Zyaga Writing about whatever the hell I want, cuz it's the Interwebz!

Unlock Blocked JP Games & Sites: VPN

I’m here to show you how to get past that pesky IP block that a decent amount of Japanese sites and video games seem to use. First, you need to understand what exactly is happening behind the scenes so you can comprehend how and why these methods will work.

Step 1) Identifying the *What*

It’s not going to do you any good to be able to get to websites and/or games that IP block if you don’t even know of anything that you want/need to use! One of the biggest known reasons people pay for Japanese VPN’s is to get access GyaO. GyaO is kinda like Hulu in a way. Basically they have a lot of videos and shows for you to watch. The issue isn’t actually getting to the website, it’s being able to stream the content. Instead of buffering up, you are blocked from being able to see any of the video’s unless you are coming/browsing from within Japan.

The other major reason is that a lot of video game websites (and even the games themselves sometimes) block you from registering and/or playing unless you are browsing from within Japan, AKA using a Japanese IP address.

Step 2) Applying the Middle-Man (Our VPN)

Rather than tell you what a VPN *is*, I’ll tell you what a VPN *does*. A VPN essentially sits between you and the website/game you’re trying to connect to. As long as you have a Japanese VPN, then wherever you’re trying to browse/connect to, it thinks you’re coming from within Japan. Take a look at the diagram below to get the gist of it.

The whole concept is really simple. You’re connected to some server in Japan, so it looks like you’re really from there. The only drawback/issue that arises is that the speed can be highly degraded, not because of the proxy (VPN), but because your ISP is most likely already a lot slower when connecting to websites/games in Japan.

Step 3) Example Setup and Usage

Because this process is so easy, I decided to just go ahead and make a short video showing (and proving) that using a VPN will allow you to get to places you weren’t able to before.

There are two VPN companies I’d highly recommend: StrongVPN and OverPlay. As you can see from the video, I’m currently using OverPlay as StrongVPN was out of Japanese slots when I was deciding. I’ve been sticking with OverPlay though as I’ve so far been happy.