Well-received on PlayStation platforms, Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters performed well enough to have a remastered version with new and updated content. Remixed as Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters Daybreak: Special Gigs, this updated version has now been ported to PC to gather new fans from this platform.
Steam describes the game:
As a new transfer student at Kurenai Academy in Shinjuku, you join a school magazine that turns out to be a front for a ghost hunting organization. Come face to face with the ghosts haunting Tokyo, learn why they linger in this world, and banish them!With an expanded story, the new ‘Daybreak’ scenario, and an improved battle system, Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters: Daybreak Special Gigs is the ultimate edition of Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters!
What PC players receive is Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters Daybreak: Special Gigs, the updated version of Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters released a few years ago back when the PlayStation 3 was most prominent Sony console. This version includes new scenarios, a new character, alterations for the combat system, and a few edits to the story. Overall, these changes do not affect the core of the series, and rather compliment it.
However, what is still kept is the reaction wheel feature where players interact with characters via sensory and emotional inputs. With the sheer amount of options available, it complicates the game more than it should. For example, certain inputs may elicit the player licking, smelling, punching, or even cry in front of other characters. Further exacerbating the problematic feature is that there is no guide or explanation on how to utilize the wheel to its full extent, thus players must learn through experience on what works best. Though unique, the reaction wheel is distracting as it pops up often mid-conversation and the game would definitely be better without it.
Moving away from the bad, one of the biggest pluses of Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters Daybreak: Special Gigs are the beautiful animated graphics. In fact, the animations were dubbed “Graphic Horizontal Object Streaming,” or GHOST, bringing character sprites and CGs to life. Despite the movements being simplistic at best, they do look better than staring at static images.
The biggest selling point of the game, however, is the story itself. This urban fantasy is quite immersive and relies heavily on character interactions. Rather than information dumping all the details, players learn of the plot via further immersing themselves in the investigations. Though not grade A material, the story is well-executed and will definitely draw players in despite the fact that dialogue is not voiced. Battles are tabletop-like gameplay where players move across tiles on a map to confront and battle against ghosts. The mechanic is decent enough so that players will not get bored of it, but it is something not worth noting.
As for the actual PC port itself, there are unfortunately problems. One of the biggest issues is that there are no screen resolution options and whether the game can be played windowed, borderless, or fullscreen. The only option for the port is fullscreen. Reportedly, playing the game over 1080p would also result in parts of the game being offscreen. Another problem is gamepad controls for remapping buttons. The mouse is unsupported and the game is hard to play with keyboard only. Practically the only options for the game are volume adjustment and text speed.
Verdict
Despite the story and character development being quite praiseworthy, there are unfortunately too many negatives that kill those positives. Though it is not a bad game, it is not something I would personally recommend other than for fans of urban fantasy visual novels. If someone is able to own the game, might as well play it.
Review copy provided by PQube