Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale- 3DS

I've long been an admirer of Kaz Ayabe's long-running Boku no Natsuyasumi series - in fact one of my first blog posts was about Boku 3 on PlayStation 3 back in 2008. 

Since then I've tracked down the second game on PlayStation 2 but the first game on PS1 - and subsequently ported to PSP - and the PSP-only fourth game in the series have sadly eluded me.

It's a series which has a lot going for it, but with its roots deep in Japanese culture, there was never a chance  of any of the games being translated into English and released in the West - although I know of one brave soul who is currently beavering away on a translation project for Boku no Natsuyasumi 3.

So it was with delight that I discovered that Ayabe's Millennium Kitchen - along with Level 5 - had actually released a title in the West last year on 3DS. It went completely under my radar until chatter over on Twitter alerted me to the game's existence just last month.

While Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale isn't directly linked to the Boku series, there are many similarities here, specifically the hand-painted backdrops, the rural setting, the joy of exploration and the innocence of childhood.

The protagonist is young Sohta Tono, a kid who has arrived in a Tokyo suburb toward the end of the summer of 1971. Here, in this well-looked after collection of houses, shops and businesses, something amazing happens every Friday - huge "Kaiju" mysteriously appear, hulking great monsters who do battle on the edge of town. Or do they?

The strange goings on in this picturesque town are seen through a child's eyes and are open to interpretation, while Sohta and his friends' imaginative tale unfolds beautifully in waves of wide-eyed wonder.

The immaculately told story is utterly charming and while the game is linear in its structure, there are things to do when not following the story arc. Multicoloured Glims are scattered around the town and collecting seven similarly coloured motes of light rewards the player with a monster card which can be used to battle friends in a simple rock, paper, scissors-style game. The monsters have wonderful names such as the Colossal Crustacean and Jumbogon and each card gives a delightful description of the monster along with a roaring sound clip.

The general atmosphere of the previously mentioned Boku no Natsuyasumi series is intact here, not just because of the lovely hand-drawn locations and the Japanese voice acting, but thanks to the environmental sounds which pepper every scene; birds chirp, katydids and crickets rattle away, Japanese voices from unseen TVs chatter while you're exploring the streets and wind chimes clink in the distance.

There's even a nod to Boku no Natsuyasumi to be found in the game: Stand outside the dry cleaners, and you'll see a small poster featuring a young lad who looks remarkably like Boku from Ayabe's best-loved series.

The soundtrack is another feather in the game's cap, with gentle guitars, tinkling pianos, clarinets and violins combining to creating a superb atmosphere. However, the standout is the game’s opening theme which is upbeat, sickeningly cute and packed with heartfelt lyrics.

Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale lasts around four hours and costs £7.19 from the Nintendo eShop and it is a little gem. I'm so glad I was pointed in its direction - better late than never - and now, I'll just wait patiently to discover if Ayabe-san has Boku no Natsuyasumi 5 up his sleeve for PS4 or Vita.

Boku no Natsuyasumi 4 - PSP

I blogged last year about Boku no Natsuyasumi 3 on PS3, a game which placed you in the shoes of a small boy and tasked you with having a fun and memorable summer holiday.
    Now, a trailer of the forthcoming Boku no Natsuyasumi 4 on PSP has been released. This time the summer adventure is set in a costal village in Japan - possibly the Seto Inland Sea - in 1985.
    Along with the now familiar bug collecting, beetle fighting, swimming, fishing, morning exercises and family meals, the team at Millennium Kitchen have added a few new interesting activities.
    There is now a taiko drum mini game, which takes place in the village square, a mini beetle circus for your captured bugs, a general store which looks like it includes a playable table-top version of classic 1981 arcade game Qix, and tai chi classes.
    What is really exciting for fans of the series is that it looks like Boku no Natsuyasumi 4 - released on July 2 - will be available on UMD and also available to download from the Japanese PlayStation store. The UMD will cost 4980 yen, while the download comes in at 3800 yen.
    Unfortunately, I've been struggling to find decent sized screenshots, but here's a link to the official Boku no Natsuyasumi 4 website, which has pictures: click
    I will report back when new details come to light. In the meantime, here are my thoughts on Boku no Natsuyasumi 3 on PS3.

Boku no Natsuyasumi 3 - PS3

This was one of the first games I bought for my PS3. I was intrigued after watching a video clip of the game, and, as it seemed to have elements of Nintendo's Animal Crossing, I just couldn't resist.
    The game places you in control of a young boy named Boku, who is staying at his aunt and uncle's farm in the countryside of Hokkaido, Japan, for the summer.
    Arriving by train, Boku gets to spend the whole month of August exploring, swimming, and playing in the areas surrounding the farm. He'll get to meet and interact with other characters, and the aim of the game is to allow Boku to have a memorable and fun-packed summer holiday.


It's all very laid back, and you are free to spend your time as you see fit. For example, you could wander down to the local river and dive in, searching the depths for collectable bottle tops, grab your bug net and collect beetles, butterflies and insects, help out on the farm, slide down the surrounding green slopes on a tray, do a spot of fishing, or play your friends at beetle sumo - what you do is entirely up to you.
    Of course you'll have to be back in time for dinner and if you don't hit the hay before 11pm, you'll sleep in and miss morning exercises with the rest of the family the next day.


    Boku no Natsuyasumi looks beautiful. From the hand-painted backgrounds to the clean, fresh look of the characters and interiors, every screen is a joy to look at. The gorgeous style of the game really drives you on to explore new areas, as you never know what will be around the next corner.
    There are also a few options to customise Boku's look. You can download dozens of colourful T-shirts from the Japanese PlayStation store for free and more customisation is also possible thanks to the T-shirt design tool, which is also available for free from the same source.
    The Japanese audio and text can throw up a few problems, but as the game is so laid back, it's almost impossible not to find something to keep you occupied, even if you don't understand the many conversations. There's also little point holding out for a western release, as previous games in the series (for PS1 and PS2) have never been translated into English. So it's just as well the PS3 is region free, so importing isn't a problem.