Atlus and Studio Zero have once again set a date for when we can expect the RPG, which will be cross-gen, as it will show up on one of the 2013 consoles after delays.
The western version of Metaphor:ReFantazio will cost 70 or 150 dollars. That’s what they’re asking for the base game.$150 is the price for the collector’s edition. It will be available on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox series and will include the base game, a steelbook, the soundtrack, an art book, Homo Tenta metal badges, a sticker set, a canvas map of the Kingdom of Euchronia, a DLC code for costumes and battle music, a digital art book and music compilation celebrating Atlus’ 35th anniversary, and a pre-order bonus coupon.
In Japan, the base retail and digital edition will cost 9878 yen, but there will also be an Atlus Brand 35th Anniversary Edition for 1848 yen.This will include the base game for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, but will also come with a premium art book, a special soundtrack, a history book celebrating Atlus’ 35th anniversary, a compilation of the company’s best music, a special acrylic stand, a sticker set, and a code coupon for costumes and battle background music. The digital edition of this version is priced at 15510 yen and includes the game, a premium digital art book, a special soundtrack, the 35th anniversary history book and soundtrack, and the battle and background music DLC.
Pre-order bonuses include the Archetype XP Set (10 Hero’s Incense – increases Archetype XP by 100; 5 Hero’s Fruit – increases Archetype XP by 500) and the Adventurer’s Journey Pack (30,000 Reeves, the in-game currency; 5 Expensive Medicine – heals 200 HP on a character; 5x Revival Medicine – resurrection; 3x Magic Bread – slowly regenerates MP in dungeons; 2x Stale Blackbread – deals 300 almighty damage to an opponent).
Katsura Hashino, the game’s director, talks more about the game in the second video below. In a kingdom thrown into chaos by the assassination of the king, a royal magic is triggered that sets up an election. This magic allows any person of any social status to become the next king by gaining the support of the people, setting off a battle for the throne.The protagonist gets involved and the journey will take him around the world.You’ll meet various allies from different tribes, rivals with their own ideologies, and terrifying monsters called humans will stand in your way, and the stories are full of such fateful encounters.First and foremost, a game is a different experience than a movie or a novel, so to prevent this from becoming just a vehicle for our story, they’ve gone to great lengths to flesh out the experience into an exciting, fully fleshed out game.Our protagonist’s journey and goal is to save the cursed prince.Turn-based combat is still at the heart of the game, but we’ve added real-time attacking and dodging, as well as dashing and analyzing, to keep things exciting.At the beginning of the game, the protagonist isn’t strong, so the difficulty of combat is intentionally high in that area. The developers wanted players to feel a sense of both tension and accomplishment. I might die if I risk a fight right now, so I’m going to explore carefully during this section. However, there are several difficulty levels and comfort factors to make things easier. The music you hear in the game is in the head of the protagonist. The composer is Shoji Meguro. You may know him from the Persona series, but the developers asked him to break away from his trademark pop style and take on the challenge of creating a completely new sound to fit the world of this game.
The background art was created by guest artist Koda Kazuma. The dynamic architecture is brought to life with a unique sense of realism in medieval painting like shaders. The protagonist travels around the world in an armored vehicle. The original designs of these vehicles were created by Ikuto Yamashita.Using magic, you can ride around on your sword to get from one place to another quickly.You wouldn’t call this an open world game, but we made sure to fill in even the distant backgrounds so you can feel the unique atmosphere of each place. If you walk down an alley, the atmosphere is very different from the main street.This is where executions take place.That’s something you don’t see very often in modern stories.You’ll also notice some people huddled in the streets, because in this world, the gap between the rich and the poor is prevalent.
You’ll be able to see where you are and then instantly go to any place you’ve visited before. This should make traveling more convenient. In this world, the areas between the cities are dangerous areas called wastelands, which makes traveling difficult, unlike our world today. As the story progresses, your main hub will move from town to town. Martira is a pastoral city, quite a contrast to the capital. This may be normal in other fantasy RPGs. At the Recruitment Center, you accept requests to fight dangerous monsters. These threats to the city are called bounties. Bounties give you some nice rewards, which hopefully will encourage you to take them on. Tipsters offer hints on dungeons and combat strategies.
The Gauntlet Runner is a vehicle that can safely travel across wastelands. A mobile base, if you will, with movement and mechanisms that allow it to run on magic. When you access the carousel, you’ll be able to enter the Gauntlet Runner’s War Room. When you enter the round table here, all of your allies from the city will gather and a map of your journey will open.
Most RPGs have no time limit on the adventure, but Metaphor revolves around the concept of date and time.The developers have captured the travel experience with predetermined lengths of activities and structure.But within that, what you do, where you go, is up to each player, who can choose to do things differently.You’re free to spend your time however you want.You have a set time frame to complete the main story objective at each location you visit.But these side quests also play an important role in the story. Some require you to fight strong enemies, while others offer rare equipment. The order in which you complete these quests will have a major impact on how difficult the battles feel, so which challenges you take on first will play a large role in your experience. In the kitchen, you can cook the ingredients you’ve collected with your friends to create valuable items. In the back is the lounge. Your allies will often visit you to spend time with you. There is also a collection of books for you to read.
The key to strengthening a party in Metaphor lies in the job system, and the growth of these jobs is critical to progressing through the game. In Metaphor, the power of these jobs is called Archetypes. By facing their fears, the protagonists acquire these Archetypes, a special power. Think of them as heroic figures that everyone possesses.
Their powers manifest in different ways throughout the game. Examples of some Archetypes that appear early in the game include the Seeker, who is an all-around fighter; the Mage, who attacks weaknesses with offensive magic; and the Thief, who can loot resources.The key to the system, however, is that the character can transform to take on the appearance of different heroic figures and then use their skills to fight.
Once you enter the dungeon, use the power of your fairy companion to analyze your surroundings.This will give you a sort of ranking of nearby enemies.A blue glow indicates a lower rank, meaning they are weaker enemies.More dangerous enemies will glow yellow. If the analysis indicates that they’re formidable, you should approach them with caution, unlike before. Pressing the Squad button will summon your party members to your side and transition into a turn-based battle.
If you initiate a squad fight before the enemy notices you, you will receive a bonus first strike. Even in battles that require a squad approach to defeat them with skills, the action prior to the battle is designed to be a texture element with mechanics that can lead to both advantages and disadvantages. The squad option allows you to engage in and enjoy tense, tactical combat without getting too close, using a variety of skills and strategic actions. You can earn bonus rewards by defeating all enemies without taking damage.
As you progress through the story, you’ll encounter both main dungeons, which you can tackle as part of the main story, and side dungeons, which you can explore as part of quests. Both types will, of course, involve combat. In terms of the number of dungeons to tackle, it’s more than any of our previous titles. Furthermore, the dungeon mechanics have been designed to not affect the balance and pacing, reducing anything that might bore you.
The protagonist will meet and befriend various people throughout his journey. As he continues to deepen these bonds, these followers will become his strongest supporters. Seeing their way of life through these interactions, the protagonist senses the heroic image within them, giving him access to new archetypes in battle that awaken within him.
Metaphor:ReFantazio is coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PC (Steam, Microsoft Store) and PlayStation 4 on October 11th.
Source: Gematsu
