I’ve at all times been a giant fan of full-motion video (FMV) and visible novel-type video games. I like with the ability to affect a narrative based mostly on the sort of selections I’m allowed to make within the recreation, and watching the story unfold based mostly on these choices. For some video games these choices result in large divergences within the plot, however in others it’s simply an phantasm of selection. It doesn’t matter how a lot management I’ve over the narrative—what’s most necessary to me is feeling like I’m experiencing the story alongside the characters current within the recreation. The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story completely made me really feel like I used to be proper there within the story, fixing a grand thriller spanning 100 years.
Initially printed on Nintendo Change, Ps 4, Ps 5, and Steam again in 2022 by Sq. Enix, The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story is now obtainable on iOS and Android gadgets, permitting extra folks the possibility to expertise the twist and turns of its thriller plot introduced via a well-shot, well-acted live-action FMV.
The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story has gamers comply with the story of Haruka Kagami, a preferred thriller novelist, as she’s invited to the Shijima household compound by Eiji Shijima, her science advisor, to resolve the thriller behind a set of unidentified bones found on the household’s property. As she learns extra concerning the Shijima household, she is drawn into numerous homicide mysteries occurring round her and all through the previous century—and all the pieces is centered across the illusive Tokijiku-no-kagu-nokonomi, a uncommon fruit that’s rumored to grant everlasting life to whoever consumes it.
Each ten years since 1922, there was a homicide involving the Shijima household and their valuable Tokijiku—Fruit of Youth. Within the yr of 2022, Haruka is making an attempt to find the hyperlink between the previous murders over the previous century and the present murders occurring on the Shijima property. Haruka experiences every story previously via the perspective of a special individual, permitting her to uncover the previous and remedy every crime whereas casting acquainted faces surrounding her on the Shijima compound because the supporting characters.
Usually I might be cautious about the identical actors taking the place of various characters, however the actors current in The Centennial Case rework themselves brilliantly into every function they step into. Nanami Sakuraba (Haruka) and Yuta Hiraoka (Eiji) are the 2 standouts of the sport, expertly remodeling between their main characters with skillful nuance. I don’t suppose the story in The Centennial Case would have been as participating as it’s with out the 2 leads with the ability to successfully promote the totally different roles they play all through the sport. The supporting solid additionally does a implausible job, though a number of of the actors do play up their roles right here and there so as to add some levity to the storyline.
Because the story unfolds, the mysteries behind the Shijima household and the Tokijiku proceed to get extra intriguing, however finally I discovered the conclusion of the story to be a bit underwhelming. The build-up felt just like the twists can be a lot larger than they finally had been, however that didn’t make discovering these twists much less pleasant.
So as to uncover these twists and mysteries, the sport takes place in three totally different phases: the Incident Section, the Reasoning Section, and the Answer Section.
The Incident Section is the place the participant experiences the story from Haruka’s perspective and collects clues based mostly on the assorted occasions surrounding the homicide. This stage is the least concerned by the participant, though there are dialogue selections that finally don’t matter or have an effect on the story. Whereas you will need to concentrate in the course of the Incident Section, there may be nothing on this part that gamers will miss completely because the Reasoning Section will permit them to rewatch all the pieces necessary so as to construct their speculation.
The second part is the Reasoning Section, which is by far the worst a part of this recreation. Any clues the participant didn’t accumulate in the course of the Incident Section are routinely collected within the Reasoning Section and gamers are introduced with a vertical hexagonal map that has totally different questions to attach totally different hexagonal clues to. Every query has a pre-set quantity of clues that may be hooked up to it, and when you connect the proper clues, a number of hypotheses will probably be fashioned. Not the entire hypotheses are right, although, so the participant has to have the ability to discern which of them are helpful and which of them aren’t. After forming sufficient hypotheses, the sport will permit the participant to create a abstract of what the participant feels is a very powerful thriller earlier than being taken into the ultimate part. Constructing hypotheses feels unengaging and a little bit hand-holdy as the sport assists you in matching every clue to every query. It will also be a bit drawn out when you learn via each element or watch each animated scene when constructing hypotheses.
The third and remaining part, which might be probably the most participating a part of the sport, is the Answer Section the place the participant should choose the entire right hypotheses and solutions so as to decide who the homicide is and what their motive entails. Every thriller unfolds in an fascinating approach because the participant tries to take advantage of logical picks to resolve the crimes. If the improper speculation is introduced on this part, the sport will play out the state of affairs in a reasonably comedic method and let you know to attempt once more. At this level the sport will ask if you need a touch or help you begin again from the tip of the Reasoning Section and start the Answer Section over.
Every time you fail at deducing the proper speculation, additionally, you will lose factors, though factors don’t actually matter a lot except you’re the kind of participant who desires an ideal rating. I personally loved messing up simply to see what humorous outcome would play out even when it lowered my rating.
The Centennial Case includes a mixture of well-shot live-action scenes that’s the high quality of a decrease funds movie or customary tv present, though there’s a little bit of over reliance on utilizing a bizarre rainbow lens flare impact to attract the eye of the participant to a personality on display screen or some kind of object that’s serving as the focus. By Chapter 2 it was getting distracting for me. The sport additionally makes use of CG animations to current sure hypotheses. These animations are pretty primary and serve their function with white mannequin-like fashions as stand-ins for the victims and murderers.
I performed the sport on each the iPhone 14 and iPad Air (fifth technology), and the efficiency on each gadgets was extraordinarily clean. I by no means skilled any slowdown, however I did have some audio and subtitle sync points when transitioning between phases once in a while. Essentially the most inconvenient challenge about The Centennial Case was downloading every chapter individually. On my iPad, I saved experiencing connection points once I tried to obtain the entire components directly and it took nearly a full day to really set up the sport on it. Conversely, downloading every chapter individually as I performed on my iPhone led to no points in any respect.
One of the best a part of this cellular port is with the ability to take The Centennial Case anyplace and drop proper again into the thick of the plot with out having to hold round a further machine like my Nintendo Change. Normally I play FMV video games on my consoles, however with the ability to pull my cellphone out throughout work breaks or whereas I’m out on-the-go made it simpler to satiate my need to see extra of the story unfold.
Developer h.a.n.d. and story developer Nemeton, the manufacturing firm created by director Koichiro Ito, have created an fascinating recreation that’s sure to attract in thriller followers and maintain them questioning alongside Haruka if the Tokijiku is definitely actual and what the reality of the Shijima household actually is. Whereas the ending is a bit underwhelming, it definitely makes up for it by having an attractive journey throughout time. Any fan of FMVs and thriller tales ought to think about testing The Centennial Case as it’s undoubtedly one of many higher ones to play on the market.
Model Performed: iOS
Disclaimer: overview code offered the writer Sq. Enix.