RolandArcade: MM Land, Subject: Wonderland Wars, Location: Shimokitazawa, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015

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RolandArcade: MM Land, Subject: Wonderland Wars, Location: Shimokitazawa, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015
Continue?
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Sometimes the games just bury you. Virtual collectibles and smartphone moneysuckers hounding you back to the arcade.

Weakened, sneezing out the lonerdust, the x-ray of your fragile frame shadowpuppeted onto your untucked workshirt.

Turn away from Wonderland Wars and it’s Kantai Collection or Code of Joker or Dissidia Final Fantasy or Sangokushi Taisen or some new bullshit that might tank after 6 months but wants your money now.

Your salary turns to cash turns to card top-ups turn to silver coins turn to jewels turn to buffs turn to XP turns to levels turn to last train home and no point being there and hey what did anything actually cost?

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Photographer and writer covering Tokyo arcade life – the videogames, the metropolis and the people

RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015, Location: Shinjuku, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku NishiguchiComment

Untethered Language

Everyone likes a good chuckle at some 'Engrish' – the English language mistakes of the Japanese. But there's actually a myth behind the phenomenon: that they are indeed mistakes.

RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015, Location: Shinjuku, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku NishiguchiComment
Untethered Language
RolandArcade: Adores Shimokitazawa, Year: 2005, Subject: Arcade Exterior, Subject: Arcade Interior, Developer: Sega-AM1, Location: Shimokitazawa, Subject: House of the Dead 4Comment

Videogame Vérité

Arcade pilgrims to Japan expect Disneyland: a grand culmination of a ceremonial journey. But while the Magic Kingdom gates are marked by fronds of palm, the line between Arcade and notArcade is so fine it disappears.

RolandArcade: Adores Shimokitazawa, Year: 2005, Subject: Arcade Exterior, Subject: Arcade Interior, Developer: Sega-AM1, Location: Shimokitazawa, Subject: House of the Dead 4Comment
Videogame Vérité
RolandDeveloper: Sega-AM2, Arcade: Hi-Tech Land Sega Shibuya, Location: Shibuya, Year: 2018, Subject: Sega World Drivers ChampionshipComment

Getaway Car

Arcade hardware is an aid to escapism. Just travelling to the arcade makes a ceremony of leaving your life behind – better than just tuning out your bedsit scraps and empties. Climb into a cabinet, climb into a game.

RolandDeveloper: Sega-AM2, Arcade: Hi-Tech Land Sega Shibuya, Location: Shibuya, Year: 2018, Subject: Sega World Drivers ChampionshipComment
Getaway Car
RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Year: 2015, Developer: Sega Interactive, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku Nishiguchi, Location: Shinjuku

What’s Wonderland Wars?

Wonderland Wars is a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena that lives in Japanese arcades. Japanese gamers recognise and dig the MOBA but the Wikipedia list of MOBAs page is totally different in Japanese and English.

RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Year: 2015, Developer: Sega Interactive, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku Nishiguchi, Location: Shinjuku
What’s Wonderland Wars?
RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku Nishiguchi, Location: Shinjuku

Splashguards

Gentlemen reading this will know that sometimes there are splashguards and sometimes there aren't. In either case you just look straight ahead and mind nothing but your own business. But don't mind it too closely or you will raise questions.

RolandSubject: Wonderland Wars, Developer: Sega Interactive, Year: 2015, Arcade: Club Sega Shinjuku Nishiguchi, Location: Shinjuku
Splashguards