Imabikisou (PS3/Wii)
This gripping Chunsoft horror game is right up there with The Ring in the scare-you-until-your-pants-turn-a-worrying-shade-of-chocolate-brown stakes. It's one of those curious Japanese creations that is labelled a 'sound novel' - which basically means there's little in the way of gameplay to test your reaction times but plenty of spooky images and cutscenes, and even more text to wade through. Plus, it's so thickly atmospheric that it's essential to play wearing headphones. OK, you won't have much of a clue as to what's going on unless you're au fait with the lingo, but regardless, this is one of a kind on both the PS3 and Wii. (If you're thinking of importing, the PS3 option is simpler because of the machine's region-free nature.)
Miburi & Teburi (Wii)
This is the weirdest Wii game by some margin. It's all about gestures, and watching an assortment of video-captured people in scary costumes providing hints to crossword solutions. The hints come in the form of dances, movements and gestures combined to form Japanese words, which you have to guess to succeed. It's charades powered by the human incarnations of characters from Sesame Street and Anpanman. It's the scariest, most garish thing ever.
Ryu Ga Gotoku: Kenzan (PS3)
Seems this Yakuza series spin-off will never be translated for the benefit of non-Japanese speakers, which is a huge shame as there's no other game that quite so accurately captures what life in 16th century Nippon must have been like. This year's Yakuza 3 pushed the series' fighting system and mini-game fascination to new heights, but Kenzan is more about the culture of Old Kyoto, successfully depicted with the help of a cast of hugely talented film actors/actresses, who provide voice acting (and their physical likenesses) to the game's memorable line-up of characters. They pretty much nail the old Kyoto accent, and for Japanese film buffs Kenzan is a star-spotting trip like no other. This is precisely where historical Japanese TV dramas and movies coincide with their videogame counterparts. It's worth a punt even if you can't follow the language, though don't expect to complete the game comfortably without a guide.
Click here to see the Yakuza: Kenzan trailer.
The Combini 200X (Xbox 360)
"Combini" is Japanese for "convenience store". These are everywhere in Japan, outnumbered only by vending machines on the streets. And they really are convenient, stocking everything from ice lollies and hard liquor to pot noodles and condoms. Your job in The Combini 200X is to stock one of these stores with the right amount of goods, attract customers, manage accounts, hire and fire employees and so on, until you can claim to be running a successful neighbourhood franchise. It's Sim Corner Shop!
Joysound (Wii)
Joysound is one of Japan's biggest karaoke system manufacturers, but instead of going to "karaoke rooms" and paying by the hour for the right to sing in a dingy establishment, many Japanese homes now use the Joysound Wii service, which is a subscription-based deal whereby the Wii hardware is transformed into a karaoke machine. Songs are streamed via the net, so there's no limit to the amount of backing tracks available. Virtually every popular Japanese song is available, but so are thousands of international hits. Licensing issues - and the relative lack of karaoke popularity - mean Joysound is unlikely to infiltrate Wiis outside of Japan. Which is a shame.
Click here to see what Joysound is all about.
Derby Time Online (PS3)
This is an online horse racing game from Sony, not a Destruction Derby sequel (we can but hope on that front). It builds on the massive popularity of communal nag racing games that SEGA has made a fortune on in the Japanese arcades. Sure beats wasting time in a pachinko parlour.
Idolm@ster (PSP/Xbox 360)
Japan's idoru culture is a weird one, though it's not that dissimilar to the international media's fascination with Paris Hilton or any other talentless bimbo. Japanese "idols" do at least tend to be good at posing cutely for the cameras, speaking in weird nasal "duck's voices" and, on a basic level, occasionally dancing together in some kind of vague formation. That's where Namco Bandai's Idolm@ster entered, initially proving to be a hit in Japan's arcades before being ported to the Xbox 360 and, more recently, the PSP. The game puts you in charge of a troupe of idols, whom you are encouraged to promote as a popular singing/dancing outfit like, say, AKB48.
Otomedius G! (Xbox 360)
When a game rewards you with Achievements for dragging a cursor across the - ahem - nipples of the - ahem - boobs of some static animated girls on its menu screen, you know you've found a true "for the otaku" production. But the really weird thing about Otomedius Gorgeous! is that, like Sexy Parodius before it, it shows how willing Konami is to marginalise an otherwise brilliant shmup with shmut. Featuring homages to Gradius, Twinbee and other Konami classics, all rendered in gorgeous 720p visuals, Otomedius G! is the kind of guilty pleasure shmup that you'll want to keep on playing so long as none of your friends or family catch you staring at it.
Click here to see off-screen Otomedius G! footage.
428: Fusasareta Shibuya de (PS3/PSP/Wii)
Another Chunsoft adventure, this one is more inventive than Imabikisou and its unique style of play in part earned it a perfect review score in Famitsu. Publisher SEGA described the game as a "time limit suspense", though that doesn't do justice to 428's ingenious multiple scenario/multiple character perspective format, which sees the adventure unfold in the same area (Tokyo's Shibuya ward) at the same time but allows you to flit from character to character. This is to the 'sound novel' genre what Majora's Mask is to the Zelda series.
Click here to see 428 in action.
Railfan (PS3)
While there are some train driving simulators available in the West - most notably anorak-friendly efforts on the PC - the first such Blu-Ray-driven game, on the PS3, is only available in the East. This is a bit daft as the game features the Chicago Brown Line alongside more local routes such as the Chuo (Tokyo) Line and Keihan (Osaka) Line. You'd think it would have some appeal, however limited, in the States. Apparently not. It is, admittedly, an oddly artificial experience in which reels of hi-def footage of trains' progress along these three lines is relayed at a rate affected by how you choose to accelerate and brake. The whole thing is on rails, obviously, and the biggest thrill comes from making successful, well-judged stops at stations along the way. Another highlight is the stunning scenery, though by its nature this becomes repetitive quite quickly. There's also a Taiwan Bullet Train version of Railfan, which is a fair bit quicker.
What other Japan-only games intrigue you? Sound off below.
