/pic8464379.png)
Collection Status
Your Rating
Description
Jisogi is a brand new worker-placement board game designed and published by Esper Game Studio, with art by Eisuke Gou and Senkawa Teien. The theme is Anime, more specifically the hard-working folks and the crushing business behind it.
In this tycoon-style game, players use Staff members (cards placed in front of their personal Studio board) to select from a range of available actions (limited by the type of Staff). Their objective is to release an original Anime -composed of 3 Script parts (Setting, Plot, and Twist). Whenever released, players will gain resources and points according to their popularity -determined by the technical level of the Anime + how many genre matches they have to rotating Trend cards.
"Jisogi" comes from 自転車操業, jitenshasōgyō, an expression that refers to barely keeping a business going (an analogy that a bicycle falls over when its wheels cease rotating). Get ready for a challenging tycoon-style game where you'll hustle to make your dream Anime against all odds.
Year Published
2025
Featured Videos
Transcript Analysis
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 4
This page: 4
Sentiment:
pos 3 ·
mix 1 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–4 of 4
Video AALFhkc7gEY
Dice Tower game_review at 0:19 sentiment: positive
video_pk 62590 · mention_pk 155304
Click to watch at 0:19 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Maintains the core worker placement feel while introducing varied, escalating solo challenges
- Solo scenarios provide focused, different objectives that can vary the gameplay and strategy
- Easy to learn from a teaching perspective and useful for solo practice or when teaching the game to others
- Minimal extra components required for solo play; existing box contents can be repurposed
Cons
- Not a full automa or a one-to-one replica of multiplayer; some players may prefer a purer automa experience
- Reviewed as a hybrid approach that may not appeal to players seeking a strict solo implementation or no competition effects
- Some changes between editions may affect solo rules, making it slightly unstable until final revisions are settled
Thematic elements
- Array
- Animation studio
- Informational
Comparison games
- Jogi Anime Studio Tycoon (multiplayer)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- card drafting — A deck of network cards is used; solo mode removes certain cards and uses a face-down deck to drive blocking rules and objectives.
- Deck Management / Card Drafting — A deck of network cards is used; solo mode removes certain cards and uses a face-down deck to drive blocking rules and objectives.
- Objective-based Progression / Time Track — Solo scenarios present fixed goals and a number of rounds to complete them, with escalating difficulty as scenarios advance.
- Resource management — Players manage resources such as reputation points, coins, debt, and staff cards to meet solo objective conditions.
- resource/stock management — Players manage resources such as reputation points, coins, debt, and staff cards to meet solo objective conditions.
- Track advancement — Solo scenarios present fixed goals and a number of rounds to complete them, with escalating difficulty as scenarios advance.
- worker placement — Core action where players place workers to access locations and perform actions, replicated in solo mode with costs and prohibitions similar to multiplayer.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the solo variant is really a good way for you to learn the game
- this is a hybrid style solo mode
- the challenges feel varied, and they make you focus on a different thing
- I think the solo mode shines as a multiplayer game
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 782HrgcfgZA
Board Gaming Doctor general_discussion at 0:06 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 29541 · mention_pk 86766
Click to watch at 0:06 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
- Stunning anime artwork and high production value
- Strong thematic integration with mechanics
- Accessible learning curve for a mid-weight Euro
- Tight, rewarding turn-by-turn decisions
- Solid solo mode and replayability through challenges
Cons
- Strategic depth can feel light for some players
- Rulebook learning curve can be rough
- Limited action spots can increase contention and competition
- Some may want more crunchy economic decisions
Thematic elements
- Anime industry, studio management, production cycles, trends
- Managing an anime studio to produce increasingly popular anime titles, balancing creative work and business
- Tableau-building and worker-placement integrated with theme
Comparison games
- Splendor
- Sweetlands
- Hollertow
- Terramystica
- Clans of Caledonia
- Agricola
- Gricola
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Card networking / one-time abilities — Networking cards grant limited-use abilities.
- End-round release scoring — Release anime and score based on script colors, animation tokens, and worker synergies.
- Hype resource — Flexible resource that influences scoring and revenue.
- Loans — Loan mechanism to borrow money with repayment considerations.
- Loans / money management — Loan mechanism to borrow money with repayment considerations.
- set collection — Collect trope tokens to shape anime concepts and align with current trends.
- Set collection / tropes collection — Collect trope tokens to shape anime concepts and align with current trends.
- Solo mode / challenges — Eight solo-mode challenges providing learning guidance and scoring variation.
- tableau building — Build a personal tableau with art tokens and scripts to unlock scoring and actions.
- Trend cycling — Tropes go in and out of fashion by round and influence scoring.
- worker placement — Place workers on actions; top positions are valuable and may be contested; competition can require extra tokens or money.
- Worker progression / Genki specialists — Hire specialized workers with unique effects and higher pay.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the artwork is fantastic.
- it's a wonderful wonderfully looking game.
- I think it was done very appropriately and the artwork is really good as well.
- So, in any case, it's a 7.6 Six out of 10 for me.
- turnbyturn decisions are very uh rewarding
- I like the solo mode and the challenges that are offered.
- I do want to express how appreciative I am for the integration of the theme into a board game.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video _4-oBCGfk8A
The Dice Tower top_10_list at 7:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 28151 · mention_pk 82370
Click to watch at 7:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Artwork screams anime, vivid, distinct cards
- stylized and thematic
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- anime production, studio life
- Anime studio production world
- anime-inspired, Tintin-esque
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- art is incredibly subjective.
- I love aquariums.
- This is absolutely gorgeous artwork.
- The art just screams anime in every way.
- It's the best art I think of 2025.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video To57_FF0yRY
Board Stupid top_10_list at 6:18 sentiment: positive
video_pk 8909 · mention_pk 123355
Click to watch at 6:18 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Stunning production and artwork
- Theme is woven into mechanics; strong fan appeal
- Very engaging for anime fans
Cons
- Theme may overwhelm mechanics for non-fans
Thematic elements
- Japanese anime industry; production, merch deals
- anime studio management; script parts assembly to match trends
- theme-driven worker-placement with integrated storytelling
Comparison games
- Ember Heart
- Whisperwood
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- merchandising / release timing — tie-in to trends and merch deals for scoring
- set collection — collect script parts and assemble a project to release
- set-collection / script assembly — collect script parts and assemble a project to release
- worker placement — assign writers, directors, and animators to tasks
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- It's a banger.
- That is a banger for me.
- The theme elevates to my heart.
- This is the dream because the theme is done so well and interwoven with the mechanics.
- It's a solid for me.
- I want to play more.
- It's a fantastic production.
- The world’s limits are pretty big and a lot of moral choices.
- Take Time is the biggest surprise of the year.
- It is a wonderful deterministic experience that doesn't last 4 hours.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–4 of 4