Heir to samurai films or a set of filters? Film tour of Trek to Yomi

Trek to Yomi is a quiet game that makes a loud statement about its origins. It’s not often (almost never) that you come across games that are inspired by classic black and white samurai films. The last thing that comes to my mind is Ghost of Tsushima and its graphic mod “Kurosawa”, which attached a b/w filter and grain to the game. And even without him Ghost of Tsushima – a great game and a wonderful tribute to samurai cinema. I talked about this in one of my first blogs.

Ghost of Tsushima

It would be very incorrect to compare these two games, because they have completely different scales. Ghost of Tsushima – a sandbox that offers a lot of possibilities, and Trek to Yomi — linear race for 4-5 hours with limited resources. Flying Wild Hog – same opinion. They are pleased to be compared to such high-profile projects, but due to comparisons, players may have the wrong expectations from the game. Nevertheless, the developers do not skimp on bold words:

One of my main hopes and goals when creating Trek to Yomi was to inspire people to watch classic Japanese films. The entire game is a tribute to Akira Kurosawa. I definitely recommend anyone who hasn’t seen these films yet to give it a try. These are old classics, but I think most of them are still worth watching today.

Leonard Menchiari Creative Director, Flying Wild Hog

Is that so?? Is it possible to call Trek to Yomi an exemplary monument to old cinema? Is it fair to say that this is a tribute to Akira Kurosawa?? And yet, why is there a section in the afterlife in the game?? Let’s take a look at today’s movie tour.

Disclaimer. In this article I will touch less on the gameplay of Trek to Yomi. I will only mention those points that relate directly to aesthetics or are related to samurai films. But for the general picture, I’ll outline:
Trek to Yomi is a side-scroller\beat ’em up in which you play as a samurai and use combinations to destroy packs of enemies, interrupting for collecting items and reduced puzzles.
For a more comprehensive understanding of the picture, you can watch the gameplay trailer above or read the review from Stopgame. Happy reading

Not a single Kurosawa is alive

Akira Kurosawa is an important name for world cinema. Without him there would be nothing Star Wars, neither "Dollar Trilogy" spaghetti westerns by Sergio Leone, nor a host of other films. It is a well-known fact that the first Western with Clint Eastwood was filmed under the influence of "Bodyguard" Kurosawa, and indirectly is his remake. But we must not forget that the Japanese director made not only films about samurai. During his 88 years, Akira Kurosawa made 33 films. Of these, only 9 are films about samurai, and 6 are black and white.

Yes, he took famous "Seven Samurai", "Throne in Blood", two "Bodyguards" And "Rashomon", which was recently re-released in Russia. But besides this, he also filmed social dramas in the spirit "Live", touched upon the plight of doctors in "Silent duel" And "Red Beard", reflected on the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in "August Rhapsody" and even received the Order of Friendship of Peoples “for his great personal contribution to the development of cultural ties between the Soviet Union and Japan” after filming "Dersu Uzala".

Therefore, it would be more appropriate to mention that Trek to Yomi refers to a very specific period of the Japanese director’s work, when he made films in the genre of Chambara (or chambara), which translates from Japanese as “sword fighting”. It is in this genre that Kurosawa’s samurai paintings were made.

He is the most famous director of Japanese cinema for the Western world. Therefore, most often when people say “movie about samurai”, it is Akira Kurasawa that comes to mind. But he was not the only one who took off the tyambara. His contemporary Kihati Okamoto made no less films about samurai. And Masaki Kobayashi for the mass audience undeservedly remains in the shadow of Kurosawa. Although he shot a first-class "Rebel" and mind-blowing "Harakiri", which is on my favorite films shelf.

Hideo Gosha and many of his films helped create the archetype of the samurai robber. Goshi’s films are no less important than Kurosawa’s films in terms of their influence, visual style and content, however they are not as well known in the West. Gosha’s films often depicted the struggle between traditional and modernist thought and were strongly anti-feudal. In the 1970s, he practically stopped filming chambara, switching to the yakuza genre. Among his most famous films are "Shogun’s Gold", "Murderer", "Three Outlaw Samurai" And "Gold Digging Samurai".

Yes, even before Kurosawa, films were made in the same genre, even in the era of silent films. For example "Snake" 1925 also tells about a young and daring samurai. And it also has all the ingredients that can be found in samurai films.

What does old samurai cinema consist of?

Samurai films typically focus on warriors who follow the bushido code, which involves honor, duty, and loyalty to their lord. Samurai are highly skilled in warfare and martial arts, and their willingness to die for honor can lead to seppuku – ritual suicide. In films such as "Harakiri", samurai are shown who take revenge for the injustice of those affected by strict rules and social norms. IN Trek to Yomi the main character Hiroki was a samurai apprentice as a child. During the attack on the castle by bandits, the teacher was killed, and the burden of defender of the city and the teacher’s daughter fell on young Hiroki. After the children grew up and got married, the main character continued to bear the duty of a protector. But as a result of deception, his bride was killed and the entire city was destroyed, which forced the samurai to take the path of revenge.

