Miscellaneous Discoveries, Research, & Archival Work

The majority of Yakuza/Like a Dragon games feature karaoke minigames. Each playable song begins with its own "title card" akin to actual karaoke machine displays. These title cards show the title of the song, lyricist, and composer, with stock image photographs used as the background. Most of these images are sourced from the much-used Datacraft Sozaijiten (素材辞典) series of "royalty-free" media asset discs, which have also been utilized in many Japanese videogames (other SEGA titles among them) and Pokémon Trading Card Game artwork. A cursory search online reveals that the use of these photos in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series has not been documented. I have been able to match a handful of these karaoke title card backgrounds to their original source from Sozaijiten. These are presented below. I haven't found matches for every title card but will update this section when I find more! I also hope to share this information more widely soon. I took the actual karaoke title cards from the Yakuza Wiki, so credit to them.

Side note: I have listed these games in chronological order, not release order. The karaoke minigame first appeared in Yakuza 3, but was retroactively added to the first two games of the series in the remakes Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza Kiwami 2.

Game	Song Name	Title Card	Background Image	Volume || Image ID
Yakuza 0	x3 SHINE			Sozaijiten Vol. 169: Sky & Clouds - Faraway Blue GZ040
Yakuza 0	24-hour Cinderella			Sozaijiten Vol. 203: Flowers Blooming in the Field - Pure & Sweet Edition JK003
Yakuza 0	Heartbreak Mermaid			Sozaijiten Vol. 154: Okinawa - Churaumi GJ087
Yakuza 0	Judgement -Shinpan-			Sozaijiten Vol. 26: Forests & Groves AA189
Yakuza Kiwami	Tonight -restart from this night-			Sozaijiten Vol. 45: Tokyo AV111
Yakuza Kiwami	Iji Sakura (Fighting Sakura) 2000			Sozaijiten Vol. 146: Four Seasons - Japanese Flowers & Trees GA050
Yakuza Kiwami	As Long As You're Happy			Sozaijiten Vol. 22: Food & Cooking Image Edition SW188
Yakuza Kiwami 2	Pride From Despair			Sozaijiten Vol. 168: Business City - Urban Space Edition GY159
Yakuza 3	I Wanna Change Myself			Sozaijiten Vol. 20: Flowers in Clusters & Cherry Blossoms SU042
Yakuza 3	Saturday Night☆Lover			Sozaijiten Vol. 75: New York DB043
Yakuza 3	Summer Memories			Sozaijiten Vol. 100: Sky & Iridescent Clouds EC071
Yakuza 3	Where Has Your Touch Gone?			Sozaijiten Vol. 119: Water Image Edition EX197
Yakuza 4	Get to the Top!			Sozaijiten Vol. 100: Sky & Iridescent Clouds EC076
Yakuza 4	I Wanna Change Myself			Sozaijiten Vol. 20: Flowers in Clusters & Cherry Blossoms SU141
Yakuza 4	Machine Gun Kiss			Sozaijiten Vol. 75: New York DB040
Yakuza 4	Raindrops			Sozaijiten Vol. 119: Water Image Edition EX077; possibly an amalgamation of multiple images
Yakuza 4	Shooting Star			Sozaijiten Vol. 70: Starry Skies & Space CW014
Yakuza 4	Summer Memories			Sozaijiten Vol. 40: Sea & Southern Islands AQ147; boat in image maybe taken from AQ018
Yakuza 4	Where Has Your Touch Gone?			Sozaijiten Vol. 119: Water Image Edition EX023 & EX195
Yakuza 5	Baka Mitai (I've Been a Fool)			Sozaijiten Vol. 214: Drinks & Alcohol JW056
Yakuza 5	Because I Have You			Sozaijiten Vol. 127: Fresh Greenery & Young Leaves FF048
Yakuza 5	Loneliness Loop			Sozaijiten Vol. 164: Water - Clear & Pure GU158
Yakuza 5	So Much More!			Sozaijiten Vol. 227: Girls Portrait Edition KK067
Yakuza 5	Ring			Sozaijiten Vol. 179: Background - Sparkle & Romantic HK041
Yakuza 5	Rouge of Love			Sozaijiten Vol. 10: Flower Edition SJ197
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life	BRAND NEW STAGE			Sozaijiten Vol. 182: Beach & Girls HN152
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life	Fork In The Road			Sozaijiten Vol. 83: Road Scenery DK156
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life	Today is a Diamond			Sozaijiten Vol. 40: Sea & Southern Islands AQ018
Yakuza: Like a Dragon	Spring Breeze			Sozaijiten Vol. 146: Four Seasons - Japanese Flowers & Trees GA057
Yakuza: Like a Dragon	The Future I Dreamed Of			Sozaijiten Vol. 83: Road Scenery DK108
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name	Sayonara, Silent Night			Sozaijiten Vol. 48: Christmas & New Year AY188 & AY199
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth	Honolulu City Lights			Sozaijiten Vol. 154: Okinawa - Churaumi GJ081
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth	If I Could Love the One I Love			Sozaijiten Vol. 155: Living Space & Interior Accesories GK097
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth	Summertime Groove			Sozaijiten Vol. 140: Hawaii - Aloha FU006; couldn't find a high res version of this one
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii	Majima Construction Anthem			Sozaijiten Vol. 37: Mount Fuji & Cherry Blossoms AM162

This section matches matches food images shown when ordering at a restaurant in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series to their source. I decided to make this its own section since it could potentially be pretty sprawling. Most of the in-game food images I took straight from the Yakuza Wiki again, which had isolated versions available. The original source for some of these is again Sozaijiten, but I'm also assuming that the in-game restaurants which have real life equivalents have to be official photos supplied by the restaurants themselves. (In fact, I've now confirmed this to be the case!)

