Yurukill: The Calumniation Games
Yurukill: The Calumniation Games mixes escape adventure and bullet hell shoot 'em up, with an original story by Homura Kawamoto (famous for Kakegurui: Compulsive Gambler).
SCREENSHOTS
PHYSICAL
HISTORY
Yurukill: The Calumniation Games (冤罪執行遊戯ユルキル, Enzai shikkō yūgi yurukiru; lit. 'False Accusation Game Yurkill') is a 2022 video game developed by IzanagiGames and G.rev for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows and Xbox Series X/S. A multi-genre game combining visual novel and shoot 'em up gameplay, the title centres on a group of convicts which profess innocence for crimes which they have been convicted of. The convicted 'prisoners,' each teamed up with a civilian 'executioner,' compete on the fictional island of Yurukill Land, for which the winning team is rewarded with the wiping of the prisoners' criminal record and the granting of the executioner's greatest wish.
The game released on May 22, 2022 in Japan and in July in international markets. Upon release, Yurukill received mixed reception, although general praise was offered for its premise and unconventional fusion of genres.
Plot
Six convicts, Sengoku Shunju (arson resulting in 21 counts of murder, sentenced to 999 years), twins Futa and Raita Yamada (robbery and double homicide, sentenced to 78 years), Gentoku Omuro (murder, sentenced to 110 years), pop singer Hanaka Ichirin (murder and attempted murder, sentenced to 18 years), and Benitaro "Allan Poe Akechi" Barahabara (disturbing the peace, sentenced to two months) all mysteriously awake on board a ship transporting the group to the island of Yurukill Land. All six profess innocence for the crimes and claim erroneous convictions. Also on the ship are five mostly eccentric civilians who have not been convicted of a crime and invited to the island on their own resolve: Rina Azami (paired with Sengoku), Kagura Kagutsuchi (paired with the Yamada twins), Izane Akegarasu (paired with Gentoku), Keiichi Oka (paired with Hanaka, whom his is a super fan of), and Beniko 'Kristina Kobayashi' Barahabara (paired with her older brother Allan Poe Akechi).
On the island, modeled after an amusement park, Binko, a woman donning a fox mask, informs the group that they have been brought to Yurukill Land to participate in a competition. The winning team will have the convict's criminal record erased, with the civilian being granted a wish as a prize. The convicts are to take the role of 'prisoners' while their civilian teammates are 'executioners'. Binko informs the participants that as teams progress through the games' challenges, executioners will have the ability to determine the guilt of their prisoner counterparts, resulting in either a pardon or the execution of their teammate. This judgement can occur at any point but is also to happen at the end of each challenge.
The teams are individually transported to a unique attraction which they must solve independent of the other groups. As the teams progress, they come to find that each challenge is modelled after the crime they were convicted of, and information is contained which either supports their claim to innocence or reveals that the prisoner team member committed the offence. As each attraction progresses, each executioner also reveals that they are not random citizens, but the surviving victims of their partners convicted crimes (Rina the sole survivor of the arson, Kagura the granddaughter of a murdered couple, Izane the sole survivor of a village massacre instigated by Gentoku, and Keiichi the survivor of a stabbing). While the attractions do not concretely prove the guilt of either Sengoku or the Yamada twins, Gentoku's scenario uncovers that his real name is Kazuki Jimbo while Izane is his cousin Chihiro Jimbo; the two are the only survivors of a massacre which killed every other member of the Jimbo family, while Hanaka's attraction contains indisputable video evidence that she murdered a man and also stabbed Keiichi. Ultimately, the four executioners pardon their prisoner teammates, though under different rationales (Rina has doubts as to Sengoku's innocence, Kagura is promised devout loyalty by Futa, Izane desires Genotku's real life power, while Keiichi's obsessiveness of Hanaka allows him to forgive her). Allan Poe's team completes an attraction offscreen.
As all teams completed their attraction without an execution occurring, a murder-mystery competition is held, with the first two teams to solve the mystery's earning a spot in the Yurukill finals. Ultimately, Gentoku/Azame and Allan Poe/Kristina earn a spot in the finals, however, after Allan Poe's team goes missing, a follow up competition is held, with Sengoku and Rina instead participating in the finals.
Alongside the broader competition which is occurring, Senogku is attempting to determine the culprit behind the arson and murders which he was framed for. Spurred by a taunting message which was slipped into his cell on the boat at the start of the games, he and Rina eventually determine that the culprit is a player.
