Plenty of years ago, I owned an obscure game known as Akiba’s Trip. There’s really no way I can mask how ludicrous the premise is, but it managed to intrigue me. I’ve got a soft spot for stupid romps like this one. Plus, I’m a weeb, and as a weeb, of course, I’m partial to the anime aesthetic. The quirkiness speaks to me, and the focus on silliness lends itself to the simple notion of fun. Yeah, it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea targeting a specific niche. Hell, when this site covered the first iteration back in 2021, the writer, Leo Faria, wasn’t thrilled. Clunky controls and a terrible aiming system plagued the release, and that’s on top of the controversial subject matter. Yet, I found the script to be fairly decent – the duality of journalists.

With a name like Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed, it’s not exactly promoting confidence. All it does is highlight the inherent stigma burdening such a style. I can’t even pretend that fanservice isn’t a prominent feature, because anyone with a pair of eyes can immediately refute that. There’s quite a healthy amount of it, but the question I’m looking to explore today is if tits and ass are the sole selling points.

The answer is an emphatic nope; there are other facets I enjoyed. Much like with the prequel, this sequel bathes in a humor-driven script. It’ll be subjective, and I reckon several will find it cringey, but I appreciate how Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed leans into that craziness. It’s self-aware, often calling the sheer absurdity of the shenanigans out. In a game with a concept that revolves around stripping your opponents to their skivvies, degeneracy is a guarantee. Characters will also break the fourth wall, noting how damn perverse that act is. It almost shames the player for what they’re doing, and that tickled me. I actually smirked a fair bit during my session, if I’m honest.

I’m not trying to claim the hilarity is off the charts because it’s exceedingly juvenile, and a teenage funny bone is required to embrace this sort of comedy. Serious adults need not apply because I can promise that after one or two hours, you’ll be booting up Pikmin 4. Most crucially, if you’re not entrenched in nerd culture or role-playing, you won’t be privy to the charm. In fact, a favorite scene of mine sees a group of three girls watching a box set of a fictional series. They binge it before ultimately cosplaying. As they throw on their skimpy outfits, the preceding interaction is one of embarrassment and encouragement, which perfectly nails the friendship dynamic.

Speaking of, I’ve got to applaud how well the cast is written. Sure, nothing about it is going to win awards, and I wasn’t feeling my heart being torn. When it came to the entertainment factor, though, it was high. I was delighted by a few of the personalities (like that of the little sister of the protagonist), I couldn’t get enough. Her peculiar habit of adding “Bro” to other words, creating an amalgamation, like, well, Brotagonist, was a hoot. I was always taken aback by what she came up with, which brought me to a fatal flaw.

The biggest appeal of Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed is how outrageous the dialogue gets. While the majority of lines are soaked with goofiness, the luster does dwindle if you go for a second playthrough. It’s not doom and gloom all across the board, because retreading waters did mean I picked up on jokes I previously missed. The thing is, I also found I was skipping text windows often, and by that, I mean 95 percent. For that reason, it doesn’t do a fantastic job of incentivizing the player to want to jump back in, which is counter to what’s in place.

Essentially, there are branching paths. Or in other words, the women aren’t romanceable in a traditional way, but y’all can become closer. Depending on who is chosen, the ending will be affected. I have to say, the differences aren’t substantial. While I only got one, the others are available online since this title is largely a port. When you consider the above paragraph with what I just mentioned, it doesn’t bode too well for replayability from a literary standpoint. Unless you genuinely enjoyed the general vibe, it may lose its allure.

To add to that criticism, it’s rather disheartening to see that nothing was done to better Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed, and to earn that definitive moniker. Granted, a DLC chapter has been plopped in to sweeten the deal, but I would have loved to see more, particularly with reactions. You see, I have a minor bit of leeway when it comes to my rebuttals. I can be stern, neutral, or absolutely bonkers. Unfortunately, if I were to make an overly sexual remark, it doesn’t alter the answer I receive much. Yeah, there’s a slight variation, but it’s so minute that it might as well not exist. It’s a nitpick, but it’s such a missed opportunity to right all the original’s wrongs.

