by: Nabila Rhapsodios
PLOT
Haruka Kagami, a mystery novelist, holds a book signing event. After she had tended to the last attendees, she was astonished that her science counselor, Eiji Shijima, had turned up. Haruka keenly listens to Eiji's predicament, saying that skeletal bones have been discovered under the cherry tree in Shijima's estate, and he needs Haruka's sharp-witted to identify the bones. If these bones are the result of a murder, Eiji wants to find out who dared to commit such a murder. Haruka agrees to accompany Eiji to Shijma's estate right away.
When Haruka steps foot at Shijima's estate, Eiji's father is poisoned, and a new guest to the estate is killed. Haruka feels that the timing is perfectly connected to "every ten years a Shijima life is taken" and "the full bloom of the cherry tree once in a hundred years," as she was told by Eiji's immediate family members and their attendants.
After realizing Haruka can't turn her back now, Akari Yamase, Haruka's editor, chimes in to help and gives Haruka various reading materials and reports. After reading them all, Haruka deduces that all centennial mysteries and present cases are powerfully connected to the Tokijiku. Tokijiku, or The Fruit of Youth, is a fruit claimed to give agelessness to those who ingest it. Another vital stuff that Haruka can't shake off is a scarlet camellia, which is always left behind on the victim's body; her guts say this particular flower must have a connection to the murders surrounding the Shijimas generations after generations.
The Fruit of Youth, which only invites death to the Shijima family, is key to slowly piecing together the larger picture of the Shijima family secret. Haruka, too, must quickly uncover the truth so that no more members of the Shijima family die a tragic death at the hands of the cold-blooded monster she dubbed "The Scarlet Camellia", as the perpetrator often placed this flower after murdering the victim.
MY IMPRESSION
You may not have heard of The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story, but I have. I have known about this game since 2023. I became interested in it during the Christmas holiday this year and finally bought it after finding an online store selling it for a much cheaper price than other online stores.
Amazingly, it took me two days and sixteen hours, including watching all the videos, piecing together all the clues, and getting stuck on whatever puzzle. This game is the shortest console game that my hands have ever touched. It's worth noting that I haven't played a live-action/FMV game before, but boom! A big crush happened!
More about my impression of this game in almost seconds. I will separate my reasonings into The Positive (+) and The Negative (-) and seal the fate of this game verdict.
(+)
a. Story
Conceptually, this game is a well-written murder mystery. I was surprised at how invested I was in the story. It ceaselessly entertained me and kept me testing my logic the entire time. I am pleased there were so many twists, too.
I cried at some points because the story was heartbreaking, specifically the last Chapter and extra part. Truthfully, before I bought it, I wasn't expecting anything particular in the overall story, as this game speaks of a cold-blooded murder case.
Not to forget, this one fruit of agelessness brings all generations together to accentuate the story's center. The story highlighting different people from multiple generations is not a gimmick to sprinkle drama but to perfectly close the door in the finale.
b. Cinematography & Acting
The cinematography and editing of framing each scene are compelling, making events feel vibrant. I liked how even the tiniest details can help progress the story framed in the scenes. The truth I was seeking was always there right before me.
Despite having a limited cast, every actor in The Centennial Case portrays a variety of persons from the past and present. This is because Haruka reads books or reports and uses her imagination to create characters based on members of the Shijima family. The game's commitment to making each era feel distinct and lively is outstanding and a nice variation.
This game uses live actors to show many scenes, which deserve big applause. Their acting did not feel cheesy; instead, it consistently struck the right tone to immerse me in the story. It's part of the charm, and it practically feels like I'm watching a serialized murder mystery TV drama. In the more severe scenes, all the actors act too well and phenomenally.
This game is a cinematic experience using FMV scenes divided into episodic periods and actors. That movement approach makes it feel like a light series rather than an incredibly full-length movie. If the latter idea makes this game, I might get bored because the story takes too long to continue.
c. Audio Option
There are multiple options, whether you want to play in full Japanese (Audio and Text), full English (Dub version & Translated Text), Japanese audio with English subtitles, or English audio with Japanese subtitles. Whatever your choice, it does not impact your gameplay or the overall story.
At first, I played the game using the English dub. However, I felt uncomfortable because the actors' lip movements and English voices were not in sync. I switched to Japanese audio when the scene played Haruka and Eiji standing under the big cherry tree in the Prologue, and from this point, I felt the surge of "Perfect." I stayed with Japanese audio for the rest of my play. I loved its natural charm and the authenticity of Japanese TV movies. I did not mind reading English subtitles while listening to the Japanese language. Double work was okay for me.
d. An Intuitive Interface
This game allows me to seamlessly pause, rewind, and fast-forward scenes as if it's designed to help examine every character's explanation if they are talking and moving too fast to aid me in solving a mystery. The primers, which provide details on characters and clues while watching scenes, are brilliant, making this game easy to enjoy.
e. Sometimes A Game is Not Challenging Enough is Good
There is no penalty for a wrong conclusion or choices that have any impact; consider it a blessing. I think I should try other mystery games in the future. I'm curious about them. Will they be as easy as The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story?
I was able to get the Platinum trophy very quickly. Maybe I was able to do that because the game offers a lot of help. Too much, in fact. Honestly, this is something I like because the difficulty level of getting the Platinum trophy should be made easier, not harder.
I wanted to give a centennial score for this game, but there are a few niggling issues. Here's why:
(-)
a. The Gameplay
The 'using your brain' phase —the Reasoning Phase, where I have to construct clues and form various hypotheses—takes a very long time, even if it essentially matches hexagonal patterns.
I quickly figured out The Reasoning Phase, where the puzzle pieces go, i.e., up, down, right, or left, by matching the shapes at the hexagons' edges. This eliminates any sleuthing skills since, to progress, I must match shapes instead of using purely deductive reasoning.
Putting my information together in the Reasoning Phase is already tedious; the next part, where I must present it to suspects, dragged on for hours, and I felt like I was already reviewing information and clues that had already been gone over minutes ago.
b. There's Not Any Replay Value
This game forces anyone who makes a wrong conclusion and wrongly determines the perpetrator to repeat until the actual perpetrator is discovered so that the story can continue. It is useless to replay this game from the beginning again because you and I already know the end and the perpetrator of each case that Haruka handles.
The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story is an absolute delight that should be experienced and a real entertainment to close my 2024 game list. It's a beautiful story and an outstanding interactive drama. I did not regret buying it in the slightest. I hope the developers revisit this FMV style of game in the future.
The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story is now available on PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Steam, iOS, and Android. Be sure to grab it and reveal the secret behind the Shijima murders. 9.1/10 looks very good for this game.
-FIN-
*Disclaimer: Courtesy of Google Images. The material published on this website is intended solely for general information and reference purposes and is not legal advice or other professional advice.
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