Beyond their obvious visual splendor, what really struck me about Boku Natsu 2’s fixed camera angles was how they create a unique relationship with time. In similar Japanese adventure games about mundane day-to-day life – your Shenmues or your Chulips – the clock is always running independent of you and this often creates situations where you simply have nothing to do but twiddle your thumbs while you wait for the next scheduled event to happen. As top Backloggd scholars have pointed out, this can be oddly immersive in a way, as you scroll through your real-life phone or do something else around the house while you wait for the time to pass in-game. I’m not fully sold on these kinds of “time-wasting” systems but there’s certainly a lot of charm in how they represent boredom and alienation felt within the hustle and bustle of the city.
Boku No Natsuyasumi 2 is set in the rural countryside though, and as such its understanding of time is quite different from those games about city slickers. While there’s still a day/night cycle and a finite number of days before the game ends, time only advances when you move from one pre-rendered background to the next. Constructing the game this way, you still feel the pressure to spend your time wisely and traverse the world as efficiently as you can, but each screen is also its own pocket dimension where you can linger as long as you’d like. This is the real difference here: In Chulip, passive play is something forced onto you and an excuse for the player to stop paying attention to the game for a couple minutes. Sometimes you just miss a train and have nothing better to do but sit around waiting for the next one. In Boku Natsu 2 however, passive play is turned into an active choice. A conscious decision, as significant as any other, to do absolutely fucking nothing but drink in the sunset until that fireball finally goes out for good. At one point a character playing the guitar remarks that she feels like she’s been sitting in the same spot strumming the same song for 1000 years. And maybe she has been. These beautiful, fleeting moments can last forever if you’d like them to.
Like most of my favorite game narratives, Boku Natsu 2 is quite thin on actual plot and is instead a game about talking to loads of different people and slowly forming an understanding of character relationships and the world around you. And there’s a satisfyingly predictable rhythm to how it all unfolds; each character will have exactly two new things to say to you each time you see them, the many subplots of this game being fed to you a couple breadcrumbs at a time. Through it all, there’s an understanding that seeing and doing everything is completely infeasible. Minigames are too time-consuming and characters are spaced too far apart for you to realistically see half of what this game has to offer on a first playthrough. So despite the game’s large number of collectibles and sidequests, play rarely becomes something stressful or compulsive. As the in-game month of August wore on and subplots continued to pile up, I did start to feel less like a child on summer vacation and more like an errand boy for all the grown-ups around me. Though the game smartly chooses to wrap up its major character arcs a few days before the ending, which gives you a chance to decompress and play aimlessly for just a little bit longer.
Boku Natsu 2 is an unrelentingly pleasant game about nature, romance, and new life, but it never becomes too saccharine as there’s always the specter of industry, divorce, and death creeping in around the edges. The writing itself is wonderfully terse, full of frequently beautiful reflections on life and the world that feel achingly true to conversations between children and adults. Even when the story suddenly escalates during the final third and the player starts piecing together a larger picture that our 9 year old main character has no ability to process, Boku Natsu 2 always puts that 9 year old’s perspective front and center. Because at the end of the day, that perspective and innocence is why he’s able to mend the hearts and soothe the souls of everyone around him.
“Listen, doesn’t sitting on the swing make you feel like you can be a poet?”
Boku No Natsuyasumi 2 is set in the rural countryside though, and as such its understanding of time is quite different from those games about city slickers. While there’s still a day/night cycle and a finite number of days before the game ends, time only advances when you move from one pre-rendered background to the next. Constructing the game this way, you still feel the pressure to spend your time wisely and traverse the world as efficiently as you can, but each screen is also its own pocket dimension where you can linger as long as you’d like. This is the real difference here: In Chulip, passive play is something forced onto you and an excuse for the player to stop paying attention to the game for a couple minutes. Sometimes you just miss a train and have nothing better to do but sit around waiting for the next one. In Boku Natsu 2 however, passive play is turned into an active choice. A conscious decision, as significant as any other, to do absolutely fucking nothing but drink in the sunset until that fireball finally goes out for good. At one point a character playing the guitar remarks that she feels like she’s been sitting in the same spot strumming the same song for 1000 years. And maybe she has been. These beautiful, fleeting moments can last forever if you’d like them to.
Like most of my favorite game narratives, Boku Natsu 2 is quite thin on actual plot and is instead a game about talking to loads of different people and slowly forming an understanding of character relationships and the world around you. And there’s a satisfyingly predictable rhythm to how it all unfolds; each character will have exactly two new things to say to you each time you see them, the many subplots of this game being fed to you a couple breadcrumbs at a time. Through it all, there’s an understanding that seeing and doing everything is completely infeasible. Minigames are too time-consuming and characters are spaced too far apart for you to realistically see half of what this game has to offer on a first playthrough. So despite the game’s large number of collectibles and sidequests, play rarely becomes something stressful or compulsive. As the in-game month of August wore on and subplots continued to pile up, I did start to feel less like a child on summer vacation and more like an errand boy for all the grown-ups around me. Though the game smartly chooses to wrap up its major character arcs a few days before the ending, which gives you a chance to decompress and play aimlessly for just a little bit longer.
Boku Natsu 2 is an unrelentingly pleasant game about nature, romance, and new life, but it never becomes too saccharine as there’s always the specter of industry, divorce, and death creeping in around the edges. The writing itself is wonderfully terse, full of frequently beautiful reflections on life and the world that feel achingly true to conversations between children and adults. Even when the story suddenly escalates during the final third and the player starts piecing together a larger picture that our 9 year old main character has no ability to process, Boku Natsu 2 always puts that 9 year old’s perspective front and center. Because at the end of the day, that perspective and innocence is why he’s able to mend the hearts and soothe the souls of everyone around him.
“Listen, doesn’t sitting on the swing make you feel like you can be a poet?”
Sweet and Beautiful, warm and fuzzy, heartfelt and peaceful <3
Reminders and memories of the day to day we live by, and grow by ^w^ Nothing more and nothing less!!!
Reminders and memories of the day to day we live by, and grow by ^w^ Nothing more and nothing less!!!
Brilliant, just like the first one. I wouldn't say it connected with me just as much, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this game does so much to improve upon the Boku Natsu formula.
The world in this game, compared to the first's, is massive. There's so much to uncover, way more characters, way more events. It's an overall much bigger feeling game, while also having the quaintness that the first game has. That, plus new additions such as being able to swim in the ocean (which is so fucking cool btw) makes Boku Natsu 2 such a fresh experience. I also heavily fuck with the new setting, featuring a small waterside village rather than the more grassy, rural area from the first.
I think why I don't like it as much, though, is the fact that the story didn't do quite as much for me. It's great, no doubt! Many moments hit me emotionally, and I loved all the characters so much. But I feel like the simplicity of the first game was more appealing.
That being said though, Boku Natsu 2 is an absolute joy and a well worthy sequel. I'm so excited to play 3 and 4!!
The world in this game, compared to the first's, is massive. There's so much to uncover, way more characters, way more events. It's an overall much bigger feeling game, while also having the quaintness that the first game has. That, plus new additions such as being able to swim in the ocean (which is so fucking cool btw) makes Boku Natsu 2 such a fresh experience. I also heavily fuck with the new setting, featuring a small waterside village rather than the more grassy, rural area from the first.
I think why I don't like it as much, though, is the fact that the story didn't do quite as much for me. It's great, no doubt! Many moments hit me emotionally, and I loved all the characters so much. But I feel like the simplicity of the first game was more appealing.
That being said though, Boku Natsu 2 is an absolute joy and a well worthy sequel. I'm so excited to play 3 and 4!!
This is what happiness feels like.
I waited MANY years to play any game from this timeless franchise and I gotta tell'ya, the wait was worth it. Simply put, the game is a masterpiece of epic proportions.
It has so many qualities that I could not mention them all here, but to summarize, playing this game is the same as traveling to a simpler, happier time of your life, where wonder and adventure were always by your side. This will make you question space, time, decisions you made and the very core purpose of life.
Thanks a whole lot for everyone involved in this perfect translation effort, the quality of the work you guys managed to pull off is second to none! Please, the other games in the series should also be translated! Let's make it happen, earthlings!
To finish this rambling off, I just wanna give you a trivia where the essence of the game is explained very easily.
The boy you control during the game is called 'Boku'.
'Boku' also means 'me' or 'I' in Japanese
So, who are we playing as?
We are playing as Ourselves!
Damn.
I waited MANY years to play any game from this timeless franchise and I gotta tell'ya, the wait was worth it. Simply put, the game is a masterpiece of epic proportions.
It has so many qualities that I could not mention them all here, but to summarize, playing this game is the same as traveling to a simpler, happier time of your life, where wonder and adventure were always by your side. This will make you question space, time, decisions you made and the very core purpose of life.
Thanks a whole lot for everyone involved in this perfect translation effort, the quality of the work you guys managed to pull off is second to none! Please, the other games in the series should also be translated! Let's make it happen, earthlings!
To finish this rambling off, I just wanna give you a trivia where the essence of the game is explained very easily.
The boy you control during the game is called 'Boku'.
'Boku' also means 'me' or 'I' in Japanese
So, who are we playing as?
We are playing as Ourselves!
Damn.
Though I never spent a summer there, I was viscerally reminded of the town my mother grew up in while playing Boku No Natsuyasumi 2. Like Tonomi, it was an oceanside town with an elderly population, forested hills with trails and wildlife, bridges, beaches, an old man who was involved in World War 2, and a nearby highway that put the ferry out of business. Most eerily, my mother's parents had styled their house for their nine children as a sort of bed and breakfast with themed rooms for the "guests", with it built into a hill such that the ground floor towards the back opened up to elevated balconies facing the water. I imagine it's easy for anyone to get buried in their own memories playing a Boku No Natsuyasumi game, though for me it felt auspicious that the game that was translated to English first was the one most resembling a place from my own life.
When I was five years old, my mother's father passed away. I have a handful of fuzzy memories of him that all feel pale compared to the day of his funeral. My family and I stood outside a church on a hill, the sun hotter and brighter than I had ever known it to get at that age. All my older cousins were there, between four and twenty years older than me; my mother was the youngest of nine, and I was her youngest child. My relationship with that side of the family has always been somewhat distant by extension, shaped by childhood experiences of looking up at tall goofy people who mentioned they last saw me when I was only this big and had inside jokes I was on the outside of. Granddad looked waxy and unnatural in the coffin.
