Whenever I get the chance to browse the Japanese iTunes Store, I usually spend my time finding different games I can explore that I would not normally be able to experience in the American iTunes store. This week, I noticed a very popular trend with the trending iTunes apps in Japan: Casino and Pachinko-type games. As you may or may-not remember, I spent a couple years living in Tokyo and I never had the chance to try gambling in Japan.

I came across a game called ドラゴンギャル～修羅の野望, by SNK PLAYMORE, on the Japanese iTunes store, which could be roughly translated as “Dragon Girl Fighter” in English. It was only ¥100 (100 yen. Roughly, 1 US Dollar), so I used my Japan iTunes gift card to purchase the game and give it a try!

Not knowing much about it, I soon found out that this game is a fighting-themed slot machine game. Apparently, it has some popularity as a physical arcade in pachinko parlors in Japan. It's a pretty cute and simple game, with a simple concept. Basically, you try racking up your 'play cash' through slot combinations, while getting to enjoy fun cinematic cut scenes above the slots. Dragon girl will encounter various situations, depending on your combos and score and as you push onward the visuals get more and more interesting. Additionally, you don't need to rely on the Japanese language to enjoy the game, so do not worry! 

The controls of the game are simple.  All you need to do is tap on the corresponding slots to start the wheel and collect your points. I was pretty amazed at how addicting this was, considering I don't have much experience playing casino games. More importantly it's a lot of fun for such a cheap price. You can find Dragon Girl Fighter exclusively on the Japanese iTunes store. iTunes Japan gift cards are available directly through JapanCodeSupply.