Don’t let the cute aesthetic fool you, though, this game is tough as nails. However, instead of firing high caliber ammunition, Pocky throws ofuda cards at an incredible pace, while her pal Rocky throws leaves. It may seem like an odd genre choice for a shrine maiden, but Pocky & Rocky largely subscribes to the top-down run-and-gun formula popularized by games like Commando and Ikari Warriors. You do battle with various yokai and obake, heal yourself with dango, and protect yourself with omamori. The localization glosses over some of this by renaming Sayo-chan to Pocky and Manuke to Rocky the Raccoon, but much of the rest of the game is the same as before. The main character is a miko, or a Shinto shrine maiden, named Sayo-chan and she’s accompanied by a tanuki named Manuke. The reason why it seems like an unlikely candidate for translation is because it delves so heavily into Japanese folklore. Looking back, it’s an unlikely title to localize, but Natsume took the chance and brought it over as Pocky & Rocky. What was originally an arcade title by Taito in 1986, it lay mostly dormant until it was revived in 1993 by Natsume with an SNES sequel called Kiki Kaikai: Nazo no Kuro Manto. Pocky & Rocky is technically the first localized version of the Kiki Kaikai series. Pocky & Rocky is as Japanese as kimono and miso soup. Now, with the help of my husband and co-op buddy, Okamigami, I can finally put a cap on it.
That was years ago, and though I had made a few attempts, I had yet to conquer it. Remembering only images from the game, I was able to ascertain the name and find a copy of my own. In my adulthood, it became a priority title for me to track down. We never got very far, but what we had played stuck in my mind up into adulthood, cemented by the happy memories provided by my mom. Pocky & Rocky was one such game that we picked up a few times off the rental shelf. Off the top of my head, I remember diving into Donkey Kong Country, and playing endless amounts of Stunt Racer FX with her.
In my youth, my mother would occasionally indulge me by joining in my favourite hobby.
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