Monster Couch was kind enough to give me a chance to try out their party game based on a Japanese game show, Tetsumo Party, which is coming out on July the 26th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Steam, and Woovit.
The main premise of the game is that players take on the role of a sumo wrestler and control his limbs so he’s able to fit through a human-shaped hole in a bamboo wall. This idea is also the basis for a real-life Japanese game show that was adapted a few years ago for American television and renamed Hole in the Wall. Tetsumo Party features a variety of characters that can be unlocked by completing challenges that each character has.
Being a party game, up to eight players can play at one time on two controllers. Players manipulate the character’s arms and legs to put them into the right formation in order to allow the character to pass through the wall successfully but be warned, some moves will cause the Samurai’s undergarments to slip off and you’ll have to help him pull them back up!
Unfortunately, this game fell flat on its face. One thing about this game right away that’s annoying is the lack of directions; I seriously had no idea what I was doing and what was going on! As you play a fancy dressed fish come up to you and offers you green tea (I have no idea what it does but it’s an item you can get), an alarm clock which slows down the speed of the approaching bamboo wall, and a pink square (much like the green tea bottle, I have no idea what it does!).
The next thing that bothers me is during gameplay there’s no music. If this is a party game based on Japanese game shows it should be pumping music like a nightclub on a Friday night! Since we’re on the subject of audio, the voice over’s terrible because they’re stereotypical (bordering racist) and repetitive.
The repetitiveness of this game is what’s killing it. There are different levels, that’s it. Other than that the game as a whole is a skipping record. More could have been done to make this game more interesting, maybe even fun.
The only saving grace this game has is the art. That’s pretty much it. The colors are bright, the characters are animated well but that, unfortunately, doesn’t help save the game from itself.
Tetsumo Party is a party you may be invited to but it’s one to skip and stay home and watch real Japanese game shows. The lack of direction, annoying voices, lack of music, complex controls, and repetitive nature makes it not fun. On my scale of five stars, it’s a sumo ass to the face.
