Yo-Kai Watch is an odd game to me. I remember playing it a long time ago, and enjoying it so much I went out of my way to complete the medallium. But it’s been so long since I played Yo-Kai Watch that I completely forgot what the game was like. I’m a big fan of Monster Tamers, and I’ve just been in the mood to play some good ones, so why not finally replay Yo-Kai Watch?
Firstly, one thing I absolutely adore about Yo-Kai Watch is how cozy it is. You’re in a small town for the majority of the game, exploring around, seeing whatever silly hijinks occurs with Yokai. While I definitely enjoyed exploring the world of the game, I also just found it really relaxing. The game’s story also adds to the sort of cozy nature of the game. Until the last chapter of the game, it’s very low stakes. Honestly, each chapter feels like a single episode of a cartoon you’d watch on a Saturday Morning as a kid, and not many other games I’ve played had this sort of vibe. While I didn’t grow up with this game, the structure of the game’s story still gave me a sense of nostalgia.
And mechanically, Yo-Kai Watch is a really interesting game. I think this is the only Monster Tamer I’ve played where you don’t directly control the monsters themselves. And I can see how people don’t like that, there’s a bit of luck that goes into this as you have to hope that your Yokai do what you want them to. Though I sort of like this. It makes the Yokai feel like alive in a way, at least more alive than the creatures in other Monster Tamers. And on top of all of this, there are ways that you can impact the battle. Rotating out which Yokai are in battle, using items, or making your Yokai use special moves. The battles in Yokai Watch are really interesting, though only some of the late game bosses made me heavily focus on them.
And as I described somewhat earlier, I really like Yo-Kai Watch’s story. It’s not anything too complex, in fact it’s extremely simple. But that simplicity works so well for the general vibes that Yo-Kai Watch has. Honestly the final chapter of the game kind of came out of left field, it’s much more serious compared to the rest of the game. Though yet again, I think it’s good, and the actual ending of the game is kind of unique in a way. The story creates this nice vibe that I think I’ve done my best to describe. It’s really cozy, and it does feel like I’m on a Summer Vacation.
I’ve described this earlier but I’m a big fan of Monster Tamers. My first ever game was Pokemon, and I’ve also played the likes of Shin Megami Tensei, and Digimon. One of my favorite aspects of Monster Tamers is the aspect of collecting them, trying to get as many as I possibly can. And that’s where I have a bit of confliction with Yo-Kai Watch. It feels so difficult to actually befriend Yokai. It’s already a bit hard to find specific Yokai you’re hunting for, and actually befriending them is much harder. Sometimes it takes 20 minutes just to hunt a single Yo-Kai, and I’m unsure if that’s a skill issue on my part or not. The odds just feel ridiculously low, even after having a friendship boosting yokai and giving the yokai its favorite food. Though this being an issue for me is probably not that big of a deal. The game definitely seems to push the player to relax, and take things slow, which is something I’m unable to do.
As well, the actual cast of Yokai in Yo-Kai Watch is odd. There are some absolute amazing and creative designs in Yo-Kai Watch. Though saying that, it’s really unfortunate to me that a lot of my favorite Yo-Kai are locked to postgame only, so I don’t get a chance to use them. With this in mind, there’s a noticeable amount of Yo-Kai that are reskins of other Yo-Kai. The first noticeable one is Castelius, that has 4 different versions. But theres also like likes of Illoo, Wiglin, and Heheheel. While in a typical RPG I’d be completely fine with enemy reskins, in a Monster Tamer I’m not particularly fond of it. Unfortunately, it motivates me less to complete the game’s medallium, as part of why I enjoy trying to find every creature in a Monster Tamer is to see each unique design. Ultimately this is a personal thing, but I want to at least acknowledge it.
