For my second interview, I got a chance to sit down with the fledgling indie team of Acrobatic Chirimenjako, composed of the director, Achabox, the scenario designer, Seishi Irimajiri, and the lead programmer, amenone games. This trio has been working in the creative fields of photography, music, graphical design, and programming for years in different aspects, but have come together to craft an exceptionally special game, Schrödinger’s Call. 

Schrödinger’s Call was easily the most memorable title of BitSummit, mixing the charming with the truly strange and uncomfortable in terms of graphics and concept. The screen was peppered with purposeful glitches and cut-in graphics from seemingly random moments that, over the course of the demo, became more and more connected and logical. Though the gameplay was more on the level of Phoenix Wright than a more traditional visual novel, it nonetheless was captivating in terms of storytelling. My time with the protagonist, Mary, was far too brief, but I’m already hooked and eager for more, though the release date is still a distant year away.

Much like the team itself, the interview was a complex and thoroughly enjoyable affair, as we had the three game designers, two members of Shueisha Games, three translators/interpreters, and, at the center of it all, one very excited and sometimes confused interviewer. I’ve done my best to separate and give credit to each speaker as they chimed in, but there was plenty of overlap, quick asides, and general banter that crafted a wonderful, if chaotic, atmosphere. 

 

Thank you very much for taking the time to come and speak with me today. To begin with: can you please tell me, what IS Schrödinger’s Call?

(Achabox) It’s a world after a cataclysmic event where the moon fell. The main character, Mary, is the last person left alive. She uses a phone to help resolve the issues of the lost souls of this world.

 

With each phone call, will Mary have to answer many questions, will there be a single answer or will it take time to figure out how to help these souls?

(Shueisha Games) Obviously, you’re going to be talking with a lot of different characters over the course of the game. There’ll be a lot of long back and forths between many entities in order to understand their feelings and where they are, emotionally, when Mary reaches them. 

(Achabox) How the interaction works is, as the moon was falling, many of these souls are trapped in the space right as the moon crashed into Earth. Their memories are, as a result, rather spotty, and you’ll be talking with them to help better understand their state of mind. Some are anxious about not wanting to die, for example.  As you piece the information together, Mary will start to formulate leading questions, giving the characters better direction as to help put their memories back together. There are a lot of elements to help the player better understand the souls and, more importantly, what you need to do to help them find peace.

(Shueisha Games) it won’t happen just one time. Mary will call to one character, get some information, and then pass it on to another character and use that to create prompts to help decipher what they are thinking. The moment between death and life, when the souls are about to pass but are clinging to life…that is where Mary must work to discover how to unburden them.

The idea of the space between life and death could come across as either horror or a more emotional tone. Which way does the game lean?

(Achabox) Definitely emotional. Despite the setting, there’s nothing “scary” about this game at all.

 

In a game like this, Mary’s voice is very important. What is the state of voiceover work within Schrödinger’s Call?

(Achabox) we’ve recorded voices for the game, but are converting them into more of a sound effect cue rather than full speech. It’s important that, as you’re reading the game, you’re able to digest the game at your own pace. By removing outside influence from how Mary or the others “sound,” you can establish your own idea of how everyone feels.

(amenone games) We’re continuing to experiment with different ways to deliver the sound so that it gives players agency over how the game comes across for each characters state of mind.

(Seishi Irimajiri) This is to best capture the essence of speech while still allowing for freedom of interpretation.

(Achabox) There are parts at the beginning where you won’t know who or even what will be on the other side. By removing a specific voice, players are also able to enjoy a mysterious element of what, exactly, Mary is connecting with.

The concept of the game is wildly unique. What inspired the creation of Schrödinger’s Call?

(Achabox) The inspiration came during the time of COVID-19. At that time, it was so difficult to communicate and connect on a person-to-person basis. During this time, I had two family members pass away. People couldn’t see each other, so we had to rely on phone calls, and it became so important as a way to keep up those relationships with those we hold dear. During a funeral ceremony for one of my family members, my father and grandmother both lay down next to the deceased, speaking and sharing thoughts with them, and I could “see” the words shared between them almost like bubbles floating above them. These ideas combined to be the inspiration for Mary and the way she would interact with the denizens of Schrodinger’s Call.

(Shueisha Games) The main protagonist is Mary, of course, but the focus falls on many characters throughout. The main focus is on the communication and the empathy that you create during these interactions. To find out what it is they want to get off their chest, to tell other people, and even what they, themselves, need to hear before passing on…this is the purpose of the game. To help express those last lingering feelings, whatever they may be.

Beyond the voices, what kind of musical influences help shape the soundtrack of Mary’s world?

(Seishi Irimajiri) As just a three person team, we all work very closely together on all elements of the game. A lot comes from the back-and-forth in the overall creation, like reading the story aloud to each other and seeing what comes from this engagement.

(amenone games) Actually…that’s not exactly true. Rather, when I get tired of working on debugging and coding, I can take a break by going and working on the music. 

(Achabox) It’s such a tightly knit project between us all.

(amenone games) I’ve had plenty of opportunities to work on the art direction and soundtrack for other games, so this is well within my wheelhouse.

It’s clearly such a unique and special game, and it’s wonderful to see the team working so well together to help bring Schrödinger’s Call to everyone. Speaking of which, will this only be coming to PC, or can fans expect a console release in the future?

(Shueisha Games) Right now, it’s being developed primarily for the PC. We would love to bring it to console eventually, but, when and where it will be released outside of Steam, we’ll have to check when the time comes.

To conclude, what message would you like to share with fans who are coming into this world for the first time?

(amenone games) For first-time players, it might seem very difficult to get through and to navigate.

(Seishi Irimajiri) Maybe you aren’t the right person to answer this question?

(Achabox) After all, you’re only the sound engineer.

(amenone games) ANYWAYS, I think it’s important to show what can be done on an indie scale, especially this level of freedom, and the quality of expression that you normally only find in much larger games.

(Seishi Irimajiri) It’s very much a concept first, but we hope that it’s easy enough to pick up and play for anyone.

(Achabox) What else can I add? They’ve already said everything. Um…I hope that people can play and have the extra notion of “maybe I should take the time to reach out. To the people who are important in my life, the people who might be having a difficult time.” I hope players walk away with that notion.

(Shueisha Games) It’s a very personal endeavor, so I hope that everyone can walk away from this and think “wow, this was a great experience.”

 

Scrödinger’s Call will be released in 2025 on PC in English, Japanese, and both simplified and traditional Chinese.