Hoping wrote on 2024-08-04, 15:09:
I have always believed that anime and computer science have a special relationship.
Like @RandomStranger said: those are both typical "nerd hobbies." However anime and games have always been on two different tracks: they might have similar art styles but their business models were completely different. Even arcade games and visual novels have very different targets of audience.
A good example is Super Mario Bros.: Being one of the bestselling game franchise in history, the game has never received a proper anime adaptation for almost four decades until last year; likewise, several recent games adapted from popular anime/manga franchises have been criticized for being too generic. Franchises that can thrive in both anime and gaming industries are those with PvP and collectible elements, such as Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! As an early reader of the Yu-Gi-Oh! manga I still remembered it started with the "wimpy boy received ancient superpower to punish bad guys" story that received only lukewarm feedback; its popularity skyrocketed after introducing the card dueling system.
Hoping wrote on 2024-08-04, 15:09:
Because it seems to me that in the east they are less fearful of technology, while here there are still many people who run away from it, there are many not so old people very wary of learning to use a computer.
Ever heard of Tsutomu Miyazaki? Japanese nerds / otaku had to endure about a decade of "darkest hours" because of him. Even without this serial killer, personal computers entered Japanese workplaces and households much later than other developed nations, as I mentioned earlier in this thread.
Hoping wrote on 2024-08-04, 15:09:
As @Jo22 said, I also think that visual novels surpassed in graphic quality most western games in the 80s to mid 90s. With very sharp graphics and always in high resolution for the time. While western adventure games used very low resolutions for a long time.
Early OS based on Western ASCII alphabets were simply unsuitable for displaying Japanese language (kanji in particular) so many Japanese companies developed their proprietary software / hardware to overcome this obstacle, with the price of decreased compatibility (i.e. Galápagos syndrome).
Hoping wrote on 2024-08-04, 16:36:
Although those games must be more of a western thing, could anyone say what level of relevance they have had in the east? just curious.
I remember reading ads of SSI's Gold Boxes on game magazines in late 1980s / early 1990s; those cover arts were definitely eye-catchers.
Due to the language barrier, however, very few oriental gamers of that era enjoyed untranslated RPG in English. I played Ultima Underworld while holding a dictionary on my hands; still remember numerous English words I learned from the game: avatar, Stygian Abyss, "Treachery and doom!", dexterity, thou/thy/thee, indeed, bandit, goblin, troll, stew, ghoul, peckish, satiated, tremor, valor, humility, virtue, standard (flag), lava, wisp, and spectre named Warren.