Well, after I'd made clear my interest in this series I thought I might as well buy it.
This is the latest in a series focused around disaster survival - you control a character and have to avoid death along with helping people out (often completely optional). Often this just means wandering around avoiding falling debris or fires, but there's a basic puzzle-solving element at times - gathering objects to shift things out of the way. While it looks a bit open world, it is linear and forces you down certain paths.
Developed by Irem, the first game (Zettai Zetsumei Toshi) was released on the PS2 as SOS: The Final Escape (PAL) and Disaster Report (NTSC). The second was also on the PS2 and came as Raw Danger. The third was a PSP title and didn't even get a Western release, though there's apparently a translation project working on and off. This fourth title was originally planned to come out in 2011 for the PS3 and was cancelled due to a badly-timed earthquake, then kicked down the road for a bit, bought from Irem by the chief producer and ultimately re-developed as a PS4 title - and it's eventually here!
The game goes back to the roots by being about a major earthquake. There's a basic character generator and you pick from a young man/woman on their way to a job interview when the earthquake hits. From then on, you go scrabbling around trying to work your way through the city, helping people along as you fancy it. The charm of the game comes from the slightly surreal sense of humour and the fact you can make choices to really shape the protagonist as you feel - and if you want the protagonist to be a perverted idiot who flirts with people at the least appropriate times possible or scams people into buying basic supplies at a ridiculously high price, you absolutely can. Or just respond to people pouring their heart out to you with "Well, it's not my concern. I don't care." Or just find weird outfits and hats then play dress-up.
I'm playing the PS4 version and it feels a bit like a basic remaster of a PS3 game, which is pretty much what I expected. The controls are quite clunky PS2-era style (don't think you can just happily vault over things in the organic style of GTA and other modern titles). I've been playing a few hours and there's been some genuine surprises along with a few frustrating moments where I've been wandering around trying to find something to trigger the next set-piece (the game design relies heavily on these - you may need to talk to somebody to set off an aftershock that makes a building fall down that you need to crawl through).
An issue with the former games is that they started off strongly and the game design became a bit lazy as it went on and though I don't feel like I'm near the ending yet, I am starting to see them cut corners. The lush and populated game world is now starting to become more generic and empty, with random wreckage piled up everywhere. This was true of the first game in particular. Many doors are inaccessible and a lot of the game world is just blocked off with rubble that you could easily climb over. It's the nature of the beast unfortunately - they were never AAA big-budget titles - but I still appreciate what they're doing and find it compelling to see where the story goes next.
So far though - is it worth buying as a full price title? Probably not - I got the PS4 physical release for £38. I don't feel like I've been ripped off as I knew what I was getting into and ultimately what this game lacks in polish it makes up for with charm and some genuinely interesting ideas. While I love the idea of it being picked up as a bigger budget title, I don't think we'd get such fantastic dialogue as this:
It also does look genuinely very nice sometimes.
Do I recommend it? Well - yes - with caveats. If you enjoyed either of the first two games and want more of the same, you will be very happy with what's here. If you're jumping into this for the first time, I think your mileage may vary depending on how much you can accept games that feel a bit dated and rough around the edges. I'm a happy customer.
This is the latest in a series focused around disaster survival - you control a character and have to avoid death along with helping people out (often completely optional). Often this just means wandering around avoiding falling debris or fires, but there's a basic puzzle-solving element at times - gathering objects to shift things out of the way. While it looks a bit open world, it is linear and forces you down certain paths.
Developed by Irem, the first game (Zettai Zetsumei Toshi) was released on the PS2 as SOS: The Final Escape (PAL) and Disaster Report (NTSC). The second was also on the PS2 and came as Raw Danger. The third was a PSP title and didn't even get a Western release, though there's apparently a translation project working on and off. This fourth title was originally planned to come out in 2011 for the PS3 and was cancelled due to a badly-timed earthquake, then kicked down the road for a bit, bought from Irem by the chief producer and ultimately re-developed as a PS4 title - and it's eventually here!
The game goes back to the roots by being about a major earthquake. There's a basic character generator and you pick from a young man/woman on their way to a job interview when the earthquake hits. From then on, you go scrabbling around trying to work your way through the city, helping people along as you fancy it. The charm of the game comes from the slightly surreal sense of humour and the fact you can make choices to really shape the protagonist as you feel - and if you want the protagonist to be a perverted idiot who flirts with people at the least appropriate times possible or scams people into buying basic supplies at a ridiculously high price, you absolutely can. Or just respond to people pouring their heart out to you with "Well, it's not my concern. I don't care." Or just find weird outfits and hats then play dress-up.
I'm playing the PS4 version and it feels a bit like a basic remaster of a PS3 game, which is pretty much what I expected. The controls are quite clunky PS2-era style (don't think you can just happily vault over things in the organic style of GTA and other modern titles). I've been playing a few hours and there's been some genuine surprises along with a few frustrating moments where I've been wandering around trying to find something to trigger the next set-piece (the game design relies heavily on these - you may need to talk to somebody to set off an aftershock that makes a building fall down that you need to crawl through).
An issue with the former games is that they started off strongly and the game design became a bit lazy as it went on and though I don't feel like I'm near the ending yet, I am starting to see them cut corners. The lush and populated game world is now starting to become more generic and empty, with random wreckage piled up everywhere. This was true of the first game in particular. Many doors are inaccessible and a lot of the game world is just blocked off with rubble that you could easily climb over. It's the nature of the beast unfortunately - they were never AAA big-budget titles - but I still appreciate what they're doing and find it compelling to see where the story goes next.
So far though - is it worth buying as a full price title? Probably not - I got the PS4 physical release for £38. I don't feel like I've been ripped off as I knew what I was getting into and ultimately what this game lacks in polish it makes up for with charm and some genuinely interesting ideas. While I love the idea of it being picked up as a bigger budget title, I don't think we'd get such fantastic dialogue as this:
It also does look genuinely very nice sometimes.
Do I recommend it? Well - yes - with caveats. If you enjoyed either of the first two games and want more of the same, you will be very happy with what's here. If you're jumping into this for the first time, I think your mileage may vary depending on how much you can accept games that feel a bit dated and rough around the edges. I'm a happy customer.
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