Title: Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters
Publisher: Aksys Games
Developer: Arc System Works
Genre: Visual Novel,Puzzle, RPG
Platform(s): Vita, PS3
Release Date:10th Mar 2015 (USA) 13th Mar 2015 (UK/EU - NIS America)
Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters is a visual novel that follows a group called the Gatekeepers who hold the facade of website of the occult and creepy but are actual mercenaries for hire to exorcise demons. You play the unknowing college student baffled by girls and already deemed a weirdo by the student council president an extreme hottie. When a fellow classmate in a wheelchair asks if you believe in ghosts things begin to unravel.
This game struck me a beautifully presented JRPG but coming from Arc Systems Works I knew there would be more tot his game than meets the eye. You are a generic guy but you enter all your stats at the begging ie name, star sign what club you want to join - I joined Tea because I loathe sports and so should my character but hey that doesn't affect the fact you are now a ghost hunter.
Me and not impressed student president are recruited by the Gatekeepers and Shindo shows us the ropes, since he is confined to his wheelchair he normally contacts us via walkie talkie while we do all the hard grafting. Once at the HQ you use the pc to see requests and pick which ever ones you like these vary in difficulty and maps.
Maps are important as you are introduced to a quirky shop owner who sells us items to help us on missions, the quicker we catch the demons the more bounty we receive. Certain items can be placed on the maps to prevent ghosts entering rooms or push them in a certain direction for us to trap them in a corner.
These items can be household objects like table salt, ghosts cant walk over it and you have more complex traps that push the ghost away from you. But the layout of the room are important as any electricity sockets can move the ghosts around to other rooms which can be frustrating.
You have a certain amount of turns before you fail your mission, it's different for each map. Also you can bump into random demons as well as your primary target, the second you exterminate your mission is over.
You have advantages such as the cat Seecloar she can sense ghosts and also lights up areas at random. She sometimes comes on the map to help. depending on the equipment of your characters as default you have two teams with the EVP gear to sense ghosts nearby so the third team you need to save up money for to get it as you have time constraints and running around in circles is not an option. Shindo from time to time gives clues to where the ghosts are hiding in certain areas or near certain items.
The visual novel aspect is beautifully done, you have seamless cut scenes that morph into an almost 3D dimension feel and you can re watch the sequences in the scrap book at the HQ. Sometimes you are faced with decisions and this is the confusing part, you are given the icons: mouth, ear, hand, nose. I automatically thought mouth was to talk- apparently not my character within the first five minutes of the game tries to snog the student president. Awkward. This probably the only thing that lets the game down no quick tutorial in game or instruction Manuel of how to use the icons. I don't think these decisions really change the game but affect the script but otherwise you follow the story in a linear fashion.
Other things you can get up to in the HQ include mini games if you fancy a break from the ghost hunting and main story. Also when you leave for a mission you get to select tracks to listen to in the car and on the mission. A lot of details has been put into making this game a great experience. i worry about playing it whilst travelling as I can get very immersed and miss my stop.
As a horror fan I really enjoyed the ghost aspect of the game, you get a loose story about each ghost and the art compliments it so well. the level of artistry used to do the movie sequences makes it feel like your part of a movie. Apart from the lack of instructions on how to manovere the emoticons, a sold game with great soundtrack, composed by Nobuo Uematsu famed for Final Fantasy.
Definitely a 4 and a half out of 5 I loved freaking out the girls in this game, makes it more entertaining.
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