For the rest of my adolescence, my mother and her siblings would spend weekends with her mother in that town. My siblings and I were brought along, often requiring my brother and I to take claritin all weekend to counteract the old family cat's shedding. We'd play around the house and the backyard, pick up rocks and shells along the beach, drop sticks in the estuary and see which one passed under the bridge first. My oldest sister got lost in the woods once. Grandma's sight and hearing weakened gradually, and often only left the house for church. She'd join any card games though.
In "The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town" we see archival footage of the Holmdel, New Jersey house where Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rehearsed in the mid 70s, as well as the Haddonfield home of Frank Stefanko where the album cover photoshoot was taken. I always subconsciously associated the floral wallpaper of the album cover with my mother's hometown and the surrounding area, and the documentary revealed they were similarly quiet and isolated houses. It can be simultaneously invigorating and unsettling to see a place in art that you so strongly connect to a place from your life, only to find the reality that inspired the art was truly similar and not imagined. Boku 2 struck a similar nerve.
Yet a place and its wallpaper only matters so much. Boku 2 is not a story about the grief experienced by a child, rather a child's perception of grief in others. It is not about disconnect from relatives but becoming closer to them. It is not about a place you visit for a weekend and see in different seasons, it is about a full month of experiences strung together artfully through a specific month of a specific year in history. Yasuko is about as old as my mother was in 1975, though I didn't know my mother then. In turn, Tonomi is what you make of it: the moments you find and the moments you miss, alike in their passing you by. Already passed and already past.
I played through the game one in-game day per one in-reality day. Looking back from the end of my November 2023/August 1975, I'm glad I did. Encouraged to play honestly and see how I got by on my own instincts, I found myself roleplaying a child who wakes up excited to do something and forgetting what they had wanted to do tomorrow yesterday. I got a lot of the collectibles but not all of any category. A few plot threads lay untied at the end (like what was up with the cat shack), while others seemingly could have gone a bit differently, and more felt fully explored but left deliberately ambiguous in their details. Though it was not particularly sentimental nor tragic, the ending eked out a few tears.
Like the song goes, "It's easy to get buried in the past / When you try to make a good thing last." And like the youtube comment goes, we need more games like this.
When I was five years old, my mother's father passed away. I have a handful of fuzzy memories of him that all feel pale compared to the day of his funeral. My family and I stood outside a church on a hill, the sun hotter and brighter than I had ever known it to get at that age. All my older cousins were there, between four and twenty years older than me; my mother was the youngest of nine, and I was her youngest child. My relationship with that side of the family has always been somewhat distant by extension, shaped by childhood experiences of looking up at tall goofy people who mentioned they last saw me when I was only this big and had inside jokes I was on the outside of. Granddad looked waxy and unnatural in the coffin.
For the rest of my adolescence, my mother and her siblings would spend weekends with her mother in that town. My siblings and I were brought along, often requiring my brother and I to take claritin all weekend to counteract the old family cat's shedding. We'd play around the house and the backyard, pick up rocks and shells along the beach, drop sticks in the estuary and see which one passed under the bridge first. My oldest sister got lost in the woods once. Grandma's sight and hearing weakened gradually, and often only left the house for church. She'd join any card games though.
In "The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town" we see archival footage of the Holmdel, New Jersey house where Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rehearsed in the mid 70s, as well as the Haddonfield home of Frank Stefanko where the album cover photoshoot was taken. I always subconsciously associated the floral wallpaper of the album cover with my mother's hometown and the surrounding area, and the documentary revealed they were similarly quiet and isolated houses. It can be simultaneously invigorating and unsettling to see a place in art that you so strongly connect to a place from your life, only to find the reality that inspired the art was truly similar and not imagined. Boku 2 struck a similar nerve.
Yet a place and its wallpaper only matters so much. Boku 2 is not a story about the grief experienced by a child, rather a child's perception of grief in others. It is not about disconnect from relatives but becoming closer to them. It is not about a place you visit for a weekend and see in different seasons, it is about a full month of experiences strung together artfully through a specific month of a specific year in history. Yasuko is about as old as my mother was in 1975, though I didn't know my mother then. In turn, Tonomi is what you make of it: the moments you find and the moments you miss, alike in their passing you by. Already passed and already past.
I played through the game one in-game day per one in-reality day. Looking back from the end of my November 2023/August 1975, I'm glad I did. Encouraged to play honestly and see how I got by on my own instincts, I found myself roleplaying a child who wakes up excited to do something and forgetting what they had wanted to do tomorrow yesterday. I got a lot of the collectibles but not all of any category. A few plot threads lay untied at the end (like what was up with the cat shack), while others seemingly could have gone a bit differently, and more felt fully explored but left deliberately ambiguous in their details. Though it was not particularly sentimental nor tragic, the ending eked out a few tears.
Like the song goes, "It's easy to get buried in the past / When you try to make a good thing last." And like the youtube comment goes, we need more games like this.
Oh I love this game. It so perfectly captures the feeling of being a kid on a summer vacation that feels endless and magical and then all too short, and I would have loved this even if the immaculate vibes were all it had to offer. But no, Boku no Natsayasumi 2 ALSO has gorgeous 2D backgrounds and great character writing!
The story plays out through short scenes Boku has with the other people in town throughout the month, and they're all very charming. While Boku is having his idyllic, carefree summer vacation, the adults are dealing with the kind of grown-up problems you can't really grasp as a kid—you know something's going on and it seems like it's a big deal but it doesn't make sense. In the various vignettes, they allude to their grief, family conflicts, loss; Boku lends an ear, tries to understand. A lot of these conversations end with him walking away scratching his head in confusion. It all feels like the kind of off-handed comment you hear as a kid that you look back on as an adult and think, "oh wait, that was kind of dark!"
Not to say this game is super serious by any means. You can easily skip the conversations and have a pretty good time just taking in the atmosphere and catching bugs, but I appreciated the time the game spends fleshing out the supporting cast and giving them stories that I cared about. I also appreciated the little sleeping cats strewn about. Did not appreciate the tank controls 😞👎🏻🚫 he is a little boy NOT a large armored vehicle, you are being ridiculous
Looking past that (honestly I got used to the tank controls as I played, still mad about it though), this is a wonderful game that I loved playing. Boku no Natsayasumi 2 feels like stepping into a memory. Thank you to fan translator Hilltop for bringing this game to a whole new audience and helping me to discover a new favorite :)
The story plays out through short scenes Boku has with the other people in town throughout the month, and they're all very charming. While Boku is having his idyllic, carefree summer vacation, the adults are dealing with the kind of grown-up problems you can't really grasp as a kid—you know something's going on and it seems like it's a big deal but it doesn't make sense. In the various vignettes, they allude to their grief, family conflicts, loss; Boku lends an ear, tries to understand. A lot of these conversations end with him walking away scratching his head in confusion. It all feels like the kind of off-handed comment you hear as a kid that you look back on as an adult and think, "oh wait, that was kind of dark!"
Not to say this game is super serious by any means. You can easily skip the conversations and have a pretty good time just taking in the atmosphere and catching bugs, but I appreciated the time the game spends fleshing out the supporting cast and giving them stories that I cared about. I also appreciated the little sleeping cats strewn about. Did not appreciate the tank controls 😞👎🏻🚫 he is a little boy NOT a large armored vehicle, you are being ridiculous
Looking past that (honestly I got used to the tank controls as I played, still mad about it though), this is a wonderful game that I loved playing. Boku no Natsayasumi 2 feels like stepping into a memory. Thank you to fan translator Hilltop for bringing this game to a whole new audience and helping me to discover a new favorite :)
Eu não saberia expressar em palavras exatamente o motivo, mas desde criança eu tive um fascínio grande na "não objetividade" quando se tratava de jogos. E mesmo hoje, quando me deparo com títulos renomados que flertam comigo de alguma maneira, sempre parecem carecer dessa real conexão que eu alcançava em jogos antigamente. Advinda aliás, de propostas que fugiam da própria intencionalidade da obra. Tais como GTA, Legos ou até mesmo Minecraft. Nesses títulos, eu simplesmente me sentia indescritivelmente entretido simplesmente por não fazer nada, e sinceramente, caso me perguntem sobre a história desses jogos de mim não irão adquirir nenhuma resposta satisfatória nesse quesito, pois o sentimento de imersão na contemplação é a única coisa que está estampado em minhas memórias. Não é de se impressionar, que as minhas principais discussões com a minha melhor amiga em jogos é por eu não respeitar a "objetividade" do jogo maioria das vezes, sempre querendo fugir dela. E quando eu contestava, eu justificava, e dizia que esse seria o motivo em questão que me afastava da constância de contato com o mundo dos games. Mesmo nessa ótica, eu sabia que ela não estava errada, mas o que eu não sabia é que faltava de fato ter contato com algum jogo que se conectasse comigo novamente.
Foi uma busca intensa por algo que eu de fato nem sabia que poderia existir. E assim, sempre tentando reanimar o meu fôlego nos games, ainda mirava em jogos que seriam de fato menos "esforço". Pois eu não queria objetividade, eu não queria nem mesmo linearidade, eu queria apenas uma fuga gratificante, uma contemplação, uma ação espontânea. E nisso, eu me afastava mais ainda desse cenário, cogitando até mesmo aderir à conclusão de que eu não servia para os jogos.
Tomado pela curiosidade despertada pela estética e pela esperança de que "Agora seria a hora", joguei esse jogo a qual escrevo. E como todas as obras, não vi nada sobre, como nunca vejo, apenas mergulhei. Mas como uma doce surpresa, esse jogo era tudo que eu mais queria... na verdade, esse jogo é até mais do que eu poderia desejar! Pois tudo que eu precisava estava dentro de 31 dias em uma cidade isolada à beira do mar. E talvez nesse ponto, caso você não tenha jogado esse título, você deve estar se perguntando aonde está a grandiosidade disso. E talvez minha resposta não seja satisfatória para todos, mas para mim, representa uma volta à minha infância. Sim, aqui a objetividade da qual denúnciei ter em outros jogos não está presente, pois ela cede lugar a curiosidade de explorar. O mapa, mesmo que singelo, está repleto de detalhes que enriquecem a experiência. As diversas atividades te deixam tão entretido à ponto de você ansiar que o dia não acabe, e isso faz você ferozmente querer ir atrás de poder fazer todas as side quests que te aguardarão no dia seguinte, pois aqui, o tempo é precioso. E não precioso de uma forma que te prenda, aliás, se você quiser, você literalmente pode zerar o game sem mover 1 músculo sequer. No caso, aqui digo que o tempo é valioso pois cada segundo é um deleite, cada conversa simples carrega um denso conteúdo e até um cenário se torna discretamente sublime.
