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AUTOMATON WEST
@automatonwest.bsky.social
1K followers 3 following 1.5K posts
Official AUTOMATON English account. Bringing video game and internet culture-related news from Japan!

Find us at: https://automaton-media.com/en/

Japanese account: @automaton-media.com
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Chrono Trigger’s original supervisor Yuji Horii says “I can’t talk about it,” “Don’t ask,” and “I’ll get in trouble” when asked about new developments in the series
automaton-media.com/en/news/chro...
Chrono Trigger's original supervisor Yuji Horii says "I can't talk about it," "Don't ask," and "I'll get in trouble" when asked about new developments  - AUTOMATON WEST
Yuji Horii's recent comments about Chrono Trigger have given fans hope that a remake may be in the works.
automaton-media.com
December 3, 2025 at 3:41 AM
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Kadokawa launches World Manga Contest in search of international talent and new hit IPs

Winners will get to debut as manga artists in Japan with support from the publisher
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Kadokawa launches World Manga Contest in search of international talent and new hit IPs - AUTOMATON WEST
Winners of the contest will have the opportunity to debut in Japan, with editorial and publishing support from Kadokawa.
automaton-media.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:47 AM
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Mid-size game company in Japan asks potential recruits to draw in front of them to avoid generative AI fraud
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Mid-size game company in Japan asks potential recruits to draw in front of them to avoid generative AI fraud - AUTOMATON WEST
Due to "AI fraud" becoming much more frequent, Japanese recruiters have started asking applicants to draw in front of them during interviews.
automaton-media.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:47 AM
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The Like a Dragon series still can’t be called mainstream in the West, developers say. “There's an audience, but we still have a long way to go”
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The Like a Dragon series still can’t be called mainstream in the West, developers say. “There's an audience, but we still have a long way to go”  - AUTOMATON WEST
Interview with Like a Dragon series executive producer Yokoyama Masayoshi, chief profucer Hiroyuki Sakamoto and game director Ryosuke Horii.
automaton-media.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:47 AM
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Japan Stigmatized Property, the game in which you monitor real-life “haunted” Japanese properties for anomalies, is getting a sequel
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Japan Stigmatized Property, a game about monitoring real-life “haunted” Japanese properties, is getting a sequel  - AUTOMATON WEST
The sequel inherits the spooky anomaly spotting gameplay loop from the original game, with new stigmatized properties to monitor.
automaton-media.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:47 AM
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Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi digs up his first ever game proposal from the 80s

automaton-media.com/en/news/fina...
December 2, 2025 at 7:59 AM
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Hideo Kojima to make cameo in Zootopia 2’s Japanese version, at director’s personal request

"I was extremely honored and accepted without hesitation. (...) Zootopia is the pinnacle of Disney animation"
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December 2, 2025 at 6:35 AM
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“Italian Brainrot” was Japanese elementary school girls’ top buzzword in 2025, according to survey

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“Italian Brainrot” was Japanese elementary school girls’ top buzzword in 2025, according to survey - AUTOMATON WEST
Survey reveals that "italian brainrot" was Japanese schoolgirls top buzzword in 2025. The term ranked second most popular among Japanese boys.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:26 AM
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The Silent Hill series is like good-old soy sauce ramen, producer says. Adding Ryukishi07’s rich and dramatic writing to it required immense care

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The Silent Hill series is like good-old soy sauce ramen, producer says. Adding Ryukishi07’s rich and dramatic writing to it required immense care - AUTOMATON WEST
Silent Hill producer Motoi Okamoto talks about the challenges he faced when incorporating Ryukishi07's writing in the latest series title.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:26 AM
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New VIRTUA FIGHTER Project is fully aiming for GOTY. A game that’s “fundamentally fun,” beyond the confines of the fighting game niche

automaton-media.com/en/interview...
New VIRTUA FIGHTER Project is fully aiming for GOTY. A game that’s “fundamentally fun,” beyond the confines of the fighting game niche    - AUTOMATON WEST
New VIRTUA FIGHTER Project producer talks about reconciling accessibility for newcomers and depth for fighting game veterans.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:26 AM
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Addressing complaints, Goddess of Victory NIKKE designer says their character isn’t wearing any pants because “pantless fashion” is a thing now

automaton-media.com/en/news/godd...
Goddess of Victory NIKKE designer says their character isn’t wearing any pants because “pantless fashion” is a thing now - AUTOMATON WEST
The character designer behind Blanc's Fortune Express costume in Goddess of Victory: NIKKE has addressed complaints about her lack of bottoms.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:25 AM
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Japanese game developers face ridiculously high font license fees following US acquisition of major domestic provider

Live-service games are expected to take the biggest blow

automaton-media.com/en/news/japa...
Japanese game developers face ridiculously high font license fees following US acquisition of major domestic provider. Live-service games to take the biggest blow  - AUTOMATON WEST
A change in license plans has made it up to 50 times more expensive for Japanese game developers to use commercial fonts in their games and apps.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:25 AM
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Square Enix's ban on streaming and posting footage of specific parts of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake has been lifted

