Zero Punctuation unhappily discovers The World Ends With You
by Alexander Sliwinski 
{ May 28th 2008 at 7:30PM }
Actually, The World Ends With You is a JRPG that's been getting some strongly supportive reviews from several outlets that do that reviewing sort of thing. As any disciple of Yahtzee knows at this point, he hates JRPGs and Nintendo -- the jury is still out though on which one he hates more. TWEWY gets off easy in this review by confusing Yahtzee to the point where he can't form an opinion and leaves it up to the audience.
Find this week's NSFW ZP review of another Japanese game with kids who have gravity defying hair after the break.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Fernando Rocker @ May 28th 2008 7:36PM
Not so funny this week... well, maybe because I love jRPG's.
The World Ends With You is one of the best Square Enix titles this year.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:29PM
He has a point, JRPGS don't give you enough freedom, you're forced to play with the same bland character demeaning the replayability of the game. Plots can be great, but it also distracts from gaming.
They have this annoying routine
Meet boss, get beaten, train, meet boss, beat boss, meet next boss, get beaten, train, meet boss again, beat boss, and so on and so fourth, its flaming tedious >_<
Not to mention the new Matrix / Dragon Ball Z trend of cool hair dos and awesome flips here there and everywhere, stopping bullets but getting slashed with a sword.
Hours at end fighting the same monster and unlike monster hunter where injuries are visible on the monster, JRPGS either have a pathetic life bar, or none whatsoever, adding insult to injury, they simply give you a '?' So the monster could have 10000000000 life for all we know.
The main character always seems to fall in love with some other inane female character, characters can never or rarely try out different weapons, turn based fighting is gay, might as well play chess.
And during these long tedious hours of battling, most of the time is spent healing or reviviing team mates, if it wasn't for thier inevitable deaths or injuries, battles wouldn't last more then 10 mins, but instead last hours.
This is made even more annoying when the creature / person you are battling is in quantities or constantly transforms into their 'final form' demeaning the meaning of 'final'.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:29PM
Rant over :)
hydralisk456 @ May 28th 2008 8:33PM
I take it you haven't played TWEWY have you Maverick? Very few of the things you mentioned take place in this game.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:40PM
Occasionally there is the game to burst the bubble, thats like all genres, but when taking into account the vast majority of the genre, the qualities of individual games can often be shadowed and put into the same catagory. Its that rare time that that unique game ventures out of the shadow and becomes a world wide hit, but how many of them do?
Vegnagun bwf @ May 28th 2008 10:30PM
Spoiler alert: Saturn didn't play the game.
Also, I agree with you Fernando. This review wasn't as entertaining as most of his reviews (I think he's getting worse and worse). Twewy is an amazing game, and one of the best on the DS. If he doesn't like it because he couldn't get a hang of the battle system then he's simply bad at the game. I got a hang of the battle system and found it easy to manage after you understand it.
Vidikron (FU) @ May 29th 2008 12:53AM
I used to like JRPGs a long while back, but I grew out/away of them during the PSX/N64 era for many of the reasons he touched on. They just bore me now. I still pick one up from time to time, but I normally get half way through and stop. They're just a chore to play these days.
t_m @ May 29th 2008 7:45AM
I find his reviews funnier when he rags on game I know and like. Cos I can identify with all the annoying niggles he points out.
No-one can argue that every point he makes about JRPGs in general isn't valid... though it doesn't mean you can't enjoy them.
(personally I love fire emblem and chrono trigger, as they both seem to contain most of the best elements from JRPGs without too many of the annoying ones)
Mr Khan @ May 28th 2008 7:37PM
I wouldn't say he hates Nintendo. EarthBound is apparently one of his favorite games, and he seems to enjoy their games
He's just one of those people who has a knee-jerk reaction against legacy franchises, and thus feels inclined to piss and moan every time another iteration rolls around. he feels its an affront to creativity.
Mr Khan @ May 28th 2008 7:43PM
Though once again he puts on a stellar performance
It's not pure hate, but it still burns with some good satire
Haggard @ May 28th 2008 8:54PM
Yeah, and he seemed to like Super Mario Galaxy.
fco. @ May 29th 2008 9:51AM
...and he also used Metroid Prime as an example of a good console FPS.
