“Japanese audiences are buying more expensive tickets to see ‘Astraea Oratio’ and ‘Pareidolia,’ lining up from the morning to rush to the booths,” said a source from the gaming industry regarding the Tokyo Game Show (TGS 2026) held in September. This reflects the unexpectedly high interest from Japanese users in upcoming domestic subculture titles.
This year’s Tokyo Game Show showcased new subculture titles from domestic companies, including NC's ‘Astraea Oratio,’ Nexon Games' ‘Pareidolia,’ and Netmarble's ‘Pearl in Blue.’ The strong pre-release interest in these titles in Japan, the heart of subculture content, is encouraging.
Domestic game developers are preparing to launch subculture titles they have been developing for years. Following the success of games like ‘Blue Archive’ and ‘Goddess of Victory: Nikke,’ many companies have entered this market.
However, what caught my attention was the contrasting situation: while expectations for domestic new releases are rising in Japan, guaranteeing success in the domestic market remains uncertain.
Established titles like ‘Blue Archive,’ ‘Goddess of Victory: Nikke,’ and the Chinese game ‘Arknights’ have already secured a solid user base.
Subculture games require significant time and investment from users in collecting and nurturing characters, leading to strong attachment to the games and characters. Even in a genre where character appeal is crucial, simply introducing new characters is insufficient to encourage users to invest additional time and money. The aforementioned games have built loyal fanbases over years by expanding their characters and worlds.
Moreover, a new competitor has emerged in the subculture gaming space: AI character chats. These platforms compete for user attention and time through interaction with characters.
The AI character chat market is expanding. Leading players like Scatter Lab's ‘Zeta’ and Lunit Technologies' ‘Crack’ are at the forefront, with recent entries from content companies like Naver Webtoon. Recently, Kakao Piccoma's subsidiary ‘Voicelu’ announced its market entry, and game company Krafton has joined the competition by launching the K-pop AI character chat ‘Kip.’
According to app analytics firm Wise App & Retail, Zeta reached 4.02 million monthly active users in South Korea as of February. The main sponsor for the upcoming G-Star 2026, the country’s largest gaming exhibition starting on the 19th, is the AI character chat service ‘Crack.’ This marks the first time a non-gaming company has taken on the main sponsorship role at G-Star.
As game developers have spent years developing subculture titles, the competitive landscape has changed. Established titles have built loyal fanbases, and AI character chats have emerged as a new option. Relying solely on the popularity of the subculture genre is no longer sufficient for new titles to succeed.
Ultimately, what matters in gaming is differentiated intellectual property (IP) competitiveness and gameplay. The competitiveness of subculture games is not determined merely by the appearance or number of characters. Users must feel attached to the characters and continuously enjoy the world and story. Additionally, unique enjoyment that can only be experienced in games is necessary.
Following the success formula of existing hits is not enough. Game developers must consider not just which genres are trending, but why users should choose their games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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