Judalene and Grant Cheetham
A few days ago Shane the Gamer’s gaming journalist duo Grant and Jude were invited to have some question time with the developers of the just released J-RPG title; Arslan: The Warriors of Legend.
Q: Arslan: The Warriors of Legend is based on a fantasy novel series The Heroic Legend of Arslan. Can you tell us a bit about the story and characters in the game and how it relates to the novels?
A: The story of the Heroic Legend of Arslan is that of a young Prince who is forced into maturity when his father is defeated and dethroned during a large scale battle. Arslan, the title character, needs to gather a band of allies and fight overwhelming odds in order to liberate his kingdom and reclaim his throne. The game follows this struggle from the very beginning, allowing players to experience the tale from the point of view of Arslan, and his trusted brothers (and sisters) in arms.
Q: It is easy to see hints of Omega Force’s previous games. What eminent features can fans of Omega Force expect to see carried over to Arslan: The Warriors of Legend?
A: As the title betrays this is a Warriors game. The signature 1vs1000 gameplay is omnipresent- very fittingly in fact as the balance is relatively the same here: a small number of heroes have to defeat a large number of enemies. For fans of Omega Force, this is a change to experience the type of action they love whilst following an original story.
Q: Conversely, what are some big differences or improvements that fans can expect?
A: I am not certain that ‘improvements’ is an appropriate term as this is a brand new IP for us. If you are referring to differences from other titles in our Warriors franchise I can tell you that the battle runs a little differently. Arslan: the warriors of legend is not confined to large scale outdoors battles, but also follows some characters as they strive to save their lives in dungeons, mountain roads, or narrow city streets. In that respect the stages are quite different to a typical Warriors game. Furthermore there have been various additions to the action gameplay by incorporating special moves and powers that the characters enjoy in the anime.
Q: The first novel in the series was released way back in 1991. Why is now the right time to bring this franchise back the world of video gaming?
A: Although this is an old series it was only recently that it was been revived and re-released in manga and anime by the very talented Hiromu Arakawa. In our collaboration with Kodansha we were offered the opportunity to create a game based on this new interpretation of the epic and since many of our development team are fans we were happy to take on the challenge.
Q: The game seems aimed more towards a Japanese fanbase. What parts of the game do you believe would appeal to a western audience?
A: Although this is an old series it was only recently that it was been revived and re-released in manga and anime by the very talented Hiromu Arakawa. In our collaboration with Kodansha we were offered the opportunity to create a game based on this new interpretation of the epic and since many of our development team are fans we were happy to take on the challenge.
Arslan: The Warriors of Legend is based upon a novel and anime series and the game tells the story of the young crown prince of Pars, Arslan, as he is forced out of his kingdom when his father, the king, is betrayed and defeated and his domain conquered and is now available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.