The Caligula Effect | |
---|---|
Developer(s) |
|
Publisher(s) |
|
Director(s) | Takuya Yamanaka |
Artist(s) | Oguchi |
Writer(s) | Tadashi Satomi |
Composer(s) | Tsukasa Masuko |
Engine | Unreal Engine 4 (Overdose) |
Platform(s) | |
Release | |
Genre(s) | Role-playing |
The Caligula Effect [lower-alpha 3] is a role-playing video game developed by Aquria. It was released for the PlayStation Vita in Japan in June 2016, and by Atlus USA in North America and Europe in May 2017. A remake of the game, The Caligula Effect: Overdose [lower-alpha 4] , was released for the PlayStation 4 in Japan in May 2018, and worldwide by NIS America in March 2019 for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Windows. An anime adaptation of the same name premiered in April 2018.
A sequel, The Caligula Effect 2, was released for the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in Japan on June 24, 2021. [1]
The Caligula Effect is a role-playing video game featuring turn-based combat in dungeon environments. Combat is triggered upon encountering enemy characters during dungeon exploration. [2] A party can consist of four playable characters maximum. There are 9 main characters that can be used in the party as the story progresses. Any NPC can be recruited into the party after obtaining level 2 or higher association. Three commands can be chained together per turn for each party member and can preview its effect before initiating. Players can raise association with other NPCs by interacting with them. Certain NPCs are not accessible until specific NPC association is gained. After reaching a certain amount of association, side-quests are unlocked for specific NPCs.
The Caligula Effect is set in a virtual reality program known as "Mobius", created so people can escape pain in their lives within reality and live in an idyllic high school setting, forced to live out their 3 years indefinitely. The main protagonist is one of the group who realizes that they are in a virtual world, and ally with the former keeper of Mobius, "Aria" to form the "Go-Home Club", a group dedicated to escaping from Mobius and its god-like overseer program, a vocal program called "μ". They oppose the "Ostinato Musicians", a group who supports μ and sees the Go-Home Club as traitors. [2] [3]
The Caligula Effect was developed by FuRyu and published worldwide by Atlus USA. It was directed by Takuya Yamanaka, with character designs by Oguchi. It was written by Tadashi Satomi, who had previously worked on the first three games in the Persona series – Revelations: Persona , Persona 2: Innocent Sin and Persona 2: Eternal Punishment . The music was written by former Megami Tensei series composer Tsukasa Masuko, and the theme song is performed by a three-person group: Eriko Nakamura, Emi Nitta and Yuka Ōtsubo. The developers define Caligula as a "next-generation juvenile RPG" focusing on modern pathology and trauma. [2] [4]
The characters were said to violate a variety of taboos, with Satomi specifically creating one that the team were initially wanting to avoid. The title stems from the psychological term "Caligula effect", referring to the want to see and do prohibited things. Despite its prominence and tying into the gameplay experience, the word itself is not mentioned within the game's context. [2] [4]
The game was first announced on February 23, 2016 in that week's issue of Famitsu , along with its release date. [5] At the time it was announced, it was said to be 50% complete. [2] A teaser trailer and the first screenshots was released soon after the initial announcement. [6]
The game was released by FuRyu for the PlayStation Vita in Japan on June 23, 2016, [7] and was released by Atlus USA in North America on May 2, 2017, and in Europe on May 9. [8] Initially, Atlus USA did not rule out a physical release of The Caligula Effect through Limited Run Games, [9] but eventually decided against it. [10] An anime adaptation, Caligula , premiered in Japan in April 2018. [11]
In November 2017, a remake titled The Caligula Effect: Overdose was announced. It was released in Japan for the PlayStation 4 on May 18, 2018, and by NIS America for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Windows in North America on March 12, 2019, and in Europe on March 15, 2019. [12] The remake, developed by the studio Historia using Unreal Engine 4, features upgraded visuals and gameplay, a new playable female protagonist, new endings, and more supporting characters. [13] [14] [15]
Aggregator | Score |
---|---|
Metacritic | Vita: 58/100 [16] PS4: 64/100 [17] NS: 60/100 [18] |
Publication | Score |
---|---|
Destructoid | 4/10 [19] |
Famitsu | Vita: 30/40 [20] PS4: 33/40 [21] |
The Caligula Effect received "mixed or average reviews" from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic. [16] [17] [18] Famitsu scored the original version of the game with a 30 out of 40 rating, with an 8/7/8/7 out of 10 breakdown among the four reviewers. [20] Josh Tolentino from Destructoid gave the game 4/10, praising the fresh idea and the battle system of the game, but criticized the shallow character bonding system, the long length of battles and the poor performance of the game on the PlayStation Vita. [22]
