Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The first hour is about settling into an investigation rather than surviving a barrage of systems. Sengoku moves through top-down areas, speaks with people, and gathers the information needed to continue his police assignment. It is a straightforward adventure-game loop, but the combination of a convicted protagonist and a future where crime has forced the police into desperate methods gives even routine clue-hunting a little edge.

Conversations switch to first-person screens and use a menu-driven verb-and-object format. That can feel methodical, particularly if you prefer adventures with freer interaction, but it also makes your immediate options clear: talk, probe for information, and work through the available conversational angles. The game asks you to pay attention to what people tell you and use that knowledge to direct Sengoku around the world.

Do not come in expecting dense puzzle-box design. There are no major puzzles, and inventory use is limited to certain moments when you can use or show an item to someone. That keeps the pace from getting bogged down in obscure adventure-game logic, but it also means the challenge rests largely on locating the next lead. If you enjoy old-school detective legwork, that is a reasonable trade; if you need mechanical complexity, it may feel thin.

Graphics

The game splits its view between top-down exploration and first-person dialogue scenes. The overhead areas let you guide Sengoku around each location, while the closer conversation screens put the focus on the people holding the information you need. It is a functional pairing for an investigation that moves back and forth between searching places and questioning contacts.

Story

Set in 2808, Kemono no Alignment starts from a strong cyberpunk premise: computerized crime has grown so rampant that the police revive the feudal practice of sending dangerous convicts after other criminals. Sengoku is one of those expendable agents, with a prison sentence hanging over every job. That is a clean, compelling motive for taking orders; he is not simply solving a case because it is the right thing to do.

Your immediate goal is to find Sengoku’s companions, Gogol and Benten, and complete the assignment that may reduce his sentence. Gogol’s background as a blind former boxer and hacker, along with Benten’s place in the team, gives the search a character-driven focus rather than leaving you to chase an anonymous criminal problem.

Fans of Cyber City Oedo 808 will get the most out of stepping back into Sengoku’s world and its hard-edged police arrangement. Even without elaborate puzzle detours, the investigation has a useful sense of purpose: each conversation and clue points back to bringing the crew together and earning a way out from under the system that controls Sengoku.

Overall Experience

Kemono no Alignment is a modest but focused anime adventure. Its strongest quality is that it does not bury its premise under needless complexity. You walk Sengoku through locations, question people, follow clues, and occasionally put an inventory item in front of the right person. The result is easier to finish than many adventures of its era, even if it lacks the satisfying breakthrough that a more puzzle-heavy game can deliver.

The mixed camera approach gives the game a little more movement than an entirely menu-bound investigation. Exploring from above makes the search feel physical, while the first-person dialogue screens slow things down when a lead needs to be extracted. Neither side is especially elaborate, but together they suit a short-form hunt through a cyberpunk case.

Give it a chance if the Cyber City Oedo 808 setting is the main draw, or if you want an older adventure where progress comes from investigation rather than exhaustive item-combining. Skip it if you are chasing demanding puzzles or a sprawling role-playing system. For the right mood, Sengoku’s sentence-driven mission is enough to carry this lean, clue-focused trip into 2808.

Retro Replay Score

6.8/10