Game: Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game
Genre: JRPG
System: Nintendo Switch (also available on Steam (Windows))
Developers | Publishers: Studio Kumiho | PM Studios Inc
Age Rating: US E10+ | EU 3
Price: US $24.99 | UK Game £20.99 | EU €24,99
Release Date: September 17th, 2024
A review code was provided, and many thanks to Team Critical Hit.
The thirtieth anniversary of Earthbound may turn out to be a good year for new games inspired by Nintendo’s still-underrated classic. Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game evokes the spirit of Onett right away, with goofy townsfolk, a world where weird stuff is simply accepted as natural, and the cops are on top of their game when it comes to blocking off the roads you need to progress.
But Jae’s adventure draws from other sources of inspiration, too. Its emotional core, while Earthbound-flavor, takes a quick turn towards the ‘I’m Crying Inside’ coping mechanisms seen in games like Omori and, this sounds like a bit of a stretch but hold on, it makes sense in context, the undercurrent of loneliness within your player character in the South Park RPGs. But does it all pull together well enough to mark its own place within the world of emotional JRPG-style journeys? To its credit, it sure tries.
Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game Has An Amazing Look
Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game starts with a bittersweet flashback that shows us a glimpse of what he lost, and ends by cutting to the traditional scene of the protagonist waking up in bed. But this isn’t Chrono Trigger, and Jae’s deep depression is visible in every inch of the disaster area that is his home. He’s barely a teen, near as we can tell, and he’s on his own, living off of those blue butter cookie tins that are more famous for holding sewing supplies, and whatever’s desiccating in the refrigerator. His sister is away at school, and while she’s clearly worried about her lil bro, she’s got to live her own life, and Jae’s gotta get his act together. Someday.
Yet for how ragged this kid’s life is, it’s rich on the eyes. The game sports a lively cel-shaded look that gives Jae and his friends the wiggly energy of children the world over whenever they move or fight, and the often interactive environments pop with color and motion of its own. The only quibble is the usual NPC repetition here and there, but even they’re cute enough that it’s not too much of a drawback.
Jae’s Adventure Makes Good Use of the Switch
It’s unfortunate that gamers have to brace themselves every time a PC indie game also comes out on the Nintendo Switch, especially at the same time. Optimizing for the handheld console can be a hard trick for developers, leading to new releases that should be great fun but turn into clunkfests. The good news is, Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game runs extremely well, chugging only occasionally in larger environments and, thus far, never in combat.
That’s a good thing, too, because while Jae’s journey is a turn-based RPG, there’s another guest star’s style under the hood: Super Mario RPG. For while your menus and attack styles are pretty up front, there’s a quirk that lets you perform timed button presses. Pulling them off can mean your defense is fortified — or, if you’re really good at this, completely parry an enemy — or adding extra oomph to your attack. Good timing makes you even capable of improving an item’s effect when you use it.
Add a boost bar system that feeds off your timing and adds even more gusto to whatever you’ve got up your sleeve, and you have a traditional combat system with enough quirk to keep it engaging. If you can’t manage the timing, you’ll still make it through most combat, but you’ll probably be eating up more supplies to do it.
Jae Is Surprisingly Hardcore, However
Described as inspired by genre classics, an RPG fan will have little trouble preparing themselves for most of the game’s foibles. Money is tight in Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game, secret stashes are everywhere, and, while the game says you don’t need to grind, you’re going to want to pick up some levels here and there on your way to the next objective. In between, especially in the beginning hours, make sure you trek your little legs all the way back to the public phone booth. Yeah, like Earthbound. But somehow worse.
Unless I missed something, there is no autosave and no pre-boss checkpoint, unlike the equally throwback-styled Eiyuden Chronicle. So if you don’t put yourself in the mind of your own youthful self playing an SNES lo upon an eternity ago, you could face a fate that still puts a chill in the heart of every RPG gamer: losing huge amounts of progress when you eat dirt. Yeah, even on the first boss, when you probably haven’t picked up more than whatever healing items were on the way, and may have zero revival capabilities.
As much as this is my own fault, the game’s colorful aesthetic and the determined nature of Jae’s first buddy had me lulled into thinking things would work out fine. This enthusiastically did not work out fine, and I lost forty minutes and a lot of my patience. Go in aware that this game is not actually toying around that much, and you’ll be fine. Me, I think I’m holding a grudge. But let’s set that aside.
Conclusion
Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game has a lot of style and a lot of heart, and the people who grew up on both Earthbound and Super Mario RPG are going to find something here that scratches a hard-to-reach itch. But like its predecessors, it’s going to be a little sturdier of an opponent than you think, and mastery of combat and awareness of its quirks is going to be key as to whether or not this game is going to be for you in the long term.
The game’s writing has a lot of charm, too, and it’s easy to feel for Jae, whose depression may have him wallowing, but not at the cost of caring about his friends. That alone is a pretty good reason to stick through its equally old-school stylings and see if Jae can complete his quest, or at least learn healthy coping mechanisms along the way. It’s a plot that comes with a soft content warning for familial loss, and a stronger one for players who may be looking for a cozier experience than Jae offers. And while I come away from the game with a slight grudge, I have no trouble recommending it to others.
Final Verdict: I Like It
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