#1995 to 1996Pioneer LDC enters games (Bounty Sword, 1995) and releases Noel: Not Digital (1996), the team and system that Lain's game grew out of.source: 4gamer.net · yamaki-nyx.hatenablog.com
#1996Ueda contacts Yoshitoshi ABe through his homepage; ABe joins after his graduate exams.source: 4gamer.net · archived page · archived page
#1997-03 (approx.)The spelling 'lain' (rather than 'rain') is settled during ABe's early sketches.ABe told 4Gamer that when he first asked how the name was spelled he was told it was not decided, and early images in the artbook show 'lein' and 'rein'. ABe's own chronology says he was offered the job in November 1996 and his work on lain began in earnest in February 1997. Japanese Wikipedia (added by an anonymous editor on 15 January 2013) dates the choice of 'lain' to around March 1997, citing his website diary of 26 March 1997, which is not archived; his site log does show new CG library images on 26 March, 5 April and 15 April 1997, the slots that held his five 'serial experiments' pictures, two of them lettered 'lein' and 'rein'?; the Love Letter Typewriter font was chosen early.source: 4gamer.net archived · 4gamer.net · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1997-09-24 to 1998-04-17Konaka writes the TV scripts.Konaka records these dates himself on his page for the scenario book. He wrote the first four scripts without an ending in mind, paused, and then shaped the rest around Nakamura's storyboards, never writing a full plot.source: konaka.com archived · konaka.com archived · yamaki-nyx.hatenablog.com
#1998Excellence Award, animation division, 2nd Japan Media Arts Festival.The award went to director Ryutaro Nakamura; the jury praised how the show questioned human existence through everyday school and family life. The grand prize that year went to Shigeru Tamura's short Kujira no Choyaku.source: archived page · konaka.com archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1998-03-10The ABe/Konaka graphic+text serial begins in Monthly AX (April issue).The 'Layers' serial ran in Sony Magazines' AX from 10 March to 10 November 1998, pairing ABe's art with Konaka's text, and was later collected in ABe's artbooks. Game Watch's 25th anniversary feature gives the same run.source: game.watch.impress.co.jp archived · 4gamer.net archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1998-07-06TV premiere on TV Tokyo late night (Monday 6 July 1998 in the 25:15 slot, which is 1:15 a.m. on 7 July by the clock).The slot was Tuesday 1:15 to 1:45 am, so Japanese listings say 7 July while English sources and the original poster say 6 July. Ueda told FRUiTS the Layer 01 suicide had to be cleared with TV Tokyo in advance.source: gigazine.net · lawmune.net · game.watch.impress.co.jp archived · en.wikipedia.org archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1998-09-25First Japanese home video volume (lif.01).Each video volume carried a surreal four-panel gag comic by ABe, later reprinted in his artbook. Package designer Akihisa Okuda said in 2010 he had designed the packaging from the start.source: ja.wikipedia.org archived · gigazine.net
#1998-09-28Final episode airs (Monday 28 September 1998, 25:15 slot, i.e. 1:15 a.m. on 29 September).Konaka says Layer 13 specified in the script where the commercial breaks fell, so the story started straight after the title to keep tension. He got emails afterwards saying 'Lain came to my room', which he counted as success.source: konaka.com archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived · en.wikipedia.org archived
#1998-10-21Cyberia Mix album released.Club tracks themed on the Cyberia nightclub, including a Duvet remix; Wasei Chikada, who voices DJ JJ, later DJed the 2018 Club Cyberia anniversary event.source: vgmdb.net archived · 4gamer.net
#1998-11-26PlayStation game released in Japan.It slipped past the end of the TV run. Ueda says CESA refused to certify it over gore, so it shipped without CESA, and a magazine declined to score it after he called it 'psycho-stretch-ware'; it later needed two discs.source: 4gamer.net archived · game.watch.impress.co.jp archived · psx.lain.pl archived · en.wikipedia.org archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1998-12-05Scenario Experiments Lain published.Sony Magazines, ISBN 4-7897-1320-2. Konaka's page says it was the first book of his scripts, set in his real manuscript format with storyboard and design extras, and warns readers to watch the show first. A new edition came via Fukkan.com in 2010.source: konaka.com archived · gigazine.net · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1999-02-27Lain Talk Live staff event.Held at Loft Plus One in Shinjuku from 14:00 for about three hours, with entry limited because of crowds. Staff rotated on stage and previewed BOOTLEG, a mook and the artbook.source: archived page · asahi-net.or.jp archived · lain.wiki archived
