My first game from Kaz Ayabe
I find myself in a bit of a dilemma. While the game, on the whole, didn't quite resonate with me, it does harbor fragments of what I cherish in an adventure game. It weaves a tale steeped in magical realism; a family relocates to a town where, seemingly, daikaiju appear and fight every Friday
However, as one swiftly discerns by exploring the place and conversing with some of the adults, it's all a fictitious: the town has been chosen as a TV/Movie set for tokusatsu shows. Yet, this revelation is never explicitly stated; the lens is that of the protagonist, a kid who earnestly believes in the existence of these colossal creatures. The game unfolds as the child spends a couple of days with his newfound friends, endeavoring to unravel the mystery of the kaijus.
Well, in any case something quite mysterious eventually happens.
Basically, the game is an adventure encapsulated within the tight confines of the town: only a handful of houses line the streets we traverse, and the entire space can be explored in a mere 5 minutes. It's an adventure on a minuscule scale, with fixed-camera angles and exquisitely hand-drawn backgrounds. Talking about the fixed-camera angles, I found their use to be quite interesting.
3D models are sparingly used: characters (excluding a cameraman) and a train that traverses tracks leading to and from the town. This, to me, is one of the most captivating aspects of games: the presence of elements and systems that unfold in real-time, shifting from one place to another while the player is engrossed in another pursuit. Numerous times, I found myself anticipating the arrival of a train, reaching an underpass where I could hear the clatter of the tracks, and finally ascending to a vantage point from which I could observe the same train fading from the screen. These nuances, in my case, provide an almost grounded experience, allowing me to immerse myself in the fictitious setting on-screen. Regrettably, the rest of the game tends to be rather static, offering only fleeting impressions despite being developed by LEVEL-5. However, one should not expect too much, as it's part of the smaller projects from the Guild01 and Guild02 series, collaborations with other developers, published on the eShop.
The magical realism that permeates the game is particularly intriguing during those brief moments when it endeavors to reconstruct an era of Japanese suburbs. A period marked by technological innovation, economic prosperity, and rural realities converging - a blend of factors that provides fertile ground for the surreal aspects of this narrative. The fumes of industrialization, visible in the distant background (not integral to the story but contextualizing its historical backdrop), almost seem like a remote reality. In this context, tokusatsu serves as more than a symbol of the protagonist's growth; it mirrors the maturation of the entire Japanese town.
On several occasions we talk to the adults inhabiting this small town on the outskirts of Tokyo. These instances are practically the only times when you find yourself in rather confined, almost humble spaces, and in close proximity. Let's say that it's in these moments that you truly have the opportunity to appreciate both your own and others' facial expressions. On the contrary, the rest of the game (mostly spent conversing with friends and peers) unfolds in much larger spaces; at times, the perspective is from above, and the view extends towards the horizon. It almost creates a distinction between the adult world and that of the youth
A prominent aspect the game irks me: the necessity to traverse back and forth to engage in conversations with all the characters, gradually peeling back the layers of their mundane stories. I think the game gets kind of erratic in an annoying way. While this is formalized through a structure of progressing sub-quests, I didn't like it since it's all so brief, free and oversimplistic (I don't want to say superficial) at the same time. What's more vexing is having to do so in situations that, from the protagonist's perspective, should be particularly intense and urgent. Granted, this is a common occurrence in many games, where one can stop from doing something urgent to partake in secondary activities. However, in this case, I think an even more linear experience would have undoubtedly enhanced the overall immersion.
On the opposite, I didn't mind the card game. I don't really care about it and its rules though, since it mainly serves the story and the context - serving as a reflection of the television success of tokusatsu shows in the '60s and '70s. It mirrors perfectly the carefree nature of the children on-screen and the very magical realism that defines the story. The children's imagination materializes in their ability to merge cards and discover them in fragments.
While writing this comment of mine, I drew substantial inspiration from Cadensia's captivating review, which I wholeheartedly recommend you to read.
Final thought: the whole cast of characters is well made, each one of them has a distinguished personality that makes them kind of memorable.
I guess that my main grip with the game is that it almost feels like a very fast prologue that will never see an extension of its scopes.
