Let’s be open for a bit: not everyone is into games that get localized from Japan that have ecchii waifus in them. Me personally? I enjoy those types of games. Yes they are heavy on the fan service, but if you just look beyond the waifus, there is fun gameplay, a cast of characters that you will eventually fall for and some great music. That is the case with Honey∞Parade Games (the developers of the Senran Kagura franchise) latest game. With Summer coming to a close, let’s send it off right with cute waifus racing jet skis, jamming tunes and crisp waves. This is Kandagawa Jet Girls for the PS4.
Story
The main story of the game centers around Jet Racers Rin Namiki and Misa Aoi from Asakusa Girls’ High School. Rin is from the countryside and has left home to attend Asakusa Girls’ High School in Asakusa in order to become a great Jet Racer like her mom. Misa is her roommate and also happens to be a Jet Racer. She too loves Jet Racing but confidence was shook when her sister, a top Jet Racer, was injured during a race and had to retire early. She feels that she won’t be able to match the high level skills of her sister and refuses to race. One day as they were “walking” back to their dorm room, they encounter Kaguya Shinjūin and her maid Kuromaru Manpuku, third years from the Musashino Girls High School near the docks of the Kandagawa River. The two are in the middle of Jet Racing practice and shooing everyone away. Rin steps up to Kaguya and says that the river is for everyone and she shouldn’t be demanding everyone one not to use it. Kaguya takes issue with this and challenges Rin, who drags Misa into it. Losers are banned from using the river. During the race Misa’s love for Jet Racing is re-sparked and thanks to her skills as a Shooter and Rin’s Jetting skills, they win against Kaguya and Kuromaru. Rin decided not to ban the Musashiro team because she believes that Jet Racing is something that everyone should enjoy. At the end of the day she convinces Misa to team up with her to compete and win the Kadagawa Cup.
The main story (as well as the other stories, more on that in a bit) have your typical anime tropes of the power of friendship, hard work pays off and a bit of ecchii, so one might think that the story isn’t that good. Actually the story is pretty good, as we see Rin and Misa bond over their love of Jet Racing, gaining friends and rivals and Misa getting over her inferiority complex. Yes there’s a ton a fan service, but much like Senran Kagura (who share the same creator) there is a really fun story that keeps you invested in Rin, Misa and the other schools.
Speaking of which, after completing the main story (the Asakusa Girls’ High School arc) teams that Rin and Misa encounter during their arc, will be unlocked and playable. These arcs tell the story of the game from their perspective and really increase the re-playablity of the game.
Gameplay
Kandagawa Jet Girls’ gameplay is pretty basic as its a racing game on jet skis, however this is much more to that. Each team has two girls on the jet ski, a Jetter and a Shooter. The Jetter dives the jet ski while the Shooter shoots the other jet skis with water guns and other items. Think of it as an anime waifu version of Mario Kart Double Dash. Now for the most part players will have control of the Jetter, with simple actions mapped to different buttons that has the Shooter using their gun, items or special skills. These special skill range from giving the Jetter buffs to using special items/powers that give the other Jetters debuffs. As for the Jetter, players have the ability to perform a drift that can help store energy for a speed boost. While drifting is nothing new for racing games, the fact that the game has you press a button that puts the jet ski in a drift automatically and pressing it again takes the jet ski out of the drift is a bit awkward at first. In most racing games, no matter what vehicle is used for racing, you are able to control the brakes used for drifting. In Kandagawa Jet Girls, it locks the break for you and forces you into a drift until you press the button again. It takes some getting used to but with the help of the in game tutorial, you will get the hang of it. Though I didn’t use it that often. The racing is very fun but I wish there was a way for co-op just like Mario Kart Double Dash where one player dives and the other controls the shooter.
There is also a ton of customization in Kandagawa Jet Girls. As you win races both in the story and other modes, you will win parts for the jet skis and costume pieces for the girls. The costumes range from very cute to very fan service and are just an aesthetic component. As for the jet skis, each of them performs differently. Some have faster acceleration but handle poorly, while others are speedy but take longer for it to get up to top speed. At first I thought that the developers where just going to have them all feel the same and focus more on the fan service but I was really surprised. The jet skis can even be customized with different parts to adjust the base stats.
