Zero Ru Crow: Witch High Definition Edition: The Terrifying Experience of Watercolor Immersion

Before starting writing, I specifically checked the sales of the WiiU version of "The Witch of Zero Ruan" that year: as of the end of 2014, the cumulative sales in Japan were 46000 copies.

Although I had anticipated lower sales, this number still came as a surprise to me - after all, it didn't quite match the fame of the Zero series and the nickname "Milk Witch" among players. Of course, this is not entirely due to the quality of the game itself. Factors such as the installed capacity of WiiU, the release strategy limited to Japan, and the market for Japanese horror games have all contributed to this result.

Afterwards, the Zero series fell into a seven-year silence. Therefore, the debut of this work at this year's E3 is extremely exciting.

Full platform, high-definition, with Chinese, the hardware and language barriers have been lowered (although the quality of simplified Chinese translation still needs improvement, it is recommended to use complex Chinese for gameplay). So the question now is, is this work that focuses on wind horror still worth trying at the moment?

*Thank you for the activation code provided by Honor Tecmo. This review is based on the PS5 version, and the descriptions and viewpoints included in the review only represent the subjective opinions of the reviewer. The actual gaming experience varies from person to person.

The terrifying experience of water color immersion

The story of "The Witch of Zero Ru Crow" is fragmented, and players need to collect various literature notes to piece together what events have happened before. However, it is also quite easy to understand. Simply put, it is about the three main characters - Niri Kurai, Lian Kaisei, and Shinyu Chusaki, who first go up the mountain to search for people and "wet their bodies" to seek ghosts.

This mountain is called "Sun Mountain". In the past, it was considered a spiritual land, but in modern times it has become a "holy land of suicide", wandering with lonely souls and wild ghosts. Game producer Kikuchi Kaisuke bluntly stated that they "concentrated all the terrifying locations in Japan on a mountain.". Therefore, there are abandoned hotels, secluded shrines, eerie forests, and thrilling homesteads on Mount Rishang

The scene is rich. When I first arrived at these locations, especially in enclosed spaces such as shrines and mansions, my view was limited in the darkness due to unfamiliarity with the map. With the help of noisy filters, I was completely immersed in the exploration, moving step by step, afraid of the next corner or turning my head to bump into a vengeful spirit.

The map is also scattered with various supply items and many storyline related notes. You can't just look down and pick up items foolishly, because there is a certain probability of being ambushed by a ghost hand when picking up items. The probability of its appearance is uncertain, and the time is unknown. Even if the player relaxes their guard at that moment.

In addition to Ghost Hand, the game also includes some Jump Scare scenes, but overall they do not account for much. The production team creates a terrifying atmosphere with more oppressive environments, such as distant ambiguous illusions, rooms filled with ghostly dolls, storage rooms for coffins Human imagination has now become a catalyst for infinitely amplifying the sense of terror.

However, when I repeated these scenes, the houses and buildings without a sense of mystery became simply places I ran by. At the middle stage of the game, 80% of the scenes have already been explored, so it no longer provides a sense of horror. The whole Ri Shang Shan is my backyard for playing and playing. It's not an exaggeration to say, "Returning to Ri Shang Shan is as friendly as returning home.".

The word "wet body", in addition to its literal meaning that the people enjoy, is also a crucial part of the plot and gameplay: on the day of the mountain, people regard water as a deity and worship it, believing that "the soul is born from water and returned to it.".

The production team used precipitation, rivers, lakes, etc. to build a coherent stage for the Sun Mountain. Because it needs to be returned to water, some people run to the holy mountain to commit suicide; Due to water related rituals, there were witches, which gave rise to a series of poignant stories. During the game, I gradually learned about the tragic past of the resentful spirits and was moved by their persistence in emotions.

Water is the source of life and the home of the soul. It cleverly connects the living and the dead, the current characters, and the stories of the past.

This setting is intuitive - comparing a dry place with a damp place naturally gives people a chilly feeling and is more likely to create a sense of terror.

Moreover, when the protagonists are in a "wet body" state, the probability of ghosts appearing increases, and the damage they receive after being attacked by ghosts also increases. When entering a special state of "Night Spring Wet Body", they will continue to lose health, making people feel anxious.

However, the wet protagonists are a bit too sexy, and seeing raindrops sliding from their hair to their fingers through their elusive clothes can easily turn into another level of "palpitations".

The high-definition version has also added many new clothes, which can make people feel anxious in a different way.

The protagonists under the wet body are like this, and the witch spirits in the game are also beautiful and moving.

