Spy X Family is one of my favorite manga depicting various genres. You have slice-of-life, battle manga, spy, and thriller splashed with comedy. I was ecstatic when I saw that a new game depicting the series was coming out. Spy X Anya: Operation Memories is the name of that game and it is finally here!
Game Name: Spy X Anya: Operation Memories
Platform(s): PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5(Reviewed), Nintendo Switch, PC
Developer(s): Groove Box Japan
Publisher(s): Bandai Namco
Release Date: June 28th, 2024
Price: 49.99
Spy X Anya: Operation Memories has you filling in the shoes of Anya as she gets a new project at her school. Eden Academy wants her to make a journal that is unique to her about her daily activities. It is your goal to take pictures of Anya in a variety of settings including Eden Academy, the Forger’s Apartment, the aquarium, the dog park, and more.
The Spy X Family Draw
Spy X Anya: Operation Memories in a gameplay setting is extremely simple. Each day you go to school and then come home. You can talk to a good chunk of the cast of the show like the Forgers, Mr. Henderson, Anya’s friend Becky, and a few visitors. The more times you talk to them when they have red exclamation marks above their head the better your relationship level with them. Each level-up gives you a new scene that then also unlocks an artwork in the gallery. At school and home you have an action point you can spend to take a picture at a specific location indicated by the red indicators. The picture for most points needs to have the focus in a specific setting, the angle at a specific angle and Anya doing a specific action which is indicated by the frames surrounding the camera.
Every three days in game time you get to go do an Ooting with Anya and the family. You have to use PP points to buy items to take pictures with to unlock more areas to do Ootings. An Ooting takes you to the fountain outside the main area, the dog park, and other locations. When you take pictures with the main three items, you unlock a final picture location. Once Anya gets a picture there you unlock a new Ooting area.
At the end of the day, Anya can use Eureka points to play mini-games. These mini-games unlock raffle tickets when you accomplish set goals in them. You can use these raffle tickets to unlock outfits for Anya, Loid, Yor, and Bond. There is a small amount of mini-games at the beginning of the game and you have to unlock more of them by unlocking more areas in the game.
These mini-games are a good lesson on things I dislike about the game. To get all the raffle tickets you need to master each mini-game and do all the story stuff. The story stuff is pretty easy and getting the pictures is simple enough as long as you buy all the items. The mini-games differ in difficulty and frustration. Some are randomized layouts which can make it difficult to get everything you need sorted like the Loid spy missions that require you to get paintings and hide from security. Others are more just simple brain-dead mini-games that aren’t fun. I loved the card game with Tycoon a lot because it was fun but also simple. I disliked the Pacman rip-off one after realizing the game itself never changes. Granted you don’t need to have all the raffle tickets if you don’t want all the cosmetics or outfits. This is a game that will be a chore for completionists. Not because it is difficult but because it is taxing. If you just want to play the game for the sake of playing the game that is probably the best-case scenario. It is a familiar routine and it only changes to provide you with more resources and unlockables with each Ooting.
Playing Spy X Family
In terms of the visuals, Spy X Anya: Operation Memories is faithful to the anime. Cell shading and 3D anime models bring the series to life in a new way. Overall the game itself looks good. The faces and expressions of the characters are very well done. The game locales with the parks, the buildings, and even Eden Academy are mapped as they were from the anime. The game doesn’t stutter as far as I have experienced. I played it on PS5 so it was optimized well for that platform.
Not An Arena Fighter
Spy X Anya: Operation Memories is a faithful adaption of the manga and anime of Spy X Family. It is cozy and something you want to mainly spend a little bit of time on each day rather than try binging it all in one go. The game has a lot of great moments with many reminiscent of the anime. It is a game I would recommend to fans of the series and not many others. It doesn’t establish the premise of the show or the world it is in, but it does portray the world well.
Spy X Anya: Operation Memories is available for PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC.
Review Disclosure Statement: Spy X Anya: Operation Memories was provided to us by Bandai Namco for review purposes. For more information on how we review video games and other media/technology, please review our Review Guideline/Scoring Policy.
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Summary
Spy X Anya: Operation Memories is a faithful recreation of Spy X Family with its visual design and premise. It however is a game that if you aren’t a fan of this series will not interest people in trying out the source material.
Pros
- Visual design is great
- Good Variety of mini-games
- A good chunk of outfits for the Forger family
Cons
- It gets repetitive pretty quickly, especially in the beginning
- Not every mini-game has a good chunk of depth to playing it
