Imagine this scene:
You're piloting your spaceship, eating hotpot, singing songs, on your way to conduct geological exploration on an alien planet. Suddenly, the engine lets out a sharp sputter, red lights flash wildly inside the cabin, and after wobbling for a few minutes, the ship crashes headfirst. When you come to your senses, you've landed on an unfamiliar planet surrounded by strange alien creatures.
With no one you know and unfamiliar terrain, how will you survive?
Naturally, it involves slapping roadside animals, stuffing explosive fruits into turtle shells, kicking innocent wandering parrots into "the lion's mouth," and using electric fruits to help big-eyed monsters cure their eye diseases. There's also dropping heavy objects to crush poor electric bug couples, poking probe plants until their large eyes burst when saying hello, and then blasting leopard-like alien creatures' genitals with charged pistols, etc... Along the way, smash and grab alien ruins, packing up charged crystals, special solutions, and ancient devices to take with you.
Hey, we proper old Terran Earthlings are bosses wherever we go!
Take flight!
Journey to Wildstar was arguably the most enjoyable game I played in 2020. Bearing the titles of Survivor and Explorer, I watched bizarre advertisements under the absolute control of future mega-capital, listened to the AI assistant's sarcasm, and felt like I had rediscovered the joy of pulling all-nighters playing Dad 'n Me, causing mischief in an alien land.
Typhoon Studio used nonsensical goofiness and high-concentration pantomime-style humor to turn the originally tedious standard RPG map-clearing and toilet-running gameplay into something full of fun.
Guess who the bald-headed guy from the previous game is
Shortly after the game's release, Typhoon Studio, the very creator of this nonsensical game subtly satirizing giant interstellar capital, was suddenly dismantled by the giant non-interstellar capital Google. Many veteran employees lost their jobs, staging a real-life version of "Journey to Jobless Earth."
And then... guess what? Wildstar Chronicles was born.
Typhoon was resurrected as Raccoon Logic Studios, regrouping with funding from Tencent. They not only spent a fortune to buy back their own IP but also brought back their familiar absurd and goofy style. Amidst cold jokes and sharp satire, the original team rallied their forces and broke through once again.
As a sequel, the reborn Raccoon Logic Studios, having gone through ups and downs (mostly downs), naturally didn't continue subtly satirizing giant interstellar capital like the previous game, Journey to Wildstar. Instead, they openly pranked the misfortunes occurring between interstellar mega-corporations, as if holding a personal grudge against these giants.
This time, players won't be bowing and scraping to giant interstellar corporations like in the previous game, nor sneaking around to steal the "unclaimed"遗产 of alien locals. Instead, you'll openly wreak havoc across five colonial planets, sabotaging the despicable mega-corporations that sent you to colonize, froze you and your bank account for 100 years, and then fired, packaged, and ejected you into space. The goal is to thoroughly disrupt their off-world production activities and confiscate their ill-gotten assets.
Then, casually mess with the labor fruits of local alien folks, having a blast with the chaos.
We were honored to be invited last Friday afternoon to the Wanke Playco console gaming station located two floors underground near Longhua Temple in Shanghai. There, we not only met Alex Hutchinson, Creative Director at Raccoon Logic Studios, but also sat down together to share plenty of "mega-corp jokes."
I, Starfish Canned Goods, finally got to properly experience the new thrill of pillaging and plundering in Wildstar Chronicles.
It's wonderful, folks. I'm back to my old "starfish" trade.
Your home planet looks quite nice. Can I mine it?
First, comparing horizontally with the previous game, the biggest change in Wildstar Chronicles is the switch from first-person to third-person perspective. According to Alex Hutchinson in the interview, the third-person view offers content and information volume that the first-person perspective simply cannot match.
Simply put, in prank games like the "Wildstar" series, many gags and jokes are conveyed through character body movements, environmental interactions, and monster reactions—visually rather than audibly, constituting a silent performance. Therefore, if players cannot see much of the information or body language, the comedic effect is greatly diminished.
I personally experienced this during my trial play.
Remember that big blob of "alien orange gel" from the previous game? The one that restored health and stamina when consumed, applied by simply smearing it all over your face. In Wildstar Chronicles, we can finally scoop up a huge handful of orange gel with both hands and toss it into the air for a refreshing shower.
Even more excitingly, Alex Hutchinson told me during our conversation that later in the story, we can dive into pools of orange gel like divers, taking a genuine orange gel bath.
