Umihara Kawase Fresh! Releasing on Nintendo Switch, April 25th 2019 + more info

[sol-alpha]

Important note: Not all of the information is in this opening post, please read through the thread as there has been new updates over time.

Update:
It's happening.
Umihara Kawase Fresh!


The game is debuting at TGS this year:
https://www.4gamer.net/games/432/G043238/20180905003/

Original:
It's been a while.

Anyway, at TGS (Tokyo Game Show) 2017 this poster was spotted:



Source from Twitter: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/911067735211118592

This was at the booth in TGS from the company Success according to this article: http://nintendoeverything.com/new-umihara-kawase-teased-for-switch/

This is pretty exciting, it's been how many years now and we're getting a new one?

[KawaseFan]

This is very interesting!  I'm not entirely sure how well Umihara Kawase would play with the joy-con buttons (as was referenced by Canvas last year) but I'm looking forward to seeing more.

[nathan]

Can't wait until the new UK game comes out, glad they're making another one. I just hope they'll port it to the PC, since trying to control Umihara with an analog stick is an exercise in frustration.

[Canvas]

What does it say? Are we sure this isn't just a port of Sayonara?

[nathan]

What does it say? Are we sure this isn't just a port of Sayonara?

It says "[Kawase silhouette] Shirizu saishin saku" or "latest work [in the Kawase] series" if you move the words around a bit.

[Princess Rescuer]

YYYYEEEEAAAAHHHHOOOOOOOO!

My purchase of a Switch is worth it now.

How about a full trilogy this time as well? Chirari was good, but incomplete.

And how about a Western physical release? I would buy that for full price no question.

Umihara is BACK! I'll be working to route an All Unlocks Run. I'll be discovering an Umihara game with everyone else at the same time for the first time since 2013! Learning each of these games is straight up MAGICAL!

[texh]

The kanji says 最新作, which means "latest work" aka Sayonara.

Pretty sure it's just yet another Sayonara rehash as confirmed here. Although yea it's supposedly Vita exclusive so that gives it a bit of a hope it could be new instalment in the series.

[nathan]

Pretty sure that the Vita version is just so there will be a physical US release, there's no added levels or anything.

[texh]

Oh lol, didn't notice you already posted that.

I would expect at least new fields, giving it a new name just for a physical release seems weird to me.

[KawaseFan]

Looking through the replies to that Twitter post, it seems that the only addition to the existing Vita version of Sayonara will be some new artwork, plus there's some to-be-announced stuff regarding the packaging.  So yeah, at the moment it seems like the point is mainly to give the Vita version of Sayonara a physical release outside of Japan.  I'm quite surprised that is happening, but I definitely won't say no to it!

[Princess Rescuer]

Okay, so a trilogy then? Aw, my hopes for a new game were up. Still, I'd be happy to have a trilogy now and new ones later. Probably want to get that out there to have the Switch be the unification platform. Still looking forward anyway. I was expecting a new installment to be more like Sayonara just with better graphics and more accessibility features, and that's fine. They could make the game harder and more random, and it would still sell better.

[sol-alpha]

It's happening.
Umihara Kawase Fresh!


The game is debuting at TGS this year:
https://www.4gamer.net/games/432/G043238/20180905003/

[KawaseFan]

Great news!  Definitely looking forward to seeing more in a few weeks.

(I think it's safe to create a new board for this now.)

[Canvas]

That is one MEAN looking tadpole

[sol-alpha]

If you go here, Gematsu has been translating the tweets that the Success Twitter account has been posting. Success is the publisher for Umihara Kawase Fresh.

https://gematsu.com/2018/09/umihara-kawase-fresh-announced-for-switch

Update 09/05/18 at 10:15 p.m.: Umihara Kawase Fresh! is developed by Studio Saizensen with character design by Toshinobu Kondou, just like previous entries. It also uses the same rubber engine, so the way the controls feel is also the same.

Thanks, @Success_G3.

Update 09/07/18 at 2:05 a.m.: To change up the gameplay style, Umihara Kawase Fresh! gets rid of the previous entries’ stage system for a quest-based system on a Metroidvania-type connected map. Players aiming for the best times can use techniques to find shortcuts, and players who aren’t good at that can clear quests by taking the long way.