I find myself in a bit of a dilemma. While the game, on the whole, didn't quite resonate with me, it does harbor fragments of what I cherish in an adventure game. It weaves a tale steeped in magical realism; a family relocates to a town where, seemingly, daikaiju appear and fight every Friday
However, as one swiftly discerns by exploring the place and conversing with some of the adults, it's all a fictitious: the town has been chosen as a TV/Movie set for tokusatsu shows. Yet, this revelation is never explicitly stated; the lens is that of the protagonist, a kid who earnestly believes in the existence of these colossal creatures. The game unfolds as the child spends a couple of days with his newfound friends, endeavoring to unravel the mystery of the kaijus.
Well, in any case something quite mysterious eventually happens.
Basically, the game is an adventure encapsulated within the tight confines of the town: only a handful of houses line the streets we traverse, and the entire space can be explored in a mere 5 minutes. It's an adventure on a minuscule scale, with fixed-camera angles and exquisitely hand-drawn backgrounds. Talking about the fixed-camera angles, I found their use to be quite interesting.
3D models are sparingly used: characters (excluding a cameraman) and a train that traverses tracks leading to and from the town. This, to me, is one of the most captivating aspects of games: the presence of elements and systems that unfold in real-time, shifting from one place to another while the player is engrossed in another pursuit. Numerous times, I found myself anticipating the arrival of a train, reaching an underpass where I could hear the clatter of the tracks, and finally ascending to a vantage point from which I could observe the same train fading from the screen. These nuances, in my case, provide an almost grounded experience, allowing me to immerse myself in the fictitious setting on-screen. Regrettably, the rest of the game tends to be rather static, offering only fleeting impressions despite being developed by LEVEL-5. However, one should not expect too much, as it's part of the smaller projects from the Guild01 and Guild02 series, collaborations with other developers, published on the eShop.
The magical realism that permeates the game is particularly intriguing during those brief moments when it endeavors to reconstruct an era of Japanese suburbs. A period marked by technological innovation, economic prosperity, and rural realities converging - a blend of factors that provides fertile ground for the surreal aspects of this narrative. The fumes of industrialization, visible in the distant background (not integral to the story but contextualizing its historical backdrop), almost seem like a remote reality. In this context, tokusatsu serves as more than a symbol of the protagonist's growth; it mirrors the maturation of the entire Japanese town.
On several occasions we talk to the adults inhabiting this small town on the outskirts of Tokyo. These instances are practically the only times when you find yourself in rather confined, almost humble spaces, and in close proximity. Let's say that it's in these moments that you truly have the opportunity to appreciate both your own and others' facial expressions. On the contrary, the rest of the game (mostly spent conversing with friends and peers) unfolds in much larger spaces; at times, the perspective is from above, and the view extends towards the horizon. It almost creates a distinction between the adult world and that of the youth
A prominent aspect the game irks me: the necessity to traverse back and forth to engage in conversations with all the characters, gradually peeling back the layers of their mundane stories. I think the game gets kind of erratic in an annoying way. While this is formalized through a structure of progressing sub-quests, I didn't like it since it's all so brief, free and oversimplistic (I don't want to say superficial) at the same time. What's more vexing is having to do so in situations that, from the protagonist's perspective, should be particularly intense and urgent. Granted, this is a common occurrence in many games, where one can stop from doing something urgent to partake in secondary activities. However, in this case, I think an even more linear experience would have undoubtedly enhanced the overall immersion.
On the opposite, I didn't mind the card game. I don't really care about it and its rules though, since it mainly serves the story and the context - serving as a reflection of the television success of tokusatsu shows in the '60s and '70s. It mirrors perfectly the carefree nature of the children on-screen and the very magical realism that defines the story. The children's imagination materializes in their ability to merge cards and discover them in fragments.
While writing this comment of mine, I drew substantial inspiration from Cadensia's captivating review, which I wholeheartedly recommend you to read.
Final thought: the whole cast of characters is well made, each one of them has a distinguished personality that makes them kind of memorable.
I guess that my main grip with the game is that it almost feels like a very fast prologue that will never see an extension of its scopes.