If what I’ve rambled on about is piquing your interest, then I’ll always champion that Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed is a worthwhile play, at least once. The characters, while stereotypical, have charismatic energy because of how over-the-top they are. Their banter, especially that of the protagonist’s little sister, is mint. The presence of teasing between the siblings made my experience that much more pleasant. Everything comes off as a faithful mirroring of life – the verbalized jabs and playful insults between friends also. Likely the one facet I’m lukewarm on is the choices I can select when it’s my turn to speak. There’s no sugarcoating how try-hard they sometimes read.

Look, we need to have a discussion. I have painted myself as patient and always seeing the good qualities in subpar literature. I’d say my tolerance is quite high, but to be frank, it was truly tested with this game. Sporadically sprinkled throughout are references to other franchises, with The Legend of Zelda being a common one. My gripe, and what had me shaking my head with disappointment, is how I didn’t find those responses to fit naturally into the conversation. It felt forced, as if the localizers wanted to include those jokes and would do so no matter what. I do admit that it sparingly occurs, but it causes the worst kind of eye rolls.

After devoting roughly twenty-five hours to this naughty adventure, I couldn’t shake the looming sense of familiarity. Out of curiosity, I dug up my old coverage for the initial Akiba’s Trip, and, wouldn’t you know it, a lot of what’s here is a refinement of what once was. If you think about it, it’s oddly poetic how the problematic themes of the past were stripped, like, for example, the fetishizing of a little sister. Otherwise, this title exists in a parallel universe, with a cast that’s reflective of the first – dude that prefers 2D waifus to their 3D opposites, a childhood friend, and so on. In other words, it heavily flirts with anime tropes but isn’t as brash as before.

The gameplay is straightforward in that it’s a 3D brawler. I’m running around Akihabara, kicking ass and taking names. Combos are simple to execute, too, demanding I button mash. There’s no complicated sequence, and as someone with an atrocious memory, I’m thankful. The face buttons are what I’m using, with each one corresponding to a body part. If you’ve played the previous entry, you’re acquainted with the system – by tapping X; I hit the head, and A targets the legs, while B is, appropriately, the body. The goal is to brawl with whoever until their apparel is shrouded with a cloudy aura; then, I disrobe them.

Now, to address the clunky controls I skimmed over at the beginning of this coverage, I can report that it’s not as dramatic a problem. See, to tear off shirts or pants, I just hold down X, A, or B. My character will then grab at the enemy’s clothes. The stumble I frequently faced in the past was that, at times, while tapping away at the controller, I’d randomly lunge too early, causing my momentum to shift. It occurred often, to the point of unbridled frustration. Well, those blunders have been greatly reduced, although they’re known to still happen. It’s nothing compared to before, and frankly, my session was infinitely smoother for the entire duration.

This statement may sound insane, but the mechanic I truly relish is the grinding. I earn experience from pummeling anyone that I cross. As an aside, I’ve got to say that I was surprised by the names a few have, such as the privileged skank, but let’s get back on track. By default, peeling the layers off NPCs is typically followed by everything being torn. However, by continuing my rampage, I can build up a meter that, once filled, I no longer shred that article of dress, tossing it into my inventory instead to later adorn. In a way, it feels like a collectathon, trying to gather the various attire options that Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed offers, explaining why I’m pretty keen on it.

What helps that addiction further, and will differ from person to person, is my fascination with seeing numbers increase. I’m smitten by the idea of tangibly witnessing myself getting stronger, be it through strength or defense. Well, the equippable items I obtain as drops, be it weapons or, in a way, armor, are capable of being fused. Essentially, I can choose a skirt I like the look of, and by picking it as the base, imbue it with the raw power of any extras I get. By doing so, it raises the protective properties of a wearable while boosting the lethality if it’s a baseball police baton or whatever I smack fools with.

Apart from the main story, I also gain access to side-quests early on. The objectives range from playing fetch to getting into a tussle with delinquents or a huge group of female performers. It’s a fantastic way to build up your technique, as well as the inventory. That said, the variety of missions available isn’t there. On the one hand, they’re fairly quick to complete; on the other hand, though, it isn’t long until a semblance of repetition begins creeping in. As I neared the final act, doing these became a chore. I suppose you could take solace in knowing it took hours for me to be bothered. In that same breath, I’m also tolerant. Whereas I endured the tedium for this long, it may affect other players sooner.

