what the fuck were they on when they made this
not too sure i'm getting the pc version working correctly, might switch to the SFC version
keep coming back to this franchise when I am in the mood for a platformer. extremely Replayable short game that can be moderately difficult or insanely difficult depending on what you prefer. you can play every level or skip hard levels by finding other doors to go through.
Stumbled upon this game while checking out random games on an emulator during college. The fishing rod/grappling hook mechanics are honestly pretty good.
Game Review - originally written by Spinner 8
I can clearly say, without any doubt, that this is the greatest game ever. To hell with MGS, move over SotN, Umihara Kawase is the game of choice for me, thank you very much. And why, you ask? Because you’re a girl with a fishing line for a weapon, that’s why! All the enemies are fish, and you have to hook on to them and reel them in! Pretty cool eh? Well the coolest part is that your fishing line is also used as a grappling hook. So you can swing around and do all kinds of fun crazy things. Of course, this makes for some pretty endless replay value. It’s even fun to die, for reasons that just can not be explained. I always laugh maniacally when she dies, because it’s just so much FUN, and it makes this hilarious “sploosh” sound when she falls in the water! Of course it kind of sucks when you’ve wasted all your lives goofing around. So, for the benefit of our loyal visitors, here is a ZSNES CHT file I made, which allows for infinite lives. Now you can screw around all you want! (editor's note: lol)
I can clearly say, without any doubt, that this is the greatest game ever. To hell with MGS, move over SotN, Umihara Kawase is the game of choice for me, thank you very much. And why, you ask? Because you’re a girl with a fishing line for a weapon, that’s why! All the enemies are fish, and you have to hook on to them and reel them in! Pretty cool eh? Well the coolest part is that your fishing line is also used as a grappling hook. So you can swing around and do all kinds of fun crazy things. Of course, this makes for some pretty endless replay value. It’s even fun to die, for reasons that just can not be explained. I always laugh maniacally when she dies, because it’s just so much FUN, and it makes this hilarious “sploosh” sound when she falls in the water! Of course it kind of sucks when you’ve wasted all your lives goofing around. So, for the benefit of our loyal visitors, here is a ZSNES CHT file I made, which allows for infinite lives. Now you can screw around all you want! (editor's note: lol)
Great hook physics that are very satisfying to master, unfortunately it is riddled with harsh difficulty spikes as well as Mario Maker-esque enemy spam. Out of all the games in this franchise, this is probably not the one you should play
i adore absolutely EVERYTHING about this game's aesthetics and surreal world with weird fishes that'd be fucking terrifying without the jolly music AND the whole fishing rod mechanic is sick as hell and an incredibly interesting way to move and platform. this could have very well been my favorite snes game ever but dear scott is it demanding. the further you go, the things the game expects you to manouver through get more and more absurd and the fact all this is under a time and lives limit makes it so much crazier. give me the will to train speedrunning this daily and it'd be an easy 9/10.
the whole randomly appearing enemies thing is not as big of a deal to me as it is to others. it's pretty easy to tell where they'll show up and the game prevents them from spawning right where you are, so i've had few moments of running into them right as they spawn. the one big issue i have with it is that the game will spawn like 3 or 4 enemies at the same spot while you're trying to get past them and they're spitting stun-fish at you and it is Not Very Fun. the bosses are kinda lame too. really cool and/or funny looking (i love the idea of a giant tadpole birthing frogs) but too many of them are essentially just "wait 5 cycles until you can proceed".
i'd still recommend trying this one. maybe not beating it, but the core gameplay idea mixed with the sweet and dreamy art is plenty of fun for a little while
the whole randomly appearing enemies thing is not as big of a deal to me as it is to others. it's pretty easy to tell where they'll show up and the game prevents them from spawning right where you are, so i've had few moments of running into them right as they spawn. the one big issue i have with it is that the game will spawn like 3 or 4 enemies at the same spot while you're trying to get past them and they're spitting stun-fish at you and it is Not Very Fun. the bosses are kinda lame too. really cool and/or funny looking (i love the idea of a giant tadpole birthing frogs) but too many of them are essentially just "wait 5 cycles until you can proceed".
i'd still recommend trying this one. maybe not beating it, but the core gameplay idea mixed with the sweet and dreamy art is plenty of fun for a little while
Random spawns absolutely ruin this game.
But it is adorable, and the fishing rod is pretty addictive for each 4 minute burst that you're allowed to play with it (praying that an eel isn't going to snipe you all the while) so I'm sure I'm going to come back to this in the future, get back up to field 40, watch the big tadpole drop his babies down the tube, and then I'll die violently in a frothing sea of frogs.
