The legend spread rapidly across social media, fueled by all manner of speculation—such as the idea that the game cartridges still circulating worldwide posed an imminent danger and were directly responsible for the deaths. There was much talk about the suicide of one of the programmers, Chiro Miura, and the macabre legacy he left behind.

The issue of youth suicide in Japan has little to do with video games and a great deal to do with the immense pressure adolescents face: the fear of academic failure is so acute that the angst common to young people in any culture transforms here into obsession and terror.