Game || Context	Menu Image from Game	Original Source Photo	Volume || Image ID
Yakuza Kiwami Akaushimaru Menu: Beef Bowl (Standard/Large/Extra Large)			Vol. 73: Cooking - Japanese, Western, & Chinese Cuisine CZ014
Yakuza 5 Kani Douraku Menu: Crab Kaiseki "Seifuu" Course			Kani Douraku promotional image Currently found on its Rakuten GURUNAVI page
Yakuza 5 Kani Douraku Menu: Crab Kaiseki "Hakutsuyu" Course			Kani Douraku promotional image Currently found on its Rakuten GURUNAVI page
Yakuza 5 Kani Douraku Menu: Crab Kaiseki "Jusanya"			Kani Douraku promotional image Currently found on its Rakuten GURUNAVI page

After finding some of the above source image matches for the Yakuza/Like a Dragon karaoke title cards, I decided to look further to see if any other images from Datacraft Sozaijiten are used in the games. I have only ever seen the fact that Sozaijiten images are used in these games mentioned online by two other sources:

Second, on a Japanese user's personal site called "好奇タンヤオのゲームメモ帳公開ブログ," which can be loosely translated to "Curious Tanyao's Game Memos Public Blog," I found an extensive list of videogames and other media which utilize Sozaijiten material (albeit without images). It was here that I found six mentions of Yakuza games which Tanyao has noted in various odd places, including in a trailer for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Tanyao is quite meticulous! They have found many, many Sozaijiten matches in sometimes quite obscure media that I'm not certain has been fully cataloged by those on the English-speaking side of the community, so please check their Twitter out for more of this sort of thing

From the first mention, I did not see documented where the image of this elusive white man appeared in the game, or which volume of Sozaijiten his photo came from. I booted up my own copy of Yakuza 0 to do a little investigating, and found a conspicuous image of a white fellow with relative ease (within a couple minutes of roaming around the Premium Adventure mode). His mug was plastered all over posters in Theater Square. I will detail this first match and any others I find below. This will likely be a slowgoing project as I will probably have to gather my own screenshots to properly document the matches. It will also be difficult to determine which game a source image first appeared in, as the Yakuza games reuse many assets for subsequent installments. I suspect a great deal would naturally first appear in Yakuza 3, the first HD game of the series, but Yakuza 0 also presents a helpful starting point due to its time period. Since there is also a lot of asset reuse from game to game, there will likely be overlap with many of the images listed below. I will list the earliest game in which I happen to come across the specified image or texture.

I am also certain that many of the actual textures in the game (i.e. walls, grounds, etc.) likely also come from Sozaijiten. Documenting this could be several magnitudes more laborious! Maybe I'll get to it someday, but for now I'll leave most of that to those much more skilled at making those matches than I.

Game || Context	Photo from Game	Original Source Photo	Volume || Image ID
Yakuza 0 On a poster for "Space Alliance 2" in Theater Square			Sozaijiten Volume 30: People - Men AE034 & AE055
Yakuza 0 On a poster for "Twilight ni Yoroshiku" in Theater Square			Sozaijiten Volume 31: People - Women AF024
Yakuza 0 On a poster for a "Ocean Adventure 2" in Theater Square			Sozaijiten Volume 30: People - Men AE194
Yakuza 0 On a poster for "Memories of Marie" in Theater Square			Sozaijiten Volume 50: Dogs & Cats CA093
Yakuza 0 On a poster for "Miracle Trouble Story 3" on Taihei Boulevard			Sozaijiten Volume 62: Impressive Small Animals CA093 & CN154
Yakuza 0 On an Akaushimaru restauarant poster; I don't think these are actually purchasable restaurant items anywhere in the series		[2 not yet found]	Sozaijiten Volume 22: Food & Cooking Images & others to be added
Yakuza 0 On a Smile Burger standee; it's blurry and low quality			Sozaijiten Volume 22: Food & Cooking Image Edition SW027
Yakuza 0 On cigarette machines; the "JCC" has been added to the image			Sozaijiten Volume 79: Sports & Dynamics CX089
Yakuza 3 Image shown during news segment for proposed resort; same dock that's used in the "Today is a Diamond" karaoke photo			Sozaijiten Volume 79: Sports & Dynamics CX089
Yakuza 5 On an electronic billboard in Fukuoka; might be my favorite... so cutie!!!			Sozaijiten Volume 50: Dogs & Cats CN154
Yakuza: Like a Dragon A poster in Hello Work; also in Infinite Wealth	Photo from Game		Sozaijiten Volume 30: People - Men SG008
Yakuza: Like a Dragon A poster for Club Light Shaft in the Fukutokucho area; also in Infinite Wealth			Sozaijiten Volume 7: Light & Crystal AE094
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth On the "Dog Food" item; Dog Rich: Beauty & Power			Sozaijiten Volume 159: Dog - Lovely Dog GP176
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth On the "Bird Food" item; Bird Rich: Juicy & Healthy			Sozaijiten Volume 62: Impressive Small Animals CN006
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth On the No Surf No Life building on Hula Ave.			Sozaijiten Volume 111: Seaside & Tropical Holidays EP049
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth A Table Talk event at [LOCATION]. (I forget where this happened, sorry >.<)			Sozaijiten Volume 14: Vegetables & Fruits SN170

