🎮 密密(ひそひそ)-ステルスタイピングゲーム- (Whisper Whisper: Stealth Typing Game)
2023年 1月 07日
This article was featured in our 2023 January issue. Check out more articles and interviews in the full issue.
密密(ひそひそ)-ステルスタイピングゲーム-
(Whisper Whisper: Stealth Typing Game)
by ボブ寺１５０
When I was a student, I was in the orchestra. Every year, as a kind of group bonding exercise, we would drive up to the shore and spend a weekend at these run-down bungalows. Naturally, as pre-teens are wont to do, we would stay up all night whispering and giggling instead of going to bed like good little children.
The magic hour: staying up way too late and talking with your best friend. Ah, childhood was amazing.
And every night, one of the teachers or section leaders would bang on our windows and tell us to cut it out. They would threaten us and say, “If you fall asleep during rehearsal tomorrow, you’re gonna get it!” So when we huddled under the covers to debate who was the most kissable person in our class, our gazes would constantly flick over to the cabin window. Whenever we’d see a shadow, we would quickly switch off our flashlights, hold our breaths, and wait for it to pass. The content of our gossiping didn’t matter nearly as much as the solidarity and thrill we felt in staying up late together in this place so far from home.
Oops, unless you get caught by a meanie adult!
密密(ひそひそ)-ステルスタイピングゲーム- (Hisohiso, Whisper Whisper) is a stealth typing game (yes, you read that right) made by ボブ寺１５０ (Bobdera 150), a group of university students who made this for the Unity1Week 「密」 (mitsu, secret) game jam in 2020. It was updated earlier this month to include both English support and additional acts, bringing the total number of stories up to three. Now you too can relive your childhood experiences of keeping one eye out for adults while staying up way too late.
You can toggle the language of the game by hitting the Left Shift key. The game also starts with this tutorial image letting you know how to play, though it's pretty self-explanatory if you just dive in.
You play as one of two characters in a given scenario. The first act is about two girls gossiping about their crushes, the second is about two ninjas getting the drop on an enemy warlord, and the third has you play a mafioso negotiating a sale under the watchful eye of a cop.
In each of these scenarios, you must keep your “voice” down while typing out your messages. The volume of your “voice” is determined by the speed of your typing. If you enter each letter in slowly and carefully, your “voice” will barely be audible. Type too quickly, however, and your “voice” will jump up and attract unwanted attention. Mistyping will also cause a spike and cause your character to become a bit flustered. But if you take too long to get through the entire conversation, you’ll run out of time! Can you get through the whole conversation without making any mistakes and without getting caught?
These characters have the best facial expressions.
When I first heard about the central conceit of this game, I was blown away by its creativity. The very idea of a stealth typing game is at once so unique yet so obvious that I can’t believe nobody else has thought of it before. The theming of keeping your voice down to not alert authoritarian figures is also quite charming and relatable. The character designs and general artwork contain so much personality and look great.
Try to clear the stages with as few mistakes as possible!
And as strange as this may sound, I love how it feels to type in this game, due to no small part in the excellent sound design. My heart leaps into my throat whenever I make a mistake because there is this loud SNAP to the teacher glowering from the doorway! It’s the little touches like these that make Whisper Whisper sparkle. Definitely give it a look if you can.