Why is the hud all so close to the center of the screen?
But it is adorable, and the fishing rod is pretty addictive for each 4 minute burst that you're allowed to play with it (praying that an eel isn't going to snipe you all the while) so I'm sure I'm going to come back to this in the future, get back up to field 40, watch the big tadpole drop his babies down the tube, and then I'll die violently in a frothing sea of frogs.
Why is the hud all so close to the center of the screen?
A devilish and fiendish experience designed to torment you beyond the limits of your fingers' dexterity. An impressive and forward thinking game in a lot of ways, with an interesting routing system to encourage replayability, impeccable rope physics, and super fun level designs that, if you think you can squonk through in the most fucked way, you almost certainly can. Just wish the enemies didn't respawn jesus fucking christ
greatest story ever told in the medium
I thought random enemy spawns were fine until I met the clams
I got one ending but I don't think I've got it in me to get more knowing clams could be around the corner
I thought random enemy spawns were fine until I met the clams
I got one ending but I don't think I've got it in me to get more knowing clams could be around the corner
É sobre ser uma garota e ir pescar! ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡
Sempre que alguém diz que uma mecânica é "avançada para o seu tempo" dá-se a entender que a mecânica deixa de ser avançada em certo ponto, que ela é um mero vislumbre do que será, uma espiada no inevitável futuro. Umihara Kawase possui uma vara de pesca tão matematicamente bastarda que não consigo pensar em um único comparativo ou exemplo de jogo que chegue perto dos cálculos sangrentos que a compõe. Esse é um daqueles experimentos matemáticos que estão fechados, jamais indo além dele mesmo pelo simples motivo de que seu corpo anda na entrelinha entre a aplicabilidade apenas para o próprio e a aplicabilidade para todo o mundo. É um videogame que é real para si, e é por isso que, apesar dos pormenores, eu o amo incondicionalmente.
O level desing das fases trabalha a mecânica no limite tanto do que se pode como videogame (e no que ele se propõe como videogame), como também o que não poderia ser, mas é. Soa quase como um pinicante lembrete ao fato de que você está segurando um controle com circuitos, chips e pequenas pecinhas girando, subindo e descendo.
É difícil de cruzar a linha de quando a esquizofrenia começa, e acho que tentar decifrar isso está além de mim. Se Umihara Kawase fosse um livro, seria sobre tocar na superfície áspera do papel. Tem quem entenda, tem quem não. E pouco importa.
Chega um ponto em que você sente medo. Não sei explicar.
Amei e odiei. Um dos jogos mais frustrantes e recompensadores já feitos. Meu dedão tá sangrando. Não vou conseguir dormir hoje.
Sempre que alguém diz que uma mecânica é "avançada para o seu tempo" dá-se a entender que a mecânica deixa de ser avançada em certo ponto, que ela é um mero vislumbre do que será, uma espiada no inevitável futuro. Umihara Kawase possui uma vara de pesca tão matematicamente bastarda que não consigo pensar em um único comparativo ou exemplo de jogo que chegue perto dos cálculos sangrentos que a compõe. Esse é um daqueles experimentos matemáticos que estão fechados, jamais indo além dele mesmo pelo simples motivo de que seu corpo anda na entrelinha entre a aplicabilidade apenas para o próprio e a aplicabilidade para todo o mundo. É um videogame que é real para si, e é por isso que, apesar dos pormenores, eu o amo incondicionalmente.
O level desing das fases trabalha a mecânica no limite tanto do que se pode como videogame (e no que ele se propõe como videogame), como também o que não poderia ser, mas é. Soa quase como um pinicante lembrete ao fato de que você está segurando um controle com circuitos, chips e pequenas pecinhas girando, subindo e descendo.
É difícil de cruzar a linha de quando a esquizofrenia começa, e acho que tentar decifrar isso está além de mim. Se Umihara Kawase fosse um livro, seria sobre tocar na superfície áspera do papel. Tem quem entenda, tem quem não. E pouco importa.
Chega um ponto em que você sente medo. Não sei explicar.
Amei e odiei. Um dos jogos mais frustrantes e recompensadores já feitos. Meu dedão tá sangrando. Não vou conseguir dormir hoje.
Why is this so hard.
The Umihara Kawase series is to me the most genius example of how it is possible to merge cerebral puzzles with very active, somatic and intense gameplay.