#1999-04-23lain BOOTLEG released.A hybrid audio and data disc set dressed as a leaked bootleg; the audio side carries the in-show sound score by Akira Takemoto's team.source: lain.wiki · vgmdb.net archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1999-05-01an omnipresence in wired published (1 May 1999).ABe's Sony Magazines artbook gathers the AX serial, game and anime art and his color comic The Nightmare of Fabrication; it was reprinted by Fukkan.com in September 2018.source: natalie.mu archived · 4gamer.net archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived
#1999-07-13Pioneer releases US Vol.1 'Navi' on VHS and DVD.Four volumes (Navi, Knights, Deus, Reset) followed through 1999. Translator Dave Fleming later spoke from the audience at the Otakon 2000 panel.source: lain.wiki archived · lawmune.net
#2000DVD-BOX Resurrection with LPR-309 promo disc; HK interview with Konaka (April issue); Otakon 2000 panel (Aug 5).The HK interview was recorded in early winter 1999 and printed in France in 2000. At Otakon, Ueda and ABe were guests of honor and Boa played a rare US concert on 4 August.source: lain.wiki archived · konaka.com archived · lawmune.net · archived page · en.wikipedia.org archived · konaka.com archived · cjas.org archived
#2000NieA_7 airs, the light-hearted follow-up from Ueda, ABe and Triangle Staff.source: archived page · archived page
#2000-12Triangle Staff ceases operations.Its site still posted news until 22 March 2001 and carried mid-2001 news on the top page, and in December 2000 it was hiring staff to start in January 2001; by late September 2001 the site was a bare works list. No closure notice was found, and the company was never formally liquidated (it received a National Tax Agency corporate number in October 2015).source: archived page · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2001-06-29Last update of Konaka's personal lain site (fan art added); the page stays online.source: konaka.com archived
#2003-01-21US TV debut on TechTV's Anime Unleashed.TechTV previewed its new Anime Unleashed block in late 2002 with trailer footage from Lain, Crest of the Stars and Betterman; Lain then aired late at night as the first US broadcast. Animation Magazine wrote in January 2003 that the block aired Monday to Thursday at 1 a.m. ET and that Lain 'premieres Jan. 20', and a fan post of 18 January 2003 announced it for 'this Monday (the 20th)' at 12 midnight Central, i.e. 1 a.m. Eastern going into 21 January.source: animenation.net · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2003-07-21Pioneer LDC becomes Geneon Entertainment.Dentsu bought Pioneer's entertainment arm and renamed it Geneon; Ueda stayed on as a producer.source: en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2005TV-BOX reissue; ab# rebuild artbook in Japan.The rebuild artbook from Wani Magazine reworks the first book and shows some line art uncovered; ABe told 4Gamer he still prefers the flatter, filtered look.source: 4gamer.net archived · ja.wikipedia.org archived · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2006-06-27English edition of ab# rebuild from Digital Manga Publishing.A translated softcover edition of the rebuild artbook.source: en.wikipedia.org archived
#2007-12Geneon USA closes; US discs go out of print.A planned deal for ADV to distribute Geneon titles collapsed in September 2007, and Geneon USA stopped distribution in early December.source: animenation.net · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2008Fan translation project for the game begins.The project's own site says it ran from 2008 to 2014 and released the full English script as a PDF.source: psx.lain.pl archived · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2010-07Funimation announces license at Anime Expo 2010.Lain was among former Geneon titles Funimation rescued at its Anime Expo 2010 panel.source: animenewsnetwork.com · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2010-10-27Blu-ray BOX | RESTORE released in Japan.Announced on 1 September 2009 at the request of Burnum's Tetsuro Satomi and meant for December 2009, it slipped a year while the team stabilized film, widened the frame and rebuilt lost digital cuts. Ueda kept a production blog during the work.source: gigazine.net · gigazine.net · gigazine.net · ja.wikipedia.org archived · animeanime.jp archived