In the finals, additional evidence presented by the attraction setup allows Sengoku and Rina to conclude that Izane is the true culprit behind the crimes which all the prisoners have been accused of, either through committing them directly and framing a prisoner, or instigation. Izane (an anagram of the '冤罪' (Enzai, lit. 'false accusation')) is also revealed to be the true convict of Jimbo family massacre which Gentoku is participating as a prisoner for (switching places with the amnesiac Gentoku discretely at the very start) and also an employee of Yurukill Inc., a powerful covert organization which broadcasts the Yurukill games for profit on the internet. In the final showdown between Sengoku and Izane, Allan Poe's missing team returns, freeing the other prisoners and hacking into the Yurukill computers systems to allow the games' participants to defeat Izane. As the winners of the Yurukill Games, Sengoku's conviction is erased, while Rina's winning wish is to have Izane turned into the police with the evidence Yurukill Inc. has, which can allow the others to be retried and freed. However, Izane jumps off a nearby cliff edge upon her defeat, committing suicide.
In the epilogue, the prisoners are retried and all acquitted of their charges. Futa and Raita start a business with Kagura as an employee; Hanaka hires Keiichi as a manager and returns to her singing career; Gentoku, assuming his birth name Kazuki Jimbo, returns to the Jimbo family village to honour his deceased family, while Sengoku and Rina become close friends. A post-credits scene features Binko discussing the financial success of the Yurukill Games, slowly taking off her mask to tease that she is Izane.
== Gameplay ==…
STORY
Sengoku Shunju wakes up in his prison cell.
A woman wearing a fox mask introduces herself as Binko, and says: “Sengoku Shunju, you are a criminal sentenced to years in prison, you’ve been offered the chance to gain your freedom.
You must survive the various ‘attractions’ in a certain ‘amusement park.’ If you succeed, your crimes will be pardoned.”
“No, you’ve got it all wrong, I’ve been falsely accused! I’m innocent!”
The victim of one of his alleged crimes appears. Her name is Rina Azami.
“Sengoku Shunju. A name I will never forget. You killed my entire family. For that, I will never forgive you.”
Sengoku is in prison, charged with arson and murder—for burning to death 21 people, including Rina’s family.
Naturally, the victim does not believe a word of Sengoku’s claims of innocence.
Besides Sengoku are four other groups of criminals and their respective victims.
The accused criminals are called “Prisoners,” and the victims “Executioners.” Criminals and victims must pair up to face the amusement park’s attractions.
There are a total of six criminals and five victims. There are five teams: Mass Murderers, Death Dealing Duo, Crafty Killers, Sly Stalkers, and Peeping Toms.
The Prisoners hope to overcome the challenges so that they may be pardoned.
Should the Executioners win, their wishes will be granted. At long last they will be able to avenge their loved ones.
The challenges take place in a secluded amusement park called “Yurukill Land.”
All manner of secrets will be unearthed as the teams face each attraction.
Who will survive the cruel, twisted place that is Yurukill Land?
1CC RUNS
One-credit clears we point to as the benchmark for this game.
GAMEPLAY VIDEO
TRAILERS
STORES
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PRICE HISTORY
Every price change we know of, per shop. Flat means the price held; PC shops reach back through IsThereAnyDeal's archive, console shops start when this site started watching.
Steam low: $6.99 (18 Dec 2025)
REVIEWS
Published elsewhere, collected here. Every score is the outlet's own, on the outlet's own scale. Follow the link for the full review.
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is a full dose for fans of visual novels, and a perfect title for those who want to get started in this genre. The story is extremely captivating, full of mystery and twists and turns, and with a special shoot'em up twist along the way that makes the experience more immersive. It's a must-have title!”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is an atypical genre combination. On one side, the escape the room is a brainy, logical genre focused on puzzle resolution. On the other, the shoot'em up is based on frantic combat and quick reflexes. Despite how hard it is to mix those two styles, the development team managed to present a unique experience that offers a great entry point for both genres. Especially for players interested in the narratives of Japanese animation and other pop works, it's worth checking out.”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games blends visual novel story and Shmup gameplay to create a very engaging experience.”