Thanks, @Success_G3.

Success Twitter account is here: だいさんくん (@success_g3): https://twitter.com/success_g3?s=09

[Princess Rescuer]

I'd have to say my enthusiasm has been dampened somewhat.

First, I don't like the chibi artstyle. Umi's look in the other games was better.

Second, a metroidvania? That's hardly fresh. I feel that this will decrease the replay value significantly. Not being able to do everything in one go made the game more replayable.

This game sounds like it will be very linear. The upgrades will merely be keys. There will be sprawling mazes, but only one or a few ways to go at all times.

Also, "quests" sounds like Ubisoft Sandbox chore gameplay.

[sol-alpha]

Success has been tweeting everyday new info about Umihara Kawase Fresh! Just that the tweets haven't been getting translated so machine translation leaves a lot to be desired.

Here's the ones that haven't been translated properly so far.

This one seems to suggest the game could get ported to other platforms but requires some time to do so after it releases on Switch: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1038319419443765248?s=19

More details about the quest system: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1038636536298762240?s=19

A new character will be revealed? https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1038973180109410304?s=19

[sol-alpha]

The first screenshot has appeared:


I think the tweet it came from mentions development is at 20-30% complete: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1040057159612948481?s=19

[KawaseFan]

I don't mind the changes in gameplay style and I wonder whether they think such a move might gain the series more popularity.  Or if they just wanted to do something new with the series, that's cool too.

I do hope it gets a PC release, but if it's only being developed for the Switch at first then I'll certainly get that version.

[Princess Rescuer]

The gameplay change is fine. But hunger and thirst meters? Really? What’s next, stamina? Is your hook going to break after a few uses? If it’s stretched too far, is it gone unless you have or can get another one? Those seem more like annoyances than anything. Is the game after this going to have procedurally generated levels that take less effort to make and have fake replay value? The series seems to be losing its identity. What was wrong with the structure before? It just needed some polish and content that’s all. Not an overhaul.

On the plus side, Switch exclusivity will help the game sell more and create repeat buyers for ports.

[KawaseFan]

The gameplay change is fine. But hunger and thirst meters? Really? What’s next, stamina? Is your hook going to break after a few uses? If it’s stretched too far, is it gone unless you have or can get another one? Those seem more like annoyances than anything. Is the game after this going to have procedurally generated levels that take less effort to make and have fake replay value? The series seems to be losing its identity. What was wrong with the structure before? It just needed some polish and content that’s all. Not an overhaul.

I understand your concern about the hunger and thirst meters and am interested in seeing how they'll work, but I doubt they'd go the route of having to replace hooks and I absolutely agree that would be a bad idea.

On the plus side, Switch exclusivity will help the game sell more and create repeat buyers for ports.

Yeah; if it gets a PC release at some point, I will be one of those people.

[sol-alpha]

Gematsu translated the other tweets I mentioned, here's a summary of them so far: https://gematsu.com/2018/09/umihara-kawase-fresh-first-screenshot

September 5: Umihara Kawase Fresh! is developed by Studio Saizensen with character design by Toshinobu Kondou, just like previous entries. It also uses the same rubber engine, so the way the controls feel is also the same.

September 7: To change up the gameplay style, Umihara Kawase Fresh! gets rid of the previous entries’ stage system for a quest-based system on a Metroidvania-style connected map. Players aiming for the best times can use techniques to find shortcuts, and players who aren’t good at that can clear quests by taking the long way.

September 8: Success Corporation will consider porting Umihara Kawase Fresh! to other platforms after the Switch release. Since it is not being developed as a multiplatform game, development on a port would not start until after the Switch release. Assuming it is released for other platforms / Steam, it may not be until at least half a year after the initial release. Right now nothing has been decided.

September 8: The game uses a quest-based system on a giant map. However, if you choose a quest without a time limit, you can go to any area of the map without having cleared the quest. The higher you go up and the lower you go down, the more the image of the world will change. You can also change the difficulty.

