Layer 01: 「Introduction」
Happy New Year everyone! To start the year, I wanted to do something that’s actually a bit different. When I first created this site, I wanted to write reviews on anime and manga in addition to video games, but since it’s much easier for me to talk about video games, that’s mostly all I’ve stuck to thus far. The one anime review I did, I was so displeased with it, that I took it down and I’m still in the process of rewriting it. Nevertheless, the topic I’m bringing forth today is technically still in the realm of video games, though it’s more in-line video game development. So, if your interests are, in any way, similar to mine, I greatly recommend you check out today’s manga of discussion: 16bit Sensation.
I first discovered this series through the anime adaptation that was released in October of 2023. From a general synopsis I read online, I was eagerly anticipating its release. As someone who has always been interested in the NEC PC-98 and its library of games, I figured that I owed it to myself to check this anime out. Once it started airing, I ended up watching every episode as they were released weekly until the series came to an end 84 days later in December of the same year.
After I finished watching the anime, I left the series with more questions than answers. It started off strong, but one of my main criticisms is that when you compare the latter episodes to the beginning episodes, you wouldn’t have known it was the same series—and I don’t mean that in a good way. They implemented a whole sci-fi aspect to the show and overall tried to do too much for a 13-episode series. Hell, even if this had been a full 52-episode series, I couldn’t imagine all the stuff panning out very well. That’s just my subjective opinion though, I know a lot of other people still enjoyed the anime a lot.
I was kind of displeased with how the anime ended however and wished that it had mostly stuck to just being about the development company sitting together and working on PC-98 games, while also giving more history lessons on the software and hardware they had to deal with at the time. Later on, in mid-2024, I was browsing the internet and anime forums where I came across discussions about this anime. Many people seemed to share my sentiment, but lo and behold, the manga was essentially everything I had been hoping the anime would be.
This got me interested enough to start reading the manga right away. There were only two volumes, so it was a short but fun read. It was genuinely very insightful and had its own story that was completely different from the anime, and it felt a lot more grounded and cozy. It was genuinely one of my favorite manga reads the previous year. And while the manga is only a 7.22/10 on sites like MyAnimeList, it’s a 10/10 in my heart. But I’ve rambled enough, let’s just jump right into the manga. So, sit back, relax, make sure Disc A is in Drive 1, and let’s get started, shall we?
Layer 02: 「History」
16bit Sensation, or its full title, 16bit Sensation: The Bishōjo Game Made by You and Me (16bitセンセーション 私とみんなが作った美少女ゲーム lit. 16bit Sensation: Watashi to Minna ga Tsukutta Bishōjo Game) started off in the same way many great series do: as a doujinshi manga that first launched at Comic Market 91 in December 2016. This series was written and conceptualized by the minds of Misato Mitsumi and Tatsuki Amazuyu, two graphic artists who originally worked at Cocktail Soft, but moved on to Leaf, a subsidiary of Aquaplus that focused on eroge. Leaf was well known for various popular visual novel series such as To Heart, Utawarerumono, and Comic Party.
Cocktail Soft, on the other hand, was an adult sub-label of Japanese video game developer and publisher F&C which specialized in eroge games like their famed Pia Carrot e Youkoso series. Cocktail Soft temporarily shut down in 2001 after a restructuring of F&C but resumed business in 2004, when they released Tenku no Symphonia in November. The plot of 16bit Sensation effectively functions as a fictionalized autobiography of these two authors recalling their own experiences during the 90s.
Additionally, the manga was illustrated by Tamiki Wakaki, a mangaka known for his works on The World God Only Knows and 365 Days to the Wedding. While Wakaki wasn’t a game developer himself, he was a passionate onlooker and fan of the games produced by these companies at the time. This really shows in the manga, as he does an excellent job representing the art styles and doing them proper justice, as his line art is almost indistinguishable from in-game screenshots.
This particular image is from the first Dragon Knight game, by Elf. One impressive thing to note is that, at the time, there wasn’t a standard “anime style” when it came to these old games and they all looked wildly different, so Wakaki had to study and accurately represent every art style depicted in this manga.
The character designs are really cute and simple, yet iconic enough to stand out and be easily recognized, with my personal favorite being Kaori’s design with her adorable little cat hat. All the characters are drawn with such a cozy softness that they feel like people I’d want to approach and get along with if I knew them in person.
The two lead writers, Mitsumi and Amazuyu, have actually been running a Doujin Circle at Comiket called CUT A DASH!! since the mid-90s, and sold 16bit Sensation there before it was picked up by Kadokawa Shoten. Kadokawa Shoten started officially publishing it in collected tankōbon volumes in September 2020.
