| Graphics: |   4 |
| SFX: |  3.5 |
| Music: | 4.5 |
| Gameplay: | 3.5 |
| Challenge: | 5 |
| Replay: | 4 |
| Overall: | 4 |
| Genre: | Platformer/Puzzle |
| Reading ability: | Not required |
| Company: | TNN |
Background:
A good friend of mine who goes by the name of Undamned on the Shmups Forum introduced me to this game. He's always
in the pursuit of quirky, obscure games. He read about this game on a website called Twin Dreams.
Among our group of gaming friends, we would often just refer to this game as "the girl with the fishing pole game." It's a very unique game. Two versions of Umihara Kawase have appeared on the Playstation, and they are rare and fetch high prices. A somewhat lackluster version was made for the PSP, and the gameplay suffers in this game. Lastly, Umihara Kawase has appeared on the DS.
The Game:
Umihara Kawase is a beautiful game with very unique and unusual gameplay. You control a little girl equipped with a fishing pole as she travels through a very surreal world full of flying fish looking for the door that leads to the next level. She uses the fishing pole to catch the fish for points as well as an anchor to swing herself around on. While swinging, she can shorten or lengthen the wire. You lose a life if you are killed by the fish. Falling in the water is instant death.
At the beginning of each new level for the first several levels, you will see a tutorial example of a new technique on how to use your fishing pole. The gameplay has a rather steep learning curve. After you complete the first two or so levels of fairly straightforward gameplay, you will find that it gets rather difficult in both level design and also your enemies. The octopi are especially challenging.
Graphics:
The graphics are a cute, superdeformed, colorful, and surreal. Notice that the backgrounds are scanned images of real scenery that have been compressed and turned black and white.
Sound:
Music is cute and fits the game well. The synthesized music sounds very nice. The sound effects are decent and suit the game well.
Challenge and replay:
This game is HARD! It's important to keep in mind that this is not a game in which you must speed through the levels, even the parts that seem easy. You must make your movements deliberate, more like a puzzle game rather than a platformer.
Secrets:
On level 3, there is a warp door to level 10.
The Good:
This is a charming, one-of-a-kind game with unique gameplay and a bizarre and surreal premise.
The Bad:
The game can get fairly frustrating by the way the fish can get you and the game will not give you enough time to react. For example, sometimes a fish can suddenly materialize right where you are about to land. The fish are constantly respawning, and it can put you in impossible situations. That's just not fair. There's a difference between being challenging and being frustrating.
Overall:
This game is excellent for those who enjoy quirky, unusual games. This is a game to own and be proud of and show off to friends and say, "Hey, check out this game. I hope for your sake that you're intelligent to appreciate something like this. Otherwise, I hope you're happy with your moronic 3D sports and racing games. Go play some Mortal Kombat or Cruisin' USA, you silly redneck!" Be proud to own a SNES/SFC console and to be an import gamer!!
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