September 9: Just like previous entries in the series, Umihara Kawase Fresh! has multiple playable characters, including a new character. In fact, that character was one of the only things Success Corporation asked the development team for this time. Her identity is still a secret, and she will not be revealed at Tokyo Game Show 2018.

September 10: There is a story within this quest-based Umihara Kawase Fresh!. Event scenes are also being prepared.

[sol-alpha]

The latest tweet: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1040908536484515840?s=19

This tweet confirms that they have multi-language support planned with English and Chinese language options being a certainty.

Other languages are yet to be determined.

They plan to release the digital version worldwide but, they have not decided about a physical release yet.

[Alc]

Thanks for the tweet summaries, sol, much appreciated. Can't wait to play it! This would definitely push me towards getting a Switch sooner rather than later, if it's going to be exclusive for quite a while.

Personally I'd be quite happy with a shift back to 2D, be it chibi or whatever. Their 3D animation work in Sayonara was pretty poor, honestly.

[sol-alpha]

New artwork!: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1041893329909080064?s=19

[sol-alpha]

The booth is ready: https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1042364909193846786?s=19



Take a close look.

[sol-alpha]

https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1042375135024443398?s=19

Umihara Kawase Fresh! Will be streamed by 4Gamer tomorrow from 15:00 (JST) on the first day of TGS.

6am for GMT
11pm PDT
2am EDT

Link to the stream: https://youtu.be/qOHX_VNoZk0

[KawaseFan]

Liking the new artwork!

Unfortunately I won't be able to watch the stream live, but I'm definitely looking forward to watching it when I can.

And...

Take a close look.

Is that the new character I see?

[sol-alpha]

Liking the new artwork!

Unfortunately I won't be able to watch the stream live, but I'm definitely looking forward to watching it when I can.

And...

Take a close look.

Is that the new character I see?

I think this is the new character and I think it's a guest character from one of Success' IP



https://twitter.com/gosokkyu/status/1042657139393613826?s=19

[KawaseFan]

Oh, that's pretty cool.

I just watched the video and liked what I saw.  The quests shown off weren't dissimilar to the type of stages we're familiar with; just larger, which I think is a good move.  It definitely feels to me like they're trying to keep the core appeal of the gameplay intact, but just expand on how it's presented.  I'm still looking forward to swinging around the whole map when possible, though.

What struck me the most was the tadpole boss stage.  No more having to wait for it to go through its patterns; actively reduce its health by hooking onto it where safe to do so.  Great news.

[sol-alpha]

For those that haven't seen the gameplay yet, go to: https://youtu.be/qOHX_VNoZk0

The gameplay goes from 11:00 to 26:21 in the video.
====

Now for what I thought. As I expected, it looks like Sayonara but with a new artstyle. The publisher did say it was using the Rubber Engine from the last game a while back.

That means it will be easy transitioning from Sayonara to Fresh! Since the mechanics will most likely be the same.

I like the new artstyle, I would have to actually play to see what I think with regards to the Metroidvania type stuff: collecting food, etc.

Since they're using the Rubber Engine, I wonder if the game won't be far off from completion. If it's at 20-30% now with a demo, I'd want it out ASAP to play. Maybe between July to September next year it will be released.

[Canvas]

I cannot help but feel I wont enjoy Fresh as much as I am not a very big metroidvania fan but I hope it introduces more people to the series (as long as it isn't a total eclipse). Do enemies only stun now? If it comes to peecee I will support it since it still looks fun but I feel like being a switch exclusive at this time will do wonders for it's popularity

[Princess Rescuer]

I've seen the demo footage.

I hope the Sayonara music is just placeholder. I would like original music.

I knew that the game would attempt some sort of story. That doesn't surprise me. There isn't too much of it.

Bigger, more descript, more detailed levels are a plus. As well as new enemies. This game is living up to being fresh already.

The hunger and thirst meters deplete very slowly. It's a good thing they don't boss you around constantly and dominate the game's priorities list.