Lastly there are three main modes, story mode, online mode and free mode. Story mode, of course, takes you through the each of the team’s arcs, starting with the Kandagawa Jet Girls and unlocks the other story arcs as you play. For the most part the races in each of the story arcs are pretty easy, save for the last couple of races. Those sub challenges given before the start of races do add a bit of a challenge. The second mode is free mode and has two sub mode, race and time attack, with a leader board option to see times. The last mode is online, which is the online multiplayer part of the game. It also has two sub modes: ranked and casual matches with a leader board. So far I haven’t been able to join a race in either modes which is a shame because as I mentioned the racing is really fun. Another bummer is that there is no split screen mode for two players. The game has been out for a while in the West, while the Japanese version was released months ago, so there should be people online playing.
Music
The music that Honey∞Parade Games has produced for their games (mostly the Senran Kagura franchise) has always been great. There’s a mix of rock/metal, JPop, EDM, relaxing tunes etc. Kandagawa Jet Girls follows that same trend with a really great soundtrack. Each of the teams has their own themes, as well as each of the tracks. There’s lighthearted music when the racers are just hanging out talking to each other after racers, intense music when Rin and Misa get serious, and tender/sad music when the girls have heart to heart moments.
Graphics
The graphics for Kandagawa Jet Girls are really good, a step up from the latest Senran Kagura game. Yes the main focus are of course the racers and the game does have a lot of options for fan service with the ability to dress them in different costumes, but everything else in the game looks just as good. None of the jet skis look alike and have very different designs from each other. The courses are themed and look really cool and have both night and day versions. And the water graphics, while not the most realistic, has a real nice anime feel to it. The cut scenes even have the racers rendered with 3D models with lips that actually move when they talk.
Speaking of the racers, each of the girls have a look that matches their personalities. For example the California Coast High School team are a pair of American otaku girls attending the Japanese branch of their school who love Japanese culture. This is reflected in their school clothing and Jet Racing gear, as they’re decked out in cosplay shinobi gear. Another example are the Shinjuku Takadanobaba Girls School team are a pair of girls who follow the Japanese Gyaru fashion subculture and love to have fun. This is reflected in their school and racing gear as they have the iconic baggy socks, low cut sailor uniform tops/beach tops and tans. Each of the teams are not just fan service but have their own goals they want to achieve, as mentioned in each of the teams story arcs.
Extras
Kandagawa Jet Girls has a couple of extras that give the experience a bit of flavor. There’s of course being able to see all unlocked cut scenes and still images of the, listening to music in the Kandagawa Jet Girls school club house, of course buying accessories and costumes for the girls and four mini games that let you earn extra money. These are jet machine cleaning- a follow the button combo game where you wash the jet ski; mopping- a runner style of game where you mop the deck of a boat while avoiding safety cones; treadmill run- endurance style of game where you run on a treadmill trying to catch hearts while staying on the treadmill; and aerials- a trick based game where you do trick on the jet ski in mid air. These mini games are really fun distractions when winding down from a couple of hard fought races.
Final Verdict
There is some fun to be had with Kandagawa Jet Girls. I enjoyed getting to know each of the teams in their story arcs, with the California Coast High School team being my favorite team. Gameplay is really fun but there issues with not finding anyone to play with online, no local multiplayer, and a drifting system that honestly I didn’t use much at all even though I got used to it. I love Senran Kagura’s soundtrack and since the games share the same composer, I really enjoyed Kandagawa Jet Girls soundtrack. The graphics look really good,with the girls stealing the show.
Overall I really enjoyed playing the game, I just wish that there were more people online to race or at least an local multiplayer mode. As I mention at the start, these types games are for those who are fans of the developer of the Senran Kagura games or who love cute, ecchii waifus. Personally I’m a fan of both. And if you are too or are just a bit curious, give it a shot.
