So, Lex Has Made Some More Poor Financial Decisions While in Japan...

Heya folks, I am on Day 6 of 21 in Japan. I'm travelling down to Osaka tomorrow to check out Universal Studios and the Nintendo Museum, but before then, I wanted to share the latest evidence of my lack of self-restraint. If you are wondering why I am writing these pieces, honestly, I just like the idea of having a semi-permanent thing documenting my time and memories in Japan.

Most of this stuff was picked up in Shinjuku, Shibuya, or Akihabara, including a second trip to the Nintendo Store, a few rare finds, and some pickups that are deeply questionable purchases.

Rare Item Studio - Famitsu Issue 393 (June 28, 1996)

Not to start with the showstopper, but this is the thing I was most excited to find. This issue of Famitsu is from the June 28, 1996. The same week Super Mario 64 came out.

This overview of the game is bigger than the five pages I've shown here, but there are some great bits here. There's a whole section on the game's “story” and a two-page spread just walking through new players to the 3D controls.

We found this in at Rare Item Studio in Akihabara which fellow journalist and current person letting me sleep on their couch, Alicia Haddick, told me had opened up pretty recently. This store is incredible. There are countless pristine Famitsu issues lining the shelves, and everything from Sega Saturn games, new in-box Famicom minis, loose Game Boy carts, DVD previews of publishers' upcoming releases from over the years, and everything in between.

We could have stayed in this one shop for several hours, but dragged ourselves after just one to head over to a Super Potato. However, that wasn't before I could pick up some games too.

Rare Item Store - Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2 - Soul Hackers

While at Retro Item Studio, I picked up some games too. I started off the back of my Sega Sicko kick that you might have seen shine through in the last one of these. The Shin Megami Tensei franchise is something I've taken a great interest in recently. After Raidou Remastered released, I went deeper into the franchise than I had ever been before. Some of that included checking out Soul Hackers 2 on modern consoles and the original Soul Hackers on the 3DS.

That handheld version of the game was the first time Soul Hackers had ever left Japan, and I really have dug chipping away at it a lot, so I'm super happy to find Devil Summoner 2. The box art also just slaps.

Rare Item Store and Super Potato - Puzzle Fighter II (PlayStation), R4 Ridge Racer Type 4 (PlayStation), and Okami (PlayStation 3)

Some more of my buys were more PlayStation-focused. First is Puzzle Fighter II for the PlayStation. This is one of my favourite puzzle games outside of Tetris, but I have never owned a physical copy. So I had to grab this when I saw it.

The second game is Okami for the PS3. I adore Okami, and while I know this is far from the definitive version of the game, I really love the Japanese logo and how much better it fits the box art.

The final game in this lineup came when we wandered over to Super Potato. While the top floor of the store is dedicated to arcades and snacks, the other two are full of retro games. Selection is maybe wider here, just a lot more games and hardware in terms of volume, but prices are also slightly higher.

However, higher prices can easily be forgiven when you find a complete in-box copy of one of the coolest games of all time with its obi strip to boot. That's right, it's Riiiiiiiiidge Racer (Type 4). I already own a European copy of this, but that version runs at 50hz, so I am very excited to throw this into my PS3 and play the game (closer to) how it was intended.

Rare Item Store and Super Potato - Sakura Wars (Saturn), Sakura Wars 2 (Saturn), Sakura Wars 3 (Dreamcast)

These games aren't for me, but were a request from friend-of-the-site, TurboShawn from Giant Bomb. Shawn, I searched for Mega Man Legends/Rockman Dash, but the closest I came was a boxed copy of Rockman Dash 2 for about $180 sooooooo… Instead, I got you the three of these, which cost less than 20 bucks combined.

BIC Camera - Borderlands 4

I had been hoping to get a review copy of Borderlands 4 for work. However, as you may have read on social media, the selection of press receiving review codes for this were limited. So, I took some time to dive back into a BIC Camera to see if I could find the latest triple-A release.

This was the sole the copy of the game in the store, hence why it's the super fancy, super deluxe edition with all the DLC. That did make it more expensive, but only about €10 more than I would have paid for it at home. It also includes some awesome looking postcards that you can see in the second image.

Nintendo Store - Mega Drive Controller (Six Button Layout)

Listen, I know that logically, as someone who is terrible at and barely plays fighting games, I really don't need the six-button controller that is only available for My Nintendo users in Japan… But I really wanted one.

Look at how cool it looks. Look at that D-pad… I'm a total Sega mark, aren't I?

Loft - Astro Bot Hand Cloth and PlayStation Cardholder

Something that you hear before travelling to Japan nowadays is that Nintendo IS the console business in the country, but once you get there, it really does hit you in a different way. Despite being the 30th Anniversary of the PlayStation, I have seen virtually no PS-related merch bar the next three items.

Two of them were found in Shibuya Loft, and included an Astro Bot hand cloth, and a cardholder shaped like an original PlayStation. I picked both these up as much out of necessity as love for my love of Astro and old grey boxes. That's because, in Japan, 1. not many bathrooms have hand dryers or paper towels, so I needed a hand cloth, and 2. handing out business cards at meetings shows like TGS is standard etiquette. While I have plenty of business cards on me, they are currently split up between my wallet and a plastic bag in my backpack, neither of which are especially professional. Getting something to put them in before the show was important.

PlayStation Gacha - Mini PlayStation and PlayStation 2 Boxes Keyrings (ICO, Everybody's Golf 3, Doko Demo Issyo, Ape Escape, I.Q. Intelligent Cube, Everybody's Golf)

These are so damn cute, and part of why I'm so bummed that there is hardly any PlayStation merch in Japan nowadays. I mean, just look at them! Look at how detailed these tiny boxes are. The front, back, inside, and out are all printed with insides, even including tiny discs.

It was at this point that I realised my keychain situation was getting out of control, and I picked up a nice carabiner to keep them together while travelling.

Disk Union (Shinjuku) - Interstellaria OST (By Chipzel) And Like A Dragon: Kurohyo 2 OST (By Sega Sound Team)

By the time we got to the video music video game store, I was starting to feel very self-conscious about how much money I had spent, quietly resolving to call it a day and go easy on my wallet. Then I saw a vinyl soundtrack, my friend Chipzel composed, and that broke my resolute morals pretty quickly.

The second pickup from Disk Union is a vinyl soundtrack of Like A Dragon: Kurohyo 2. If you aren't familiar, it's a duology of games on the PSP in the Like A Dragon universe, developed by the team behind Def Jam Fight For New York. Yes, really. Apparently, these were extremely limited to just a few hundred or thereabouts, and so finding this for the equivalent of 20 bucks feels like a steal.

Village Vanguard (Shimokitazawa) - I Saw The TV Glow T-Shirts

You might not know this about me, but I love movies. I originally wanted to be a film director when I was younger, but life had very different plans. All that is to say, not everything in my life revolves around video games. So I am kinda overjoyed that I happen to be in Japan around the same time one of my favourite films of all time is getting its long-awaited cinema release here.

To celebrate I Saw The TV coming to Japan, A24 announced it was selling 300 of two t-shirt designs at Village Vanguard stores across Tokyo. After scouting out a quieter one, we went there first thing in the morning to pick them up, only to find out that they didn't go on sale until 5pm. Two train rides, half a day, and one conversion that involved some broken English and me gesturing at screenshots of A24's Japanese Twitter account later, and I wound up with these two fabulous designs.

These are maybe the two things I am happiest to have found while here, just because Jane Schoenbrun's movie is so important to me, and my journey as a trans woman. Anyway, hobbies outside of gaming are neat and make you a better, more well-rounded person. Go watch a movie tonight.