This is another incredibly minor discovery, but it is about a videogame event that I have a great deal of affection for. Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver Versions feature an area known as the Sinjoh Ruins, conceptualized as a site where the two ancient cultures of the Sinnoh and Johto regions meet. This area is only accessible by satisfying the following conditions:

Following a cutscene, the player will be warped to the snowy Sinjoh Ruins

From here, the player will then encounter Cynthia in a cabin, who guides the player to a ruined temple. Inside is the Mystri Stage, which bares a glyph of a triangle, encompassed by concentric cirlces, and surrounded by smaller circles at the corners.. Cynthia explains that three of the smaller circles represent the legendary Pokémon Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina. The player is instructed to select one of them before bringing Arceus to the center of the stage. Once Arceus takes its place on the stage, Unown surround it, and an infamous video begins to play which shows Arceus and its glyph overlaid on top of stock photographs of the real world. These have all been identified as coming from Datacraft Sozaijiten. However, there exist eight additional stock photos in the files of final versions of the games that went unused; owing to recent developments, it has also been discovered that in earlier builds of the games, there are even more additional photographs that were removed in later builds. All of these photos are thus unused content.

As indicated on The Cutting Room Floor, these extra images do not come from Sozaijiten, and are as-of-yet unsourced. I have managed to track down what I thought were possible origins for some of these; some of them are currently being sold on the stock photo website Bigstock (formerly BigStockPhoto and currently owned by Shutterstock). I was able to confirm, however, that these were not uploaded to the Bigstock site until well into the 2010s. Though the site has been around since 2004, this discrepancy makes Bigstock an impossible source unless they were taken down at one point and reuploaded. I will catalog their current availability here, and will update if I find the true origin of these images. It is likely that many originated on Shutterstock, on which I have found several matches, and were later hosted on Bigstock as well. I have also found matches on the Japanese Adobe Stock site. So the images could have just been grabbed from a variety of sources, or maybe they're all just hosted in scattered places nowadays. It's hard to say. I'll catalog their availability on all platforms. Details are below.

In-game File Name	Version of Game Present	Photo from Game	Current Source	Full Photo Name	Sourced Image ID Link
culture01	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
culture02	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
culture03	VER20090602			"Car engine part - Close up image of an internal combustion engine."	1452703 Link
culture04	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
culture05	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
culture06	VER20090602			電柱と空	8434065 Link
culture07	VER20090602			"Close-up of a computer microchip from a HDD"	1874381 Link
culture08	VER20090602			"A photo inside a library"	13576631 Link
disaster01	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
disaster02	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
disaster03	VER20090602 & Final			"A Bolt Out of the Blue" or "shot of lightning bolt surrounded by brilliant blue glow"	533219 Link
disaster04	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
disaster05	VER20090602			View from space. Photo of 8k ultra realistic raging storm at sea from space. Weather background. A satellite view of a hurricane. View from outer space. Elements of this image furnished by NASA	2568666659 Link Link
micro01	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
micro02	VER20090602			"Blood Cells" or "3d rendering of blood cells"	662385 (Bigstock) & 1415921 (Shutterstock) Link (Bigstock) & Link (Shutterstock)
nature01	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature02	VER20090602		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature03	VER20090602 & Final		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature04	VER20090602 & Final			"Misty Forest" or "through the trees - hazy forest morning"	229301 Link
nature05	VER20090602 & Final		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature06	VER20090602 & Final		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature07	VER20090602 & Final		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link
nature08	VER20090602 & Final		[Not yet found]	[Not yet found]	[Not yet found] Link

The official Twitter account for the cellphone game Pikmin Bloom regularly shares promotional images for upcoming events. These feature models of the Pikmin transposed onto real-world photos. I suspected these were also stock photos rather than bespoke images. So far, I've found matches for them on Shutterstock and Alarmy, and I believe this to be where they originated. Details below.

Context	Promotional Image	Original Source Image	Original Photo Description	Sourced Image ID Link
Debut of Fairy Lights Decor Pikmin on 12.3.2023			glowing boho led jars in the garden	2295571823 Link
Debut of Snow Decor Pikmin on 12.23.2023			A small melting snowman in a clearing with melting snow and sun spots. The coming of spring. Warming.	2259994909 Link
Debut of Bunny Egg Decor Pikmin on 3.24.2024			Happy Easter. Congratulatory easter background. Easter eggs and flowers. Background with copy space. Selective focus.	1661009776 Link (Original) 326043503 Link (Variation)
3 Billion Flowers Planted during Earth Day Event on 4.23.2024			Many acorns on green moss in forest, space for text	2217651631 Link
6 Billion Flowers Planted during Earth Day Event on 4.25.2024			Two large white seashells on the beach on a sunny day. Selective focus on the near seashell, the background is blurred.	2078681092 Link
Night of the Harvest Full Moon (Jugoya) 9.16.2024			viewing the moon	308354621 Link
Introduction of Taco Decor Pikmin 12.16.2024			Delicious tacos with meat and vegetables on light gray marble table against brick wall, closeup. Space for text	2456356673 Link
Introduction of Chocolate Decor Pikmin 1.23.2025			Tasty chocolate candies with hazelnuts on table	2087503858 Link
Introduction of Rio Carnival Decor Pikmin 2.19.2025			Carnival Party - Venetian Mask On Yellow Satin With Shiny Streamers On Abstract Defocused Bokeh Lights	2256242469 Link
Introduction of Pasta Decor Pikmin 4.10.2025			Pasta spaghetti bolognese with minced beef sauce, tomatoes, parmesan cheese and fresh basil in a plate	2512101679 Link
Introduction of Earth Day Party Walk Event 4.17.2025			Gardeners hands planting flowers in the garden, close up photo	639557683 Link
Introduction of Kimchi Decor Pikmin 5.1.2025			Kimchi cabbage eating by chopsticks, Korean homemade fermented side dish food	2162626619 Link

