Yo-Kai Watch 2: Psychic Specters

Genre: Monster-Collecting RPG

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Wireless), 2-4 Co-Op (Local Wireless), StreetPass Supported

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Review:

Yo-Kai Watch 2 is a Monster-Collecting RPG released in two versions on Nintendo 3DS in 2016 – Bony Spirits and Fleshy Souls. Much as with the Pokemon franchise that clearly inspired Yo-Kai Watch, these two versions are virtually identical and only contain minor differences. A third version with additional minor improvements, Psychic Specters, was released in 2017 (if we’re comparing it to Pokemon, think of Psychic Specters as the Pokemon Crystal to Bony Spirits/Fleshy Souls’ Pokemon Silver/Gold).

So I’ll just get right to it – Yo-Kai Watch 2 really should have been called Yo-Kai Watch 1.5. This game is embarrassingly similar to the first game, and I don’t mean that in the same way that each Pokemon sequel is similar to the previous game. Yo-Kai Watch 2 features the same gameplay (with only minor improvements), the same map (with some additional areas), more or less the same presentation, and its story even repeats what was in the first game via everyone in the game seemingly getting a form of amnesia.

In some ways, this seems like this might make Yo-Kai Watch 2 a reboot or re-release of sorts (albeit a minor one), but the game does refer to events of the first game, and players are presumably expected to have played the first game prior to starting this one. But… why would you want to buy the exact same game a second time, play the exact same game a second time? Especially when the first time wasn’t that great to begin with?

Okay, “exact same game” is a bit of an exaggeration – there are improvements here throughout. But even so, this game sticks so close to its predecessor that one can’t help but wonder how little effort was put into this game.

For those unfamiliar with the franchise, as I mentioned before, Yo-Kai Watch is clearly inspired by Pokemon, though it does a number of things unique and different from that franchise. Rather than existing in a world where people and magical creatures exist, the titular Yo-Kai of this world are spirits that haunt a world much like a cartoonier, family-friendly version of our own, with these spirits going unseen by most humans. Players take the role of a child with a watch that enables him to see and befriend these Yo-Kai, and summon them to fight for you in battle with other Yo-Kai.

In the game’s opening, this watch is stolen and everyone has their memories of the first game wiped, resulting in characters re-enacting events from the first game in an eerily similar (but not quite the same) manner. Soon enough you get the watch back, and everyone starts to notice history repeating itself, though this lampshading of how derivative the game is doesn’t change how derivative it is. The game’s story does eventually move on to new areas, but not before making players go through potentially hours of stuff that seems ripped right out of the first game.

Yet again, the 3D visuals in this game have a simple, colorful, cartoony look to them, but still don’t have the charm of the Pokemon franchise. In particular, the character designs here are nowhere near as appealing as what is in the Pokemon games. Similarly, the music is light and whimsical, but there’s nothing especially memorable or noteworthy here. I suppose this sequel steps up the odd elements of the presentation, particularly in animated cutscenes throughout the game, but this is a relatively minor addition.

And yet again, combat in this game is mostly done with indirect control – your summoned Yo-Kai do their own thing without your input, and your only real influence in battle is changing which enemy they target, feeding them healing items and swapping them out with your reserve party, and playing simple min-games to power-up their special moves. As all of this is happening in real-time, this has the end result of making you feel like you’re constantly scrambling around to try and get stuff done, but never actively participating in these battles, which is super-frustrating.

And once again, the map is essentially a normal town that can be navigated freely, making it both feel grounded and give players a fair amount of freedom. But it is also the same map as in the first game with additional areas, so the appeal here will likely have worn off somewhat. Yet again, as you’re wandering around, your watch will notify you when a Yo-Kai is near, and hunting these critters down and capturing them in your lens is satisfying. Less satisfying, however, is that it seems like random chance whether beating a Yo-Kai in battle will enable you to recruit it. Players do have the opportunity to feed opposing Yo-Kai to entice them to your side, but this sort of bribery doesn’t feel as well integrated into the game as the similar mechanic the Shin Megami Tensei franchise uses.

A new addition to the sequel is that at one point the game does seek to correct this flaw by clueing in players as to what foods could sway opposing Yo-Kai to their side, but this seems like a band-aid on a gaping wound rather than a serious fix.

And then of course there’s the multiple-game thing to address. There are arguments to be made as to whether Pokemon’s use of this sales gimmick are warranted, but the derivative nature of Yo-Kai Watch makes it even more so here. I am already feeling like I’m playing the same game I played in Yo-Kai Watch 1, so releasing multiple versions of this already-iterative sequel just seems sleazy to me.

The Psychic Specters of the game is the definitive version of Yo-Kai Watch 2, for whatever that’s worth – it allows players to play through both versions of the story from the prior two games, includes new areas and quests, new Yo-Kai to befriend and fight, and new Oni Blasters co-op minigame content. However, even these small improvements don’t do much to change my overall opinion of this game, and I definitely don’t think this game is worth getting if you already got a previous version of Yo-Kai Watch 2.

Wellll… except for one issue. See, Psychic Specters was produced in smaller numbers than the prior two games, making it somewhat uncommon. This means that trying to buy a physical copy of the game now is super-pricey, and even a used copy currently sells for over $90. If, on the other hand, you’re just wanting to play this game and not invest in a cartridge to sell later, you can still download it from the eShop for $40… but only until the eShop closes in March 2023.

However, all that assumes you want to play Yo-Kai Watch 2 at all, and honestly I don’t see anyone but the most diehard fan of the series finding much worthwhile here. I do think Yo-Kai Watch 2 is a sequel that improves on the first game, but only in small, iterative ways that are barely noticeable when the majority of the game feels like deja vu all over again. And this paired with the mult-game thing just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Despite being a sequel, I can’t really feel comfortable telling fans of the first game to get this one, and despite being a rehash of the first game, the references to the plot of the first game mean this isn’t a good game for newcomers to the series either. As a result, I feel like this is a Monster-Collecting RPG that’s… not for anyone, really.

tl;dr – Yo-Kai Watch 2 is a Monster-Collecting RPG that sticks far, far too close to what we already saw in the first game, rehashing the same main locale, the same game mechanics, and to a great extent the same presentation and even some of the plot. Psychic Specters iterates on that already-iterative experience to offer players the definitive way to play Yo-Kai Watch 2… but this is still the definitive version of a disappointingly unambitious sequel to a so-so game. Unless you’re a collector or a diehard Yo-Kai fan, this game isn’t for you.

Grade: C-

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