Não é muito distante do que eu sentia quando passei meus ordinários dias na casa do meu Tio no "interior". Lá, minha única companhia era minha bicicleta, um condomínio inteiro para explorar e a minha energia que ali parecia inesgotável. Foi ali que cultivei as mais singelas memórias de uma parte da minha infância e me envolvi nas aventuras que sempre me acompanharão como histórias que irei repetir pro resto da vida. E esse foi um dos motivos que fez esse jogo me empurrar direto pra minha infância, e ainda melhor, de mãos dadas com a outra face da minha infância que vivi com os games que mais me marcaram.
Essa experiência é do mais alto cume catártico que eu já experienciei. A beleza desses momentos é mais intensa quando você se deixa levar pelas coisas a sua volta, como fazer que tudo se torne parte de si, se entregar à vida em uma conexão que te torna inseparável até mesmo das pessoas que com você interagem, com os conhecimentos, com as vivências e os aprendizados que te tornam mais maduro. Nesse jogo reside uma particularidade minha que chega a me assustar. E ter encontrado esse jogo me fez ter contato mais intensamente comigo mesmo do que qualquer meditação o faria.
Por fim, meu fervor por jogos voltou, ou bem dizer, até pela vida voltou. Reviver minha infância novamente foi fundamental para eu poder crescer definitivamente. E tudo por conta desse jogo. E se tem um apelo que eu possa fazer é que por favor, joguem esse jogo e se lembrem de mim, pois vocês por terem lido esse texto estarão conectados comigo quando forem jogar esse jogo, pois compartilharemos de vivências diferentes, mas que estarão conectadas pelo cordão da nostalgia, da alegria e da potência de vida que reside em todos nós.
Foi uma busca intensa por algo que eu de fato nem sabia que poderia existir. E assim, sempre tentando reanimar o meu fôlego nos games, ainda mirava em jogos que seriam de fato menos "esforço". Pois eu não queria objetividade, eu não queria nem mesmo linearidade, eu queria apenas uma fuga gratificante, uma contemplação, uma ação espontânea. E nisso, eu me afastava mais ainda desse cenário, cogitando até mesmo aderir à conclusão de que eu não servia para os jogos.
Tomado pela curiosidade despertada pela estética e pela esperança de que "Agora seria a hora", joguei esse jogo a qual escrevo. E como todas as obras, não vi nada sobre, como nunca vejo, apenas mergulhei. Mas como uma doce surpresa, esse jogo era tudo que eu mais queria... na verdade, esse jogo é até mais do que eu poderia desejar! Pois tudo que eu precisava estava dentro de 31 dias em uma cidade isolada à beira do mar. E talvez nesse ponto, caso você não tenha jogado esse título, você deve estar se perguntando aonde está a grandiosidade disso. E talvez minha resposta não seja satisfatória para todos, mas para mim, representa uma volta à minha infância. Sim, aqui a objetividade da qual denúnciei ter em outros jogos não está presente, pois ela cede lugar a curiosidade de explorar. O mapa, mesmo que singelo, está repleto de detalhes que enriquecem a experiência. As diversas atividades te deixam tão entretido à ponto de você ansiar que o dia não acabe, e isso faz você ferozmente querer ir atrás de poder fazer todas as side quests que te aguardarão no dia seguinte, pois aqui, o tempo é precioso. E não precioso de uma forma que te prenda, aliás, se você quiser, você literalmente pode zerar o game sem mover 1 músculo sequer. No caso, aqui digo que o tempo é valioso pois cada segundo é um deleite, cada conversa simples carrega um denso conteúdo e até um cenário se torna discretamente sublime.
Não é muito distante do que eu sentia quando passei meus ordinários dias na casa do meu Tio no "interior". Lá, minha única companhia era minha bicicleta, um condomínio inteiro para explorar e a minha energia que ali parecia inesgotável. Foi ali que cultivei as mais singelas memórias de uma parte da minha infância e me envolvi nas aventuras que sempre me acompanharão como histórias que irei repetir pro resto da vida. E esse foi um dos motivos que fez esse jogo me empurrar direto pra minha infância, e ainda melhor, de mãos dadas com a outra face da minha infância que vivi com os games que mais me marcaram.
Essa experiência é do mais alto cume catártico que eu já experienciei. A beleza desses momentos é mais intensa quando você se deixa levar pelas coisas a sua volta, como fazer que tudo se torne parte de si, se entregar à vida em uma conexão que te torna inseparável até mesmo das pessoas que com você interagem, com os conhecimentos, com as vivências e os aprendizados que te tornam mais maduro. Nesse jogo reside uma particularidade minha que chega a me assustar. E ter encontrado esse jogo me fez ter contato mais intensamente comigo mesmo do que qualquer meditação o faria.
Por fim, meu fervor por jogos voltou, ou bem dizer, até pela vida voltou. Reviver minha infância novamente foi fundamental para eu poder crescer definitivamente. E tudo por conta desse jogo. E se tem um apelo que eu possa fazer é que por favor, joguem esse jogo e se lembrem de mim, pois vocês por terem lido esse texto estarão conectados comigo quando forem jogar esse jogo, pois compartilharemos de vivências diferentes, mas que estarão conectadas pelo cordão da nostalgia, da alegria e da potência de vida que reside em todos nós.
Lovely, endearing, and earnest. Brought me back to the mentality of a kid without being infantilizing. It's a nostalgia bomb, but in a way that feels honest, pure, and celebratory of a moment in life as opposed to just pandering to your memories.
After the initial novelty wore off, I actually became a bit bored with the slow pace and lack of objectives until eventually getting into the groove of the core gameplay loop. At first I was under the impression that the game was just about meandering around the island, relaxing and doing whatever until all of the days pass. What I came to find though, and what ultimately hooked me on the game, was that there's a large focus on time management and making the most of each day before you have to go home (a la the life-sim portion of modern Persona games for example). I thought that a totally laid-back island sandbox experience was what I wanted, but after a few hours I was much happier to find that there is some tension-and-release gamification here through the time management and exploration.
Boku 2's action-less gameplay is made compelling by rewarding your exploration with excellent writing and atmosphere. Every character you meet on the island is likable with distinct personalities, motivations, and struggles that they'll clue you in on more and more as you visit them over the course of the month. While Boku 2 is a game about a child's experience and is written in a way that makes you feel as such, the dialogue is also incredibly realistic and willing to touch on heavier topics. I especially enjoyed Yoh and Yasuko's arc about overcoming their anxieties to rekindle their lost friendship. The writing helps make the game world feel so lived in, and the gorgeous still-camera locations + immaculate sound design seal the deal (I wanna live in Yasuko's observatory house so bad dude). Even the UI elements are made to be real-world objects further adding to the immersion of the island.
I love the way the game tickles your curiosity, hinting you towards things to find as you explore. A character may mention an item they left somewhere or an area you haven't been able to access yet offhand in a conversation. This is always in a way that feels natural; never feeling like a generic NPC pointing you towards an objective in a different game. Finally reaching these foretold areas or figuring out a secret and being rewarded with a delightful story event is where a lot of the joy of playing this game comes from. It delivers the sensations of freedom and discovery akin to other great exploration games like BotW or Outer Wilds (albeit with much lesser scope of course, but that's kind of the point).
Boku 2's a thought provoking game. It made me think about how I spend my time and cherish my days. It gives you a place where you feel a strong sense of belonging and only need to stress over whatever goals you set out for yourself. It made me think about what's important to me and simplifying my life. I loved that a portrayal of such a simple experience as going on childhood vacation made me this reflective.
After the initial novelty wore off, I actually became a bit bored with the slow pace and lack of objectives until eventually getting into the groove of the core gameplay loop. At first I was under the impression that the game was just about meandering around the island, relaxing and doing whatever until all of the days pass. What I came to find though, and what ultimately hooked me on the game, was that there's a large focus on time management and making the most of each day before you have to go home (a la the life-sim portion of modern Persona games for example). I thought that a totally laid-back island sandbox experience was what I wanted, but after a few hours I was much happier to find that there is some tension-and-release gamification here through the time management and exploration.
Boku 2's action-less gameplay is made compelling by rewarding your exploration with excellent writing and atmosphere. Every character you meet on the island is likable with distinct personalities, motivations, and struggles that they'll clue you in on more and more as you visit them over the course of the month. While Boku 2 is a game about a child's experience and is written in a way that makes you feel as such, the dialogue is also incredibly realistic and willing to touch on heavier topics. I especially enjoyed Yoh and Yasuko's arc about overcoming their anxieties to rekindle their lost friendship. The writing helps make the game world feel so lived in, and the gorgeous still-camera locations + immaculate sound design seal the deal (I wanna live in Yasuko's observatory house so bad dude). Even the UI elements are made to be real-world objects further adding to the immersion of the island.
I love the way the game tickles your curiosity, hinting you towards things to find as you explore. A character may mention an item they left somewhere or an area you haven't been able to access yet offhand in a conversation. This is always in a way that feels natural; never feeling like a generic NPC pointing you towards an objective in a different game. Finally reaching these foretold areas or figuring out a secret and being rewarded with a delightful story event is where a lot of the joy of playing this game comes from. It delivers the sensations of freedom and discovery akin to other great exploration games like BotW or Outer Wilds (albeit with much lesser scope of course, but that's kind of the point).
Boku 2's a thought provoking game. It made me think about how I spend my time and cherish my days. It gives you a place where you feel a strong sense of belonging and only need to stress over whatever goals you set out for yourself. It made me think about what's important to me and simplifying my life. I loved that a portrayal of such a simple experience as going on childhood vacation made me this reflective.
An overtly nostalgic depiction of childhood summer days. Like a kid on vacation, you're free to do many things but forced to do none. The dreamlike, pre-rendered backgrounds are an achievement on their own.
BREAKING NEWS: Huge BokuNatsu fan excited to play it for the 1st time
Ok to be honest, I don't think I could possibly express the sheer beauty of this game with words. That may seem like a cheap cop-out to avoid using more than 2 brain cells to write, but I truly mean it. No matter what I say here, I can't fully express what it's like to sit by the ocean with your fishing rod. I can't fully express the way the sunset shines through the trees while running through the forest, or just sitting on the bench on that path. I can't express how exhilarating it was to train my little stag to eventually sweep the floor with whatever bullshit level 3 bug on steroids Shigeru pulls out of his ass. I can't express the way I feel when walking in on even the simplest of conversations between any of the characters in this little oceanside town.
