BradyGames' Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life is the first book to be written in English to examine, in-depth, the worldwide pop culture phenomenon of Japanese videogames. Includes why Japanese video games are so unique; the first original Japanese video games and what made them so different from American games; the origins of Nintendo, Japan's oldest and largest video game producer; Japanese Role-Playing Games; how Japanese rhythm and music games are the cutting-edge in console game development and the saviour of the Japanese arcade; what Japanese game retail stores are really like; Pokemon Power - how it came to the US; and the future of the Japanese gaming industry.