Touhou Project

Touhou is a "bullet hell," a remix of the Shoot 'em up genre, featuring an incredibly large cast of characters, each with their own unique story and abilities. The game involves navigating intricate patterns of projectiles while defeating enemies, requiring quick reflexes and precise movements. Each character also has a unique music track, providing each character with a sense of distinct personality.

ZUN originally distributed his games in person at Comiket (Comic Market) 52, a major fan convention in Japan. During the weekend, ZUN sold 30 floppy disks of the first Touhou game and 50 of the second.

The cultural impact of Touhou is like no other. As one of the oldest indie games still being released today, Touhou has resulted in one of the most impressively massive fan driven communities in gaming. Its dedicated fanbase has produced countless works featuring fan manga, animations, games, music and much more.

The popularity of its content goes beyond the game itself. Even if someone does not know the game, it is likely that they have still seen content deriving from it. A notable example is “Bad Apple!!”, a music video that has amassed over 100 million views on YouTube.

Every character in the series is paired with a unique music track, providing them a sense of distinct personality making it easy for fans to choose a favorite. This depth has inspired a passionate community. With over 360 official songs available, there are over 200k music remixes from its community.