The remake fared better among reviewers, with Famitsu giving it with a higher 33 out of 40 score, consisting of ratings from four critics who individually gave it 9/8/8/8. [21]
It was the second best selling video game in Japan during its opening week, with 31,243 copies sold. [23] During its second week, it dropped to eleventh place, with an additional 7,289 copies sold. [24] The PlayStation 4 version sold 20,399 copies within its first week on sale in Japan, placing it at first on the all format sales chart. [25]
Vanillaware Ltd. is a Japanese video game developer based in Osaka. An independent company, it was founded in 2002 under the name Puraguru by George Kamitani, a game developer who had previously worked at Capcom and Atlus, and directed Princess Crown (1997) for the Sega Saturn. Beginning as a small studio developing Fantasy Earth: The Ring of Dominion for Enix, in 2004 the company moved to Osaka, Kansai, and changed its name. Kamitani wanted Vanillaware to create successor projects to Princess Crown, beginning with Odin Sphere.
Dokapon Kingdom is a role-playing video game developed by Sting Entertainment for the PlayStation 2. It was released by Examu in Japan on November 22, 2007 and by Atlus in North America on October 14, 2008. It is a remake of the 1994 Super Famicom title, Dokapon 3・2・1 – Arashi o Yobu Yuujou. The PlayStation 2 version was later re-released in Japan on November 20, 2008. A port to the Wii was released on July 31, 2008, as Dokapon Kingdom for Wii. The Wii version was published in North America by Atlus on October 14, 2008, and in Europe by BigBen Interactive on March 26, 2010. A Nintendo Switch remake published by Compile Heart, titled Dokapon Kingdom: Connect, was released in Japan on April 13, 2023, which was followed by an international release by Idea Factory on May 9, 2023. A Windows port of the remake was released on September 7, 2023.
Science Adventure is a multimedia series consisting of interconnected science fiction stories, created mainly by Mages, Nitroplus, and Chiyomaru Studio. The main entries mostly take the form of visual novel video games, but side entries span across several different mediums.
Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below is a hack and slash game developed by Omega Force and published by Square Enix. It was released for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in Japan in February 2015, and in North America, Australia and Europe only for PlayStation 4 in October 2015. It was later released for Microsoft Windows in December 2015. The game received generally positive reviews, with a sequel Dragon Quest Heroes II being released in Japan during May 2016. Dragon Quest Heroes would later be released with the sequel in a compilation for Nintendo Switch in Japan.
Etrian Odyssey is a dungeon crawler role-playing video game series. It is primarily developed and published by Atlus and currently owned by Sega. By 2016, the series had sold a combined total of 1.5 million copies worldwide.
Digimon World: Next Order is a role-playing video game in the Digimon franchise and the sixth game in the Digimon World series. The game is developed by B.B. Studio and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The game was released for PlayStation Vita in Japan on March 17, 2016. The game would later release for PlayStation 4 in North America and PAL regions in January 2017, and in Japan on February 26, 2017 as Digimon World: Next Order International Edition. Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows versions were released on February 22, 2023.
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is a video game developed by Aquria and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Windows PC, based on the Japanese light novel series, Sword Art Online. It is the fourth video game in the series and the successor to Sword Art Online: Lost Song. Hollow Realization was released on October 27, 2016, in Japan, and on November 8, 2016, for North American and European territories. A Nintendo Switch version of the game was released on April 25, 2019, in Japan, and worldwide on May 24, 2019.
Root Letter, stylized as √Letter, is a 2016 visual novel adventure video game developed and published by Kadokawa Games for PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Microsoft Windows, Android, and iOS. It is the first entry in the Kadokawa Game Mystery brand, and was followed by Root Film in 2020.
Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is a 2016 action role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom and published by NIS America. A part of the Ys series, it was first released in Japan by Falcom for the PlayStation Vita in July 2016, with later worldwide releases for PlayStation 4, Windows, Nintendo Switch, Amazon Luna, Stadia and PlayStation 5. An abridged version for Android and iOS, Ys VIII Mobile, is also scheduled for release. Ys VIII had sold over 500,000 copies by the end of 2018. The game was followed up by Ys IX: Monstrum Nox in 2019.