This game had me completely engaged and enthralled throughout the last 2 weeks. After a long day of toiling away through projects and work, I'd sit down and play through a few in-game days. As I went to bed and went throughout my day, it would be in the back of my mind. I cared immensely about the things I wanted to see and do, and the possibilities for what secrets this game could hold, and now that it's all over, all I can do is sit here and think about the countless ways it exceeded my expectations.
Please play this game. I cannot recommend it enough.
Ok to be honest, I don't think I could possibly express the sheer beauty of this game with words. That may seem like a cheap cop-out to avoid using more than 2 brain cells to write, but I truly mean it. No matter what I say here, I can't fully express what it's like to sit by the ocean with your fishing rod. I can't fully express the way the sunset shines through the trees while running through the forest, or just sitting on the bench on that path. I can't express how exhilarating it was to train my little stag to eventually sweep the floor with whatever bullshit level 3 bug on steroids Shigeru pulls out of his ass. I can't express the way I feel when walking in on even the simplest of conversations between any of the characters in this little oceanside town.
This game had me completely engaged and enthralled throughout the last 2 weeks. After a long day of toiling away through projects and work, I'd sit down and play through a few in-game days. As I went to bed and went throughout my day, it would be in the back of my mind. I cared immensely about the things I wanted to see and do, and the possibilities for what secrets this game could hold, and now that it's all over, all I can do is sit here and think about the countless ways it exceeded my expectations.
Please play this game. I cannot recommend it enough.
this is the closest a video game will ever get to the immaculate nostalgic vibes that you feel whilst listening to 'the college dropout' drunk at 3am
Lindo e contemplativo e agora patcheado em ingles!!!
Once again I'm thrown into a fictional summer that's just long enough that I miss it when it ends, but not so long that I ever wished it ended sooner.
Boku no Natsuyasumi's main success was being a game that could make you cry without a single tragedy: the heartrending part of that game was saying goodbye. Throughout the entire game one's own nostalgic recollections of childhood come to overlap with the game itself, and by the end of it events that happened maybe two hours ago, feel like part of some precious memory. It's a trick that really only works once, so I was a bit worried about the sequels lacking impact.
As it turns out, there was no need to worry; being able to observe how my own memories started to work against me as the story went on made up for whatever was lost, although I don't think I lost anything. Sure, the first game's ending left more of an impression on me, but I think Two as a whole will probably stick with me longer. For me, being completely aware of what the story was trying to do, removed any doubt on whether it earned its emotional moments or not, and let me appreciate the subtler moments of the game more.
Now to get to Three in 2025...
Simon not smoking weed is a plot hole.
Boku no Natsuyasumi's main success was being a game that could make you cry without a single tragedy: the heartrending part of that game was saying goodbye. Throughout the entire game one's own nostalgic recollections of childhood come to overlap with the game itself, and by the end of it events that happened maybe two hours ago, feel like part of some precious memory. It's a trick that really only works once, so I was a bit worried about the sequels lacking impact.
As it turns out, there was no need to worry; being able to observe how my own memories started to work against me as the story went on made up for whatever was lost, although I don't think I lost anything. Sure, the first game's ending left more of an impression on me, but I think Two as a whole will probably stick with me longer. For me, being completely aware of what the story was trying to do, removed any doubt on whether it earned its emotional moments or not, and let me appreciate the subtler moments of the game more.
Now to get to Three in 2025...
Simon not smoking weed is a plot hole.
Boku no Natsuyasumi all over again, but bigger. Too samey and really disappointing.
hate this game because the kid is too happy tf you smiling for
Idk why it took me so long to finish the english translation but I finally just did... and man, I'm starting to believe that all of these games are equally good and that I'm just nitpicking when deciding which ones I like more. I don't like it as much as 1, sure, but it's still basically a perfect game that leaves a very similar impact. I'm just so, so glad it has an english translation now. Humanity needs these games.
The translation is out! Y'know, it really is a magical moment when a game like this finally gets a translation. A game that you love so dearly, one that you consider one of your favorites. Just seeing that opening cutscene with english subtitles, finally being able to understand the intricacies of what was going on. I got a little emotional!
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, like the first one, is something of a masterpiece, and now is more accessible than ever before. Whoever you are, please play this game. It might just change your life.
Translation can be found here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/92070798
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, like the first one, is something of a masterpiece, and now is more accessible than ever before. Whoever you are, please play this game. It might just change your life.
Translation can be found here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/92070798
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a profoundly earnest and delightful time capsule that completely washed over me the moment I stepped onto the humble shores of the small coastal town contained within. The atmosphere is relaxed and serene but not entirely tranquil; as nearly all of the residents have some sort of conflict or aspiration they need assistance with. All of these characters were a joy to interact with and checking in with each of them every day throughout this 31-day vacation had me grow incredibly invested in their lives and hopeful for their futures. These relationships formed organically and effortlessly, due in no small part to the way this game romanticizes every moment, whether it be a small discussion between characters, a minute spent sitting together in silence while the dissonant melody of a record coats the playground, an afternoon spent catching bugs while running through the sun, or a loving mealtime spent laughing with family; these fleeting moments are all significant and impactful despite their brevity. Before I knew it, these small moments culminated into a month's worth of time and I bittersweetly had to wave goodbye to friends and family alike as the summer drew to a close. While the future from that point forward was intimidating and uncertain, the memories and relationships forged during that time would undoubtedly serve as a comfort and source of strength going forward.
Perhaps my largest takeaway from this experience, which left a sizable emotional impact on me, is to enjoy and relish in life's quiet and subtle moments just as much as I would the louder and grandiose. The march of time doesn't halt and our lives will inevitably be composed of far more of these small, indistinct moments than those that are commonly celebrated; coming to terms with this has honestly given me an enhanced perspective and sense of comfort when reflecting on my own life. I'll do my best to ensure that this new outlook remains close to my heart alongside the place where this work of art now resides.
Perhaps my largest takeaway from this experience, which left a sizable emotional impact on me, is to enjoy and relish in life's quiet and subtle moments just as much as I would the louder and grandiose. The march of time doesn't halt and our lives will inevitably be composed of far more of these small, indistinct moments than those that are commonly celebrated; coming to terms with this has honestly given me an enhanced perspective and sense of comfort when reflecting on my own life. I'll do my best to ensure that this new outlook remains close to my heart alongside the place where this work of art now resides.
To be honest, I didn't exactly come in with my arms wide open. The fears of a formally continuist sequel of something that was very expressive because its own peculiar use of its forms increased shortly after starting. A setting to choose how long you want the day to be, collectibles around the map, a character that tells you where to see the events of each day, afraid of giving you back freedom in a larger world, overall details that seem treated with less care and a feeling of experiencing the same but worse. It's a shame that every time the game tries to awkwardly recall the intentions of its predecessor, it pales considerably (one clear instance: the previously essential narrator is now dispensable in the few arbitrary moments it appears).
Luckily, it takes just a few days to see that the direction taken is right. The facts that the protagonist's father never appears, that the plot of the future sibling remains in the background, or that the reminiscing aspect of the tale is anecdotic are no coincidence. The form, weighed down by losing part of its meaning, becomes a perfect vehicle to explore a more passive exploration of the surrounding drama.
Here Boku does not so much embody a reflexive portrait of childhood and growth, as he is more a supporting device for the rest of the cast. Accordingly, the most dramatically charged plots revolve less around Boku's family and more around the neighbors and visitors. These take advantage of the kid's innocent and outsider approach to deal with a common yet always specific issue: yearn. Yearn because of the distance between mother and daughter, between father and son, between lovers, between Earth and outer space, between past and present and future, between the world of humans and the one that is not ours, between life and what lies beyond. And the fears that all of these yearnings may never be answered.
That most of the conflicts end up in an open ended bittersweet quiet note resonates with the setting of the small coastal village. A place to get away from and to be taken away from the world. The ever-present sound of the waves, which inevitably move these desires in the tide just as the moon changes phase in the last shot of each day.
It’s not that Boku's appearance solves all these yearnings, but his mere interest in observing the world around him and serving as a confessional escape mechanism at least alleviates the pain. The game takes a passive stance where listening to one another is the greatest act of kindness, where what little evil appears to exist in the world has nothing but a noble and melancholic origin. Who knows what the future may hold, what to do but to hope for the best and reach for our hands within the tide.
Luckily, it takes just a few days to see that the direction taken is right. The facts that the protagonist's father never appears, that the plot of the future sibling remains in the background, or that the reminiscing aspect of the tale is anecdotic are no coincidence. The form, weighed down by losing part of its meaning, becomes a perfect vehicle to explore a more passive exploration of the surrounding drama.
Here Boku does not so much embody a reflexive portrait of childhood and growth, as he is more a supporting device for the rest of the cast. Accordingly, the most dramatically charged plots revolve less around Boku's family and more around the neighbors and visitors. These take advantage of the kid's innocent and outsider approach to deal with a common yet always specific issue: yearn. Yearn because of the distance between mother and daughter, between father and son, between lovers, between Earth and outer space, between past and present and future, between the world of humans and the one that is not ours, between life and what lies beyond. And the fears that all of these yearnings may never be answered.
That most of the conflicts end up in an open ended bittersweet quiet note resonates with the setting of the small coastal village. A place to get away from and to be taken away from the world. The ever-present sound of the waves, which inevitably move these desires in the tide just as the moon changes phase in the last shot of each day.
It’s not that Boku's appearance solves all these yearnings, but his mere interest in observing the world around him and serving as a confessional escape mechanism at least alleviates the pain. The game takes a passive stance where listening to one another is the greatest act of kindness, where what little evil appears to exist in the world has nothing but a noble and melancholic origin. Who knows what the future may hold, what to do but to hope for the best and reach for our hands within the tide.
So, this one may be kinda personal so be aware. Anyways, recently one of my dogs died, so i've been feeling down for most of the time these days, that said, i took a break from some stuff and also took the oportunity to play this game to relax a bit. Well, what can i say, it's helping me a lot. I'm usually not very interested in calm, slow games like this one, but it started to grow on me as i played and it feels a bit nostalgic too, it reminds me of when i was a kid and would go to my relatives' ranch and just play around with my cousins and newly made friends from there, pook around stuff, explore places i never visited, that kind of stuff you do when you're a kid. It made me a bit sad, but also glad that i had those days, and glad for the happy things that happened to me at that time, made me glad i got to spend time with my dog before he passed away and also made me happy since i could enjoy such a calm, relaxing and peaceful gem of game. It's one of those games that we may enjoy in particular moments, when our mind is just set for it.
I'm glad a translation came out, i hope the other titles can be translated too. Thanks to everyone who made this possible.
