Games
The studio behind I Am Setsuna return with another 90s-style JRPG loveletter; we speak to the director leading the retro charge.
Many would say that the SNES and Super Famicom era of Japanese role playing games (JRPGs) was one of the best in the almost 50 years that video games have been around on the planet. Square Enix – then Squaresoft – were crafting some of their finest games to date, and the legacy of their 1995 JRPG classic Chrono Trigger is still felt today. It’s a Super Nintendo game with enduring appeal, and has had plenty of imitators over the past 20 years (not to mention ports to consoles, handhelds and smartphones), but it’s the game’s almost legendary cult-like status that Square-owned studio Tokyo RPG Factory are attempting to recapture with their upcoming title, Lost Sphear.
Last year, Square Enix’s aptly named studio pushed out I Am Setsuna, another similarly 90s-inspired throwback with plenty of SNES-like moments and Chrono Trigger callbacks – not least in the team-based battle system. While it wasn’t the stand out classic like its inspirations, Tokyo RPG Factory is giving the genre another go with their follow-up and spiritual successor, Lost Sphear, which shares a lot of DNA and is set to improve on the failings of its predecessor.
At first glance, it looks and feels just like the whimsical JRPGs of the past, complete with a top-down perspective and large world map, and while the 16-bit graphics of yesteryear have been ditched, the game’s art style and presentation is still reminiscent of the 90s JRPGs you lost hundreds of hours to. There’s reason for that, as the game’s director, Atsushi Hashimoto explains.
“Lost Sphear was developed as the second title under the Project Setsuna banner,” Hashimoto tells us. “Our concept for Project Setsuna is to create an ‘RPG that will not fade after ten years.’ The kind of games that we played and have still not forgotten were RPGs from the 90s. And so, we thought if we were to study RPGs from the 90s and develop a more evolved RPG, we could look to create a game that people will remember forever; and now, here we are.”
Second time’s the charm
That’s a bold mantra, one that’s already proved hard to live by: I Am Setsuna, the studio’s first outing as part of Project Setsuna, attempted to follow those guidelines, as well as live up to the legacy of Chrono Trigger, yet stumbled along the way, even though it carried a few of the cornerstones of the SNES classic, such as its “active time battle (ATB) system”, which shook up the way RPG battles played out when it was first introduced in the 90s, rendering turn-based systems outdated. I Am Setsuna’s ATB system was smart, but the game felt muted, slow – and certainly less original than Chrono Trigger’s wild, time-hopping story.
Of course, a battle system doesn’t make up the whole game, and while it’s part of what Tokyo RPG Factory are carrying over into Lost Sphear, along with a few other borrowed mechanics from both Chrono Trigger and I Am Setsuna, Hashimoto tells us that there’s more to the game than just the 20 year old titles it’s inspired by – even if Chrono Trigger casts a vast, imposing shadow.
“We can definitely count gameplay mechanics, such as seamless transition between traversing the field and jumping into battle, as well as [the] Active Time Battle 2.0 (ATB 2.0) [system]. However, I believe the biggest factor is that this game leaves room for the imagination, just like Chrono Trigger or any RPG from the90s for that matter,” he says.
“Being able to allow players to add their own interpretation, such as how a character feels while on their adventure, adds to the unique gameplay experience of a 90s era RPG. So we aimed to give room for imagination when we developed Lost Sphear”.
Of course, that’s not to say the game is a blank canvas where you have to imagine the whole story: Lost Sphear puts you into the shoes of a young, self-taught swordsman named Kanata, who along with his friends Lumina and Locke, is looking to disperse the malingering “white fog”, which is slowly destroying their hometown of Eru, causing it to disappear. While it sounds like standard role-playing fare on the outset, you can bet there’ll be twists and turns, as well as more fleshing out of the individual characters and world as you progress.
As part of Project Setsuna, you might think that Lost Sphear is also connected to its predecessor in some way, but Hashimoto is keen to stress that the game is largely standalone, but there are a few nods and winks for I Am Setsuna fans too. “[Lost Sphear] was in development for about a year and a half after finishing development on I Am Setsuna,” he says. “There is no connection with I Am Setsuna in terms of lore, and the narrative of Lost Sphear is set up so that it is its own story. As such, even if you have not played I Am Setsuna, you can still enjoy the game 100 percent, but there are some easter eggs that players of the previous game may take notice.” Easter eggs which he won’t spoil, however.
