Trek to Yomi

73%
Game Brain Score Based on 734 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
Trek to Yomi Game Cover
People looking for a short and intense samurai game should check out Trek to Yomi. It's quick, fun, and makes you truly feel like a samurai.
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In Trek to Yomi, play as Hiroki, a young swordsman who must protect his town and loved ones from threats, even if it means venturing beyond life and death. With a combat system based on traditional samurai weapons and striking visuals inspired by classic samurai film, experience a cinematic and thrilling adventure. The game features a mythic storyline and an authentic Japanese score, resulting in an immersive and enthralling experience.

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

Reviews

73%
Audience ScoreBased on 734 reviews
story127 positive mentions
grinding12 negative mentions
  • Stunning visuals and art direction that evoke classic samurai films.
  • Engaging story with multiple endings that adds replayability.
  • Cinematic presentation with excellent sound design and voice acting.
  • Combat system is clunky and repetitive, often relying on a few overpowered combos.
  • Inconsistent input response and timing issues can lead to frustrating gameplay.
  • Short playtime with limited enemy variety and no chapter select feature.
  • story326 mentions

    The story of "Trek to Yomi" is a blend of classic samurai themes, focusing on revenge, love, and honor, often drawing inspiration from Akira Kurosawa's films. While many players appreciate its cinematic presentation and emotional depth, some criticize it for being predictable and simplistic, with a lack of character development and depth in the lore. Overall, the narrative is engaging enough to keep players invested, especially with multiple endings that offer some replayability, but it may not satisfy those seeking a more complex or innovative storyline.

    • “The story is well crafted and keeps you engaged throughout the game.”
    • “Cinematically beautiful, engaging gameplay, a typical samurai story of love and vengeance.”
    • “The story takes you to Yomi, the Japanese underworld, where you will find your true self after being faced with difficult choices.”
    • “The story is boring and uninspired.”
    • “The story could be summarized in essentially two sentences.”
    • “The story is a complete cliché of modern perception of samurai warriors fighting off the Mongol-like invaders/bandits and there's no deeper level to it, other than fighting spirits and zombie-like enemies.”
  • graphics238 mentions

    The graphics of "Trek to Yomi" are widely praised for their stunning, cinematic quality, heavily inspired by classic Japanese cinema, particularly the works of Akira Kurosawa. Players appreciate the unique art style that blends 2D hand-drawn elements with 3D environments, creating an immersive atmosphere that evokes the feel of an old samurai film. However, while the visuals are a standout feature, many reviews note that they often overshadow the game's lackluster gameplay and repetitive combat mechanics.

    • “The game uses a unique art style that blends 2D hand-drawn graphics with 3D environments, resulting in a stunning and atmospheric world that feels both authentic and otherworldly.”
    • “The visuals are absolutely stunning and it's almost like playing through an old samurai movie from the 50s.”
    • “Trek to Yomi's outstanding visuals and presentation are quite enough to make up for its fairly straightforward and simplistic gameplay.”
    • “The problem is that the visuals are all this game has.”
    • “But visuals alone can't carry a game.”
    • “Sadly, I also don't think it uses its aesthetics to particularly good effect: as pastiche it feels somewhat hollow to me.”
  • gameplay234 mentions

    The gameplay of "Trek to Yomi" has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its repetitive combat and unresponsive mechanics as significant drawbacks. While the visuals and story are praised for their cinematic quality, the combat often feels simplistic and lacks depth, leading to a monotonous experience. Overall, the game is seen as a visually stunning homage to samurai films, but its gameplay fails to deliver the same level of engagement.

    • “Cinematically beautiful, engaging gameplay, a typical samurai story of love and vengeance.”
    • “Outstanding presentation and atmosphere, simple, yet satisfying gameplay.”
    • “With its immersive gameplay, challenging combat, and a gripping narrative, this game offers an unforgettable journey through feudal Japan.”
    • “The gameplay is very boring.”
    • “The reason I cannot recommend this game is because the gameplay is some of the most boring I've ever played!”
    • “Unfortunately, the gameplay fails to match its audio and visual excellence.”
  • music72 mentions

    The music in the game has been widely praised for its atmospheric quality, effectively evoking the essence of classic Japanese cinema and enhancing the overall experience. Reviewers noted the beautiful soundtrack, which features traditional instruments and ambient folk music, as a standout element that complements the visuals and storytelling. While some found the music unforgettable and integral to the game's charm, a few felt it was less memorable, indicating a mixed reception in terms of its lasting impact.

    • “The soundtrack is perfect for the setting and tone of the story.”
    • “The music uses traditional instruments and there is Japanese voice acting with subtitles to complete the illusion.”
    • “The soundtrack is beautiful and, in some parts, hauntingly so.”
    • “The story and soundtrack did not stand out to me at all.”
    • “I don't remember what the music sounded like at all, and while the voice acting was pretty good I think, none of the performances or characters were striking enough.”
    • “The sound effects and music was good not great 7/10 it's okay.”
  • atmosphere60 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its stunning visuals, unique art style, and immersive sound design, creating a captivating and otherworldly experience. Many reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke strong emotions through its cinematography, music, and environmental storytelling, despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics. Overall, the atmospheric elements are considered the standout feature, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of visually rich and narratively driven games.

