Incredible Crisis
A family races home through chaotic minigames.
Incredible Crisis is a PlayStation game developed by Polygon Magic and published in Japan by Tokuma Shoten in 1999. It follows four members of a working-class Japanese family through a series of bizarre minigames as they try to get home for their grandmother's birthday. The game features music by the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra and was directed by Takayuki Watanabe.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Polygon Magic
- Director
- Takayuki Watanabe
- Designer
- Kenichi Nishi; Takayuki Watanabe
- Composer
- Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra
- Genre
- Action
- Modes
- Single-player
- Platforms
- PlayStation; Arcade
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Incredible Crisis contains 24 levels (26 in the Japanese version) divided into four parts, each focusing on a different Tanamatsuri family member: Taneo, Etsuko, Tsuyoshi, and Ririka. Each level is a minigame that must be cleared to advance, ranging from action-based tasks like dodging obstacles and rhythm games to puzzle-based objectives such as quizzes and finding sale items. A stress meter fills from mistakes, approaching obstacles, or time running out; a full meter costs a life, and extra lives are earned after chapters. Completed minigames can be replayed from the main menu.
Plot
At the Tanamatsuri home, grandmother Hatsu wants everyone home early for her birthday, but the family has forgotten their promises to her. The game follows father Taneo, mother Etsuko, daughter Ririka, and son Tsuyoshi as obstacles block their return with presents. In the first chapter, Taneo is at work when his supervisor orders him and his peers to dance. After a frantic dance, his co-workers flee, and Taneo sees a giant boulder-like statue part crash through the wall. He runs from it down corridors to an elevator, where debris falls as he tries to activate an emergency stop. The boulder shoots onto the elevator, causing an explosion that sends Taneo out a window. He grabs a flagpole, but it breaks, and he falls, slowed by various objects, landing safely. The boulder emerges again but he evades it; a piece of the statue then knocks him unconscious. He wakes in an ambulance strapped to a stretcher; paramedics ask questions to check his thinking. After answering correctly, they accidentally send him out of the ambulance into traffic. He dodges cars, breaks free, but crashes into the boulder. A woman helps him, then leaves; Taneo follows her onto a Ferris wheel and gives her an erotic back-massage. She jumps onto a helicopter, revealing a bomb behind Taneo, which explodes and sends him onto the helicopter.
Development
Polygon Magic developed Incredible Crisis. Kenichi Nishi, a director at Love-de-Lic and future co-founder of Skip Ltd., handled design and script. Art director Naozumi Yamaguchi, formerly of Human Entertainment, later worked on Sega projects such as Phantasy Star Universe. Titus Interactive acquired foreign publishing rights and showcased the game as their only PlayStation title at E3 2000. Virgin Interactive obtained exclusive European distribution rights. Two minigames—bomb disarming and karaoke—were removed from the localized release, reportedly due to heavy reliance on kanji and Japanese. The Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra composed the score; a soundtrack CD, Tondemo Crisis! Original Soundtrack, was released in Japan by Avex Trax on July 23, 1999.
Reception
Media Create reported that the PlayStation version sold 70,760 units in Japan by the end of 1999, ranking 184th for the year. Famitsu scored it 29 out of 40. Metacritic indicated "favorable" reviews. Eric Bratcher of NextGen wrote, "It doesn't last long, but everyone on the planet should play Incredible Crisis at least once." The game was a runner-up for GameSpot's annual "Best Game Story" and "Best Puzzle Game" awards among console games. It won "Best Other Game" in both Editors' and Readers' Choice at IGN's Best of 2000 Awards, and was a runner-up for Story. It was nominated for "Most Innovative Game of the Year" and "Game with the Most Laughs" at The Electric Playground's Blister Awards 2000, losing to Jet Grind Radio and Samba de Amigo respectively. Jess Ragan of 1Up.com retroactively called it an innovative introduction to mini-game compilations, but noted it had been outclassed by Nintendo's Wario Ware series.
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