I'm glad a translation came out, i hope the other titles can be translated too. Thanks to everyone who made this possible.
really glad the translation is out now! i don't think 2 was nearly as emotionally resonant for me as the first one was, with one later game side story that i felt was somewhat antithetical to the "vibe" of the games, and i think its larger scale might not always be to the game's benefit, but it's an enjoyable time. definitely more of a fun game that i'm glad i got to play and one i'm excited to come back to more than one that sticks in my heart in the way the first did. either way, i'm glad this series is slowly becoming more accessible because it's really something special
simon is also the best character
simon is also the best character
I love writing reviews for the games I finish playing. I try to write them as much as I can, especially for games that I end up enamoured with, not only to actively train my English (not my first language) and writing skills as a whole, but to reflect upon and solidify my undying love for this medium, which, despite my current line of work and research, has remained as my most important and magical hobby ever since I was a kid, discovering Pokémon on my Game Boy.
When writing my reviews, I usually aim at tangible and mostly objective aspects of a particular game that makes it good or not, because I think that’s what matters the most for people reading a review at the end of the day; however, I simply cannot leave my personal, emotional impressions out of the picture since, following the parameters of autoethnograpgy, which are what guide the methodology behind the work I develop within the walls of academy, these particular accounts work as an extremely valuable source of data to wholly communicate the situation that’s being discussed on. As such, when I find myself with the urge to review a book, a film, or a video game, I aim to balance the more widely palpable aspects of that work with my own personal experience, since that also, and undeniably, constitutes what I’m trying to convey through my words.
I also try as much as I can to not spoil anything or to express myself in a way that may guide the reader’s view towards the game in a specific way, so that’s another way in which I believe giving personal accounts (and recognising them as such, rather than flavouring them as undeniable truths) makes an effective strategy to discuss upon something.
In the case of Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, however, I may end up giving a little bit more of personal insights to this review rather than talking about how its formal and mechanical aspects contribute to build such a meaningful, unforgettable experience, since it sucked me in so deeply into its tiny, mundane and magical world that I simply can’t fully express what playing this game meant to me in a way other than spreading out my own emotions upon the table. So, well, that’s a disclaimer to one of my longest and possibly the most difficult review I’ve written here.
I first got to know Kaz Ayabe and Millennium Kitchen’s work through Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale, which I was fortunate enough to grab at my late teens, years before the closure of the 3DS’ eShop in March 2023.
It was July 2017. I was 19 and going on a family trip to the countryside for my summer vacation. When I wasn’t at the beach, enjoying nature and interacting with my relatives, you could find me, 3DS in hands, playing that game. I instantly fell in love with its gameplay, storytelling and setting, and it left a huge mark on me, especially by how perfect that moment was for it to fall onto my lap. A year prior, I was facing a crippling depression case, and after going through therapy I could finally find myself living life to its fullest, enjoying small aspects of my everyday life, and even going through a bittersweet (but fun) summer love story. It all fell into place… BUT, the game was too short. Sadly, sadly, too short.
It was a part of Level-5’s ”Guild” series, a series of bite-sized games co-developed alongside various directors (such as Goichi Suda and Keiji Inafune) for the Nintendo 3DS, being released in the west exclusively via the eShop. Attack of the Friday Monsters was, at that time, the only Kaz Ayabe game officially translated into English, and it has mostly everything a BokuNatsu game has – except for its length. Yeah, the game is well-paced enough, and will stay for very long on your memory, but its story occurs in only a single day of the main character’s life. Needless to say, it left me craving for much, much more of that unique style of gameplay, and that’s how I ended up discovering Boku no Natsuyasumi – only to be immediately hit by the language barrier truck.
Since then, I have spent the following years with a bitter taste in my mouth, falling ill to the lingering urge to play Boku no Natsuyasumi haunting me every summer, always reminding me of that one summer in which I played Attack of the Friday Monsters. I’ve flirted many times with the idea of playing the first game with a guide by my side, but always gave up on it by thinking about how much that would end up hindering my own personal experience, since these games rely on their narratives, and I simply couldn’t find myself willing to discard a possible, remote way of playing them in a language I can read over playing them in such an suboptimal manner. And that’s when it happened – a fan translation effort was announced in 2021, and I was beyond overjoyed by this news.
Well, we are still waiting for the first game to be translated (respectfully sobbing here lol). But, as we were doing so, Hilltop, one of my favourite guys in the fan translation romhacking scene, gifted us earlier this year by announcing he was working on the second game, released in 2002 for the PS2. This translation was publicly released on November 1, 2023, and now we finally have means to play a game from this extremely special series fully in English.
After Attack of the Friday Monsters, we ended up getting the latest Shin-chan game localised in English and other languages as well, which is a bliss. Sadly, I played the beginning of it, and it didn’t make much to me. Gameplaywise, it’s definitely a BokuNatsu game, but stripped from its more grounded, believable setting in favour of a more fantastical, whimsical one; at the same time, it’s still a family-friendly cozy Japanese countryside story, which takes out a bit of Shin-chan’s depraved and acid character. At the end of the day, it’s still a beautiful and fun game, and it’s always great to have one of Millennium Kitchen’s games localised in the west, but I still have to give this one another chance, in another time.
Well, that’s when Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 comes in – and, gladly, these games’ stories are not connected and their gameplay is pretty much the same across the board, so we don’t lose anything by playing the second one while we wait for the first one to be translated. :)
As it was with Attack of the Friday Monsters, this game comes upon me in a huge moment in my life. Sadly, a bad one. Adult life sucks. For the past two weeks, especially, it’s become borderline unbearable at many moments. I’m once again going through therapy, after showing signs of having developed a panic disorder. Dealing with finishing up my master’s degree paper, coupled with relationship and economic issues with my partner have been beyond exhausting. It’s been particularly challenging since my partner is going through a series of severe mental health crisis – she’s diagnosed with BPD, and going through similar issues as me regarding work and facing adulthood in this broken, capitalist mess of a world we live in, and for this past week she had to travel alone whilst undergoing severe psychiatric episodes. Me, being away from her, and having to juggle between my concerns about her mental state and dealing with arranging flight delays for her to heal before stepping into a plane again, constantly staying on the phone with our families to share news on her, racing against my paper’s deadline… It’s all been damaging me physically, mentally, emotionally and even spiritually.
It was because all of that, despite all the work I have yet to do, that I decided to add BokuNatsu2 into my days. I did it for my own good – I just needed to breathe, I needed to feed on some lightness to escape a bit from the gargantuan pressure that my current life is being subjected to.
It was exactly what I needed. For better and for worse.
“Boku” [ぼく] is one of the many ways to say “I” or “Me” in Japanese, and it’s generally used by young and teenager boys. The title of the game, “Boku no Natsuyasumi” [ぼくのなつやすみ], means “My Summer Vacation”. In a fun way to direct the player’s experience, though, “Boku” is also the name of the character you play as, so as much as you can imprint your own experiences onto him, you’re also wearing his shoes and seeing the world as him – the child you can no longer go back to be.
Boku, at 9 years-old, is on the brink of becoming a big brother. In order to properly prepare for the arrival of a new member in the family, Boku’s parents decide to send him to expend his August 1975 summer vacation on the seaside town of Fumi, where his uncle and aunt live and run a guest house alongside their two boys, Takeshi and Shigeru. In this very small countryside town, Boku gets to know each one that lives there and what things they are going through, whilst also being able to collect bugs and having them fight against the ones your cousins have, fish, ride on a bicycle, walk through forests and mountains and swim on the beach, all of that to your child heart’s content. Time passes as you go through each area of the game, which are all beautifully and masterfully hand-painted, and your ultimate objective is to live each day to the fullest, enjoying your 20th century holiday in a time when things were only starting to change, but still went on a much simpler and slower pace.
I don’t think I’m fully able to collect here and put into words every emotion I felt whilst playing BokuNatsu2, even if I’m trying to do so. I got attached to every single person I got to know in that small town, deeply caring for each one of them, and grasping things that Boku, in his innocent interpretations of life, could only left for us, adults, to fully understand. Through the simplest of dialogues, I got hit and overflown by bliss, curiosity and sadness, especially by the end of my time in Fumi, when both me and Boku, as excited as he was to meet his baby brother, didn’t want that summer to end.
You can do as you please as you decide how to spend your time in Fumi – but, if I may, I’d recommend you not to stick too much to guides, and go with the flow of things, discovering things by your own. Believe me, by the moment you step foot into a guide, as helpful as it may be, it takes away a bit of the fun and sense of discovery inherent to BokuNatsu, as much as it would if I prolonged myself talking about its mechanics and specific moments. Instead, I’d rather share a collection of some things I found out by myself and by reading a guide, and which I think can be helpful for new players to enjoy this game as much as possible:
• Yeah, tank controls. Deal with them, they’re way simpler and intuitive here than it would be in, say, a PS1 survival horror game. Press X to walk, left and right on the d-pad to turn, down to turn back of face ahead of you, and O to interact with things and people.
• Press R1 to equip/unequip the bug net without having to open the pause menu every time.
• Talk to Hikari everyday and ask her for her origami fortune-telling. This is a spoiler-free way to know what to do each day, when and who to talk with.
• If you stay awake past 11 p.m., you won’t be able to wake up in time for the morning calisthenics – a small, cute cutscene that plays at the beginning of each day, which daily marks a stamp on an attendance card you have. Not missing these may lead to something special… but I wouldn’t know, since I only figured this thing out by August 10th! :P
• When talking to someone, talk to them again as soon as they finish speaking. Talking to someone twice is the only way to hear everything a character has to say.
• People have their own everyday schedules, doing slightly different things every so often. These are also dictated by the hours of the day. Pay close attention to their behaviours, since that’s how you’ll be able to talk to everyone, increasingly getting to know their passions, fears, stories and personalities.
• The game shows you the passage of time in more ways than just one, and very cleverly through the sounds of the insects in the wilderness surrounding Fumi. In the early morning you can mostly hear birds chirping, but after 10 a.m. the cicadas start to frolic. By noon and after it, you can hear different and louder cicada cries, and close to 5 p.m., the evening Higurashi cicadas start to sing their melancholic symphony, which remains imperious throughout the sunset. Pay attention to these as you’re planning where to go within the time that you’re given.
• That’s not the only way to check time, tough! Check the table at the guest house living room, right next to your bedroom, to find a small clock that you can borrow, and it will remain in the pause menu for the rest of the game!
• Beehives function as warp points: they are generally located on distant places, so if you want to be in somewhere else in town, interact with one of these and Boku will faint from the bee stings, sending you all the way back to the guest house without sacrificing time!
