“Impressive” things are very popular in Japan. Look at the Japanese ads - very “unrealistic”. It’s like part of their “popculture”.

BUT you don’t really went into “realistic” japanese games and anime, and they exist. They have plenty of them.

So, some anime with much more “down-to-earth” themes, which I - but i’m nerd - can identify with:

And You Thought There Is Never a Girl Online? / Netoge no Yome wa Onna no Ko Janai to Omotta?



It’s normal life of of teenagers, with specific quirk (but so many people in this age have wild imagination - I DEFINITELY HAD - so it’s acceptable) and nothing is true over-the-top (besides segments of “deep immersion gaming” - but this is artistic choice)



Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku is another example of slice of life. 3 loving couples with normal jobs and standard, nerdy life. Again, 

 exeption from real life is deep immersion gaming.

Same in games - yes, flashy, impressive games are popular, but if you reeeally want to find something “normal” from Japanese devs, you can find some good titles. And for fun, I just use as example

very old racing games.


Super Hang-on is first example from my mind. Game is racing game. Without special power, without anything bizzare… but is made by Japanese part of Sega for arcades!



Sega Rally championship? Same.

But not only racers can be “realistic”. Daisenryaku series, (Iron Storm as example) is turn-based strategy series, not so different from games like Panzer General




article by: Marcin Ostrowski