[428: Shibuya Scramble - Big Pharma + FMV + Mascots = Mayhem] Out now! [PS4 & Steam]

cj iwakura

• Developer/Publisher - Spike Chunsoft
• Platform(s) - PS4, PC
• Release Date: September 4 (US / EU [Steam] ) / September 21 (EU [PS4] )
• Genre: Adventure / Visual Novel
• Director: Jiro Ishii

A kidnapping on the mean streets of Shibuya brings together a hot-blooded detective, hard-hitting journalist, former gang leader, the head researcher of a big pharma manufacturer and a part-timer stuck in cat costume.

This is a story of the Shibuya Scramble, and a series of events each more unexpected and outrageous than the last.

Can they--or the city itself--make it through the day?

shoeboxjeddy

Is it a drama? Comedy? Mix?

cj iwakura

Suspense with comedic elements.

Unco-ordinated

Didn't this get a 40/40 from Famitsu forever ago? Not that Famitsu scores mean that much but it seems pretty interesting, I'll pick it up once it eventually comes out. Would've preferred a Vita version though, seeing as that's my VN/adventure game machine.

cj iwakura

Yep. The OST's pretty great too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJCFMvYwiBk

A review:

http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/428/

Japanese Academy Award winning composer Naoki Sato and video game composer veteran Hideki Sakamoto headline most of the composition of 428's music, with contributions from Shingo Yasumoto and Aya Kamiki. Seamless in their cooperation, Sato and Sakamoto create a soundtrack most gamers aren't accustomed to hearing. More similar to anime or film, most of the pieces, whether dramatic or melancholy, suitably evoke more of a "storytelling" mood; naturally, the game could be best classified as a graphic adventure. Incidentally, much of Sato's experience lies in anime and film.

428's main theme introduces the game with a heavy dose of adrenaline. For those with some popular anime under their belt, this theme holds a striking similarity to the jazzy, horn-infused opening to Cowboy Bebop – Tank. Both pieces communicate that the tale that follows bears an action-packed, intense trial for the protagonist to overcome, and what better way to start the soundtrack? Oh, and did I mention 428's theme has bells in it?

...

Sato and Sakamoto must have had a long sit while planning this soundtrack, and decided that the possibilities were truly endless. Whether jamming on an organ, banging on unorthodox percussion, or strumming up some psychedelic rock, they have it all. The awe-inspiring feat? With over 70 tracks of about two minute long pieces, it all sounds good. What a daunting task this must have been! If 428's story is anything like its soundtrack, then I have one question: why was this not released outside of Japan?

cj iwakura

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FClQDZnowqk

Alexander Smith is doing the localization.

Screens:

cj iwakura

http://www.tech-gaming.com/428-shibuya-scramble/

Great interview with the localization director. Excerpts follow:

Referred to as the visual novel for people who don’t like visual novels, 428: Shibuya Scramble has the privilege of being the genre’s only effort to obtain a perfect Famitsu score. If that’s not intriguing another, we pose a series of question toward David Kracker, who served as localization director for Spike Chunsoft’s upcoming title.

TG: Does the game adopt a Rashomon-like approach, where reality is an amalgam of different characters’ perspectives- or I am I reading too much into the concept of an ‘intersection’ (laughs)

DK: The story is told from the perspective of five characters, but the Time Chart lets you freely jump between them to see the same events from different perspectives and develop a more complete picture of the truth. I see it as more like a Coen Brother’s film, where the protagonists all influence each other even if they never interact directly.

As the story progresses, you’ll be given choices that affect the current character and can also have unexpected consequences on the rest of the cast. I recommend you actively make bad decisions! Dead ends can offer foreshadowing or insights into a character’s motivations (and some are just fun, like the one where Tama, the cat costume mascot, becomes an internationally wanted criminal).

In my favorite pair of bad endings, two characters play a life-and-death game of rock-paper-scissors. Somehow, BOTH of them end up thinking they lost. Only the player, who has seen both sides of the story, knows the truth. There’s probably an important life lesson in there somewhere…

T-G: For those, like me, who appreciate verisimilitude, how many identifiable elements of Shibuya are in the game? Obviously, the crossing is depicted by what about Hachikō, Ichi-Maru-kyu, or the Cerulean Tower?

DK: You can spot the city’s landmarks in the background (how can you shoot the Scramble without including the 109 building?) but it’s the small things that stood out to me. There’s a scene where Achi and Hitomi cross the Shibuya River on a walkway that overlooks a canal flanked by rows of tall buildings that stretch to the horizon. When I first moved to Tokyo, I remember trying to get the perfect sunset shot at that exact spot.

T-G: 428 is the only visual novel to earn a perfect score in Famitsu. What elements do you feel resonated most with the magazine’s writers?

DK: (Googles the old Famitsu Cross Review) Well, to paraphrase the original… they were taken by the interconnected storyline, brilliant sound design and comedic tempo. It’s a visual novel for people who don’t like visual novels.

