Koei Tecmo has announced the various pre-order bonuses that will be available depending on where you feel like picking up Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension when it is released in late October. Gamers in North America can get the title from the PlayStation Store and obtain officer data for the the key retainer of the Sanada clan, Oyamada Shigemasa, and the wife of Shigemasa, Lady Muramatsu while those who pick it up from retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, and GameStop will be given a 30 face CG set featuring portraits of legendary and fan-favorite characters from Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII, as well as the William Adams and Megohime Officer Data which unlocks the historic characters for use in gameplay.
In Europe independent retailers will offer the CG set while the PlayStation Store content will also be the same. To go along with this information the company has released a new trailer and screenshots for Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension and you can check that all out below.
Koei Tecmo has announced what their game line up will be for Tokyo Game Show this year and with it the company also revealed a large number of titles that were previously unannounced for release in the West. The new localization announcements include Toukiden 2, Atelier Firis: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Journey, Nights of Azure 2, and Samurai Warriors: Sanada Maru, with a couple of these coming off as fairly surprising considering how recently they were revealed. Joining these games at Tokyo Game Show include the previously announced titles Beserk and Nioh.
Descriptions for each of these new titles have been given by Koei Tecmo and you can read them below:
Toukiden 2
Koei Tecmo is pleased to announce the return of the popular demon hunting RPG title Toukiden with the western release of its second installment in early 2017. Taking Oni-hunting to a brand new level, Toukiden 2 introduces an open-world environment filled with strange life forms, empty ruins, unexplored caves and fearsome Oni.
Players will take on the mantle of a Slayer charged with the task of defending humanity’s last remaining villages from the supernatural threat of Oni. Taking all types of shapes and sizes, these demons creep out of dark rifts in space and time to prey on mankind. Warriors from the ancient and secret cast of the Slayers are the only ones equipped to stop them!
Platforms, release date and further information on the western release of this title will be available in the following weeks.
Atelier Firis: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey
Developer Gust continues its trademark Atelier series with the follow-up to Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Book. The second part in the Mysterious trilogy, Atelier Firis, follows the journey of a young alchemist through an exciting and colorful world. While Firis travels, she learns more about synthesis and alchemy, meets interesting people, and amplifies the feeling of exploration with the immense expansion of the world map!
Atelier Firis: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey will be playable during Tokyo Games Show on PlayStation 4. More details on the title will be revealed in the following weeks.
Nights of Azure 2 (working title)
Following the success of Nights of Azure, which marked a darker direction for Gust, producer Keisuke Kikuchi returns to the demon-plagued world where players will follow the story of a young girl knight born from the blood of Arnice, the main character of Nights of Azure. Nights of Azure 2 (working title) maintains the same JRPG gameplay elements adored by dedicated fans of the studio and expands this new franchise’s horizons with a riveting new storyline! This title will be on display at the Koei Tecmo Games booth.
Samurai Warriors: Sanada Maru (working title)
Koei Tecmo and developer Omega Force are proud to announce the upcoming western release of a ‘one versus thousands’ tactical action title focused on a fan-favorite character from the Samurai Warriors franchise: Yukimura Sanada. In this character-driven epic, players will get a unique look into the Sanada clan’s inner workings before and during the 16th century conflict that drove two brothers to join opposite sides of a grand scale civil war.
This yet-to-be-named title will be released in the west in 2017 and is available for hands-on play on PlayStation 4 during Tokyo Games Show.
It has been quite some time since Jesse and the groups’ journey began but now it seems that it might finally be coming to an end. Telltale Games has announced that they are planning on releasing Minecraft: Story Mode Episode 8 next week on September 13th for most of the supported platforms. Titled “A Journey’s End?” this eighth episode will mark the third and final episode in the “Adventure Pass” add-on and considering the question mark, it might even leave things open to continue once more.
Telltale has released a small description of what to expect from the episode Harper leading them to the world of the Old Builders, Jesse and crew finally have their chance to return home… but it won’t be easy, and the stakes are high. You’ll need to take on opponents in a series of gladiatorial games to win your freedom, save your friends, and maybe, just maybe, make it back home.
WATCH DINOS CLASH IN ARK: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST AUGUST SURVIVOR LEAGUE THIS SATURDAY
Studio Wildcard revealed today that survivors bent on butting dinosaur heads will have the opportunity to crush skulls and earn money in the August Survival of the Fittest ‘Survivor League’ at 11 am EST, Saturday, September 10 on Twitch.TV/SurvivetheArk.