• The bicycle is near the guest house’s front entrance, close to where the car is, but it’s easy to not notice it since its silhouette has been dimmed out. Once you see it, though, there’s no way to unsee it. It’s fun to ride it and it can get you places faster than walking.
• Take care of the flowers every day!
• Give Grandpa Sagara and your Aunt shoulder massages every day. Doing so will grant you 20 Yen per day, which you can use to buy different snacks, a battle ship model to play with and Jet Ciders to get more bottle caps.
• Swim. Not only it’s one of the most fun parts of the game, and not only its lovely to explore an early-PS2 ocean floor, but its there where you can find most of the game’s collectible Jet Cider dinosaur bottle caps, which increase your stamina underwater. There are some very special secrets to be found in the ocean!
• Bug fights are also fun! I’d recommend you to turn your attention to Miyama stags and Rhino beetles as son as they are available, and train two or three as much as you can. When the time to face the last King-rank foe comes, keep your bug cage full of bugs that have a good balance of strength and stamina. Remember this! You’ll absolutely need a lot of bugs for this last fight!
• There’s simply no way to see every single thing in this game in a single playthrough. Don’t worry about missing a thing or two, really: it only adds up to its beautiful replay factor.
• Don’t rush. If you can, and as much as you can, try to play tiny bits of it every day, and it will leave an even bigger impact on you at the end. I sadly had to rush a bit because of my own responsibilities that needed to be taken care of, but I beg you to enjoy this one in tiny scoops.
The rest of it, I won’t spoil any further. This is supposed to be your summer vacation, not mine.
What I can say, though, is what Yasuko points out herself during a dialogue: it feels like the second half of summer is shorter than the first, and I definitely felt it. Personally, I think that’s the only aspect that’s in detriment of the whole experience, and the reason why I’m giving this game a 4.5 star rating instead of a 5 star one: the first half of the game was where I had more fun with; where things happened at a more exciting pace. In the second half, I found myself doing mostly repetitive stuff, not discovering anything particularly new, and just wandering around Fumi to extend my time on it. Don’t get me wrong: the game doesn’t cease to amaze the player with its masterfully crafted simplicity, and it wraps everything up beautifully by the last few days of August; I just wish the quirks of the in-game events were a liiiiittle bit more evenly balanced throughout the entire game’s lenght.
Despite this weak point, though, Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a masterpiece.
As pointed out by other users here, this game has the ability to send you back to a simpler time of your life, and remind you of how great it was to experience the world through the lens of a child. At times, the adult Boku’s calm voice comes in as a narrator, telling us, for example, how he felt the sunlight coming through and energising his entire body as he stretched the palm of his hand towards the sun, checking how see-through his flesh looked. Moments as these are the ones I treasured the most, since its exactly through these mundane and simple moments that the game conveys it’s most profound insights into everyday life, our struggles and our own important memories of our respective pasts.
With all the sh#t going on in my life, I can’t really put into words how important it was to me to allow myself to play tiny bits of this game throughout this last week. It reminded me of simple things, the things I treasure and miss the most in myself and in others. It reminded me of happy moments, of my summer countryside holidays with my cousins as we grew up together, of spending entire days watching cartoons and playing by myself in the backyard, of playing soccer with my grandpa, and hearing all sorts of stories from my late grandma, which recently left us, but had been away for a while by the hands of Alzheimer. It reminded me, as Yoshika tells you by the end of the game, that there is, indeed, true happiness, and we should strive to find it wherever it may be in the world.
On the other hand, by the end of it all, I felt utterly devastated. I simply wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Fumi and the summer of 1975. Having to face adulthood again is unbearably tough, and even before finishing the game, I found myself crying in bed a few times by thinking about it and my long-gone childhood – undeniably, the best and happiest time of my life.
As the end credits rolled, it happened – two years after playing Journey, Boku no Natsuyasumi took its crown as the game that made me cry the most. I kid you not: it completely liquified me. It was painful to wait to play this game in English, but having to part with it was extremely more.
I cannot recommend this game enough. It may not appeal to everyone, but it’s games like these that keep reminding me how special, meaningful and powerful video games can be, and its by reviews like this one that I try to share a bit of how much I love them; how much I feel this medium should be valorised and brought upon higher grounds, away from your typical video games that, as important as they might be to the industry and to us players, undeniably paint a limited picture of what games can do and are supposed to be.
As the end of summer draws near (at least here in northern Brazil), My Summer Vacation in Fumi is over. All that is left to me is cherish my time spent on it, magically living under a gentle, adventurously curious and caring 9-year-old boy’s skin, in a place far away from where I am, in a time long before I was even born. Being able to live lives such as these, turning something apart from my reality a part of it, is what makes video games so special and important to me, and as much as I’m eager for the first game to be finally translated, now, I can only think about my time in Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, and be glad that I had the chance to taste it in this lifetime of mine.
When writing my reviews, I usually aim at tangible and mostly objective aspects of a particular game that makes it good or not, because I think that’s what matters the most for people reading a review at the end of the day; however, I simply cannot leave my personal, emotional impressions out of the picture since, following the parameters of autoethnograpgy, which are what guide the methodology behind the work I develop within the walls of academy, these particular accounts work as an extremely valuable source of data to wholly communicate the situation that’s being discussed on. As such, when I find myself with the urge to review a book, a film, or a video game, I aim to balance the more widely palpable aspects of that work with my own personal experience, since that also, and undeniably, constitutes what I’m trying to convey through my words.
I also try as much as I can to not spoil anything or to express myself in a way that may guide the reader’s view towards the game in a specific way, so that’s another way in which I believe giving personal accounts (and recognising them as such, rather than flavouring them as undeniable truths) makes an effective strategy to discuss upon something.
In the case of Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, however, I may end up giving a little bit more of personal insights to this review rather than talking about how its formal and mechanical aspects contribute to build such a meaningful, unforgettable experience, since it sucked me in so deeply into its tiny, mundane and magical world that I simply can’t fully express what playing this game meant to me in a way other than spreading out my own emotions upon the table. So, well, that’s a disclaimer to one of my longest and possibly the most difficult review I’ve written here.
I first got to know Kaz Ayabe and Millennium Kitchen’s work through Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale, which I was fortunate enough to grab at my late teens, years before the closure of the 3DS’ eShop in March 2023.
It was July 2017. I was 19 and going on a family trip to the countryside for my summer vacation. When I wasn’t at the beach, enjoying nature and interacting with my relatives, you could find me, 3DS in hands, playing that game. I instantly fell in love with its gameplay, storytelling and setting, and it left a huge mark on me, especially by how perfect that moment was for it to fall onto my lap. A year prior, I was facing a crippling depression case, and after going through therapy I could finally find myself living life to its fullest, enjoying small aspects of my everyday life, and even going through a bittersweet (but fun) summer love story. It all fell into place… BUT, the game was too short. Sadly, sadly, too short.
It was a part of Level-5’s ”Guild” series, a series of bite-sized games co-developed alongside various directors (such as Goichi Suda and Keiji Inafune) for the Nintendo 3DS, being released in the west exclusively via the eShop. Attack of the Friday Monsters was, at that time, the only Kaz Ayabe game officially translated into English, and it has mostly everything a BokuNatsu game has – except for its length. Yeah, the game is well-paced enough, and will stay for very long on your memory, but its story occurs in only a single day of the main character’s life. Needless to say, it left me craving for much, much more of that unique style of gameplay, and that’s how I ended up discovering Boku no Natsuyasumi – only to be immediately hit by the language barrier truck.
Since then, I have spent the following years with a bitter taste in my mouth, falling ill to the lingering urge to play Boku no Natsuyasumi haunting me every summer, always reminding me of that one summer in which I played Attack of the Friday Monsters. I’ve flirted many times with the idea of playing the first game with a guide by my side, but always gave up on it by thinking about how much that would end up hindering my own personal experience, since these games rely on their narratives, and I simply couldn’t find myself willing to discard a possible, remote way of playing them in a language I can read over playing them in such an suboptimal manner. And that’s when it happened – a fan translation effort was announced in 2021, and I was beyond overjoyed by this news.
Well, we are still waiting for the first game to be translated (respectfully sobbing here lol). But, as we were doing so, Hilltop, one of my favourite guys in the fan translation romhacking scene, gifted us earlier this year by announcing he was working on the second game, released in 2002 for the PS2. This translation was publicly released on November 1, 2023, and now we finally have means to play a game from this extremely special series fully in English.
After Attack of the Friday Monsters, we ended up getting the latest Shin-chan game localised in English and other languages as well, which is a bliss. Sadly, I played the beginning of it, and it didn’t make much to me. Gameplaywise, it’s definitely a BokuNatsu game, but stripped from its more grounded, believable setting in favour of a more fantastical, whimsical one; at the same time, it’s still a family-friendly cozy Japanese countryside story, which takes out a bit of Shin-chan’s depraved and acid character. At the end of the day, it’s still a beautiful and fun game, and it’s always great to have one of Millennium Kitchen’s games localised in the west, but I still have to give this one another chance, in another time.
Well, that’s when Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 comes in – and, gladly, these games’ stories are not connected and their gameplay is pretty much the same across the board, so we don’t lose anything by playing the second one while we wait for the first one to be translated. :)
As it was with Attack of the Friday Monsters, this game comes upon me in a huge moment in my life. Sadly, a bad one. Adult life sucks. For the past two weeks, especially, it’s become borderline unbearable at many moments. I’m once again going through therapy, after showing signs of having developed a panic disorder. Dealing with finishing up my master’s degree paper, coupled with relationship and economic issues with my partner have been beyond exhausting. It’s been particularly challenging since my partner is going through a series of severe mental health crisis – she’s diagnosed with BPD, and going through similar issues as me regarding work and facing adulthood in this broken, capitalist mess of a world we live in, and for this past week she had to travel alone whilst undergoing severe psychiatric episodes. Me, being away from her, and having to juggle between my concerns about her mental state and dealing with arranging flight delays for her to heal before stepping into a plane again, constantly staying on the phone with our families to share news on her, racing against my paper’s deadline… It’s all been damaging me physically, mentally, emotionally and even spiritually.
It was because all of that, despite all the work I have yet to do, that I decided to add BokuNatsu2 into my days. I did it for my own good – I just needed to breathe, I needed to feed on some lightness to escape a bit from the gargantuan pressure that my current life is being subjected to.
It was exactly what I needed. For better and for worse.
