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It is time to begin the sixth installment of Pre-Release Spotlight!!
In this series, I focus on games that are still in development, exploring the player experience, the intentions behind their design, and the creative roots from which they grew.
For our sixth installment, we will be taking a look at Redemptions Ocean, created by Mumei & Mumei.
- Our Guest This Time
- An Overview of Redemptions Ocean
- Character Exchanges Inspired by the Ancient Days of Niconico Video
- Absurdly, Unreasonably Adorable Mobs
- Clear and Thorough Tutorials Supporting the Game’s Original Mechanics
- Characters Searching for Tomorrow Beyond the Fulfillment of Their Dreams
- For Those Who Want to Grin at Kawaii Mobs While Immersing Themselves in Ancient Internet Humor
Our Guest This Time
Mumei & Mumei
This series aims to create a place where people can casually talk about games even before they are released.
I will be delighted if this article manages to ignite the engine inside any readers who have something they want to say.
For now, grab yourself a glass of barley tea and take your time reading.
And with that said, shall we begin?
An Overview of Redemptions Ocean
Genre: Strategy RPG
Developer: Mumei & Mumei
Redemptions Ocean Demo — Available for Free on Freem!
Redemptions Ocean Demo Ver. 2.1.1 — Free Games on Freegame Mugen
An unconventional strategy RPG that completely abandons the medieval military-chronicle elements normally associated with the genre.
Its most distinctive features are its character exchanges, whose style evokes the ancient days of Niconico Video, and the frankly astonishing amount of effort poured into the character art for otherwise ordinary mob units.
Even the demo contains potential spoilers, so I cannot go into much detail about the story.
According to the developer, however, its central subjects are:
“The relationship between the protagonist, the heroine, and one more important character”
and
“The battle against an unknown threat descending upon a peaceful world.”
Character Exchanges Inspired by the Ancient Days of Niconico Video
I feel as though it had been five years since I last saw ASCII art.
That is how thoroughly the game is filled with expressions and jokes that recall the ancient days of Niconico Video—and the internet as it existed back then.
The screen fades to black to create a pause, followed by text reading something like:
“Girl Currently Doing ○○…”
There is a scene that anyone who has watched VOICEROID skits has probably seen a hundred million times, where a character spins vertically through 180 degrees, plunges headfirst into the ground, and screams while vibrating.
There are also inexplicable recurring gags.
The sheer nostalgia, combined with the unbearable realization of how much time has passed, made me break out in a very strange sweat.
Because the story has also discarded the medieval war-chronicle elements normally associated with strategy RPGs, playing it felt rather like watching an old iM@S fictional-war series or a hand-drawn Touhou video.
I also asked Mumei & Mumei about their love for the ancient days of Niconico Video in our interview (link), so I strongly recommend giving that a read.
Absurdly, Unreasonably Adorable Mobs
The ordinary enemy mobs who have absolutely nothing to do with the main story are abnormally cute.
Not only does every unit class have its own illustration, but even the individual unique enemies found on most maps have received an incredible amount of attention.
This bandit girl was the one who personally struck me the hardest.
As far as I remember, she was the only character using this particular graphic in the current demo.
Healthy abdominal muscles and a visible belly button.
A simple black-and-white color scheme.
Very nice.
Extremely nice!!!
It is a secret that I began to worry whether the developer might have put slightly too much effort into the mob characters.
Then again, some important person once said that “cute is justice,” so I suppose it is fine.
Yes.
Definitely fine.
Clear and Thorough Tutorials Supporting the Game’s Original Mechanics
The tutorials are another aspect of the game into which a remarkable amount of effort has been poured.
In addition to the familiar weapon triangle commonly seen in Fire Emblem-like games, the game contains a large number of original systems, including:
- Type modifiers such as Rush Type and Impact Type
- A damage bonus granted when three different types stand adjacent to one another
- A system in which a character with an advantage in the weapon triangle can stun an enemy and prevent them from acting
Despite the number of original elements, I was able to understand them without difficulty thanks to tutorials that are both extremely clear and enjoyable to look at, as shown in the image.
This image shows the very first explanation on the tutorial map.
Come to think of it, this may be the first time a game has ever properly explained to me that blue units are allies.
Characters Searching for Tomorrow Beyond the Fulfillment of Their Dreams
From here, let us talk about the characterization.
There is an archetype running throughout the game’s cast.
They are not “young people currently chasing their dreams.”
They are “young people left with an empty space in their hearts after already achieving those dreams once.”
They ran toward their dreams with everything they had.
And then they caught up with them.
So what are they supposed to run toward now?
To a greater or lesser degree, the game’s characters are all wrestling with this question.
That feeling of emptiness meshes strangely well with the aforementioned ancient Niconico-style humor.
It is difficult to explain, but the entire game—from its character writing to its comedic presentation—is enveloped in the peculiar loneliness that follows the end of a festival.
That atmosphere forms something unique to this game.
The scenes in which the characters reflect on their pasts also synchronize strangely well with the nostalgia the player feels toward the game’s retro internet humor.
As a result, I found myself empathizing with the characters by “looking back fondly on the past alongside them.”
For Those Who Want to Grin at Kawaii Mobs While Immersing Themselves in Ancient Internet Humor
Redemptions Ocean is a strategy RPG that offers two pleasures in a single package:
Admiring its adorable mobs while immersing yourself in the humor and atmosphere of the ancient internet.
And when the vague anxiety of “not knowing what lies ahead” quietly slips in from beside the “retro nostalgia and guaranteed sense of comfort,” the player begins to experience the characters’ uncertain state of limbo between reassurance and unease.
And that concludes my introduction to Redemptions Ocean!
I also had the opportunity to interview its creators, Mumei & Mumei (link), so please check that out as well if the game has caught your interest.
Enjoy your gaming life!!
Thank you so much for reading to the end!!
Previous Pre-Release Spotlight “Dugeon Fantasia”
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