    • “The game uses a unique art style that blends 2D hand-drawn graphics with 3D environments, resulting in a stunning and atmospheric world that feels both authentic and otherworldly.”
    • “A fascinating journey with unprecedented atmosphere - it is rare to see such beautifully created scenes.”
    • “The game is crafted as an experience: it's atmospheric, cinematic, and visually beautiful.”
    • “It has decent atmosphere but the gameplay is unfortunately bad.”
    • “Oh, before I forget, the English dub is horrible and it kills the whole atmosphere, so I'd avoid it if I were you.”
    • “Its interactive elements, however, along with its story, are all too ordinary and rarely combine to heighten the atmosphere or create suspense.”
  • replayability27 mentions

    The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with some players noting multiple endings and difficulty settings that enhance replay value, while others criticize the lack of a New Game+ option and limited exploration. Although it can be completed in a short time, some find it offers enough variety for repeated playthroughs, while others feel it lacks significant incentives for replaying. Overall, opinions vary widely, with some praising its replay potential and others deeming it minimal.

    • “Trek to Yomi has 3 endings, plus a secret one adding to the game's replay value.”
    • “Although relatively short, the game has high replayability.”
    • “This game has extreme replay value; I can also see speedrunners playing this on all sorts of difficulty for years to come.”
    • “The replayability is not great, no new game + and you can't even choose chapter selection so you'll have to do everything.”
    • “This game has no replay value.”
    • “The game doesn't fit the role of a 'replayable game' and only requires one ending.”
  • grinding15 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, often requiring them to engage in the same combat scenarios multiple times, which can lead to frustration. While the combat can be enjoyable at first, it quickly becomes monotonous, especially when faced with difficult enemy waves and limited combat mechanics. Many reviewers express a desire for more variety and options to skip repetitive sections to enhance the overall experience.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “Repeatedly doing the same stuff every run is kinda tedious.”
    • “When you're being attacked left and right and the character doesn't want to switch sides for some reason, and you're grinding a single scene for the umpteenth time, you will find yourself wishing there was a skip button or something.”
    • “I'm changing my score from a 6.5/10 to a 5.5/10 and have chosen to not recommend this game at its current price point - ultimately the game is entertaining but the mainstay of the game plays with themes that have been absolutely done to death by other, better games - and the gameplay itself (while novel in the beginning) becomes incredibly tedious after the first 20 or so fights.”
  • optimization13 mentions

    The game's optimization has received mixed feedback, with some players experiencing significant stuttering and performance issues, even on high-end hardware like the RTX 3090. While a few users reported minor crashes and lag during gameplay, others found that adjusting settings such as frame rate capping and vsync could improve performance. Overall, the game appears to be demanding on various systems, leading to inconsistent experiences across different setups.

    • “In terms of technical performance, I had a single crash in all of the hours played, so there is that.”
    • “The story is okay and the optimization is fine.”
    • “The game doesn't have any big performance issues, but I did get stuck in one place; there were bits where there was a sudden cut and my location shifted in a laggy way.”
    • “This game is a badly optimized slog.”
    • “From the very first enemy, there was skipping and stuttering in my character and the enemy AI fighting animations.”
    • “Amazing visuals let down by the worst combat I've ever played, as well as major stuttering issues (for context, I run a high-end PC with an RTX 3090 inside), yet it still stutters.”
  • stability10 mentions

    The stability of "Trek to Yomi" has been widely criticized, with players reporting numerous bugs and glitches that affect combat consistency and overall gameplay experience. Many users noted that these issues, including erratic hitboxes and performance inconsistencies, detract significantly from the enjoyment of the game, leading to a perception of it being close to unplayable. While the game's aesthetic is praised, the persistent technical problems overshadow its visual appeal.

    • “The combat is extremely buggy, inconsistent, and two of the same enemy in one fight would take entirely different amounts of hits to kill using the same attacks against them.”
    • “The game does suffer from some really bad glitches that I'm quite surprised were never fixed or patched in later, and it's not just me that encountered these glitches; many others did as well.”
    • “Combine that with glitches and terrible hitboxes, making Trek to Yomi close to unplayable.”
  • emotional5 mentions

    Players report a mixed emotional experience, with some feeling deeply engaged by the game's gripping narrative and excellent visual and audio design, while others express frustration with combat mechanics that detract from the overall enjoyment. The emotional impact is highlighted in the context of a revenge tale, but the gameplay can lead to feelings of misery and tedium.

    • “I've had a great experience and also got a bit emotional.”
    • “The visual style is excellent, a gripping emotional revenge tale textured with harrowing world building. The audio experience is next level, and the layered combat is a joy to master.”
    • “There is one core point of the game that made me feel miserable and almost made me quit: the combat!”
  • character development2 mentions

    Character development in the game is highlighted by impressive attention to detail, featuring intricate character designs and beautiful cinematography that enhance the storytelling. The combination of strong voice acting, atmospheric music, and compelling writing further enriches the characters' depth and emotional resonance.

    • “The attention to detail in the game's art direction is impressive, with intricate character designs, beautiful landscapes, and hauntingly beautiful set pieces.”
    • “Beautiful cinematography, voice acting, character design, music, atmosphere, and writing.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

70% average critic score

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Play time

7hMedian play time
7hAverage play time
6-7hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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