Written by 
It’s been close to three years since the January 2022 reveal of Showa American Story, whose B-movie style trailer depicting 1980s America as a colony of Japan became a viral hit.
Updates have been few and far between since then, but IGN can now exclusively reveal a new trailer along with a 2025 release window on PlayStation 5 and PC (Steam). The game genre is described as an “end of the century romantic RPG fantasy ensemble period drama”.
The dramatic trailer introduces new boss character named Shogun, a tough-looking villain who holds a shield like Captain America, a fluttering cape, and floats like Superman against the sunset. Elsewhere in the video, we see Shogun riding on the back of a pitch-black giraffe.
Creative Director XY.Luo told IGN, “Shogun is a boss character who stands 6 meters tall. He uses the giraffe’s long neck to strike, and he can also fly, throwing his shield to attack the player.”
Luo explained that the battle against such an oversized enemy who rides on the back of an even taller beast will create an epic scale reminiscent of Monster Hunter.
Showa American Story is a road movie-style action RPG in which you cross America in a camper van and motorcycle, and the trailer shows a wealth of locations to visit. We see San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge decorated with Japanese lanterns, Las Vegas awash with neon signs in kanji, the Hollywood sign replaced with “Neo Yokohama”, and the newly christened Neo Tokyo-4 (Austin, Texas) awash with cherry blossoms. A man commits seppuku before Mount Rushmore. America is irresistibly dyed in the colors of Japan’s Showa era.
Protagonist Chouko Chigusa fights her way across America, fighting zombies and strange humanoid creatures with a variety of brutal combat options. In addition to her primary weapons of swords and guns, we see Chouko fight with a giant drill. Luo told us that Chouko’s arsenal will grow throughout her adventure, with a wide variety available. The trailer also shows a wealth of customization elements and minigames inside the camper van.
The story is still shrouded in mystery, but there’s no doubt it has a strong cast of characters. In August, IGN exclusively revealed boss character Gokou, the Texan governor turned cowboy-samurai who sold his state to Japan. And with the new trailer showing Chouko Chigusa stomping on enemies with her high heels and putting zombie heads with a golf club, our interest is piqued for further updates as Showa American Story’s 2025 release approaches.
Daniel Robson is Chief Editor of IGN Japan, and Esra Krabbe is a member of the editorial team.