Over ten years ago, Square Enix releasedThe World Ends With Youto the world on the Nintendo DS. Players experienced the Reapers' Games for the first time, following the story of Neku Sakuraba as he competes in a twisted form of the afterlife in a fictional Shibuya. The game developed a bit of a cult following, especially when it was re-released onto the Nintendo Switch with aFinal Mixversion. When asequel toThe World Ends With Youwas announcedlast year, fans rejoiced that they would soon get to return to the Reapers' Games for a brand new story, new visuals, and new gameplay elements.
Fans finally have therelease date forNEO: The World Ends With You, with the game launching in just a few months. As a recent trailer has shown off, the sequel will also be set in a fictional version of the Shibuya district in Tokyo, Japan. Now that this area is appearing in yet another game, it begs the question: Why had Shibuya become so popular with game developers? FromThe World Ends With YoutoPersona 5toKingdom Hearts, Shibuya has been a popular locale in several video games.
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Shibuya, In Real Life
While the name “Shibuya” may be familiar to some, it is not as immediately recognizable to people outside of Japan as Tokyo might be. Shibuya itself is a special wardwithin Tokyo. The area contains two of the largest rail stations in the country, Shibuya Station and Shinjuku Station. As a result, Shibuya has become a major finance and shopping district. It is considered to be one of Tokyo’s major destinations with its array of shops, restaurants, and nightclubs. Shibuya also tends to be the birthplace of several fashion and music trends.
One of Shibuya’s most recognizable features is a massive pedestrian crossing that can see hundreds, or even thousands, of people crossing at a time. Often said to be one of the busiest pedestrian intersections in the world, it is a marvel that it all runs so smoothly. Shibuya Crossing is something akin toTimes Square in New York City, with dozens of advertising signs all over and bright neon lights. Since the immediate area around Shibuya Crossing is so high-pace and energetic, it is definitely an attention-grabber.
Interestingly enough, several games that feature Shibuya are from Square Enix, the studio behind the massiveFinal Fantasyfranchise,Dragon Quest, andKingdom Hearts. After the 2003 merger that combined the companies Square and Enix, the newly formedSquare Enixbased its headquarters in Shibuya, Tokyo. Today, Square Enix is based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which is a neighboring ward of Shibuya’s. In all likelihood, the company having a headquarters only a few blocks away from the famous Shibuya Crossing left an impression on some of the developers.
Shibuya, In Video Games
Even though Shibuya, Tokyo is a very real place, it has seen its fair share of video game adaptations. Some games portray the area as realistically as possible, like with428: Shibuya Scramble. This visual novel adventure, developed by Spike Chunsoft, is set within the titular district, and the developers actually took over 120,000 photographs to provide backgrounds for the game. Some games simply feature Shibuya as an in-game location, like withJet Set Radio, severalShin Megami TenseiandPersonagames, andTokyo Mirage Sesssions #FE.
As for Square Enix,The World Ends With Youhas been a game with a setting almost entirely based on Shibuya, although in a clearly fictional way. While geography and architecture may be the same, several names for stores and buildings have been changed. For example, the 109 department store in real-life Shibuya is now the 104 department store inTWEWY-Shibuya. With players returning to the Reapers' Games inNEO: The World Ends With You, it seems that the sequel’s version of the Tokyo ward will be more realistic than the first game.
However, Square Enix’s obsession with Shibuya becomes apparent whenKingdom Heartsgets involved. For a game series that, while complicated, always focused on Disney-inspired worlds, manyKingdom Heartsfans were shocked when a secret movie at the end ofKingdom Hearts IIIshowed Sora in a strangely modern world. As it turns out, Sora has found himself in Shibuya, and the version that appears inTWEWYat that. Though this will likely have something to do with theteased Worlds of Fiction in futureKingdom Heartsgames, it is another instance of this popular cultural hub appearing in a video game.
With manyRPGs likeThe World Ends With Youshowing off different sides of Shibuya, it could be confusing as to why developers seem to have such an interest in the Tokyo ward. Shibuya is a popular shopping and entertainment destination in Tokyo. Therefore, when Japanese developers want to set a game somewhere in the capital city of Japan, Shibuya is the most logical choice. For a comparison to the United States, it would be like a developer setting a game in New York City, and featuring Queens or Manhattan as an in-game location. For developers that want to set a game in a modern major city, it just makes sense to include one of its most popular locales.
