Great initiative. Hope the sum is considerable enough for startups, especially students in Japan straight out of universities, to take a significant burden off their shoulders and take risks with design.
Japan has been the primary hub of innovation in game design for decades in the AAA space, it's time for their indies to share that crown now.
It is, they are existed, and they are not small numbers, they are just obscure.doujige(indies/garage games) especially, home of small or fan games since end of 80s or 90s. Well, they are all mostly hiding in japan and the rest of us mostly never know if they are existed.
Its funny thing, japanese indie game market somehow can survive even with low numbers and they are circulated on theit own circle around japan only, or sometimes spread into china, korea, taiwan(?).
Their massive touhou project circles are proof.
But yet, almost no mainstream knows. Mostly who knew, just one who considered as otaku, or knowledgeable weebs.
I once travels to japan, yesteryear. And i ask some of them, who said, the game industry is taught as school basis and magazine who are monthly keep them well informed by released the code for people to learn. This is why japanese devs can do many things faster.
You are right btw, doujige circle needs to out or exposed now, they are long existed before even the world knows the term indie games. They are hiding in comicon or smaller events.
I read this on hardcoregaming101.net back before, i might be wrong for somee points, because i read it in 2011/3 a decade ago.