“While not up to the level of its inspirations, Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is an enjoyable visual novel that does an excellent job of merging its storytelling with shoot 'em up gameplay.”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Game has a great artistic section, very accessible puzzles for all audiences and an incredible story. It perfectly combines the investigation section with the shoot 'em up one. And finally, the Nintendo Switch version needs a patch to fix some bugs.”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is an excellent pick for shoot'em up fans, and even more for succeeding at mixing the genre with others, such as visual novel for the adventure bits and escape-the-room for various puzzles and riddles. Everything fits perfectly with the story and the atmosphere, including the art and soundtrack, which are well made, not to mention the presence of big names of the Japanese dub that enact the eccentric characters. Unfortunately the performance on Switch hinders a lot of the game potential and many issues in the hybrid console port compromise the experience. As su”
“The puzzles are basic but well-crafted, connecting the setting to the characters' psyches and providing clues with intriguing puzzles. The visuals are quite pleasing, and the voice acting is quite competent, though it can be exhausting during the explanatory moments, when the characters can barely catch their breath for the lore dump sequences. Finally, there's an out-of-place shot-'em-up, which can at least be enjoyable when you are exhausted of reading.”
“The main story of Yurkill can be completed in a very enjoyable 10 hour span. Some of the dialogue can go on a little long but otherwise the pacing of the story beats drop at a decent rate. As a visual novel, Yurukill is an easy recommendation.”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is an ideal example of a murder mystery that isn’t innovative but has a compelling story. It may lack flesh on its bones, but the skeleton is sturdy. Despite some predictable plot beats, an equal amount subverts expectations by throwing in a slight twist. There’s a truckload of untapped potential here.”
“An entertaining enough game, although the synergy never works and the story loses steam fast. A good first effort, though”
“Hard to be categorical with Yurukill. The shoot'em up phases are pleasant, the story is generally interesting, even if the ending will tend to disappoint, and it is quite satisfying to see the characters evolve over the course of our investigations.”
“I really enjoyed my time with Yurukill. It brings together two very different genres and presents a satisfying version of each. If those two sides elevated each other, we could have been looking at a terrific game. Instead, however, those sides mostly just sit alongside each other, feeling like a strange marriage that doesn’t entirely make sense. Fans of both visual novels and SHMUPs should certainly check Yurukill out, but if you’re only into one side of this equation, it may not entirely satisfy.”
“Overall Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is about as weird as its title suggest. A wacky mash up of escape room and shmup with Phoenix Wright/pop quiz elements thrown in that was weirdly endearing. While Yurukill certainly fell flat in some areas, it certainly had a good showing with the cast of characters, interesting storylines, and decently integrated genre changes. I’ll be honest, it can be frustrating at times, but I still found myself wanting to continue so I could figure out the truth, and to see if I could guess at what happened before the reveal in each chapter. I laughed, I cried, I”
“Yurukill: The Calumnation Games has a decent storyline, and is a solid time, but for the price point, there are far better options.”
“Definitely an exceedingly odd bird we have here...”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is a bit of a mess, but it definitely feels like a mess that someone tried really hard to make. While the gameplay elements sometimes feel at odds, it has a lot of charm in its characters and UI design. Even though the game's plot can feel unfocused and confusing, it does have some really good moments. The characters especially do a great job of keeping the story engaging, even when it loses itself a little. Yurukill definitely has both hits and misses, but it feels very earnest and I hope to see more games by this team soon.”
“Yurukill is odd combination of genres that works surprisingly well but is hamstrung by a lack of depth and short length.”
“The crazy title developed by Izanagi Games mixes three completely different genres, giving life to a work of sure impact for creativity and ambition, but not really unforgettable due to the ups and downs that characterize the various sections of gameplay.”
“Yurukill: The Calumniation Games is a game of ups and downs. It's a good visual novel with an interesting story and an intriguing cast, but misses the mark in the puzzle/shoot'em up sections. The end result is a game with no balance, interesting for those looking for a visual novel with an intriguing story, to be avoided by those who want to enjoy an exciting gameplay experience.”
“The puzzles rely on weird logic, the arcade sections are dull, and the courtroom-style quizzes leave a lot to be desired, making Yurukill: The Culmination Games a title that struggles on all fronts.”
Reviews are the work of the outlets named. Titles, scores and quoted excerpts are reproduced for identification and criticism; each links to the original.
SCORES
RELEASES 5 systems
PHYSICAL RELEASES 1 box
