Line #35 VideoGame/NappleTaleArsiaInDaydream


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/napple_tale.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:The friendly town is filled with question marks that hide a strange truth that lies in darkness.[[note]]From left to right: Alice, Mayor Frocar, Minister Druid, the spring petal, Porch Arsia, Straynap, the summer petal, and Pierrot.[[/note]]]]
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4	->''"Yokoso, Napple Tale he!"''[[labelnote:*]]Welcome to Napple Tale![[/labelnote]]
5	-->-- Porch on the title screen.
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7	''Napple Tale: Arsia in Daydream'', or simply ''Napple Tale'' is a TwoAndAHalfD {{Platform\| game}}/ActionRPG developed by Chime, published by Creator/{{Sega}}, and released on the ill-fated Platform/SegaDreamcast in 2000. It is a minor CultClassic in Japan, which is the only place where it was released, and the Dreamcast remains the only console to play it on. Its soundtrack, one of few game scores written by the acclaimed Music/YokoKanno, is [[CultSoundtrack better-known to the rest of the world than the game itself]] and features the vocals of Creator/MaayaSakamoto -- they were frequent collaborators at the time. The game's colorful ''Literature/AliceInWonderland'' aesthetic, schoolgirl protagonist, and modest challenge level suggest that it is aimed at a young audience, and [[ShoujoDemographic girls in particular]]. It would have been a tough sell in the international gaming market of the early 2000s.
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9	Sakamoto voices the heroine, Porch Arsia (a name that [[ViewerNameConfusion confounds everyone who's written about this game outside of Japan]],[[note]]The game's writer deliberately chose a word that could be rendered a solid half-dozen ways in English as the heroine's name. Prior to the release of the fan translation English writers favored "Poach", but this page now follows the fan translation's choice of "Porch".[[/note]]) an [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent ordinary 15-year old student]] who has a figurative [[DownTheRabbitHole rabbit hole open under her]] while attending her town's summer festival. In a case of MistakenIdentity, she is accidentally grim-reaped by a [[DontFearTheReaper bumbling rookie]] [[{{psychopomp}} "spirit guide"]] and taken to Napple World, a realm that lies in the boundary between the Real World and the Deep Dream (a.k.a. [[OffscreenAfterlife the afterlife]]). When Porch arrives in Napple World she loses her [[PlotCoupon "petals"]], six spirits that allowed her to exist in the real world, leaving her [[TrappedInAnotherWorld stranded in Napple World]] unless she can find them again. Her petals escaped into the four seasons that lie beyond the [[QuirkyTown charmingly quirky haven]] of Napple Town, and to make matters worse, the seasons have been in a state of chaos lately, [[MonstersEverywhere swarming with monsters]]. So Straynap, the spirit guide who got her in this mess, offers to let Porch stay up in his ice cream shop in Napple Town, and [[MentorMascot lend her his wisdom to navigate the wilderness]], which is worth more than it looks.
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11	The game's soundtrack was released on two separately-sold [=CDs=] in 2000, which were re-released in 2009. A few tracks here and there feature on Sega music compilations -- "Folly Fall" is on ''Segacon: The Best of Sega Game Music Vol. 2'' released in 2001, and "Jumping Cracker" appears on the ''Sega 60th Anniversary Official Bootleg DJ Mix'' nearly twenty years later. Maaya Sakamoto released the game's opening theme "Shippo no Uta" (The Tail Song) and one of the insert songs, "Midori no Hane" (Green Wings) as a single, and both are included on her single compilation released in 2003. Since Sakamoto's discography is available on music streaming services such as [[https://open.spotify.com/album/5AjMawNo0CBHUSd1PVqBIS Spotify]], these tracks are currently the most readily accessible parts of the soundtrack internationally.
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15	!!This work contains examples of:
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17	* ActionBomb: The green monsters in Secret Garden fly into rages and then explode once they are attacked.
18	* ActionGirl: She runs, she solves puzzles, she does [[SpectacularSpinning flippy]] {{double jump}}s!
19	* AllJustADream: In the end, [[spoiler:Porch wakes up in the Summer Festival square and sees the inspirations for the people and places she dreamed about in the festival booths. Though it doesn't stop Straynap from appearing at her house during the game's epilogue.]]
