Shinkansen Retrogamer’s owner/hobby writer plans to leave America next year
Hello. I don’t post anything personal on this newsletter, but I want to tell you something. As a one-man show, Shinkansen Retrogamer has remained paywall-free since its inauguration in late 2018 and will continue to be paywall-free so that people can revisit their childhood. Everyone must know that I am not unemployed. I am an illustrator and manga artist (yes, these are REAL jobs rather than being on the side) who makes art and webcomics for a living, since many millennials and Zoomers quit their day jobs, and no one seems to be manning the ship. I am required to see the support coordinator every three months since my nieces need to pay for college or university tuition, as my father never approves of having the support coordinator, citing lowering the chance of leaving America, as he wanted both his sons to succeed and wanted the program to end in 2028 instead of 2032 or 2033 unless I improve my life. Everyone must know that I can take care of myself, and the only way to stop seeing the support coordinator is to either leave the US state or leave the country permanently without having to use violence.
Writing about video games and anime from the past is not a business, in any sense of the word. I probably gave somewhat lesser-known video game companies too much of a cut since the revivals of both Acclaim Entertainment and Argonaut Games. I genuinely wanted to set it up so everyone can revisit their childhood since many ROM sites have been shut down. So, between making artwork and comics and launching the upcoming webcomic series, I ran the hobby blog on Substack on the side, and eventually that became too much of a burden on my resources. That and I wanted the hobby blog to become much better than it was — to be the best retro gaming and anime blog, providing the audience with revisiting their childhood and discoverability since many blogs and newsletters have a massive catalog of paywalls. But unfortunately, the site’s audience is becoming less interested in non-paywalled articles and newsletters since Medium’s and Substack’s algorithms now favor paywalled articles and newsletters as the audience prefers them, so the inevitable had to happen.
Discussions about permanently leaving America for Japan began privately among family and friends after a two-year hiatus from March 2023 to March 2025, following the requirement to come to my father’s work often and care for my now two-year-old niece. The goal of improving my life is to take the driving test after reading the driver’s manual, changing my diet by not consuming sugar, taking Japanese on Duolingo more seriously, taking artwork and webcomics more seriously (including creating content on the internet), growing a following on social media (Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, Behance…), upgrading from Intel-based iMac to the Mac Mini following Apple’s discontinuation of Intel-based iMacs, finishing purchasing clothing on the internet, stopping the toenail fungus by purchasing a maximum-strength toenail antifungal nail polish (which can be found at Amazon to reduce the need of seeing the podiatrist), and then leave America permanently next year, citing issues such as the requirement to see the said support coordinator and the podiatrist every three months, combined with FIFA’s accusation of sportswashing by bringing association football (soccer) to controversial countries (such as Morocco in 2030, Saudi Arabia in 2034, and formerly Qatar in 2022) as reasons for leaving America, along with concerns with taking care of the elderly which lowers the chance of leaving their parents’ nest.
I am going to discuss with family and friends again, citing interest in permanently moving to Tokyo, Japan, next year to escape from President Trump and his MAGA cronies, since Japan is known for anime, manga, and video games, and the country has a much lower crime rate and a higher quality of life than America and Canada. I had the option of leaving America permanently for Japan for a better life or to take care of my mother but lower the chance of leaving America. In the end, I ultimately decided to leave America permanently. Shinkansen Retrogamer will continue to talk about video games and anime from the past until June 11, 2026. I hope this will give everyone plenty of time to revisit their childhood.
Thanks for reading Shinkansen Retrogamer and supporting the retrogaming and retro anime community over the past seven years. There will be an FAQ about how Shinkansen Retrogamer’s closure will affect you in the next few weeks. We’re proud to have been part of the retrogaming and retro anime communities and look forward to seeing where retrogaming and retro anime communities will thrive in the future.
— Cory Roberts