JAST USA Announces Adult PC Game "Absolute Obedience" Ships, Also Price Reduction

San Diego, California, Thursday, October 19, 2006. JAST USA, the leading publisher of Japanese PC dating-sim games in English, announced the immediate shipping of their newest title, Absolute Obedience. The interactive hardcore game for Windows, intended for adults aged 18 and older, is the second English-translated title for fans of yaoi (yah-OH-ee), meaning aesthetically beautiful male/male themes in Japanese animation, which is the fastest-growing segment of anime sub-culture today.

The game is set in a fictional version of West Germany in the post-World War II period, and the player can choose one of two main characters, reined Louise Hardwich or rough-and-tumble Kia WelBenneh. He must play through 12 different missions in which he "targets" a KGB spy, a Saudi prince, a young Mafia boss, and so on. The game has been released to coincide with Yaoi Con (http://www.yaoicon.com/), the leading venue for fans of the genre, on Oct. 20-22, 2006, in San Francisco.

"Over the past couple of years, yaoi and 'boy's love' have really taken the lead in anime and manga publishing, with dramatic stories and characters that really appeal to fans," said Peter Payne, owner of JAST USA. "After several summers of passionate fangirls begging us to translate guy/guy games for them, we decided we couldn't say no to them anymore. Absolute Obedience is one of the best 'BL' games ever released in Japan, and we're happy that fans can now enjoy it in English."

Although these games feature male/male couplings, a majority of consumers of yaoi anime and manga have traditionally been females, with approximately 80% or more of customers at anime conventions or online shops being female. In a world where video game manufacturers continually debate ways of interesting the elusive "girl gamer," PC games with dramatic stories could be an answer.

In other news, JAST USA also announced that it had reduced the prices of more than 30 of its traditional PC dating-sim games by $5-15. The titles includes titles such as the popular Kana Little Sister (a dramatic interactive game where the player must contend with his sister's impending death due to illness), Let's Meow Meow (a game featuring "catgirls," a popular fetish in Japan), and Tokimeki Check in! (a title based in a traditional Japanese hot springs hotel).

Ever since the first computers with color displays, Japan has had a strong culture of "love simulation" computers games, which simulate sexual interaction between the player and various game characters when the player "wins" the love of a given character. PC dating-sim games are often referred to "hentai" or "H" games by U.S. fans. JAST USA/PCR Distributing has been involved in licensing and translating Japanese dating-sim games since 1998, and is the leading producer and distributor of English-language PC games for adults in any form. The company has a catalog of over 50 English-translated games with every theme from maids to "cat girls" and more. Game titles are available to retail customers via http://www.jastusa.com or for wholesale customers at http://www.pcrdist.com/ (The yaoi games can be seen at http://www.jastusa.com/yaoi)