Sora267 @ May 28th 2008 7:39PM
He was speaking slower in this review...I guess that's what playing JRPGs does to a non-JRPG fan.
Benny @ May 28th 2008 7:42PM
Not being a great fan of JRPGs outside Pokemon, I really wanted him to like it. After watching the review though, I see that he detests them far more intensely than I do, and so I'm still intrigued.
RobLink (Return of the McElroy Defence Force) @ May 28th 2008 7:43PM
Anneka Rice! Challenge Anneka! Brilliant, brought back many happy memories and made me laugh at them all. Anyone else?
Halwende @ May 28th 2008 8:48PM
Yes! I remember Anneka Rice from "Wish You Were Here...?" strangely enough, probably because when she was on some sandy beach in her bikini I wished I WERE there... or am I thinking of Anthea Turner... hmm :P
Poisoned Al @ May 28th 2008 9:44PM
I USED TO LOVE TREASURE HUNT!
...
God I feel old!
ronald.raygun @ May 28th 2008 7:44PM
yahtzee's only in his mid-twenties? hmm thought he was older
Deck @ May 28th 2008 7:45PM
I like JRPGs but I found this review great!
Yahtzee is just excellent, at all times!
Nigeria @ May 28th 2008 7:50PM
For the first time Yahtzee reviews a game I actually own, and well, it wasn't that great of an episode this week, was it?
He didn't adore or despise the game. He just seemed baffled. Muddled is the word actually. There was no fixed point he chose to praise or criticise. He seemed like he was just going through the motions waiting for the four minutes to end. And he didn't even mention the music which is like the best thing about the game.
If you have a DS you should really get this game. It's got a beautiful story, and everything. It's the real deal. Best game of the year, so far, for sure.
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:36PM
A beautiful story? It falls to the same flaw as most anime, manga, and JRPGs: it spells out life lessons just like (as Yahtzee pointed out) Sesame Street. The first 2 hours or so of the game are spent railing on "FRIENDSHIP IS IMPORTANT," without being any more subtle than using a character whose wonderfully whiny thought bubbles make up 75% of the text and putting him with a sensitive extrovert who slowly wins his heart.
Thrown in there was a sequence of dialogue scenes in which the main character was also chided for not having any fashion sense. Again the game started preaching to me about how dressing well is one of the most important elements of life. I honestly had to turn off my DS and almost threw it out the window because I was so terribly disgusted that I spent money on something that would have the audacity to say such things to me.
Additionally, Beat. Seriously. I need say no more.
Markez (MKWii 4339-2878-5120) @ May 28th 2008 8:41PM
Didn't know whether I was going to reply to you, or Yourself down below.
Frankly, the shtick is getting old. He has enough material out now where it's clear he's just not that creative. They all have their own funny moments. Oddly enough, there's a large faction of dumbass Yahtzee fanboys that has evolved, wherein people get voted down immediately should they have anything remotely negative to say.
Hakuna matata, he shouldn't be taken too seriously, ever.
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:51PM
I do love the term "Yahtzee fanboys." So perfectly ironic.
Markez (MKWii 4339-2878-5120) @ May 28th 2008 9:00PM
And by which I mean people coming out of the woodwork to say "OH YHATZEE, HE DID IT AGAIN!!! ALAOALLAOLOMOGGOMGOLO"
Yes, he did another review, yipee.
By the way, GET THOSE G@D@MN m@THER#UCKI&*kf STUPID @$$ )(%#(%*)@ STUPID )(%#)(%*#) HUMMINGBIRD ADS OFF THIS )w#(%#)( MEFFING WEBSITE!!!!!
Nigeria @ May 28th 2008 9:10PM
But Beat is gangsta, yo!
I didn't really feel the game was admonishing you, as the player, for your fashion sense. And neither was the game talking down to Neku. Shiki - I think that's her name - was just acting out who she wanted to be - if you finished the first week you'll probably know what I'm talking about. And fashion, trends, and memes are all emphasised early because the game wants to tell you that individuality is important. This idea comes especially to the fore 3/4s of the way through when the reapers and the citizens of the RG.....