General Pikmin wallpaper images. Some of these little vignettes were initially made available in various regions starting in June 2023 (leading up to and following the release of Pikmin 4) before being shared on Nintendo's Japanese "Pikmin Garden" website as calendar-less desktop wallpapers with multiple size formats in summer 2024, along with three brand new images. Calendar-less versions might have been shared prior to that on European sites. I'm not quite sure. They are currently accessible as rewards on My Nintendo.

Like the Pikmin Bloom promotional images, these also utilize stock photos from Shutterstock; however, some of the more later wallpapers are also credited to one "Katsuhiro Ohkuchi," who appears to be a freelance photographer and describes his miniature landscapes photos thusly: "In weeds, on moss, in ditches, etc. The small world hides a strange and beautiful landscape. I have been fascinated by this world and have been photographing it for 10 years. I hope you will enjoy the Miniature Size Landscape. No 3DCG was used at all. Super low angle shots of the world as seen by a 1-inch tall dwarf." Wow! These have also started trickling out on the awesome Nintendo calendar application for cellphones, "Nintendo Today!" (with that all-important exclamation point). I believe the 13 calendar images were released first, once a month, followed by two more wallpapers when they were shared on the Japanese Pikmin Garden site in summer 2024. Two additional ones were then released for the 2024 autumn season, two more for winter 2024, and at the start of April 2025, another two spring-themed ones were made available.

For the images that were originally shared as calendars, I'll note which month they correspond to. For the later images, I'll note the season in which they were released.

Context	Promotional Image	Original Source Image	Original Photo Description	Sourced Image ID Link
June 2023 (Rose)			red beautiful roses climbing on a decorative fence	665593021 Link
December 2023 (Poinsettia)			Beautiful poinsettia on blurred background. Traditional Christmas flower	1268047645 Link
March 2024 (Hyacinth)			Blue Hyacinth flowers macro photography with blur background in Floriculture Experiment Center of Taipei, Taiwan.	1014245152 Link
June 2024 (Peony)			Pink peony flower against the rays of the setting sun on a summer day.	1551977720 Link
Winter 2024-2025 Scene			I used a shovel to dig a path through the snow-covered park.In the foreground are my footprints.In the back you can see the park's playground equipment.The snow wall is about 10cm high.	Photo from Katsuhiro Ohkuchi Link

Source image matches for assets used in Tetris DS, mostly as backgrounds during gameplay. Game screenshots were taken from the ever-reliable Super Mario Wiki and from NintendoComplete's playthrough on YouTube. By the way, there is a serious case to be made for this being the best Tetris game ever.

Context	In-media Image	Original Image Source	Volume || Image ID
Puzzle Mode			Sozaijiten Vol. 61: Cooking Scenes - Kitchen Edition CM055

Standard Mode			Sozaijiten Vol. 59: Earth & Sky CK066; may also be CK067

Standard Mode			Sozaijiten Vol. 75: New York || DB040
Mission Mode			Sozaijiten Vol. 102: Lightning, Eruption, Rainbow || EE029

Source image matches for Promise Mascot Agency, corresponding mostly to items. I've found the originals for these on Pixabay, and assume all the majority of item images comes from there.

Context	In-media Image	Original Image Source	Original Photo Description	Author Link
Glistening Electrolyte Drink			Water, Bottle, Bottle of water image. Free for use.	ds_30 Link
Refreshing Bottled Green Tea			Green tea, Lung ching, Teacup image. Free for use.	mirkostoedter Link
Stunning Homemade Ekiben			Lunch box, Japanese meal, Japanese food image. Free for use.	takedahrs Link
Delicious Fish Jerky			Beef, Meat, Dry aged meat image. Free for use.	Evilowl Link
Sweetest Ramune			Drink, Soda, Ramune image. Free for use.	subarasikiai Link
Strong Daikon Plant			Radish, White, Raphanus image. Free for use.	Gina_Janosch Link

The original soundtracks in the Dragon Quest games have rarely utlilzed anything beyond MIDI music, as mandated by longtime series composer Koichi Sugiyama; when he was still alive, the fullblown, orchestral renditions of his compositions were largely reserved for live performances and recordings. That's one reason it was so notable that an orchestral soundtrack option was included with the Nintendo Switch release of DRAGON QUEST XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition (wow, what a mouthful...). All eleven mainline entries in the Dragon Quest series have seen symphonic suite album releases, lavishly performed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. There was also an earlier 10-disc symphonic collection of the first nine mainline entires released for the 25th anniversary of the series. The album packaging themselves feature what appear to be stock photos from a smattering of sources, often with minor edits.

Album Disc	Album Image	Original Image Source	Description	Author Link
Dragon Quest 25th Anniversary Symphonic Suite Disc 10: Ending~ME			[No description]	Paisagem_0012 Link
Dragon Quest VIII Symphonic Suite			Uses "A Scenic Creek" by Carson Ganci, which is sold as a print by many sources today.	Carson Ganci/Design Pics

Random image matches. I'll add to this section as I find them. If I find multiple matches in one piece of media I'll make it its own category!