“Boku” [ぼく] is one of the many ways to say “I” or “Me” in Japanese, and it’s generally used by young and teenager boys. The title of the game, “Boku no Natsuyasumi” [ぼくのなつやすみ], means “My Summer Vacation”. In a fun way to direct the player’s experience, though, “Boku” is also the name of the character you play as, so as much as you can imprint your own experiences onto him, you’re also wearing his shoes and seeing the world as him – the child you can no longer go back to be.
Boku, at 9 years-old, is on the brink of becoming a big brother. In order to properly prepare for the arrival of a new member in the family, Boku’s parents decide to send him to expend his August 1975 summer vacation on the seaside town of Fumi, where his uncle and aunt live and run a guest house alongside their two boys, Takeshi and Shigeru. In this very small countryside town, Boku gets to know each one that lives there and what things they are going through, whilst also being able to collect bugs and having them fight against the ones your cousins have, fish, ride on a bicycle, walk through forests and mountains and swim on the beach, all of that to your child heart’s content. Time passes as you go through each area of the game, which are all beautifully and masterfully hand-painted, and your ultimate objective is to live each day to the fullest, enjoying your 20th century holiday in a time when things were only starting to change, but still went on a much simpler and slower pace.
I don’t think I’m fully able to collect here and put into words every emotion I felt whilst playing BokuNatsu2, even if I’m trying to do so. I got attached to every single person I got to know in that small town, deeply caring for each one of them, and grasping things that Boku, in his innocent interpretations of life, could only left for us, adults, to fully understand. Through the simplest of dialogues, I got hit and overflown by bliss, curiosity and sadness, especially by the end of my time in Fumi, when both me and Boku, as excited as he was to meet his baby brother, didn’t want that summer to end.
You can do as you please as you decide how to spend your time in Fumi – but, if I may, I’d recommend you not to stick too much to guides, and go with the flow of things, discovering things by your own. Believe me, by the moment you step foot into a guide, as helpful as it may be, it takes away a bit of the fun and sense of discovery inherent to BokuNatsu, as much as it would if I prolonged myself talking about its mechanics and specific moments. Instead, I’d rather share a collection of some things I found out by myself and by reading a guide, and which I think can be helpful for new players to enjoy this game as much as possible:
• Yeah, tank controls. Deal with them, they’re way simpler and intuitive here than it would be in, say, a PS1 survival horror game. Press X to walk, left and right on the d-pad to turn, down to turn back of face ahead of you, and O to interact with things and people.
• Press R1 to equip/unequip the bug net without having to open the pause menu every time.
• Talk to Hikari everyday and ask her for her origami fortune-telling. This is a spoiler-free way to know what to do each day, when and who to talk with.
• If you stay awake past 11 p.m., you won’t be able to wake up in time for the morning calisthenics – a small, cute cutscene that plays at the beginning of each day, which daily marks a stamp on an attendance card you have. Not missing these may lead to something special… but I wouldn’t know, since I only figured this thing out by August 10th! :P
• When talking to someone, talk to them again as soon as they finish speaking. Talking to someone twice is the only way to hear everything a character has to say.
• People have their own everyday schedules, doing slightly different things every so often. These are also dictated by the hours of the day. Pay close attention to their behaviours, since that’s how you’ll be able to talk to everyone, increasingly getting to know their passions, fears, stories and personalities.
• The game shows you the passage of time in more ways than just one, and very cleverly through the sounds of the insects in the wilderness surrounding Fumi. In the early morning you can mostly hear birds chirping, but after 10 a.m. the cicadas start to frolic. By noon and after it, you can hear different and louder cicada cries, and close to 5 p.m., the evening Higurashi cicadas start to sing their melancholic symphony, which remains imperious throughout the sunset. Pay attention to these as you’re planning where to go within the time that you’re given.
• That’s not the only way to check time, tough! Check the table at the guest house living room, right next to your bedroom, to find a small clock that you can borrow, and it will remain in the pause menu for the rest of the game!
• Beehives function as warp points: they are generally located on distant places, so if you want to be in somewhere else in town, interact with one of these and Boku will faint from the bee stings, sending you all the way back to the guest house without sacrificing time!
• The bicycle is near the guest house’s front entrance, close to where the car is, but it’s easy to not notice it since its silhouette has been dimmed out. Once you see it, though, there’s no way to unsee it. It’s fun to ride it and it can get you places faster than walking.
• Take care of the flowers every day!
• Give Grandpa Sagara and your Aunt shoulder massages every day. Doing so will grant you 20 Yen per day, which you can use to buy different snacks, a battle ship model to play with and Jet Ciders to get more bottle caps.
• Swim. Not only it’s one of the most fun parts of the game, and not only its lovely to explore an early-PS2 ocean floor, but its there where you can find most of the game’s collectible Jet Cider dinosaur bottle caps, which increase your stamina underwater. There are some very special secrets to be found in the ocean!
• Bug fights are also fun! I’d recommend you to turn your attention to Miyama stags and Rhino beetles as son as they are available, and train two or three as much as you can. When the time to face the last King-rank foe comes, keep your bug cage full of bugs that have a good balance of strength and stamina. Remember this! You’ll absolutely need a lot of bugs for this last fight!
• There’s simply no way to see every single thing in this game in a single playthrough. Don’t worry about missing a thing or two, really: it only adds up to its beautiful replay factor.
• Don’t rush. If you can, and as much as you can, try to play tiny bits of it every day, and it will leave an even bigger impact on you at the end. I sadly had to rush a bit because of my own responsibilities that needed to be taken care of, but I beg you to enjoy this one in tiny scoops.
The rest of it, I won’t spoil any further. This is supposed to be your summer vacation, not mine.
What I can say, though, is what Yasuko points out herself during a dialogue: it feels like the second half of summer is shorter than the first, and I definitely felt it. Personally, I think that’s the only aspect that’s in detriment of the whole experience, and the reason why I’m giving this game a 4.5 star rating instead of a 5 star one: the first half of the game was where I had more fun with; where things happened at a more exciting pace. In the second half, I found myself doing mostly repetitive stuff, not discovering anything particularly new, and just wandering around Fumi to extend my time on it. Don’t get me wrong: the game doesn’t cease to amaze the player with its masterfully crafted simplicity, and it wraps everything up beautifully by the last few days of August; I just wish the quirks of the in-game events were a liiiiittle bit more evenly balanced throughout the entire game’s lenght.
Despite this weak point, though, Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a masterpiece.
As pointed out by other users here, this game has the ability to send you back to a simpler time of your life, and remind you of how great it was to experience the world through the lens of a child. At times, the adult Boku’s calm voice comes in as a narrator, telling us, for example, how he felt the sunlight coming through and energising his entire body as he stretched the palm of his hand towards the sun, checking how see-through his flesh looked. Moments as these are the ones I treasured the most, since its exactly through these mundane and simple moments that the game conveys it’s most profound insights into everyday life, our struggles and our own important memories of our respective pasts.
With all the sh#t going on in my life, I can’t really put into words how important it was to me to allow myself to play tiny bits of this game throughout this last week. It reminded me of simple things, the things I treasure and miss the most in myself and in others. It reminded me of happy moments, of my summer countryside holidays with my cousins as we grew up together, of spending entire days watching cartoons and playing by myself in the backyard, of playing soccer with my grandpa, and hearing all sorts of stories from my late grandma, which recently left us, but had been away for a while by the hands of Alzheimer. It reminded me, as Yoshika tells you by the end of the game, that there is, indeed, true happiness, and we should strive to find it wherever it may be in the world.
On the other hand, by the end of it all, I felt utterly devastated. I simply wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Fumi and the summer of 1975. Having to face adulthood again is unbearably tough, and even before finishing the game, I found myself crying in bed a few times by thinking about it and my long-gone childhood – undeniably, the best and happiest time of my life.
As the end credits rolled, it happened – two years after playing Journey, Boku no Natsuyasumi took its crown as the game that made me cry the most. I kid you not: it completely liquified me. It was painful to wait to play this game in English, but having to part with it was extremely more.
I cannot recommend this game enough. It may not appeal to everyone, but it’s games like these that keep reminding me how special, meaningful and powerful video games can be, and its by reviews like this one that I try to share a bit of how much I love them; how much I feel this medium should be valorised and brought upon higher grounds, away from your typical video games that, as important as they might be to the industry and to us players, undeniably paint a limited picture of what games can do and are supposed to be.
As the end of summer draws near (at least here in northern Brazil), My Summer Vacation in Fumi is over. All that is left to me is cherish my time spent on it, magically living under a gentle, adventurously curious and caring 9-year-old boy’s skin, in a place far away from where I am, in a time long before I was even born. Being able to live lives such as these, turning something apart from my reality a part of it, is what makes video games so special and important to me, and as much as I’m eager for the first game to be finally translated, now, I can only think about my time in Boku no Natsuyasumi 2, and be glad that I had the chance to taste it in this lifetime of mine.
This review contains spoilers
11/4/2023- To boot, the starting intro scenes, the fully rendered one, didn’t age as badly, it’s a little rough around the edges but it was the best the studio did, so there’s really no complaints from me. What’s more aged is the controls, while not bad, don’t use any of the sticks on the PlayStation controller, at all. Use the D pad to move around in a tank control method of direction movement then the circle to run in the direction you face, something you need to get used to. Ultimately this isn’t an issue, as Boku is devoid of any action, well any action that you can think of. Boku will very much feel like the battles and tugs…. Deep-sea fishing, of the two features, and first of my play-through to find, that will maybe be the main event of the day by day in game. Also note, the first couple of days, around six, maybe three, are story framing devices for each town resident you meet with, more on that later.
11/7/2023- HOLY SHIT I CAUGHT A BEETLE! I began to engage in the beetle sumo system placed in around 5 days, or whenever you can catch the bug in the first place, I have found two kinds of bugs in the first place but I’m sure there’s more, because around a week, maybe eight days, a new section of the island is opened, a forest. The system of fighting other beetles is a hands-off thing, it’s purely luck and genes of the bugs, you watch the two beetles push each other, with their stamina on the bottom, and hope that its strong enough to push it, or has enough stamina to outlive the round. Takeshi has a shit-eating grin, so I really need to beat him, he’s my rival, I’m the strongest beetle trainer! I also found a rocket valve, might be useful later, but I think there’s two more. Be aware that, swimming is fun, it’s also the riskiest activity, drowning will remove a whole day for you. There's also a strange girl in the family clinic, I don’t know what her deal is, but I love how this game will present you with more mysteries at the turn of every corner, you’re rewarded for going “I wonder what is in here?”.
