Trends
What teens around the world are into right now
Japan's No. 1 Kaomoji Looks Teary, but It's Not Just for Sad Moments
Japanese keyboard app Simeji released its ranking of this year's most-used kaomoji, text faces built from letters and symbols, on October 9. Japan's No. 1 is a face with tears welling up. But in the survey, more people said they use it when they're moved or grateful than when they're sad. Outside Japan, a ribbon-shaped symbol made the top 5 in all 15 countries.
September's New Face in Korea's Mobile Game Top 10 Is a Number-Tile Board Game
In Mobileindex GAME's September user ranking for mobile games in Korea, released on October 7, the top five spots were the same as in August. Roblox stayed first with 3.23 million users, and Rummikub, a board game where you put number tiles together, came in new at tenth with 710,000. Minecraft, sixth in August, slipped to ninth.
Diving by day, sushi by night: a Korean game with 10 million copies sold is now on phones
"DAVE THE DIVER", the game where you catch fish underwater by day and run a sushi restaurant by night, passed 10 million copies sold worldwide on September 9. It's the first single-player, buy-once game made in Korea to reach that milestone. The mobile version also arrived on the App Store and Google Play on September 17.
Japanese High Schoolers' No. 2 Slang Term Is "Dopamine-Addicted Kid"
A survey asking 200 Japanese high schoolers about current trends came out on October 2. The No. 2 slang term was "dopagaki", a way to poke fun at yourself for being hooked on short videos. In the snack category, malatang took first place, followed by Yoajung (ヨアジョン), the frozen yogurt dessert that started at a Korean shop.
Miss a day and your streak resets? The game design Europe wants to stop
Login streak rewards that reset if you miss even one day. Reminders to come back when you haven't logged in for a while. The proposal the EU released on September 17 includes wording that relates to these designs. But it isn't law yet.
People spend 40 hours a month chatting with AI characters
Last August, 1,586,178 people used Zeta, an app for chatting with AI characters. Teens or younger users made up 58.3% of its users, and average monthly usage was 40 hours. But no one has decided yet whether apps like this count as games.
Trickcal Revive, the Game Where You Pull Characters' Cheeks, Is Getting a Short Anime in Korea
Trickcal Revive, a Korean game where you play with characters by pulling their cheeks, is getting a short anime titled 트릭컬 만화동산 (Trickcal Manhwa Dongsan). Laftel will release one episode for free every Monday from 8 p.m. Korea time on September 28, and a viewing event and a photo event at the Aniplus building in Hapjeong, Seoul, both start the same day.
A Korean App Where You Film Two Seconds Every Hour Just Topped Japan's App Store
setlog, an app where you film a two-second clip whenever a notification arrives and it joins your clips with your friends' into a vlog of the day, hit No. 1 on Japan's App Store free chart on September 22. It was made by the Korean company New Chat, and its Japanese users reportedly grew sharply from around May, after it added Japanese.
The Hide-and-Seek Game Where You Paint Yourself Into the Scenery Just Won a Japan Game Award
MECCHA CHAMELEON, a hide-and-seek game where you paint the background onto your own body to fool the Seekers, took the Movement Award at the Japan Game Awards 2026 on September 15. It came out on Steam first in June, and a Nintendo Switch 2 version followed on September 9. The Steam version has English support.
Ezreal Still Sounds Like BAEKHYUN
HEARTSTEEL, the League of Legends virtual band that had been quiet since PARANOIA in October 2023, is back with a single called LIVE MY LIFE. It went up at 01:00 on September 19 Korean time, with Anderson .Paak on K'Sante, BAEKHYUN on Ezreal, Connor Price on Sett and Nic D on Kayn. Jon Bellion wrote and produced it.
A Pikachu in Hanbok Turns Up in Jongno and Jung-gu
Pokémon GO has announced two events that run only in Korea. From 10:00 on September 18 to 20:00 on October 11, an orange hanbok Pikachu shows up in parts of Seoul's Jongno-gu and Jung-gu and at the Hiker Station at Incheon International Airport. From September 24 to 26, the whole country joins in.
Who Left That Empty Tent in Minecraft's New Forest?
Minecraft's third game drop of 2026, Wilderness Bound, arrived on September 15. It brings the dappled forest with its rusty-toned poplar trees, abandoned camps where only an empty tent and a campfire remain, and straw beds that are used up after one night. For anyone who already owns the game, it's a free update.
In Game Freak's New Game, Laundry Dries Faster When the Sun Is Out
Game Freak, the studio behind the Pokémon series, announced a new smartphone game called Ame nochi Hare Onna on September 14. Real weather data from Weathernews feeds into the game in real time, so which characters are strong depends on that day's sky. It launches in Japan for iOS and Android in winter 2026, and pre-registration opened on announcement day.
Chiikawa's First Movie Is Already on Its Fifth Theater Gift
Chiikawa's first movie opened in Japan on July 24, and the gift handed out as you walk into the screening room has changed round by round. The fifth gift, from September 19, is a 52-page booklet with new drawings and manga by the creator, Nagano. By September 13, day 52 of its run, the film had drawn 10 million moviegoers.
