A few things I like about Akiba’s Trip ⊟
Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed is sort of a Yakuza-type modern-day Japan RPG thing; it attempts to be salacious, but also about otaku; it’s well-written (at least, in localization) but incessantly talky.
Uh, also, it took a long time for me to get into the actual gameplay, and then froze before I remembered to save, which is maybe half my fault. Basically, what I’m trying to say is that I don’t exactly know how I feel about it.
But I know there are some things I really like about this weird game.
- Akihabara: I’ve visited Akihabara three times – not enough to know the layout, but enough to recognize some landmarks and get a vague notion of where a few places are. Akiba’s Trip recreates Akihabara just as I remember it (admittedly, minus a lot of the crowd, and in somewhat simple graphics). Even better, you can actually go into some of the real stores, even if just to buy a t-shirt.
- Combo finishers: Combat isn’t as smooth as I would want from a pure brawler, but it’s all right. It’s serviceable, if a bit laggy. Combat, by the way, involves punching and kicking the clothes of enemy “synthisters” until they’re damaged enough to be easily ripped off piece by piece. When you successfully remove an article of clothing, if any nearby enemies are also damaged enough, you can hit a short QTE and remove some of their clothes. This kind of dramatic auto-combo stuff just feels fun. As for the bonus you get for high combos – enemy underwear – whatever.
- Clothing: As you’re also a light-sensitive Synthister, your clothes have an in-game function: they’re your armor. Every item of clothing has its own defense level; you can get more from battles or shop for clothes. But the best part of this is that every item you wear reflects on your in-game model. So if you want to look a) fresh-to-death or b) hilarious, you can.
- This Pepper Lunch ad
Seriously, Pepper Lunch is amazing. Whenever I’m in Tokyo, I go to this fast food establishment, where you cook plates of steak, rice, corn, and delicious seasonings to your taste by stirring the contents of the sizzling hot plates around. The best. And this game reminded me of it.
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