Extended Information
Short History
The year is 2041. Fossil fuels are depleted, and a cosmic catastrophe has plunged half the planet into permanent night. The Greater Japanese Empire, situated on the edge of the habitable zone, is desperate for the power it needs to light its cities and ward off the oni--creatures that emerge from darkness to snatch unsuspecting humans.
Over thirty years ago, an organization calling itself the "Imperial Household Agency" ("The Agency", for short) replaced Japan's old government with promises of free energy, military protection and economic stability for the struggling citizens. However, there are rumors that the Agency is also behind oni-gokko, a game in which adventurous humans intentionally enter the demon world of Otokoyo to seek its fabled treasures. Many don fox-faced masks and protective charms to pass through the shadow gates, but few ever return.
There are also those who oppose the Agency: a lawless coalition of criminals and dissidents has seized control of Tokyo's Shinjuku ward, claiming independence from the Greater Japanese Empire. These skilled players of oni-gokko have made their fortunes in the demon's game despite frequent clashes with the military, and now they explore the other world in search of the Agency's secrets. But once you enter Otokoyo, you may never come back...
Full History
After extending the reach of its empire into China, Korea and Southeast Asia during the early part of the 20th century, Japan remained neutral in WWII, watching from a distance as the atom bomb fell on Berlin. The Greater Japanese Empire became a third major player in the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, advancing its technology behind a silk curtain of secrecy and xenophobia.
As time passed, however, it became impossible to ignore a phenomenon that had no rational explanation--days were getting longer. Much longer, as if the earth itself were slowing on its axis. The change of seasons came to a halt and plants, animals and people died in uncountable numbers, creating widespread panic. In less than 50 years, one side of the planet would wither under the Sun's constant light, while the other side faded into eternal night. Day and night became one as Japan was bathed in the everlasting amber twilight of evening. Some considered it divine retribution for atrocities committed by the Nazis and the Imperial Japanese Army.
Through the use of indoor farming, a fraction of the citizens on the dark side of the earth were able to survive, but terrifying rumors began to spread of people disappearing as if the darkness itself had eaten them. They said that darkened alleys lead to another world, where humans were torn limb from limb and devoured by monsters. The resulting rush to generate as much artificial light as possible put a massive strain on the United States power grid.
The Agency made its first appearance in the United States in the 1990s, operating as a shadowy government organization that offered free energy and protection from the prowling demons. Light production dramatically increased due to to the mysterious source of electricity, but the disappearances did not stop. If anything, they increased. Within ten years, North America was virtually devoid of all life, and the Agency temporarily retreated.
The Agency reared its head again in 2009, this time in Japan. While sunny fields in China were sufficient to feed its people and high-tech advances put it at the forefront of the electronics world, the Japanese Empire had declined along with its divine sun. Most alarming were rumors of "oni" who came from the shadows to steal away innocent people. The Sun Goddess Amaterasu had long since turned away from Japan to leave her in shadow, and the Agency, operating under the pretense of the "Imperial Household Agency", again gave its promise of free, unlimited energy to a country in need. Reasoning that the government only worshiped the Emperor because they saw him as a descendant of the sun goddess, the Agency claimed origin from the moon god Tsukuyomi and swiftly installed its own Emperor. However, the new Emperor was a mere puppet of the Agency bureaucracy that set up operations within the Imperial Palace in the heart of Tokyo.
Drawing on an unknown power source, the Agency honored its vow to provide free electricity and Japan once again became the glowing jewel of East Asia. At the same time, rumors of a demon world called "Otokoyo"--a world populated by demons--began to spread. Any oni that escaped from Otokoyo into the human world were swiftly killed by demon hunters from the Agency military, but the world on the other side of darkness was wild and lawless. Otokoyo could could be reached by slipping through a shadow in the right place, and it was overflowing with treasures to steal if one was nimble and clever enough to evade the oni.
