KONAMI first announced its game project Wai Wai World Craft in September 2025.
After keeping a low profile for quite some time, the title was officially unveiled during KONAMI PRESS START 9.3.2026 on Thursday, September 3, 2026 (PDT).
With demo stations set up at Tokyo Game Show 2026 (TGS2026), we jumped right in to experience the game firsthand.
Note: This article is based on information released in Japan. Some in-game terms in this article are unofficial translations.
Creating in Wai Wai World Craft
The Wai Wai World Craft area was set up in a corner of the Konami Digital Entertainment booth.
Hosting the world's first playable demo, the space bustled with attendees.
Amid the excitement, we had the special opportunity to experience creating and playing firsthand while receiving guidance directly from Executive Director Hiroshi Tanibuchi, who previously appeared on KONAMI PRESS START 9.3.2026.
Wai Wai World Craft is a UGC platform that unifies creating, playing, and connecting into a single experience.
Players can build their own original games and play creations from others.
There are two primary ways to create a game.
Players can choose between Create from an Official Game and Create from Magic Pot. This time, we opted for Create from Magic Pot to build a game more intuitively.
After selecting the underlying game system, you move on to choosing the visual design and stage layout.
Background music and difficulty levels are also assembled on the fly simply by picking from quick choices.
The game title is also determined automatically.
While you can always rename it later, this design choice was implemented so players do not get bogged down overthinking it right away.
Here is the finished game stage.
We immediately jumped into playtesting to check out the stage mechanics and responsiveness.
The game generated this time was a maze-like course where the objective is reaching the goal.
Enemies are stationed along the path, and taking hits from them depletes your health.
From there, you can refine the stage based on what you experienced during playtesting.
This includes tweaking fundamental clear conditions.
To make the placed enemies more engaging, we decided to give the player extra actions.
Enabling jumping and attacking immediately transforms the experience into a full-fledged action game.
Swapping block themes completely revamps the entire atmosphere.
Saiga NAK
Here is an overview of the game parts confirmed during our session.
The variety is extensive, featuring damaging magma, slippery ice, keys that unlock doors and treasure chests, enemies programmed with distinct behavioral routines, and contraptions that enable teleportation and checkpoints.
You can also display on-screen messages, trigger sound cues, or summon formidable bosses.
Toggling block states suddenly produced visuals reminiscent of classic Castlevania.
Playing in Wai Wai World Craft
Next, we tested the Play aspect of the platform.
Attendees at TGS2026 could play the following three demo titles:
- Parkour: Pyo Pyo Kero Great Escape! (3D Action)
- Battle Jumbo (Competitive Battle Royale)
- Castlevania: The Night of Beginnings (Side-Scrolling Action)
Each controllable character (Actor) comes equipped with unique special abilities.
Naturally, we picked Simon Belmont.
While the game was undeniably built inside Wai Wai World Craft, its controls and stage gimmicks delivered pure Castlevania.
It is impressive that an experience like this can be crafted without advanced programming knowledge.
Axes and crosses were hidden inside breakable walls.
Within this toolset, creating your very own custom Castlevania game is entirely possible.
Advancing deeper into the stage triggers a boss encounter.
During the creation process, any enemy can be upgraded into a boss.
After an intense battle, the boss fell.
Fine-tuning difficulty curves like this will truly test a creator's touch.
Attendees who play Wai Wai World Craft at the Konami Digital Entertainment booth receive an exclusive Wai Wai World Craft original T-shirt as a novelty gift.
With lines reaching roughly 60 minutes during our visit, make sure to plan accordingly if you head over to the booth.
Bridging the Gap Between Players and Creators
Following our hands-on session with Wai Wai World Craft, we asked Executive Director Tanibuchi about several intriguing aspects of the game.
Operating as a user-generated content (UGC) platform, the game introduces a feature known as "Oshi-Dori" to bridge the connection between players and creators.
Players earn Oshi-Dori based on the time they spend playing games and can gift them to their favorite creators.
When a supported creator achieves success, the player who gifted them Oshi-Dori also receives in-game currency, establishing a system that rewards players for their foresight.
To ensure that as many creators as possible receive support, each creator has a cap on the amount of Oshi-Dori they can receive.
This thoughtful balance reflects KONAMI's unique perspective in understanding the mindset of game creators.
After all, KONAMI itself—including Executive Director Tanibuchi—has spent decades on the development side, shipping countless games to players worldwide.
While characters from classic franchises like Castlevania and Contra are already confirmed, the team plans to expand internal collaborations even further.
We are personally eager to see beloved series like Metal Gear and Powerful Pro Baseball join the fray.
Wai Wai World Craft is scheduled to launch on iOS, Android, and Steam.
For more details and future announcements, visit the Wai Wai World Craft Official Website.
| Title Overview | |
|---|---|
| Title | Wai Wai World Craft |
| Genre | Social Game Creation Network |
| Platform | iOS, Android, Steam |
| Players | 1–6 Players |
| Release Date | TBD |
| Price | Free-to-play (with in-app purchases and subscriptions) |