Good heavens, the dreams from the previous game have come true.
Moreover, the third-person perspective in Wildstar Chronicles nicely supports the sequel's new clothing and accessory system. The Raccoon Logic Studios team not only created a set based on the iconic uniform of "a certain yellow rabbit-eared delivery rider" upon the suggestion of their Chinese partners, but Alex Hutchinson also enthusiastically pulled out his phone during the interview to share a precious photo of an "otherworldly transporter" he found while wandering around Shanghai a few days prior.
Of course, we also discussed some more aggressive jokes about delivery motorcycles and reckless riding, which I won't elaborate on here—after all, I wholeheartedly adore our mischievous and cute "Dayun San."
In short, two grown men were laughing hysterically at photos and in-game outfits. I believe you, watching from behind your screen, can surely feel that indescribable sense of absurdity and fun.
It was hard to take screenshots on site, so I had to photograph the screen instead (Rating -1000).
Another significant change lies in weapons—or rather, tools. Remember the Proton Whip from the previous game, which received rave reviews and was unstoppable when paired with Grapple Seeds? It was essentially the universal "grapple hook."
It's gone—I mean the Grapple Seeds.
In this installment, the Proton Whip isn't just a grapple hook; it can literally be used as a whip. After unlocking upgrades, players can severely lash some "alien backsides," teaching them about hierarchy and the dignity of us old Earth Terrans. If you unlock further whip functionalities, you can combine upgrades to trap small animals, bringing them back to the colony for research to unlock new technologies, or as exhibits.
Uh... I hope there aren't too many dark-skinned alien cuties later in the game, otherwise the visuals might get a bit hellish.
Lightning Five Whips! Deceive, sneak attack↓↑
Speaking of colonies, remember when we mentioned Typhoon Studio—or rather, Raccoon Logic Studios—and their love-hate relationship with certain "non-interstellar mega-corporations"? This colony system isn't just background lore; players actually have a small colony they can decorate and inhabit.
Alex Hutchinson also told me that most furniture inside buildings is interactive, featuring many different prank animations designed specifically to make players laugh.
Although Alex Hutchinson explicitly told me that Wildstar Chronicles is not a sandbox survival game, this isolated off-world colony serves merely as a base for capturing and displaying alien cuties, or as a showcase for decoration enthusiasts and collectors to flaunt their aesthetic taste and save file progress.
Speaking of "small animals," I also "complained" to Alex Hutchinson during the interview about some pain points regarding elite enemies and boss battles in the previous game, such as repetitive combat patterns and a lack of boss variety. Alex readily gave me some good news—compared to the mere 28 creature types in the previous game, Wildstar Chronicles features five planets with distinct ecosystems and over 70 types of monsters waiting for players to exploit.
Combined with various new fruits and over 50 new upgrades... at least in terms of combat, Wildstar Chronicles will be much more replayable than its predecessor.
Regarding exploration, although Alex Hutchinson and many veteran developers at Raccoon Logic Studios suffered through "Ubisoft-style sandbox exploration" mechanics, the previous game stuck to the old-school "exploration radar" approach.
However, in response to countless player requests, Wildstar Chronicles has incorporated a new map module. You can now clearly see on the map where points of interest are located, and which areas you have or haven't visited.
Although whether the specific location is on this side of the mountain or the other still requires player exploration.
Then, here's a little tidbit.
Although I extracted a considerable amount of information from my interview with Alex Hutchinson, at the request of a certain "big-name professional" in the gaming media industry—I won't say who, but he seems to hold power over my career—the specific Q&A content will be placed in another article.
So, this article needs a new ending. Given my "Starfish Canned Goods" habits, I should normally spice things up or add some profound value to boost everyone's expectations. But Raccoon Logic Studios' original conclusion was quite sincere—so, I'll take the lazy route here and directly share Alex Hutchinson's original words to wrap things up:
"Raccoon Logic Studios' goal has actually never changed. All these goofy contents and cold jokes are made just to bring players back to the good old golden days—when you and your best friend sat on the couch, playing a game together, eating pizza, drinking cola, and laughing hysterically at a few funny ideas.
"I think this is simply the best gaming experience.
"I really hope Chinese players agree with my viewpoint. I also hope they can sit down with a few friends and enjoy Wildstar Chronicles together.
"To be honest, buddy, this game is absolutely fun."
I'm waiting for the post-launch scenario of "delivery riders vs. heartless capitalists"—why does it feel like it's mirroring reality?