20	* AlternateSelf: Many of the characters exist in two places -- one in Napple Town and another one out in the seasons. They aren't identical, but they are linked to each other.
21	* AmusementPark: Fjordland, the winter-themed amusement park level, has a lengthy roller coaster sequence.
22	* AnimalVehicleHybrid: Frocar - anthropomorphic frog on top, automobile on the bottom, and mayor of Napple Town all over.
23	* AttackReflector: Projectiles and even enemies bounce off of Porch's racket and fly off the screen.
24	* BadassAdorable: Porch is definitely cute and deceptively powerful. Even she doesn't know how powerful she is.
25	* BitCharacter: Porch's friends, Jesse (the tall tomboy) and Terri (the blue-haired girl with glasses), only appear in the opening and ending cutscenes that take place during the festival in the real world. The two were waiting for Porch to leave her house but left as Porch was too busy eating her mother's stew. Once Porch finally meets up with them, Jesse jokingly calls Porch "Porsche", which instantly kicks off the plot once Straynap finds her. They don't appear again until Porch returns to the real world.
26	* BlandNameProduct: Straynap's ice cream shop, 13 Ice, reverses the digits of the 31 flavors touted by a certain chain of ice cream parlors. Even better, said chain is actually called "Thirty-one Ice Cream" in Japan.
27	* BonusStage: The seasonal gaps are short optional levels with many coins to collect.
28	* CollectionSidequest: The [[FollowTheMoney coins scattered throughout the levels]] are redeemed for cards and items in the Collection Room. The items can be decoded into MIS, and the cards are [[RuleOfFun just for the fun of it]]...and [[HundredPercentCompletion 100% completion]].
29	* ContractualBossImmunity: Paffets are excluded from boss fights. Straynap [[HandWave explains]] that paffets are afraid of bosses since bosses are the source of the abnormalities affecting Napple World.
30	* DoorToBefore: Most levels end with a platform that contains a sign announcing that a boss is ahead, and an exit gate that will return Porch to the area map.
31	* DownTheDrain: Moaning Well is a subterranean level with [[TideLevel water level puzzles]] and even a water slide sequence.
32	* DubNameChange: In the fan translation, this is averted for the major characters, but played straight for the Paffets. Justified, since their names consisted of Japanese puns in the original, being replaced by English puns and naming conventions in the translation.
33	* EccentricTownsfolk: Most citizens of Napple Town fit this bill.
34	** Frocar, who is an [[FunnyAnimal anthropomorphic frog]] on top and an [[MixAndMatchCritters automobile on the bottom]]. He's the [[PermanentElectedOfficial mayor]] or Napple Town.
35	** Mele looks like an [[MysticalIndia Indian-eqse street performer]] although he's the proprietor of a toy shop. He is [[BigBrotherMentor very supportive]] of Porch and gives her helpful items on a regular basis.
36	** Jackson, an [[FunnyAnimal anthropomorphic cow]] who [[TheBartender tends a bar]] that serves milk.
37	** The ironically named Mr. Littlemoney is a [[TheScrooge tight-fisted miser]].
38	** Cecille is [[ProperLady elegant and polite]], but [[ShrinkingViolet painfully shy]]. She seldom leaves her house anymore.
39	** The classy-looking Ms. Madam is [[RichBoredom tragically bored]], and Porch has to create ways to entertain her.
40	* FacelessMasses: Bystanders in the Real World have blank faces, with Porch and her two friends being the only ones with eyes.
41	* ForcedTutorial: There's no way to skip past Pierrot's initial gameplay tutorial.
42	* GoingThroughTheMotions: As is often the case with Dreamcast games, most characters only have a small set of repetitive animation cycles that they go through when the player interacts with them.
43	* GottaCatchThemAll: The aim of the game is to retrieve Porch's petals so she can return home.
44	* GustyGlade: The Wild Wind level is fittingly in the Spring season and features grassy landscapes, windmills, and [[AirAidedAcrobatics gusts of wind that may help or hinder]] Porch's progress.
45	* HairRaisingHare: The March Hare boss is a surprisingly intimidating figure who attacks with a giant pocket watch.
