We have some exciting news to share with fans of the WonderSwan and the famous Japanese manga/anime series Cardcaptor Sakura.
The prolific fan translation group Hilltop Works has just announced that it is currently working on a language patch for the 1999 WonderSwan RPG Cardcaptor Sakura: Sakura to Fushigi na Clow Card, meaning you may soon be able to play the once Japanese-exclusive game in English.
Originally debuting in 1996 as a manga created by the all-female Japanese manga group CLAMP, Cardcaptor Sakura focuses on the story of a student named Sakura Kinomoto, who unwittingly unleashes a series of magical cards into the world, and is then chosen to embark on a perilous quest to track down and defeat the physical manifestation of each card to prevent a catastrophe from occurring.
It was later adapted into an anime series in 1998 (localized for several English-speaking territories under the name Cardcaptors in the early 2000s), and also received two films, various CDs featuring music and stories, and a bunch of video games tie-ins (of which Cardcaptor Sakura: Sakura to Fushigi na Clow Card is the third).
The game was developed by Sims Co., Ltd and published by Bandai, and follows the arc from the first season of the show, being broken up into visual novel-style segments and turn-based battles against the spirit of each card.
According to Hilltop, the leader of the translation group, they are handling the programming, graphics, and editing on the hack, with another individual named Matatabi being responsible for the translation.
There's no news on when the patch will be finished or released, but Hilltop Works has shared some footage of the progress made so far in a video to hopefully tide fans over for now. You can watch this below: