Support NeoGAF

[kay]

http://www.jp.playstation.com/scej/title/shikitei/
wallpaper:

The latest from Sony Japan's development lab is a game that encourages players to watch rather than play. The company unveiled today Shikitei (unofficially, "Four Season Garden"), a downloadable PS3 title where you build a garden and watch what happens.

Sony refers to Shikitei as an environmental simulator rather than a game. Your objective is to design your garden, planting trees and placing lights and other items as you see fit.

There's some heavy technology going into title to drive the simulation. Tree branches and growth differ for every tree you have in your garden, all driven by computer program.

Seasonal and time changes are included as well. As winter approaches, snow will begin to build up, adapting realistically to the shape of your garden and its elements. In spring, sakura trees will grow pink; in fall, leaves will turn orange. As night approaches, you'll see reflections of the evening sky in water.

The title will feature over 150 items, including trees and even animals like cats, birds, and rabbits. As these items are obtained, they're added to a growing item encyclopedia which can be consulted at any time. Items are added through over 40 item packs that will be sold through the PlayStation Store following the main game's release.

Shikitei is being developed by Premium Agency, a firm that specializes in movie contents. Serving as producer is Rie Nakamura, who stressed in this week's issue of Famitsu that the title will have no gaming elements to it. According to Nakamura, the staff at one point considered adding game-like features such as making weeds appear if players don't take care of their garden every now and then, but these features didn't make the cut.

There appears to be plenty to do in Shikitei, though. You have full freedom when designing your garden. You can make trees speed or slow their growth in order to customize their size. There's a progressive nature to the garden's development, as trees will release seed that result in more trees, making your garden expand. As your garden expands, more animals will begin to appear.

When not planning, you can select to take a stroll through your work-in-progress. This can either be done under full control, or you can have the PS3 give you an automatic tour, pointing out the highlights. You can also take screenshots whenever you like. These are added to the PS3's photo folder and can be accessed online by other players. This online photo gallery feature appears to be the only online support for the game.

Sony is also giving the title custom soundtrack support. You'll be able to use the music stored on your PS3 as background music.

The title will ship with two garden types initially: Japanese and Western. Nakamura is hoping to, in the future, add gardens from India, Egypt and other areas of the world. She also told Famitsu that she personally thinks having ruins as a backdrop would be beautiful.

Japanese PS3 owners can look forward to Shikitei on June 26. Pricing is set for 1,500 yen for the main title. Pricing for the item packs has yet to be announced.

For a first look at the game, check out the new official Shikitei website.

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/877/877899p1.html

 

[SumGamer]

If that calendar also work as organizer then I'm ready to giveaway the cash

Spoiler

when it hit HK or US store

 

[ItAintEasyBeinCheesy]

Virtual Gardening............. stupid google cant find a pic from The Simpsons episode.

 

[BeeDog]

Animals and stuff, huh?

 

[jacf29]

But does it also function as a calendar?

 

[kay]

But does it also function as a calendar?

It's a wallpaper.

 

[reminder]

Some screens:

 

[Flunkie]

Looks pretty. Not much else to say about it.

 

[carlosp]

@ Greenlight meeting:

studio manager: "why should we do this?"
programmer: "because we can."

 

[pswii60]

First thing that comes to mind is Viva Pinata.

 

[EverSoTrendy]

First thing that comes to mind is Viva Pinata.

Yeah, a gimped ugly Viva Pinata

 

[Kuran]

Not pretty enough for what it is. In my opinion!

 

[British Monsoon]

So, you build a garden to attract animals, is that the idea? Sort of like Viva Pinata? One of the shots on the site shows a camera viewfinder, presumably you have to snap shots of all the different animals. Anyways, probably not my cup of tea but it could be quite relaxing I suppose

 

[bigswords]

15 USD for this sack of shit? LOLz

I think that free cat thing on the Japan PSN is soooo much more useful and better.

 

[kevm3]

Could be an interesting diversion.

 

[Billen]

Looks like an old PC demo.

 

[Vorador]

I think is more like a "build your japanese garden" simulator.