Shoutcasted by the colorful typeForced, the August Survivor League Championship pits the top ranking teams in each of three game modes against each other for a high-stakes bounty of more than $65,000 in prizes. Viewers can watch the dinosaur bludgeoning take place where combatants will vie for the prize pool, bragging rights, alpha dino status, and fleeting Internet fame. Dinos will rule again!
Furthermore, the extra Survival of the Fittest Game mode known as “Naughty or Nice” will make its official return as a new Steam Workshop SotF Total Conversion, with a special event hosted live at 11 am EST, Saturday, September 17. This one-of-a-kind charity event puts survivors to the test in an all out 100 versus 100 battle over the course of two and a half hours.
The survivors invited to attend the event will feature some of the best Survival of the Fittest players around, winners of previous events, the finalists who competed at ChinaJoy, as well as your favorite streamers, content creators and developers. The winning team of the Naughty or Nice battle will be awarded $100 Steam Gift Cards and an equal donation will also be made to Charity. It’ll be a truly memorable elimination battle, so be sure to tune into the live event at www.twitch.tv/survivetheark casted by none other than typeForced!
ARK: Survival of the Fittest is a multiplayer online survival arena (M.O.S.A.) mod that’s part of ARK: Survival Evolved. The game pits as many as 72 combatants against one another in spontaneous Hunger Games-style competitions within a closed battlefield, where a continually shrinking “ring of death” will push survivors into an epic final showdown with only one “Tribe” making it out alive.
Survivors can form one- to six-person tribes with the option to choose Unofficial (PC-hosted) and Official (Ranked) servers, and a variety of game-lengths and sizes in which to play. Players will start in the base forest environment introduced in the original ARK: Survival Evolved, with new environments and creatures introduced regularly as the game evolves. Dedicated eSport ranking, matchmaking, and tournament features make ARK: SotF readily accessible to all players.
To prepare your life amongst the dinosaurs, journey to Steam or Microsoft’s Game Preview on Xbox One to download ARK: Survival Evolved. For the latest updates follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, subscribe to us on YouTube, visit the Website at playark.com and watch us tame and train leviathan dinosaurs on Twitch.TV.
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ABOUT STUDIO WILDCARD
Studio Wildcard was co-founded in 2014 by Jesse Rapczak, former Technical Art Director at Microsoft Game Studios, and industry veteran Jeremy Stieglitz with the mission of bringing AAA quality to ambitious indie productions that are designed for core gamers. With combined 25 years of industry experience across multiple independent and studio-backed titles, Jeremy and Jesse have teamed up with other veteran developers for Seattle, WA-based and Gainesville, FL-based development studios that also include distributed team members across multiple continents. Wherever talented, driven developers may reside, Studio Wildcard intends to seek out and work with them!
ABOUT INSTINCT GAMES
Instinct Games is Egypt’s leading game development studio. Started in 2011 by former Timeline Interactive co-founders, the Instinct Games team develops and produces video games on all major platforms utilizing its competent technical team. Its mission is to collaborate with world class partners to foster Egypt’s video game development ecosystem and set a precedent of high quality, low cost, entertaining indie games with worldwide appeal.
For a minimum purchase of $1.00 USD, buyers will receive:
Hooligan Vasja – Climb the apartment to reach the boss at the top, but be careful, there are plenty of obstacles to know you down!
[the Sequence] – This game will challenge players to use programming logic with seven unique modules to solve puzzles.
Ranger of the Jungle – Defend the Jade Forest against the hordes of demons, fallen angels, hellhounds, and orcs with 8 legendary heroes and the Altar Pylon.
For a minimum purchase price of $2.99 USD during the first 24 hours of the sale, buyers will also receive:
Acorn Assault: Rodent Revolution – Start a revolution and toss out the corrupt King Louis in this quirky turn based strategy game.
Lethal Brutal Racing – There are no rules when it comes to winning, so be prepared to weave through incoming gunfire, launch rockets, and blast past the enemy to get to the finish line in this arcade racer.
Happy Empire – Princess Leya is back to retake her kingdom from the evil wizard Moramor in this casual strategy game.
Blue Sheep -In a game inspired by the developers’ experience with depression and suicide, players will save the world from the physical manifestation of misery in this beautifully crafted action-adventure game.
