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Level 5 developing three RPGs for smartphones

Goli

Member
So apparently this is in this week's Famitsu (it's popping up in a few blogs), Level 5 has announced three RPGs for smartphones: Wonder Flick, Devil STATION and Earth-devastating B-Class Girlfriend (not sure if I'm getting this right). Not much else is known but apparently all are developed by "wonderful" staff.
 
Hmm, those were the titles people were expecting to be the Guild03 games. Oh well.

I know Guild02 just came out in Japan and is still coming to the US, but I already want to see some more development for it.
 

duckroll

Member
Guild RIP!

I'm kinda interested in what they're doing on smartphones though. Hino made a big deal about it in the last interview, so let's see if he's walking the talk.
 

ReaperXL7

Member
How big is Level 5 I remember him saying he wanted to make an MMO for PS4, and that he wanted Ni No Kuni to be a series. It seems like they have allot on their plate, and i dont think anyone knows what their western branch is doing right?
 

CronoShot

Member
So apparently this is in this week's Famitsu (it's popping up in a few blogs), Level 5 has announced three RPGs for smartphones: Wonder Flick, Devil STATION and Earth-devastating B-Class Girlfriend (not sure if I'm getting this right). Not much else is known but apparently all are developed by "wonderful" staff.

You have my attention.
 

randomkid

Member
yup, that's the end of the Guild series then.

They're bringing the Guild games to smartphones too right? Trying to decide if I should pick up Crimson Shroud while it's on sale or just get it next year when I actually have time to play it.

Friday Monsters will still be a Day 1 though.
 

Goli

Member
Knowing Level 5 I think we can expect a few of these titles to never be released.
To be honest I'm pretty happy since the Liberation Maiden port they did was pretty good and I love smartphone gaming, so I have high hopes for this. Now just give me Crimson Shroud on iOS >_<.
 

duckroll

Member
yup, that's the end of the Guild series then.

They're bringing the Guild games to smartphones too right? Trying to decide if I should pick up Crimson Shroud while it's on sale or just get it next year when I actually have time to play it.

Friday Monsters will still be a Day 1 though.

So far it's just Liberation Maiden. There's been a long silence after that, so who knows if they're actually going to bring the rest to iOS. I hope they do though, then I can get more people to play Crimson Shroud lol.

Why would you think that?

Personally I think it's done because the series has never really done well for Level5 in the form they wanted it in, and they don't seem to have any motivation to continue.
 

Goli

Member
What smartphone platforms do japanese devs usually target? iOS/Android?

Yes, not there are much more that actually deserve attention.
Sega did release that Crimson Dragon game for WP, and SE ported Chaos Rings and the PSP->iOS version of Final Fantasy to it too.
 
that's what i figured but i haven't been paying attention in recent years, i know some docomo thing was big in asia a few years ago.

just searched the app store and found this Liberation Maiden game. worth purchasing?
 

squall23

Member
Inazuma Eleven for phones and tablets. Plays just like the 3/DS games but your team is full of grunts. Pay money for a slim chance at named characters like a level 99 Endou with Omega the Hand, God Hand V, Gigaton Head and Great the Hand.

The franchise will either be completely revitalized or it'll finally die.
 
Personally I think it's done because the series has never really done well for Level5 in the form they wanted it in, and they don't seem to have any motivation to continue.
The second set of Guild games just came out in Japan two months ago, and Level-5 International has been promoting the US releases, even getting them in a Nintendo Direct.

I don't see any indication that they are stopping the series.
 

duckroll

Member
Hino says that Level5 is going to be a big effort towards smartphones from now on. These 3 titles will be released at the same time, and they all have talented staff working on them apparently.

The second set of Guild games just came out in Japan two months ago, and Level-5 International has been promoting the US releases, even getting them in a Nintendo Direct.

I don't see any indication that they are stopping the series.

I think you should keep in mind that Guild02 was already in the works by the time Guild01 came out. It was originally a retail release with a 4th game to be announced later on. It was probably too late to cancel the 3 games they already announced, which is why they converted them into eShop releases instead. I'm sorry, but I really think the series is done.
 

Squire

Banned
So they're cutting to chase and just putting what are ostensibly the Guild O3 games on phones instead of considering ports later.

This is pretty smart. Here's hoping the games are as interesting as the Guild stuff has been. The titles certainly hint as much.
 

Squire

Banned
The second set of Guild games just came out in Japan two months ago, and Level-5 International has been promoting the US releases, even getting them in a Nintendo Direct.

I don't see any indication that they are stopping the series.

These new games are on phones and not 3DS. What further indication do you need?
 