Another contributing factor is the absence of a minimap. There are no waypoints to provide guidance forward. Upon accepting those side quests, I’m given the general location before being left to my own devices. I have to look for the individual I’m required to meet manually. Let me tell you, there were a plethora of examples where I’d aimlessly meander. The one indication I’ve found who I’m searching for is that the box housing their identity floating over their head is colored red. To see it, I have to be modestly close. Basically, they’re hidden – it feels like the developers are artificially prolonging Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed’s length with this.

The graphical fidelity isn’t poised to astound. Yeah, it’s acceptable, but there’s an oddity that I can’t ignore. Before I go off on a tangent, it’s important to note I’m playing on the Nintendo Switch OLED. Theoretically, that means the vibrancy of the colors should pop. Well, they don’t, and the textures also fail Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed. Whenever I gaze towards signs of shops, there’s a distinct blurriness. It’s something that has been present since the first. The character models suffer, as well, with subpar resolution. What rockets to the top of my list, though, is how damn lifeless the NPCs look – they’ve got a thousand-yard stare. The main cast fares slightly better, but the soullessness is lately intact.

I’ve got to say optimization is a grand slam when it comes to performance. From beginning to end, I didn’t suffer crashes, consistently or rarely. Animations also maintain peanut butter smoothness. The movements are silky, like a delicious cordial of créme liquor. Framerate isn’t going to peak at 60fps, but I also never noticed a drop below 30fps. I tested it, though, throwing on an item that made me walk like I was intoxicated, crisscrossing my legs and everything. I would prowl the streets as fast as I could, cranking the left analog stick, and yet, as I drunkenly stumbled, the motions remained fluent.

Truth be told, I’m pretty indifferent to the music. I like a paltry number of tracks, like those with lyrics but nothing else. The instrumental bits weren’t anything to write home about; I didn’t find them especially memorable. For what it’s worth, however, I was jamming to the opening theme, but then again, I’m unreasonably infatuated with those musings. Genericism isn’t the only hiccup, either, as the overall mixing is bad. The volume levels constantly jumped, and I always had to adjust, particularly when connected to speakers. I did toy with the settings, but doing so didn’t fix it.

What I’m positive will be the most contentious aspect of Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed is the dub. To put it bluntly, it’s alright, at best. The best showcase of the voice acting was the protagonist’s sister – she did fantastically to illustrate the sarcasm that’s lace throughout her dialogue. Sure, one could argue that it’s monotone, but there was the tiniest sliver of inflection that was enough to help amplify the emotion, no matter how one-note it is. Shizuku, the heroine of the plot, proves to be the real head-scratcher. Her personality is there, and I saw it in a few scenarios, but there’s an underlying reluctance to commit. She’s at the cusp of breaking free, but for whatever reason, she’s held down.

Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed feels less like a sequel and more like a reimagining. Although, the quality-of-life additions made aren’t sufficient to stave off redundancy. There are big ones, like a pseudo-lock-on mechanic keeping me from punching the air. Still, when it comes to the absence of waypoints, it makes missions of any kind tedious as hell. The combat is quite fun, and the occasional quips from my friends helped ease me through my session. I don’t regret investing twenty-five or so hours into this game, but I’m in no hurry for a New Game+ playthrough. There’s no question that $39.99 would be my sweet spot.

 

Graphics: 6.5 While the animations and such are good, Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed isn’t a looker. It’s not ugly by any stretch of the imagination but the textures let it down hard. I’m not a fan with how lifeless every single NPC looks, either. It’s honestly unsettling. The portraits and CGs are beautiful, though!	Gameplay: 7.0 I like the gameplay loop here, even though there isn’t necessarily much to do. Yeah, there are minigames, but they are lacklustre. I guess they do pass the time, but the meat is in kicking butt.
Sound: 6.0 A mediocre score, aside from the opening credits track, which is a bit of a banger. The voice acting is pretty hit or miss, though.	Fun Factor: 6.5 There being now waypoints in the sidequests brought the score down considerably. If I’m relegated to just stomping around like a chicken with its head cut off, trying to find whoever I’m looking for, it’s boring. I have to wonder why more effort wasn’t put towards modernizing Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed, and making it the true definitive edition.
Final Verdict: 6.5

Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed Director’s Cut is available now on Nintendo Switch, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, and PC.

Reviewed on Nintendo Switch.

A copy of Akiba’s Trip: Undead and Undressed Director’s Cut was provided by the publisher.