The tadpole doesn't even kill you anymore? It just stuns you now? Lame! On the plus side, you actually directly attack it like you would expect instead of figuring out this obtuse puzzle on how to damage it (or just waiting for it to go away). And the tadpole doesn't look oddly realistic and creepy anymore so that's a plus.

I'm glad that there is a new installment on a popular console that addresses many of the criticisms I've had with the series. This could be the long-awaited big break. Let me guess- it's coming out in December to coincide with the 25th anniversary. I don't see why it would take THAT long.

[sol-alpha]

I've seen the demo footage.

The hunger and thirst meters deplete very slowly. It's a good thing they don't boss you around constantly and dominate the game's priorities list.

I don't know what you were watching.

1) The Hunger meter only depleted anytime she got hit by an enemy which suggests it's just a regular old health bar.
2) Never saw the Thirst meter deplete, so we don't even know what causes that to deplete.

[CyanideBlizzard]

I haven't been able to keep up with all things Umi lately, so I'm extremely grateful for Sol-alpha taking the time to not only make this topic but gather all of this information. 

The idea certainly is one that fits in with the rubber band physics, speed running, and also a genre that has definitely gotten more eyes on it over the past five years.  Getting a chance to see what they've done as well, I'm very excited for the possibilities.  There's definitely a far greater focus on expanding the Umihara Kawase brand to a more mainstream appeal, which is even further noted by a multi-linguistic release.  That is if I remember reading correctly.  While game play and time trial were always the lasting appeal, I can definitely see speed runners more so gravitating to this (and I'm presuming that they'll also include a New Game + that is commonly seen alongside metroidvania titles).  Saizensen really wants more people to go on an adventure with Umihara, and this could very well be the means to do so.

What I found rather interesting, and pleasant, is while it's a bit of an adjustment not seeing Kondo's traditional artwork up front and center I find the chibi designs to be very pleasing to the eye.  Especially since Umi decided to show off a bit of midriff for this iteration, it focuses it more on cute instead of the more asset-driven works we've seen come from the Sayonara releases.  I'm also glad that they're still keeping those backgrounds as crazy as ever.

The physics aspect seems to be the same as it was in Sayonara, which I personally don't mind.  Of course it'll come down to getting our hands on it and properly fooling around with it to really judge but I didn't see anything that gave me flashbacks to Portable or really any cause for concern.

It's hard to really comment on how the survival mechanics will feel in action, as the three short demonstrations don't necessarily do a good job of showcasing how they'll fully function.  It could either be a nice touch, or a pain in the ass.  Sadly, most survival mechanics are the latter and I could see that being a point of contention.

It's going to be the most interesting seeing how the fanbase responds to this.  While there's still the core elements of the same game there, it's definitely a departure to say the least.  The story mode alone speaks volumes to that.  but I'm quite excited to see what comes of all this.  I'll be ready for next year!

[sol-alpha]

https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1074843008602783744?s=19

This is machine translated so not 100% accurate.

【Emergency announcement】 January 4, 2019 (Fri.) 13: 00 ~ 18: 00 We will conduct a user experiences meeting of Hidaka River Fresh Fresh. The location is Tokyo Gotanda Success Headquarters. We prepare souvenirs for those who participate. Fans of New Year holidays gather in Tokyo Gotanda. Please leave the schedule as I write the details again later! # Horigiri River

They're calling it a closed beta, they want user feedback on it such as final balancing (I'm guessing with regards to enemy spawns etc):
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1074847231717462017?s=19

[sol-alpha]

They gave the address details I think for the closed beta for those that can attend (assuming you're in Japan): https://swninfo.success-corp.co.jp/switch/umihara-fresh/pre/

Also, there's new details on the site, a physical version has been confirmed but that means the game will be 5800 yen. No final release date yet, still has 2019. But there's new art in the link above, it could become the cover art.

Edit:

It's also been mentioned on that site that the game is currently 60-70% complete. I'm pretty sure I remember the game was only 30% complete back at TGS 2018.

So maybe the game will be out by April? Definitely expecting it within the first half of next year.

[Princess Rescuer]

I would be expecting a December 2019 release for the 25th anniversary. It's a good thing we will probably be getting the game earlier, since launching in the holidays has never been good for this series and almost led to it being only one or two installments.

