The old walking simulator term: Often associated unfairly with negative connotations, many game developers try to avoid using it entirely. But not Japanese indie developer Tatamibeya. They are wearing that ‘walking simulator’ badge with pride. And from the looks of it, they’ve got every right to. All aboard as NOSTALGIC TRAIN leaves the station on Xbox today.
Set in Japan and more specifically the Japanese countryside, NOSTALGIC TRAIN asks you to piece together a puzzle. In the town of Natsugiri, all the people are missing. Why and how that is will be left for you to discover.
These won’t all be happy stories; there will be a mixture of melancholy and tragedy in amongst some beautiful scenery. But if things get too much you can solve the mystery at your own pace. No time limits to worry about.
As well as the story mode, NOSTALGIC TRAIN allows you to explore Natsugiri and its peaceful surroundings at your pace.
As an aside, more games should offer this. Spending all this time creating beautiful worlds but without the ability to explore them at your own pace. Like Discovery Tour in Assassin’s Creed Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla, more games should show their worlds off.
Tickets please! NOSTALGIC TRAIN is ready to download now priced at £11.74 on the Xbox Store. If you want to wait though, a full review will be on the site shortly. For now though, let us know where you would go if you had a train to take you anywhere.
Game description
– Two fluctuations at journey’s end – NOSTALGIC TRAIN is a mystical and melancholic first-person adventure/walking simulator set in the Japanese countryside, where you solve not only the mystery of the missing people of Natsugiri, but also that of “yourself”. It contains both a story mode, “Two fluctuations at journey’s end”, and a free mode, where you can explore the world of Natsugiri at your own pace. Relax and immerse yourself in a fantastical world full of tragic stories and beautiful nostalgic scenery, created by the Japanese indie game developer, Tatamibeya. *Recommended by the 22nd Japan Media Arts Screening Committee* 【Story】 I was so dazzled that I could barely open my eyes. The singing of the cicadas and the humid air surrounded me. The air is filled with the faint smell of the sea breeze. I’m sitting on a wooden bench in an old station building. Where is this place? And… what am I doing here? A nostalgic countryside. A station marked “Natsugiri”. A single-track railroad. As if stepping out of the purest of white light, I woke up here, my memories gone. I could not find anyone in this strange place…