Should be coming out very soon, I hope.

cj iwakura

Demo is on PSN, it's about an hour-two hours long depending on reading speed.

https://store.playstation.com/en-us/product/UP4774-CUSA12263_00-428SHIBUYATRIAL0

l_g

I've been really quite excited for this game!
I'm also really curious to see how they dealt with FMVs and images that were very much not 1080p HD in this port. Does this game look like a giant smear?

cj iwakura

It looked great, I thought.

cj iwakura

Comes out in two days or so, went ahead and updated the OP.

cj iwakura

Not to be an echo chamber, but it has perfect scores so far:



RPG Site: 10/10
https://www.rpgsite.net/review/7684-428-shibuya-scramble-review

I truly enjoyed reading 428: Shibuya Scramble all the way through. The English localization team has done a brilliant job bringing over one of the most inventive experiences ever. I can’t emphasize enough that it’s one of the best games I’ve played this year. There's nothing else quite like it, and if you’re a fan of visual novels and creative storytelling in video games you definitely shouldn't miss 428: Shibuya Scramble.

GamingGamma: 10/10
https://gaminggamma.com/2018/09/03/428-shibuya-scramble-review-ps4-pc-gamma-review/

The story of 428 Shibuya Scramble is honestly one of the best I’ve read in quite some time. There are only a few games that go from completely serious writing to completely funny writing, and then back to being completely serious or vice versa flawlessly. This game is certainly one of them. 428 Shibuya Scramble has some of the strongest writing I’ve seen in gaming in a long time and it’s a shame something of this caliber has taken this long to reach the western market.

Playstation Lifestyle: 10/10
http://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2018/09/04/428-shibuya-scramble-ps4-review/#/slide/1

I have never played a game quite like 428: Shibuya Scramble. It’s hands-down the best visual novel I’ve ever experienced. Anything you could want in a visual it offers. Deep character development, a rich, meaningful story, humor, action, romance, you name it! Hell, it even teaches you things!

JRPG.moe: 5/5
http://jrpg.moe/428-shibuya-scramble-review/

The way 428: Shibuya Scramble is presented is unlike any other translated title, but if you value games with strong stories you owe it to yourself to not let this creative crime drama fly under the radar. Like Shibuya's scramble crossing, the events are chaotic and the passing moments between characters are sometimes fleeting, but crossing that iconic intersection is one hell of a memorable experience.

cj iwakura

I guess I'm literally the only one here playing this, so here's some screens that hopefully will sway some people.

Peas

You folks enjoying this?

Houk

I'm pretty close with a bunch of folks at the new Spike Chunsoft localization studio so I'm super pumped that it's doing so well, but visual novels are 100% not my thing so no matter how good of one it is, there's basically no chance I'd stick with it all the way through.

I'm really glad it's good, though! When I was at NISA we were constantly getting requests to try and localize older version of it, but the decision makers were never willing/able to pull the trigger on it. So I'm glad it finally got the release it deserves.

cj iwakura

Peas wrote: »

You folks enjoying this?

Folks? Lol, I think that's singular.

Houk the Namebringer wrote: »

I'm pretty close with a bunch of folks at the new Spike Chunsoft localization studio so I'm super pumped that it's doing so well, but visual novels are 100% not my thing so no matter how good of one it is, there's basically no chance I'd stick with it all the way through.

I'm really glad it's good, though! When I was at NISA we were constantly getting requests to try and localize older version of it, but the decision makers were never willing/able to pull the trigger on it. So I'm glad it finally got the release it deserves.

Good to know. But, uh, is it doing well?... I've heard it doesn't have many concurrent users on Steam at all... I hope I'm wrong, though.

Houk

Well, in terms of reviews and general user enjoyment I meant. I have no idea how well it's doing sales wise (although I have to imagine they didn't expect a huge turnout for a 10-year-old visual novel remaster, so "well" is probably a relative term there anyway). I'd also hazard a guess that in this case, the people who really wanted this game are probably console players. Again though, no idea.

cj iwakura

Houk the Namebringer wrote: »

Well, in terms of reviews and general user enjoyment I meant. I have no idea how well it's doing sales wise (although I have to imagine they didn't expect a huge turnout for a 10-year-old visual novel remaster, so "well" is probably a relative term there anyway). I'd also hazard a guess that in this case, the people who really wanted this game are probably console players. Again though, no idea.

I'm sure releasing it against DQXI and Spidey did them no favors.

akajaybay

Yeah I definitely intend to check this out, but there's way too many other things demanding my attention at the moment.

cj iwakura

So there was a ten year reunion in Shibuya this week:

Betsuni

Dangit, I keep on forgetting to pick this game up. It looks so quirky and cool.

cj iwakura

Betsuni wrote: »

Dangit, I keep on forgetting to pick this game up. It looks so quirky and cool.

It's on sale this week for Golden Week.

Betsuni

cj iwakura wrote: »

Betsuni wrote: »

Dangit, I keep on forgetting to pick this game up. It looks so quirky and cool.

It's on sale this week for Golden Week.

Guessing on the PS4 since it isn't showing on Steam.

Edit: Yep, found it on the PS4. Oh heck yeah. Need to buy it tonight at this price ($14.99)!

Double edit: Steam has it for the same price now.

ED!

Are there puzzles in this or is it straight up reading like Steins Gate?

cj iwakura

ED! wrote: »

Are there puzzles in this or is it straight up reading like Steins Gate?

It's straight up reading, but you have to make the right choices to move the plot forward, so it's kind of a puzzle in that respect.