Densha de Go! (video game)

 
 is a 1997 train simulator arcade game developed and published by Taito in Japan. Players are tasked with guiding a train to its destination under a time limit while managing its acceleration and speed limitations. It features real-world train stations and train lines from Japan, including the Yamanote Line and Keihin-Tohoku Line. The game was ported to several home consoles, including the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation.
The concept for "Densha de Go!" was inspired by designer Akira Saito's personal fascination with Japanese train lines and railroads. He wanted to create a game that allowed players to familiarize themselves with driving a train. The controls were his primary focus as he wanted them to be accurate and responsive, and to mimic the controls of a real train—his father worked for the Kyoto City Transportation Bureau Facilities Division, which made this easier to accomplish. Saito included real-world railroads and trains to appeal towards other railroad enthusiasts, thinking that it could also attract more "ordinary" players for its realistic, familiar theme. As arcades at the time were dominated primarily by racing and fighting games, he believed its unique concept could make it stand out.
"Densha de Go!" is among Taito's most successful games, preceded only by "Space Invaders". The PlayStation version sold over one million copies. The game was well-received by critics for its controls, attention to detail, and unique concept. Some felt that its home releases lacked enough content and had poor visuals. It was followed by a long series of sequels, spin-offs, and reimaginings, beginning with "Densha de Go! 2" in 1999.
Gameplay.
"Densha de Go!" is a train simulation video game. The player assumes the role of a train conductor who must guide a Japanese train line to its destination under a strict time limit.
Development.
"Densha de Go!" was the creation of Taito video game designer Akira Saito. Based on his personal fascination with Japanese trains and railroads, Saito wanted to create a video game that allowed players to easily become familiar with driving a train. His primary focus was towards the game's controls as he wanted them to be responsive and as accurate to a real train as possible — his father worked for the Kyoto City Transportation Bureau Facilities Division, which made this task easier to fulfill. As a way to attract railroad enthusiasts to his game, Saito included many real-world train lines and stations such as the Yamanote Line, paying close attention to detail and the way they were represented. He often traveled to these stations himself to make any last-minute changes or corrections. Saito also felt that its realistic, familiar premise could attract newer, more "ordinary" players. Several of the locations and trains were taken from experiences in his childhood, which he claims to have been the "driving force" of development. Taito was skeptical of the idea at first, concerned that its realistic premise would cause it to become lost within the growing popularity of racing and fighting games. Saito felt differently, thinking that its unique concept would instead make it stand out from other games at the time.
Release.
"Densha de Go!" was demonstrated at the 1996 Amusement Machine Show (AMS) exposition in Tokyo, alongside "G-Darius" and "Arkanoid Returns". It was released in Japan in March 1997. It was one of the expo's most popular games; "Official Sega Saturn Magazine" claims that it saw more player numbers than Sega's "The House of the Dead". Taito chose not to release it overseas, as the company felt its heavy usage of region-specific train lines and stations made it unsuitable for non-Japanese players.
A PlayStation home version of "Densha de Go!" was released on December 18, 1997 in Japan, followed by a version for Microsoft Windows on April 23, 1999. At the 1999 Tokyo Game Show, Taito demonstrated a version of "Densha de Go!" for the Nintendo 64, "Densha de Go! 64", which was published on July 23. "64" features multiple additions to the original game, such as a voice recognition system and content ported from its arcade sequel "Densha de Go! 2". For the PlayStation and Nintendo 64 versions, Taito produced a special controller that mimicked the control setup used in arcades. The controller was released separately and has since become a prize collector's item. Ports for the Game Boy Color and WonderSwan were published in 2000.
Reception.
The arcade version of "Densha de Go!" attracted considerable attention for its unique premise making it stand out among other games at the time, many of which were racing games or fighters. The PlayStation version of the game sold over one million copies, leading to Sony Computer Entertainment awarding Taito the Platinum Prize award at the 1998 PlayStation Awards ceremony. "Densha de Go! 64" earned the Gold Hall of Fame award from Japanese publication "Famitsu". According to Taito representative Keiji Fujita, it is the company's second most-successful game after "Space Invaders".
Home ports of "Densha de Go!" were well-received by critics for retaining the same feel and realism the arcade version had. "Famitsu" found it to be one of the most realistic simulation games up to that point, while "Dengeki PlayStation" said that its easy-to-learn controls and more realistic approach made "Densha de Go!" a welcome title for newcomers to the genre. Many applauded the game’s attention to detail and accuracy with its usage of real-world railroads and trains. "Dengeki PlayStation" was particularly impressed with the accuracy of the in-game world and environments, saying it would greatly appeal to railroad fans and players not even familiar with the genre as a whole. "Famitsu" had a similar response, finding many of its railroad tracks and stations to be accurately depicted. "IGN" found both the usage of real trains as a whole and the controller to be interesting, “funky” additions. "Densha de Go 64"’s usage of voice-recognition garnered praise, with "IGN" labeling it as a “funky” addition and "Famitsu" calling it response and easy to use. In a 2013 retrospective review, "Nintendo Life" commended the Nintendo 64 version’s realistic environments, challenge and the addition of a tutorial for beginners.
Some publications were mixed on the game’s graphics. "Dengeki PlayStation" stated the PlayStation conversion’s graphics were not as good as the arcade version, while "IGN" called the Nintendo 64 version's "blurry" and unappealing to look at. "IGN" was rather critical towards the game as a whole, finding it too boring and having limited gameplay on top of barren environments and an overall lack of content. They also argued that it provided an inaccurate representation of how Japanese train lines operate, particularly with the inability to reverse the train should the player accidentally miss their destination. The WonderSwan port was disliked by "Famitsu" for having poor graphics and clunky controls, saying it was a drastic downgrade in quality compared to other versions of the game. "Nintendo Life" thought that the game’s critical attention to detail and steep learning curve made it cater towards a relatively niche audience.