Mission: Finding MSX in Japan
5 September 2003, the day my dream came true, I was going to Japan! Let me be clear to you that my holiday in Japan is not only to search and find Msx computers or software, although I had set my mind to find a MSX Turbo-R computer!
After a long flight of eleven hours I finally arrived in Japan! And it’s feels like I landed on another world! Gosh, I wished the Netherlands could be like this I thought.
After a good night sleep and some sightseeing in Tokyo, I went off to Akihabara! The summon for games, computers and everything else that runs on electricity. Whatever you are looking for, you will probably find it in Akihabara! Here, I started my search for MSX. Shop in… shop out… each and every store I asked for MSX (Japanese people pronounce it something like emmesixu) but everywhere I got the same answer from the kind shopkeepers, saying with a smile on their faces: MSX!? No!, very old!!! Nobody could tell me where to find MSX stuff
After walking around for three hours… YES!!! I finally found a store called MAXLOAD, complete with an MSX Sticker on the window. My heart started pounding! I found an “MSX Store”, would I also find a MSX Turbo-R here?
But no… many old MSX Computers and lots of games! (I asked the shopkeeper if I could take any pictures. They said no, but I sneaky did!
The most common MSX computers I found where MSX 1 and MSX 2. MSX 2+ and T-R (be it a ST or GT) where just impossible to find! MAXLOAD had a Sanyo MSX2+, but this one had a broken FDD and they wouldn’t sell it to me.
If you go to Akihabara in Tokyo and want pay a visit to the MAXLOAD store, it is located between Chuo Dori and Shinobazu Dori. When you’re on the main street called Chuo Dori, turn left after crossing the Sega Arcade. After 30 meters you’ll see the MAXLOAD store.
The next days we went to see the town of Nikko (Where I asked my girlfriend to marry me) and the holy mountain Fuji-San.
Before we moved on to Kyoto, approximately 600 km from Tokyo, I wanted to go one more time to Akihabara to find more MSX stuff! So, off to Akihabara again, and with success! I found another shop called “Trader 2”
In Japan they’ve got lots of stores like Trader2. As the name suggests, you can trade your old games there for other used ones or new ones (with a little money). In the Trader2 shop I went up the stairs and there I noticed a sign stating MSX!!!!
And indeed, they did have MSX! Only software, but that didn’t mind me much. Metal Gear 2, Sorcerian, Illusion City, Maze of Galious, Knightmare, Parodius, Hylide, Tower of Cabin and many many more! Also just cartridges without the box. Everything was quite cheap! Except for MG Solid Snake, that one costed about 90 euro. I bought an FM-PAC, like new for only 800 Yen (about 7 euro).
After visiting Kyoto, Nara and Hiroshima we went to Osaka. After a little searching I found an shop selling MSX stuff in a street called Nippombashi Avenue, located in Den-Den town. I think it was called Sofmap, but I’m not sure. Here they sold many MSX1 and MSX2 computers, loose cartridges and complete games like Snatcher.
All in all a great trip, and I was amazed to find MSX stuff still in 2003. Take a look at my pictures in the Photoshoots section! I’m busy with setting up a page with all the pictures of the trip to Japan, I will add this link as soon as the page is finished.
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