[KawaseFan]

Yeah, hopefully we do get more release info soon.  Personally, I'm expecting a release around June or July.

[sol-alpha]

Yeah, hopefully we do get more release info soon.  Personally, I'm expecting a release around June or July.

I would be expecting a December 2019 release for the 25th anniversary. It's a good thing we will probably be getting the game earlier, since launching in the holidays has never been good for this series and almost led to it being only one or two installments.

It's releasing in Spring/Summer 2019 in Japan.
http://www.siliconera.com/2019/01/02/umihara-kawase-fresh-to-release-in-first-half-of-2019/

[KawaseFan]

It's releasing in Spring/Summer 2019 in Japan.
http://www.siliconera.com/2019/01/02/umihara-kawase-fresh-to-release-in-first-half-of-2019/

Great to hear that.

Also:
http://www.siliconera.com/2019/01/05/some-japanese-gameplay-impressions-for-umihara-kawase-fresh/
Some positive impressions from last week's event!

[sol-alpha]

The official website is now open, it has lots of new details but they can't be Google Translated because the text is in the imsges.

Here's the link: https://swninfo.success-corp.co.jp/switch/umihara-fresh/index.html

There's also a new gameplay video, you can hear the new soundtrack: https://youtu.be/smSXLiLGRDE

[Princess Rescuer]

I like how you can take multiple hits, while not being able to get stunned an unlimited amount of times.

I wonder if you can heal?

Or if the game will now have a language barrier previous games didn't have?

[sol-alpha]

I wonder if you can heal?

The food you collect can be eaten to restore health.
I'm very certain I saw that during the TGS 2018 demo video.

[CyanideBlizzard]

The Collector's Edition that Studio Saizensen worked with Strictly Limited has been shipped out recently, and inside contains an ad for Fresh!

This also includes a more firm date of release for Fresh.  Spring 2019.

[sol-alpha]

This also includes a more firm date of release for Fresh.  Spring 2019.

Don't need to speculate anymore.
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1088623550343217152?s=19
It has a planned release date of April 25th 2019

[CyanideBlizzard]

Heya, now that is really fantastic!  Today looks to be a great day for Umi-chan news, as it looks like Amazon Japan has started to take orders as well.  Which means that where-ever you import from, they most likely will be too. 

[Princess Rescuer]

Can I see the ad?

Not that it matters, I was already going to buy the game but still, being advertised in english finally

[sol-alpha]

Can I see the ad?

Not that it matters, I was already going to buy the game but still, being advertised in english finally

I'm assuming you're on your phone. Scroll the image to the right, it's larger than what is being shown.

[KawaseFan]

Don't need to speculate anymore.
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1088623550343217152?s=19
It has a planned release date of April 25th 2019

Nice!  I'll probably import a copy in any case, even if just for collection purposes, but I wonder if it'll be released worldwide on the eShop around the same time.

[sol-alpha]

Nice!  I'll probably import a copy in any case, even if just for collection purposes, but I wonder if it'll be released worldwide on the eShop around the same time.

It's planned to be released the same time worldwide on the eShop.
It's just that Success haven't revealed yet who is the publisher outside Japan and yes, they said someone else is handling the release outside Japan. I'm guessing it's Circle but we'll probably find out soon.

[sol-alpha]

A few things have happened so I'll just post them here.

First, suggestions for where to import a physical version of the game:

AmazonJP:
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B07N33836Z

The physical release on Amazon features an option to include a Umihara Kawase themed calendar with your order, this a limited edition order exclusive to Amazon and will bump the price a little compared to just ordering the game alone. You can choose to order only the game if you want.

