Wonder Project J is about emotion.
Pino is a young robot who, through the player’s guidance, must learn to interact with the
world around him.
Like a child, he is easily frustrated - especially when tired.
He will throw tantrums.
He will lash out violently.
He will kick, scream, and cry.
He will also learn to love.
Pino sings when he is happy.
He will skip down steps with a playful joyousness.
He literally floats on air.
Throughout the game we, as the players, are strapped into Pino’s emotional rollercoaster.
We are frustrated when he’s cranky and uncooperative, because our control over the game is momentarily
revoked.
We beam at his childish exuberance because his happiness is infectious.
We laugh at his failures, and cheer with his successes.
And it is by the light of Pino’s innocence that humanity’s uglier emotions are illuminated.
Pino is a mechanized child that, like Pinocchio, sets off on a series of misadventures to learn
what it means to be a ‘real’ boy.
Hint: it’s the capacity for love; in each of the game’s 8 acts Pino will develop a
love of ‘something’ whether it be love for adventure, nature, sports, or even love
for another person.
It is Pino’s ability to love that ultimately makes him more human than the squishy meat-people
of his homeland.
So a bit of backstory: Pino lives on the island of Corlo which is inhabited by both humans
and the robotic Gijin.
I believe this to be a play on words, as Gijin sounds a lot like gaijin the Japanese word
for foreigner, or outsider.
See the humans are, with few exceptions, fearful of the Gijin, a fear which soon manifests
- as fear often does - as hatred and prejudice.
These mechanical organisms live in complete segregation from the human population.
But despite being Gijin himself, Pino doesn’t look like an outsider.
He moves freely among the humans and ultimately it’s his love that acts as the catalyst
of change within their hearts.
Wonder Project J happens to be one of the few titles to utilize the SNES mouse, a peripheral
that in the US was primarily used to make terrible animations and murder virtual insects.
In this game however, it is used to direct Tinker, the interface-robot responsible for
giving Pino his commands.
As the player you never directly control Pino himself.
He is not your avatar; he is your responsibility.
Through the use of positive and negative reinforcement you will teach him how to appropriately, or
inappropriately, interact with the world around him.
Whenever you click on an object, if Pino acts the why you want him to - praise him, if he
doesn’t - scold him.
Eventually he should adopt the wanted behavior.
If he doesn’t cooperate he might be tired, low on health, or under leveled.
As Pino’s caregiver you have to keep him healthy and well rested.
You’re also responsible for his education, so provide him with plenty of books to read
and give him ample exercise.
As mentioned earlier the game is divided into 8 acts, each of which is divided into two
types of stages: interactive and passive.
During the interactive segments you get boss Pino around and manage his stats:
Pino’s stats are color coded to their governing parameters, as represented by these colored
orbs at the top of the screen.
Whenever Pino performs an action, or interacts with an object, one or more of these orbs
flash.
This indicates that Pino’s stats have changed, for better or worse.
Training Pino is a juggling act; some stats are contradictory and become pointless when
maximized together – for example an extremely kind yet aggressive Pino has absolutely no
idea what to do with a sword.
Once satisfied with Pino’s current behavior you send him off on the passive “puzzle”
portions of the game, whereas you sit back and watch the action unfold.
If you’ve done your job correctly Pino will successfully surmount any obstacles thrown
his way.
If he’s unprepared – well – hilarity ensues and you’ll (usually) be given a chance
to train and try again.
Wonder Project J isn’t always the most exciting experience, while the cut-scenes are legitimately
entertaining to watch (especially when Pino screws up) they can be long – really long.
Hoo boy, are the duals long.
Mercy on your patience if Pino’s health is too low and he has to fight someone (or
something).
And training the kid is often a tediously repetitive endeavor.
But I also feel that Project J isn’t the type of game that you’re really meant to
play in a hurry.
Either you’re the type of person that’s going to be absolutely smitten by Pino and
delight in his expressive animation, or you’re not.
Maybe whatever Wonder Project J is - maybe - it’s not for everyone.
I mean I really hate to pigeonhole it into single genre, it’s a life sim with an adventurous
slant that often feels like more like an interactive movie than a traditional video game.
But really, above all else, it’s an adorable experience with a lot of heart.