 

[kay]

More info added.

 

[Azrael]

Projects like this and Linger in Shadows are a waste of resources that Sony should be committing to getting more actual games on the service. I'm all for more artsy games like echochrome and Everyday Shooter, but only if they have to have compelling gameplay to back them up.

 

[BobsRevenge]

I could play this game for hours. Am I weird?

 

[maxmars]

I could play this game for hours. Am I weird?

Actually I came here to post the same. If they could sneak in a few animals (like fishes in the water ponds) it would be perfect.

 

[steoc4]

Interesting idea but the screenshots are a little off putting.

I'm not a graphics whore or anything, but if the whole point of the game is watching your garden grow then you'd want it to be a very pretty garden.

As it stands, for all the fancy tech behind it, it doesn't look much better than the background foliage in your average game.

I guess if it's all in motion and everything is growing dynamically it might be more appealing but not sure right now.

 

[PistolGrip]

Thats actually pretty cool, I hope they manage to make it exciting and addicting which seems a bit difficult with this type of game.

 

[BobsRevenge]

I just like creating shit.

 

[neorej]

A virtual garden. Didn't we have this on PCs already? Like 10 years ago? For 12 bucks?

 

[CamHostage]

It's a wallpaper.

It'd be awesome if it was a wallpaper, but it's not, its an application... one that you would have to quit out of in order for your machine to later cure cancer.

It's interesting that Sony is letting companies experiment with these alternative applets, but at some point I hope they introduce a widget system to XMB so it can run some of this stuff in the background instead of having everything boot as an application. If I could have my Shiki-tei garden or Folding or even Home running in the background while I look at photos or choose a DVD or shop on the store, that would be much more useful.

 

[Ranger X]

Sign me up!

Creating for creating is awesome.

 

[Mindlog]

I was really hoping Afrika would be an interactive environment simulator

So much promise and uniqueness as a wildlife preserve management type game.

 

[AAK]

I really don't see any demographic that would be interested in this. Sony should learn from Nintendo and find a market before going into production.

 

[NinjaFridge]

I could play this game for hours. Am I weird?

me too. i am actually looking forward to this.

 

[UntoldDreams]

Actually, this seems pretty cool as long as they get the technology down.

Sort of a "grow your own screensaver" via simulation.

 

[Saitou]

So when Sony does it, it isn't a non-game?

 

[British Monsoon]

So when Sony does it, it isn't a non-game?

Uh, no - it's still a non-game, if you read the OP it even says Sony doesn't call it a game;

Sony refers to Shikitei as an environmental simulator rather than a game

 

[angelfly]

Looks like some something I could sink some time into. It's the type of thing I'd leave running while doing other things just to look at it. The 1500yen price is kind of a turn off.

 

[Saitou]

Uh, no - it's still a non-game, if you read the OP it even says Sony doesn't call it a game;

I was referring to the wailing cries of the masses, actually. Y'know, the ones railing on Nintendo? Ring a bell? No? No? Ok.

 

[BobsRevenge]

I was referring to the wailing cries of the masses, actually. Y'know, the ones railing on Nintendo? Ring a bell? No? No? Ok.

What are you going on about?

 

[UntoldDreams]

I was referring to the wailing cries of the masses, actually. Y'know, the ones railing on Nintendo? Ring a bell? No? No? Ok.

Ummm... I guess you're upset or something? Perhaps you need a zen garden.
I would suggest purchasing Shikitei.

 

[Firewire]

My God, my girlfriend better not see this, she's become a gardening nut case in the last year. She'd love this stuff.

 

[DarkJC]

What are you going on about?

Jaded Nintendo fanboy, it seems.

 

[Tideas]

I was referring to the wailing cries of the masses, actually. Y'know, the ones railing on Nintendo? Ring a bell? No? No? Ok.

really wat are you wailing about? Sony calls it a non game. We know it's a non game. For nintendo, they call it a game. we call it a non game. That's why we wail.

 

[Saitou]

Ummm... I guess you're upset or something? Perhaps you need a zen garden.
I would suggest purchasing Shikitei.