Citadel – Escape from the Citadel in this rogue-like action game inspired by the movie Cube.
The First Spark – The sequel to The Last Photon will follow Jeremy Flake, an scientist who has locked himself away from the world.
Day D: Tower Rush – Defeat hordes of dinosaurs and return to the present in this tower defence game. This game is bundled with the “Ice Age” and “Time Mayhem” DLC packs.
Be sure to grab your bundle at Indie Gala today, as the $2.99 USD price will only last for the first 24 hours of the sale.
SKYFORGE INTRODUCES NEW CAMPAIGN MAP FOR ASCENSION EXPANSION
New Update Will Streamline Player Progress and Consolidate Systems
Amsterdam, The Netherlands – September 9, 2016 – Developer Allods Team and global publisher My.com are proud to reveal more details about Ascension, a massive expansion for Skyforge. The brand new campaign map is an interactive map of Aelion and the interface that will be the key location for character development! All the current systems in the game for progression and development of characters (symbols, ascension atlas, divine specializations) will be represented on the Campaign map. Here players will be able to unlock new classes and explore new skills and symbols which were previously spread across multiple interfaces. The map will let players choose their own rewards on their journey through Skyforge. Progression will now be represented by opening up regions you play through towards your goals – currencies will be a thing of the past. The Ascension expansion will be available to all players as soon as this fall!
The updates and enhancements in the Ascension expansion for Skyforge include the following:
Extended Combat Mechanics: Combat will become even more interesting thanks to an extended combat system. When you defeat monsters, players can take their weapons or even part of their bodies to use them against other enemies! Battles will become more diverse and tactical through the ability to kite enemies and dodge attacks more consistently.
New Politics System: The Council of Gods is a completely new political system. From now on, immortals can elect who the world of Aelion will answer to for a few weeks. In their hands, the leaders will hold power, resources, and the fate of the people. Players will be able to elect or be elected, and take control!
A New Raid for All Gods: Another great danger awaits: the menacing Tol-Monter, great god of the Oceanids, has sent his ships to Aelion! Tol-Monter is an unusual avatar, therefore gods who confront him can expect serious challenges. However, it is not just the strongest immortals that can fight him. Anyone who has received their Divine Form can go into battle against this great god – and win!
Brand-new Class: The Outlaw: A charismatic, daring and dangerous hero, who expertly wields two pistols and also, when necessary, dynamite. Enemies would do well not to underestimate this new combatant.
Skyforge is a free-to-play MMORPG set in a universe where mortals and immortals use cutting edge technology to fight for survival against mythical creatures and invaders from space. Players start as immortals, newly reborn into the world and vie to become gods themselves.
To learn more about Skyforge and to download for free today, visit sf.my.com. ‘Like’ the game on Facebook and follow the game’s development on Twitter @GodsofSkyforge for all the latest developer updates and news.
KOEI TECMO AMERICA ANNOUNCES PRE-ORDER BONUSES FOR NOBUNAGA’S AMBITION: SPHERE OF INFLUENCE – ASCENSION
Series-First ‘Officer Play’ Revealed, Placing Players in the Boots of a Warring States Officer; New Trailer Showcases Warfare and Strategic Options
Burlingame Calif. – September 9, 2016 – KOEI TECMO America today announced new information on the bonus content available to those who pre-order Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension prior to its upcoming release on October 25, 2016. Fresh screenshots and a new trailer have also been released today, which showcase various types of warfare and strategic options available to players in Ascension. The standalone follow-up to the critically-acclaimed historical simulation title will be available on the PlayStation® 4 computer entertainment system and digitally on Windows PC via Steam®.
Players who pre-order Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension from Amazon, Best Buy, EB Canada and GameStop will receive the Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII 30 Face CG Set, providing players with 30 CG portraits of legendary and fan-favorite characters from Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII, as well as the William Adams and Megohime Officer Data which unlocks the historic characters for use in gameplay. Alternatively, purchasing through the PlayStation® Store will grant Officer Data for the key retainer of the Sanada clan, Oyamada Shigemasa, and the wife of Shigemasa, Lady Muramatsu.
In Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension, players can experience all aspects of the life of a Warring States officer in Sengoku Era Japan. For the first time in the long-running series, players can advance from a retainer to a Daimyō – a feudal lord – with Officer Play. This mode opens a world of possibilities in which players can rise through the ranks by conquering the land, following orders and advancing in status, allying with and receiving aid from other clans, or by claiming independence and leaving their own mark on this chaotic yet compelling period of Japanese history.
