Someone on the Wonderful World of the Internet recently pointed out that playing The World Ends With You could be likened to attacking your DS with a cheese grater.I don't think that's too far from the truth.
Strangely enough, the game is rather enjoyable, even though my DS touchscreen has been shredded to plastic shards and now Neku gives me the finger whenever I blow into the microphone. Don't ask me why! Blame that damn emo disease he's contracted!
In all actuality, The World Ends With You is kind of a mess. I mean, you've got endless amounts of dialogue, two screens to watch and manage, a terribly cluttered inventory system that doesn't make me appreciate the inclusion of a touch screen, and when you get right down to it, gameplay that only consists of running around a gray city looking for the next cutscene to appear. Thinking about all these problems forces me to wonder why the hell I ever finished the game! It's a strange beast -- I'll give you that much.
Most people probably hold the game in such regard because it's something made by Square-Enix that doesn't have the words "Final" or "Fantasy" in the title. While the character designs reek of hipster zipper-fetishists, at least they stray a little from the Tetsuya Nomura random character generator and seem like genuine people with real insecurities. Sure, they wear clothing that would be impossible to pull off in reality, but hey, thank god for suspension of disbelief!
Like I said, though: The World Ends With You is a strange beast. Whenever I think about it, I remember everything that was done poorly or absolutely wrong, but once I begin playing, I seemingly forget about all those imperfections and enjoy myself. The reason behind this is most likely the battle system -- it seems terribly complex at first, but it really only boils down to mashing the d-pad in different directions and "cheese-grating" the hell out of the bottom screen. Don't get me wrong, though; it's fun. It's enjoyable. It's downright chaotic!
When you emerge from battle victorious, however, the game begins to slip a little. The pins you win from defeating monsters generally are earned in droves, and attempting to reorganize your inventory is both frustrating and a hassle, combined into one furious, hemorrhaging pain-in-the-ass . Trying to find the right clothes to wear in a specific part of the city also became a little grating, and by the first third of the game, I ended up simply wearing the apparel that had the highest HP-granting abilities.
The story was something I actually became invested in, despite the endless talking-head moments -- the main character, Neku, as many people have voiced already, is immediately the unlikable, angsty teenager that riddles most games these days, but yes, he does grow and evolve into an actual person. His buddies are okay, too, I guess.
Even now, as I write this, I know I dislike the game for everything it does poorly -- and I really don't want to keep writing about it because of this feeling. The World Ends With You really isn't that great of a game, as it tries to be deeper and more symbolic than the sum of its parts, and I stand by the opinion that most people shower it with praise because the game is a new, original product that surprisingly emerged from the loins of the Final Fantasy-producing monster, Square-Enix. But you know, if I turn it on again, right at this moment, I'll probably end up playing into the wee hours of the morning. And I'm not quite sure why I'll keep playing, but I will.
A strange beast.
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