Ghibli-Like Yokai Inn Game Reveals Its Graphics Overhaul
3 min readThe graphics refresh for Yokai Inn was showcased in a recent video, which highlights the game’s new art style and some new game play.
The upcoming Yokai Inn indie simulation game recently revealed its graphics overhaul in a new trailer. Officially announced at the June 2021 E3 Expo and described as a Ghibli-style Stardew Valley, Yokai Inn is a simulation game where players take shelter in a rundown, abandoned inn that comes to life with spirits and monsters once the sun sets – much like the Studio Ghibli film Spirited Away. The player is then offered the opportunity to repair and run the inn by doing activities like maintaining the furnace, sweeping floors, farming, cooking, fishing, mining and crafting. Along the journey to grow and expand their inn, players will be able to interact with the yokai patrons and other NPCs.
Although the game experienced an official reveal, its development has seen some issues since. After fans’ confusion between Yokai Inn and another indie game project called Frontier Story, Yokai Inn developer ShibaPixels promised to change the art style of their game. Both games have a detailed pixel art style, and comparisons between the two graphics have been made. ShibaPixels admitted that the art style for Yokai Inn was influenced by Frontier Project and issued an apology for the near-identical graphics.
A video posted to Wholesome Games‘ Youtube account now reveals the graphics refresh for Yokai Inn. The game’s new trailer showcases its new art style along with some new gameplay. In the trailer, the main character is told by a fox spirit named Kazuya to bring a delicious dish to the town’s summer festival. The rest of the trailer shows gameplay of how the character farms ingredients for the dish, moves about the town by train and riding a deer, and converses with new characters – including a yokai named Mai that wants to go to the festival. At the end of the trailer, the main character is seen with Mai at the summer festival and offering Kazuya their dish of buri daikon.
Based on the graphics shown in the Yokai Inn trailer, the new art style appears almost indistinguishable from its original art style. The changes are subtle, with the most obvious ones involving the main character. Their eyes, clothes, and hairstyle have been altered to look less like the main character from Frontier Story. Other differences include small adjustments in the NPCs’ designs and the game’s color palette, which has seem to have changed slightly. Perhaps more changes will be made, seeing as Yokai Inn still lacks a release date.
Regardless of the art style modification, the trailer’s highlighted gameplay looks both fun and enchanting. The dialogue with the game’s various NPCs looks especially promising. Hopefully Yokai Inn will be able to appease the frustration many players have concerning the often dull dialogue with NPCs in games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons. In any event, fans of Japanese folklore and pixelated indie games should stay posted on Yokai Inn’s development.
Source: Wholesome Games/Youtube
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