Context	In-media Image	Original Image Source	Volume || Image ID
Pokémon Generations Episode 9: The Scoop Seen about 28 seconds into the video. The moon is flipped 180 degrees. This is an awesome Pokémon short by the way...			Sozaijiten Vol. 21: Space & Planets SV116
FINAL FANTASY IV (3D Remake) Used for scene depicting the "True Moon" and "Red Moon"			Sozaijiten Vol. 21: Space & Planets SV027

Making a note of this here because I'm not sure where else to do so. Might find a better spot on the site at some point. This is also such an obscure thing I don't even know how/where to share it. The Japanese PlayStation demo disc series "Play-Play" sometimes featured original games (as seen in Vols. 5 & 6, possibly later installments as well). A whimsical song accompanied these games which featured various interjections and screeches. The song can be listened to below. The "achoo" sound heard right at the start and at 57 seconds is a sample taken from the first disc set of the Gu-Mantan series, which were Japanese CD-ROM sets featuring royalty-free samplings of various media, including clip art, photo, fonts, and sounds. The sample in question is labeled as "SND024," and "アチョー" within the program menus (meaning "achoo," so it's basically meant to be a sneeze sound). I stumbled across this completely randomly but thought I'd document it. I've shared it with the "VGM & Other Instrument Sources" community, which is trying to catalog one billion different musical sound fonts at a time and is also engaged in a similar number of ongoing conversations. The majority of their information is kept in a Discord server and innumerable private spreadsheets. I did learn that the sound was possibly made with the Roland SC-55 sound module. Regardless, there's no real place to properly make note of this as of yet because it's pretty insignificant. It's of course also possible this has been discovered already, but I have found almost zero information about the "Play-Play Original Game" online to begin with, including the Japanese side of things. I am guessing the other samples contained within the song are on alternate Gu-Mantan discs.

Some day when I figure out how to embed audio files I will include the sample in question!!!

An attempt at collating information about the various official Nintendo microsites and web games that have been produced over the years, many of which have been taken offline or are largely non-functional due to Adobe Flash integration. The microsites were often part of a brand's larger webpage and were meant to provide detailed information about one particular release. The browser games worked as simple interactive companions to upcoming titles. I find these small little bespoke microsites and digital doohickeys particularly interesting, and wish that there was still more of a place for them online today. It has been noted by many that the Japanese side of Nintendo (or NCL, as the Nintendoheads say, meaning Nintendo Co. Ltd, which is NOT to be confused with LCN, AKA La Cosa Nostra) has been surprisingly dilligent in maintaining their older websites, even those for games and products that came out decades ago. Most of the web games functioned by way of Flash, though some made use of Shockwave or HTML as well, and as such, those that are still discoverable via the internet may be missing core functions. Many of these have been archived via Flashpoint and are both discoverable, and oftentimes completely usable, within their database. As such this is basically my attempt at compiling a list of all of them in one public place, along with bits of information and screenshots pulled from my own sessions with them.

A pretty comprehensive video playlist looking at a lot of the web games themselves exists here; I have next to no documentation elsewhere, however, for the microsites, so I'd like to focus on sharing information about them first and foremost. I am not sure how to tell who backed up each item on Flashpoint, but if I figure it out I'll amend with that credit. I would also like to make little videos showcasing and touring these sites at some point, but that's a future project.

