Sometimes games that come out of nowhere are immediately talked about despite the lack of a monstrous marketing budget. This can be caused by various things like bold art direction or original storytelling. With the new title in question today, the developers have managed to challenge Japanese players.
A Chinese indie game slated for PS5, PS4 and PC has been making headlines in Japan since its announcement last weekend. This game is Showa American Story, an Action-RPG created by Nekcom Games. And if it has generated interest in the Japanese archipelago, it is because the game has an original plot and setting.
Showa American Story takes place in a post-apocalyptic version of the United States. So far, nothing extraordinary. Except that the United States shown here has nothing to do with Joe Biden’s country. In the gaming world, the economic bubble experienced by Japan until 1989 has never burst. And the economic power of Japan was such that it ended up “redeem“most of the United States. Along with this, strong Japanese immigration has finished implanting Japanese culture in Uncle Sam’s country.
The impact of the Japanese economic bubble seen by a Chinese game
In Showa American Story, the Showa Era never ended. The Showa calendar stopped at Showa 64 (1989) in the real world. But in this Chinese game, this era of prosperity continued. And it was in Showa 66 that everything degenerated. One “mysterious catastrophic incident“changed everything around the world.
Ten years later, the world is infested with zombies and other monstrous creatures. The last survivors try as best they can to cope with it. As for the player, he plays Choko Chigusa, a young woman who has recently come back to life for unexplained reasons.
Choko will embark on a quest across the United States in order to obtain answers to his questions and take revenge. During her journey, the former stuntwoman will obviously cross paths with other survivors. Obviously, not everyone will be friendly. According to the first information about the game, she will for example have to do battle with a Yakuza family.
On PS5, PS4 and PC, but when?
A priori, the gameplay of Showa American Story does not seem revolutionary. If this Chinese game has succeeded in attracting the attention of the Japanese public, it is thanks to its atmosphere. Many Japanese are indeed nostalgic for the “baburu keiki, “period when their standard of living was very high. In Showa American Story, the references to this period are a priori numerous and worked.
Showa American Story does not currently have an announced release date for PS5, PS4, or PC. FYI, this Chinese game was created as part of the China Hero Project, an initiative of Sony Interactive Entertainment intended to help Chinese developers create games for PlayStation consoles.
What do you think of Showa American Story at first glance? Can this new title interest you? Would you play it on PS5, PS4 or PC? Do you believe that a Chinese game can reproduce the atmosphere of the Japanese economic bubble in an authentic way? Give us your opinion in the comments below.