Promise Mascot Agency is a game that looks to answer the age-old yet timely question: If I were a disgraced, presumed dead ex-Yakuza banished to a run-down town full of living cartoon mascots, how would I run my events business out of a repurposed love hotel? It’s a question that has, of course, plagued many of us for years, and finally one game may just hold the answer.
The dev behind intergalactic detective adventure Paradise Killer is back to cause some chaos, and there’s a lot of chaos in Promise Mascot Agency. There’s mystery drama, business management, friendship-building, cozy-game vibes, open-world RPG elements, card-based combat; if you can imagine a genre, it’s probably in here. Promise Mascot Agency is basically a lesson in playing everything at once. Videogames? Completed it, mate.
The timed demo version that I sunk my teeth into for this preview streamlines the experience a little, pulling out the central murder mystery and instead setting you loose on the open world of Kaso-Machi. As Michi, the aforementioned exiled ex-Yakuza, you are sent to the town to pay off a large debt and atone for your sins – whatever they may be. You’re soon introduced to Pinky, a living Mascot whose mother was a fairy and father was a severed finger (just to give insight into the flavor of whimsy we’re dealing with here). Pinky has been running a ‘love hotel’ aptly named Hotel Promise, but seems quite open to working with you to turn over a new leaf and establish an official Mascot Agency instead. It’s up to Michi to transform this monument to sleaze into a reputable agency of well-fed, well-groomed, well-behaved walking logos.
The other residents of Kaso-Machi are a mix of tragic, downtrodden, disregarded Mascots, and regular humans with enough (good-natured) depravity in their hearts to live among them. It becomes somewhat normal to casually run into a bartender dressed in a full leather gimp suit (that you mustn’t mention), or a gentleman dressed as a road-sign-themed superhero. This is your home now, and these are your neighbors. You’re going to have to get along.
That’s not all, either. Kaso-Machi is apparently the source of a Yakuza-killing curse that may catch up with Michi, and the rest of the world thinks he’s already dead. He also has to pay off the town’s mayor who is extorting the crumbling community for government funds, and contend with workers’ rights and the mental health of his employees. Minor complications.
Despite the chaos of the premise, Promise Mascot Agency is a surprisingly polished affair. From the gorgeous (and only occasionally grotesque) art style to the catchy tunes that play while you explore, Kaso-Machi is a place you’ll want to spend time in. It’s no secret that the Like A Dragon series influenced the team here, but as an homage it never feels derivative. The last time I remember feeling so enamored with a location and script was while exploring Kamurocho in the early Yakuza games, and Promise Mascot Agency’s narrative hits similar notes with its back-and-forth ricocheting between grim, gritty topics and bursts of offbeat humor. Its rural, run-down town aesthetic differentiates it, but it still feels like a living environment where anything can happen.
In another Yakuza nod, voice-acting legend Takaya Kuroda – Kiryu Kazuma himself – provides Michi’s deep drawl. Even the dev seemed surprised at this one, with an announcement post exclaiming “This is bonkers! We got Takaya Kuroda, you know, Kiryu from Like a Dragon! We didn’t even dream to ask for him, he just turned up to the audition like that was a normal thing to do.” Presumably, the last normal thing he did before recording voice lines for this game.
Another clear influence is janky ‘definitely-not-Twin-Peaks-The-Game’ cult masterpiece Deadly Premonition, with its oddball characters and surreal charm. The game’s creator, SWERY, even features as another voice actor, among other industry legends such as Eri Saito, Shuhei Yoshida, and Ayano Shibuya. Their incredible acting talent allows you to forget – for a moment – that you’re manifesting life goals with a giant, pink, yam-covered cat (the life goal in question was of course to create an ethical ‘adult video,’ but that’s beside the point). Each of these characters has more depth and distinction than you might expect, and they really do seem to have a life of their own outside of work.
Nestled amid sensationally funny lines of dialogue and the day-to-day running of the mascot business lie several other avenues of delight. You can upgrade your truck to shoot Pinky like a cannon or sail in the nearby sea, or you can become friends with your colleagues and try to help them achieve their life goals. You can drive around picking up garbage if you like, or mop up wayward souls across town. You’ll get involved in the intrigue of a corrupt mayor’s office, invest in new locations and events, and come to the aid of your mascots in a bizarre card-based combat mini-game that sees them grapple with enemies like bees, doors, and soda machines.
It’s impossible to list everything that Promise Mascot Agency encourages you to do, and I was only given a mere hour and twenty minutes to explore what felt like a limitless world of possibilities. It’s opened my mind to a host of questions, theories, and schemes for how to spend my time in the full release. There’s something so charming and alluring about Michi and his stoic front; something about the town and its impossible inhabitants that will instantly draw in fans of the weird and unexpected. Beyond the demo’s limitations, I have a feeling that the plot will be as twisty and surprising as Kaizen Game Works’ last game. But more than anything, I need to see more of the sentient weeping tofu I spent an intimate hot tub moment with. No further questions.