Then, as I mentioned, the series was adapted into an anime called 16bit Sensation: Another Layer, which featured an original story by Tatsuya Takahashi. This version features a time traveler from 2023 named Konoha Akisato who travels back in time and meets with the cast from the manga. The anime was licensed by Crunchyroll and as of the time of me writing this, only a sub is available.
The manga was never officially translated, but luckily, it received a very high-quality scanslation by a one-person group called Kakeru Scans. Their other work includes Debby the Corsifa is Emulous and Grand Dwarf: The Smalltown Craftsman's Skills Are Unmatched In Another World.
Layer 03: 「Story and Characters」
The manga takes place in the year 1992 and it follows the life of Meiko Uehara, an energetic but kind of ditzy first-year college student looking for anything remotely similar to a part-time job.
She eventually gets a job as a clerk at a place called “Computer Shop R,” working under her boss, Masaru Rokuda—who prefers to just be called “The Manager.” After The Manager notices Meiko’s impressive drawing ability, he offers her a position to work as a graphic artist for their game development branch on the second floor, Alcohol Soft, which is based on the real-world Cocktail Soft, if you couldn't tell by the name alone. After some pushback from Meiko’s part and some begging and pleading from The Manager’s part, she eventually gives in and is hired to work as an artist for the company.
Aside from her adorable personality, I also just really like Meiko as a protagonist. Her lack of knowledge of anything computer or video game-related makes her fill the role of the audience surrogate very well. Throughout the series, she learns a lot about the PC-98’s software, as well as the basics behind the game development life-cycle for her job, and the reader is, at the same time, learning alongside her.
Another thing I really love about Meiko is the fact that she’s a woman, which actually plays a significant role in the setting of the story. Something that many people may not know or simply not think about is the integral role women played in these game development companies. Aside from obvious roles like voice acting, women played a major role in many of the creative branches of these studios, making up the main creative leads of these projects, such as character design, CGs, music, and writing.
Even beyond that, despite the stereotypes that exist today, women were also very prominent in the fanbases of these games and similar media, with many of the early Comikets being dominated mostly by women. That’s actually how a lot of nijisousaku (works primarily derived from a specific piece of media) doujinshi, Boys’ Love, and cosplaying became popular in those spaces in the first place, and those aspects of otaku culture still persist to this day.
Image taken from "What Is Comic Market?" a PowerPoint presentation made by the Comic Market Committee
This leads me to talk about another character I like, the manga’s deuteragonist. Kaori Shimoda functions as Meiko’s mentor and eventual equal, with a warm older sister vibe who isn’t afraid to take charge when things go off course. She is very patient, and understanding, and knows everything there is to know about the PC-98, at least when it pertains to producing art. The two characters share a strong dynamic, and it’s really nice to see the progression—from her cheering Meiko on for completing her first CG to later in the series, where she’s helping her produce a game of her own.
She also does the Brock thing where her eyes are always closed.
These two are the more major characters of the story, but this manga’s side characters are nothing to scoff at either. Within the company, Meiko also meets Kiyoshi Gomikawa, the studio’s head writer, though he’s usually referred to as “Jiāngshī.” This name comes from the term 僵尸, which refers to a type of hopping vampire from Chinese folklore, in Japanese the term is spelled as “Kyonshī” (キョンシー), which is where the character's name is derived from.
He’s a bit of a loose cannon, he actively dislikes following trends or the expectations of others and is generally a pretty eccentric person. While that gives his writing a unique perspective, it’s also challenging for a company wanting to make money and a lot of the conflict regarding him comes from him leaving the company as they start to shift their focus.
This guy is mostly a nothing character in the anime,
but he’s one of my absolute favorites in the manga.
There’s also the lead programmer, Mamoru Rokuda. A standoffish and kinda snooty young boy who’s a programming prodigy, with an unparalleled passion for the PC-98. And when I say unparalleled, I mean it, this dude has been fiddling with the PC-98 since before he knew how to walk or talk and listens to PC-98 startup sounds instead of music.
In the anime adaptation, Mamoru becomes the deuteragonist following the new lead, Konoha.
He knows everything about the operating system, deems all of his programming as perfect, and even looks down on a lot of his coworkers for not knowing as much about the system. His elitism is honestly really adorable in an endearing sort of way. However, this passion for the PC-98 causes some drama and in-fighting amongst the company when they consider switching to Windows for game development.
Moving on, aside from just being the manager, Masaru is also responsible for a lot of the music that appears in a lot of Alcohol Soft’s games. Since this is a manga, you can’t hear any of the music he produces, but it’s safe to assume the music is really good if you’ve listened to the OST of any PC-98 game.
The manager is characterized by his resting tired face, charming demeanor, and laid-back personality. Aside from that, he’s a well-mannered guy who cares a lot about his employees. However, he is prone to prioritizing his image as a hotshot CEO over the well-being of his workers and can be a bit irresponsible with money.
