Xseed Games said in 2016 that despite the challenges involved, it—and other publishers—would continue to bring "niche" Japanese games to Steam. I have no doubt that Senran Kagura Peach Ball, a digital pinball game based on the "genre-spanning" series that made its North American debut earlier this month on the Nintendo Switch, is one of them.
"Ninja battles, rhythmic cooking contests, water gun fights, massage therapy—what new horizons hasn’t the Senran Kagura series conquered yet? Oh, right: pinball!" the Steam listing states excitedly. "Use the flippers to bounce the magical Peach Ball all around one of multiple dynamic tables, with a beloved shinobi girl in the middle of it all. Bounce the ball off her knees, feet, or hands to make her shift position and raise the stakes!"
And if you're wondering why exactly these scantily-clad women are on the tables—or why you're firing pinballs at them, instead of politely asking them to move because, hey, you spent a quarter on this and you don't want to waste it—it's because Haruka spilled a chemical in the arcade where she works and it's made five of her shinobi friends think, and act like, they're animals.
"The only way to cure them is with Haruka's mystical Peach Ball. The best way to do that? Pinball, of course! Haruka will get the girls onto the tables, but she needs you to work some magic with the flippers and apply the antidote."
Of course.
In case there's any doubt, Senran Kagura Peach Ball is a "mature" game, with "partial nudity, sexual themes, some strong language, and descriptions of violence." The pinball you're firing at them is "soft," according to the description, and not the traditional silver balls that sound like they could kill a man when you catch them right, but "in one mode, players are able to freely touch the characters." That would get you bounced out of most respectable arcades pretty quickly, but I guess it's okay here.
Senran Kagura Peach Ball will arrive on Steam on August 14, where it will join the rhythm cooking game Senran Kagura: Bon Appetit!, the 3D brawler Senran Kagura: Estival Versus, the ecchi dating sim Senran Kagura Reflexions, and Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash, a third-person water gun shooter—all of which, by the way, have "very positive" user reviews on Steam. A genre-spanning series, indeed.
