Project Rap Rabbit Kickstarter launched, seeking $1.1 million for PS4 and PC release

Project Rap Rabbit, the new “story-led, rhythm-action adventure” game from PaRappa the Rapper creator Masaya Matsuura and Gitaroo Man creator Keiichi Yano announced last week, has launched a Kickstarter campaign seeking $1.1 million to fund development for release on PlayStation 4 and PC.

PQube, which has previously localized titles such as Steins;Gate and Gal Gun, will publish and distribute Project Rap Rabbit, as well as manage all Kickstarter rewards.

Here’s an overview of the story, via the Kickstarer page:

Our grand hip hop saga takes place in an alternate history, circa 16th Century Japan. All is not well. The world is becoming a hostile place as people object to the growing diversification of their homelands. Citizens and neighbors are becoming increasingly suspicious of, and isolated from, one another.

A toxic atmosphere of protectionism is taking hold.

At the height of this culture of fear, an Earth-shattering calamity befalls the world. As the universe trembles from the aftershocks and the survivors try to rebuild what’s left of their lives, one rabbit embarks on a journey for truth, justice and liberty – and steps forward to do battle with the land’s most powerful overlords.

The hero in question is Toto-Maru, a simple farm boy who’s able to harness the special power of force through rap. (Wait, where have we heard this before..?) Only by embracing the strength of music and by using the magic of rhythm and rhyme to counter corruption and small-mindedness can our reluctant hero and his trusty sidekick Otama-Maru finally heal the destructive rifts, bring about global unification and restore peace!

Project Rap Rabbit uses a new rapping system where Toto-Maru faces against leaders of rival factions. Each side posseses a Swag Gauge, which will determine the victor of the battle. Songs are branching and each is made up of multiple “Call and Response” gameplay segments, which can be broken down into three steps:

(1) Listen

When your opponent is attacking you, you shouldn’t just stand there and take it! Important phrases in your foe’s lyrics will be highlighted in the Word Pick Up phase: Now’s your chance to pick out certain keywords you want to try and focus on when it’s time to strike back.

(2) Respond

How do you want to respond to your opponent’s insults? It’s up to you! Project Rap Rabbit features an emotion wheel inspired by the likes of Mass Effect and Fallout 4. Do you want to hit back with a boast, with a joke, by dismissing the attack or by coercing your opponent?

Select the emotion you wish to unleash to preview the upcoming rhythm and your foe’s reaction: There’s no wrong choice, but different emotions will inflict different levels of damage to your adversary’s Swag Gauge.

(3) Rap

Now it’s time to unleash those lines! Depending on your chosen emotion you’ll spit out different lyrics and unique rhythms. Press the specified face buttons at the correct time to enunciate every word perfectly, boosting your own Swag Gauge in the process.

If your Swag Gauge hits zero it’s the end of the battle and your failure will go down in legend. Keeping your bar topped up is the key to successfully besting each level, while depleting your foe’s meter will increase your overall level score.

If You Run Low on Swag

Don’t panic! The status of your opponent, determined by the level of his or her Swag Gauge, can help you out. Every foe reacts to each emotion differently, and while it’s possible to beat each song using every single permutation of lyrics, picking the more powerful emotional response to any given state will result in better boosts to your own Swag Gauge during the Rap section.

More information about the game’s advanced techniques and features, art style, and staff are available at the Kickstarter page. Notable stretch goals for the project include more languages at $2.3 million, an Xbox One version at $3.1 million, an extra level at $3.5 million, a multiplayer versus mode at $3.9 million, an extra difficulty at $4.4 million, and a Switch version at $4.95 million.

Watch the Kickstarter pitch video below. View a set of images at the gallery.

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