The original DS version of The World Ends With You may be one of the most ambitious handheld games ever created. Featuring a battle system that capitalized upon the promise of the touch screen in spades as well as the system's second screen, no other game has wrung out as much excellence from the Nintendo DS in quite the same way. Its battles are frenetic and like nothing else once a player finds their preferred loadout of abilities and difficulty settings and the story is one of the most engaging that Square Enix has ever released.
The sequel to this game, Neo: The World Ends With You is set for release on PS4 and Nintendo Switch on July 27th. As this next entry in the series is now 14 years past the release of the original and its ports, many players have missed out on this story. It's all good though, because while Square Enix may have dragged its feet in getting around to making this game they're doing so now in style. In addition to Neo's release, Square Enix has released an anime adaptation of the original game. The World Ends With You: The Animation, is the perfect way to introduce the uninitiated to the story of Neku and friends in Shibuya as they progress through the Reaper's Game. In addition to being a solid anime, the series is sure to please long-time fans with its cornucopia of Easter Eggs.
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Starting at the top for those new to the series, The World Ends With You centers around Japanese teenager Neku Sakuraba and his iconic headphones. Neku is a bit of a jerk, opting to block out everything around him and avoid other people. However, he soon is thrust into a situation known as "The Reaper's Game," where he must fight for his very existence. The game forces Neku to work as a team with the other participants of the game, requiring that he listen to the people around him and actually accept their help in different situations. It's a tale that centers around the angst of youth and watching Neku grow through his interactions with others while trying to solve the mystery of exactly how he ended up in the game is highly satisfying and (despite its weirdness) is one of the more grounded tales that Square Enix has ever told.
One of the best parts of The World Ends With You is the setting of Shibuya. Much like how New Mexico is practically a character in and of itself in Breaking Bad, Shibuya is an integral part of the story for The World Ends With You. From the locations, cultural landmarks, and the citizens that inhabit the city, everything works together to fully form the experience for the player. The art style as well really compliments the setting, with a graffiti-esque aesthetic and a recreation of Shibuya that makes it feel like the city is surrounding the player in a way that's awe-inducing but also slightly ominous.
This all sounds well and good, but if The World Ends With You is so great, why did it have only a cult following for so long? Clearly, the team behind Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy had made something special here, but the platform the game released on at the time alienated many. Throw in the fact that most people do not have a Nintendo DS anymore and those who missed the game back in 2007 only had the mobile and Switch ports to try, which are solid ports but lose a bit of the magic at times in their awkward control schemes. This is why The World Ends With You: The Animation is vital to the series. The anime adaptation serves to help bridge the gap in knowledge for new players while also serving up a whopping basket of references and nods to the original for longtime fans.
So how does the anime do overall? While it certainly has some odd pacing at times, it ultimately recognizes what made the original story so compelling. The art for example captures the feel of the DS classic while also making it feel entirely fresh through the combination of 2D and 3D animation. A lot happens over the course of the original game, and the anime does an admirable job of picking out the most important pieces and interactions that change Neku and friends in their struggle.
With the last episode of the anime on Hulu and a new demo for the upcoming sequel both dropping this weekend, there's never been a better time to take a trip to Shibuya. The anime might be a bit easier to understand if you've played the games before, but it's also welcoming enough to newcomers that it could also be just the thing to boost the franchise's popularity. In a time when people in the world are starting to be able to be around each other again, this is just the story to break those social distancing blues.