#2010-11-22Blu-ray launch event at Cine Libre Ikebukuro, with Ueda, Konaka, ABe and a surprise appearance by Kaori Shimizu; tickets sold out in about ten minutes.source: gigazine.net · gigazine.net
#2012-10-15Series airs on Funimation Channel; Funimation BD/DVD set follows in November 2012.ANN confirms Funimation released the complete series on combined Blu-ray and DVD, in limited and regular editions, in November 2012, using the Japanese restoration. Funimation's own channel schedule for week 43 of 2012 (Mon 15 Oct to Sun 21 Oct, US Eastern) lists 'Serial Experiments Lain [01] (P) - Episode 01 - Weird' at 10:00 p.m. on Monday 15 October, and the week 42 schedule has no Lain.source: animenewsnetwork.com archived · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2013-06-29Director Ryūtarō Nakamura dies.He died of pancreatic cancer at 58 after months in hospital; the news came on 25 July via the Chibi Neko Tom account. He had been too ill to attend the 2010 Blu-ray event.source: gigazine.net · animenewsnetwork.com · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2014Game script fan translation released as PDF; Funimation Anime Classics edition on May 20.The translation team announced completion on its site. The Anime Classics set was first due on 28 January 2014 and slipped four months to 20 May 2014.source: psx.lain.pl archived · animenewsnetwork.com archived · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2018-04-28Konaka starts his retrospective blog 'welcome back to wired'.source: yamaki-nyx.hatenablog.com · animenewsnetwork.com
#2018-0920th anniversary: omnipresence artbook reprint; 4Gamer staff playthrough interview (Sept 29).Fukkan.com reissued the artbook in mid September, and Ueda, ABe and Konaka replayed the game on a PS3 for 4Gamer.source: natalie.mu archived · 4gamer.net archived
#2021-03-29lainTSX browser recreation launches.A WebGL reimplementation by ad044 using three.js, with the repository started in August 2020; it sparked new interest in the game. The repository history points to a public launch at the end of March 2021 (license added 29 March, first outside pull requests merged 31 March, no commits around late May); the Wayback Machine's first capture of the game at 3d.laingame.net is from 23:59 UTC on 28 March 2021, and the laingame.net front page gained a 'Start lainTSX' link between its 26 March capture (no link) and its 29 March 10:14 UTC capture, so the public launch fell on 28 or 29 March 2021 (UTC; US time 28 March).source: github.com archived · lain.wiki · otaquest.com archived
#2021-08'Duvet' goes viral on TikTok; Bôa later reunites.The band re-formed and released new music, including the album Whiplash in 2024.source: palatinate.org.uk · variety.com · en.wikipedia.org archived
#202325th anniversary: AI lain service by Anique; Layer 3301 ARG announced then cancelled.Anique announced the Ueda-supervised ARG on 8 June and cancelled it on 18 October to focus on AI lain, a chatbot using Kaori Shimizu's 1998 recordings.source: 4gamer.net archived · news.mynavi.jp · note.com archived · game.watch.impress.co.jp archived
#2023-10-06'Duvet' certified Gold by the RIAA (Platinum on 2024-10-16).Certification followed the song's streaming revival. The RIAA database lists it as 1x Platinum on 16 October 2024; RIAA's award timeline for the single gives the first certification, Gold, on 6 October 2023.source: en.wikipedia.org archived · palatinate.org.uk
#2024-02-27Report values a sealed copy of the game at about US$3,400.Ueda had said in 2018 that he disliked the premium prices but also disliked giving in to commerce.source: automaton-media.com archived · 4gamer.net
#2025-05-19Licensed fan derivative game 'Signal' released.Made by Team MJM under NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan's 2019 to 2028 fan-work guidelines, with an endorsement letter from Konaka; it was delayed from 30 April and a crowdfunding campaign was added for physical copies.source: animenewsnetwork.com · store.steampowered.com · automaton-media.com · en.wikipedia.org archived
#2025-07-05 to 2025-08-31ABe's 30th career anniversary exhibition 'Enkan Kiten' shows original lain art.source: kai-you.net · x.com
#2026-09-29PlayStation game decompilation reported complete, with native PC clients.The project rebuilds the original executable from matching C and offers native clients that use the player's own discs.source: github.com archived · pantspantsrevolution.com archived · retro-gamer.jp archived