The Yakuza were the first to profit from the parallel world's bounty, and it wasn't long before greedy and desperate people were eager to play "oni-gokko"--the game of hide-and-seek played against Otokoyo's monsters. Those who lost the game were dragged off to the oni's Shadow Palace and never heard from again. It was an incedibly dangerous game, but the potential rewards were high... Within a decade, Yakuza looted enough demon gold to buy most of the skyscrapers in the heart of Shinjuku. From there, they became the Agency's major opposition. Yakuza, imperial loyalists, gang members, and political rebels formed an unlikely alliance and declared Shinjuku's independence from Agency control. Shinjuku became a haven for criminals, but it was also proudly free. Since the Yakuza organization contained many skilled oni-gokko players, they began exploring Otokoyo in an attempt to uncover the Agency's secrets while resisting the military's attempts to bring the region back under control.
Now it is 2041, and while the ongoing skirmishes between Agency and Yakuza forces continue, frequent power outages in recent months pose a new danger to Neo-Edo's citizens. As the shadows lengthen, the oni grow thirsty for human blood...
Rules
1.) First and foremost, don't be a dick. Examples of dickery include, but are not limited to: godmoding/metagaming, commandeering threads, attention whoring, and letting personal disputes affect everyone else's ability to have a good time.
Not sure what constitutes "godmoding" or "metagaming?" It can be hard to tell! Basically, godmoding happens whenever a player lets their character's actions or abilities break the flow of the game. If your character is a master swordsman who beats other players' characters without breaking a sweat, or if your character is a computer genius who can effortlessly hack into the personal messages of other characters, you may be godmoding - unless you have an "okay" from the other player to do so. Don't take advantage of another player just to make your character seem stronger, faster or smarter. Don't use other characters as shallow "plot devices" to advance your own storyline. Roleplaying is a collaborative effort that can only succeed when players work together.
Metagaming is when a player uses OOC knowledge when they're playing in character. As a player, you have the ability to read all of the game background info and all of the other characters' profiles... but ask yourself whether your character would have access to the same information. If your character runs into Batman, they won't know that his secret identity is Bruce Wayne even if you do.
2.) The main game community is for in-character, third person log posts only. In-chararacter blog posts are to be made in character's personal journals, and any announcements or OOC posts belong in the OOC community.
3.) Kakurenbo is set in an alternate universe and all characters were born into the world of the game. Please make sure your character's in-game background conforms to the parameters of this world. You can get more information about creating your character in the
FAQ.
4.) This game is open to characters from anime, manga, video games, cartoons, and other 2D fiction. Live-action TV or movie characters, celebrities, and other "real people" aren't allowed. Original characters are also not accepted, except on a limited basis as NPCs.
5.) There will be monthly activity checks posted to the OOC community. You can find more details about them in the
FAQ.
(Note: Activity checks are temporarily suspended as of 09/09 while we work on a better system!)
6.) All players applying to this game must be 16 or older. In addition, characters participating in logs with
any sexual themes must be 16 or older (physically or mentally).
7.) All logs with graphic mature content must be friends-locked to the community. Mild to moderate violence, sexual situations and language don't have to be locked, but please make a warning for anything NSFW in the post's header.
8.) This game runs on a time system in which most gameplay takes place during "active weeks" that may be separated by "time jumps" of 1-2 months. You can read more about the time jump system in the
FAQ. During active weeks, all days are open for play at the same time. It's okay to play events out of chronological order - that's what date tags are for.
Application
Still with us? Great! Wanna play? Awesome. A few notes before you apply:
- Make sure you have checked the current Cast Page to see if the character you're looking for is available. Remember that only characters from two-dimensional series/canon will be accepted--no Original Characters, Live Action, or Real People. Also make sure the character you have in mind hasn't already been reserved.
- Please be sixteen years of age or older.
- You may join the game with two characters initially, but after that you may apply for as many characters as you feel you can handle. You may only apply for new characters one at a time per each passed activity check.
- You may apply for more than one character from the same canon, but characters with close canon relationships may not be played by the same mun. You could apply as Kurosaki Ichigo and Kusajishi Yachiru, or as Barret Wallace and Kadaj, but not as a Gotei Captain and their lieutenant or as two members of The Turks. This is to prevent playercest and any given mun having too much control over a particular area of the game.
Get it? Got it? Good. Please apply using our online form!
When you're all done, send your application to
kakurenbo[DOT]mods[AT]gmail[DOT]com, and please put the name of the character you're applying for in the subject line.
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