{"id":54671,"date":"2025-12-08T23:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=54671"},"modified":"2025-12-08T18:39:01","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T09:39:01","slug":"instead-of-modernizing-steinsgate-reboot-will-preserve-the-now-fading-legacy-of-2010s-otaku-slang-and-akihabara-culture-devs-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/instead-of-modernizing-steinsgate-reboot-will-preserve-the-now-fading-legacy-of-2010s-otaku-slang-and-akihabara-culture-devs-say\/","title":{"rendered":"Instead of modernizing, Steins;Gate Re:Boot will preserve the now fading legacy of 2010s otaku slang and Akihabara culture, devs say\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Although <strong>Steins;Gate Re:Boot<\/strong> features <a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/steinsgate-reboot-postponed-for-2026-new-artwork-and-gameplay-stills-revealed-more-details-coming-this-november\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">improved graphics<\/a>, fully re-recorded dialogue, and an expanded narrative that incorporates Steins;Gate Elite&#8217;s story and a <a href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/steinsgate-reboot-to-have-a-brand-new-ending-producer-reveals\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">brand-new ending<\/a>, it won\u2019t be modernizing any nuances in its language and atmosphere, remaining heavily rooted in 2010s Japanese otaku culture. While the devs at Mages initially wanted to update the reboot for modern audiences, they ultimately decided to keep the now \u201cdated\u201d elements as they originally were.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gamespark.jp\/article\/2025\/12\/07\/160279.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Game*Spark<\/a>, Science Adventure series producer and director of the original Steins;Gate Tatsuya Matsubara, alongside series scenario writer Naotaka Hayashi, talked about how 2010s otaku slang and Akihabara culture affected Steins;Gate.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSteins;Gate is set in 2010 Akihabara. Looking back now, that atmosphere and vibe are truly part of what has become a \u2018legacy.\u2019 So much has been lost since then. By recreating that era of Akihabara (something that doesn\u2019t exist in 2025) visually, I want those who remember it to feel nostalgia. Conversely, I want those unfamiliar with the time to experience something fresh,&#8221; Hayashi\u00a0comments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"STEINS;GATE RE:BOOT - Gameplay &amp; Teaser Trailer | Coming 2026\" width=\"1160\" height=\"653\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/5lEMw3ZrAok?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The developers say that it isn\u2019t just the aesthetic of 2010 Akihabara which gives Steins;Gate its charm. Rintaro Okabe and the other characters also make liberal use of otaku terms and internet slang from the era. Terms such as \u201cEl Psy Kongroo\u201d (Okabe\u2019s signature phrase, which has no meaning), world lines, and Itaru Hashida\u2019s online handle of DaSH (short for \u201cDaru the Super Hacker\u201d) help reinforce that the game is about a bunch of skilled, slightly delusional teenagers growing up in the early days of the internet.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During development, there was a heated debate about whether or not Steins;Gate Re:Boot should use updated slang to fit modern audiences. After much deliberation, it was decided that preserving the now-obsolete slang would be pivotal in \u201creviving\u201d the legacy by helping players understand it.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1519\" height=\"855\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1519px) 100vw, 1519px\" src=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/20251205-54671-header-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-54675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/20251205-54671-header-1.jpg 1519w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/20251205-54671-header-1-380x214.jpg 380w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/20251205-54671-header-1-768x432.jpg 768w\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Matsubara adds that recreating Akihabara\u2019s visuals was a major point of significance for the reboot. When searching for reference materials online, the developers found it difficult to find images of Akihabara from 2010. Thankfully, Mages had done location scouting twice, once for the original 2009 Steins;Gate, and another time for the 2011 anime adaptation, so they had a lot of photographic material from the time to draw from.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI mentioned earlier about the lack of reference materials. Surprisingly, even searching online, photos of 2010 Akihabara are hard to find. In that sense, preserving it as a reference resource was a theme I personally considered important. That&#8217;s also why we&#8217;re creating such detailed, photorealistic illustrations for the backgrounds,\u201d Matsubara explains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While the team is meticulously drawing the game\u2019s environments by hand, they\u2019re finding it difficult to contact the rightsholders of stores that have since shut down. This is so that they can accurately recreate the store signboard featured in the photos, in hopes that they may live on spiritually through the reboot.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Steins;Gate Re:Boot is set to release in 2026. Further details are TBA.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Steins;Gate Re:Boot developers on why they decided not to modernize some of the dated slang and imagery appearing in the game.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":54674,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-54671","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Instead of modernizing, Steins;Gate Re:Boot will preserve the now fading legacy of 2010s otaku slang and Akihabara culture, devs say\u00a0 - AUTOMATON WEST<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Steins;Gate Re:Boot developers on why they decided not to modernize some of the dated slang and imagery appearing in the game.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/instead-of-modernizing-steinsgate-reboot-will-preserve-the-now-fading-legacy-of-2010s-otaku-slang-and-akihabara-culture-devs-say\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Instead of modernizing, Steins;Gate Re:Boot will preserve the now fading legacy of 2010s otaku slang and Akihabara culture, devs say\u00a0 - 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