Also an important theme in samurai films is the conflict between ninjo (personal feelings and morality) and giri (duty and obligation). This internal conflict often puts the samurai in a situation of moral choice between his own conscience and social expectations. An example of such a dilemma would be "The Last Samurai", where the main character is faced with the need to choose between serving his emperor and his own beliefs. And in the game of choice, revenge is added to personal feelings and duty. Hiroki is asked several times which path he wants to take: stay with his beloved, protect citizens, or take the path of revenge and kill the bandit leader.

The samurai sword is also an important symbol, although the idealization of the samurai as an inseparable pair with a sword is often more fiction than reality. Changes in warfare and combat tactics are also reflected in cinema, showing the development and transformation of the samurai image and their fighting skills. In the game we do not have the opportunity to use any melee weapons other than a sword, but we are given a choice of 3 ranged weapons: throwing kunai, bow and gun. Although the thesis that a samurai must be able to handle any weapon is proven by the teacher Hiroki: he fights against bandits with a yari – a polearm resembling a spear.

Historical context

The historical context in such films helps to understand the culture and customs of the samurai in a particular era, such as the turbulent Sengoku period, the peaceful Tokugawa period when many samurai became ronin, or the Meiji period with its Westernization and decline of the samurai.

The developers strived for the game www.meccagamescasino.uk to be as authentic as possible not only to cinematic references, but also to the Edo period and Japanese samurai culture.

The role of nature

I talked about the role of nature in my blog about Ghost of Tsushima, but in short, nature not only serves as a beautiful backdrop to what is happening, but is also a full-fledged participant in samurai films. Firstly, few people know how to photograph nature, as the Japanese did. They endowed it with symbolism and the surroundings could further reveal the motivation or state of the characters. Secondly, if you look at it from a philosophical point of view, then all the problems that the heroes experience pale in comparison to nature. Taking general, often distant shots, directors exalt nature, showing the insignificance of people. Thanks to strictly verified frames and angles in Trek to Yomi you can witness panoramic landscapes more than once, in which both the enemies and the main character get lost. And at times, even during battles, the elements attract all attention.

For example, in this scene, attention is more focused on the rapid flow of the river and heavy rain than on the battle

Well, since we’re talking about personnel and techniques, it’s stupid to ignore the elephant in the china shop. Let’s talk about what the aesthetics of samurai cinema consists of, and what uses of it Trek to Yomi.

Aesthetics of samurai cinema

Captions

Titles of Japanese cinema are a special kind of beauty, and you are unlikely to see anything similar in Western cinema. Titles were often designed using traditional Japanese calligraphy, which added a special charm and respect for Japanese culture to the films. IN Trek to Yomi The introductory section and inscriptions in the main menu are stylized to match the credits.

Most often the name was written in large hieroglyphs (Seven Samurai)

And the people who took part in the creation of the film were indicated in dense rows (seven samurai)

Music

The titles must be accompanied by traditional music of national instruments:

Shamisen: A three-stringed Japanese musical instrument often used to create melancholic or tense moments.

Taiko: Japanese drums used to emphasize dramatic moments, especially in fight scenes.

Shakuhachi Flute: Used to create lyrical and meditative moments, adding depth and emotion to scenes.

Music in samurai films often plays the role of emotional resonance, enhancing the characters’ feelings: be it sadness, joy, anxiety or determination.

The developers did a great job with sound and music. Given the game’s thematic focus on samurai and the Edo era, the music incorporates elements of traditional Japanese scales and melodies, reflecting the cultural and historical context of the game.

Picture

The undeniable trump card of the game is how it looks. It’s rare to find such aesthetically pleasing games. The mise-en-scene of each location is built and verified as much as possible. Panoramas of cities, rocks, forests, inventive arenas – just like in its older brother – Ghost of Tsushima — I want to take screenshots at each location. To achieve the effect of an old movie, a black and white filter with high grain and contrast is used. If the color film used bright accent colors ("Ran" Akira Kurosawa’s incredibly beautiful cinema proves this), then black and white films used contrast and chiaroscuro to create depth and atmosphere. No one knows what the game’s locations would look like with color, but everyone can see how Trek to Yomi makes the most of fire, fog and shadow.

Now let’s try to try on the camera work on the rails of the game. Classic samurai cinema used two types of scenes: long and continuous ones allowed to preserve the drama and naturalness of the action; and sharp moments, accompanied by frequent cuts, were used to emphasize dynamic moments, especially in action scenes. There are not many staged moments or cut scenes in the game (to be precise, there are 3 of them), but 98% of the time we will see continuous walking without obvious cuts. In theory, this creates a feeling of continuity and flow, but given the gameplay features, in practice it makes you bored. But there are no questions about cut scenes. Timings are observed, pauses between strikes, accents on swords, everything is great, but there is a big drawback.

