THE LIBRARY
Collector guides, cover censuses, and edition answers, documented issue by issue. Every page answers one specific question, completely.
LANGRISSER
14 shelves
The Langrisser Gallery
The Langrisser boxes, 1991 to 2020: Warsong, the American cover, the Mega Drive and Saturn originals carrying Satoshi Urushihara’s art, and the 2019 remake’s new…
The History of Langrisser
From a 1987 PC strategy game to a 2019 phone revival: the history of Langrisser, Masaya and Career Soft’s tactical RPG series, Warsong to Langrisser Mobile.
What Is Warsong, the American Langrisser?
Warsong is Langrisser I renamed: Treco’s 1990s Genesis version, with a new title, a new cover, renamed heroes, and the sword itself renamed. What changed, and…
How Many Langrisser Games Are There?
Five numbered Langrisser games, plus Millennium, a 3DS revival, a cancelled MMO, five compilations, and a mobile game that outlived them all: the complete…
Why Can You Join the Empire in Der Langrisser?
Der Langrisser, the 1995 Super Famicom remake of Langrisser II, lets Erwin defect to the Empire, betray it, or serve the darkness: the four paths, explained.
What Are Langrisser III, IV and V?
Langrisser III, IV, and V: the Saturn trilogy Japan kept. A prequel about the sword’s making, a branching sequel with three paths, and The End of Legend.
How Do Langrisser’s Commanders and Classes Work?
Langrisser’s signature system: commanders who hire armies, command radii, the affinity web, and the branching class trees with their hidden top classes, explained.
Langrisser vs. Fire Emblem: What Is the Difference?
Fire Emblem gives you heroes; Langrisser gives you officers and armies. Scale, death, branching stories, and two very different Western histories, compared.
Who Is Satoshi Urushihara?
Satoshi Urushihara (born 1966): the Toei animator who became Langrisser’s character designer, defined its glossy look, published its art books, and returned for…
What Is Langrisser: Dramatic Edition?
Langrisser: Dramatic Edition (Saturn, 1998) is the remake set of the first two games, with a new Imperial branch. Plus the PlayStation set, the Tribute box, and…
Why Does the Langrisser I & II Remake Have Two Art Styles?
The 2019 Langrisser I & II remake redrew everyone with Ryo Nagi, then added Classic Mode to restore Satoshi Urushihara’s art. The collector question, answered.
What Is Langrisser Mobile?
Langrisser Mobile (2018): Zlongame’s licensed revival that kept the commander system, gathered every hero in the series, and outlived the classic games. The…
What Strategy Guides Were Published for Langrisser?
Japan published at least seventeen official Langrisser guide books: the Der Langrisser branching atlas, five books for Langrisser IV alone, and none in English.…
Collecting Langrisser
Collecting Langrisser in 2026: Warsong prices as dated history, the Tribute box and its telephone card, the holographic Langrisser III, fan translations as keys,…
LORD OF THE RINGS
17 shelves
What Lord of the Rings video games are there?
28 major LOTR releases, across more than 40 years.
Why were there two different Fellowship games in 2002?
Because the book rights and the film rights belonged to two different companies.
What is the Nemesis system, and why did Warner Bros. patent it?
It is a system that remembers you, and Warner Bros. patented it: US Patent No. 10,926,179, effective February 23, 2021.
What is The Third Age, the Lord of the Rings RPG that follows the films?
It is EA's turn-based RPG about a second fellowship walking in the first one's footsteps.
Why can't you buy The Battle for Middle-earth anymore?
Because EA no longer holds the license that made the game legal to sell.
What happened to The White Council, the cancelled Lord of the Rings RPG?
It was shelved in 2007 and never came back. Officially a hiatus, in reality the end.
Why is Gollum (2023) considered one of the worst games of its year?
Because the record says so: Metacritic ranked it the worst game of 2023, and its developer apologised, then closed its development division.
What is the oldest Lord of the Rings video game?
The Hobbit, from 1982.
Why does LEGO The Hobbit end before the third film?
The ending was announced as DLC, and the DLC never came.
What made The Return of the King (2003) the best-reviewed of EA's film games?
First, the claim checks out on the numbers. Then, the reasons are documented just as clearly.
Why did The Lord of the Rings Online survive when other licensed MMOs died?
It survived by changing how it charged, and by never stopping.
What is War in the North, the M-rated Lord of the Rings game?
It is the first M rated Lord of the Rings game: a 2011 three player co-op action RPG about a second fellowship fighting in the north.
Why did Interplay's Lord of the Rings trilogy never finish?
Nobody documented why. That is the honest answer.
What is Return to Moria, the dwarven crafting game?
It is a co-operative survival game about dwarves rebuilding Khazad-dum after Sauron.
How did Shadow of War's microtransactions change after launch?
They were removed completely: announced April 3, 2018, Gold sales ended May 8, and the Market closed on July 17, 2018.
LUNAR
17 shelves
The Lunar Gallery
Every Lunar game documented in release order: The Silver Star and Eternal Blue on Mega-CD, the Saturn and PlayStation remakes, Walking School, Magic School,…
What is Lunar: The Silver Star?
Lunar: The Silver Star (1992): Game Arts and Studio Alex's Mega-CD RPG of Alex, Luna, and the Dragonmaster trials, designed around anime cutscenes, voice acting,…
The History of Lunar
The history of the Lunar series from the 1992 Mega-CD original through Eternal Blue, the Saturn and PlayStation remakes, the handheld years, and the 2025…
Who made Lunar?
