Coming from Keita Takahashi, the mind behind the Katamari Damacy series, it isn’t much of a surprise to find that ‘to a T’ is imaginative when it comes to both its premise and character design. You play as a teenager permanently stuck in the ‘T pose’ who’s blundering their way through life and school, trying to make the best of their unfortunate situation. The colourful world they inhabit is populated not just by oddball humans, but talking animals too, including a crab who’s a hairdresser and a giraffe selling sub sandwiches. Talk about apt professions.
But while ‘to a T’ is certainly quite weird (there’s also a talking tree, a ninja snail, a choir which follows the teen around, and…well, my point is made) I would hesitate to call it wonderful.
The teen, duly named Teen by default, has been trapped in the ‘T pose’ for quite some time, and as such, already has a bespoke daily routine to assist with their predicament. They’re aided by their dog, known as Dog by default, who’s smart enough to help Teen with things they can no longer manage…such as pulling down their pants to use the toilet. The opening also introduces us to the teen’s doting mother, who’s understandably both compassionate and concerned about their son’s peculiar posture. In a tale that touches upon acceptance and inclusivity, you’ll eventually discover why and how Teen is stuck in this pose.
The story is spread across eight chapters of varying length, with this being a free-roaming affair set within a quiet seaside town with parks, shops, a railway and a few other key areas. Chapter start points are indicated by balloons that appear on the map, and in most instances you’re able to stroll around town before letting a story-based segment take over, with more of the town and a few optional quests opening over time.
The opening chapter involves witnessing Teen’s daily routine first hand. This involves picking an outfit – with the teen’s wardrobe containing hoodies, school uniform, dresses and more – eating breakfast with a supersized spoon, washing their face with an upward facing tap, and brushing their teeth with the help of Dog. Despite this morning routine featuring within most chapters, these tasks aren’t mini games to gradually improve at, but rather chores that never change. Some, such as brushing teeth, can be skipped – with the downside being that Teen will have visibility grubby chompers when appearing in cut-scenes. Similarly amusing touches are common, making for an experience that can easily be described as comical.
During the first couple of hours, you’ll also get to experience a typical school day, and begin to explore the surrounding areas. The map proves to be invaluable as navigating the town isn’t a breeze, even with Dog leading the way. Not only are Teen and Dog restricted to paths and pavements, but the camera cannot be moved manually, mostly favouring a side-on view – even when moving into the screen. This means there’s very little scope to look around the surroundings, and it doesn’t help with navigation that Teen initially walks at a leisurely pace. Later a (talking!) unicycle is unlocked, which helps to get around quicker, while there’s also a train that runs through the town which you can ride in real time. Annoyingly, even here the camera is restricted, making it difficult to tell if you’ve arrived at the right station.
As the story expands, it starts to become even more imaginative – never twisted, but certainly quite weird. You’ll get to learn more about Dog, ergo what goes on in their mind, and play through a revealing part of the mother’s past. The action also shifts to the beach for one chapter, while periodically returning to the school. Mini-games are used as diversions, most of which involve competitive eating, complete with a leaderboard to top. These can take a few tries to beat. It’s also possible to stop and talk to the majority of townsfolk, and collect coins to purchase new shoes, clothing, bags, and accessories for Dog.
As much as I wanted to explore and see everything, exploration isn’t always easy going and can feel a bit thoughtless at times. The mushroom forest is a perfect example of this. It’s an area used primarily for a cut-scene but can be entered and explored too, only there’s nothing to actually do other than stroll along a path for around five minutes before turning back. Scaling the shell-mounted lighthouse is another arduous task, involving nothing more than holding ‘right’ for 2-3 minutes. I could be kind and say that these areas were designed to be contemplative, but there’s nothing actually here to suggest this was the developer’s intention.
Sadly, a little bit of this flab and filler spills into the storyline. Drawn out and uneventful dialogue scenes aren’t uncommon, and many interactive elements feel like they should be mini-games instead of a case of methodically performing actions. The final chapter, which lasts close to an hour, is almost entirely cut-scene driven and consequently has the feel of a visual novel. A lot of time is spent throughout waiting to regain control; and even then, it can be difficult to know what to do or where to go next as there’s no quest tracker.
But as I tucked into the Teen’s favourite cereal for the last time, I also felt that ‘to a T’ tells a remarkably bittersweet story, successfully managing to touch on a variety of subjects while developing many of its likeable oddball characters along the way.
By breaking convention we’re left with something that’s as dated as it is progressive. It’s certainly unique, and you won’t be forgetting its warped storyline any time soon – but you’ll also be left scratching your head when it comes to some of its design choices. The more I played it, the more I wondered who would enjoy it the most. Over the course of its 8-10 hour duration, it went from being a delightful casual experience with unique style and humour, to something that felt as if it was aimed towards today’s more open-minded teens. Then, as the story wrapped up, the weird pacing crept in, making it hard to imagine young minds being kept engaged.
This is a game that manages to achieve its goals, but it does so in a weirdly fussy way. It’ll suit somebody to a tee, I’m sure of it, but it’s difficult to say for certain whom.
uvula LLC’s to a T is out now on PS5, Xbox Series and PC. Published by Annapurna Interactive.