Microsites

Name	Original "Release" Date	Description	Screenshot
Art Style: Aquite Microsite (Europe)	2009	Description
Baten Kaitos II バテン・カイトスII　始まりの翼と神々の嗣子 (Japan)	2003	Original Description: "このサイトは「バテン・カイトスII　始まりの翼と神々の嗣子」のオフィシャルサイトです"
Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix Microsite	2005	According to the archive: "The only files that is saved is the main swf. The rest of the files are lost."
Disaster: Day of Crisis -ディザスター デイ オブ クライシス- Microsite (Japan)	2008	Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉ用ソフト『ディザスター デイ オブ クライシス』の公式サイトです。"
Disney Sing It: High School Musical 3: Senior Year Microsite (Australia)	2008	According to the archive: "The competition page is from the WayBack Machine, as it was removed from the live web by the time I archived it, and does not display correctly. Outside of the two missing images above, no other assets are loaded." Original Description: "The Official Nintendo Australia web page with games, previews, contests, and consoles."
Donkey Kong Country 2 GBA Microsite (Europe)	2004	From the archivist: "The English version is from my personal archive, which was made when the original website was still up. Other languages, and dkcountry2/index.html are from another archive posted on the DKC Atlas forums. As for the DKC Atlas archives, I removed the comments and changes made by HTTrack."
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat ドンキーコングジャングルビート (Japan)	2004	According to the Flashpoint archive: "Video files have been moved to an Extras folder."
Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie Microsite (United Kingdom)	2011	N/A
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies Microsite	2009	N/A
Endless Ocean 2: Adventures of the Deep Microsite (Europe)	2009	N/A
Eternal Darkness エターナルダークネス　招かれた１３人 (Japan)	2002	According to the archive: "Downloadable video files have been moved to the Extras folder. Some screenshot pages were sourced from the Wayback Machine."
Excite Truck エキサイトトラック (Japan)	2007	Original Description: "Ｗｉｉ用ソフト「エキサイトトラック」の公式サイトです"
Face Training Microsite (South Africa)	2010	N/A
Fire Emblem ファイアーエムブレム　暁の女神	2007	Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn Microsite (JP). Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉ用ソフト『ファイアーエムブレム 暁の女神』の公式サイトです。"
GiFTPiA ギフトピア	2003
Go Vacation Microsite	2011	According to the Flashpoint archive: "The first video in the 'Ways to Play' section is unavailable."
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn Microsite (South Africa)	2010
Harvest Moon DS: Island of Happiness Microsite	2007
Inazuma Eleven 2: FireStorm/Blizzard Microsite	2012
Kirby 30th Anniversary	1/12/2022		Screenshot
Kirby Super Star Ultra Microsite	2009
Kirby's Epic Yarn Microsite	2011	According to the Flashpoint archive: "Running this site in Flash Player will not allow you to download wallpapers."
Kirby Mass Attack Microsite	2011		Screenshot
Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland Microsite	2003		Screenshot
Last Window: The Secret of Cape West Microsite	8/21/2010		Screenshot
Luigi Mansion 2 ルイージマンション２	2013	According to the Flashpoint archive: "Some videos are unavailable due to requiring access to a dead RTMP server."	Screenshot
Luigi's Mansion 2 Microsite (Hong Kong)	7/26/2013	According to the Flashpoint archive: "The following assets are missing from both the live web and WayBack Machine, and had to be replaced with placeholder assets to prevent Flash Player from crashing: http://www.nintendo.com.hk/luigis_mansion2/adventure/images/stage1.f4v http://www.nintendo.com.hk/luigis_mansion2/adventure/images/stage2.f4v http://www.nintendo.com.hk/luigis_mansion2/adventure/images/stage3.f4v http://www.nintendo.com.hk/luigis_mansion2/adventure/images/stage4.f4v Outside of those 4 assets, the only other missing asset is this one which doesn't crash Flash Player: http://www.nintendo.com.hk/luigis_mansion2/movie/images/movie_3.mp4" Original Description: "Nintendo 3DS專屬軟體『路易吉洋樓2』官方網站"	Screenshot
Make 10: A Journey of Numbers Microsite	2008		Screenshot
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time Microsite (Australia)	Unknown	According to the Flashpoint archive: "The downloadable "clock for Win XP" is available in Extras."
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time Microsite (Japan)	2009		Screenshot
Mario Kart DS Microsite	2005	According to the Flashpoint archive: "The extras folder contains buddy icons and a screensaver for PC and Mac."	Screenshot
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Microsite	Unknown
Mario Party 6 Microsite	Unknown		Screenshot
Mario Party 8 Microsite	7/22/2007	From the Flashpoint archive: "Hacked to look for more of the microsite's assets from the /swf directory in order to remove the need to move them. ES: Hackeado para buscar más activos del micrositio desde el directorio /swf con el fin de eliminar la necesidad de moverlos. FR: Piraté pour rechercher d'autres éléments du microsite dans le répertoire /swf afin de ne pas avoir à les déplacer."	Screenshot
Mario Party DS Microsite	2007	According to the Flashpoint archive: "All of the wallpapers are included in the extras folder."	Screenshot
Mario Party DS Microsite (Europe)	2009		Screenshot
Mario Sports Mix Microsite (Europe)	2011	Original Description: "The official UK site for the Mario Sports Mix game from Nintendo for Wii, with videos and trailers! This sports game lets you enjoy playing Basketball, Hockey, Dodgeball and Volleyball as your favourite Mario, Square-Enix or Mii characters! Play at home and online in crazy multiplayer competitions!"	Screenshot
Mario Sports Mix マリオスポーツミックス	20010	Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉソフト『MARIO SPORTS MIX』の公式サイトです。"	Screenshot
Mario Strikers Charged マリオストライカーズ　チャージド	2007	Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉ用ソフト『マリオストライカーズ　チャージド』の公式サイトです。"	Screenshot
Mario Super Sluggers Microsite	2008	According to the Flashpoint archive: "Some of the files for the Spanish and French versions were borrow from the English version. The Spanish version is missing a little bit of text from the how to play section. The characters section in all versions can get a little buggy when you try to go back to the previous character that you just selected. All three wallpapers are included in the extras folder."	Screenshot
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! Microsite	2011		Screenshot
Metroid Prime 2: Dark Echoes Ｗｉｉであそぶ メトロイドプライム２ ダークエコーズ	2009	Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉ用ソフト『メトロイドプライム２ ダークエコーズ』の公式サイトです。"	Screenshot
Metroid Prime Trilogy Microsite	2009		Screenshot
Metroid Prime Ｗｉｉであそぶ メトロイドプライム	2009	Original Description: "このサイトはＷｉｉ用ソフト『Ｗｉｉであそぶ メトロイドプライム』の公式サイトです。"	Screenshot
Metroid: Zero Mission Microsite (Japan)	2009	According to the Flashpoint archive: "The Power Bomb video seems to be corrupt, both on the live web and the WayBack Machine" Original Description: "METROID ZERO MISSION OFFICIAL SITE"	Screenshot
Metroid: Other M Microsite	2010		Screenshot
Mother 1+2 Microsite (Japan)	2003		Screenshot
Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir Microsite	2008		Screenshot
NDCube Website (2005)	2005	Not really a microsite, but still worth including here.	Screenshot
NES Classics Microsite (United Kingdom)	2004	Made in conjunction with Cartoon Network. According to the Flashpoint archive: "The audio01.swf and wallpapers are lost Entering the code will redirect to a dead link."
New Super Mario Bros. 2 Microsite (Japan)	7/28/2012	According to the Flashpoint archive: "If the front page gets stuck on a white screen, try refreshing. This happens on the live web too, so it's not specific to the archive." Original Description: "ニンテンドー3DS専用ソフト『New スーパーマリオブラザーズ ２』の公式サイトです。"	Screenshot
New Super Mario Bros. Official Site	2006
New Super Mario Bros. Wii Microsite	2009	According to the archive: "Wallpapers have been moved to the Extras folder."
New Super Mario Bros. iQue Microsite	Unknown
Nintendo DS Lite Microsite (Europe)	5/23/2006
Nintendo DS Lite System Info	Unknown	According to the archive: "Only the english version of the site is archived, and the original is no longer online and excluded from the WayBack Machine."
Nintendo DS Microsite (Hong Kong)	6/15/2005
Nintendo DS System Info	Unknown
Nintendo DSi Microsite (Australia)	4/9/2009	According to the archive: "Some assets are missing, as they were missing from the live web at the time of archival. Unfortunately the WayBack Machine did not have these assets either. However, the flash content itself is entirely functional." Original Description: "The Official Nintendo Australia web page with games, previews, contests, and consoles."
Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP and Game Boy Micro System Info	Unknown
Nintendo GameCube System Info	Unknown
Nintendo Presents Style Boutique Microsite (South Africa)	2008
Nintendo Wii System Info	Unknown
nintendogs iQue Microsite	12/15/2009	Original Description: "《任天狗狗》的官方主页。悠闲自在地与小狗们亲近；抚摸、玩耍并带它散步。呼唤它们的名字，它们就会飞奔过来。"
Photo Dojo Microsite	2010	According to the archive: "Most of the extras in the "Sensei's Corner" section of the site are lost."
Pokémon Battle Revolution ポケモンバトルレボリューション (Japan)	2006	Original Description: "Wii用ソフト「ポケモンバトルレボリューション」の公式サイトです"

