If Ready Player One left you craving more of that shameless '80s nostalgia, then Narita Boy is probably right up your alley. With elements of Tron, Star Wars, and various retro consoles sprinkled throughout its pixel art graphics, Narita Boy is bound to tickle that memory gland of yours in all sorts of ways.
After a successful Kickstarter which smashed the initial goal of €120,000 (£106,000ish), Spanish developer Studio Koba failed to meet the Switch port stretch goal, but instead caught the eye of publisher Team17 (Worms, Overcooked), who presumably helped with funding.
Narita Boy is an action-platforming game, in which the eponymous Narita Boy wields the powerful Techno-Sword to defeat the enemies of the Digital Kingdom. The sword can also turn into a shotgun and a laser beam, because this is the '80s.
The developers also promise a "pumping soundtrack" inspired by analogue synthesizer music, and if the trailer's anything to go by, it's a lot like Look Around You meets Dune (1984). Hell yeah.
No solid release date has been confirmed yet, but it will launch simultaneously across all platforms (including Xbox Game Pass) this Spring.
Is Narita Boy the neo-retro game you've been waiting for? What other '80s culture does it remind you of? Let us know in the comments.
Comments 25
I feel like i've played this game even though i've never heard of it...
VHS tapes - nobody had Betamax in the eighties. Bloody millennial journos.
@Lordplops
Great news. I was afraid this fever dream of a game would not make it to Switch.
I am completely lost with all those game genres. It would be really helpful to have some sort of guide with a simple explanation for each genre. I'd learn the difference between retro and neo-retro.
Loving the Tron vibes!
Damn this looks good.
First thing that’s caught my eye in a long time!
I’m looking and I’m liking!
The 80's nostalgia is strong with this one. I like it! The intro reminded me of the opening cinematic of Another World/Out of This World.
@Lordplops I was going to say nobody had a Mega Drive in the 80s either as it didn't release in Europe until 1990 but turns out it released in other regions earlier. 😅
@Clyde_Radcliffe It's a crowded market for sure... this one does look kinda special though.
@Rhaoulos tell me about it. I didn't know what a Metroidvania was when I started in games journalism. I wish we had genres more like movies - this is a romance, this is a drama - rather than mechanics-focused things like "platformer" and "narrative"!
@KateGray This is insane. It feels like each game is its own genre, and sometimes you are reduced to compare it to other games to make it much clearer than the genre invented by the dev. When I see "pixel art retro rogue like platformer metroidvania with RPG elements", I think the game is a complete mess and should pick an identity.
I still think some kind of glossary would be helpful with a link to it every time a genre is mentionned, so you don't need to explain it every time (just an idea)
I like it, but if it has the fake CRT/washy look to it, I can play it as it was hurting my eyes.
Hopefully as it's Team 17 there will be a physical
A horrible trailer to an awesome looking game. Count me in
@Rhaoulos this is why I'm a fan of comparing games to other games - I know it seems lazy or reductive at times, but it helps readers understand what they're getting a bit better. Game genres are a gosh darn mess that helps no one. I'll look into the glossary idea, though!
Been very excited about this since watching the Kickstarter video years ago. Probably a Day One purchase. Hopefully the soundtrack bops and drops on vinyl.
after playing RUINER for a few hours I realized I'm getting sick of the entire 80s cyberpunk aesthetics...
but, anyway
I really like this one, might get it anyway
What?! I expect disc throwing to be my attack
Game Pass. Nice.
Looks superb I’m interested now xx
Hm, looks and sounds VERY interesting. Onto the wish list you go.
@Rhaoulos Please tell me you were kidding about retro/neo-retro...
@ThanosReXXX Do you need an answer?
@Rhaoulos Watch the smiley, interpret the actual intent...
I saw this earlier on a better site and found this to be very interesting. I like the music and the gameplay seems nearly spot on. Looking forward to it.
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