Tokyo 42

71%
Game Brain Score Based on 202 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Tokyo 42 Game Cover
An isometric shooter with a ton of style, and a lack of complexity that works in its favour.
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"Tokyo 42" is a vibrant and stylish open-world shooter, where you must navigate a world of assassins and corporate intrigue after being framed for a crime. The city of Tokyo is your playground, filled with secrets, weapons, and AI-driven citizens. Use stealth, shooting, and parkour to complete missions and survive the technicolor bullet hell of this cyberpunk future.

  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

71%
Audience ScoreBased on 202 reviews
story33 positive mentions
atmosphere3 negative mentions
  • The game features a stunning art style and vibrant visuals that create an immersive atmosphere.
  • Gameplay offers a mix of stealth and action, allowing for multiple approaches to missions, which keeps the experience fresh.
  • The soundtrack complements the gameplay well, enhancing the overall experience with its engaging tunes.
  • The camera controls can be frustrating, often obstructing the player's view and making combat difficult.
  • The aiming system is imprecise, leading to frustrating moments where players die due to unclear hit detection.
  • The game can feel overly punishing with its one-hit kill mechanic, especially during challenging boss fights and enemy encounters.
  • story163 mentions

    The game's story is generally viewed as simplistic and unmemorable, serving primarily as a backdrop for the gameplay rather than a compelling narrative. While some players appreciate the comedic elements and the premise of being framed for a crime, many criticize the execution, noting that the plot feels rushed and lacks depth, particularly in later missions. Overall, the story is seen as a weak point, overshadowed by frustrating mission designs and repetitive gameplay mechanics.

    • “The story is interesting, characters are great, the aesthetic is beautiful, and the main story missions of just killing the person are fun.”
    • “I really enjoyed the game and its story until the last few missions since then it got to a point where I thought the developers didn't know better what to build in.”
    • “Without spoiling too much, the plot of this game is actually pretty good and keeps the player engaged in doing the missions.”
    • “The story is not very interesting and characters are forgettable.”
    • “The story deteriorates toward the end.”
    • “The storytelling is minimal which was to be expected, but the missions were uninteresting and the map layouts uninteresting.”
  • gameplay88 mentions

    The gameplay is characterized by a blend of engaging mechanics and a visually stunning aesthetic, reminiscent of classic arcade games, though it suffers from frustrating camera angles and a lack of depth in its systems. While many players appreciate the addictive nature of the gameplay loop and the unique mechanics, others find it clunky and repetitive, leading to mixed feelings about its overall execution. Despite its challenges, the game offers a rewarding experience for those willing to navigate its difficulties.

    • “Lovely aesthetic and chill casual gameplay like old flash games for a modern era - do give it some love, it deserves it.”
    • “The gameplay and mechanics are outstanding!”
    • “Visually stunning, extremely challenging, and fun gameplay.”
    • “On one hand it gets me excited, on the other it feels like I've played the entire game already based on how little systems and game mechanics are implemented.”
    • “The gameplay is garbage.”
    • “Every gameplay aspect has either been borrowed from another game that's done it better, or is unpolished and frustrating to play with.”
  • graphics72 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning art style and unique aesthetic, often described as enchanting and reminiscent of classic arcade visuals. Players appreciate the vibrant isometric design and minimalist approach that enhances the overall experience, although some note that the visual complexity can occasionally hinder gameplay clarity. Overall, the visuals are considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.

    • “The visuals are stunning and the audio work, remarkable.”
    • “Tokyo 42 has a unique and gorgeous art style that truly stands out amongst any other game set in this style.”
    • “The visuals will wow your eyes while bullets fly by over a very futuristic rendition of Tokyo in the skies.”
    • “It's a very weird game, and I wouldn't recommend buying this if you only care about the aesthetics.”
    • “I do love the art style, but unfortunately that's not enough to save it.”
    • “Many games try to pull off a 'stylized' look, and when they fail, the game ends up looking not-so-stylized, but instead like a lazy attempt at true-to-life graphics.”
  • music49 mentions

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with many praising its atmospheric qualities and unique soundscapes that enhance the overall experience. While some players find the soundtrack to be a standout feature, contributing to the game's vibrant aesthetic, others criticize it for being mismatched or not particularly memorable. Overall, the consensus leans towards the music being a strong aspect of the game, though opinions on its value and coherence vary.