46	* HeartContainer: Porch's life meter takes the form of pieces of fruit. Collect 4 Napple Seeds to grow a Napple Flower, and she gains an extra fruit.
47	* IcePalace: The Crystal Palace level in Winter is a classic {{slippy slidey ice\|world}} castle.
48	* ImpossiblyCoolClothes: When she arrives in Napple World, Porch switches from a school uniform to a GemEncrusted outfit reminiscent of windup toys and MagicalGirl costumes, featuring GiantPoofySleeves.
49	* InfinityPlusOneElement: The 7th Petal which doubles as an EleventhHourSuperpower. Porch gains it in the final moments of the game.
50	* InnerMonologue: ''Napple Tale'' has exactly one voice actor: Creator/MaayaSakamoto as Porch. Aside from short lines during gameplay, the only full dialogue she delivers is an OpeningMonologue, and [[EveryEpisodeEnding wrap-up after recovering a petal]].
51	* TheInsomniac: The Napple Town version of Alice looks exhausted all the time because she is afraid of going to sleep. She is not moody though; she's actually quite nice. Being a blatant AliceAllusion, she invites Porch to a tea party to try to feel more alert.
52	* AnInteriorDesignerIsYou: More of an exterior designer really. The player has the option of filling Napple Town with "furniture paffets", but most of them only install once townsfolk request them.
53	* ItemCrafting: Or in this case, {{mon}} crafting. By decoding MIS from items and using collected recipes, it's possible to create creatures called paffets that can assist Porch in a variety of ways.
54	* {{Jerkass}}: Gomez is just a jerk; disliked by everyone in town for his bad attitude and mean-spirited pranks. He locks up paffets and petals and refers to them as [[CollectorOfTheStrange his collection]]. [[spoiler:He ends up being [[NotSoHarmlessVillain not so harmless]] when Pierrot forces him to fight Porch.]]
55	* JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind: Porch enters Alice's dreams to fight her nightmares, allowing her to overcome her fear of sleep.
56	* MagicalGirl: Porch is actually a subversion. Despite having a costume unique to Napple World along with a weapon that looks reminiscent of those found in MagicalGirlWarrior series, she's incapable of any kind of magical abilities, instead having to rely on the paffets for any kind of magic. That said, she makes up for it with her athletic prowess.
57	* MentorMascot: Straynap is a neurotic little clown/flower-fairy creature, and no one, Porch included, is inclined to take him seriously. Still, his knowledge about Napple World is second-to-none.
58	* MineCartMadness: Water slides and multi-rail roller coasters instead of mine carts, but the principle is the same.
59	* ModularEpilogue: The game has RelationshipValues for Straynap based on whether or not Porch is nice to him. The final scene changes depending on her affinity with Straynap.
60	* {{Mon}}: Paffets -- cute helper-creatures that Porch can create. They come in 2 types:
61	** Paffets that accompany Porch into action maps. Each one has one function: recovering health, using a special attack, transforming into a TemporaryPlatform and so on.
62	** "[[AnimateInanimateObject Furniture paffets]]" -- living chairs, streetlamps, ceiling fans, etc, that are installed around Napple Town based on townsfolk requests.
63	* NonLethalBottomlessPits: Contact with pits, spikes, bodies of water and the like are penalized with a slap on the wrist: Porch loses a little health and restarts next to the hazard.
64	* TheNoseKnows: Straynap can distinguish things by smell -- but it's not really "smelling" and more like "hunches". Or so he says.
65	* OlderThanTheyLook: Though it's downplayed, this can be said about Porch's age. The game's original website states that she's 15 years old, but because of the art style, she looks like she could be anywhere from twelve to fourteen, especially when she's in her civilian outfit (which resembles a yellow SailorFuku). This also applies to her two friends in the real world.
66	* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: The trivia zipline section in the Secret Garden level. Well, more like only smart people avoid taking extra damage.
67	* PalmtreePanic: Once Summer is an oceanfront-themed level that begins on the beach, but soon the ocean magically parts to form a passage, allowing Porch to proceed on the newly exposed sea bed.
68	* PortalCrossroadWorld: In plot terms, Napple World lies between life and death; in gameplay terms Napple Town is the HubLevel that connects all of the seasons.