CDJapan:
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/HAC-P-AQW8A

nin-nin:
https://www.nin-nin-game.com/en/video-games/30398-umihara-kawase-fresh-switch--4944076005087.html

amiami:
https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail/?gcode=GAME-0021571

PlayAsia:
https://www.play-asia.com/umihara-kawase-fresh/13/70bjpz
_______

Second:

The game will have over 100 stages, this will involve a mix of 75 quests + time attack stages + challenges:
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1097681496381497344?s=19
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1099185457886187520?s=19

Third:

There is new game footage:
https://youtu.be/QYViGYgMlso

Fourth:
Seems to be a reminder that there's English in the Japanese release if the Success Twitter account is tweeting it:
"English is also available."
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1099864050006056960?s=19

[Princess Rescuer]

Over 100 fields, sounds nice.

I was going to get this game no matter what, but that's good to know.

[sesto]

Since it'll be released on Switch,do we have information about whether there will be an in-game trophy system like acquire all backpacks and so on?

[sol-alpha]

The only thing confirmed right now is online leaderboards.
They've been drip feeding info on the game since it was revealed at TGS 2018. So who knows if or when they'll confirm in-game achievements.

[sesto]

The only thing confirmed right now is online leaderboards.
They've been drip feeding info on the game since it was revealed at TGS 2018. So who knows if or when they'll confirm in-game achievements.

Yeah,but online leaderboards are too challenging for me...I hope they'll at least have some unlockable contents(arts,soundtracks,etc)for collecting backpacks or something,to make me feel I'm good at this game after all

[sol-alpha]

There was a time attack event on earlier today.

New gameplay footage of Cotton, here she has been given the ability to fly like from the games that she's from (Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams, and other titles).
Don't worry, as mentioned already, leaderboards will be segmented for each character in the game.

Link to footage: https://twitter.com/exadriver/status/1107243762520985600?s=19

[sol-alpha]

On March 28th, Umihara Kawase Fresh! will be listed on the Japan eShop. The option to preload is expected and there may be a demo released at the same time.

https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1107894293543284737?s=19

[sesto]

On March 28th, Umihara Kawase Fresh! will be listed on the Japan eShop. The option to preload is expected and there may be a demo released at the same time.

https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1107894293543284737?s=19

[sol-alpha]

New updates to the official site including character profiles and wallpapers and cutouts:

https://swninfo.success-corp.co.jp/switch/umihara-fresh/index.html

The game will be 1.9GB big, save file will be 34.4MB big.

New gameplay video showing off a new area of the game Mid-Layer: https://youtu.be/NnB5uYqgHEs

[sol-alpha]

While I am downloading the demo of Umihara Kawase Fresh!

I may as well mention that you can go and download the demo of Umihara Kawase Fresh! from the Japan eShop.

You'll need a Nintendo Account or separate Nintendo Account set to Japan region so then you can access the Japan region of the eShop.

[sol-alpha]

I finished playing the demo a while back.

You can spend a lot of time in it if you want. There are stages 0-12 with one boss fight. The game is playable in English. There is a challenge mode for the boss fight. Time attack mode is for the online leaderboards but that is implemented in the full game, not the demo.

There is a lot to explore, there are hidden items and you can end up exploring other areas in the game as long as you don't lose.

I noticed the "Rocket Dash" is different in Umihara Kawase Fresh! Putting the hook into the ground and running from one side to the other doesn't propel you as strongly as it did in Sayonara Umihara Kawase. You now have to run to one end and jump then run to other side to build up momentum hence the "Rocket Dash" as shown by Sakai back when he demoed the game at Tokyo Game Show 2018.

[sesto]

Downloading.2 hours remaining

[sesto]

Just finished the tadpole challenge.Is there a way to avoid damage on the ice?

[Meester Tweester]

Hello all, this is my first time posting here. I was introduced to the series by DidYouKnowGaming's recent SNES Games Trivia episode. I looked up some videos and was intrigued. Luckily enough for me, I learned the demo was on the Japanese eShop soon, and I had a Japanese account on my Switch.

The fish hook mechanic was much more complex than I expected. Slowly but surely, I was able to beat all the levels and the challenge mode boss level, but I struggled with some. I am interested in speedrunning this game. However, there is a lot of techniques I can't seem to do, like the rocket dash in the wall climb. If you could help me with this I would appreciate it.

