When I first visited Japan in 2016, Shibuya Station was awash with construction barriers. In 2025, it’s still like that, a process that won’t end until at least 2027 if not later. Rebuilding an entire train station is hard when it continues to serve one of the largest riderships in the world, and to be fair this heavy construction period has also included the erecting of numerous other buildings, shopping complexes and more that are already open, so it’s hardly a minor renovation. Indeed, one of these developments is Shibuya Sky, a stunning open-air observation deck that’s often sold out weeks in advance (and deservedly so). Then there’s Shibuya Sakura Stage, and 404 Not Found.

They’re not great.

My first encounter with this shopping area actually came shortly prior to its official unveiling at an official afterparty at Bitsummit. Before cracking open the sake and allowing the festivities to begin, a few of the building's developers came to give a short presentation to the many indie devs at the event. The new building, particularly, as the name suggests, the tech-focused 404 Not Found construct, was an area tailor-made for people like us, and they wanted us to know about it.

It held promise. The building as a whole was standard with an array of restaurants, supermarkets and general stores with pop-up spaces dotted around. Just last month as it continues to mature, an official Square Enix merchandise store opened too called Square Enix Garden. The main reason for the presentation was to sell 404 Not Found as a creator space designed to highlight and enable small-time creators with a space to showcase their work, sell their stuff, and attend creator-driven talks. To kick things off, some games from the event’s official Game Jam would be shown off alongside select other titles to coincide with the opening in partnership with Bitsummit, and the request from the building’s management was for developers to submit their work for a special indie gaming event set for September called Sakura Game Pitch which would put their work under the eyes of publishers and the public.

Couple it all with a high-tech streaming booth, and it had potential not just for game developers but any creative in tech or music. The results were less than stellar, to say the least.

It can often be hard to classify what the difference is between a space made by and for creators, and one simply advertised as such while excluding creative voices to guide its construction and ensure it actually achieves its aim of uplifting these voices. Spaces such as the latter lack the qualities needed to either aid in the awareness of creators or assist in their creative process, and this is certainly true for 404 Not Found, as was painfully apparent from this initial event but has failed to improve in the months that followed.

For a location promoting itself as a space uplifting creators, it lacked any personal nuance that actually gave it the touch of the creators who visited. For the initial Bitsummit showcase in the days following the event, the games chosen certainly represented the diverse scope of the doujin and indie gaming scene in Japan and beyond. European indie titles like Nebelimer got space alongside unique experiences that defy conventional game development. Jet Cola places an accelerometer inside a bottle of coke with the aim to shake it as hard as possible to launch a rocket as high as possible, and it wasn’t the only game to defy traditional control mechanisms.

Considering this was the grand opening event and introductory showcase to the space for many, it felt unloved even then. As a 10-day pop-up it’s not feasible for the actual developers to attend for the entire event to man their games and guide confused players, nor would it be desirable. Yet when I visited the space, games were simply left unattended without clear instruction. Whereas games like Jet Cola or Give Me Toilet Paper, which controls by rolling toilet paper across cardboard to the goal in order to deliver it to a constipated man, are so fun with a little nudge for understanding the controls and an audience, they were simply left idle for strangers to look at confused. Those who picked it up, without even a clear instruction sheet nearby, were left lost and frustrated, and many simply walked away without experiencing them. Having met the developers of these two experiences specifically and seeing the joy they can bring at an event, to not even have staff for the building cheer people along not only prevented these people enjoying these experiences to the fullest, it was a disservice to the creators who entrusted their works to this event.

The entire space was unmanned bar a single person at the merchandising table, selling select card and board games also shown at Bitsummit 2024 alongside merchandise from Fangamer Japan and others. It was a clean space, but lacking life. It was sterile, more akin to the inside of an office waiting room with a giant screen than anything an artist had a hand in.

While I’d love to say things have improved in the months that followed, if anything it has only declined further. What was once a huge open space by the screens for meeting and the occasional talk is now closed off with kotatsu you can sit at, provided you spend money at the cafe they added. While other events have cycled in and out, the merchandise and games currently on display are the same, except the toilet paper was far more ragged. It was also empty, and the only staffer was glued firmly to their phone. You can’t blame them: looking at how undisturbed many of the desks were, even by 3pm I think I was the first person to take an interest.

The problems with Shibuya Sakura Stage spread far beyond 404 Not Found, from its unintuitive navigation and difficult-to-find entrance if you don’t enter the building deliberately from the far-less-frequented New South Gate of Shibuya Station, to its poor location that means unless you work in the offices there’s nothing exciting or unique or enticing enough to make the effort to go here. At least Shibuya Tsutaya, for all the faults with its renovation, is located centrally enough that it gets the footfall and visibility to somewhat flourish under its flawed redesign.

404 Not Found badly plugs a non-existent hole for indie game developers and doesn’t even provide an enticing consumer experience for patrons making the trip inside. Devs can showcase their games at TGS, Bitsummit, Digige Summit or other events. They can meet other devs at events like Tokyo Indies. They can use co-working spaces like those offered by GYAAR Studio or others. If people attended, and if it respected the work it showcases rather than tossing it onto a discarded table like trash it could be viewed as an unsuccessful yet ultimately harmless showcase space. That requires a level of respect this can’t provide.

Shibuya is becoming increasingly hostile to the creative spirit that gave the city its name and edge of cool, and while it would be unfair to say this is the root cause of this issue it sure is a symptom of it. In perhaps the most glaring example of this, just as the hard work of indie developers is left to rot, playing endlessly to itself, turn the corner and you’ll find a proud and prominent video showcase of AI art. A different generative AI video can also be found on the 404 Not Found website. If you want to show support to artists, perhaps commission them to make something to promote your space rather than using a tool many decry as hurting them.

But hey, at least we’re uplifting creators by giving them a dirty table to dump their sleepless nights-worth of effort onto, right?