New Crayon Shin-chan Game Announced for Switch in Japan, Might Make Its Way West

Nintendo's latest Direct livestream was a little bit different for those people watching the Japanese edition, as tucked away between several game announcements was the reveal of a new Crayon Shin-chan game.

The game's full title is the meaty Crayon Shin-chan “Ora to Hakase no Natsuyasumi” ~Owaranai Nana-Kakan no Tabi~, and it follows the titular character of Crayon Shin-Chan during a summer vacation in a small Japanese town where odd things usually occur.

It looks colorful and delightful thanks to the Boku no Natsuyasumi series creator Kaz Ayabe, who designed the world of this game and also serves as director on the project. Ayabe's work on the Japan-exclusive My Summer Vacation games also had similar locations and aesthetics in its various incarnations. You can see eight minutes of the Crayon Shin-Chan game in action, below.

While the game will remain exclusive to Japan, the positive reception to the trailer by an international audience was noticed by Ayabe. Asked online if a western release was on the cards, Ayabe said that he would be doing his best to help the game cross digital borders.

If you're unfamiliar with the anime and manga source material, Crayon Shin-Chan follows the adventures of the five-year-old Shinnosuke "Shin-chan" Nohara. Alongside his parents, baby sister, friends, and pet dog, weird stuff happens regularly and the series is set in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture of Japan. Having started publication in 1990, the manga has been massively popular, spawning multiple anime series and films that have been exported across the world.

For more on this week's Nintendo Direct, don't forget to check out our round-up that gathered all the big announcements and reveals from the digital show. The 50-minute event had plenty to show, including new DLC for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, the debut of Project Triangle Strategy, more.