🚨Update on the i-mode backup situation [THREAD]🚨
While still not 100% certain, we believe that the SD card backup is sufficient to restore the game fully. Therefore we are moving forward with downloads as much as possible!
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We are also screenshotting and filming the store as it exists now to document the service and how it worked as well as the websites for the content providers. Now for the not-so-great news...
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Many things are already lost. Several of the larger game companies, namely Namco, Taito and Capcom, while still having an i-mode presence, do not offer the games for download anymore. Even with an active account, they simply aren't available.
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Our only hope is that the games are still present on some phones out there. The biggest names that still offer downloads are Sega and Gainax, though there are a number of relatively unknown developers/games available still.
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Next, let's talk about i-mode payments. Rather than selling indiviudal games, content owners charge a monthly subscription fee which gives you unlimited access to all their games for that month, with this fee usually being around JPY 300 (around USD $3).
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On top of that, the i-mode service is not free: users are charged per data packet as they browse the shop and download games and content. This is where the majority of the costs come in to play.
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Our current estimate for costs is around JPY 50,000 to 100,000 (around USD $500 to $1000), with data usage fees accounting for around 80% of that cost. So once again we are asking the community to help out!
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The best way to help us out is to join the GPS as a supporting member and specify that the membership fee is intended for the i-mode game preservation project. This is the best option. You can join as a supporting member here:
gamepres.org/en/support/
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If you cannot join as a member, we have asked one of our staff members, , to use their ko-fi account to accept donations for this project. Please indicate that your contribution is intended for the i-mode game preservation project.
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If you can't contribute, then please help spread the word! Retweets really help us out with informing people. This is our last chance to save what's still available before the store disappears on November 30th!
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If this is the first time you've heard of the GPS, hello! We're a non-profit organization based in Tokyo racing against time and entropy to save as many old and fragile Japanese games as possible. Check out our NHK produced documentary to learn more!
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