Hello, I'm Mob from the Negorabu team at SKOOTA GAMES.
It's been over a week since the fun-filled "Kawagoe GAME DIGG 2026." We've all returned to our daily lives, and the afterglow of the enjoyable festival may be fading little by little.
However, that's why I want to present this 【second part】 as the "final train" to wrap up this year's Kawagoe event. I hope it serves as a good spice to help you recall the sunny atmosphere of that day and to build excitement for the upcoming indie game events.
Now, let's continue from the first part and introduce the wonderful works we encountered in the city of Kawagoe.
Unforgiving Difficulty That Makes You Smile? A Hardcore Experience Under the Blue Sky ―― 'Alien Haruo-kun'
The first game I want to introduce in the second part is the poorly captured "Extraction Shooter" for single-player, known as 'Alien Haruo-kun'. A well-known representative of this genre is 'Escape from Tarkov.'
To briefly explain for those who may not be familiar with this genre, it can be described as a game where the objective is to infiltrate a specific area fraught with danger, gather necessary supplies while eliminating or avoiding threats, and successfully escape (survive). The nature of these "threats" varies by game and is often directly tied to the uniqueness of the work. In this case, the setting is a space resembling a "submerged ruin (spaceship?)" where mysterious creatures and turrets (automated gun turrets) attack the player upon detection. Players control a girl with animal ears who must survive in this harsh environment for some reason, aiming to gather supplies and escape.
Now, there's an episode I must mention when discussing this game. I stumbled upon this game displayed in the outdoor exhibition area "Koetoko" and sat down to play. At that moment, the creator posed a rather profound question to me.
"Have you ever played a TPS genre game?"
The reason I found that question curious was that the TPS genre is quite popular among gamers, and I believed that as long as one understands the basic controls, anyone can easily get into it.
However, I realized that the question was a kind of "foreshadowing" once I finished the tutorial and began the main gameplay. In hindsight, that question was the creator's way of checking whether I was prepared to adapt to such a harsh difficulty level in a TPS.
In the first place, the genre of "Extraction Shooter," which aims for survival and escape while battling threats, is not considered casual or mainstream even within TPS. It's a harsh world that demands talent and suitability, where simply being "good at shooting games" won't guarantee survival. In that context, this game showcased an "unforgiving difficulty" that I never imagined encountering at an indie game exhibition, leaving me quite flustered.
Of course, while going around indie game events, you sometimes come across games with difficulty levels that make you wonder, "How was this designed to be cleared?" Such cases usually arise from either overly strong quirks in the system or a mismatch between the expected player skill and the actual user experience. However, 'Alien Haruo-kun' was neither of those. It was undeniably difficult, but it was certainly "intentionally designed difficulty."
There is a decisive moment that makes you feel the seriousness of this game. When passing through a certain gate, players are faced with two choices. One is the route of "setting off an alarm and annihilating the horde of enemies before proceeding." The other is the route of "inputting the displayed numbers in Morse code and quietly passing through." I chose the former route without thinking, and fell to the overwhelming violence of the enemies, at which point the developers kindly reminded me, "You can also input Morse code."
As I wondered, "What do I do?" I glanced at the booth's table and found a "real Morse code chart" sitting there. It was the moment I realized, "Oh, this person is serious." In the end, I struggled with the devilishly difficult task of inputting the code within the time limit while looking at the chart, and ultimately had the developer input it for me (laughs). However, seeing even the developer struggle with the input confirmed my belief in the extraordinary "commitment" and affection for the game's difficulty.
As a result, while I encountered an overwhelming number of enemies on my way back after completing the mission and ultimately failed to clear it, strangely enough, what remained was not the frustration or dissatisfaction of "not being able to clear it," but rather a refreshing feeling that made me laugh at the sharpness of the game's mechanics and difficulty. If the level design had been half-hearted, I might have felt a lingering sense of frustration as a user. However, the fact that they pursued hardcore gameplay without any compromise and elevated it to the realm of "enjoyment" is nothing short of admirable. (I believe gamers who love this genre are actually seeking such a thrilling experience.)
Last year in Kawagoe, I played relatively relaxed games, so being able to play such a hard and stoic game under the clear blue sky of Koetoko was a very refreshing and striking contrast.
It seems that Uchujin Haruo-kun does not yet have a Steam store page or anything published. If reading this article ignites your gamer spirit with thoughts like, "I want to challenge that sadistic difficulty with my skills!" please follow the developer's social media to keep up with future development updates.
The Magic of "Experience" Created by Limited Specs — “Mimic Idol” + “Oshi Nuichune”
Next, I would like to introduce two games I encountered on the second floor of the "Renkeiji" lecture hall, one of the exhibition venues: Mimic Idol and Oshi Nuichune. These are shooting games made in the style of Game Boy using "GB Studio."
As the titles suggest, the content of the games is different. First, regarding Mimic Idol, this unique shooting game involves shooting hearts at talented individuals to earn "favorability" in order to cast a new idol. At this event, there was even a stage set up to woo a slime as an idol.
What's interesting is the "gift chance" that occurs along the way. Occasionally, you can pick up falling gift boxes and find presents that make the slime happy. If you choose the correct present, the favorability, which is the game's goal, increases, and if you choose incorrectly, it decreases. This simple and enjoyable service time added a nice accent to the gameplay.
The other game, Oshi Nui Tune, is also a shooting game, but this time the protagonist is a high school girl whose hobby is "oshi katsu" (supporting her favorite). It's a game with a daily theme of creating stuffed animals for her oshi. The control style is very unique as well, where players shoot down "four-character hiragana" that approach them, similar to Space Invaders. However, there is one absolute rule: "You must leave the character 'o' at the end."
