As westerners, we're often left out of some of the funnier shenanigans Japanese developers do to promote their games in the local market, partly because we wouldn't understand most of them. Square Enix isn't new to that, and they have been drumming up Forspoken in a rather hilarious way, provided that you know what you're looking at.
Over the past few days, they've been publishing videos starring Sachiko Kobayashi, a famous Enka singer (if you're unfamiliar with Enka, it's a music genre that adopted a traditional style). In the first video, Kobayashi-san critiques the costumes of Forspoken's antagonists named "Tantas." She comes from a position of authority on the subject matter, as she is known for her own super-flashy costumes especially showcased in the ultra-popular "Kouhaku Uta Gassen" TV show traditionally aired on New Year's Eve on the Japanese state TV NHK.
These costumes earned her the nickname "Last Boss" and she was fast to adopt it, delighted by having connected with young fans, since Enka is usually aiming for an adult target.
The second video focuses on Kobayashi-san pitching herself for the role of a new Tanta named Tanta Sachiko, as you can see below. I'm sure speaking Japanese isn't really required to find it funny.
In the last video, she apparently gets her way and she gets introduced as the "mysterious Tanta who is truly the last boss, Tanta Sachiko."
Kobayashi-san certainly isn't new to collaborations with games and elements of Japanese pop culture. She worked on the Pokemon franchise and hosted a concert in Phantasy Star Online 2, also performing the famous "Senbonzakura" by Hatsune Miku. She even collaborated with Kizuna Ai.
Forspoken will release tomorrow, January 24, for PS5 and PC. If you want to find out how good it really is, you can already read our review.