I would if I had a PS3, no joke.

I'll use Endless Ocean till then.

 

[brandonh83]

Looks pretty neat. I'll get it if it comes stateside.

 

[genjiZERO]

My God, my girlfriend better not see this, she's become a gardening nut case in the last year. She'd love this stuff.

I love gardening. Just indoors I have 18 different species growing, and outside I have a bunch of herbs in potters. One of my goals in life is to have an underground hydroponic garden like in Nausicaa. This non-game sounds awesome. It would be so cool if you could just make the tour your background (as opposed to screen shots). Count me in as downloading as soon as it comes out.

 

[British Monsoon]

If theres any justice in the world you should totally be able to export your garden from Shiki-tei and have it linked to your Home appartment

 

[xBerserker]

I may get this if the GF likes it. I would love a Nausicaa garden as well. That's one of my all time favorite movies!

I love gardening. Just indoors I have 18 different species growing, and outside I have a bunch of herbs in potters. One of my goals in life is to have an underground hydroponic garden like in Nausicaa. This non-game sounds awesome. It would be so cool if you could just make the tour your background (as opposed to screen shots). Count me in as downloading as soon as it comes out.

!! That would be great

If theres any justice in the world you should totally be able to export your garden from Shiki-tei and have it linked to your Home appartment

 

[PickleAhoy]

Important Announcement:
Sony Japan is proud to announce, Paint Drying: Summer Oozing. The company unveiled today the highly anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking sit and stare genre it's created. In the game, choose from thousands of colors to splash across the walls of more than 30 different houses, each made with different materials, and watch how paint drips and dries for an hour, a day, a week.... the possibilities are endless thanks to the amazing Oozooz simulation engine and the processing power of Cell.

 

[Firewire]

I love gardening. Just indoors I have 18 different species growing, and outside I have a bunch of herbs in potters. One of my goals in life is to have an underground hydroponic garden like in Nausicaa. This non-game sounds awesome. It would be so cool if you could just make the tour your background (as opposed to screen shots). Count me in as downloading as soon as it comes out.

She's gone nutty though, all winter long she's planted seeds in my basement, she's spent hundred of dollars on plants for a large out door garden, even more on decorative pieces and hummingbird feeders. I've got tulips coming out of the wazoo, every weekend I have to take her to the garden center for something or another, soil, seeds, and even more plants!

Now she wants one of those Japanese water things like in the Kill Bill movies, she's addicted and needs help!

 

[angelfly]

Important Announcement:
Shiki-tei is proud to announce, Paint Drying: Summer Oozing. The company unveiled today the highly anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking sit and stare genre it's created. In the game, choose from thousands of colors to splash across the walls of more than 30 different houses, each made with different materials, and watch how paint drips and dries for an hour, a day, a week.... the possibilities are endless thanks to the amazing Oozooz simulation engine and the processing power of Cell.

So now games are announcing games?

 

[genjiZERO]

I may get this if the GF likes it. I would love a Nausicaa garden as well. That's one of my all time favorite movies!

The only problem with Nausicaa's garden is that she seems to be growing a lot of mushrooms, In real life you couldn't have a mushroom garden like that; that isn't the way fungus grows. But I think it would be great if they game allowed you to grow all sorts of fantastic plants and fungus, of all sorts and sizes, maybe they change colour to the music you are playing in the background, and are in all sorts of strange locations, like the moon or at the bottom of the ocean. The possibilities are limitless. This could be the educated stoner's dream come true.

 

[BlazingDarkness]

Important Announcement:
Sony Japan is proud to announce, Paint Drying: Summer Oozing. The company unveiled today the highly anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking sit and stare genre it's created. In the game, choose from thousands of colors to splash across the walls of more than 30 different houses, each made with different materials, and watch how paint drips and dries for an hour, a day, a week.... the possibilities are endless thanks to the amazing Oozooz simulation engine and the processing power of Cell.

wow you're an arsehole (and not funny)




i will buy this, it looks like something i can put some time into and it looks like a chill out experience