Of course I had to check out this CD containing "approximately 100 images in .jpg format" documenting the groundbreaking ceremony for the Village of McFarland, Wisconsin's public library! This is from an event commemorating the E.D. Locke Public Library's new location, which was established in 1997. The momentous ocassion took place on March 31, 2005, which was seemingly a positively jovial afternoon in the village. Just sort of checked this one out "on a lark" because I love hyper-local mementos like this. It was brought all the way from the eponymous McFarland Public Library to my own local library after I placed an enthusiastic hold on the item. Naturally, I don't think the photos are really hosted elsewhere, so if you see your meemaw or pep-pep in one of the images, feel free to save! Photo collection can also be viewed here.

Why ANOTHER entry on the Village of McFarland? Well, it just seems like they have been particularly good at documenting their events (and making them available through the library system). I have zero connection to McFarland, but I still find this sort of local history fascinating. This is a photo collection of the village's sesquicentennial (150 year) celebrations from July 2, 2006. Now, at the end of 2024, they're nearing their demisemiseptcentennial! Madness!!! The photo collection can also be viewed and downloaded here. You can also find included in the files a cute slideshow version of all the photos that had been put together.

An interactive multimedia CD-ROM designed for new employees of the Schering-Plough Corporation, which acquired Key Pharmaceuticals in 1986. The software appears to be from 2001. Features orientation modules laid out amongst a digital campus setting. Key points of interest include: the information center, auditorium, dining hall, library, student union, and stadium. In the auditorium, you can view a 50-slide presentation on the thoroughly fascinating topic of Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis; the host also promises a reward of a code that can be redeemed for a free Omaha Steaks dinner, shipped directly to your doorstep courtesy of Schering/Key. My unique code for the dining hall was "ANTIHISTAMINE," but I unfortunately lacked the necessary order form to fill out and fax over to Schering/Key/Omaha Steaks to redeem my yummy meal. (However, further review has revealed that you can print an order form from within the software itself... Happy day!). You can choose from Top Sirloins, Lemon Terragon Chicken Breast, Salmon Steaks, or Gourmet Burgers. In the library, you can read about different types of Claritin. A wonderful gentleman greets you at the gates of the school, and grants you access to the wonders within. The student union has various notices to review about meetings and other information pertinent to Schering/Key faithful. Lastly, the stadium includes a track runner quiz game; the quicker you answer the questions the faster your runner goes. I haven't seen mention of this software anywhere else online. I've uploaded all the files on the disc to the Internet Archive here.

Photos documenting construction and initial fish inhabitants of the Phyllis Donner Aquarium at the Marathon County Public Library in Wausau, WI in 2012. Another piece of northcentral Wisconsin local history.

From director Ralph Illick:

"Near the end of 2011 we converted the former children’s staff room into an aquarium-themed story time room. Our staff members Kitty Roesler and Deb Fecteau did the artwork and painting. I realized when the work was completed we had a perfect opportunity to develop a living natural science exhibit if we added a marine aquarium. I felt it would be a perfect way to stimulate young minds to have an active interest in natural science. A recent substantial donation to the library from the late Miss Phyllis Donner could be appropriated for this purpose, but I wanted to find community partners to make the project sustainable in the long run, so that it would be enjoyed by generations of children and their parents for years to come.

I contacted Acrylic Tank Manufacturing in Las Vegas, known for their popular television show about aquariums called “Tanked!” I discussed the idea with ATM Chief Operating Officer Brett Raymer, and he suggested a living reef exhibit that would offer a full spectrum of marine wildlife to observe. When we agreed to move forward with the project, ATM also generously agreed to provide the initial marine corals and livestock for the aquarium.