11/24/2023- It can really feel like the game becomes aimless at times, which it has for me, but it has the design choices akin to dropping bread crumbs on the ground, the space between is boring but you see another bit on the ground and keep going. What Boku will journal in his diary is very funny to me, talking about Yasuko’s relationship with her mother and how they haven’t spoken in years, then her mother moving into the guest house instead of her own home because of her was a hard hitting moment with the right amount of build up, however, Boku wrote about the 50 yen he got from giving a shoulder massage to a strange girl in the clinic. I am convinced that she’s a ghost but the game does a good job of revealing nothing about her. She might be alive, but Sagara doesn’t know she’s there. Who is she?!
11/30/2023- ok the game has started to kick off a lot more now, it’s headed towards the last two weeks of the game (if I didn’t write it, but the game has a total of 30 in game days). We get a little bit of lore drops, if you count events like that, there's gold robbing. Shizue has left the house and left for Tokyo, so we think, but what’s more important is that she left a key in her room. Also grab the ax as soon as you can, then head the the water field, there’s a large tree, then you can finally reach the charcoal hut where Yoh's father is meant to be… he isn’t there as of the 18th day. Nagisa has a side plot and she’s really friendly, I got the impression that she was off-put by me but she’s rather childish in nature, not in a strange way but in an endearing way, she’s nice. I really need to find that third valve. I will make an entry that is entirely tips and a small guide to side stories.
12/14/2023 FINAL OVERVIEW- I cannot state how much I love this game by the end of it, it manages to captivate me with its well knit group of characters that manage to shift and change all the while pushing a small yet intriguing narrative. Visually speaking it's a great looking game even to today's standards, maybe the 3D models aren't up to personal par but it meshes well and oozes the charm. It's a game I will most certainly look fondly back on, in fact I was thinking about this game between sessions, it gripped me. I haven't been able to see all of what you can do, like the beetle fights or the treasure at the bottom of the beach, but that only gives me more motivation to replay. There is a damn good reason why this game is listed as a PlayStation classic and you should absolutely take time to check out this game, go in blind.
11/7/2023- HOLY SHIT I CAUGHT A BEETLE! I began to engage in the beetle sumo system placed in around 5 days, or whenever you can catch the bug in the first place, I have found two kinds of bugs in the first place but I’m sure there’s more, because around a week, maybe eight days, a new section of the island is opened, a forest. The system of fighting other beetles is a hands-off thing, it’s purely luck and genes of the bugs, you watch the two beetles push each other, with their stamina on the bottom, and hope that its strong enough to push it, or has enough stamina to outlive the round. Takeshi has a shit-eating grin, so I really need to beat him, he’s my rival, I’m the strongest beetle trainer! I also found a rocket valve, might be useful later, but I think there’s two more. Be aware that, swimming is fun, it’s also the riskiest activity, drowning will remove a whole day for you. There's also a strange girl in the family clinic, I don’t know what her deal is, but I love how this game will present you with more mysteries at the turn of every corner, you’re rewarded for going “I wonder what is in here?”.
11/24/2023- It can really feel like the game becomes aimless at times, which it has for me, but it has the design choices akin to dropping bread crumbs on the ground, the space between is boring but you see another bit on the ground and keep going. What Boku will journal in his diary is very funny to me, talking about Yasuko’s relationship with her mother and how they haven’t spoken in years, then her mother moving into the guest house instead of her own home because of her was a hard hitting moment with the right amount of build up, however, Boku wrote about the 50 yen he got from giving a shoulder massage to a strange girl in the clinic. I am convinced that she’s a ghost but the game does a good job of revealing nothing about her. She might be alive, but Sagara doesn’t know she’s there. Who is she?!
11/30/2023- ok the game has started to kick off a lot more now, it’s headed towards the last two weeks of the game (if I didn’t write it, but the game has a total of 30 in game days). We get a little bit of lore drops, if you count events like that, there's gold robbing. Shizue has left the house and left for Tokyo, so we think, but what’s more important is that she left a key in her room. Also grab the ax as soon as you can, then head the the water field, there’s a large tree, then you can finally reach the charcoal hut where Yoh's father is meant to be… he isn’t there as of the 18th day. Nagisa has a side plot and she’s really friendly, I got the impression that she was off-put by me but she’s rather childish in nature, not in a strange way but in an endearing way, she’s nice. I really need to find that third valve. I will make an entry that is entirely tips and a small guide to side stories.
12/14/2023 FINAL OVERVIEW- I cannot state how much I love this game by the end of it, it manages to captivate me with its well knit group of characters that manage to shift and change all the while pushing a small yet intriguing narrative. Visually speaking it's a great looking game even to today's standards, maybe the 3D models aren't up to personal par but it meshes well and oozes the charm. It's a game I will most certainly look fondly back on, in fact I was thinking about this game between sessions, it gripped me. I haven't been able to see all of what you can do, like the beetle fights or the treasure at the bottom of the beach, but that only gives me more motivation to replay. There is a damn good reason why this game is listed as a PlayStation classic and you should absolutely take time to check out this game, go in blind.
Translation has been released! You can find it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/92070798
My heart yearns to go back to that summer. I want to stay there.
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a beautiful game full of so much heart. You spend a summer as a child, called Boku, staying with his aunt and uncle in a small island village by the sea. You spend your days fishing, swimming, catching and fighting bugs, the usual holiday fare.
But you also form deep connections with everyone on the island and their visiting friends and relatives. You help so many people with their issues. No one is surface level, everyone is genuine and well thought out.
This game gracefully and realistically explores aging population, neglect, death and grieving, love, crime, cultural differences and more.
You have no goal in this game. You can choose to, or not to do any of this. Its entirely up to you what you do with your summer holiday. But its hard, truly to do nothing. There is an undescribable amount of love and care put into every element of this game, it feels me with deep peace and joy knowing that something like this is out there and was highly popular in Japan.
Play this game if you want summer, if you want to swim, if you miss home, your family, childhood, if you miss humanity and colour and you find yourself drowning in the greys and cruelty of the city. Go and spend your summer in the country.
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a beautiful game full of so much heart. You spend a summer as a child, called Boku, staying with his aunt and uncle in a small island village by the sea. You spend your days fishing, swimming, catching and fighting bugs, the usual holiday fare.
But you also form deep connections with everyone on the island and their visiting friends and relatives. You help so many people with their issues. No one is surface level, everyone is genuine and well thought out.
This game gracefully and realistically explores aging population, neglect, death and grieving, love, crime, cultural differences and more.
You have no goal in this game. You can choose to, or not to do any of this. Its entirely up to you what you do with your summer holiday. But its hard, truly to do nothing. There is an undescribable amount of love and care put into every element of this game, it feels me with deep peace and joy knowing that something like this is out there and was highly popular in Japan.
Play this game if you want summer, if you want to swim, if you miss home, your family, childhood, if you miss humanity and colour and you find yourself drowning in the greys and cruelty of the city. Go and spend your summer in the country.
I am not immune to internet hype, especially when it's exactly the kind of game I've been looking for. The last few hours are magical.
Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 is a life affirming work of art. I went into this one well aware of its structure, that it took place across the month of August, and during that time you could relax and enjoy the small town you were placed into in whatever way you wanted. Due to this structure and my on-going journey of practicing mindfulness with respect to video games, I only allowed myself to play a maximum of 3 in game days per 1 actual day, and with the extra stipulation that I had to concentrate solely on the game. This may sound a bit silly, though as someone who pretty much always watches YouTube on a second monitor, or listens to podcasts while playing video games, this represented a very intentional exercise for me in order to appreciate what I was engaging with, and maybe fix my fucked up attention span in some way. From everything I knew, this was a game particularly well suited to this task as well, because I really wanted to soak up every little drop of the atmosphere and dialog that I could.
In the end I think this approach to playing Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 was extremely successful for me. I hung out on each screen, taking it all in. I turned over the character interactions, both slight and large, in my head during the forced gap between play sessions, allowing myself to develop a real sense of knowing these people on an intimate level. What would Uncle Genta be doing tomorrow? Would he still be struggling with the loss of his old profession, or did he have a revelation that lead him down a different path? Due to the nature of my play sessions and the nature of the ongoing lives of the cast, I sometimes wouldn't see someone in game for several real life days at a time, causing myself to legitimately miss them and wonder what they're getting up to. These small somber moments of longing to see them again couldn't have prepared me for the great sadness and emptiness brought about by the sudden ending, which drilled home just how much I cared each and every one of them, and the fact that I'd likely never see them again.
That is to say, at least not without spinning up another save file, which just feels wrong to me. No one should ever get to know every facet of every person in their lives, there's a certain beauty in knowing that you can't possibly know everyone's experience holistically. People fade in and out of our lives, only appearing briefly to give an update on themselves from their own perception. This game represents a series of those brief encounters, wrapped up in an experience that is brief in and of itself, even when I intentionally stretch it out over a longer period of time, as though trying to get the most out of my own similarly brief windows in time. There is no going back to summer vacation, there is no going back to 1975, there is no going back to Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 for me, and I've made my peace with that.
In the end I think this approach to playing Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 was extremely successful for me. I hung out on each screen, taking it all in. I turned over the character interactions, both slight and large, in my head during the forced gap between play sessions, allowing myself to develop a real sense of knowing these people on an intimate level. What would Uncle Genta be doing tomorrow? Would he still be struggling with the loss of his old profession, or did he have a revelation that lead him down a different path? Due to the nature of my play sessions and the nature of the ongoing lives of the cast, I sometimes wouldn't see someone in game for several real life days at a time, causing myself to legitimately miss them and wonder what they're getting up to. These small somber moments of longing to see them again couldn't have prepared me for the great sadness and emptiness brought about by the sudden ending, which drilled home just how much I cared each and every one of them, and the fact that I'd likely never see them again.
That is to say, at least not without spinning up another save file, which just feels wrong to me. No one should ever get to know every facet of every person in their lives, there's a certain beauty in knowing that you can't possibly know everyone's experience holistically. People fade in and out of our lives, only appearing briefly to give an update on themselves from their own perception. This game represents a series of those brief encounters, wrapped up in an experience that is brief in and of itself, even when I intentionally stretch it out over a longer period of time, as though trying to get the most out of my own similarly brief windows in time. There is no going back to summer vacation, there is no going back to 1975, there is no going back to Boku no Natsuyasumi 2 for me, and I've made my peace with that.
wonderful little game. very relaxing and great environment. controls are a bit clunky and take a minute to get used to but this great game to just enjoy watching play out
jogando com a finalidade de aprender japones, mas a atmosfera desse jogo realmente me fisgou bastante
Good ambience