Mixed reality

Studio Koba channels Ready Player One as digital and analogue collide

The digital realm and ’80s charm collide in action RPG Narita Boy

Narita Boy is an action RPG drenched in ’80s charm and faded-VHS visual noise. Developer Studio Koba casts you as the titular hero on the hunt for a fabled weapon, the Techno Sword. The title is also the name of a fictional game created by Lionel Pear, a mysterious, genius computer engineer for his Narita One console, but the two dimensions begin to blur.

The game takes its visual cues from classics such as Another World and Castlevania, as well as more recent pixel-art creations such as Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP. And those sterling visuals are supported by a pounding synth soundtrack.

“Above all else, [we want] Narita Boy to be a full sensory experience that plays with the nostalgia and weirdness of the ’80s, while also mixing in some weird Japanese vibes,” says studio director Eduardo Fornieles.

Along with some explosive, side-scrolling brawler action, the game allows you to jump through space and time. The former ability lets you flit between different locations and planes within the Digital Kingdom using teleports, while locating rare runes will allow you to return to the ’80s where Pear awaits to offer help. There are vehicles, too, and you’ll upgrade both these and your sword in order to reach previously inaccessible parts of the Digital Kingdom.

At the time of writing the game is already well on its way to its 120,000 goal on Kickstarter. Studio Koba aims to release Narita Boy in the latter half of 2018.