From July 19th to 21st, Kyoto became a hotbed of creativity, passion, and fun as the 12th annual BitSummit gaming convention kicked off. What started as a relatively small gathering of friends and mutual acquaintances has since evolved into the biggest event of the summer, taking over two floors of Miyako Messe for an entire weekend. I was lucky enough to attend two of the three days, and had an amazing experience and the opportunity to interact with many developers.
Staff from Shueisha Games were heavily involved at the event this year, giving us the chance to see their new games and speak with the developers. For the first event, Hakaba Bunko was there to show off their upcoming Steam release, Urban Myth Dissolution Center. A complex mystery title draped in pixel-perfect nastiness and downright creepy graphics, the game focuses on a young girl who gets caught up in a group dedicated to solving the strange occurrences that keep happening in her small town. A point-and-click adventure with plenty of weird and wild happenings, the demo offered a glimpse into the dialogue and how logical conclusions can lead to the unraveling of mysteries.
I have a feeling that something terrible is going to happen. It’s a premonition.
I had the opportunity to speak with Lead Designer HalfHalfOden about the creative process and overall effect of Urban Myth Dissolution Center. Joining me was Tomoya Tanaka from Shueisha Games, along with a few volunteer translators from BitSummit who helped translate the conversation between the two. The volunteers were amazing and wonderful, and I’m truly grateful for the time and effort they put in to make this interview and the ones that follow it possible.
Sorry, I haven’t been here in a while. Is this your first time at Bitsummit?
I’ve been coming here since 2016.
Are you originally from the Kansai region?
Yes, I and almost everyone on my team are from Kansai.
Are you okay with the heat this summer?
Ah, it’s too hot. [shared laughter]
Enough small talk, let’s get to work!
First off, can you tell us a bit about Urban Myth Dissolution Center?
This is not a horror game, it’s an adventure game, specifically a mystery adventure.
UMDC: What was your inspiration for creating the in-game world?
Our team (Hakaba Bunko) mainly focuses on mystery games. The idea of creating a kind of mystical game world full of mysterious elements led to the birth of UMDC. What is most important to us is to focus on the suspense and questions that arise from this kind of work and setting.
You seem to love mystery games. Did the games you played as a child influence this work?
We discussed this once as a team. We decided not to use any particular game or any other game to influence the production or direction of our game. Instead, we referenced the novels we all read. The most influential was the work of Natsuhiko Kyogoku. His work had a huge impact on the way we told the story.
I love any world where the police are powerless or helpless against the forces that brave high school students can handle.
In the first title, the Wakaido Makoto trilogy, many of the puzzles were very short, usually around an hour, can we expect them to be longer or about the same with UMDC?
Thinking about timing was very important to us in the development process. We’re usually used to short games that are quick to finish, around 1-2 hours. This time, it was important to focus on the story and mystery that all intertwines. That feeds into something bigger, and after talking with the publisher (Shueisha), we decided on the length of UMDC. The result is multiple 1-2 hour mysteries that add up to a larger world as a whole.
The title “Urban Myths” gives the impression that there are many local stories, but are the mysteries heavily influenced by Japanese monsters and the like?
While I’m a huge fan of yokai in general, I wanted the gameplay to focus on a modern perspective, both in terms of mystery and discovery, so yokai appearances are more subtle rather than overt.
Let’s talk about art styling. A lot of your work focuses on pixel art. Why do you think pixel art is so compelling in this age of modern graphics and design engines?
In recent years, pixel art has become more and more accepted. Unlike in the 80s and 90s, when developers could only use pixel art, we now use pixel art as a way to increase the mystery in our games. We feel that pixel art combined with a storyline best matches the “mystery” element.
See, this is the internal monologue I have whenever I feel a bit of physical pain.
While many pixel art games favor chiptune soundtracks to fully capture the sense of the time frame, I noticed that UMDC opted for a stronger soundtrack – is there a reason for this distinction?
Basically, the reason we didn’t use chiptunes is because it comes across as too “retro”. We try to avoid that. The pixel art aesthetic captures our vision specifically, but there’s nothing about UMDC that is intended to be retro. It’s a modern game in a modern setting, best portrayed with pixel art.
Since the game is a mystery adventure, will players expect to find multiple endings in the game?
[at this point, there was a lot of pointed looks between the developer and the publisher]
Oh, and fans of our game understand that we offer one ending. Because it is a mystery, there needs to be one ending that fans focus on in order to best conclude the story. As a result, fans should expect there to be one ending waiting for them at the end of the game.
Within Urban Myth Dissolution Center, is this a standalone story or will there be more titles released within the UMDC universe in the future?
While our games have a lot of messages and stories behind them, we think of games as like junk food – fun for the moment, but not for long. It’s like watching an episode of The X-Files: many of them are great in the moment, but once the episode is over, they don’t need any further explanation or detail to provide anything beyond the entertainment you received in the moment.
At least the police are definitely looking out the window….taxes!
You seem too young to even mention The X-Files.
[laughing] Thank you, but I just turned 50.
Finally, is there any message you would like to give to players playing your game for the first time?
For players who think this game is a little scary, rest assured. It may be a little unsettling, but it is full of mystery. We put a lot of effort into the graphics and story, so we hope players will enjoy it. We are very grateful and satisfied if players enjoy it.
Urban Myth Dissolution Center is scheduled for release on Nintendo Switch and Steam in the future.
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