By leaving the last character, the word "〇しぬい" is completed, and if you successfully leave the "o," it becomes "おしぬい" (Oshi Nui), achieving success. Conversely, if you leave behind a strange character, you'll end up with a mysterious stuffed animal that looks nothing like what you originally wanted to create, resulting in a failure to clear the game. Just like the previous game, Mimic Idol, these two titles presented players with truly unique rules and situations.
After playing these two games, what surprised me the most and made me feel their uniqueness was undoubtedly the "user experience."
I previously listed various beautiful phrases and worldviews, but if you strip all that away, the essence of this game is "just a shooting game." However, thanks to the situation and worldview that envelop it, what players experience transforms into "a unique experience unlike anything they've encountered in other games." It made me think, "Is this what they call a creator's personality and talent?" The ability to turn the content players interact with into "something special" shines brightly among the indie games I've seen so far.
Another aspect that amazed me was the "perfect balance" of the game's completeness and volume. (By the way, the currently introduced Oshi Nui Tune is available to play for free online, so I highly recommend trying it out.) The overall playtime, volume, and the "thickness" of the content that users interact with are all harmoniously balanced at a truly comfortable level. I feel that in recent indie game trends, game systems have become increasingly refined or deepened for hardcore users, but this game clearly stands apart from that trend, exuding a strong presence.
Curious about this point, I spoke with the creators present at the booth and learned a fascinating fact. It turns out that these two games were actually designed to run on the original Game Boy. As you may know, the specs of the Game Boy hardware are extremely limited compared to the PCs and consoles we usually play games on. In other words, the game I enjoyed was built from the ground up with the premise of "limited capacity and specs." I realized that the perfect balance of game volume I passionately discussed earlier was clearly demonstrated because of this constraint.
To be honest, I belong to the generation that started playing games with the Nintendo DS, so I have no real-time experience with older consoles like the Game Boy. I cannot intuitively gauge what kind of play style users back then had and what games meant to them.
However, if the form of "games" and "play" back then was like this... perhaps today's indie games have forgotten something very important? I was even led to think that way. Both Mimic Idol and Oshi Nui Tune provided me with a refreshing new perspective, both as a game creator and as a player.
👇 Official Site (megamittz)
A Quiet Grand Adventure of Sleepless Nights Synced with the Dimming Sky — 'In the Long Night of Space'
Wrapping up this report is the 2D exploration adventure 'In the Long Night of Space', which captivates with its lyrical atmosphere conveyed through the title.
This work is set on a "sleepless night" where the protagonist, Noah, wanders around the house in search of a way to fall asleep, presenting a very minimal and quiet story. In this demo, the experience begins with Noah getting up unable to sleep, encountering a "glowing creature" that suddenly appears in the house, and exploring the house together, opening a laptop and peeking into the refrigerator.
From my personal perspective, I felt that this title was "the most fitting for the occasion" at this year's Kawagoe GAME DIGG. I played this game as the event was nearing its end, and the sun was beginning to set. The atmosphere of the night depicted in the game seemed to harmonize beautifully with the reality of Kawagoe, where the heat was gradually cooling down as it moved towards dusk.
Of course, it might just be a coincidence in timing. However, just like how 'MeloMisterio' and 'Sato-yama no Oto: Haru Sanpo' blended astonishingly with the rainy Kawagoe last year, I believe that the most memorable moments when reflecting on the event are those "moments when the real space and the game experience synchronized."
Let me also share a particularly memorable moment in the game. It was the scene where Noah opens a laptop with a low battery and browses through accumulated emails and search history. The texts lined up there struck a chord in an indescribable way. A caring check-in email from a friend (or perhaps an acquaintance). In stark contrast, a formal notification from HR about the number of paid leave days and an email regarding unpaid bills...
While it doesn't directly narrate everything, there was a vividness that strongly stirred the viewer's imagination. Furthermore, looking at the search history, there were cute words like "pasta easy one serving," alongside oddly realistic terms that made me chuckle, such as "back cracking" and "he-he-he meaning."
In fact, this demo did not provide any specific explanation about the protagonist's background or gender. However, just by sprinkling these fragments of daily life, players can naturally imagine the protagonist's upbringing and the background they carry. I felt a depth of awareness and consideration for the user in this "not over-narrating" approach.
On a sleepless night, wandering around the room as usual, warming milk in the kitchen to drink. Just that simple, unremarkable scene of daily life makes the player behind the monitor feel it as a "special experience," which I believe is a much higher hurdle than one might expect. I hope to encounter this game at various events in the future, and I would be thrilled if this article piqued your interest to "give it a try." For me, meeting this work in Kawagoe has been a blessing, and it has become a fitting conclusion to this report.
From the Final Stop to the Next Platform
We laughed off the harsh difficulty of 'Uchujin Haruo-kun', the limited specs refined the experience of 'Mimic Idol' and 'Oshi Nui Tune', and 'Nagai Yoru no Uchuu de' perfectly synchronized with the twilight of Kawagoe.
Looking back, this time at Kawagoe GAME DIGG was a unique space where the developers' intense "commitment" blended with the city's distinctive atmosphere.
By the time this article is published, your interest may already be directed towards the "next event." The BitSummit in May is just around the corner. The excitement from this Kawagoe event and the "surprises" crafted by the developers will surely become a wonderful baton leading to the next event.
What kind of games will we encounter at the next platform we land on? As a developer and a gamer who loves games, I am looking forward to the next event.
Thank you for joining me on this long Kawagoe report. See you in the next article!
【PR】Highly acclaimed on Steam! A new sensation rhythm action game that purifies your soul with your thighs, 'Momo Tto Crash'