Where to Buy Japanese Games

"Where do I buy Japanese games if I live outside of Japan?" is one question I stumble across during my daily endeavor on YouTube. There are a plethora of online shops that specializes in not only the sale of Japanese games, but also games from other countries. While the majority of these shops are legit and safe, some just simply excel in terms of experience, price, speed and extras.

If you ask me what my recommendations are on where to buy Japanese games, I can help you weed out all the hundreds of shops and narrow it down to what I think are the three best ones in my experience.

Play-Asia
One of the most well known and largest supplier of Asian import games with heavy emphasis on Japanese titles. If the game exists in Japan, PlayAsia probably carries it in their inventory (disregarding adult titles). I've purchase nearly 99% of my Japanese games on PlayAsia and the experience has been satisfactory every time. Best yet, they tend to often ship games out earlier or on the release date, especially when you pre-order. They also give you $5 coupons every time you order. Like most import shops, they are located in Hong Kong, so expect up to 20 days for delivery. If you use their express EMS service however, you can get your games in as little as 3 days after shipment!

YESASIA
YesAsia is very similar to PlayAsia. In fact, even their names often times are mixed up. They are particularly favorable as they offer cheaper prices for new games compared to PlayAsia. Moreover, they offer free shipping. On the downside, they usually take a little longer to process and ship out orders and the prices on older games tends to be more expensive. You also don't get any free coupons with them.

eBay
While one may not think to look on eBay for Japanese games, the actual fact is that hundreds and thousands of international sellers are on there every day looking to sell Japanese toys and games. One of the biggest pros of using eBay instead of another outlet is the huge price flexibility. You can usually score a better deal on eBay than stores such as PlayAsia and YesAsia, and still get your games in an adequate amount of time. Regardless, because eBay is an anyone's marketplace, you need to carefully select the right seller with good feedback to transact with.

eBay Tip: When searching for Japanese version of games, try using the Japanese name instead (e.g. Shin Sangoku Musou instead of Dynasty Warriors).

After you have purchased your Japanese games, you may be wanting to get some yen to spend on DLC content from the Japanese Playstation store. PlayAsia and eBay both offer prepaid Japanese PSN cards that you can easily redeem for yen to spend on your PSN account. eBay usually have less inexpensive cards compared to PlayAsia.

I also recommend checking out Japan Codes. They have excellent prices for Japanese PSN cards and will always deliver your code within 24 hours after payment.