Games

The Best Shooter Games Set In Japan, Ranked

Published

2 weeks ago

November 10, 2024

Christoph Rediske

fighting enemies in binary domain and ghostwire tokyo

Key Takeaways

Table of Contents

Japanese video games featuring guns may reflect influences from Western cinema and are often set in Japan.
The games here not only come with great gameplay but are well integrated into their Japanese setting.
Games like Gal Gun, Sin & Punishment, and Yakuza: Dead Souls offer unique and sometimes humorous experiences involving guns with a Japanese backdrop.

Japan is a relatively safe country because its laws on guns are strict. That means when a gun is deployed in a piece of media, it is important. For example, guns being pulled in the Yakuza series usually create big ordeals because of how illegal and dangerous they are.

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25 Best Video Games Set In Japan, Ranked

Apart from offering fascinating gameplay, these exciting video games allow players to experience the Japanese culture and way of life.

Their rarity in Japan might be why so many games made over there feature them as they are almost like fantasy weapons. Influences from Western cinema may have also shaped the Japanese development landscape since the early 80s. These games in particular not only feature guns, but they take place in Japan, mostly around the Tokyo area. They will be ranked on their quality and how integrated they are in Japan.

Honorable Mention – Call of Duty: World At War

Promo art featuring characters in Call of Duty World At War

Released: November 11, 2008

Call of Duty: World at War is not completely set in Japan as the game gave players two fronts to fight in during this World War 2 excursion. One set of heroes fought in the Pacific Theater against the Japanese whereas another squad joined the battle in Russia. Both sides of this war aren’t as represented in World War 2 games as the European front is. This gives this Call of Duty entry a special place in the franchise.

The Japan campaign was rather tropical as levels were designed around island hopping. It was usually quite intense too with flamethrowers being a devastating weapon. While not a high point in the series, again, it can be thanked for including the Pacific Theater as a setting along with the zombie mode that has carried on to this day.

5 Gal Gun Returns

Love Is A Powerful Drug

Promo art featuring characters in Gal Gun Returns

Developer: Inti Creates
Publisher: PQube
Release Date: February 12, 2021 (NA)

Gal Gun was originally released in Japan in 2011 with the remastered version hitting North America in 2021. Based on the subject matter, it’s easy to see why a game like this originally didn’t come over. The game stars a young teen boy in Japan who gets hit with Cupid’s arrow, causing all of the girls in high school to flock toward him.

These girls are mad with love, so players have to shoot them down with what translates to extra doses of love, sending them to the ground on their knees. It’s a funny concept for an on-rails shooter, replacing monsters or soldiers with thirsty high school girls. It may not be a shooter for everyone, but there are laughs to be had with the silly premise. Plus the developer, Inti Creates, is a solid one having worked on a plethora of great titles including the Mega Man Zero series for Capcom.

4 Sin & Punishment

The Future Of Japan Is Filled With Mutants

Promo art featuring characters in Sin & Punishment

Systems

Released: November 21, 2000
Developer(s): Nintendo

Sin & Punishment is another game that was originally exclusive to Japan when it launched in 2000 for the N64. The funny thing is, most of the text may have been in Japanese, but the spoken dialogue was in English just like in the Resident Evil games. Also like Resident Evil, this dialogue is incredibly cheesy and not well performed which adds to the fun.

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10 Best RPGs Set In Japan, Ranked

Sure, you could just go to Japan. But who has all that time to spend on a plane?

The game itself takes place in the then future of Japan, 2007, wherein a young set of rebellious teens fight against mutated beings and oppressive soldiers. Players have a bit more control over their avatar in this on-rails shooter as they can see their character and strafe around to avoid objects or attacks. It’s a short experience and it’s in the Switch’s N64 digital collection so it’s worth an afternoon of your time.

3 Yakuza: Dead Souls

The Dead Are Infiltrating The Mob

Promo art featuring characters in Yakuza Dead Souls

Systems

Yakuza: Dead Souls is one of the strangest spinoffs in the series. It takes place around the normal haunts like Kamurocho in Japan but with a big twist. A zombie outbreak has occurred and instead of punching them to death like in the main games, players will be given a vast amount of guns from pistols to assault rifles. Also, there are multiple characters to play, like the ever-entertaining Majima, giving players alternate perspectives in the story.

Players can expect to see the same wacky humor as the main games but it does lack a lot of the side content in an open-world structure. It may not be as tight as an experience as the main games but it’s still an absolute must-play for diehard fans. Fabs of zombie games may also want to give it a shot who then might get into the Yakuza series as a whole by the end of it.

2 Binary Domain

The Terminators Are Invading Japan

Released: February 28, 2012

Binary Domain is set far in the future where robots have integrated themselves into modern day-to-day activities from shopkeepers to housework. However, there are still glitches in the system, and that’s where the game begins. After an incident that causes a bunch of robots to malfunction and rebel against humanity, a group of soldiers are sent to Japan to fight back. Think of it like The Terminator meets Yakuza as the Yakuza team worked on this, meaning that it can be just as cheesy as it is badass.

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Yakuza Kiwami on left, ghost of tsushima in middle and ghostwire tokyo on right

6 Best Open-World Games Set In Japan

Japan and video games are forever links, and these open-world games pay homage to that relationship by creating vast Japanese landscapes to explore.

Players will lead this squadron with Dan and in every mission players can choose two squad mates to accompany him into battle. It’s a third-person cover shooter with squad-based mechanics. The better directions players give their squad, the more they will like Dan and in turn will unlock bonuses. Some skills and guns can be unlocked and upgraded, giving players plenty of ways to dismember these killer robots.

1 Ghostwire: Tokyo

Battling Demons With Finger Guns

Promo art featuring characters in Ghostwire Tokyo

Released: March 25, 2022
OpenCritic Rating: Strong

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a first-person shooter but one fought with magic and not guns. It’s also the most authentic Japanese experience on the list as it takes place literally in Tokyo. Parts of the city were sealed off by ghost magic, and players were given the ability of magic and psychic powers by fusing with a deceased ghost hunter.

Players can harvest the elements of Wind, Fire, and Water which have distinct control patterns. Water magic, for example, has a short range but it is strong. Besides magic, players can also throw talismans at enemies or shoot a magical bow and there is a skill tree in Ghostwire: Tokyo too. While parts of the city are locked down, areas will open up over time as players progress in the story or complete side quests. To experience modern Japanese city life sans the bustling crowds, Ghostwire: Tokyo is a must-play.