Awarded gamesAmateur Division

General Description

Reason

I got a favorable impression from the easy to understand rule explainable in three seconds, which is a proof of a good game, that “the game is cleared if you can greet the New Year floating in the atmosphere” with a motif of New Year’s Eve jump actually performed by many people.

The development members were particular about creating a “stupid game”. I consider a stupid game is intended to make players laugh and enjoy by unconventional situation and game play at a good tempo; this game has achieved high level of nonsense of the world view and excitement required of a stupid game. Furthermore, what should be mentioned specially is its excellent tempo; I was impressed by that it is created very carefully in every detail to keep up-tempo such as title reading adjustment at the time of retrying the game and possibility to select a stage by the direction of the stick.

Not only the world view but also game play is certainly interesting. The flow of the game that the player first considers how to jump checking the distance between items, adjust action operation during jump, and continue to jump trying to increase the score even after greeting the New Year have realized the basics of the game, that are thought, operation, device, and achievement; combined with the before-mentioned good tempo, it made me feel fun to play the game and desire to play it more. It is an enjoyable game without odd feeling in operation and level design. I also felt hospitality of the developer to players in that voice support about the game situation is provided on the assumption that the player is concentrating on operation.

The game is elaborated to a level to give an impression that the game developer created it joyfully, which is a virtue of the stupid game, incorporating a jump play even in the staff roll displayed when all stages are cleared. The game is finished flawlessly and can be referred as the “president of the stupid game class”.

While the game is high level on the whole and very satisfying, I want to mention some points. For example, it is obvious that the story is created with the intention to inform the player of the game setting and state of the remaining game and not to hinder good tempo. In addition, the graphics are created according to the requirement to look loose and simple suitable for a stupid game (and perhaps with the quality easy to be completed). I felt that there are not many ideas to increase the fun of the game with pictures.

It is a shame that the game lacks impact and nonsense a little bit which stupid game fans really seek for. This is why I call it the class president. Nevertheless, the carefully made for players is thoughtful and I felt that the “earnest and tender president of the stupid game class” is a loveable game. I expect an endless mode when it is put on the market.

Yayoi Tomidokoro
Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.

 

Congratulations for winning the Grand Award!

How nice it is!

I think it is really great that Three Seconds Before New Year was selected for the Grand Award from among many games which are amusing and particular about what are in their game.

When I saw the PV for the first time, I felt exciting particularity about what are represented in it as the first impression and looked forward to playing the game.

By far highest excitement, all sorts of sound effects, and the stupid story is on the New Year day.

When I actually played it, I was enchanted by the game at the moment I stepped upon the round rice-cake in the first stage and reconfirmed that my gut feeling was correct.

It is worked out in every detail and I found many gimmicks as I went on with the game; I felt I was dragged into a mysterious world of the game as I played it again and again.

I found myself enjoying the game when I began to criticize against the screen alone while playing the game.

Surrealism that a batta (grasshopper) is placed among butters (pronounced batta in Japanese).

Countdown goes three, two, ichi (Japanese meaning one)?

When I listened to it again to confirm, it goes “san (Japanese meaning three), two, ichi”?

Is it different every time? Unable to be sure of whether I heard wrong or not, I replayed it many times.

Turtles drop turning into a tortoise-shell, New Year’s pine blasts off becoming a rocket, and it becomes no longer three seconds before halfway.

The staff roll at the end of the game can be enjoyed by stepping on it, it is not for relishing the memory until it is cleared.

It treats us real nice like this.

Furthermore, it was very pleasant that secret characters come on the screen when the game is cleared.

It is fairly a nice game having an aspect of a search game that gives us joy of discovering stuffs that the creator is particular about.

I am afraid you don’t understand what I said here but I believe that you will find what the creator is particular about everywhere in the game when you play it.

Thank you very much.

Yasunori Ichinose, CAPCOM Co., Ltd.

Work Introduction