The exciting new Officer Play mode also affects the way battles are experienced, as players will have the opportunity to witness thrilling and historic battles first-hand through the eyes of an officer. Aiding in victory or defeat, every command made will affect the outcome of battle, and bonuses are awarded for successful deployment of a new strategy. This installment also introduces Combat Quests: extra missions that appear during the course of battle and provide extra rewards upon completion. These dynamic objectives change based upon the tide of war and allow for more in-depth and dramatic battle experiences.
Players will be able to exploit the entire breadth of strategic options available to them in Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascensionwith the introduction of two new types of warfare: Siege and Naval battles. Full-scale Siege battles create strategic situations that allow blockades to be deployed as a defensive mechanism, as well as the use of tunnels and cannons to gain an advantage over a defending opponent. Naval battles provide the option to carry out skirmishes and strategic blockades on oceans to overcome the enemy from every angle.
For more information and to stay up-to-date on the latest news for Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension, including detailed descriptions of the historical personalities that shaped Sengoku Era Japan, please visit the official site at www.koeitecmoamerica.com/ascension, Like KOEI TECMO America on Facebook at www.facebook.com/koeitecmous, and become part of the #KTfamily by following KOEI TECMO America on Twitter at @KoeiTecmoUS.
ABOUT KOEI TECMO AMERICA CORP.
KOEI TECMO AMERICA CORP. is a publisher of interactive entertainment software for current generation consoles, handhelds and digital download content based in Burlingame, California. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of KOEI TECMO HOLDINGS CO., LTD., headquartered in Yokohama, Japan. KOEI is best known for its Dynasty Warriors® and Samurai Warriors® franchises. TECMO is best known for the Dead or Alive®, Ninja Gaiden®, Tecmo Bowl®, and Fatal Frame® series.
TRAVEL TO THE PAST TO SAVE THE WORLD’S FUTURE WHEN DRAGON QUEST VII: FRAGMENTS OF THE FORGOTTEN PAST ARRIVES ON NINTENDO 3DS ON 17TH SEPTEMBER
The classic RPG adventure arrives in Australia and New Zealand for the first time, rebuilt from the ground-up in 3D 9th September 2016 – When Auster and Prince Kiefer are determined to prove there’s more to life than their island home, they soon stumble into a quest that will see them travelling through time in order to save the fate of their world in DRAGON QUEST VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past, coming to Nintendo 3DS family systems on 17th September.
Making its debut in Australia and New Zealand, DRAGON QUEST VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is the latest in the long-running Dragon Quest RPG series. This instalment of the series has been rebuilt from the ground-up in 3D, and represents the latest in a great line-up of RPGs on Nintendo 3DS family systems this year, including Bravely Second™: End Layer and Fire Emblem Fates.
In this handheld re-imagining, DRAGON QUEST VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past begins when, in their quest to prove their island isn’t alone in the world, life-long friends Auster, Prince Kiefer and Maribel find themselves embarking on a journey that will see them travel through time and rescue civilisations long-forgotten in order to save the future. By collecting fragments of tablets and putting them back together again, the intrepid heroes can travel to new places and past dungeons in order to restore the world in this truly massive adventure.
To aid in their fight against evil forces, Auster, Prince Kiefer and friends can be customised with over 50 different vocations, allowing them to specialise in a wide variety of classes that allow players to take more control of the battlefield. From Warrior to Mage to Martial Artist, each brings new strategies to the fight, and through the use of special items, heroes can even take on Vocations that allow them to fight as monsters, such as Dragon Quest’s memorable slime enemy.
During their travels, adventurers can not only fight as monsters, but will also be able to discover, befriend, and collect over 200 types of monsters to help grow their personal Monster Meadow. By populating the Meadow with monsters found throughout time, players can eventually send monsters out on scouting missions into special caves that can’t be explored by humans in order to find traveller’s tablets that grant access to special new dungeons. In addition, players can connect to the internet to download exclusive tablets that provide additional dungeons where extremely powerful monsters and rare weapons are waiting to be discovered.
