayer. If you pick up the game and don’t play with other people, it can feel pretty hollow.

Now, admittedly, the west does have a lot of online games. World of Warcraft is often cited as having had 12 million worldwide players at one point, but I’ve met exactly zero students in Japan (from kindergarteners to college students) who have ever heard of it, including students who play other massively multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPGs). Aside from the fact that PC gaming in Japan is still associated with adult games (there’s a reason many PC game shops here are pink inside). Most people I talk to simply mention not having time for games outside of playing on their phones or 3DS on the train, or sometimes after work or school with friends. Gaming in Japan really does seem to be getting more mobile.

This can more clearly be seen through this year’s Tokyo Game Show. I must admit I’m just as guilty as other western game journalists on this, but portable games certainly dominated the show, and last year felt the same. The only portable game I even looked forward to was Monster Hunter 4G. There were plenty of other mobile titles, especially cell phone games, but I didn’t take them seriously. I admit it, I’m biased, but even I have to confess that I’m feeling the pinch when it comes to free time for PC/Console gaming.

I’m also a fairly social gamer, or at least I used to be. Most of my Japanese co-workers admit they’ve played games, but had to give it up when they got married. Others have only mentioned it in locker rooms, and they’re usually the guys who’ve been out of college for five years or less. Even female teachers who have children and play games often hesitate to mention it, even when I proudly show students that, yes, I’m a gamer and I know the character on their keychain.

Where I live now, most of my social gaming has to be online. Most “meat space” gaming takes place in Tokyo, and since most people don’t walk around with a TV and wall socket, that means mobile gaming.

Paying to Play

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Before I get into this, let me be clear when I say that you don’t always have to pay to play with other people. Because mobile gaming is so big in Japan, sometimes you can organically meet other people to play with. Kind of. I have a feeling part of it has to do with certain communities. For example, with Pokemon, I was constantly being challenged to battles and receiving offers to trade during local play, which can happen any time you play Pokemon X/Y in public. In fact, I’m pretty sure I had one of my students regularly kicking my butt on my ride to work for awhile.

However, I’d never seen anyone on the train with open sessions for MH or Smash Bros for 3DS. While MH missions can take awhile, Smash sessions can be as short as one minute so I don’t think length of time was the problem. During Tokyo Game Show, I saw many open rooms (public, mind you, not “Friends Preferred”) and attempted to play with people, in both the standard battles and the “Smash Run” battles in Smash Bros. I chose to try out Smash Run because I thought it seemed closer to something like MH, in that you’re trying to earn gear together.

But even though the rooms were public, they were routinely shut on me. At first I thought it could be a Tokyo Game Show thing, but the same thing happened when I tried to play with people in various spots around Tokyo, including Akihabara. I was only able to find someone willing to give Smash Run a go once, and it was with someone from South America. He didn’t seem to enjoy me being his only option either. I needed to find a place where people actually wanted to try to play games together and were open to the idea of playing with strangers face-to-face.

The Highly Structured Real Meet

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Photo by: Guilhem Vellut

As I mentioned, last year I tried a Monster Hunter “real meet” for the first time. The actual event said specifically what game we were playing, and there was a bit of a plan of attack, including seat arrangements. It cost me about $25 US for a night of gaming and free soft drinks. More expensive than a movie for 3 hours, but lasted twice as long. Unfortunately it was held at night and often disrupted my sleep schedule. However, the people were quite sociable. One downside was that they were constantly bringing up that fact that I was one of only two foreigners to ever attend. The host was moderately organized and kept a pretty pleasant atmosphere. But another downside was that it felt like paying to play with friends. This was partially because there was an unstated rule that you shouldn’t be playing online during these meets, and that you shouldn’t exchange contact information.

That last part still stands out to me. I recall two Japanese players who were caught discussing meeting up to play online and exchanging their information. The host reprimanded them for attending a “real meet” with the intentions of playing online instead. That was what ultimately lead me to stop attending, but overall, it was a pleasant experience. I’d certainly like to try again, though admittedly, I’d probably try to see what would happen if I attempted to exchange contact information with other people after the event.

The Unstructured Real Meet

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If you aren’t afraid of the internet, there’s Game Cafe Junk. Unlike the other places I visited, this one was set up for laptops too, and offered free Wi-Fi. Then again, it seemed to be more of a hangout than a place for gaming. You don’t pay until you leave, and the host isn’t really strict about time. I stayed for about three hours and forty minutes but was only charged for three hours, without any hesitation from the host.

However, the host also doesn’t have any sort of pairing system. You just have to go in and hope that someone has the same game as you. Avoid going on holidays though, since it’s incredibly slow. I went for three hours as one of two customers and the other guy was either a friend or a regular who just wanted to chat. If it’s a holiday, finding anyone in general is difficult, so finding someone with the same game as you is an even bigger challenge. One time I went to a meeting set-up to play there, held by foreigners, and we tried to invite Japanese players to join us, but those who were at Game Junk either didn’t have the game or had no interest in it.

It’s certainly an intimate setting, in that the owner seemed to recognize me as well as other previous customers, and if I were alone in the gaming room, he’d bring his gaming laptop in and play. But he’s human, and has his own taste in games and will make them known quite bluntly (he’s not a Smash Bros fan). So because it’s so hands off, Game Junk is probably best when you bring a friend or two.