For the challenge mode boss level with the ice, I was able to beat it by grappling onto the fish and dangle off the ledge to dodge his first time coming towards me, then I was able to make it under him. I hid in a bottom left corner to dodge most of the attacks on both the normal and challenge difficulties. The slippery ice was hard to run on, but I was able to beat it just barely with one hit point of my health left.

I can post my speedrunning times here and even record gameplay of my speedruns. It is hard for me to speedrun this game as I am not to the series, though. On the first level I was able to get 23.80 on March 28, and by learning a route to go left I brought my time down to 21.35 on March 29. I have trouble getting up the left wall at the start and doing a pendulum swing to get to the last platform early can save more time.

[sesto]

Hello all, this is my first time posting here. I was introduced to the series by DidYouKnowGaming's recent SNES Games Trivia episode. I looked up some videos and was intrigued. Luckily enough for me, I learned the demo was on the Japanese eShop soon, and I had a Japanese account on my Switch.

The fish hook mechanic was much more complex than I expected. Slowly but surely, I was able to beat all the levels and the challenge mode boss level, but I struggled with some. I am interested in speedrunning this game. However, there is a lot of techniques I can't seem to do, like the rocket dash in the wall climb. If you could help me with this I would appreciate it.

For the challenge mode boss level with the ice, I was able to beat it by grappling onto the fish and dangle off the ledge to dodge his first time coming towards me, then I was able to make it under him. I hid in a bottom left corner to dodge most of the attacks on both the normal and challenge difficulties. The slippery ice was hard to run on, but I was able to beat it just barely with one hit point of my health left.

I can post my speedrunning times here and even record gameplay of my speedruns. It is hard for me to speedrun this game as I am not to the series, though. On the first level I was able to get 23.80 on March 28, and by learning a route to go left I brought my time down to 21.35 on March 29. I have trouble getting up the left wall at the start and doing a pendulum swing to get to the last platform early can save more time.

So being new to the series actually helps you...You can’t grab the tadpole and dangle off the edge in previous games,and there was no HP bar as well,any body contact with enemies and you fail.This game is a lot easier to beat at least.

[Meester Tweester]

So being new to the series actually helps you...You can’t grab the tadpole and dangle off the edge in previous games,and there was no HP bar as well,any body contact with enemies and you fail.This game is a lot easier to beat at least.

I guess having a new perspective helped! It turns out you don't need to throw the fishing line over and over again against the boss, keeping the line hooked in will slowly drain down its health even if you get hit. So if you grapple on and dangle over the ledge, you can deal a lot of damage while being safe from the fish. I keep my line on the boss as it jumps up, then I get hit but I get to the left of it. Keeping the line on the tadpole as long as I could, I was able to bring down the time to 23 seconds in both Time Attack and Challenge mode. Just make sure not to get hit while being over the ledge. Even if you deplete all of its health, you will still die if you run out of health or fall off the ledge when the boss has no health left.

Also, here are my times and the history of them in the demo so far. I might make videos of these later. I referenced these from screenshots I took over the course of this week. Some of the levels I have not played much so they might be too slow, and also since this is my first Kawase or fishhook game of any kind it's hard for me to play. But, I was able to bring all but one of my times under a minute!

Time Attack:
Quest 1: 21.35 3/29, 23.80, 24.21, 25.41, 27.88, 28.21 3/28
Quest 2: 47.50 3/28
Quest 3: 8.50 3/28
Quest 4: 22.73 3/29
Quest 5: 18.21 3/30, 18.63 3/29
Quest 6: 26.33 3/29
Quest 7: 54.51 3/30, 1:26.05 3/29
Quest 8: 54.08 3/30, 1:28.31 3/29
Quest 9: 1:03.83 3/30, 1:42.50 3/29
Quest 10: 56.06 3/30, 1:19.88 3/29
Quest 11: 45.50 3/31, 51.65 3/29
Quest 12: 23.55 3/30, 40.83 3/30, 58.81 3/29
Challenge:
Challenge 12: 23.78, 25.31 3/31, 34.96 3/30, 1:32 or 1:36? 3/29

Sum of Time Attack times: 7:22.15 3/31
Sum of Time Attack + Challenge times: 7:45.93 3/31

