Naver WEBTOON and Korean web novel platform Munpia announced on Monday the launch of the 2026 “World’s Largest Web Novel Contest,” offering a total prize pool of 380 million won (approximately US$258,000) as the companies seek to discover and support the next generation of web novel creators.

Submissions will be open from May 13 to June 21, with winners scheduled to be announced on July 22. The contest accepts a wide range of genres — including fantasy, martial arts, modern, sports, and alternative history — and excludes adult-only content.

This year’s competition introduces a newly established Martial Arts Special Award, aimed at expanding the genre’s presence by recognizing up to five works that either preserve traditional elements or reinterpret them with a modern sensibility. Each selected work will receive 10 million won (approximately US$6,800). With this addition, the total number of award-winning entries will increase to 39, up from 34 last year.

Top winners will receive significant opportunities beyond prize money. The grand prize winner and three top excellence winners will have their works adapted into webtoons and serialized on Naver WEBTOON. All winning entries will first be published on Munpia, followed by distribution and promotional support on Naver Series, with additional consideration for adaptations into film, television, or other media as part of broader IP expansion efforts.

Source: Naver WEBTOON press release

Square Enix announced on Friday that it will open two Square Enix Café & Shop locations in Los Angeles and Tokyo. The English version of the announcement lists both locations as opening this spring, while the Japanese version lists the Tokyo location as opening in “early summer.”

J-Pop Culture Café Inc. will operate the Los Angeles café and shop at 316 East 1st Street in the “Little Tokyo” neighborhood. This will be the first time an official Square Enix Café location offers a “full, authentic menu” in the United States.

Newton Corporation will operate the new Tokyo café and shop on the first three floors in the Paselabo Tower in the Shinjuku district — the same location as a previous “Square Enix Pop-Up Cafe” that announced its closure at the end of March.

The two cafés will offer menu items inspired by different Square Enix properties, and the adjoining shops will carry official merchandise for the same.

Square Enix‘s Previous Cafés

The previous Square Enix Café Tokyo (pictured above) in Tokyo’s Akihabara district permanently closed in March 2025, after more than eight years in operation. Square Enix opened this first Square Enix Café in Tokyo inside the Yodobashi Camera store in Akihabara in October 2016. The café featured time-limited collaborative menus and drinks with different Square Enix properties, as well as a shop with merchandise.

Square Enix had previously noted that its separate Artnia café and shop in Shinjuku in Tokyo will continue operations. The Square Enix Garden merchandise shop that opened in 2024 in Shibuya in Tokyo is also continuing operations. The Pasela Resorts building in Akihabara in Tokyo hosts the Dragon Quest-themed Luida’s Bar and a Final Fantasy Eorzea Café, and the Pasela Resorts building in Osaka’s Namba district also hosts a Final Fantasy Eorzea Café.

A different Square Enix Café in Osaka opened in October 2017 in Osaka’s Umeda area, and relocated to a nearby location later on. This Osaka café closed down in August 2021. There are now Square Enix Pop-Up Café locations in Osaka and Nagoya.

Square Enix also has an official café in Shanghai.

Sources: Square Enix, Pasela