Touhou Project RPG Gensou Narratograph Heads for English-Language Crowdfunder

Fans of the long-running Touhou Project will soon have an opportunity to explore its world around the tabletop. American publisher LionWing Publishing is preparing an English-language edition of Gensou Narratograph: The Roleplaying Game Based on Touhou Project, a Japanese RPG that puts players in the roles of familiar characters from the series.

Originally published in Japan by KADOKAWA in 2023, the game combines everyday adventures and investigations with magical confrontations inspired by Touhou’s distinctive bullet-hell videogames. LionWing plans to launch a BackerKit campaign on 3rd November 2026, with the English edition expected in fulfil 2027.

Gensou Narratograph is the latest in a spate of Japanese TTRPG translations occuring at the moment. With Green Ronin’s Nobunaga’s Black Castle recently completed funding on Kickstarter, and Mugen Gaming’s campaign to bring Sword World currently on Backerkit with over three weeks left to go, having already raised over $2.7 million!

What is Touhou Project?

Created by Jun’ya Ota, better known as ZUN, Touhou Project began as an independent videogame series in the 1990s. It’s particularly associated with danmaku, or bullet-hell, shooting games, in which players navigate intricate patterns of projectiles while facing a succession of colourful opponents.

Over the years, Touhou has developed into a much larger creative world encompassing games, music, books that has led to developing a large fan community. Its cast and setting have also inspired a remarkable range of fan-made works, from artwork and music arrangements to comics and games.

At the heart of the series is Gensokyo, a secluded land where humans live alongside yokai - supernatural beings drawn from Japanese folklore - and other unusual inhabitants. Separated from the outside world by a magical barrier, it’s a place where old beliefs, strange creatures and supernatural powers remain part of everyday life.

Gensokyo is far from a peaceful, unchanging paradise. Its inhabitants regularly find themselves caught up in mysterious “incidents”, unusual events that disrupt the balance of the land and draw its residents into investigations, rivalries and magical battles. Two of Touhou’s best-known protagonists are Reimu Hakurei, the shrine maiden of the Hakurei Shrine, and Marisa Kirisame, a human magician with a fondness for investigating Gensokyo’s mysteries.

From bullet hell to the tabletop

Gensou Narratograph invites players to step into the shoes of Reimu, Marisa and other existing residents of Gensokyo, creating their own stories within the Touhou setting.

Designed for one to four players and a games master, the RPG uses six-sided dice and offers a mixture of slice-of-life storytelling, exploration and Danmaku Duels. While these duels draw inspiration from the spectacular projectile patterns of the videogames, the tabletop game also makes room for the conversations, relationships and everyday oddities that give Gensokyo its character.

A typical check starts with two six-sided dice, with a target of 4. Roll a 4 or higher on either die, and you succeed.

You don’t add the results together.

Circumstances can change how many dice you roll. A relevant character tag can give you an extra die, so who you’re playing matters when deciding how to approach a problem.

And your relationships matter, too. A character with a Bond toward yours can use an available Support to give you an additional die after your initial roll. That extra bit of help could turn a failure into a success.

That’s the basic rhythm: describe what you want to do, make a check when needed, and see where the story takes your group.

A typical adventure might see the characters investigating a small incident, travelling between familiar locations and trying to discover who, or what, is responsible. Characters might also exploit an incident for their own schemes, giving groups room to enjoy Gensokyo’s more mischievous side.

The rulebook features 30 playable characters and a map of Gensokyo highlighting 21 locations. ZUN has contributed descriptive text for ths locations as well as new character dialogue. The book also includes a “100-page replay”, a written account of an actual roleplaying session, which ZUN participated in.

The Japanese creators

The original Japanese edition of Gensou Narratograph was released on 20th September 2023 by KADOKAWA, one of Japan’s major publishers. The game is credited to Eisuke Nakanishi and Adventure Planning Service (known in Japanese as Bouken Kikaku Kyoku). KADOKAWA describes the game as a Touhou Project derivative-work RPG, while crediting Touhou Project as the source material and ZUN for his contributions to the book. The cover is illustrated by Zuji.

LionWing brings Gensokyo to English-speaking players

The forthcoming official English transation is being published by LionWing Publishing.

Three versions of the rulebook are planned: two hardcover editions, available during the initial ordering window, and a softcover edition intended for wider retail distribution. One of the hardcovers is expected to feature painted page edges.

With its combination of familiar characters, supernatural mysteries and flamboyant magical duels, Gensou Narratograph looks set to offer English-speaking players a rather different kind of fantasy RPG—and a chance to experience Touhou Project beyond the videogame screen.

The BackerKit campaign is scheduled to begin on Tuesday 3rd November 2026.