In an era where games are constantly delisted in digital storefronts and left behind in previous generations, preservation has never been more important. Backwards compatibility across all modern consoles is a huge step in the right direction, but there’s no guarantee that support will be there for the next generation. We’re thankful to be at a point in time where many developers, especially those in Japan, make it a priority to localize their games in English or other languages outside of their own.
Many years ago, it was far too common to see games released exclusively in Japan, never to receive a localization in the West. Often, these games were only available on one console, which meant they would be lost to time, especially for those up to the Sixth Generation that did not offer digital storefronts.
It is now 2026, and it feels like publishers are starting to take notice of fans’ desire for access to now-inaccessible games. Capcom, for example, has made an effort to bring all of the Mega Man series to modern platforms in the form of collections, with Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection due out in just a few months. Some publishers are better than others, but each year, we continue to see long-lost games, even those never previously available in certain languages, released.
Marvelous is another publisher moving to bring older games back. Take Milano’s Odd Job Collection, a game released for PS1 in 1999 exclusively in Japan. Late last year, Marvelous brought the game to new platforms for the first time, adding support for English. A game that was once only playable in Japanese on the PlayStation is now available for everyone. We had the chance to speak with the game’s original creator, Ryuichi Nishizawa, and I asked him in particular what his thoughts on game preservation were, considering Milano’s Odd Job Collection was being localized in English for the first time ever.
“For most of my career, it was normal to think that games would become unplayable once their hardware disappeared. So to see a title revived across different generations and hardware feels almost like a dream. I know many passionate people around the world are working on preservation projects to keep valuable games alive. I’ve always respected their efforts, and I support what they’re doing wholeheartedly,” Nishizawa shared.
Nishizawa’s note on how it was the norm for games to be unplayable was really interesting to me. Developers in the 1980s and 1990s developed only with the current generation in mind. The assumption always was that new console generations would bring new cartridge/disc formats, so players would naturally upgrade their libraries. Obviously, things have changed quite a bit in the Ninth Generation. That change of mentality made it possible to bring a niche, Japanese-exclusive PS1 game to modern platforms in English for the first time. It’s amazing to think about.
In the same vein, preservation isn’t just about reviving or bringing back classics or commercially successful games. Nintendo Switch Online’s Virtual Boy Classics collection, set to release in just a few weeks, is a great example of this. The Virtual Boy, a console that only sold a mere 770,000 units, has a collection of just 22 games that have been inaccessible until now. Not only that, but Nintendo has gone even further than just making these ridiculously niche games available; both Zero Racers and D-Hopper, two unreleased games, are set to debut on the service this year.
This kind of care and attention to past libraries is something I want to see more of from everyone. PlayStation has released select ‘Classics’ on the PS Store through its PS Plus service, Xbox has brought forth numerous Xbox games, and even Square Enix has remastered the original six Final Fantasy games (but where is XIII?!). These are all great initiatives, but I can only hope that game preservation is something that continues to be a focus for developers and publishers for years to come. Players must have access to their digital libraries with each new console release, as this allows games to live forever.
However, many games are still not playable in multiple languages or on modern platforms. Developers like Ryuichi Nishizawa and thousands of others across the world deserve to see their beloved creations playable once more. Releases like Milano’s Odd Job Collection prove that preservation of niche games can be done; it’s up to player and fan support to ensure these games remain playable and accessible for decades to come.
For more on our chat with Ryuichi Nishizawa, be sure to check out our full interview here.
