Atlus has announced that a book detailing the seven-year development of its latest RPG Metaphor: ReFantazio will be released in Japan on December 19, 2024, for ¥2,640.
Writer Sayakawa will include interview switch director Katsura Hashino, with the contents being as follows. But note that these facets are subject to change:
- Chapter 1: The Beginning: “I want people to be under the illusion that the world might change.”
- Chapter 2: Katsura Hashino and Atlus: “I guess my creative disposition, that there’s nothing to be done if it’s not interesting, hasn’t changed much.”
- Testimony 1: Shigenori Soejima (Character Designer): “I want people to love my characters as characters.”
- Chapter 3: Directing Techniques: “This is the blueprint of an RPG.”
- Chapter 4: Putting the Story into the System: “It was a natural progression from a standard fantasy story.”
- Testimony 2: Yuichiro Tanaka (Scenario): “It’s when you can’t fix something that you known what you best want to fix.”
- Chapter 5: Why do things have to be cut? “It’s nice when everything feels consistent.”
- Chapter 6: The Culmination of Commitment to Consistency: “In the end, it’s about whether everything makes sense.”
- Testimony 3: Kenichi Goto (Battle): “The best feeling is for the player to think that they might die, and then pull through.”
- Chapter 7: Making it Fun: “Players will come up with ideas for what they want to do in the game.”
- Chapter 8: Execution, Wit, Consistency: “Give up or keep working, how to find the best middle ground.”
- Testimony 4: Azusa Kido (Daily Life): “We won’t leave out parts that people loved in the Persona series.”
- Chapter 9: The Official Title is “Metaphor:” “Now is the time to improve the quality.”
- Testimony 5: Ise Koji (UI): “I feel like we’ve done a decent job of making it feel good.”
- Chapter 10: Aiming for JRPG 3.0: “I want to explore making a modern JRPG that fits current sensibilities.”
This book, published by Chikuma Shobo, will be 544 pages long. Persona Central translated its contents.
Additionally, Atlus has released a never-before-seen concept video to tease the game’s ambiance, complete with English subtitles.
- Check out our review.
- A free extensive demo is available.
- One million units have been sold worldwide.
- The soundtrack will be released in January 2025.
Metaphor: ReFantazio takes place in the United Kingdom of Euchronia, a land plunged into turmoil following the assassination of its king. The story takes a dramatic turn when the Royal Magic, a mystical power previously known only to the king, is unexpectedly invoked, sparking a grand royal tournament to determine the next ruler.
Amidst this tumultuous backdrop, the protagonist, alongside their partner, the fairy Galica, embarks on a quest to lift a curse cast upon the prince, believed by the kingdom to be deceased. Their journey spans the expansive lands of Euchronia, revealing that their mission is intricately tied to the ongoing tournament for the throne. To succeed, they must forge alliances with a diverse array of friends and followers from the various tribes that inhabit this world, each with their own unique contributions to the unfolding narrative.
A newly highlighted technique is Synthesis, which combines party members’ archetypes, performing powerful attacks at the cost of both you and the cooperating ally’s turns. All three characters in the active party can even use Synthesis for devastating attacks. The development team has worked hard to ensure that players will alter their strategies the further they progress instead of keeping to the same party configuration the whole game.
