Whoa. Whoa. I never thought there would be a sequel! What the heck is going on Pupyo! Where is my popoon!
Did you ever think, “What? Finally Game*Spark has a bug?” rest assured. Writers are so calm. Rather, does this way of speaking sound familiar to you? Maybe if you’re in your late 30’s or older, don’t you know? If you know it, doesn’t it make you feel nostalgic?
Yes, this is the way Hebe, the main character of the Famicom software “Hebereke” released in 1991, speaks. I was able to hear this talk for the first time in 30 years at the SUNSOFT booth at the game event BitSummit Let’s Go!! held in Miyako Messe, Kyoto.
At the same booth, the completely new work “Hebereke 2” was exhibited. A trial was possible. That cute, surreal world view action game has been redesigned and appeared in front of gamers.
Pappyu explores with a new art style!
I was very surprised when I played Hebereke 2. First of all, the art style is good. It makes me think, “Is this what you’ve done to make ‘Hebereke’ now?”
This is because the basic art style is cutout style. In addition, the conversation window is expressed with iron beads, and the overall atmosphere is like playing a game in the world of a handmade picture book.
Of course, bringing real-life art expression methods into 2D action games, such as the picture book style art of Nintendo’s “Yoshi’s Island” and the knitting elements of “Yoshi’s Wool’s World”, is by no means new. That said, it wouldn’t have been strange if Hebereke 2 was made in the direction of expressing it in pixel art, and it’s been 30 years since the first Hebereke, so it’s aimed at players who know the past. I think I could have stopped by there.
In other words, the fact that “Hebeleke 2” is cut out like a picture book shows the seriousness of SUNSOFT that it is not only for old players, but also for new and young players.
Nostalgic friends too
The nostalgic “Atark” will once again be poppy!
Hebereke 2 is both nostalgic and new. It is various actions that make you realize it. The first technique that I was happy to reproduce was the “Oshiri Ark”. What’s an ark? don’t you know? It’s a way of saying Attack in the world of “Hebereke”. Gerardon’s member Attack Nishimoto would be “Ataku Nishimoto” in the world of “Heberake”.
In the original Hebereke, this technique allows you to stomp on the enemy by jumping and pressing down on the D-Pad. It’s good that “Hebereke 2” didn’t remove this part.
Actions have changed around the item “Popun” that is thrown at the enemy. In the original Hebereke, it was an item that appeared when you stomped on an enemy with a butt attack, but in “Hebereke 2” it was changed to an item that can be taken out at any time. However, it is not possible to throw popoons infinitely, and once thrown, it takes time to be able to take them out again.
By the way, while listing words that are likely to lower IQ, such as buttocks attack and popoon attack, there is a boss battle in the trial play of “Hebereke 2”. The other party is “O-chan”, a mysterious character who is talking to a young lady wearing something like pajamas.
He was the first boss we met in the original Hebereke, and he was an impressive character as a companion, but this time, O-chan was defiled by a mysterious enemy and can’t see what’s in front of him. He threw a Popoon, and at the end he stomped on it with his buttocks.
A game that feels nostalgic for adults and new for children!
When I asked SUNSOFT about this work, the reason why the production of “Hebereke 2” spanned more than 30 years from the first generation was not only the circumstances that were revealed at the announcement of the crowdfunding of the reprint of another title the other day. .
The reason was that “the first generation was interesting after all”. “If we add a random map to Metroidvania and make it even more interesting than the first generation, we’ll be able to make ‘2’,” he said, gradually strengthening his conviction. It seems to be related to development.
I want Hebereke 2 to be a work that both parents and children can enjoy. “Most of the people who know ‘Hebeleke’ are fathers. We are aiming for something that they can play with their children. It’s fun for children to play, and it’s nostalgic for parents to play it.” He told me.
If you look at the trailer that was released at the venue, you can also see the stage showing the autumn and winter seasons. It seems that we can expect a more emotional and warm world than the first generation. Hebereke 2 is scheduled to be released on PS4/Xbox One/Switch/PC within 2023.
