Japanese TTRPG, Wares Blade, Receiving English Localization and Remastering from LionWing Publishing in 2025
The beloved Japanese tabletop roleplaying game from the 80s and 90s, Wares Blade, is finally coming to the West in 2025 as part of LionWing’s retro-revival product line titled Legends of Japan.
LionWing is thrilled to announce that the beloved Japanese tabletop roleplaying game from the 80s and 90s, Wares Blade, is finally coming to the West in 2025 as part of LionWing’s retro-revival product line titled Legends of Japan.
Known for its unique blend of high-fantasy and science fiction, this swords & sorcery + mechs TTRPG was originally released in Japan in 1986 and went on to spawn a multimedia empire spanning nearly 50 pieces of media spread across TTRPG rulebooks and supplements, video games, soundtracks, audio dramas, and novels. Often considered part of the Big Three in Japan—that being the three most commercially successful TTRPGs of the 80s—Wares Blade is approaching its 40th anniversary, and the English release of the game will commemorate this special occasion.
Wares Blade is an old-school tabletop roleplaying game with heavy “crunch” thanks to its wargame-style combat and a d10 percentile system and strikes a nice balance between introducing fresh features and mechanics while still adhering to many of the conventions of its time. LionWing is publishing the Wares Blade Renewal book, which was first released in 1994 and served as the definitive edition of the game, incorporating all of the rules tweaks, errata, and data that had been scattered across various releases from 1986 through 1994.
LionWing is preserving and presenting the game almost exactly as it originally presented. However, a few quality-of-life features have been added at the request of the game’s designers, including a new layout and additional artwork. Aside from those additions, the game remains true to its original design and delivery, which speaks to its ahead-of-its-time nature.
The updated, English localized release of Wares Blade offers players a unique opportunity to relive those exciting experiences that only Japanese players had a chance to enjoy more than 30 years ago.
"This type of project has never happened before in the TTRPG space, which is why we are incredibly excited about it, exclaims Bradly Hale, CEO and President of LionWing. “We are also excited to announce that a crowdfunding campaign for Wares Blade will be launched in 2025 on Kickstarter.”
