Some news about some fascinating work around a very early and largely lost Japanese home computer game called Dojin from 1980. Sitting between Manbiki Shounen (1979) and Nostromo (1981), Dojin is something of a missing link between early stealth and horror game design. Although the game was completed and shown at a festival at the time, it was never widely released and no original code is known to have survived.
Amazingly, there has been recent work to document and attempt to recreate the game based on interviews, sketches and descriptions from those involved. This includes efforts by Dr Jim Gerrie, who has been experimenting with rebuilding Dojin from the limited material available, offering a glimpse into how it may have played.
Its a great example of digital archaeology in action, piecing together a lost title from fragments and memories, and exploring its place in the evolution of early game design.
You can watch the full video covering Dojin and its history here:
For a deeper dive into the reconstruction work and research, see Dr Jim Gerrie’s blog:
https://jimgerrie.blogspot.com/2026/03/in-search-of-dojin-by-hiroshi-suzuki.html
With thanks to John Szczepaniak for the heads up.