Yomawari: Night Alone is a survival horror video game created and developed by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation Vita and Steam. The game was released in Japan on October 29, 2015 and in English in October 2016. Two sequels, Yomawari: Midnight Shadows and Yomawari: Lost in The Dark were released in the following years.
Fate/Extella: The Umbral Star is an action video game developed and published by Marvelous. The game is the third installment in the universe that began with Fate/Extra and the second one to be released outside of Japan. It was first announced in March 2016 and released in Japan in November 2016 for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita consoles; its release in North America and Europe occurred in January 2017. Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows versions were released in July 2017 for all three regions. The game's plot involved the conflict between two factions led by Nero and Tamamo from Fate/Extra fighting each other over control of the Moon Cell and the Holy Grail. They are soon joined by a third faction led by Altera who has the intent of destroying civilization as well as Saber from Fate/stay night who wishes to stop the conflict between the three factions. A direct sequel titled Fate/Extella Link was released for PS4 in Japan in 2018, and later worldwide for PS4, Switch and PC in 2019.
Steins;Gate: Linear Bounded Phenogram is a visual novel video game developed and published by 5pb. for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PlayStation Vita in 2013, and later ported to iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Microsoft Windows; the PlayStation 4 and Windows versions were released internationally by Spike Chunsoft in 2019. The game is part of the Science Adventure series, and a spin-off from the 2009 game Steins;Gate. It consists of ten side stories set in different realities, and follow different Steins;Gate characters. Unlike previous entries in the Steins;Gate series, the game is nearly devoid of interactive narrative.
Steins;Gate: My Darling's Embrace is a visual novel video game developed by 5pb., originally released for the Xbox 360 in 2011. It has since been ported to several other platforms, and was released by Spike Chunsoft in English for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Microsoft Windows in 2019. It is part of the Science Adventure series, and a spin-off from the 2009 game Steins;Gate. The game is a romantic comedy set in a different world from the one in the original Steins;Gate, where the player builds romantic relationships with Steins;Gate characters. By making certain choices and interacting with the player character's cell phone, the player can affect the direction of the plot.
Dynasty Warriors 9 is a hack-and-slash video game developed by Omega Force and published by Koei Tecmo. It was released in February 2018 for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. It received generally negative reviews from critics.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II is a 2014 role-playing video game developed by Nihon Falcom. The game is a part of the Trails series, itself a part of the larger The Legend of Heroes series, and serves as a sequel to The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel.
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk is a dungeon crawler role playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released in Japan in June 2016 for the PlayStation Vita and in September 2017 for the PlayStation 4. The game was then released internationally on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Microsoft Windows in September 2018. It was followed by Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society.
Yomawari: Midnight Shadows is a survival horror video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita and Microsoft Windows via Steam. The game is a sequel to Yomawari: Night Alone, which originally released in 2015 in Japan. It was released in Japan on August 24, 2017 and in western territories in fall 2017. It was released in Asia with Traditional Chinese subtitles under Sega.
Steins;Gate Elite is a science fiction visual novel and interactive movie video game, part of the Science Adventure series. It was developed by 5pb. for PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows and iOS, and was released in September 2018 in Japan and in February 2019 internationally. It is an updated, fully animated remake of the 2009 game Steins;Gate, using footage from the anime adaptation of the original game along with newly produced animation by White Fox.
Attack on Titan 2, known in PAL regions as A.O.T. 2, is an action hack and slash video game based on Hajime Isayama's manga series of the same name released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Windows, Xbox One, and Stadia.
Yo-kai Watch 4 is an action role-playing video game developed and published by Level-5 for the Nintendo Switch. As indicated by the name, it is the fourth game of the main series of Yo-kai Watch video games; unlike the preceding Yo-kai Watch 3, 4 was initially released only as a single version in Japan in June 2019. An enhanced version titled Yo-kai Watch 4++ was released for the Switch and PlayStation 4 in Japan in December 2019. Its full name is "Yo-kai Watch 4: We're Looking Up At The Same Sky", translated from "妖怪ウォッチ4: ぼくらは同じ空を見上げている".