    • “The world is rich, vibrant, and enticing with secrets and unlockables sprinkled throughout to encourage exploration and puzzle solving. The music is a great palette of lo-fi and ambient tunes that helps seal the deal on the texture of the whole experience.”
    • “Wandering through the gorgeous color-drenched city and listening to that sweet, sweet neowave soundtrack always makes me feel like I'm wandering the set of Cowboy Bebop 20 years after the end of the series.”
    • “The music is just amazing, and at times you just want to stand and soak it all in; even the map is beautiful to look at.”
    • “Environments aren't especially readable, the soundtrack is oddly mismatching and everything just seems to fall short and a bit too unfriendly to the player.”
    • “And don't bother with the soundtrack or DLC if you can help it; one is rather unexceptional and the other doubles down on the jumping stuff, when in fact the whole thing needs a bit of an overhaul.”
    • “I will not say it's bad music, but $18 is way too much for it if you compare it next to the $20 for the original game...”
  • humor7 mentions

    The humor in the game is polarizing; while some players find it unfunny and poorly executed, others appreciate its campy charm and unintentional comedic moments. The aesthetic and music are praised, and those who embrace the quirky control mechanics may find enjoyment in the humor, particularly in lighthearted activities like throwing bananas. Overall, the humor can be hit-or-miss, appealing mainly to those with a taste for the absurd.

    • “It has a neat aesthetic and music, and a setting that is simultaneously hilarious and serious.”
    • “If you can embrace using the camera as a part of your control system and often find humor in places they weren't necessarily intended, this game might be a winner for you.”
    • “Still, the game is fun; missions are not too bad, getting collectibles is enjoyable, and throwing bananas for laughs is just hilarious.”
    • “The story was poorly written and lacked any sense of humor.”
    • “The jokes fell flat and didn't land at all.”
    • “I expected some laughs, but the humor was completely absent.”
  • atmosphere6 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its captivating soundtrack, aesthetic design, and immersive future Tokyo theme, which collectively enhance the overall experience. While some players found the initial gameplay lacking, the atmospheric elements remain the standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.

    • “The best thing about this game, hands down, is the atmosphere, design, style, music, and concept.”
    • “The atmosphere in the soundtrack is carried over into the gameplay.”
    • “It adds a whole extra layer of atmosphere to the futuristic Tokyo theme.”
    • “The music, atmosphere, and overall aesthetic of this game is awesome.”
  • stability5 mentions

    The game's stability is a mixed bag; while some players report smooth performance and minimal glitches, others experience significant issues such as random gamepad support failures and buggy controls that hinder gameplay. Overall, the stability appears inconsistent, affecting the overall enjoyment of the game.

    • “So much fun, cool story, runs great.”
    • “Possibly the most bug-ridden game I've played in recent years.”
    • “The gamepad support glitches out randomly.”
    • “What could have been fantastic firefights end up being 'hide and snipe' festivals as you realize that getting into any kind of firefight isn't going to work with the sticky (and sometimes buggy) controls, swarm-style enemies with insta-shoot reflexes, and terrible vision.”
  • replayability5 mentions

    Overall, the game's replayability is considered limited, with some players appreciating its aesthetic appeal and scaling difficulty, but feeling that it lacks the depth in game systems and mechanics necessary for a more engaging replay experience. While it offers some fun, many reviewers express doubt about returning to the game after completing the content.

    • “Simple aesthetic fun with good replayability and scaling difficulty.”
    • “Replayability:”
    • “I admire developers who don't just take the procedural route, but whatever this game has to offer in terms of visual beauty, it lacks in game systems and mechanics that make this a lot more of a replayable experience.”
    • “I understand the pricing and I admire developers who don't just take the procedural route, but whatever this game has to offer in terms of visual beauty, it lacks in game systems and mechanics that make this a lot more of a replayable experience.”
    • “But based on the fact that I probably won't return to this game after I complete the DLC, I guess I'd say the replay value isn't particularly high.”
    • “Pricing (very short for a $20 US game, in my opinion) limited replay value.”
  • grinding2 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, with initial enjoyment quickly fading due to a lackluster story and frustrating gameplay mechanics, such as poor camera angles and unresponsive controls. This leads to a monotonous experience of stealthily eliminating enemies, often feeling more like a chore than engaging gameplay.

    • “Whilst it started out as being fun and interesting for the first couple of hours, the story got increasingly more boring. The gameplay is marred by poor camera angles (especially on the bike and parkour missions) and soon became tedious and repetitive; all the while the controls soon started to enter that annoying stage where the only buttons I could be bothered pushing on my keyboard were Alt + F4 so I could go and play something else more refined and actually fun.”
    • “Which means tediously creeping through a level and meleeing every guard from behind, or finding a far enough vantage point you can snipe from (generally not supported in most missions) so that everyone's far enough away that they can't hear your gunshots.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is criticized for its lack of engagement, with users finding the story to be dull and uninteresting.

    • “The story was really boring and failed to evoke any emotional response.”
    • “I found the emotional depth lacking; it just didn't resonate with me.”
    • “The characters felt flat, making it hard to connect with their emotional journeys.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

62% average critic score

Buy Tokyo 42

Play time

7hMedian play time
8hAverage play time
6-10hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs

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