The one with the bird and the lampreys
I just want to gush about Mystia's Izakaya for a bit.
You might've heard about it.
I already knew this game was really well liked which is why I impulse-bought it on sale back in December, but it wasn't until I really needed a mental break that I decided to toss out all existing responsibility and do a little tender lovin' self-care. So I booted it up last week and have since logged over 50 hours in it.
In the sentiment of a certain GensouChronicle on the youtubes (and not "in the words of", because my tiny brain cannot recall them at press time), Mystia's Izakaya embodies the ideal spirit of a Touhou fangame: it pays homage and respect to the series canon proper, while carving its own identity in fanon and original ideas that really set it apart from its origins. I have a lot of words to corroborate this and by god I am going to say a bunch of them right now
(Unlike the video I linked above, which I do recommend watching, I might end up spoiling just a little bit here and there. Likewise though, I'll try not saying anything that they didn't already say better (unless I Double Agree™). The game isn't exactly plot-heavy with twists and turns anyway though, so any spoilers are light without any context.)
First off,
The characterizations are on point!
-and properly take into account the perspective Mystia has, making it all unique and fun even for a veteran of the series!
Mystia herself has a very sparse presence in the main games and written works, just like a larger majority of one-off bosses. Despite this, the game goes out of its way to consider every little interaction she has with dozens of other more prominent characters as her reach expands, effectively making her the perfect "clueless" protagonist for any player as she goes further out of her league.
Because of the daily progression and friendship system, you end up seeing quite a lot of these interactions, making for a lot of fun little conversations that do a lot to sell every characters' uniqueness equally. Minor characters get a lot of mileage gradually getting deeper into side stories that don't often see the spotlight, and majorly important characters are simplified into how their detailed background plays into their favorite foods. I'd say this ensures accessibility to series newcomers as much as it adds welcome fan service for the people that played all the games and read all the manga.
The writing is respectful and interesting!
It never leans too hard on the wilder fanon interpretations or memes (a few sneak in, but they're subtle), and it's quality you could convince me was dialogue from an official source. Obviously, the nature of fan games means playing fast and loose with it isn't a crime or anything, but it's also so nice to have more fundamental appeal shine through.
For example, Reimu appears as an aggressive, no-nonsense, and even kind of hypocritical antagonist, which properly translates the kind of casual violence she commits as the series' peacemaker. To Mystia, who might as well be cannon-fodder, she represents a looming threat to her existence early on, and stays relatively out of reach for small-fry like her. It could have just stuck with this and played into it for simple humor, but instead the game diverges from canon to ask: what kind of situation arises from a youkai like Mystia becoming a more prominent addition to her life?
This kind of question has actually been answered quite often in canon. Every major incident contributor has had to get on good terms with the series protagonist to ensure their continued existence, in a very literal sense. But honestly, it's fun every time, and can turn out to be a pretty touching story.
It's a very common theme to visit the idea of Reimu not just as a person, but a central fixture of the setting, a gathering point for the chaotic balance of peace between wildly conflicting forces in their all-accepting fantasy land - entities that gave up their bids for power over the acquaintance of a single human. But the game tells even this story better than I could convey, and in a way uniquely suited to its simple-at-a-glance themes.
That's just one of the examples of the micro character stories the game tells over time, but all of them have been really nice and show a deeper understanding of not just their lore, but their appeal as individuals. It tells of Akyuu's distant role as an observer to her own life, of the troubles that lie beneath Marisa's cheerful front, of the not-so-subtle rationale behind Tenshi's involvement with mortals. All of this framed around a bird just trying to do her best to run a food stall for them.
Also it's really fun??
Sure, after a while, the actual game is basically impossible to lose if you're doing even a mediocre job, but the nature of the game's mechanics makes it plain fun to perform as well as possible. At least, to me it does.
You start basically from scratch and gain access to more and more capability at a very natural pace. Day 1 you have a single venue, less than a handful of recipes, at most 3 guests at a time, with the occasional rare guest that has unique demands. Several game-months in I have 10 venues with differing clientele, 50+ recipes and drinks to choose from, 8 guests at a time that each stay for repeat orders, and a consistent 4-5 guests with particular demands per night.
And even at that level of scaling, not once did it ever feel overwhelming - even better, I looked forward to every new addition, both mechanically and for pure flavor.
Even in the early game, it gradually ramps up the difficulty and reveals ways to up your game if you'd like, all while keeping resources low to get you in the habit of playing smart and performing well. By the time those things matter less (you unlock QoL for ingredient gathering, and have more capital to throw around, as well as better variety), the pavlovian game sense has already kicked in. It's too late. It feels too good to memorize your customers' tastes, to hear the jingle of a perfect order like a rhythm game addict keeping up a full combo. To perfectly manage your ingredient stock day by day to afford piles of your most expensive dishes. To wring your rarer guests for their whole budget at minimal cost. You have become a gamer.
Anyway, speaking of aesthetic appeal!
The art is very well done as shown already, and I didn't even include any of the full-screen CG's up to here. It's got the simple charm of an indie game in the walkaround sprites, while still having a lot of great detail in the character portraits and "spellcard" effects (and pixelly food). Have I mentioned the food at all yet, actually? They really go deep into detail with certain food unlocks - I feel like I'm reading Dungeon Meshi.
Plus, the music is so well done for the atmosphere the game has. They're naturally all arranges or heavily inspired by ZUN's originals, but have a very homely feel fitting of the idyllic, peaceful daytime setting and calm-yet-bustling nighttime restaurant setting. It may just be because I played back-to-back for hours over the last week, but the BGM is very fondly stuck in my head.
I'm not complaining, though. There's even a rhythm minigame for the game's soundtrack and I find myself taking breaks just to play that from time to time.
54 hours and I'm still not done
-and I feel like even once I am through the main story, I'll be playing it to 100% completion and then some. It even has more DLC coming up, if I'm not mistaken. For a game that's so cheap it might as well be free, I'm getting way more than my money's worth out of it for sure.
Anyway, just wanted to post all this somewhere, regardless of who reads it, out of an abundance of good feelings playing the game thus far. It's technically a review, but I think I'd rather just leave it here as an unsent love letter to the devs.
