Pokemon GO Leads Weekly Smartphone Revenue Ranking
The weekly ranking reflects how live events and content updates directly drive revenue shifts in Japan's smartphone game market.
4Gamer.net
Ascend to ZERO Surpasses 100,000 Players in Four Days
The milestone shows that a time-manipulation-focused roguelike from a new KRAFTON studio can find an audience quickly, backed by strong early reviews and Game Pass availability.
ASCII.jp
Anna Nagase Discusses Rakugo Training for Akane-Banashi Role
Nagase's comments offer a direct look at how a voice actor approaches rakugo performance, a niche but central element of the series.
Anime Herald
Netflix Drama 'Downtime' Reveals Cast Transformed by Prosthetic Makeup
The teaser shows the series is leaning into the physical transformation of its characters as a narrative device, with prosthetic makeup by the team behind 'You'll Go to Hell' applied to recognizable actors.
Cinema Today
Science Saru Produces The Tent of Jadugar Anime for Summer 2026
Science SARU and Naoko Yamada collaborating on a historical revenge drama marks a notable tonal shift from the studio's usual sci-fi and surrealist work.
4Gamer.net
Trump Administration Splits Over Chinese AI Model Kimi
The release of a free, high-performance Chinese AI model is exposing deep fractures within the Trump administration over AI policy, with no consensus on whether to regulate or compete.
ASCII.jp
Wuthering Waves: Elysium Animated Series Announced by Kuro Games
The series is the first major project from Kuro Onroad, a new animation brand that signals Kuro Games' intent to expand its intellectual property into multimedia production beyond game development.
Anime Corner, Niche Gamer (Anime)
Liar Game: The Last Game Manga Concludes
The sequel manga wraps just months after its launch and while the anime adaptation is still airing, making the October volume a likely endpoint for the entire Liar Game story.
Anime News Network
Street Fighter 6 Adds Yasmin as Year 4's First New Character on August 3
After a string of unique characters like Viper, Alex, and Ingrid, Yasmin marks a return to a more straightforward, speed-focused archetype, giving players a familiar but fast-paced option for Year 4.
GAME Watch (Impress)
Kizuna AI Launches Real-Time VRChat Hide-and-Seek Event
The event turns a planned VRChat recording session into an improvised, time-limited game that rewards active VTubers with an immediate collaboration opportunity.
Denfaminicogamer
Jorge Gutierrez Says Astro Boy Was More Mexican Than Tezuka Realized
The clip frames Tezuka's global reach not as a universal appeal but as a specific cultural fit, with Gutierrez connecting Astro Boy's serialized narrative to Mexican television habits and his own experience as an autistic viewer.
Cartoon Brew
Cross Infinite World Licenses Four Light Novels for August-October
The four-title slate expands Cross Infinite World's catalog with a mix of isekai, villainess, and fantasy romance light novels, all debuting in quick succession.
Anime News Network
Live-Action Wandance Film Adds 4 New Cast Members
The casting rounds out the supporting dance club roster for a film that already has a boy band lead and a rising star in the female lead, with a November release date now locked.
Anime News Network
Circana Data Shows PlayStation Physical Game Sales Falling Ahead of Disc Phaseout
The sales figures provide concrete evidence that the physical game market for PlayStation in the US has already shrunk dramatically, undercutting the argument that Sony's decision to end disc production ignores strong consumer demand.
Automaton
Anthropic's $1.5 Billion Settlement Over Pirated Books in AI Training Gets Final Approval
The approval sets a record as the largest settlement in U.S. copyright litigation history, but the opt-outs and separate lawsuits mean the legal question of using pirated data for AI training is far from settled.
GIGAZINE, GameBusiness.jp
DragonSword: Awakening Steam Release Delayed After Review Not Completed
The delay shifts attention from the game's unusual buy-to-play, no-gacha model in a genre dominated by free-to-play gacha titles to the operational hurdle of Steam's review process, which the developer admitted it underestimated.
Game Spark
First-Person Action RPG AetherCycle Announced by Deep Interactive
The game's combination of a shifting world, random stat loot, and planned co-op multiplayer suggests an attempt to blend roguelike exploration with action RPG progression in a first-person format.
Denfaminicogamer
Gunvolt Information Bureau #89 Streams July 22 With Switch 2 Edition Details
The stream confirms Inti Creates is actively promoting the Switch 2 port of Azure Striker Gunvolt Triangle Edition ahead of its October 22 release.
ASCII.jp
Streamer Hyper Game Tournament Final Performer and Ticket Details Announced
The event brings a large-scale streamer tournament to Tokyo Dome with accessible pricing, signaling the growing mainstream draw of live gaming content in Japan.
ASCII.jp
Tomb Raider King Animated Series English Dub Cast Announced, July 22 Debut
The English dub launch expands Crunchyroll's Korean-animated slate and gives the webtoon adaptation a wider global release window alongside its Japanese broadcast.
Anime News Network
Super Robot Wars 35th Anniversary Live Stream Set for August 1
The stream will deliver the next major updates on Super Robot Wars Y and Super Robot Wars DD, the two current flagship titles in the long-running strategy RPG series.
Denfaminicogamer
Go-Go Town! Exits Early Access With Biggest Player Count Yet
The official launch of Go-Go Town! caps a year-long early access period during which it earned a 93% positive Steam user rating, and the post-release player spike suggests the full version has drawn back lapsed players and attracted new ones.
Automaton
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls Open Beta Peaks at 33,233 Concurrent Players on Steam
The open beta's strong concurrent player count suggests the game is generating significant pre-release interest, positioning it as a potential major fighting game release from Arc System Works following Guilty Gear Strive.
4Gamer.net, Denfaminicogamer, Automaton
Arkheron CBT Custom Match Shows How Losing Can Be a Learning Tool
The piece reframes the typical new-player frustration in battle royales as a feature, suggesting Arkheron's design-clear Eternal goals, a practice mode, and voice chat-can turn a crushing defeat into a learning moment.
Automaton