Sombra Is Moving to Support in Overwatch Season 5
Blizzard shared Overwatch Season 5 news at BlizzCon 2026. When Season 5 starts on October 6 (Pacific time), Sombra moves from Damage to Support, and Doctrine, Hero 54 with his bat-like drones, joins the roster as a new Support hero. His limited-time Hero Trial is already live through September 14, and his official debut comes with Season 5.
The LCK Final Has Room for a Team That Already Lost
The 2026 LCK final starts at 2pm Korea time on September 13 at KSPO Dome in Seoul, with Gen.G facing Hanwha Life Esports. Hanwha lost 1-3 to Gen.G in the upper bracket final on September 5, then beat T1 3-1 in the final qualifier on the 12th and climbed back in. That loss still left Hanwha one more series to play.
Roblox Published the Numbers on What Making Games There Pays
On September 3, Roblox published the numbers for the people who build on it. Creators earned over $1.5 billion across 2025. The same report says more than 42,000 creators are in the program that converts what they make into real money, and that the one in the middle of them took home about $1,500 over twelve months.
A Survey Asked 1,949 Japanese Students How They Use Their Phones
Nifty Kids, a Japanese site for children, asked 1,949 elementary and middle school students how they use their phones. Asked whether they consider themselves addicted to their phone, 52.5% of middle schoolers said yes, while 63% of elementary schoolers said no. The moment that makes them feel that way most often is looking up and finding that an hour has gone by.
Nintendo Is Running Two Directs on Back to Back Days
On September 8 at 7am PT there is a roughly 30 minute Direct built around the 40th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda, and at the same hour the next day comes Nintendo Direct 9.9.2026, about 45 minutes long. Both times come straight from Nintendo's own Direct page. On the East Coast that is 10am, and in Seoul and Tokyo it lands at 11 at night.
Korea's Most Opened Game Last Month Was Not Really a Game
The August user rankings for mobile games in Korea are out. The app the largest number of people opened over the month was Roblox at 2.81 million, with Block Blast next at 2.02 million. Those two are opposites in almost every way, yet they sit at one and two, and the top six slots are in exactly the same order as last month.
Why People Watch Days of Speedrunning Without Stopping
Speedrunning means finishing a game as fast as it can possibly be finished. There are events where runners take turns doing that in a relay for days without a break, and donations that arrive during the stream go to a charity. One event this July collected more than 2.4 million dollars.
The First Harry Potter Film Turns 25, and It Went Back to Cinemas
The first film opened on 16 November 2001, which makes this year the twenty fifth. So it went back into cinemas worldwide at the end of August, with ten minutes of behind the scenes footage that had never played in a theatre before.
Why Taiwan Has More Than Ten Thousand Claw Machine Shops
Walk down a side street in Taiwan and you will hit a shop that is nothing but lit glass boxes with no staff anywhere. There are more than ten thousand of these unstaffed claw machine shops across the island. And every machine has to tell you the amount that guarantees you walk out with something.
'Guess I'll Dance Parapara,' the Line That Started a Meme
RESCENE's Minami started dancing out of nowhere on a beach in Geoje. The line she said in that moment now gets used after a bad exam, before a scary presentation, basically any time things feel like too much. Funny thing is, the dance itself isn't even Korean.
Fifteen Yuan a Badge, 168.9 Billion Yuan a Market
A whole mall floor turning into badge shops. In China those little things are called guzi. One thumbnail-sized badge runs about 15 yuan, and the whole market came to 168.9 billion. What sits between those two numbers?
Thirty Years of Photo Booths, From Tokyo to Daegu and Back
The four-cut booth did not appear out of nowhere. A sticker photo machine that landed in a Tokyo arcade in 1995 traveled through Daegu and came back to Tokyo, and thirty years are folded into that one strip of paper.
Why That Song Won't Leave Your Head
Doo doo doo doo, it just started playing in your head, right? Baby Shark passing 17 billion views and those exam season banned song lists are the same phenomenon. It has a name: the earworm.
Korean Teen Slang 101: From Lucky Vicky to Chugumi
Half the words in your friend's chat look like code? Here are the Korean slang words people actually use, with examples.
Why Personality Tests Are Booming Again: Life After MBTI
The MBTI craze may cool down, but new personality tests keep coming. Here is why we are all so into them.
A Short History of the Ideal-Type World Cup Bracket
Tteokbokki or mala soup, that is the question. Where the bracket-pick format came from, why it never gets old, and how to win it.
Fandom Starter Dictionary: Bias, Home Base and Photocards
If you go quiet when friends talk biases till 2 a.m., this dictionary has you covered. The essential fandom words, one by one.
The Short-Form Challenge Field Guide: Types, Tips and Staying Safe
Open your feed and the challenges pour in. Here is what is out there, what to watch for, and how to have the most fun with it.
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