Something I really love about this manga is that its focus remains on game development and the Japanese gaming industry of the 90s. Whereas, in a lot of other series, this kind of subject matter would serve merely as a backdrop. For example, with a series like Bocchi the Rock, while it’s about a bunch of girls in a band, the focus of the series is mostly on Bocchi and her friends. You may learn some cool trivia about rock music here and there, but those are just cheeky references and not the primary focus.
With 16bit, it feels more like a love letter to those games of old while also serving as a history lesson that remains appealing to both seasoned fans of the PC-98 and casual noobs who’ve never even heard of a PC-98. In a lot of the post-chapter text, there are little history lessons about games released during the era, along with discussions of their impact on the Japanese market. These are always such a treat to read—I was even unironically doing the soyjak face when I encountered some of the games I knew of or had played.
There are also minor but cool tidbits, like the history of the Saori incident, which was caused when a middle schooler shoplifted an eroge called Saori from the Kyoto Metropolitan Area in 1991. This incident caused a moral panic and resulted in the formation of the Ethics Organization of Computer Software (EOCS). Another example is the importance of an “Encounter CG”—the first CG the player would see in a game—and how it sets the tone almost like a second book cover. And as someone who’s working on a game themselves, a lot of this information is really nice to know. A lot of these tidbits also manage to be inserted naturally throughout the manga, so you never really feel like you’re just reading a history book, nor does it feel like it breaks the pace of the story.
The series not only does a good job at portraying these games and the history behind them, but it also gives a good insight into the developers at the time, how they think, and how they grew along with the industry. A cool detail about this manga that I rarely see discussed in other similar stories is how these developers look at games produced by other developers. They often play games released by their competitors, either casually or from a critical lens, and while they’re playing they keep note of the things they liked, and things they disliked, the things that could be improved, and that informs how they develop their own games. There’s a part where Kaori takes note of how pretty the sprite art looks in a game they played, so they try to decode and analyze what kind of techniques they used to incorporate a similar style in their games.
Image taken from Possessioner (PC-98)
Something else that I really appreciated was the fact that they showed that not only are devs influenced by the works of their competitors, but also just their own experiences in the outside world. Early on, there’s a part where Meiko is struggling to find inspiration for her first game’s encounter CG, so she goes out for a walk and happens to run into a girl running a flower shop. The girl at the flower shop was so pretty, that Meiko uses the warm feeling she gets when around her as an inspiration for her CG.
These games are not just entertainment, but manifestations of the developer’s own experiences, talents, passions, and preferences, and this manga does an excellent job of representing this. Video games are an art form, another way for people to express themselves and put their stories out there for the world to see. Through the art, gameplay, or stories, you can see the developers' passions, their flaws, their strengths, and even learn a little bit about them as people if you’re open-minded enough. One example, in particular, is Meiko’s original aversion to drawing NSFW CGs: she prefers to simply just draw wholesome and cutesy art. This preference gives Meiko’s art style, and by extension the story of the game, a specific vibe of sweet innocence that couldn’t be replicated by a more experienced NSFW artist like Kaori. There are people behind this software, and they want to get their stories and creations out there.
Speaking of these people, there’s also a lot of really good character drama and interactions as well. Everyone in the company is passionate in their own unique ways, and it’s interesting to see how these passions clash with one another, as well as with the market changes. During the 90s, a lot of visual novels shifted to being more heavily story-driven as games like To Heart, Tokimeki Memorial, and Dōkyūsei gained popularity. Each character reacts to this in different ways: Kaori wonders if these visual novels can even still be considered games anymore and learns to accept these changes; the Manager still sees these games as essentially get-rich-quick schemes; while Meiko feels more in her element since these games are now focused more on romance than H-elements. And that’s not even to mention the insecurities and differences that come from jumping to a newer platform.
I don’t know if I’d like the series as much as I do if it were solely about the history of game development in the 1990s. The character drama and introspection add a well-appreciated flair that separates this manga from a textbook or Wikipedia page and makes it feel a lot more personal.
I mentioned briefly that this drama resulted in Jiāngshī leaving the company. What I didn't mention was his replacements: two new writers were added to the team, Mari "Lalako" Koyama and Senri "Kikiko" Koyama, or “Kikilala.” They’re two hyper-energetic gremlins who are as eccentric and out-there as Jiāngshī, although a lot less cynical and more off the walls. They’re mainly here for comic relief but are fun to see, I love their energy.
Since the anime adaptation is mostly an AU focused more on Konoha, the plot point of Jiāngshī leaving the company never occurs, so these two are hired to work alongside him.
