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Xanadu Next (Falcom) coming to Steam via XSEED, Summer 2016

Aeana

Member
I love this game so much. I always thought it would be the perfect bridge for Falcom on Steam, but they did really well with Ys already.

Wait, so Tokyo Xanadu actually has a prequel? Thought it's a brand new IP.

Xanadu was one of Falcom's very first games. Xanadu Next came 20 years later as a series revival. Tokyo Xanadu is nothing remotely like the rest of the series, either.
 

Taruranto

Member
I was confused as hell at first, I thought this came out on Steam years ago now.

I thought this was Tokyo Xanadu for a minute, and got excited. Still, I haven't played a Xanadu besides Faxanadu for NES, and I've always wanted to get into the series, so this is probably a good jumping point. How good is Next considered to be next to the other games?

It's one of the best Action RPG out of here.
 

Durante

Member
Xanadu Next is an action RPG that I would describe as a mix between Diablo and Metroid, in that a lot of the level design is based on access to parts of the world via certain abilities and items, and the camera/combat is reminiscent of Diablo.
That sounds really intriguing.

Combined with Aeana's repeated gushing about the game -- and the fact that I consider Falcom's Ys Origin developed around the same time to be near the pinnacle of its type of ARPG in pure gameplay -- I'm greatly looking forward to it.
 

Blue-kun

Member
About time, really!

Take my money once again, XSEED. Also, the soundtrack to this game is amazing, and I think a lot of people will be surprised with what they hear if they go in expecting the usual Falcom stuff heavy on the guitar and what not!

Can't wait.
 

Savitar

Member
I loved Faxandu on the NES, didn't know for decades there was more to the franchise. One of the funny bits is I saw you could get these boots to make you fly, fought like a devil to save up money for them, passed over other gear that would have been useful, in the end I got the boots and quickly found out they were timed. One use. All that work went down the drain.
 

Parakeetman

No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
I loved Faxandu on the NES, didn't know for decades there was more to the franchise. One of the funny bits is I saw you could get these boots to make you fly, fought like a devil to save up money for them, passed over other gear that would have been useful, in the end I got the boots and quickly found out they were timed. One use. All that work went down the drain.

I swear the one thing I still remember to this day is the weird blinking the NPCs would do during conversations. It was like they were trying to tell you something else through morse code lol.

1425098302783.gif

When I saw the title of this thread wondered how many heart attacks would be had by folks thinking it was news on Tokyo Xanadu for whatever reason lol
 
Totally called the shift to a summer release date weeks ago. Now I just hope XSEED listens to my suggestions about inserting a simple time attack mode and History log .txt output function.

How good is Next considered to be next to the other games?
XaNext is the modern Ys-equivalent of the classic Xanadu series, very polished and accessible compared to every other game so far. (I'm not counting Tokyo Xanadu in this as it practically works as its own new IP). Think of a mix of Falcom's old Xanadu and Brandish games, + elements from Western overhead hack 'n' slash games (like Nox) and then Vagrant Story and/or Symphony of the Night/Super Metroid. But this game has weapons you'll rarely want to skip using, tons of skills/magic with unique properties necessary to wreck enemies, a difficulty curve amiable to most, fantastic music and visual style meant to weave a portrait of the land you explore, and smart level design. It's 14-21 hours worth of dungeon crawling, the occasional cool boss/swarm encounter, interesting backstory with fun NPCs, and a final dungeon you don't wanna miss.

The combat, like I said, is reminiscent of Diablo with shortcut keys on your keyboard (1 through 0) to bind skills to. You also get to bind 'cards' to your character that give you various buffs, like guardian gods that give you certain protections - a god that gives you more magic casts versus one that gives you more health, you get the idea.
Just saying Dio, I'd hesitate to keep comparing this game to Diablo. Nox is closer in terms of click-to-strike action and meatiness of combat in XaNext, and the hotbar might instead derive from that strange game Falcom worked on called Rinne (finished before XaNext was done). Obviously the idea was to evoke old-school Brandish's large, helpful user interfaces by adapting elements from MMOs/Western hack 'n' slash games.

It gives me a Brandish vibe, which I adored.
The game's director, Takayuki Kusano, started out programming Brandish games for PC-98 (even programmed The Dark Revenant!), so there's gotta be a reason so much of Brandish sits beneath XaNext's design. There's interconnected dungeon layouts in Brandish 2 and 3 as well.

From what I've seen on the interwebs, Xanadu Next is somewhat a Japanese Diablo?

That's pretty cool.
No, ShadowFlare is the Japanese Diablo you're thinking of. Xanadu Next is a more unique beast than simply "Diablo but Falcom".
 
There is absolutely no relation to Faxanadu beyond a joke reference or two (mainly the Winged Boots item you use in XaNext to cross distances). Hudson made Faxanadu using Falcom's license, but it's not considered part of Falcom's Xanadu series. At best it's a non-canon spinoff in a series where story connection between game's loos to begin with.

