BitSummit, Japan’s main indie video games occasion, was held over the weekend in Kyoto, and among the many video games showcased was one referred to as Tokyo Stories that has actually obtained my consideration.

Developed by Drecom, who’re usually within the enterprise of constructing telephone video games, it’s a moody journey sport set in Tokyo the place, cryptically, “The town continues to inform her story, even after her disappearance”.

The sport’s trailer appears to be like unbelievable, with an artwork model that builds its world in 3D then provides all the pieces a gritty pixel artwork impact, earlier than smothering all of it in some extremely moody lighting results:

Looks wonderful, proper? By now although you may also be questioning how the sport truly performs, since that trailer was virtually totally made up of cinematic sequences. IGN Japan have been at BitSummit, and after a hands-on demo with Tokyo Stories say that it’s constructed very very like a conventional PS1 sport, with a set digital camera perspective that your 3D character walks round in, with most of your time spent merely wandering the town’s streets (you’re locked to a strolling pace) exploring and studying in regards to the world round you.

This is perhaps an extended shot for older heads right here, but when anybody remembers the 2013 PS3 unique Rain, you would possibly see some similarities right here, and with good purpose. Main growth on Tokyo Stories is Yuki Ikeda, who was additionally director on Rain, and having been engaged on varied tasks at Drecom that is his first all-new sport in a decade.

Tokyo Stories is presently slated for PC and “consoles”, with a launch date deliberate for someday in 2023. If you wish to see extra on the sport, its official Instagram account has some smaller clips, together with one which reveals how the sport’s distinctive visible look is achieved: