Promise Mascot Agency has such a weird premise—developed by the developers of the unique Paradise Killer, it’s an open-world game in which a former yakuza member manages an agency of anthropomorphic creatures posing as marketing mascots. It sounds weird, and we tested it out on PC and Xbox Series X alike for a review. Let’s go in our Promise Mascot Agency review!
Yakuza: Like a Mascot
It would be extremely easy to make parallels with the recently very popular and prolific Yakuza franchise – the one more recently known as Like a Dragon. After all, the protagonist of Promise Mascot Agency is a former yakuza member, Kaso-Machi, who looks like a geek just as much as a tattoo-filled badass, as he has to get through challenges in a world full of bizarre caricature-esque characters. To make matters more confusing, Kaso-Machi is voiced by no other than Takaya Kuroda, the legendary original Japanese voice actor behind Yakuza’s Kazuma Kiryu. And while the presentation and humor also share similarities, to a point where it’s safe to assume the iconic SEGA franchise was a dominant inspiration to Promise Mascot Agency, this bizarre indie’s a whole different beast in terms of what the game really is about.
Kaso-Machi finds himself forced to rebuild his life after a clampdown on yakuza in the Showa Era, ending up in a remote Japanese village. With limited career options, an ambitious idea pops to mind – resurrecting the once blooming mascot agency, using his excellent… let’s say trading and managing skills, he’s earned in his yakuza days. But Promise Mascot Agency isn’t at all about combat or crime. It’s about finding ways to manage a semi-honest business against all odds. Because the government may have clamped down on the local mafia gangs, but the high-level corruption and power plays remain, with our very own Kaso-Machi having to play ball somehow.
A mass of mascots
I’ll not go deep into the game’s insane lore, I’d rather have you go in as blind as possible into this hilarious nonsense. But much of the game’s gameplay hook is about sending these weird-looking mascots all across town to do various missions. These can either be automated or with some level of player input, which in turn can lead to some funky quick time events, a card minigame, and so on. Sometimes, the mascots need help; other times, they complete the tasks you give them with relative ease.
Managing their salaries and general well-being is also part of the job. From the moment they get recruited, the player needs to make decisions around workloads and their own pockets, trying to figure out which of these weird mascots should do what exactly. These creatures are absolutely bizarre, ranging from road safety mascots to the already iconic Pinky, a literal living pinky finger. It’s sheer insanity, and you never know what bizarre new twist the next mascot or event brings. Yes, there’s crude humor as well.
Open world basics
Outside of that, the game is content with offering a basic but enjoyable open world driving game, having the player go from point A to point B most of the time. Some collectibles and optional objectives are scattered around this rather small open world, but for the most part, it’s about hunting down mascots, recruiting them, doing activities to bolster the mascot agency, and so forth. There really isn’t a “proper” gameplay loop per se, so don’t expect combat or anything of the sort. It’s a basic objective-clearing in a limited-size open world, with dialogues and minigames taking care of the rest.
The game is quite pleasant on an audiovisual level. There are several voiced characters among humans and mascots alike, with plenty of absolutely wild personalities and hilarious dialogue to boot. In terms of art style, the game offers a semi-realistic look, but with a lot of stylized elements, plus a handful of visual filters that make it feel like some home video from the 1980s, more or less, when the game is set. It’s a fairly short game for an open world, with only about 20 hours needed to clear 100% of the objectives, but the game’s creativity and crazy humor absolutely carry it to the end, without ever becoming boring.
I manage
Ultimately, Promise Mascot Agency is just a great time. Excellent humor, hilarious characters, great dialogue, and just enough nonsense to stand out from the masses. The actual mission structure and open world formula is hardly anything special, borrowing most elements from the countless similar titles out there. Yet, Kaizen Game Works’ virtual trip to late Showa Era Japan is full of charm, making its 20 or so hours of content fly by like a spring breeze. When you’re done with some of the big games of the season, such as Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, the Oblivion remaster, or Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, consider hiring these mascots, alright?
Promise Mascot Agency
Played on
Xbox Series X
PROS
- Fantastic characters
- Brilliant humor
- Cool artstyle
- A bite-sized fun romp in an era of massive open world games
CONS
- Uninspired open world activities
- Can be a bit dialogue-heavy at times