By the way, there's a better Dragon Slayer infographic available now:


Corpse Party October 2014







be excite
Read this Corpse Party PC dev blog and begone. Sara had to rewrite the whole entire game in C++ because that was more effective than learning a pseudo-BASIC programming language from scratch. Xanadu Next, meanwhile, is close enough to similar 3D engines made by Falcom in the mid-2000s that she knows how to fix it up quickly.
 

Parakeetman

No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
There is absolutely no relation to Faxanadu beyond a joke reference or two (mainly the Winged Boots item you use in XaNext to cross distances). Hudson made Faxanadu using Falcom's license, but it's not considered part of Falcom's Xanadu series. At best it's a non-canon spinoff in a series where story connection between game's loos to begin with.

By the way, there's a better Dragon Slayer infographic available now:



Read this Corpse Party PC dev blog and begone. Sara had to rewrite the whole entire game in C++ because that was more effective than learning a pseudo-BASIC programming language from scratch. Xanadu Next, meanwhile, is close enough to similar 3D engines made by Falcom in the mid-2000s that she knows how to fix it up quickly.

Oh wow thats a great infograph.
 

Dio

Banned
Totally called the shift to a summer release date weeks ago. Now I just hope XSEED listens to my suggestions about inserting a simple time attack mode and History log .txt output function.

XaNext is the modern Ys-equivalent of the classic Xanadu series, very polished and accessible compared to every other game so far. (I'm not counting Tokyo Xanadu in this as it practically works as its own new IP). Think of a mix of Falcom's old Xanadu and Brandish games, + elements from Western overhead hack 'n' slash games (like Nox) and then Vagrant Story and/or Symphony of the Night/Super Metroid. But this game has weapons you'll rarely want to skip using, tons of skills/magic with unique properties necessary to wreck enemies, a difficulty curve amiable to most, fantastic music and visual style meant to weave a portrait of the land you explore, and smart level design. It's 14-21 hours worth of dungeon crawling, the occasional cool boss/swarm encounter, interesting backstory with fun NPCs, and a final dungeon you don't wanna miss.

Just saying Dio, I'd hesitate to keep comparing this game to Diablo. Nox is closer in terms of click-to-strike action and meatiness of combat in XaNext, and the hotbar might instead derive from that strange game Falcom worked on called Rinne (finished before XaNext was done). Obviously the idea was to evoke old-school Brandish's large, helpful user interfaces by adapting elements from MMOs/Western hack 'n' slash games.

The game's director, Takayuki Kusano, started out programming Brandish games for PC-98 (even programmed The Dark Revenant!), so there's gotta be a reason so much of Brandish sits beneath XaNext's design. There's interconnected dungeon layouts in Brandish 2 and 3 as well.

No, ShadowFlare is the Japanese Diablo you're thinking of. Xanadu Next is a more unique beast than simply "Diablo but Falcom".

All right, that's fair. It reminded ME of Diablo, and I've never played Nox, so there's that. And yeah, I realize that. I might as well tweak the opening post.
 

Eila

Member
Yeah a year and a half later.

It's just that the company is bottlenecked by only having one programmer, as far as I'm aware. There were a shitload of issues with TitS SC, which sent Corpse Party PC to the backburner for quite some time. On the side Ys VI was also released on steam, with a bunch of cool new features. And Corpse Party also had a ton of work done, as it's been said. Now that work on that is practically done it's Xanadu Next time. And after that it's Trails 3rd.
Well, they seem to work on al of them at the same time according to steamdb but I want to think that they mostly focus their work one at a time.
Senran Kagura and Little King's Story ports are being handled by others.
 
Totally called the shift to a summer release date weeks ago. Now I just hope XSEED listens to my suggestions about inserting a simple time attack mode and History log .txt output function.

XaNext is the modern Ys-equivalent of the classic Xanadu series, very polished and accessible compared to every other game so far. (I'm not counting Tokyo Xanadu in this as it practically works as its own new IP). Think of a mix of Falcom's old Xanadu and Brandish games, + elements from Western overhead hack 'n' slash games (like Nox) and then Vagrant Story and/or Symphony of the Night/Super Metroid. But this game has weapons you'll rarely want to skip using, tons of skills/magic with unique properties necessary to wreck enemies, a difficulty curve amiable to most, fantastic music and visual style meant to weave a portrait of the land you explore, and smart level design. It's 14-21 hours worth of dungeon crawling, the occasional cool boss/swarm encounter, interesting backstory with fun NPCs, and a final dungeon you don't wanna miss.

That's.. surprisingly short.

I mean, when I read people mentioning Diablo and dungeon crawling, I expect lots of loot goodness, boss farms and gear progressions from Xanadu Next. So I guess it's not really that kind of game then?
 
That's.. surprisingly short.