To be honest, when I first entered the preface and saw the vengeful spirits surrounding the protagonist, I was shocked. "So, was there such an indicator for filtering out priestesses in the past?"

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In addition, when operating female protagonists or shooting female ghosts from the front, there may be a "milk shake" situation. Although the soft engine effect of the past may be a bit outdated compared to now, it still makes people cannot help but say "you are worthy, Glorious Tekumo".

Of course, this will definitely dilute the sense of terror. The impact on the gaming experience can only be said to be subjective, depending on which aspect players pay more attention to.

Using a projector to capture the various states of the resentful spirit

The Zero series has always been characterized by a "projector" that can cause damage to ghosts by taking photos and fighting ghosts. The WiiU version of "The Witch of the Raven" creatively combines WiiU's Pad to simulate the feeling of real shooting.

This high-definition version can also be filmed using a six axis motion sensor. Based on my personal experience, using a joystick for large-scale movement and then fine-tuning the motion sensor would be a more comfortable operating method.

Although in principle, shooting a grudge is just a shooting gameplay - consuming various films (i.e. ammunition) and aiming at the grudge (enemy), when combined with the game, it becomes a novel experience: after all, people unconsciously move their gaze away when facing fearful things, but in order to fight ghosts, the camera must also be aimed at the ghost.

At the same time, there is also a collection element in the game. After defeating the vengeful spirit for a period of time, running to the side of the vengeful spirit and touching it can collect its memories during its lifetime, and also receive some score rewards. Therefore, you cannot be too far away from the vengeful spirit - this is consistent with the design concept of photography, encouraging players to face fear directly and win the battle.

Drawing Memory

In terms of long-range attacks, "The Witch of the Raven" emphasizes the timing of the shutter, capturing as many ghosts as possible in the frame through a rotating projector, with the more coverage, the higher the damage; When the vengeful spirit approaches, use one of the essence of the series, the "Deadly Shot" function, to capture the moment of the vengeful spirit's attack and continuously take photos without any cooldown time.

These two sets of attack methods are combined, although the functions of different protagonists holding cameras differ - the functionality of Lai Fang Xili is more comprehensive, and the one releasing lotus can take continuous photos, but each can transform into a god of war. The security of the projector makes people want to always hold it forward.

This is another double-edged sword. As the saying goes, true fear comes from a lack of firepower (laughs), because the number of basic Type 07 films is infinite, and there is no worry about running out of firepower. Therefore, holding the camera is really too reassuring, and the sense of terror brought by resentment is greatly reduced.

  Type 07 film is infinite in quantity

Although there are many different types of ghosts, their attack modes are generally the same, except for rushing towards the protagonist or using barrage to restrict their movement, because in the game, they can sense the approximate position of the enemy, and even in times of crisis, they can quickly dodge by pressing the button. Therefore, when fighting ghosts, I am actually mentally stable. However, when exploring, I am often frightened by myself.

In addition to ghost hunting, the projector also has the traditional functions of a regular camera, such as capturing fleeting floating spirits in time, finding angles and directions to restore certain photos, etc. These designs serve map exploration, encouraging players to face resentful spirits like combat systems, and appropriately adjusting the tense emotions during exploration.

junction

During the gameplay, I repeatedly asked myself a question: Is this game scary?

The answer is constantly changing, and when I first saw it, I was indeed scared. When I revisited the old place, I was already familiar with it, and there were no waves in my heart. It was as if I had seen the production team's little plan:

"Our goal in this game is to expand the audience and lower the threshold for horror games. First, we will use sexy characters/vengeful spirits to lure players in and let them experience a peaceful and terrifying atmosphere. Then, regardless of whether it's scary or not, there is a poignant and sorrowful story here, which is the core of the game. We want to use it to impress players."

However, due to various reasons, this work failed to open a breakthrough for the series at that time and almost became the series's swan song.

The original version of already has various scenes selling benefits, but this cannot save the series

Is there any change in the current environment? Some - there are almost no other wind horror games left.

The hesitation of players when facing a horror game is still there.

So let's continue to follow the same approach as before - keep the story and combat system unchanged, add new costumes, add camera modes, improve the quality of the picture, and make the characters still so charming. Many people feel that the sincerity of transplantation is not enough, and the PC version is even more violent transplantation. This should be scolded, let Glory Tecmo quickly fix the problem.

But as the saying goes, these days, with all platforms and Chinese language, if more players can really come into contact with this work, perhaps the mission undertaken by this series's 20th anniversary commemorative work has already been completed.

After all, it's been twenty years, but it's been too long since we last saw the Zero series.

*Data source: 2014 Sales Summary