12h ago
Matrix Co., Ltd. released a free demo of its horror escape game 'The 60-Second Syndrome' on Steam on May 29, 2026. The full game is scheduled for a fall 2026 release. The single-player title follows a man trapped in a 60-second time loop who must escape a locked room. Each death resets the loop, and players observe recurring phenomena-a ringing phone, a television turning on, a clock chiming-to gather clues while fleeing an unknown entity. The game won two awards at the indie event BitSummit PUNCH, held May 22-24 in Kyoto: the sponsor ID@Xbox Award and the visitor-voted Popular Selection Award. The demo includes the content that was playable at the event. The game is published under the Matrix Creators brand and supports Japanese, English, Spanish, and Simplified Chinese at launch.
May 16
Yen Press announced on May 15 that it has licensed 11 manga and six light novel series for release in November 2026. The manga slate includes "Moscow 2160," a near-future story by Kumo Kagyu with art by Kōtarō Sekine; "Love at the City's Edge on a Moonlit Night" by Sakuhiro, about an onmyoji and a demon; "Terrarium in a Drawer," a collection of 33 short stories by Ryōko Kui of "Delicious in Dungeon" fame; "He Was My Brother" by Minoru Matsuda; "egg: I'm Your Child" by Sino Torino; "After-School Duty" by Meiji and Gakuto Coda; "Contract Sisters" by Hijiki; "Izumi and the Dragon Encyclopedia" by Nagimiso; "My Girlfriend Is a Colossal Cutie" by sanorin; "Tale of the Wizrain Kingdom: The Dragon Is the Bride" by Hyōgo Amagasa and sugino; and "Witch and Hound" by Rainy Kamitsuki and Minori Tsukahara. The light novel licenses are "Argonaut: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Tales of Heroes" by Fujino Ōmori; "The Story of the Moon Waiting for the Evening" by Akumi Agitogi; "Valkyrie Bullet" by Yomu Mishima; "On the Way Home After Defeating the Demon King" by Ichiro Sakaki; "Rise of the Lowborn" by Kosaka Hanane; and "The Demon King Seems to Have Infiltrated the Hero's Party" by Kamaseinuesu. Yen Press also plans an audiobook for Keiichi Hikami's "Elden Ring"-themed novel "See You at That Site of Grace After Work."