As well as being one of the largest mobile game markets by revenue, Japan is currently also one of the most dynamic.
It's a good opportunity, then, for PocketGamer.biz to hook up with Indie Navi, a site which is dedicated to the coverage of Japanese mobile and indie development.
Set up by two enthusiastic and experienced translators, you can find out more about the services they offer here or email info (at] indienavi.com.
Otherwise, let's get on with the show - the five most interesting stories from the Japanese mobile games industry.
Moon creator Yoshiro Kimura to introduce Million Onion Hotel at BitSummit
Game designer Yoshiro Kimura, best known for his work on cult classic Moon: Remix RPG Adventure for the original PlayStation, has announced on his company's website that he will be showing a new game at this year's BitSummit Indie Game Festival.
Entitled Million Onion Hotel, the game will feature character designs by Kazuyuki Kurashima (Little King's Story) and music by Hirofumi Taniguchi (Chulip).
Kimura is planning to release the game on iOS later this year. "Even though this is very tiny work... I am very glad to introduce my new strange Characters and fellows to the world," he writes on Onion Games' website (which happens to be fully in English). "Because this is my poem, this is my imagination 100%."
KLab joins with Kunlun to bring World Fantastic Eleven to Asia
KLab announced it is teaming up with Beijing Kunlun Technology to bring its soccer title World Fantastic Eleven to Asia. Kunlun will handle localization, publishing, and promotion of the title in China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Thailand, and South Korea.
World Fantastic Eleven is presented by KLab as a combination card-collecting game and sports title. KLab has procured licenses from the Japan Football Association and FIFPro, allowing the title to feature cards with the real names and likenesses of over 2,000 footballers from around the world.
The matches are fully 3D, which will likely be a selling point with smartphone owners.
Crooz's share price loses gains as ACR Drift posts unremarkable sales
Investor excitement over Crooz's iOS racing title ACR Drift has cooled as the title has failed to post noteworthy revenues, bringing the company's share price back to its value one week prior.
Crooz's share price had doubled in the course of just one week - reaching a high of 7,000 yen on 26 February - on positive buzz for the racing title - and reached a head when it was selected as the best new app in the App Store in 89 different countries.
But as of 2 March, ACR Drift ranks a mere 196th in the US App Store top grossing games category and 210th in Japan.
Sega Sammy downgrades FY14 forecast
Sega Sammy Holdings has revised its earnings forecast for its fiscal year ending on 31 March 2014, in light of the poor performance of its pachinko & slot and arcade divisions.
The revised estimates are revenue of $3.7 billion, down 22 percent from the company's initial estimate and operating profit of $365 million, down almost 50 percent from its earlier estimate.
However, Sega Sammy's games and iOS/Android titles have been mor successful. RPG Phantasy Star Online 2 performed well on PS Vita and PC, while PuyoPuyo!!Quest and Chain Chronicle both achieved strong sales on mobile.
Mixi sells shares to promote Dragon Strike, teams up with Tencent to bring the game to Asia
Mixi's share price reached its maximum allowable single-day gain, despite concerns of dilution due to the company's plan to issue an additional 1.13 million shares.
Mixi intends on using the funds raised through this sale to promote and operate its popular iOS/Android app Monster Strike.
In addition, it's teamed up with the Chinese distributor Tencent to bring Dragon Strike to Asia. Tencent will have exclusive rights in China, Hong Kong, and Macao.
