Filthy Casual for Life

SERIES SUMMARY

“When was the last time I played a game that wasn’t crap?” This is a world in the near future where games that use display screens are classified as retro. Anything that can’t keep up with state-of-the-art VR technology is called a “crap game,” and you see a large number of crap games coming out. Those who devote their lives to clearing these games are called “crap-game hunters,” and Rakuro Hizutome is one of them. The game he’s chosen to tackle next is Shangri-La Frontier, a “god-tier game” that has a total of thirty million players. Online friends… An expansive world… Encounters with rivals… These are changing Rakuro and all the other players’ fates! The best game adventure tale by the strongest “crap game” player begins now!

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EPISODE SUMMARY

The episode begins with a man in a luchador outfit in front of a blonde maiden defeating a dragon. The maiden exclaims the Dark Lord is dead. As she congratulates him, he jump-kicks the maiden in the face!

Standing up after beating the game, our protagonist is cheering that he got his revenge on the blonde maiden who put him through a hard time throughout the game. We are introduced to Rakuro Hizutome, a renowned “trash-game hunter.” Trash-game hunters seek out glitchy games to beat.

Rakuro is at school tired from his night of gaming. Everyone else is talking about their summer plans. Around the corner, a female classmate is rehearsing a conversation with Rakuro. However, as he comes into view, his gaming friends grab him first.

At the local game shop, the girl waiting for Rakuro at school is named Rei-chan. She is also a gamer and waits for Rakuro at the game shop. The shop owner knows Rei-chan has a crush on Rakuro, and teases her. Just as Rei-chan was about to express something to the shop owner, Rakuro walks in asking if any decent trash games have come out. Rei-chan immediately disappears. The game shop owner asks Rakuro if he beat Falia, the game at the beginning of the episode. He gets very animated as he tells the game shop owner about how bad the game was. Allegedly, Faeria, the blonde maiden, blames everything on the Dark Lord. Rakuro blames Faeria as the real problem.

He then explains to the shop owner that you can attack Faeria without penalty at the end of the game during the final cutscene. From the corner, Rei-chan stares at him adoringly. That’s when the shop owner tells Rakuro to take a break from trash games and try out a good game. That’s when she suggests Shangri-La Frontier. Then, she winks at Rei-chan.

Rakuro buys Shangri-La Frontier. He goes through character creation and is hyped up because it has a high level of character customization. He uses the character name that he uses in all games: Sunraku. Sunraku is a half-naked human with a blue bird mask,

Sunraku is amazed at the gameplay and easily defeats cute little bunnies that dropped some awesome blades. He realizes he needs to make it to the starter town, but guarding the bridge is a large snake. It’s an area boss meant to be beaten with a team of three. However, Sunraku is no normal newbie.

THOUGHTS

The VRMMO genre is strong this season. This one is no exception. I love the fact that our protagonist is a “trash-game hunter.” It takes a special kind of gamer to willingly seek out the buggiest of games to play. The intro to the episode had me laughing really, really hard. I can tell that this series will have plenty of comedy to laugh at.