As well as the Monster Meadows, monsters can also be invited to live in the player’s Haven. By inviting people and monsters into their Haven that they’ve met through their travels or via special dungeons, heroes will eventually be able to develop new buildings and settlements in their quest to cultivate the best civilisation and make their village the ideal place to live.
Travel to the past to save the world’s future when DRAGON QUEST VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past launches for the first time in Australia and New Zealand on 17th September for Nintendo 3DS family systems.
2K today revealed “Who’s Next?,” the debut WWE 2K17 gameplay trailer for the forthcoming release in the flagship WWE video game franchise. Set to “Bad Boy for Life” from the game’s executive soundtrack producer, Sean “Diddy” Combs a.k.a. Puff Daddy, “Who’s Next?” provides an extended look at a variety of WWE and NXT Superstars in action across entrances, in-ring and backstage areas, including WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens, WWE World Champion Dean Ambrose, Raw Women’s Champion Charlotte, Raw Tag Team Champions The New Day, NXT Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and NXT Women’s Champion Asuka.
Developed collaboratively by Yuke’s and Visual Concepts, a 2K studio, WWE 2K17 is rated PEGI 16. WWE 2K17 is currently scheduled for worldwide release on October 11, 2016 for the PlayStation®4 and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems, as well as Xbox One and Xbox 360. Consumers who pre-order WWE 2K17 at any participating retailer will receive two playable characters of legendary WCW® and WWE star Bill Goldberg, well as playable WCW Monday Nitro and Halloween Havoc arenas, at no extra cost on launch day.
To learn more about the WWE 2K17 roster – Suplex City Census – and experience the interactive maps revealing residents of Suplex City’s neighborhoods, as well as all roster members announced to date, visit wwe.2k.com/suplexcity.
For more information on all aspects of WWE 2K17, visit wwe.2k.com. In addition, fans can check out WWE 2K17 on Facebook, follow the game on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #WWE2K17 or subscribe on YouTube.
With the release of The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel late last year began a trilogy of games that started out incredibly strong and now after leaving off with a cliffhanger to an amazing game. Now English fans have only had to wait nine months to see how the story will continue in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II. So now that this sequel has been released, will this series manage to still deliver the same quality we loved from the first entry?
Story
Where some sequels tend to simply take place in the same world as the first game and might only feature cameo appearances from past characters, The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II is an almost direct sequel to the first game. This means that while it is not necessarily required to play through the first game to understand what is happening in the sequel, it is if you want to get the most out of the experience.
I say this because while this sequel does provide small pieces of information about events that happened in the past, this is meant to be a refresher course for fans who played the game less than a year ago and not newcomers and also since one of the most enjoyable parts of the series comes from the character interactions, players will want to see the more personal interactions that are only available with data from the first game instead of the more generic versions that come from playing the title on its own.
That being said, The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II picks up about a month after the cliffhanging events of the first game where, after a massive event left the main character Rean and his compatriots stunned and sank the country into a civil war. In an effort to avoid going into spoiler territory let’s just say that Rean finds himself separated from the rest of his classmates and allies but just so happens to be near his hometown.
With his goal being to reunite with his missing classmates and do whatever they can to put an end to the war tearing the nation apart the story this time around takes a bit of a heavier tone than the first game in the series as there is a bit more focus on the political aspects and numerous moving pieces in the world. There is always more than meets the eye with this series and this is especially true when it comes to the events that transpire throughout the course of the storyline, helping to keep players on their toes as much as possible, though it does have a rather slow start as well as a long drag towards the middle of the game that players will need to power through.
Thankfully one of the best aspects of the first game remains as tried and true as ever in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II and that is the fact that the title puts so much emphasis on story development and crafting character arcs that are incredibly memorable. As those who have played the first game know, this is a series where nearly every character you come across will have a personality of sorts and various interactions that will change over the course of the game, making the title one where you’ll always want to speak with people that you come across.
With this type of attention to detail put into even the most basic NPCs players can expect the great character interactions between the core cast and new characters introduced in this entry to be as entertaining as before and it is through these interactions that even the slowest parts of the game manage to hold together so well. As mentioned before, the tone is a bit darker this time around so many of these interactions will involve certain aspects of war and how things are being affected by the battles but the title never really enters dark territory as many of these horrors are only mentioned and never shown. There is also still plenty of humor to be had, especially when the localization of the game continues to serve as a real example of just how well a massive title like this can be translated for a Western audience.
