Yo-kai Watch Jam: Yo-kai Academy Y – Waiwai Gakuen Seikatsu[lower-alpha 1] is a 2020 role-playing game developed and published by Level-5 for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. A spin-off installment in the Yo-kai Watch series, Yo-kai Watch Jam sees the player as Jinpei Jiba, a student at the fictitious Y Academy, who investigates mysteries occurring in the academy and surrounding areas.[2]

Yo-kai Watch Jam: Yo-kai Academy Y – Waiwai Gakuen Seikatsu
Promotional art depicting the game's main characters and the Y Academy
Developer(s)	Level-5
Publisher(s)	Level-5
Composer(s)	Kenichiro Saigo Tomohito Nishiura[1]
Series	Yo-kai Watch
Platform(s)	Nintendo Switch PlayStation 4
Release	Nintendo Switch JP: August 13, 2020 PlayStation 4 JP: October 29, 2020
Genre(s)	Role-playing
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Yo-kai Watch Jam was received positively by critics, who praised the game's combat system and environment and school life mode, due to its routine feeling and open world-like style.[3][4]

Gameplay

A role-playing game, Yo-kai Watch Jam sees the player as Jinpei Jiba, who aims to become the most popular kid at the Y Academy, an elite boarding school that's also the main setting of the Yo-kai Academy Y anime series. Yo-kai Watch Jam's main gameplay occurs during "school life",[5] which is when the player is at the Y Academy and attempts to raise their popularity. Popularity is risen by receiving "Likes", which can be obtained through solving fellow students' quests.[6] During school life, players can also befriend other students and join clubs.[7]

Similarly to previous Yo-kai Watch games, Yo-kai Watch Jam has a combat system, although it has been drastically changed from mainline Yo-kai Watch games, with battles happening in real-time.[4] During battles, players can transform into a Yo-kai Hero using their YSP Watch,[8] which makes the player stronger.

Development and release

Yo-kai Watch Jam was developed and published by Level-5,[9] who had developed and published most other Yo-kai Watch games. The game is based on the Yo-kai Watch Jam: Yo-kai Academy Y: Encounter with N anime series,[10] which's first season was ongoing at the time of the game's release. Development of Yo-kai Watch Jam was prioritized over Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road of Heroes, due to Level-5 wanting Victory Road of Heroes to be "a hit".[11][12]

The game was first revealed by Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino on Twitter in December 2019,[13] with an official announcement later being made in the March 2020 issue of CoroCoro Comic.[14] Further details were unveiled during the lead-up towards the game's release.[15][16] A demo for the game was released on the Nintendo eShop on August 3, 2020.[17]

Yo-kai Watch Jam released on August 13, 2020, on the Nintendo Switch,[18] with a PlayStation 4 release following on October 29.[19] The game was released physically on December 17.[20]

Reception and sales

Yo-kai Watch Jam received generally favorable reviews from critics, who praised the game's combat and school mode.[4] Akiru Miyashita, writing for 4Gamer.net, stated that Yo-kai Watch Jam was his favorite entry in the Yo-kai Watch series,[5] due to the game's open world-like environment and combat system, which Miyashita opined had a "good tempo".[3]

The game's school environment was received positively by critics. Namco Kushida of Famitsu described it as a "miniature garden", writing that she could "not help but patrol every corner". Totsuka expressed that going to and from school felt routine.[4] Miyashita also enjoyed the routine feeling of school life, calling it "comfortable".[5]

The combat system was also received positively. Keiichi Totsuka of Famitsu wrote that the combat system made it easier for newcomers of the Yo-kai Watch series to get into the game, comparing the system to that of the Yo-kai Watch Blasters series. Gigolo Ashida, writing for Famitsu, appreciated the Yo-kai Hero mechanic, due to it being a "good accent". Amemiya, also of Famitsu, criticized how the game uses a chibi art style during battles, as he felt it makes it harder to see what's happening.[4]

Yo-kai Watch Jam sold over 3 thousand copies on the Nintendo Switch in its first three days of release, making it the 25th best-selling video game in the week of August 10.[21] In late December 2020, Yo-kai Watch Jam was announced to have sold over 42 thousand copies on the Nintendo Switch.[22]

Notes

References

External links

• Official website