Game developer Jiro Ishii recently launched an Ubugoe crowdfunding campaign for his yet-unnamed Shibuya live-action adventure game. While the upcoming project is not a sequel or derivative work of Ishii’s 428: Shibuya Scramble, the game’s genre, setting, dev team and cast shares a lot in common with the 2008 cult-classic visual novel. This has helped fully fund the new game’s development at an astonishing speed, with the campaign reaching its $34,290 USD target in only an hour and seven minutes since it went live.
Led by Ishii and 428: Shibuya Scramble writer Yukinori Kitajima, the project is envisioned as an “ensemble drama” adventure game, where multiple characters interact with each other. Through still images and text, players will experience the different viewpoints (both physically and psychologically) of the characters inhabiting Shibuya. Ishii comments that while most games are “selfish in nature” (i.e. encouraging you to raise your character’s level no matter the cost), this project will feature an altruistic design whereby players will be motivated to positively influence the characters’ interconnected stories.
While there are several prototype videos of the project on the crowdfunding page, Ishii says these proofs of concept are meant to give potential backers a general idea of what the final project will be like. The characters, text, and stories will be changed once the game is funded and enters full development. As of writing, actors confirmed to have signed onto the project include Masakazu Arai (who played Keima Amemiya in Chunsoft’s Machi) and Fumio Kitagami (who portrayed Minoru Minorikawa in 428: Shibuya Scramble).
Ishii was inspired to create the project after realizing that an ensemble drama adventure game similar to 428: Shibuya Scramble hasn’t been made in almost 20 years. Spurred on by fan requests and the support of his previous co-workers, Ishii hopes to create something that will resonate with players and be remembered for years to come.
As of now, the Shibuya live-action title has reached almost 300% of its intended goal. With a current funding of $99,894 USD and 57 days left until the campaign ends on July 25, it looks like Ishii and company will be more than able to create their passion project.