The Middle of the Road Real Meet

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In the middle of these two extremes is Shukaijo. Their system seemed the oddest to me, but was effective enough. You indicate what game you are playing on a card and then other people can join you or you can be paired with someone else based on that information. My very first visit got me immediately paired with people for Smash Bros. However, as I indicated above, the local Smash community here seems a bit insulated, and despite my best attempts, the encounter ended when the pair decided to change games without inviting me to join.

However, the staff is pleasant enough, and the price, while slightly higher than Game Junk, includes free beverages, though mostly soft drinks and the kind of tea you get from soda dispensers. It also offers free Wi-Fi so that people can download game updates if needed or do game research on tablets.

Unlike Game Junk, it’s much more active. Weekends are the busiest, but weekdays pick up when there’s a new, popular game out. Make sure you don’t come to Shukaijo expecting a small, relaxing environment. People are pretty upbeat, and while I’ve never seen another foreigner there, I did see quite a few women and even a man dressed as a woman (without any harassment), so it felt pretty inviting, despite my first encounter. The only problem was that no one seemed to want to play Smash Bros.

Overall, I think the highly organized setting suited me best. Though I disliked not feeling like I could genuinely make friends with the people I played with, at least I got to game. Game Junk certainly put the burden on me to find people to play with, but I felt it was more welcoming in that aspect, especially since the host provided free snacks of (mostly) candy and senbei. If you want a calm environment or a place that has lots of space for an event, especially for laptop gaming, I recommend Game Junk. However, I enjoyed Shukaijo’s pairing service, even if it didn’t quite work out for me. I saw a lot of happy people there.

Gaming Culture: How and Why

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Photo by: Guilhem Vellut

One thing that I’ve been trying to hint at throughout all this is that there is a gaming culture you’ll need to pick up on in order to get the most out of your experience. Most of my Japanese gaming experience comes from online interactions, and even that’s a bit limited, since most of the games I’ve tried are created abroad and localized for Japan. Despite Japan’s image of promoting a group mentality and a desire for peace, I feel like gamers here prefer games that pit players against each other, at least from foreign companies. For example: Japan loves the Final Fantasy online games, but doesn’t know World of Warcraft. Instead, games by smaller companies with hardcore PvP, like Eve Online and Darkfall, somehow end up getting published. Just the same, in terms of mainstream gaming, games with cooperative mode have the advantage. Smash is quite popular, but the more cooperative Monster Hunter 4G sold better it’s first week, almost selling as many units as Smash did in total after three weeks of release.

Naturally, being able to speak Japanese conversationally is going to greatly improve your experience, as well as the experiences of the people around you. Very few people wanted to speak English, though my MH host tried to lead the way and eventually paired me with another foreigner. But to be honest, I’m not sure that made things better for anyone, though I did appreciated the gesture.

If you aren’t confident with your language abilities, there are some key phrases that can help improve your overall experience. With some MMOs and Monster Hunter say, “onegaishimasu” before starting a mission, or while the map is loading if you’re on voice chat or face-to-face. This “onegai” is supposedly toward the dungeon, asking for good loot to drop, as well as asking your fellow players to “be kind” to you. At the end of a mission, “arigatou” or “otsukaresama desu” can be used, the latter being preferred, as a way of thanking your fellow players for their help.

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Photo by: MIKI Yoshihito

However, as a non-Japanese and with limited Japanese proficiency, I decided to ask an expert at Shukaijo for some help. A big thanks to my wonderfully intelligent girlfriend and our very own Mami for acting as translators.

I was told Shukaijo only has a few foreigners visit each year, most likely due to the language barrier.

However, it was noted that there are plenty of female gamers. People either come alone or with groups, so their reasons for coming are a bit mixed, and people do supposedly make friends here. There’s solo players, but also 乱入プレイ, people who join games that are already in progress. Supposedly, the face-to-face interaction makes it easier to trust people and build bonds, and I can say that I had similar feelings when I had positive encounters.

The biggest language tip I was given was to simply point at the mission you want to do and ask, “このミッションいいですか?” Meaning, “Is this mission okay?” This isn’t just for newbies, but because games often have lots of missions or quests, people don’t always have them all memorized. It’s better to show them what you want to do than to say, “I need to finish the ‘Blood of a Tengu’ quest.” If there’s a certain monster you need to kill or an item you need to get, you can mention it, but especially for those who don’t speak Japanese, it’s often best to know the mission you want to play with someone. This was actually some practical advice I was given at my first MH meet, since people often simply asked to see my 3DS and pointed at what I needed, who to kill, or where I should go. It’s one of the strong advantages of real meets when playing portable games, since you can’t do that kind of thing when you’re chatting online.

Shukaijo in particular is a good place to find people playing MH, God Eater, and Freedom Wars, which, I was told, were the most popular games there. That’s probably why I didn’t find many Smash fans, since these games are more cooperative than competitive. In fact, as I’m writing this, about 90% of customers are coming in with the new MH4G.

So, for those looking to try something new, looking for fellow gamers, or (if your Japanese is good enough) possibly making some new friends, try visiting a real meet. Whether it’s highly structured, unstructured, or somewhat in the middle, real meets are a good way reason to get out of single player mode and experience some multi-player action abroad. They’re mostly aimed at Japanese, so you can have an authentic Japanese experience with gamers, and hopefully have fun playing the games you love.

Bonus Wallpapers!

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[Desktop – 1280×720] ・ [Desktop – 5120×2880] ・ [Mobile – 640×1136]

The post Pay to Play: The Price of Local Multiplayer in Japan appeared first on Tofugu.


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