...like, just give the game another go. It's not brainless shlock. It has the best story in a game ever! From what games I've played, anyway.
Markez, the Lion King is like my favourite movie ever. Around ever my little cousin brings it over and I watch it. I've got all the songs memorized and everything.
Mr Khan @ May 28th 2008 9:17PM
We need to hijack a comment thread in one story, and just have all the people who cannot stand that Black Screen of Ungodly Irritation sign off
Spam someone's inbox like mad
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 9:53PM
Gaming can do a much better job of storytelling (see Metroid Prime, BG&E, BioShock) that basic text screens, and plenty of games are better written (uh, lots, we'll say Ogre Battle and Legacy of Kain) than this relatively uninspired tale.
It's funny that one of the things you pointed out was what was terribly painful for me to endure: the emphasis on individuality. It is undoubtedly a lesson for children and middle-schoolers, and the story in lacking in any truly mature themes (no, I don't mean tits covered in blood) - this is the problem I have with most Japanese media. I can see where some people enjoy the concept of finding depth in simplicity: emphasizing everyday values over obscure philosophy and sociopolitical diatribe; but regardless of whether I appreciate the message, it's delivery is what is truly lacking in JRPGs, and anime as well. Instead of using literary subtlety and using a plot with themes, the Japanese tend to take an otherworldly plot and interject these things in ill-fitting monologues and conversations. Watch the Cowboy Bebop movie or play Metal Gear Solid 2, if you want to know what I mean.
I'm pretty much 100% off-topic at this point, but this is as fine a place as any to discuss core video game concepts.
gamerprophet @ May 29th 2008 12:38AM
He boils down many of the issues with JRPGs into a clear and understandable video. Now not all JRPGs suck but most do, RPG Strategies on the other hand are good even though their stories are just as interactiveless.
gamerprophet @ May 28th 2008 7:56PM
He boils down many of the issues with JRPGs into a clear and understandable video. Now not all JRPGs suck but most do, RPG Strategies on the other hand are good even though their stories are just as interactiveless.
tmacairjordan87 @ May 28th 2008 8:05PM
Well I take it he won't like MGS considering what he said about JRPG stories.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:32PM
Linear games are gay, fullstop, story or no story ¬_¬
bm @ May 28th 2008 8:53PM
Maverick: then you must not be into gaming much at all these days, huh?
FOXHOUND @ May 29th 2008 7:25AM
uh... games have been pretty linear since the days of 25¢ coin-ops. It's not like it just recently happened.
bm @ May 29th 2008 3:33PM
Well yeah, but now it's really getting out of hand, some game genres which used to have at least a slightly nonlinear element to provide some sense of freedom are now locked along a tight claustrophobic path, probably for the developer to show off all the pretty setpieces in order. Why don't they just make a fucking movie then.
waynski1457 @ May 28th 2008 8:06PM
As someone who really doesn't hate any genre of game (except maybe party, but I'm not sure that's a genre...), I loved this game. This review is not with out merit, seeing as he states that if you like JRPGs, then go play this, and he's completely right. I like JRPGs and I loved this game. Now to go play some Ouendan 2 followed by some Halo 3...
Lavat @ May 28th 2008 8:07PM
I am not surprised...That is what those crazy Japanese role playing games do to you.
Jacksons @ May 28th 2008 8:19PM
Yeah, that's pretty much my stance on most JRPGs as well. To Square-Enix's credit, at least they didn't make the combat menu-based. I will not play another menu based rpg. I seriously can't tolerate it anymore.
RobLink (Return of the McElroy Defence Force) @ May 28th 2008 8:32PM
Have you tried Penny Arcade Adventures? It boils down to a menu based RPG, and is totally brilliant. At least give the demo a try - and then realise that the full game is so much better.
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:25PM
I take this review as proof that I don't like Yahtzee anymore. For a month or two now I've thought he was less funny - but I also disagreed with the stuff he said, so that could have had an inseparable effect on my opinion. But this week I agree with him 100% - and still didn't laugh. JRPGs are one of the worst and most obnoxious genres of gaming (as oftentimes are their fans), and typically indicative of the large void in creative ability in Japan, as implied by Miyamoto a few weeks back.