Yet again, Yo-Kai Watch is a really interesting Monster Tamer to look back on. It’s not perfect, and I imagine that the later sequels polish the game in some form, but Yo-Kai Watch is still a really fun game. I think once I get around to playing them, I should be able to better my perspective from having played this one. I’m just glad that I finally got around to replaying this game, it’s such a unique little title.
Firstly, one thing I absolutely adore about Yo-Kai Watch is how cozy it is. You’re in a small town for the majority of the game, exploring around, seeing whatever silly hijinks occurs with Yokai. While I definitely enjoyed exploring the world of the game, I also just found it really relaxing. The game’s story also adds to the sort of cozy nature of the game. Until the last chapter of the game, it’s very low stakes. Honestly, each chapter feels like a single episode of a cartoon you’d watch on a Saturday Morning as a kid, and not many other games I’ve played had this sort of vibe. While I didn’t grow up with this game, the structure of the game’s story still gave me a sense of nostalgia.
And mechanically, Yo-Kai Watch is a really interesting game. I think this is the only Monster Tamer I’ve played where you don’t directly control the monsters themselves. And I can see how people don’t like that, there’s a bit of luck that goes into this as you have to hope that your Yokai do what you want them to. Though I sort of like this. It makes the Yokai feel like alive in a way, at least more alive than the creatures in other Monster Tamers. And on top of all of this, there are ways that you can impact the battle. Rotating out which Yokai are in battle, using items, or making your Yokai use special moves. The battles in Yokai Watch are really interesting, though only some of the late game bosses made me heavily focus on them.
And as I described somewhat earlier, I really like Yo-Kai Watch’s story. It’s not anything too complex, in fact it’s extremely simple. But that simplicity works so well for the general vibes that Yo-Kai Watch has. Honestly the final chapter of the game kind of came out of left field, it’s much more serious compared to the rest of the game. Though yet again, I think it’s good, and the actual ending of the game is kind of unique in a way. The story creates this nice vibe that I think I’ve done my best to describe. It’s really cozy, and it does feel like I’m on a Summer Vacation.
I’ve described this earlier but I’m a big fan of Monster Tamers. My first ever game was Pokemon, and I’ve also played the likes of Shin Megami Tensei, and Digimon. One of my favorite aspects of Monster Tamers is the aspect of collecting them, trying to get as many as I possibly can. And that’s where I have a bit of confliction with Yo-Kai Watch. It feels so difficult to actually befriend Yokai. It’s already a bit hard to find specific Yokai you’re hunting for, and actually befriending them is much harder. Sometimes it takes 20 minutes just to hunt a single Yo-Kai, and I’m unsure if that’s a skill issue on my part or not. The odds just feel ridiculously low, even after having a friendship boosting yokai and giving the yokai its favorite food. Though this being an issue for me is probably not that big of a deal. The game definitely seems to push the player to relax, and take things slow, which is something I’m unable to do.
As well, the actual cast of Yokai in Yo-Kai Watch is odd. There are some absolute amazing and creative designs in Yo-Kai Watch. Though saying that, it’s really unfortunate to me that a lot of my favorite Yo-Kai are locked to postgame only, so I don’t get a chance to use them. With this in mind, there’s a noticeable amount of Yo-Kai that are reskins of other Yo-Kai. The first noticeable one is Castelius, that has 4 different versions. But theres also like likes of Illoo, Wiglin, and Heheheel. While in a typical RPG I’d be completely fine with enemy reskins, in a Monster Tamer I’m not particularly fond of it. Unfortunately, it motivates me less to complete the game’s medallium, as part of why I enjoy trying to find every creature in a Monster Tamer is to see each unique design. Ultimately this is a personal thing, but I want to at least acknowledge it.
Yet again, Yo-Kai Watch is a really interesting Monster Tamer to look back on. It’s not perfect, and I imagine that the later sequels polish the game in some form, but Yo-Kai Watch is still a really fun game. I think once I get around to playing them, I should be able to better my perspective from having played this one. I’m just glad that I finally got around to replaying this game, it’s such a unique little title.