Gameplay
In many ways The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II features the same style of gameplay as before as players will find themselves using mostly the same systems as before when it comes to combat and customization with player freedom in this aspect being as open as ever when it comes to trying out various builds. Enemies are visible on the field and can be targeted by the player or avoided flat out while the combat is a turn based affair where normal attacks, Arts (magic attacks), and special Craft moves that rely on a CP meter that is filled by dealing and receiving damage can be utilized to defeat foes.
Characters in combat can still be linked to one another allowing them to perform follow-up attacks to off-balance enemies but this time around there is another aspect to the link system that has been added to the game. This is called overdrive mode and allows players to attack multiple times with linked characters and even use arts with instant cast times, something that can be rather essential at times since this game is no walk in the park in certain areas and this feature will likely turn the fight in your favor against some of these particularly difficult areas. Outside of the standard battles mentioned above there are also fights that involve Rean taking control of a certain giant mech and battle against other mechanized foes. These battles are a bit different from your standard and help spice up the action from time to time but are hardly as exciting as one would think.
If it sounds like a lot of what The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II offers in terms of combat and customization is the same as before then that is indeed the case as only the aforementioned modifications have really been made to these systems so things can feel a bit repetitive at times due to these un-enhanced mechanics but considering how satisfying the combat in the first game felt, only making a few tweaks was for the best.
One of the more impressive, albeit somewhat predictable, additions in this title happens to be the unlocking of an airship that can be outfitted with shops and used as a way to move quickly from place to place though players also eventually unlock a special motorcycle like vehicle. It is worth noting that with this faster pace of travel available to players after a certain point that it might be possible to miss smaller aspects of the game but thankfully the game offers small warnings when players reach points in the story where certain events will close out side quests, giving players a chance to revisit and examine areas they otherwise might have blown past.
Visuals & Audio
Although developed a year after the original game, there really isn’t too much of a noticeable improvement in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II’s designs and it is sad to say that while the game does look rather impressive for what it is, it does show its age. That being said, this is by no means a game to scoff at as the character designs are still nicely detailed with a wide-variety of designs on display and colors used with the various environments and towns that players explore given the same level of detail.
As far as the soundtrack for the game is concerned, fans will be pleased to hear that the title continues to excel in this department by featuring a wide variety of tracks that sound fit perfectly for this type of game and utilize numerous tones to keep from sounding too familiar to one another.
Overall
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II is an excellent follow-up to an incredible RPG and one that fans will be more than delighted to hear advances the story in an enthralling way that very few developers and writers manage to, especially when the story can last for well over sixty hours in one run. With small tweaks to the enjoyable combat mechanics and other small additions to this great game players will notice that there are quite a few similarities between this title and the first, but with such a detail driven storyline and fantastic characters to pick back up with, these are only small complaints in the face of such a grand title.
I say this because while this sequel does provide small pieces of information about events that happened in the past, this is meant to be a refresher course for fans who played the game less than a year ago and not newcomers and also since one of the most enjoyable parts of the series comes from the character interactions, players will want to see the more personal interactions that are only available with data from the first game instead of the more generic versions that come from playing the title on its own.
Characters in combat can still be linked to one another allowing them to perform follow-up attacks to off-balance enemies but this time around there is another aspect to the link system that has been added to the game. This is called overdrive mode and allows players to attack multiple times with linked characters and even use arts with instant cast times, something that can be rather essential at times since this game is no walk in the park in certain areas and this feature will likely turn the fight in your favor against some of these particularly difficult areas. Outside of the standard battles mentioned above there are also fights that involve Rean taking control of a certain giant mech and battle against other mechanized foes. These battles are a bit different from your standard and help spice up the action from time to time but are hardly as exciting as one would think.
One of the more impressive, albeit somewhat predictable, additions in this title happens to be the unlocking of an airship that can be outfitted with shops and used as a way to move quickly from place to place though players also eventually unlock a special motorcycle like vehicle. It is worth noting that with this faster pace of travel available to players after a certain point that it might be possible to miss smaller aspects of the game but thankfully the game offers small warnings when players reach points in the story where certain events will close out side quests, giving players a chance to revisit and examine areas they otherwise might have blown past.
As far as the soundtrack for the game is concerned, fans will be pleased to hear that the title continues to excel in this department by featuring a wide variety of tracks that sound fit perfectly for this type of game and utilize numerous tones to keep from sounding too familiar to one another.