When I discussed the project with Connie Conrad at the Wausau Region Chamber of Commerce, she suggested that I contact Mark Matthiae, owner of Crystal Finishing Systems, and see if they could help with the construction of the aquarium frame. Mark generously agreed to not only provide the frame, but also to fabricate a cover for the frame with built-in bleachers for children to use for viewing the aquarium. With the help of CFS and engineer Greg Ashton, the beautiful and highly functional frame and cover were added.

Meanwhile, Library Board Vice President Audrey Ascher contacted freight dispatcher Holly Westaby at Kolbe and Kolbe Millwork, and Kolbe generously agreed to deliver the tank from Las Vegas upon completion by ATM.

About one year after I conceived the idea, we completed the project. We would never have been able to do so without the efforts of those mentioned above, and indeed many others who helped along the way.

Our Friends of the Marathon County Public Library and the Marathon County Public Library Foundation have very kindly agreed to share the costs of the ongoing maintenance required to keep this extraordinary exhibit available to the community, and we thank them very much for that. Both organizations provide so much to support the library, and we are forever indebted to their members for their tireless efforts.

In closing, I would offer my personal thanks to everyone who helped us in making this project a reality. I am especially grateful to the late Miss Phyllis Donner for her gift to the library. Her generosity, and that of everyone who helped us, is a true testament to the spirit of community and civic engagement that has been the foundation of Wausau and Central Wisconsin. I’m honored to have worked with each person who was a part of this wonderful living science exhibit, and I hope it will be cherished for years to come by the community."

I've uploaded all the files on the disc to the Internet Archive here.

A "musical salute" and tribute album to the state of Wisconsin and all its glory, produced by Ray Kelley, who may or may not be the same Raymond Kelley credited with performing as a cellist in musical numbers featured on The Simpsons and Family Guy. It cannot be understated how insanely good this album is; the high production, big band grandeur is just simply... awesome. The subtitle "Musical Adventures in Wisconsin" is more than appropriate. I highly recommend you give it a listen.

Released in 1999 as part of the "Sound On States" initiative and produced with the cooperation of the Wisconsin Department of Tourism and the Wisconsin Association of Convention & Visitors Bureaus (with Convention cheekily misspelled on the back of the jewel case as "Converntion), it truly does whisk you along on "Musical Adventures in Wisconsin." The packaging is elegant, stylish, and classy. The rear promises a "24-page insert, 50 photos, 3 maps, facts, fun, festivals, lore, & more," and on those fronts it does not fail to deliver in even a single regard.

As with many treasures from yesteryear, I discovered it during my mandatory visit to AbleLight Thrift Shop in Wausau, Wisconsin during a recent trip up north. The store, now taking roost in a new location on the outskirts of town, continues to provide a heaping helping of treasures, with Mr. Kelley's aural feast among the most valuable of loot.

I've seen that the music itself is readily available on various streaming platforms, made available by Mr. Kelley himself or some aspect of his estate. I encourage everyone on Earth to give it an immediate listen and am linking it here. I have not, however, seen the intricate booklet included with the release documented or archived anywhere online. Soon I aim to scan the contents and upload it for ease of viewing.

Just a couple photos of some stylish mugs that work great for holding your morning sludge. They're for that real dirt. These are, of course, branded with iconography from Midwest home improvement retail giant Menards, of which I am a major fan. Despite being founded and named after John Menard Jr., the "Menards" store name lacks a possessive apostrophe for some reason. Please do not forget this factoid! Anyways, I have only seen photos of these mugs shared online on Mercari (and listings can probably be found on eBay as well, I'm sure). I just wanted to share and host my own pics to document them. I only have four, but they're among my favorites and all receive regular use. I'm assuming that the rightmost one, bearing the modern Menards logo, is the one that was most recently produced. I don't know when exactly each one would have been sold; I only know they are from bygone Menards eras. And again, like with many great secondhand Wisconsin goodies, the mugs were dug up in the AbleLight Thrift Shop in Wausau, three about a year and a half ago in their old location (which formerly housed Bethesda Thrift Shop -- I've never been clear if AbleLight is the same business under a rebrand or an entirely different entity). The one with blue graphics I found during a more recent trip to the same business, but in a new location. So, that's a long way of saying: here are a handful of photos of coffee mugs I really like. Someday I'd maybe even like to 3D scan them. Enjoy!

Mug Group

Blue Mug Dedicated to Service & Quality	Tool Silhouette Mug My favorite!	Red Mug Est. 1960	Modern-ish Mug Same classic slogan

Members of the "Lost Media community" have been looking to digitally preserve the manga series Magical Pokémon Journey for a number of years now. It's currently unavailable for purchase or complete viewing anywhere online. I have my own issues with haphazardly labeling things as "lost media" when they're really just "uncommon," but all the same there's no harm in working to make the series more readily available online. I was lucky enough to find some volumes floating around in my local libary system a couple months ago. After I placed my holds on them, however, I noticed that the copies were actually listed as lost. So for a while nothing really came of my attempt. Fortunately, they must have found some of their copies recently, as my hold on "The Pokémon-Watcher's Diary," which includes chapters 15 and 16 of the series, ended up getting fulfilled. I checked it out, did an amateur scan job, and uploaded it to the Internet Archive, which can be viewed below. Please enjoy! I think it's a really cute series.