69	* ProtectionMission: The boss fight in Red & Gold has the dual goal of protecting Treant, a [[WiseTree talking tree]], and defeating a boss pamera. Treant is growing bombs instead of napple fruit due to the influence of the boss pamera, who is hiding inside the walls. Treant serves up bombs for Porch to [[TennisBoss knock into the boss]], but the bombs can hurt Treant as well.
70	* RealityChangingMiniature: The "complete" Napple Town that Porch finds herself trapped in late in the game [[spoiler:is evidently a bunch of sandcastles in Pierrot's circus tent.]]
71	* RoseHairedSweetie: Porch's hair is literally rose in color, and she is cheerful and empathetic.
72	* SeasonalBaggage: Seasonal motifs are central to ''Napple Tale''. Napple Town has season-themed streets, and the streets lead to the seasons themselves -- in the form of locales. AirAidedAcrobatics in spring, [[FestivalEpisode fireworks]] in summer, falling leaves in autumn, and of course, an [[SlippySlideyIceWorld obligatory ice level]] for winter.
73	* SourceMusic: The background music in the seasons is audible to the characters. Straynap explains that the music is known as "Petal Whispers," and it's produced by the petals that inhabit living things.
74	* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Because of the lack of an official English release, Western fans have made many variations on the heroine's (rather odd) names: Pōchi, Porch, Pooch, Pouch, Poach? Arsia, Alsia, Alisia? The official strategy guide clears this up by giving us the full name of "Porch Arsia", but there's also the fact that Porch isn't something you'd normally name a girl, not to mention the ambiguity of whether or not her name order falls under English or Japanese naming conventions. Even the story shows that this was basically the reason why Porch is stuck in Napple Town in the first place, as Straynap confuses her with a cat named "Porsche".
75	* SpinningClockHands: The summer festival flower clock is part of the AmazingTechnicolorBattlefield for the final boss battle. Naturally, the hands spin wildly.
76	* StarfishLanguage: Paffets "speak" in MIS, sort of the [[MinovskyPhysics essential building-blocks]] of Napple World.
77	* SurrealThemeTune: The opening theme ''Shippo no Uta'' is cheery and full of ''Alice in Wonderland'' imagery. An example, in a literal translation:
78	-->''Morning has come! - My clock does a handstand\
79	My desk laughs and my hat flies away\
80	My shoes left home without me\
81	So in a panic I jump to my feet"
82	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Porch's loves her mom's stew more than just about anything. So much so that [[BizarreTasteInFood she's completely enthusiastic about stew-flavored ice cream]].
83	* TranslatorBuddy: Straynap translates the [[StarfishLanguage MIS communication]] that Paffets use for Porch...but late in the game, he loses the ability to interpret it, and Porch discovers she can translate it herself.
84	* TreacherousAdvisor: [[spoiler: Pierrot.]] He seems a bit like a TricksterMentor in that he's helpful but enigmatic, and rather indifferent to Porch's well-being. But he's actually [[spoiler: kind of a WellIntentionedExtremist who's trying to avert the DreamApocalypse that will occur if Porch leaves Napple World through [[DeityOfHumanOrigin apotheosis]].]]
85	* VerbalTic: Straynap, being excessively polite, ends almost all of his sentences with "desu". Yes, memetically HilariousInHindsight.
86	* VillainousBreakdown: [[spoiler:Pierrot.]] He's as cool as a cucumber the whole game...[[spoiler:but his composure slips a bit after Porch reverses his attempt to remake Napple Town. And then shatters during his last-ditch attempt to prevent Porch from leaving Napple World.]]
87	* WorldOfSilence: A creepy, dimly-lit version of Napple Town where [[DramaticSpotlight spotlights]] are trained on Porch wherever she goes. But the proper NightmareFuel is that [[spoiler:everyone is Pierrot. Because Pierrot steals Porch's petals to enact an AssimilationPlot]].
88	* YourMindMakesItReal: {{Inverted\|Trope}}. After the boss sequence in Fjordland, it becomes clear that [[spoiler:fatal occurrences won't kill Porch while she's in Napple World. It's all actually hers to control since it's her dream.]]
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Context VideoGame / NappleTaleArsiaInDaydream