Behind the shiny facade of anime mobile games sometimes lurk corporate horror stories. Software developer OGIX, led by CEO Yusuke Ogiso, has brought forward serious accusations against Poppin Games, claiming the company owes nearly $1.3 million (about 200 million yen) in subcontracting fees for four service-based games, a situation that drove their studio into bankruptcy and led to the firing of 70 employees.

Between November 2023 and April 2025, Poppin Games commissioned OGIX for the development and maintenance of four mobile titles based on major franchises, including adaptations of Mashle: Magic and Muscles and Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian (Roshidere). While the company covered initial development costs, Ogiso claims they never paid for server expenses, monthly operations, or the agreed profit sharing. The worst part is that Poppin Games continues to collect revenue from these games while OGIX accumulates massive debts.

Tensions reached a critical point when Poppin Games’ legal representation admitted they had the funds to settle the debt but preferred to invest that capital in other projects before paying what they owed. Trying to salvage some income, OGIX kept servers running at minimal costs, briefly pausing updates to demand responses. Despite signing a payment plan and receiving promises of normalization, the money never arrived. Ogiso funded his workers’ salaries with his own savings until he ran out of funds, losing even the financial ability to sustain the current legal battle.

The scandal gained momentum when Poppin Games announced an alliance with CyberStep for new projects. Following Ogiso’s public protest and exposure of the facts, CyberStep canceled the agreement immediately after learning of the irregularities. Meanwhile, Poppin Games appeared without issues at major events like the Tokyo Game Show 2026, keeping the games running and offering no response to families left without income.

Poppin Games is a Japanese mobile game developer and distributor known for acquiring licenses from popular anime series to bring them to digital formats. OGIX, on the other hand, is a Tokyo-based programming and development studio responsible for technical infrastructure and operational maintenance of service-based titles in the Asian market.

What do you think about the non-payment accusations facing developers of this type of anime games?