Fancy a cozy adventure in a beautiful location? Inspired by real-life experiences, Sushi Ben takes you to an idyllic seaside town filled with addictive mini-games and curious characters in an anime-inspired slice-of-life simulation.
I’m excited for the opportunity to give players an insight into what to expect from Sushi Ben and announce that the game will launch on May 28 for PlayStation VR2. I’ll also include some additional insight into the making of this game from Big Brane co-founder Kane Tyler, who first conceived the idea for Sushi Ben as part of his college thesis mine.
Small slices of life
In Sushi Ben, players are tasked with saving a sushi bar from bankruptcy when a group of land developers try to buy up all the property in town. You will assist the townspeople with various activities and tasks to grow their business.
As one would expect, Sushi Ben is a great fishing game at its core. As you develop relationships with the locals and complete quests, you’ll catch the specific fish each customer desires so you can bring their business into the restaurant. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg.
The townspeople have their own motivations and desires, so there are many mini-games for players to participate in. There’s table tennis, stone carving, insect catching, dog walking, archery, etc. Each takes advantage of the dynamic movements that make virtual reality games engaging and fun, challenging players to move around. Move and use hand-eye coordination in fun ways.
Storytelling in virtual reality
We at Big Brane hope players will be captivated by the way the story is told. The freedom of VR, where players have the permanently unlocked ability to see anywhere, anytime, creates some challenges when directing focus. To attract players’ attention, you have to make things stand out, and that’s where our animated comic panels come into play.
The thesis specifically focuses on filmmaking techniques in virtual reality, which is a significant challenge because the main player is the camera. Our job then was to provide clues and visual guides, and Kane, while watching JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, was suddenly inspired by the idea of comic panels. The use of manga frames as dynamic highlights for VR users became the driving force behind the thesis.
The pursuit of authenticity
Sushi Ben’s seaside village was inspired by thousands of hours of research and Kane’s time working at a sushi bar with a Chef named Takayuki “Ben” Okuda. As the pandemic prevented many people from traveling globally, Kane invested countless hours using Google Maps to explore the world and find specific elements that could create a realistic image of a place. seaside town in Japan but inspired by a hometown feel. Kane’s neighborhood in Savannah, Georgia.
Sushi Ben was written by Hato Moa, author of the indie hit Hatoful Boyfriend. Kane dreams of bringing in voice actors he admires from various anime. However, he still placed control of this endeavor in Hato Moa’s hands because she was in Japan and had the experience and familiarity to find the right people for the show. It so happened that Moa shared the same goal, agreeing on their ideal cast. The game’s script blew the voice actors away. Moa, Kane and the whole group ran very enthusiastically.
Features and accessibility
From the beginning, the game has been designed to suit every VR player – new or experienced. In addition to providing a gaming experience with serene and exciting settings and cozy mini-games, Sushi Ben also has features for VR players that address player comfort and abilities . There are options for seated and standing players, and for those who choose to sit or are differently abled, there is height adjustment allowing you to still sit but get a view from a higher angle.
For those desiring different levels of comfort with VR, there are various settings such as full transport and teleportation options for quick or smooth movement and rotation. Additionally, dialogue can be set to autoplay, or players can enjoy Story Mode, which completely skips parts of the game, allowing them to focus on the story. This setting and many others can be changed at any time to suit every player’s desired experience.
Sushi Ben takes advantage of some of the features found on PS VR2, enhancing image quality and giving players a more immersive experience with detailed haptics.
On May 28, at Big Brane, we hope that PS VR2 players will feel the true joy that the development team sought to achieve with Sushi Ben. This joy is reflected and built upon the pursuit of authenticity in story, setting, voice acting, writing and more.
