Having been a shopkeeper before in games like Moonlighter, managing inventories and negotiating sales, I know how enjoyable and rewarding it can be. That’s why the premise of No Umbrellas Allowed is of great interest, as it’s essentially a second-hand shop simulation. What adds further intrigue here is the rather politically-charged narrative conjured up by developers Hoochoo Game Studios. The two aspects could combine for a really unique offering that brings something fresh and engaging to the table.Â
Is No Umbrellas Allowed the real deal with an interesting concept worthy of your time, or does it turn out to be a dud that’s destined for the bargain bin?
The year is 2080 and there’s been a huge explosion at the Citizens Alliance Research Institute, causing the loss of tech related to artificial rain and ‘Fixer’ related facilities. This is a huge problem for the government as well as the organisation involved with the project, AVAC. Delays to their plans means that the last remaining Fixerain-free place, Ajik City, is safe from the emotion-suppressing rain.
Meanwhile, your character wakes up on a beach with serious injuries and a lack of memories. Taken in by second-hand shop owner, Darcy, he helps you get back on your feet and lets you pretend to be his son, Bob, to avert suspicion about his past. Given the reins of Darcy’s shop, you’ll have to work hard to pay back the accrued debt to Darcy, while also trying to figure out who you truly are.
To the shock of nobody, the two situations are related somehow and slowly, very slowly, the connection becomes apparent. The storytelling is done largely through cutscenes using pixel art and text-based dialogue, which is fine. It’s a decent narrative that keeps everything ticking over and efficiently explains why the people behave rather abnormally. The oppressive government and their AVAC goons as the antagonists certainly lends itself well to an angle that’s made even more interesting through the artificial rain project, which is nullifying people’s emotional responses indefinitely.
Aside from the overarching main plot, there are a fair few interesting side stories too, involving an array of mildly intriguing folk. Whether it’s the delusional painter Bokho, your incredibly irritable niece Nari, the smartarse robotic assistant HUE, or the ‘Stabilizer’, such interactions are generally enjoyable. Especially when choices are offered during conversations that can alter the narrative.
How things unfold in No Umbrellas Allowed is that you’ll spend each day – up to a maximum of forty days – looking after Darcy’s, a second-hand shop. It’s your job to buy and sell anything and everything you can in order to make a profit, with customers popping in at various times during a shift. Most likely, those stepping foot inside the shop are there to sell their wares and this leads you to negotiate a price. Taking into account the value, you must offer an amount low enough to ensure a decent margin is retained for resale, without insulting the owner of the item.Â
But before doing any deals, the actual worth of an item needs to be uncovered and instead of calling in a specialist like David Dickinson for help, you’re going to perform the appraisals yourself. There’s a really cool selection of tools to unlock and these really aid in putting a more accurate figure on things, so you don’t have to take the customer’s word as gospel. Initially it’s a case of checking the condition of the item in question and deciding upon the material it’s made of, with a little reference book to guide you. You’ll place cards into valuation slots that may see the value fluctuate, for example suggesting it’s in a worse condition will lower the price, however the realisation that it’s 24K gold elevates the total exponentially.
Soon enough, the appraisals get more complex and enjoyable to perform as a result of having to assess additional aspects. This includes, but isn’t limited to, using a year estimator to decide whether the manufacturer date has a historical link to a national event or is so old that it’s considered archaeological. Should the item be signed by someone, you have to figure out who it might be as well as confirm it’s their actual signature. It involves cross-checking a number of signatures and carefully making sure there are no inconsistencies. Other tools let you pick up on specific brands, evaluate gems, and assess watches.
Having a huge reference guide to sift through at all times might seem a tad much, but actually it’s great as it adds to the challenge. You’ll use the tools at your disposal, find the corresponding cards and deliver (hopefully) accurate valuations. There’s a real satisfaction from highlighting features the customer didn’t know about and correcting their claims. I also appreciate the often unique items you’ll get to deal with; a fish themed pencil case, a tacky trophy, an ocarina, a baby’s toy, and a classic console to name just a few. Oh and lots of umbrellas, but they’re tied to the story so selling them isa bit of a dilemma.
Anyway, whatever you manage to prise out of people’s hands can be showcased in the shop window at the price you wish to sell it at. And then you just wait for passers by to pop in, where they’ll either pay the exact amount or play hardball. Occasionally the customer will ask for a recommendation, which puts the knowledge of your inventory to the test. On the whole you just need to build up a good reputation with the locals and accumulate enough of the Vana currency to pay off your debts.
Outside of the shop, you can roam around – in 2D side-scrolling style – a small portion of the neighbourhood and visit other establishments. Flowers are available to buy to cause certain effects during a work day, certain top tier items can eventually be taken to the auction house, and you even have the opportunity to repair damaged things. There are a few other places too, all of which add a little something to the experience.
For those looking to test their skills with a more focused activity, there’s a Challenge Mode available separately from the story offering. Basically it sees you dealing with a set number of items and the aim is to make as much money as possible by the time you’ve exhausted them all. After playing the main mode though, you might not want to do anything else and I’ll explain why.
Unfortunately, the potential enjoyment of wheeling and dealing is curtailed quite dramatically by a myriad of issues, with relatively small problems arising alongside much bigger ones. The text speed is too fast and difficult to keep up with on occasion, which is a slight nuisance. Worse than that though is the UI, because it’s not very intuitive and with so many different menus, it can be overwhelming. Also, there’s a chance of the pop-up menus bugging out, halting your session and losing some progression.
You see, there are no manual saves and so the save system only kicks in at the end of a hard day’s work, so having to leave the game prematurely is costly. Rather disappointingly, moving on to the next day is another situation prone to bugs, meaning the auto-save doesn’t occur. I don’t know about you, but to me, progression loss and replaying days multiple times is a big deal.
It’s even more frustrating when you realise that No Umbrellas Allowed has the scope for a fair amount of playthroughs due to over ten different endings to achieve. Giving up after bugging out time and time again isn’t an official ending, however it’s likely to be one you reach.
Overall, No Umbrellas Allowed is a promising shop sim that ultimately comes undone by a raft of issues. There’s a very good concept here, with genuinely rewarding gameplay in regards to the successful appraising of all sorts of items. While a bit slow, the narrative is interesting and the big picture stuff weaves into the day-to-day trading quite well. It matters little though when the functionality is compromised and your progress is regularly hindered.
No Umbrellas Allowed really needs a patch before considering a purchase, but for now it’s too damaged to recommend.
