Developer NEKCOM and publisher 4Divinity revealed a new trailer for SHOWA AMERICAN STORY at gamescom Opening Night Live, showing off the post-apocalyptic RPG set in an alternate 1980s where Japan has bought out most of the United States.
The game follows Chigusa Choko, who wakes up from the dead in a zombie-infested wasteland. Players travel across a “Japanified” America, visiting reimagined cities like Neo Yokohama (formerly Los Angeles), San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Neo Tokyo #4 (formerly Austin). The trailer showcased combat, exploration, and mini-games including fully playable arcade machines.
Combat is real-time, letting players mix melee weapons, firearms, and improvised tools like a drill-arm or the American flag. The game features weapon-specific attacks, dodges, counters, and executions. Players can level up Choko’s stats and unlock new abilities by completing mini-games and side-quests.
SHOWA AMERICAN STORY lands on Windows PC via Steam and PlayStation 5. The game is inspired by the developers’ experiences growing up in China during the 1980s Reform and Opening-Up era, when American and Japanese pop culture heavily influenced the region. The creative team wanted to apply Japanese cultural influence to a North American setting from a Chinese perspective.