Gamertell

Shin Seiki Evangelion: Ayanami Ikusei Keikaku DS with Asuka Hokan Keikaku, or more commonly known as Neon Genesis Evangelion: Ayanami Raising Project DS with Asuka Supplementing Project, is quite a mouthful to say as well as a game that presents itself as an interesting simulation set in the Evangelion universe.

The game mechanics can only be closely compared to that of the Princess Maker series, where players are charged with the responsibility to raise a young girl to become, as the title states, a princess. However, this Evangelion game will focus on raising Rei (or Asuka) in order to help her become the intended Eva Unit pilot that she is meant to be. Previously released on the Playstations 2, Dreamcast, and Windows, this game will be available for import for the Nintendo DS on August 28, 2008. 

The overview of this game is fairly simple. Players assume the role of a NERV officer who has been put in charge of taking care of the First Child, Rei Ayanami.
Those familiar with the series will know that Rei’s destiny and purpose is to pilot Eva Unit-00. Through this game, players will be deciding Rei’s weekly schedule which consists of balancing her education, duties at NERV, and leisurely activities. The game’s time line closely follows that of the entire Evangelion series including the movie and is said to only span a year. Throughout the game, players will have to monitor Rei’s progress through several different stats: intelligence, physical strength, morality, synchronization rate, and romantic feelings.

Battles, however far and few between, are also a part of Rei’s life and don’t leave much to the imagination for fans of the series. As this game parallels the progression of the anime, players are only able to offer words of encouragement which actually have no effect on the battle at all. Therefore, feel free to be mean and chip away at Rei’s self-esteem free of guilt thinking that you might be the one to cause her failure because It’s not. It’s Rei’s ill-begotten fate already long determined by the mighty story writers at Gainax.

Come Sundays, players are treated to the shopping option. Rei can be bought different outfits and items which directly affect her stats and growth. The stores that appear in the game are real locations in Tokyo and each store sells items that reflect the type of store they are. The developers of this game had quite a sense of humor because they didn’t hold back when dealing with their vision of a stereotypical otaku. For example, players can buy anime goods from a store named Animate. All these items tend to boost Rei’s artistic talent and imagination while also severely deducting her social skills. Should she achieve the rank of true hermit and social outcast, players will be able to go to the costume shop and outfit her in the infamous bunny suit.

One interesting aspect of this game when released on previous platforms was that players could teach Rei vocabulary in order to increase her conversational skills. Players would utilize a category system of words and a keyboard to introduce new words to Rei which she would later use in future conversations with the player. It’s unclear right now as to whether this function will be included in the DS version, but it would be quite interesting if this system was re-created to utilize the DS’s built-in mic, which it probably won’t since this is meant to be a simple money-making port. However, life is not without surprises.

Of course, it’s not forgotten that this game’s title includes the Second Child pilot of Eva Unir-02, Asuka Sohryu Langley. Players also are given the option to become Asuka’s guardian instead of Rei’s provided certain scenes are met. Be aware though that Asuka’s side of the story in essence is a side story and may be a stripped down version of Rei’s game that might not include all of the goodies available in the main version.

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