This is a game that actually requires you to practice each level - the sheer amount of physical dexterity needed to make difficult maneuvers is outstanding. Yet it will develop in you just from playing this game, over and over, persevering through the countless frustrations. This is what I mean by practice.
At the same time, there are numerous pathways in each level, which is where strategically figuring out the most optimized pathway to the exit comes in handy. It's no wonder this game has a following among speedrunners. Since this is a game you can either complete it in say, about 4 minutes (for the best speedrunners, or less: https://www.speedrun.com/umi), or a year.
It brings me back to my time learning (and I'm still always learning) a musical instrument, or perhaps even learning a new language. The pure joy of practicing, pushing through the frustrations and pure joy and triumph at those small hurdles you manage to pass. That, I think, encapsulates the joy of Umihara Kawase. As anecdotal evidence, I will say that when I was playing "Sayonara, Umihara Kawase!", I literally yelled for joy (the same way a dad yells at the sports game on TV when his team scores) when I managed to reach a difficult platform.
In fact, I played this game last year, when I was picking up a musical instrument again after a few months - and I can say I saw significant parallels in the process of learning this game, that I did in the process of learning my instrument again.
This is a game that actually requires you to practice each level - the sheer amount of physical dexterity needed to make difficult maneuvers is outstanding. Yet it will develop in you just from playing this game, over and over, persevering through the countless frustrations. This is what I mean by practice.
At the same time, there are numerous pathways in each level, which is where strategically figuring out the most optimized pathway to the exit comes in handy. It's no wonder this game has a following among speedrunners. Since this is a game you can either complete it in say, about 4 minutes (for the best speedrunners, or less: https://www.speedrun.com/umi), or a year.
It brings me back to my time learning (and I'm still always learning) a musical instrument, or perhaps even learning a new language. The pure joy of practicing, pushing through the frustrations and pure joy and triumph at those small hurdles you manage to pass. That, I think, encapsulates the joy of Umihara Kawase. As anecdotal evidence, I will say that when I was playing "Sayonara, Umihara Kawase!", I literally yelled for joy (the same way a dad yells at the sports game on TV when his team scores) when I managed to reach a difficult platform.
In fact, I played this game last year, when I was picking up a musical instrument again after a few months - and I can say I saw significant parallels in the process of learning this game, that I did in the process of learning my instrument again.
i sure do love dying from 3 enemies instantly spawning right next to me oh boy and then getting a game over on the next life from the physics sending me flying backwards into a pit wow fucking awesome what a great fucking game
Yeah sure very solid movement and rope physics for the time but what I kept getting impressed by was this game having such creatively evil level design more than a decade before the "rage game" genre got popular. Like, Umihara Kawase was never a household name or anything, but it has to have laid the groundwork for SOME form of kaizo nonsense in the future, right?
But despite the game clearly reveling in these sadistic setups, it rarely feels like actual bullshit. In fact, you can beat most of the later stages on your first try if you're observant and have sufficiently mastered the movement system, which feels super satisfying despite occasional jank like the Small Protruding Ledges From Hell. Nothing beats running into a section that seems borderline impossible and then turning it into a joke within the hour, despite the experience of getting there occasionally feeling like pulling teeth.
Most of the actual criticism I can target squarely at random enemy spawns (which ARE bad but never enough to ruin the game for me), boss fights (lol) and the presentation. I get that it's an old low-budget indie game made out of scattered assets with the excuse of being "set inside of a dream" but the color palette and enemy designs make it look more like a nightmare. The dreary monochrome photo backgrounds are the worst part, this shit is sometimes one degree removed from looking like Umihara's obituary. The cutesy soundtrack does a lot of heavy lifting for this not coming off as a horror game
But despite the game clearly reveling in these sadistic setups, it rarely feels like actual bullshit. In fact, you can beat most of the later stages on your first try if you're observant and have sufficiently mastered the movement system, which feels super satisfying despite occasional jank like the Small Protruding Ledges From Hell. Nothing beats running into a section that seems borderline impossible and then turning it into a joke within the hour, despite the experience of getting there occasionally feeling like pulling teeth.
Most of the actual criticism I can target squarely at random enemy spawns (which ARE bad but never enough to ruin the game for me), boss fights (lol) and the presentation. I get that it's an old low-budget indie game made out of scattered assets with the excuse of being "set inside of a dream" but the color palette and enemy designs make it look more like a nightmare. The dreary monochrome photo backgrounds are the worst part, this shit is sometimes one degree removed from looking like Umihara's obituary. The cutesy soundtrack does a lot of heavy lifting for this not coming off as a horror game