Just months after China held massive military drills near Taiwan, you might expect young Taiwanese men like these to be obsessing about the possibility of going to war.

They were obsessing when we visited Taipei this past week, but it was about something else: video games, anime and manga. The extent of “ACG” culture (Animation, Comics and Games) in Taiwan’s capital astonished us.

As we strolled through an underground mall beside the central train station, we passed row after row of crowded stores selling games, action figures and anime merch. Parents lined up with their children to take photos with Ultraman. Teenagers poured coins into vending machines to buy gacha figures. Posters advertised new video games and consoles.

We’d expected to see stores selling clothing and souvenirs. Instead, we encountered an ACG jamboree, one that spilled outside to fan groups like the one you see below.

Anime and games are deeply embedded in Taiwan, and not only among young people. Large conventions in Taipei attract hundreds of thousands of people.

A thriving anime/gaming culture also exists in the United States, of course, but it retains some of its nerd subculture vibe rather than being so mainstream. Taiwan’s anime also retains strong cultural continuity with Japan while the American version is more closely aligned with domestic pop culture.

More than 80% of internet users in Taiwan engage with digital games. It’s no longer just a “youth” thing. A multi-billion dollar ecosystem has become a primary form of social currency.

Consumer brands, politicians and others in Taiwan now use ACG to reach younger consumers and voters. We saw this throughout our visit.

Are Taiwan’s young people turning to anime and games as a way to escape economic pressures and geopolitical threats? Not necessarily.

I was struck while in Taipei by how calm things seemed relative to China. The government has a “prepare without panicking” approach that takes national defense seriously while keeping young people and others focused on an economy that has achieved remarkable success, notably with computer chips and advanced technology. Many of the people I saw in the shops were probably busy the rest of the week with their studies and jobs, and their passion for games doesn’t mean they are unwilling to fight.

I visited Taipei briefly as a tourist, and I don’t speak Mandarin, so I’m hardly an expert on any of this. Still, it was interesting how few street signs I saw like the one above. I’d expected more. I came looking for war preparations but discovered these figurines instead. It wasn’t the Call of Duty I anticipated.