One of the most exciting things about samurai cinema is the sword fighting. Despite some of the awkwardness with which these scenes may look now, they remain the cornerstone of films. And if in Ghost of Tsushima (sorry for another comparison) there was first-class fight choreography, then in Trek to Yomi there is no such thing. No matter how cool the cutscene is, we will only be shown the swing of the sword and the final blow, but in the interval the game will throw you into a mandatory combat segment, but the combat system in it can hardly be called exciting. If you pause, you can see a frame similar to some movie. But everything collapses as soon as dynamics interfere with the game.

Best cutscene in the game. And that’s because the emphasis is not on the main character. It’s so good that you can see parallels with some duel from classic samurai films. Example below under the spoiler.

Seven Samurai (1954), dir. Akira Kurosawa

But in pauses the game is unconditionally beautiful. It is symmetrical and strict – as befits a work that follows the code of the warrior. Film frames often featured strict geometry that influenced the visual perception of the scene. It was also not uncommon for static cameras to create theatricality, while dynamic camera movements were used to convey action and drama.

Let’s summarize:

Trek to Yomi tries to be made like the old samurai movies, but it doesn’t have enough cutscenes to do so and lacks cinematography, close-ups and fluidity.

And it seems that, excluding cinematography and without touching the gameplay, we can call Trek to Yomi a worthy heir to the old cinema, but there is one “but” that does not fit into our equation.

The section with the afterlife spoils EVERYTHING

"Yomi" in the name of the game – this is the afterlife, where the main character ends up approximately in the middle due to his death. After falling into let’s call it "hell", Hiroki is forced to cut his way through a million ghost bandits, defeat a couple of youkai and return to the real world to avenge his love\honor\people.

If you look at the reviews of players, then around this moment they quit the game for the reason – boredom. Samurai romance disappears from the game. Landscapes of cities and nature are replaced by surreal buildings and images, and this spoils everything Trek to Yomi. I won’t touch on the gameplay aspect, I’ll just say that killing amorphous ghostly dummies is boring as hell.

But the afterlife section breaks the connection between the game and the old films. I’ve seen several dozen samurai films and do you know how many of them show the afterlife?? Not in any. This is because the films of that era tried to adhere to historical realism. Yes, they could enhance the drama with not entirely realistic scenes, but they did not touch on the topic of the afterlife. There are otherworldly creatures in films: sometimes the characters talk about life after death, and in "Throne in Blood" samurai even stumble upon the ghost of an old woman in a misty forest. And then, in the case of Kurosawa’s film, this is due to the original source, and not the desire of the director.

And certainly samurai in films don’t fight Yokai. (Eat Kibakichi 2004, in which a samurai fights monsters, but it is diametrically opposed to today’s game.)

In world and in particular Japanese cinema there are examples of the intersection of mysticism and samurai. For example, wonderful and colorful "Kaidan: A Tale of the Mysterious and the Terrible", directed by Masaki Kobayashi, contains several short stories in which the heroes are samurai. But, firstly, this is not a historical film, and secondly, it is in color. And in our case, it would be more logical to rely on b/w films. Yes, even if you don’t take this convention into account, Kaidan does not depict the afterlife.

Kaidan: A Tale of the Mysterious and the Terrible (1964), directed by Masaki Kobayashi
But if you turn Kaidan’s footage into black and white, it looks more like a game

What’s going on in Trek to Yomi more reminiscent of a phantasmagorical and dreamlike film "Dreams of Akira Kurosawa". There, please, are entire worlds that exist according to the logic of other dimensions. Or if you are a renowned cinema aesthete, you can contact "Hell" 1960. In it, the Japanese depicted hell itself. No samurai, but plenty of underworld imagery. The spectacle is not for everyone. But in it you can see somewhat similar images to the afterlife Trek to Yomi.

If you remove the supernatural part, then from Trek to Yomi there would be an exemplary film about a samurai – a violent warrior and his revenge. Perhaps the developers should have stopped at this option, because the section in Yomi only makes the game more difficult, confusing and boring.

End credits

Trek to Yomi – can be called a Kurosawa film (as the developers insist), but with a number of reservations voiced above. The game is uniquely aesthetic and creates the atmosphere of an old movie. But it suffers from gameplay decisions and the underworld section, as they ruin immersion and take away interest from the game. Are there any direct references to films of that era in the game?? Personally, I didn’t find it. But familiar images can be found here and there: a flag as in "Seven Samurai", arrows stuck into the gates as if in "Throne of Blood", the heroes stood in a pose as if in "Harakiri", but the episode reminds me "Sword of Destiny". You probably won’t be able to walk around the game looking for specific references, but you will be able to immerse yourself in the aesthetics of old Japanese cinema. If you are a fan of it, you can try to get acquainted with Trek to Yomi. And if you are a neophyte, it is better to start by watching films.

P.S.
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