While I Am Setsuna didn’t hit the highs of the SNES classics it was inspired by, the Tokyo RPG Factory devs headed back to the drawing board shortly after its release and have listened to plenty of the criticism that was directed at their first outing. From the outset, it sounds like Lost Sphear has addressed plenty of the criticisms that the first game faced, and the game’s Japanese release has already received a respectable 32/40 review score from lauded gaming magazine, Famitsu.
“Noticeable changed elements include a variety of locations, being able to move during battle, and adding inns and other elements that are standard in Japanese RPGs,” Hashimoto tells us. “There were also many elements which were generally the same, but reflected some minor adjustments; for example, the Setsuna (Momentum) System and how you handle Spritnites [magical relics that let you use magic].”
“The fact that you can now move your characters during battle is the biggest change. People who had played I Am Setsuna fed back saying that combat would be even better if they could move their characters,” he says.
“So after some trial and error, I think we were able to create a unique gameplay experience in the ATB battle. Minor refinements include being able to run away from a fight, being able to use Spritnites to switch what effects are activated upon execution of the Setsuna System, and various other adjustments in the battle system.
Switching up the score
Perhaps the most memorable element of I Am Setsuna was its pared back, haunting piano score. Hashimoto’s looking to achieve the same sort of effect with Lost Sphear.
“We received great ratings from gamers who played I Am Setsuna regarding the soundtrack, which primarily utilized just the piano. As such, we definitely wanted to use the piano for Lost Sphear from the get-go,” Hashimoto says. This time though, each track will be a duet.
“Compared to I Am Setsuna, there is much more variety to the environments and locations in Lost Sphear, so our concept was to incorporate the piano with another instrument per song, in order to challenge ourselves and carry over the strengths of I Am Setsuna’s soundtrack.
One thing that won’t be pared back, however, is the scope of the game. “Additionally, we had thought that people who played 90s era RPGs at the time have grown to become very busy people now,” Hashimoto says. “So we had intended I Am Setsuna to be completed in about 20 to 30 hours, in order for them to reach the end of the game. However, we heard back from those who played the game that they wanted to play the game a bit more. As such, we increased the volume for Lost Sphear and it will take about 40 hours of gameplay to complete,” he elaborates.
You don’t have to be tethered to your console and TV this time around either, as Lost Sphear is also releasing on the Nintendo Switch, letting you take it on the go. That means you can level up on your commute or take on a boss battle throughout the day away from a TV. “I think being able to play climactic moments on the big screen, but also being able to take the system on-the-go to squeeze in more time for other tasks like leveling, is great and attractive for Switch users,” Hashimoto tells us.
Similarly, I Am Setsuna released in Japan with a PlayStation Vita port which was not seen in the West, but with Sony all but abandoning their handheld, it looks like Nintendo’s hybrid is the platform of choice for RPGs in this vein, both in Japan and in the West – and it looks right at home, given the SNES heritage at play here.
“We currently do not have plans to release the title on platforms outside of PS4, Switch, and Steam (PC),” he continues. “Additionally, there are no differences between the platforms in terms of the game content. That being said, the frame rate on the PS4 is 60 fps [frames per second], while Switch is 30 fps, while the frame rate on Steam (PC) will depend on the player’s specs.”
When asked about the future of Project Setsuna and more retro-infused games in the same vein as I Am Setsuna and Lost Sphear, Hashimoto is cryptic, but sounds optimistic about the future output of Tokyo RPG Factory. “In terms of planning for the future, nothing is set in stone yet, but we do have a desire to continue creating RPGs that are uniquely Japanese. However, we’re not sure if that would be a third installment from Project Setsuna,” he says. “Because the RPG genre covers a wide range of categories from action RPG to simulation RPG, there may be a possibility that we may challenge to do one of those as well.”
“I would like for players to first try Lost Sphear out and enjoy the game. And then it would be great if they could also keep an eye out for what Tokyo RPG Factory would be up to next,” he signs off with.
Lost Sphear is out on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC on January 23, 2018.
