Hobby Japan
Hobby Japan was founded in 1969, making it one of Japan's longer-running publishing companies, and its reach stretches from translated tabletop roleplaying games to diecast Honda Civics to light novel imprints. That range raises an obvious question: how does a single company hold all of that together? The answer lies in understanding Hobby Japan not as a publisher with a sideline in games, but as a company built around the idea that hobbyists of every stripe deserve dedicated coverage and products. Its magazine Hobby Japan EX and its sister publication Uchusen sit at the center of the catalog. Surrounding those anchors is a sprawl of product lines that touches nearly every corner of Japanese fan culture. The story of how those lines came to exist, and what they contain, is the story of a company that treats breadth as a strategy.
Dungeons and Dragons arrived in Japan through Hobby Japan, which released translated editions of the 3rd, 3.5th, and 4th editions of the game. That translation work placed the company at the center of the Japanese tabletop roleplaying scene during the years when D&D was reshaping how people thought about collaborative storytelling and rule systems. Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay's 2nd edition also arrived through Hobby Japan, giving the company a footprint in the darker, European-inflected corner of the hobby. Beyond translation work, Hobby Japan produced original roleplaying titles. Ring Master I: The Shadow of Filias, subtitled Filias Nogisu no Anun, appeared in 1989 for the X68000 home computer. Its sequel, Ring Master II: Forget You Not, Evermore, subtitled Eien Naru Omoi, followed in 1990 on the same platform. Those two titles mark Hobby Japan's moment as a developer, not merely a publisher or translator, of roleplaying experiences.
Hobby Japan's diecast line concentrates heavily on Japanese domestic market vehicles, with Honda models forming the largest single block. The Honda Civic appears in multiple generations and variants: the EG6 SiR-II, the FK7, the FL5, and the Type-R in EK9, FD2R, FK8R, and FL5R configurations. The Honda S2000 AP2, the NSX in NA1 and NA2 series, and the N-Box from 2024 round out the Honda portion of the range. The list then opens outward to Toyota, Lexus, Subaru, Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Suzuki. Toyota's contribution spans the humble Probox, the flagship Century, and the performance-oriented GR86, GR Corolla, and GR Yaris. Lexus entries include the IS200/Toyota Altezza pairing in first generation, the GS430/Toyota Aristo in second generation, and the newer LM300h, LM500h, and LX600. Subaru brings the BRZ, the Levorg in first and second generations, and the Impreza WRX STI in GC and GD forms. The Mazda RX-7 and Eunos Roadster, the Mitsubishi GTO, and the Lancer Evolution in sixth, seventh, ninth, and tenth generations fill additional slots. Suzuki's Alto Works and several generations of Toyota Alphard, Vellfire, and Land Cruiser complete a lineup that tracks the enthusiast car market across multiple decades of Japanese automotive history.
Queen's Blade appears in Hobby Japan's catalog twice: once as an anime production and once as a game book, making it the clearest example of a property the company developed across multiple formats simultaneously. The broader anime list includes Hell Girl, Demon King Daimao, and Seven Mortal Sins, alongside titles like Hyakka Ryoran Samurai Girls, Invaders of the Rokujyoma!?, and The Master of Ragnarok and Blesser of Einherjar. Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero, Infinite Dendrogram, and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles round out the anime entries. For prose fiction, Hobby Japan operates two imprints: HJ Bunko and HJ Novels. Those two labels give the company a direct channel into the light novel market, which in Japan feeds anime, manga, and game adaptations with new source material. Bikini Warriors sits in a separate miscellaneous category, reflecting the company's willingness to publish properties that blend fan service with genre storytelling. Fighting Fantasy, the British game book series, appears in translated form, echoing the same translation work the company carried out for Dungeons and Dragons.
Hobby Japan EX carries the company's name directly, and that naming choice signals how central the magazine remains to the company's self-image. Uchusen, the second named publication, occupies a different editorial corner. Together these two titles represent the publishing axis around which the rest of the catalog orbits. A company that distributes action figures related to anime and manga franchises alongside translated editions of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay is making a consistent bet that enthusiast readers move across categories. The 1969 founding date places Hobby Japan in a period when Japanese consumer culture was developing the infrastructure for dedicated hobby coverage, long before anime conventions, online retail, or the globalization of Japanese pop culture created the markets those titles now serve. The company's action figure output, covering anime and manga franchises, connects the publishing side of the business to the collectibles market that anime fandom sustains. The Honda N-Box appearing in the diecast catalog with a 2024 designation confirms that the company continues to refresh its product lines with current models rather than retreating entirely into nostalgia.
Common questions
What does Hobby Japan publish?
Hobby Japan is a Japanese company that publishes books, magazines, light novels, and games, and distributes collectibles including action figures and diecast car models. Its publications include Hobby Japan EX magazine and Uchusen. The company also releases translated tabletop roleplaying games such as Dungeons and Dragons and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.
When was Hobby Japan founded?
Hobby Japan was founded in 1969. It is a Japanese publishing company with a catalog spanning magazines, light novels, anime productions, roleplaying games, and diecast models.
What roleplaying games has Hobby Japan released?
Hobby Japan translated and released Dungeons and Dragons 3rd, 3.5th, and 4th editions, as well as Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd edition. The company also produced original roleplaying titles, including Ring Master I: The Shadow of Filias in 1989 and Ring Master II: Forget You Not, Evermore in 1990, both for the X68000 home computer.
What anime titles has Hobby Japan produced?
Hobby Japan has produced anime including Queen's Blade, Hell Girl, Demon King Daimao, Hyakka Ryoran Samurai Girls, Seven Mortal Sins, Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero, Infinite Dendrogram, Invaders of the Rokujyoma!?, Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles, and The Master of Ragnarok and Blesser of Einherjar.
What diecast car models does Hobby Japan make?
Hobby Japan produces diecast models of Japanese domestic market vehicles, with a strong Honda focus including multiple Civic variants, the S2000 AP2, and the NSX. The lineup also includes Toyota, Lexus, Subaru, Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Suzuki models such as the Mazda RX-7, Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, and Subaru Impreza WRX STI.
What light novel imprints does Hobby Japan operate?
Hobby Japan operates two light novel imprints: HJ Bunko and HJ Novels. These labels give the company a direct presence in the Japanese light novel market, which frequently generates source material for anime and game adaptations.