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Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD-2D Remake post-game streaming restrictions have finally been lifted  - AUTOMATON WEST
Square Enix's ban on streaming and posting footage of specific parts of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake has been lifted.
automaton-media.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:24 AM
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From feeding an insatiable pet dragon girl to scouring dungeons for cooking ingredients: 5 Japanese indie games about food
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December 1, 2025 at 12:46 AM
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“Like that one JRPG vocal finale song that has stuck with you for 20 years.” Octopath Traveler 0 devs on creating an ending theme befitting of a 100-hour game
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“Like that one JRPG vocal finale song that has stuck with you for 20 years.” Octopath Traveler 0 devs on creating an ending theme befitting of a 100-hour game  - AUTOMATON WEST
Octopath Traveler 0's music was written with the desire to recreate a feeling many JRPG fans haven’t felt in years.
automaton-media.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:45 AM
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Yakuza Kiwami 3 and Dark Ties include major hints about where the Like a Dragon series is headed, RGG Studio lead says
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Yakuza Kiwami 3 and Dark Ties include major hints about where the Like a Dragon series is headed, RGG Studio lead says  - AUTOMATON WEST
Like a Dragon series executive producer Yokoyama Masayoshi says the upcoming release will tell players a lot about the series' future.
automaton-media.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:45 AM
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Silent Hill f’s success was helped greatly by the wave of memes, fanart and theories it inspired, devs say. A new approach to writing characters unlocked potential for virality
automaton-media.com/en/news/sile...
Silent Hill f’s success was helped greatly by memes, fanart and theories it inspired, devs say. A new approach to writing characters unlocked potential for virality - AUTOMATON WEST
Silent Hill f director Motoi Okamoto and writer Ryukishi07 talk about how the game's character-driven narrative helped attract a large fan community.
automaton-media.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:44 AM
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Erotic gay web novel suspended for allegedly basing protagonist on pro League of Legends player Faker
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November 28, 2025 at 9:57 AM
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Tribe Nine has officially ended services, but its story isn’t over. Everything we know about the original creators’ revival project “Neoneon Tribe”
automaton-media.com/en/news/trib...
Tribe Nine has officially ended services, but its story isn’t over. Everything we know about the original creators’ revival project “Neoneon Tribe”  - AUTOMATON WEST
Latest information about the Neoneon Tribe project, which aims to depict the conclusion of the prematurely shut down Tribe Nine.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 8:16 AM
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Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada denies rumors about wanting to monetize official tournament streams

"I never said a single word about wanting to turn it into paid content"
automaton-media.com/en/news/tekk...
Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada denies rumors about wanting to monetize official tournament streams   - AUTOMATON WEST
Alongside Harada, Tekken senior producer Naoya Yasuda has also explicitly stated that tournaments will never adopt a pay-per-view model.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 4:24 AM
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Arknights: Endfield draws influence from a variety of “classics,” from Factorio and Satisfactory to Death Stranding. “We didn’t want to simply ride a trend”
automaton-media.com/en/interview...
Arknights: Endfield draws influence from a variety of “classics,” from Factorio and Satisfactory to Death Stranding. “We didn’t want to simply ride a trend” - AUTOMATON WEST
Interview with Arknights: Endfield level designer RUA about their influences and inspirations behind the game.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:42 AM
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Atlus and Square Enix were the biggest clients of “ghost developer” Tose in the past year
automaton-media.com/en/news/atlu...
Atlus and Square Enix were the biggest clients of “ghost developer” Tose in the past year  - AUTOMATON WEST
According to recent documents published by Tose, Atlus was the developer's biggest client in the past year, accounting for 22.3% of total revenue.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:42 AM
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Gundam GQuuuuuuX yassified the original anime’s Challia Bull so much he’s made it into Japan’s top 10 most popular Gundam characters
automaton-media.com/en/news/gund...
Gundam GQuuuuuuX yassified the original anime’s Challia Bull so much he’s made it into Japan’s top 10 most popular Gundam characters  - AUTOMATON WEST
Jokes aside, Challia Bull's makeover in Gundam GQuuuuuuX was accompanied by a lot more screen time and a deeper exploration of his character and friendship with fellow Newtype Char.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:42 AM
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“Console game music is full-course dining; live-service music is delicious fast food.” Octopath Traveler 0 devs on creating the game’s addictive soundtrack
automaton-media.com/en/interview...
“Console game music is full-course dining; live-service music is delicious fast food.” Octopath Traveler 0 devs on creating the game’s addictive soundtrack  - AUTOMATON WEST
Octopath Traveler series composer Yasunori Nishiki presents his unique view on composing for console vs mobile games.
automaton-media.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:41 AM
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“Overwhelmingly Positive” action platformer Sanabi gets free DLC with expanded story, new playable character and new gameplay mechanics
automaton-media.com/en/news/over...
"Overwhelmingly Positive" action platformer Sanabi gets free DLC with expanded story, new playable character, and unique gameplay mechanics  - AUTOMATON WEST
Sanabi's new "A Haunted Day" free DLC is a prequel featuring Major Isun Song (an ally of the Brigadier General) as a playable character.
automaton-media.com
November 27, 2025 at 8:32 AM