428: Shibuya Scramble

428 Shibuya Scramble English Guide

Intro (who I am, if you're at all interested):

Hello guys, Vgcmaster100 here. This is the first guide I'm writing, but I'm doing it for this game because I've been looking forward to this for such a long time. I am still playing through the actual game but I will update this guide when I can. Thank you for reading, and feel free to email me at vgcmaster100@gmail.com about suggestions or questions you have relating to this game or the guide or both. Have fun! Oh also, feel free to edit the guide I started, I have no problems with that.

Gameplay:

428 Shibuya Scramble is a visual novel with an interesting gameplay mechanic: there are 5 protagonists whose stories run in parallel and it's up to you to make the right choices for each of them. Making a wrong choice in one protagonist's route may sometimes not impact them, but it could impact another protagonist. The game is divided into 9 time blocks (similar to chapters) and to advance to the next time block, or chapter, you have to get all protagonists safely to the end of the current time block. You're definitely going to run into bad endings, so don't feel sad if you do. Part of the game is exploring everything that happens.

10:00 - 11:00 guide:

For this time block, you only have two protagonists: hot headed rookie detective Kano Shinya, and former gang leader, Achi Endo. The other protagonists are unlocked in the second time block. Part of the section is guided, so this guide will start when the in game tutorial stops.

If you don't want to read the context and just want to know what choices to make, they are listed here:

Kano: Choose to pursue the foreigner.

Achi: Check on Hitomi (2nd choice, not during the first decision for Achi), Run to the police box

Kano route:

So we pick off from when you jump from Achi's route into Kano's. He and the other detectives will try to catch the foreigner carrying the suitcase, but the foreigner will dash through the oncoming traffic, as does Kano. As the chase continues, he's about to near in on him, when Kuze tells him to back off, stating that the perpetrator is somewhere else and that he should leave it to the others. However, it might be too risky to let them go... and thus you're given a choice whether to pursue the foreigner or to follow orders. It's best you choose to follow the foreigner so that Kano doesn't run into Achi. Now if you're playing this one, you'll run into a bad ending as Hitomi is kidnapped and you are then shot by someone else. Now's a good time to go to Achi's route.

Achi route:

Go back to where you at first jumped to Kano, but this time don't jump to continue Achi's storyline. He watches the detectives chase the foreigner and then wonders what to do with Hitomi. You are given a decision of whether to check on her or whether to ignore the happenings, due to the possibility that it might be a film. This looks real enough, and Achi can help prevent Hitomi from being kidnapped, so choose to check on her. A man with a cane appears, holding her at gunpoint, but Achi tackles him and then pulls Hitomi with him to run. You are given another choice of whether to run to a police box or just escape. Unfortunately, 'let's just get out of here' leads to Achi running into Kano and further misinterpretations, so you'll want to have them run to the police box. From there, a long chase running from the man with the cane will ensue. Eventually, Achi and Hitomi will escape for the time being and hide in a building. Hitomi tells him her circumstances and then moves to exit, only to find the man with the cane outside, gun pointed at her.

To be continued...

Kano route:

Now that you've finished Achi's route, it's time to go back to Kano's. Hitomi is no longer kidnapped by the man in the cane since Achi saved her, so now Kano has free reign to pursue the foreigner. The man runs up some steps and then drops the case to a person on a bike, who speeds away. In a moment of stupidity, Kano chases after the person on the bike first, and this gives the foreigner a chance to escape. Neither one is caught, and Kano reports to Kuze and reflects on the situation.

To be continued...

That's the end of the 10:00-11:00 block.

11:00 - 12:00 guide:

Now you have unlocked the remaining 3 protagonists: Tama, Minorikawa, and Osawa. Managing 5 protagonists can be a bit tough to get used to, but this time block serves as a good way to ease in to it. Once again, if you don't want to read the context and just know what choices to make, they are listed below by route.

Kano: Stay on the job (do not try to meet Rumi's father)

Achi: Use a beer bottle or run away with Hitomi, tell the men the wrong directions to Nokane building, approach the van first before Hitomi

Tama: Give a sample to the businessman on the left

Minorikawa: Call Chiaki, go to Dogenzaka for the first interview

Note that there are no important choices for Osawa to make in this time block.

Achi route:

I recommend starting off with Achi's route since his route is unaffected by the choices of the other protagonists. We pick off with the man with the cane holding Hitomi and Achi and gunpoint. His cell phone ringing provides a window to act, and Achi has a choice to wrest the gun from him, swing a beer bottle at him, or take Hitomi and run. Choose one of the latter two, since attempting to seize the gun will lead to Achi being defeated and Osawa falling into despair over Hitomi. Achi will escape with Hitomi and the two will run. Eventually, they stop, and Hitomi mentions that the man who took the briefcase gave her instructions to find a blue minivan in Dogenzaka, much like the one used in the kidnapping of her sister, and to not contact her family or the police. Achi and Hitomi head back there only to run into a couple of dangerous looking men, who ask them for directions to Nokane building, and Achi is given the choice whether to give them accurate directions or not. Point them the opposite way, since if given accurate directions, they will stall up the sales demo that Tama is working in. As Achi and Hitomi return to Dogenzaka and wait for the blue minivan, you will run into a KEEP OUT. Time to move on to another route.

Tama route:

We go from running from a dangerous man to... someone in a cat mascot costume trying to sell a diet drink that's clearly a scam. How is this related to the bigger picture again? Oh, I assure you, it is... but that's for another time block. Tama hasn't been able to hand a single free sample of burning hammer, the diet drink in question. She sees two people: a businessman, and a homeless man (who's actually Sasayama in disguise from earlier), and wonders who to try handing a sample to. Choose to hand it to the businessman, since handing it to Sasayama will ensure it gets passed to Kano and hinder him on the job. After making this choice, switch to Kano's route.

Kano route:

We pick off from Kano making the report. It seems like the man on the motorcycle has handed it off to someone else. Strange... why not just escape on the motorcyle? As Kano wonders about this, he receives a call from his girlfriend Rumi. He picks up and instead her father, Shizuo, answers. He highly disapproves of their relationship due to Kano being a detective, but he and Rumi have come to Shibuya to meet Kano. This is a rather rare opportunity for the detective. However, he is on an important job. Kano now has to decide whether it's okay to take 15 quick minutes to meet Shizuo or whether to stick to his job and keep him waiting. Choose to stick to your job, since trying to meet Shizuo will not only prove to be futile but also stall up Minorikawa on an important job. The rest of Kano's route involves him tailing the various foreigners the case is handed off to, although they all seem to be returning back to Shibuya station and handing it off to someone else. At the end of his route, Kano is informed by Kuze that the first man who took the case, named Tariq Al Karawan, is part of a foreign crime syndicate operating in Shibuya. What exactly are this syndicate's goals? Kano hopes to find out.

To be continued...

Time to switch to Minorikawa's route.

Minorikawa route:

Right away we see our journalist racing on a motorcycle. Minorikawa was called earlier by the head editor of the newspaper company Heaven Publishing, named Toyama, who lets it slip that he's about to commit suicide, and Minorikawa races to save him. His bike breaks down so he takes a cab there and reaches just in time to save Toyama from himself.

Rest of the time block guide coming soon...