Shin-chan: Shiro and the Coal Town (Nintendo Switch) Review

Shin-chan: Shiro and the Coal Town sees Shin-chan on holiday once again, chilling with his grandad and getting into mischief. To begin with the game very much follows the same setup as the preceding title, but as the story gets going Shiro, Shin-chan's dog, disappears overnight, returning covered in soot. Shin-chan then follows Shiro to an abandoned train platform where he catches a curious carriage to Coal Town! Coal town is a mysterious place full of interesting characters and it's run by an evil mining mogul who, in a somewhat Professor Layton-y way, is enacting a dastardly plan in Coal Town.

As Shin-chan players need to make friends to progress in both Coal Town and in his normal holiday life. To do this interaction is needed with various NPCs in both places, including completing their side quests or by partaking in events both during the story, and also by fulfilling the standard Natsuyasumi collection quests. From the start a fairly thorough introduction is received in becoming immediately acquainted with bug hunting and fishing, as well as being shown variety of places where NPCs will interact with Shin-chan as he goes about his business. It's fairly simple but as with most of these games it all runs on a day and night system when Shin-chan needs to return home each evening to eat dinner and go to bed or risk getting less done the next day.

Managing time is easy enough, it moves consistently while exploring and interacting with only a few things seeming to slow it down. For example, in Coal Town the timer moves far slower while performing in a much more story-based set of quests and conversations. Much of the gameplay in Coal Town is about unblocking paths, at least to begin with. For example Shin-chan is following his new friend when she is allowed to cross a rooftop to take a shortcut but the owner won't let Shin-chan cross as he doesn't know him, so Shin-chan needs to bring him his favourite dish from the restaurant around the corner. It's cute, funny and ultimately a short quest that doesn't ask the player to go too far or have the potential to push them to return home for night time. Basically it's a really nice structure for presenting a fun storyline and having the chill summer holiday feeling exploration.

Gameplay is quite simple in terms of the only real complexities being activities like fishing which require a bit of watching and listening. Exploration is from fixed perspectives with use of the tried-and-true 2D art backgrounds that have always been prevalent in the Natsuyasumi games. These are usually well implemented and it is easy to see where is accessible and where isn't, this is true of both towns too. Items and bugs tend to sparkle making them easily spottable among the luscious greens of the grassy banks. Objects are organised in a way that makes keeping track of objectives and collectables easy. The menus tend to be easy to use and snappy, keeping even that aspect of the game smooth and enjoyable.

Visually, especially with the fixed drawn perspective, things are stunning. The colours on show are popping especially on an OLED switch and the designs for the environments have tons of details, some animated, making even the simpler scenes feel alive and interesting. It really captures a feeling of wonder that being on holiday is all about. Characters sport their signature designs from the shows and comics but are rendered in 3D (as with the previous game) and animated in a pleasing way, even if it's sometimes a little stiff. Aspects like having the sprinting animation be Shin-chan's "butt alien" and the 'found an item pose' give the game a fun air that tends to make even the smallest achievement enjoyable. Characters tend to be well animated if they have story significance as well, especially in the few cutscenes in the game that tend to sport even more detailed animations and a more cinematic look.

The music for the entire experience is also fantastic with the voiced intro track in particular bringing the game to life. A lot of the tunes for exploration are light hearted but due to the Coal Town quest and storyline there is a more varied mix of darker more menacing tracks that also do a great job painting the atmosphere the writers wanted. This is all supported by excellent environmental sound design where blowing wind, rustling grass and nighttime crickets offer a compelling soundscape of summer in Japan. Characters also sport full voice overs, though not everyone, that are well acted by their anime actors. It feels really authentic to the source material and gives characters a bit more life than they might have otherwise presented.

It's easy to see how someone might burn out playing this game though as it's slower paced, runs players on a schedule and relies on collectables to keep interest. However, adding the new storyline where there is a problem to solve is an admirable way for the developers to take what already existed and twist it into a new experience. When paired with the new activities available in Coal Town there is a lot to do and see and a variety that a sequel should aim to provide.