Who Pays for All Those Names? A Look at Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon

You're sitting through the credits at the end of your favourite anime. Among the funky music, bright colours, and (sometimes) weird dancing that immediately follows a heinously gruesome death of your favourite character, you see a long list of every name belonging to someone who was on a payroll while that show was being put together, working to a schedule that got locked in long before anyone knew whether the story was any good. Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon hands you that payroll, and it has just arrived in store from the Australian outfit, Good Games Publishing.

Let's cover where the name comes from, what the game looks like on the table, how the mechanics fit together, how the solo mode holds up when you can't get a group together, and where you can pick up a copy.

Where the Name Comes From

There's a Japanese expression; 自転車操業 (jitenshasōgyō); for a business that is only staying upright because it hasn't stopped moving, similar to how a bicycle stays up as long as the wheels are turning. Stop pedalling and over it goes. That's the studio you've taken charge of, and the whole game is built on the assumption that you can't afford to coast for a single round of gameplay.

Designer Rodrigo Esper has shaped the goals around this idea too. Winning here looks a lot more like still being solvent when your last release ships than it does like taking over the industry.

The Art

This game looks phenomenonal.  All 52 staff cards carry their own illustration, so the animator you hired in round one has a face and a personality rather than just a colour and a number, and losing them to a budget cut hurts because of it. 

The showpiece of the game is the Trend deck. Twenty foil tarot cards carry the genre trends that cycle through the market, and since those are the cards the whole table keeps glancing at, the production has gone into the component people spend the most time looking at. The art foiling is amazing and, if you haven't spent the extra money to sleeve your game, why not?! These are cards that need to be protected.

How It Plays

The game runs very similar to other worker-placement tycoon games. You place a token on an action space to perform that action. The staff the token comes from can adjust what results of that action, and you're not necessarily locked out of an already chosen action (though it will cost you more to commit to that action space if it is already taken).

The actions during your turn can be used to hire or promote your staff to make them stronger, acquire script parts that can adjust the genre of your productions, network with industry partners for one-time-use cards, animate your film to increase its quality, or take advantage of a merch deal to increase your future income.

Once all actions have been taken, the game moves to the Release Phase where your new anime sees the light of day. If you're script parts match up to the available themes, you earn popularity that translates into reputation (the final victory points of the game) and income (so your studio can keep operating). Your anime doesn't match the themes? That's ok. You've just created a "Cult Release" that will find its way to the right fans anyway to still earn some popularity.

From there, you need to make sure you pay your staff and your debts before starting the next round.

All this happens over four rounds where the studio with the highest reputation wins the game. The game runs smoothly once you understand the symbol terminology and evokes a more solitaire-like engine-building strategy akin to Wingspan, Splendor, or the base game of Lords of Waterdeep where you're racing the other players to the optimum results, rather than actively hindering them.

Playing It on Your Own

There's a full solo mode with an automa standing in for rival studios competing in the same market. You keep the payroll pressure and the trend chasing, which is where most of the game lives, and what you give up is the scramble for action spaces you both wanted. If solo board games are your thing, or if you want to get the rules straight before putting it in front of friends, it's a good place to start.

Who It's For

You'll enjoy Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon if you like worker placement where the economy pushes back, and if you want a gorgeous theme doing more than sitting on top of the game math. It also suits you if you like an engine with a running cost attached. Assembling a strong team feels great for a few rounds, and then the wage bill turns up.

If you're use to tycoon games like Brass: Birminghan or Puerto Rico though, the depth may not be there for you. You may still enjoy a game or two, but I would see this as more of a stepping-stone into the spreadsheet-adjacent world of tycoon games than a fully-fledged one on its own.

Where to Pick It Up

Price: $89.99
Online: https://vaultgames.com.au/products/jisogi
Delivery: Free over $200, flat rate under that, free pickup from either store
Payment: Afterpay and Zip available

Common Questions

How many people do I need?
It plays 1 to 4, and there's a proper solo mode with an automa if you're on your own.

Is it hard to learn?
It's a mid-weight worker placement game, so it's a step up from a family game night filler, but the core loop of hire staff, take actions, build a script, release it is easy to hold in your head. Give yourself a rules read or one teaching game before you invite people over.

Do I need to know anything about anime?
Not at all. The theme adds a lot if you're into it, and it works fine as a tycoon-style economic puzzle if you're not (though you will get a kick out of the "legally-distinct" themes if you have anime knowledge)

Can I try before I buy?
You can find a copy of Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon in the games library at both Vault Games locations.

Can I get it delivered?
Yes. Delivery is free on orders over $200, flat rate under that, and store pickup is free if you'd rather collect it from Brisbane City or Clayfield.