San! Ni! Ichi! Hajime!!!

Hurdle barrels, outrun Shiba Inu and dive out of the paths of bicycles - all while chucking fruit at your opponents and dashing across planks precariously balanced over waterfalls - in an unreal experience that must be played to be believed.

PQube and Onion Soup Interactive have released the first major update to the Steam Early Access version of the multiplayer racing game, which adds authentic Japanese commentary, introduces full Japanese, Korean and Chinese text localization, and unleashes L.O.B.S.T.E.R Mode onto unsuspecting contestants.

“Wait a sec, what the flipper is L.O.B.S.T.E.R Mode?” asks in-game Nippon News Broadcast correspondent Wedy Jones. For the answer we turned to L.O.B.S.T.E.R gameshow host himself Surfin' Jack Cactus, who mostly flapped his arms and blew a slide whistle at us.

Thankfully the developers at Onion Soup Interactive quickly stepped in to fill the awkward void, pointing out that L.O.B.S.T.E.R Mode is the first of three planned Party Games for Nippon Marathon, and that it's a pass-the-pad test of skill and endurance for 2-8 players.

After every player picks and names their own contestant, they must run Surfin' Jack Cactus' gauntlet: a precariously narrow, randomly generated assault course filled with swinging hammers, pneumatic boxing gloves, basketball cannons and irate American footballers, as well as paper targets that grant bonus time when hit. There may be some beached fish flopping around, too…

The player who records the longest distance before the timer expires wins the round, while all others shellfishly grab a letter. Between each round Surfin' Jack Cactus spins his bonus wheel to see whether more time's added to the clock or the course is re-rolled, and the sole winner is the player who manages to avoid being dubbed the LOBSTER, PRAWN or EBI (depending on the chosen length of the game).

In addition to the four key Nippon Marathon contestants, LOBSTER Mode also introduces a selection of playable spectators to ensure everybody has a unique avatar during eight-player parties.

And like the full Nippon Marathon itself, L.O.B.S.T.E.R Mode will evolve during the game's Early Access period, with additional course elements and contestants planned for future updates. Onion Soup Interactive will be listening to suggestions made by the Nippon Marathon fans on the game's Steam Community boards during the creation of these new course features.

Key Features:

• Four-player madness!: You can't spell Nippon Marathon without ‘P', ‘A', ‘R', ‘T' and *checks letters* ‘I', we suppose… Solo play is supported, but grab up to four pads and enjoy the supreme silliness of gaming's greatest marathon.
• See all of Japan!: Cross the entirety of the land of Nippon in a series of creative courses spanning busy city streets, village lanes, bustling markets, mountaintop shrines, supermarkets and even unsafe sake distilleries! Four courses will be available at the launch of Early Access, with more being added on the road to completion.
• Wacky characters!: Go toe-to-toe with some of the coolest contestants who ever did, er… contest! Lobster-man J DARWIN, onesie-obsessive Elizabeth Nishibori, school uniform fan Zenbei “Xen Bae” and the completely normal Snuguru Maestro are among the challengers vying for the podium!
• Epic pratfalls!: Swinging poles! Giant face-slapping fish! Cyclists! Shiba Inu! Panes of glass! Traffic! False doors! Barrels! Rolling beams! Wobbly planks! Flying fruit! More Shiba Inu! EARTHQUAKES!!!!! Dodge and dive over the lot or suffer the painful and embarrassing consequences of physics-based collisions…
• Tons of surprises!: You never know what will happen next in Nippon Marathon. Perhaps you'll find time for an impromptu spot of slot machine fun? Maybe a news anchor will jetpack in to interview you on the racetrack? Heck, anything is possible…
• Drop-in/drop-out play!: Need a bathroom break to squeeze pineapple juice out of your foam lobster claws? Random pedestrian passing by your couch and wants to play? Whatever the cause, hop in and out for the ultimate, flexible party get-together!

Currently available on Steam Early Access, Nippon Marathon will launch later this year, complete with extra courses, contestants, party modes and a full single-player story campaign, will charge onto Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC and Mac.