Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom
| Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Level-5 |
| Publisher(s) |
|
| Artist(s) | Yoshiyuki Momose |
| Writer(s) | Akihiro Hino |
| Composer(s) | Joe Hisaishi |
| Series | Ni no Kuni |
| Platform(s) |
Microsoft Windows PlayStation 4 |
| Release | January 19, 2018 |
| Genre(s) | Role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom[lower-alpha 1] is an upcoming role-playing video game developed by Level-5 and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The game is a sequel to Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, and is scheduled to be released for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4 on January 19, 2018.
Players control Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, a young king who was usurped from his castle and sets out to reclaim his kingdom. While players can freely navigate Evan throughout the game's open world, other characters can be controlled during battles against enemies. During these battles, players use magical abilities and elemental creatures known as "Higgledies", which are used to cast spells.
Gameplay
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is a role-playing game played from a third-person perspective. Players complete quests—linear scenarios with set objectives—to progress through the story. Outside of quests, players can freely roam the open world, where they explore towns, villages, dungeons, and other dangerous places scattered throughout the world.[1] Upon leaving a location, players enter the World Map, which can be used to select a destination; the overworld represents a diarama,[2] and the characters are portrayed with a chibi-like design.[3]
When players encounter enemies, they enter a battle system. Battles take place on an open battlefield, allowing players to freely roam around the area. During battles, players command a single human ally; all characters are manually moved around the battlefield. To fight enemies, players use melee attacks, magical abilities and "Higgledies". Higgledies are "spirits of hearts" which exist in several forms, and may represent elements. Players also use Higgledies to reach far areas, and to clear and explore dungeons.[4]
In Revenant Kingdom, players have the ability to build and manage the kingdom, focusing on the arrangement of work-forces within the town.[2]
Plot
Set hundreds of years after the events of Wrath of the White Witch, Revenant Kingdom features the cat and mouse tribes, two warring factors in the town of Ding Dong Dell. During the events of the game, the mouse tribe performed a coup d'état, taking control of the kingdom.[5] The story follows Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, a boy king of the cat tribe, who is usurped from his castle and sets out to reclaim his kingdom. He is aided by Roland, a visitor from another world, and Tani, the daughter of the boss of air pirates.[4]
Development
Ni no Kuni II, a sequel to Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, was announced during the December 2015 PlayStation Experience keynote.[6] Eurogamer described the announcement was a highlight of the event.[7] Unlike the first game, which was a collaboration with Studio Ghibli, the sequel did not have their involvement. Despite that, former Ghibli character designer Yoshiyuki Momose and longtime music composer Joe Hisaishi, who both worked on Wrath of the White Witch, reprised their roles.[8] Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino said that the sequel would better fulfill the ambitions of the original game, with deeper stories and improved visuals.[9] It will be released for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows on January 19, 2018.[10]
The character of Roland was developed to allow adult players to feel more engaged with the story, due to his older age.[5] The "Higgledies" were introduced to refresh the battle system.[5]
References
Notes
- ↑ Ni no Kuni: Revenant Kingdom (二ノ国II レヴァナントキングダム Ni no Kuni: Revananto Kingudamu, lit. Second Country II: Revenant Kingdom)
Footnotes
- ↑ Campbell, Colin (January 26, 2017). "Ni No Kuni 2 is looking just as sweet as the original". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on January 26, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
- 1 2 Romano, Sal (February 2, 2017). "Ni no Kuni II diorama-style field map has secret related to "important new system"". Gematsu. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on February 18, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
- 1 2 Tran, Edmond (January 26, 2017). "Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom Could Be Taking The 'J' Out Of JRPG". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
- 1 2 3 Romano, Sal (February 9, 2017). "Ni no Kuni II details story, characters Evan, Roland, Tani, and Higgledies, game features". Gematsu. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on February 17, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
- 1 2 3 "Level-5 on Ni No Kuni 2's "More Mature Perspective"". IGN. Ziff Davis. January 30, 2017. Archived from the original on February 17, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
- ↑ Frank, Allegra (December 5, 2015). "Ni No Kuni 2 is coming to PlayStation 4". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ↑ Phillips, Tom (December 12, 2015). "Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom announced". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ↑ Webster, Andrew. "The new Ni No Kuni isn’t technically a Studio Ghibli game, but it still kind of is". The Verge. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- ↑ Romano, Sal (December 6, 2015). "Akihiro Hino: ‘Ni no Kuni II a huge improvement to the first’". Gematsu. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ↑ Schreier, Jason (July 13, 2017). "Ni no Kuni II Delayed Two Months". Kotaku. Univision Communications. Archived from the original on July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 13, 2017.