I mean, when I read people mentioning Diablo and dungeon crawling, I expect lots of loot goodness, boss farms and gear progressions from Xanadu Next. So I guess it's not really that kind of game then?
No, it's not Diablo. Think a longer Ys game with a bit more focus on loot—not a whole lot, you get more items on average in Trails in the Sky—several hand-made bosses at the ends of dungeons, and a relatively linear gear progression meant to have you use and master each weapon in order to gain skills. All of the above's why I don't like it when people call it a Diablo-like, because XaNext stands on its own merits. Combat, for example, is way more interactive and focused on dexterity than Diablo I/II, and there's no randomly-generated levels except the bonus dungeon at the end.

Just because it's short doesn't mean it's not very replayable. I still have things to accomplish in Xanadu Next even after my second playthrough.
 

Taruranto

Member
Totally called the shift to a summer release date weeks ago. Now I just hope XSEED listens to my suggestions about inserting a simple time attack mode and History log .txt output function.

XaNext is the modern Ys-equivalent of the classic Xanadu series, very polished and accessible compared to every other game so far. (I'm not counting Tokyo Xanadu in this as it practically works as its own new IP). Think of a mix of Falcom's old Xanadu and Brandish games, + elements from Western overhead hack 'n' slash games (like Nox) and then Vagrant Story and/or Symphony of the Night/Super Metroid. But this game has weapons you'll rarely want to skip using, tons of skills/magic with unique properties necessary to wreck enemies, a difficulty curve amiable to most, fantastic music and visual style meant to weave a portrait of the land you explore, and smart level design. It's 14-21 hours worth of dungeon crawling, the occasional cool boss/swarm encounter, interesting backstory with fun NPCs, and a final dungeon you don't wanna miss.

Just saying Dio, I'd hesitate to keep comparing this game to Diablo. Nox is closer in terms of click-to-strike action and meatiness of combat in XaNext, and the hotbar might instead derive from that strange game Falcom worked on called Rinne (finished before XaNext was done). Obviously the idea was to evoke old-school Brandish's large, helpful user interfaces by adapting elements from MMOs/Western hack 'n' slash games.

The game's director, Takayuki Kusano, started out programming Brandish games for PC-98 (even programmed The Dark Revenant!), so there's gotta be a reason so much of Brandish sits beneath XaNext's design. There's interconnected dungeon layouts in Brandish 2 and 3 as well.

No, ShadowFlare is the Japanese Diablo you're thinking of. Xanadu Next is a more unique beast than simply "Diablo but Falcom".

I feel like the story is worth praising too. I really liked the way it was told, how you slowly uncover the mystery of Xanadu and the Black Bride. There are just the right amount of words too.
 
I feel like the story is worth praising too. I really liked the way it was told, how you slowly uncover the mystery of Xanadu and the Black Bride. There are just the right amount of words too.
You can tell many of the same people who developed Ys VI worked on this game since you have even more tablets/memoirs to find throughout the world. XaNext strikes a story balance most dungeon-crawler games lack.
 

creid

Member
Really looking forward to this. Can anyone who's played it comment on how the analog controls compare to the mouse controls? Just read a review on GameFAQs saying that they evwntually patched controller support into the jp version, and wondering what the better method is.
 
Really looking forward to this. Can anyone who's played it comment on how the analog controls compare to the mouse controls? Just read a review on GameFAQs saying that they evwntually patched controller support into the jp version, and wondering what the better method is.
Analog movement's great, but Falcom's own button configuration/options for pad are limited, which is something I think XSEED will amend.
 

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
Booyyyyy, Summer sure was short!


I kinda don't want to be that guy, but I'm going to be that guy. Any word from XSEED on what's been going on with Xanadu Next? I mean, I'm sure they're busy with any number of things right now; but the radio silence is a bit disconcerting.
 
Booyyyyy, Summer sure was short!


I kinda don't want to be that guy, but I'm going to be that guy. Any word from XSEED on what's been going on with Xanadu Next? I mean, I'm sure they're busy with any number of things right now; but the radio silence is a bit disconcerting.

Get ready for Corpse Party October 2014 lol
 

Theswweet

Member
Booyyyyy, Summer sure was short!

I kinda don't want to be that guy, but I'm going to be that guy. Any word from XSEED on what's been going on with Xanadu Next? I mean, I'm sure they're busy with any number of things right now; but the radio silence is a bit disconcerting.

I also don't want to be that guy, but XSEED has had a tendency to follow Valve Time with some of their recent PC releases.
 

Tohsaka

Member
Booyyyyy, Summer sure was short!


I kinda don't want to be that guy, but I'm going to be that guy. Any word from XSEED on what's been going on with Xanadu Next? I mean, I'm sure they're busy with any number of things right now; but the radio silence is a bit disconcerting.

Tom said on XSEED's forums that they were having some technical issues, hopefully it'll be out soon.
 
Taking an old ass PC game and hacking in the localization themselves with a single programmer.

Boy I wonder why it's taking longer than expected!

Pretty sure it'll be worth the wait, so patience.
 

Thud

Member
I already was that guy when they announced the releasedate of CSII and not Xanadu Next's.

Sure it can wait, but I'd like to know if it's coming this year or not.
 
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