World Ends With You was a fun game (I actually bought it, being intrigued by any RPG lacking turn-based battles), but aside from the clever battle system it had all the unbearable trappings of your typical amnesiac-hero power-ballad JRPG.
Man, I swear, ZP and Weekly Webcomic Wrapup posts really bring out the negativity in me. I guess there's nothing more frustrating than unfunny comedy.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:37PM
The same could be said about FPS titles, look how many there are, and how are they any different from each other, all they simply do is replace the arabs (offensive) to orc lookalikes, aliens, russians, germans, robots, crazy people or an army of prats as haze would come into account.
Personally, I think the FPS genre can be as much a joke as JRPGs, they too are linear, they too show off amazing and cool stunts for no reason other then to wow and amaze and they two force you to play with some mundane character with a ten pack once again saving the world from the forces of evil ¬_¬
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:49PM
I agree, but while we're at it, I think it can be said for almost any genre in gaming. Any game that follows the mold too closely - be it Final Fantasy, Street Fighter, or Halo - simply loses its enjoyment factor. Although there is the occasional "magnum opus" of a genre (for instance, RE4 or Galaxy), most of the truly great games are those that defy categorization.
Superstar90 @ May 28th 2008 8:41PM
I don't mind JRPGs. Everyone says there is no originality in the genre, but there is no originality in many other genres too. FPS's for example are the same thing over and over again with changes here and there. JRPGs are the same thing over and over again with changes here and there.
This game is pretty different from others as it has no turn-based combat and no random encounters, like he said, two gold stars for it because of that.
Maverick Saturn @ May 28th 2008 8:42PM
I must admit, I do hate that 'friendship is important' nonsense, but then again, I also hate the 1 man army nonsense as well, lmao, cant please everybody can ya :)
Anticrawl @ May 28th 2008 8:44PM
Haven't even heard of this game until now. I don't mind JRPG's. In fact one of my top 5 games of all time is Chrono Cross. Lost Odyssey was quite good for a turn-based RPG as well, one of the few games I've played til the end recently.
Psaakyrn @ May 28th 2008 8:47PM
Except that TWEWY fixes many of the jrpg problems, most notably the random encounter and forced training ones.
a) Encounters are at most semi-random until the last 3 days. And even so, the random encounters then are slightly storyline based.
b) Don't like training? Drop difficulty to easy. If you can't complete the game on easy even using your starting pins (I include the cure pin into that)...
c) There's no "final form transform" other than storyline ones, and it counts as a seperate battle anyway. All other transforms happens mid-battle.
Linearity is NOT a problem, it's a storyline mechanic Increasing player freedom reduces developer freedom, and vice versa.
Also, most games do not show injuries on mobs to begin with.
Pedobear @ May 28th 2008 8:47PM
I don't see the problem with JRPGs or linear games, especially this one. Its pretty much a book with gameplay.
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:55PM
It's like reading an OG fanfic that I wrote in 2nd grade, with gameplay, is what you mean to say.
Pedobear @ May 28th 2008 8:57PM
wat
MosquitoControl @ May 28th 2008 8:48PM
Well, he rants on everything I hate about jRPGs. I've been saying for a while that if you've played FF3/6 you've played them all. Stupid, senseless plots with completely irrational cardboard characters followed by monotonous combat.
Nothing more than a book that takes forever to read and strives to make absolutely no point.
The plot of most japanese games makes absolutely no sense, but often there's enough going on to not care (see: Dead Rising. See: MGS, although I've no interest there, either.) jRPGs are almost entirely about the plot.
But I get annoyed at any RPG without choice. Take Oblivion. Didn't matter what class you were, what race you were, etc. In the end you did fought the same way and did the same things in slightly different order. If you wanted you were the king of the thieves, king of the fighters, king of the wizards, and king of the kings.
Yourself @ May 28th 2008 8:57PM
The story in Oblivion was pretty dumb, but what I liked is that they really don't force you to do it. While it was the first thing I did with my original character, I went on to make two more characters and totally ignore the story. So after the first hour, the game had an entirely different storyline for each character.