Video games have always taken inspiration from all parts of the world. With so many cultures out there, there is no end to the stories and themes you can explore. However, there’s still bound to be some cultures that have yet to be tapped in video games. Our subject for today, Mini Bunnies, showcases the untapped wealth of the Peranakan culture in After School Afterlife (“ASA” for short).
Before we get started, you might be wondering who or what are the Peranakan. The Peranakan are an ethnic group descended from Chinese settlers in Southeast Asia, who blended Chinese and Southeast Asian traditions into an all new culture over time. In ASA, you’ll find all sorts of homages to the Peranakan in the characters, art and world, drawing from the experiences of two of Mini Bunnies’ Singaporean team members.
The game follows Serene, a school girl who suddenly finds herself in a Peranakan-inspired afterlife after following a mysterious one-eyed rabbit. Similar to “Alice In Wonderland”, she then goes on an adventure in the afterlife in order to find a way to go home. Along the way, she’ll meet various characters, creatures and entities that have their own quirky eccentricities.
Vibrant Colours And Beautiful Designs
AFA features a beautifully hand-drawn world filled with Peranakan-style houses, characters and elements. Every detail in the background goes to show just how much effort and research they did in order to really show off the culture. Another great aspect of this can seen in the clothing of the characters, which feature the signature Peranakan colours! (Well… besides Uncle Gao’s more casual attire.)
An interesting thing to note here is Serene herself, who is not only clad in a modern school uniform, but has a significantly different design compared to everyone else. This fits the narrative of her being a mortal in the afterlife. I love this! It’s good visual storytelling as it reminds you that Serene does not belong here at all.
Gameplay & Other Fun Stuff
At its core, ASA is a casual platformer. You go left to right, and jump from platform to platform, with puzzles galore to solve.
The best thing about ASA is that it adds music to the platforming experience. The brilliant soundtrack of ASA ties heavily into the platforming, as every beat indicates to you when to make your next move. A clever tool in the game are the bamboo clacker(s) you find, which serve as a metronome to assist in your timing. Which is brilliant, as platformers are also rhythm games to an extent.
Another fun part of ASA is the variety in its gameplay. While it’s still a platformer at its core, there are loads of mini-games to discover as well! Most are locked behind conversations you have with the various NPCs throughout the world, with some being required to progress the story whilst the others are optional and/or are hidden.
Regardless, ASA really offers a lot in terms of content. Though having to backtrack and talk to everybody might sound tedious, I assure you it certainly is worth the trouble for the sheer amount of fun and laughter to be had!
While not entirely a core part of the gameplay, your inventory and jotter book assist you every now and then. Another fun thing to note about the jotter is that it explains Peranakan culture for those who want to know more; albeit not entirely in detail, but just enough to provide context for the game.
My one gripe is that if you complete the game but realise you missed out on something, you will have to redo the entire game just to catch up on what you missed. As there is a lot of hidden dialogue and mini-games, I would advise just taking your time to explore each zone and talking to everyone patiently if you want to finish it all in one save.
Verdict
I really had a blast playing After School Afterlife and would certainly recommend it. The artwork and game design really tells how much research they did on Peranakan culture. It was a blast and very refreshing playing a game based on a culture that is barely, if at all shown or talked about. For the price it’s at, it is definitely giving you more than what you’re paying!
Support After School Afterlife on Steam, and learn more about the developers at https://www.minibunnies.com/.