Now here I am proud to present beating the demo in under 12 minutes from the start of the first quest to the end of the last quest, 11:57 real time and 8:33.99 in-game time. After playing Time Attack some I thought I would speedrun the full demo on fresh save data. I am having a hard time learning the techniques (as you can see I don't use Rocket Jumps and move slowly through the levels) but no one else has speedrunned the demo on YouTube yet, I think. Also after 6 attempts I got my first run with no death, hooray! Earlier today I got a 14:42 and 13:21 but they had so embarrassing deaths and mistakes. This run went pretty well I think except for the complete fail on Quest 5. Sorry for some recording issues in the middle. Even with my bad playing hopefully you all will enjoy the new game in a speedrun!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztzdZuKTWR0

[gori.sh]

This is my time. 1day/1quest.
https://togetter.com/li/1332832

[Meester Tweester]

This is my time. 1day/1quest.
https://togetter.com/li/1332832

I have seen some of your videos today. Great job, you move so fast already!

[CyanideBlizzard]

Really exciting little piece of video went up today, as Kondo himself streamed the demo of Umihara Kawase Fresh.  Of course, the video is in Japanese but I wanted to share it here for those that would be interested in watching this.

[sol-alpha]

I haven't updated in a while so, what's popped up?

There was an April Fools joke where Curly from Cave Story was going to be a playable character in Umihara Kawase Fresh!
https://twitter.com/success_g3/status/1112538539051225088?s=19

Success has released about nine videos so far which give tips on how to do certain techniques in the game for newcomers. It's subtitled in Japanese, maybe there'll be English versions for the western release by Nicalis or English fansubs.
1) https://youtu.be/Eb6u-mQxhG4
2) https://youtu.be/usNm8fYfK0o
3) https://youtu.be/1o1qpWpGdWU
4) https://youtu.be/6IBeXjfakXE
5) https://youtu.be/tSpW4MX7Nww
6) https://youtu.be/HTK6szyYogI
7) https://youtu.be/M4WqLDS_ts4
8: https://youtu.be/GowDRXnyt9U
9) https://youtu.be/f14Tl4elCxA

[sol-alpha]

Really exciting little piece of video went up today, as Kondo himself streamed the demo of Umihara Kawase Fresh.  Of course, the video is in Japanese but I wanted to share it here for those that would be interested in watching this.

May as well mention the second stream Kondo did which went through stages beyond the demo, playing as Cotton and a new boss shown.

Linked here: https://youtu.be/aS1LXevX7Qg

[KawaseFan]

May as well mention the second stream Kondo did which went through stages beyond the demo, playing as Cotton and a new boss shown.

Linked here: https://youtu.be/aS1LXevX7Qg

You forgot the most important news from the stream: Kondo is Iron Man

Seriously, though, I'm liking what I'm seeing of the game's environments and what I'm hearing of the new music, and that is one freaky-looking boss!

[sol-alpha]

A reminder for anyone playing Umihara Kawase Fresh! Any video clips and screenshots you save to your SD card on your Switch can be accessed on your PC. This way you can just grab the files and then upload them to wherever you like such as YouTube.

[CyanideBlizzard]

Got my copy in today, and I'm excited to play it. 

I did a quick flip through of the bonus calendar that came with the Amazon edition.  Might take some higher quality photos later on, but this gives you an idea of the layout and the images.

[sol-alpha]

My copy of Umihara Kawase Fresh! arrived. Here it is pictured with Umihara Kawase Shun Second Edition Kanzenban.

[KawaseFan]

My copy has also arrived!  I was going to say I'd add info to the game's page on the site as I play through it, but I just looked at the page and, uh, I need to add a lot of stuff to that

I did a quick flip through of the bonus calendar that came with the Amazon edition.  Might take some higher quality photos later on, but this gives you an idea of the layout and the images.

Cool calendar!

[sol-alpha]

So I just finished Kawase's story mode and when it got to the credits, unless I missed it, Kiyoshi Sakai's involvement in the game wasn't like the first trilogy, he was listed as the only "Support" staff on the game.

Edit:

Here's the credits