Later on, they also get the quiet but charming and straight-laced PR woman, Hashimoto. Apart from the two leads, she’s probably the most normal of the cast, and as a result, I sadly have very little to say about her.
I don’t think her full name is ever given, she’s just Hashimoto.
I talked about the dynamic between Meiko and Kaori briefly, but aside from them, I really like the dynamic Kikilala has with Mamoru. Their personalities are such polar opposites that they bounce off Mamoru very well, and they end up teasing him a lot and have a few side stories during the manga. For example, when they sit with him and suggest he cosplay with them at Comiket and ask him to come back to Alcohol Soft, it’s really cute to see him flustered when he’s normally so cold.
I think my absolute favorite dynamic is between Kaori and Jiāngshī. From the early chapters, the two can often be seen bickering and arguing a lot. While their personalities aren’t total opposites, they disagree on more things than they agree on.
After Jiāngshī leaves Alcohol Soft, he gets permission to start his own branch company that focuses more on eroge. At first, he’s doing pretty well, but later he runs into issues when his lead artist vanishes off the face of the Earth, leaving him racing against time to finish his game before the release date. He bumps into Kaori at Comiket, who has heard about his troubles and offers to help him out with the art.
This sweet moment is cut short, though, when Jiāngshī’s original artist suddenly returns with a floppy drive containing the art he needs, explaining that he was just dealing with artist’s block.
Another cute scene between these two that I really liked comes later on when Meiko is creating the draft for her first game. Kaori worries that Meiko’s idea may be too niche and fears it might fail. For context, after having fun at Comiket, Meiko decides she wants to make a game about the creation of doujin.
Kaori goes to Jiāngshī for advice about Meiko’s game. After some typical bickering, Jiāngshī suggests making the main heroine someone who dislikes otaku culture and clashes with the protagonist’s passions (fun fact, this is just the premise of Comic Party, the first game that the two original authors worked on together). Kaori enjoys the idea so much that she thanks him and runs off, which is a sweet moment—well, until she comes back and scolds Jiāngshī for frequenting gravure idol photo shoots.
…between these two and my love for Cherie x Hein in Langrisser 2,
I think I discovered my favorite ship dynamic, and I hate myself for it.
A lot of the conflict in the story boils down to company in-fighting, clashing visions, poor decisions by the higher-ups, and rival companies emerging. It’s a nice and relaxing story to sit down with and engage with after a long or tiring day that has just enough drama to keep you invested, but not too much so that it remains rather light-hearted.
One of the greatest things this manga does for me personally is inspire me to express my passions—not only in games but in any other creative endeavor I’m focused on. Each character embodies a different drive or struggle, and I can see parts of myself reflected in all of them. From Meiko’s love for drawing and her desire to learn more, to Mamoru’s elitism for his particular craft, to Kiyoshi’s desire to stand out in his writing style. Seeing these characters pursue their goals, flaws and all, pushes me to not give up on my dreams of sharing my voice through creative works.
The manga also highlights how even the most groundbreaking series had humble beginnings. It shows me that if someone like Meiko—who started with nothing but a pencil, a sketchbook, and a desire to share her artwork—can grow from being a graphic artist to directing her own game, then anyone can do the same. Influential games like Sakura Taisen, Kanon, and Dōkyūsei didn't just spawn out of nowhere; they were born from people who started small, driven by their love for video games, bishōjo characters, or stories inspired by their experiences. That drive which is portrayed by Meiko reminds me that even when self-doubt creeps in, it’s worth pushing forward because sharing your vision has the power to resonate and leave a lasting impact.
Layer 04: 「Conclusion」
Needless to say, I enjoyed this manga quite a lot, and if you’re interested in the PC-98, game development, visual novels, the history of games in the '90s, Bishōjoge, or even just Eroge in general, I’d highly recommend you check out this manga. At the point of me writing this, though, it’s still ongoing, with volume 2 ending on a bit of a cliffhanger. The mangaka has provided some updates on social media about the production of new volumes, but at this point, we’re stuck in waiting limbo.
Despite my criticisms of the anime, I wouldn’t really recommend skipping it. I mean, if you had a gun to your head and could only choose between either the anime or the manga, I’d recommend the manga. But the anime is still worth checking out—I just feel you need the extra context of the manga’s story to fully enjoy the anime since the anime takes place in an alternative timeline. I also feel that what the manga provides and what the anime provides are two completely different things, so enjoying one doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll enjoy the other as much.
That said, I hope you enjoyed my little piece. I hope to continue making more anime and manga-focused articles that bring more attention to lesser-known series like this. Make sure to support and follow the mangaka, the original writers, and the scanlation group while we wait for the next volume to come out. And without anything else to say, I’ll see you next time! Glory to the PC-98!
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