Who made Lunar: Game Arts, Studio Alex under Kazunari Tomi, scenario writer Kei Shigema, producer Yoichi Miyaji, designer Toshiyuki Kubooka, and composer…
Who is Toshiyuki Kubooka?
Toshiyuki Kubooka: Lunar's character designer and event-movie director, from Gainax's Gunbuster and Nadia to the Mega-CD original, the Gonzo-animated remake, and…
How were Lunar's anime cutscenes made?
How Lunar's anime cutscenes were made: Kubooka's storyboards and still-frame sequences on Mega-CD, Studio Gonzo's fifty minutes for the 1996 remake, Takeshi…
How many versions of Lunar: The Silver Star are there?
Every version of Lunar's first story: the 1992 Mega-CD original, Saturn Silver Star Story (1996) and MPEG edition (1997), PlayStation Complete (1998), Windows,…
What changed between The Silver Star and Silver Star Story?
The Silver Star (1992) versus Silver Star Story Complete (1996): Ghaleon's rewritten motive, Luna's larger role, visible enemies, the Vile Tribe, the Black…
What is Lunar: Eternal Blue?
Lunar: Eternal Blue (1994): the Mega-CD sequel set a thousand years after The Silver Star, introducing Hiro and Lucia, the goddess from the Blue Star, with some…
How many versions of Lunar: Eternal Blue are there?
Every version of Eternal Blue: the 1994 Mega-CD original, Saturn Eternal Blue Complete (1998), the PlayStation remake (1999 Japan, 2000 North America), and the…
Who was Working Designs?
Working Designs: Victor Ireland's California publisher of Lunar, its humor-forward translation philosophy, difficulty tinkering, translation notes, deluxe…
What came in the Lunar collector's editions?
Inside the Lunar collector's editions: Silver Star Story Complete's four discs, soundtrack, Making of, hardbound manual and cloth map; Eternal Blue Complete's…
What are Lunar: Walking School and Magic School Lunar!?
Lunar: Walking School (Game Gear, 1996) and Magic School Lunar! (Saturn, 1997): the Japan-only school gaiden, its three students, and the Saturn expansion with…
What are Lunar Legend and Lunar: Dragon Song?
Lunar Legend (GBA, 2002) and Lunar: Dragon Song (DS, 2005): the Ubisoft-era handhelds, a compressed Silver Star with a card game inside, and the prequel a…
What is the Lunar Remastered Collection?
The Lunar Remastered Collection (GungHo, April 18, 2025): both PlayStation remakes restored for Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and Steam, with a new English dub, Classic…
LUPIN III
23 shelves
The History of Lupin the Third
From a three-month manga commission in 1967 to seven television series, a Miyazaki classic, and a near-yearly run of TV specials: the documented history of Lupin…
The Lupin III Manga Gallery
The Lupin III manga as physical books: the Futabasha and Chuokoron-Shinsha Japanese editions, Tokyopop’s 2002–2004 English run, and Seven Seas’ hardcover…
What is the original Lupin III manga?
Monkey Punch’s 1967–1969 Lupin III: 94 chapters in Weekly Manga Action, a seinen comic far darker and wilder than the family-friendly anime that followed.
Who is Monkey Punch?
Kazuhiko Katō (1937–2019): the Hokkaidō artist who took a pen name he disliked for a three-month job and drew one of manga’s permanent characters.
How did Mad magazine shape Lupin III?
Mort Drucker’s line, Mad’s gag machinery, James Coburn’s face: the American comics DNA inside Monkey Punch’s Lupin III, documented.
Who are the Lupin III gang?
Lupin, Jigen, Goemon, Fujiko, and the Inspector: the five fixed points of Lupin III, how Monkey Punch built each one, and why they are not really a team.
Lupin the Third Part I: the green jacket series
Part I (1971–72): 23 episodes, a hard-boiled start, and the Miyazaki–Takahata takeover that softened Lupin and made him immortal.
Lupin the Third Part II: the red jacket series
Part II (1977–80): 155 episodes in the red jacket, Yuji Ohno’s theme, Miyazaki’s farewell episodes, and the series that conquered the world.
Lupin the Third Part III: the pink jacket series
Part III (1984–85): 50 episodes in pink, the most cartoonish Lupin ever made, and the era the franchise half-tried to forget.
Why does Lupin change jacket colors?
Green, red, pink, blue, and green again: what each of Lupin’s jacket colors actually marks, series by series, and why fans read tone from a wardrobe.
The Woman Called Fujiko Mine
The 2012 series that returned Lupin to Monkey Punch’s page: Sayo Yamamoto directing, Takeshi Koike designing, 13 episodes of the gang’s first meetings.
Lupin the Third Part IV: the Italian adventure
Part IV (2015): Lupin in Italy and San Marino, the blue jacket debut, a story-arc structure, and a premiere that happened in Italy before Japan.
Lupin the Third Part 5: the French homecoming
Part 5 (2018): 24 episodes set in France, the homeland of Arsène Lupin, with jacket-color homages woven into the season.
Lupin the Third Part 6: the fiftieth anniversary
Part 6 (2021–22): Sherlock Holmes, a green jacket restored, Kiyoshi Kobayashi’s farewell as Jigen after 52 years, and Lupin Zero.
The Castle of Cagliostro
Hayao Miyazaki’s 1979 feature debut: made in seven and a half months, a flop on release, and now the most beloved Lupin III film ever made.