Hino says that Level5 is going to be a big effort towards smartphones from now on. These 3 titles will be released at the same time, and they all have talented staff working on them apparently.



I think you should keep in mind that Guild02 was already in the works by the time Guild01 came out. It was originally a retail release with a 4th game to be announced later on. It was probably too late to cancel the 3 games they already announced, which is why they converted them into eShop releases instead. I'm sorry, but I really think the series is done.
These new games are on phones and not 3DS. What further indication do you need?
This might be how the Guild series is going to continue.
 

randomkid

Member
Hmm, I've only got Android so maybe I should bite the bullet on Crimson Shroud. I just really wanna limit eShop stuff to the bare essentials though haha.

Why would you think that?

Retail -> Bombing -> Digital Only -> 4th game getting cancelled is not a very good trajectory. These title trademarks were really the only evidence anyone had that Level 5 was bothering to continue. I did notice more people picking up the games in the NA sale than I expected though so who knows, I'd love to be wrong.
 

Ken

Member
So apparently this is in this week's Famitsu (it's popping up in a few blogs), Level 5 has announced three RPGs for smartphones: Wonder Flick, Devil STATION and Earth-devastating B-Class Girlfriend (not sure if I'm getting this right). Not much else is known but apparently all are developed by "wonderful" staff.

Love it.
 

injurai

Banned
There use to be a lot of Level 5 hype a couple years ago but I hardly hear about them now.

Because the DS made them shine, and now with that era behind a lot of developers they are looking for new markets to quench their profit margins and letting quality development go to the wayside. This cycle is wash rinse, repeat.
 

duckroll

Member
Or that this is how the Guild series is going to continue.

These aren't Guild games. This is Level5's new Smartphone initiative which they talked about in the last big interview about the company. They're going to aggressively develop for the Smartphone market, and it sounds like Hino is personally involved, so they might all be internal games.

Maybe they will try more Guild games in future on Smartphones if the initiative takes off, but right not I don't think they're going to focus on that experiment anymore.
 

Beth Cyra

Member
Not really a fan of L5, but still I do hope they end up bringing over PLvvAA, it will be the first game I buy from them since the train wreck that was WKC.

Hopefully the new Cell phone games do well for them. So many downs since the shit fest that was AGE.
 
These aren't Guild games. This is Level5's new Smartphone initiative which they talked about in the last big interview about the company. They're going to aggressively develop for the Smartphone market, and it sounds like Hino is personally involved, so they might all be internal games.

Maybe they will try more Guild games in future on Smartphones if the initiative takes off, but right not I don't think they're going to focus on that experiment anymore.
The "wonderful" staff comment is what's throwing me. Maybe it'll be some sort of weird amalgamation.
 

ULTROS!

People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late. I like to eat ice cream and I really enjoy a nice pair of slacks.

CamHostage

Member
I think you should keep in mind that Guild02 was already in the works by the time Guild01 came out. It was originally a retail release with a 4th game to be announced later on. It was probably too late to cancel the 3 games they already announced, which is why they converted them into eShop releases instead. I'm sorry, but I really think the series is done.
This might be how the Guild series is going to continue.

Right, it probably isn't Guild03, but I really don't understand why this debuting on iOS (if not coming exclusively) means that this alone signals the whole program is dead? It's dead or it isn't as a brand (they don't seem too interested in tying the 3DS or iOS digital a la carte releases to the Guild/Black Box brand name for some reason,) but if these games end up in fact being made in a similar method with collaboration with Level-5 and well-known outside creative staff, that's Guild to me, it was never about the platform. (In fact, I always hoped it'd be successful on 3DS and would expand to other platforms, as it's a fascinating idea and something I like seeing Japan in particularly engage its creative talents in.)

I do not understand why anyone would want to play RPGs on smartphones.

I can understand asking that question about a lot of genres that are showing up and embarrassing the mobile market, but RPGs? It's a genre where you're clicking choices from a menu, how is that not perfectly suited to a device with a touchscreen? Portables are so capable these days that they can provide every bit of the splendor (depending on your screen size, a phone may be small but an iPad held at arms' length is as vision-consuming and vibrant as my HDTV ever gets) and emotional as a console game, plus the time consumption is less a factor when you can do the grinding at your leisure rather than dedicating time at home in front of the TV.

I run into this a lot with the portables, I think there are some people that just don't commute like people like me. Myself, my PS3 has been gathering dust and I have a mess of uninstalled PC games while all of my time is funneled into my Vita and my tablet. It's fine if you're not like me, but don't discount mobile-oriented gamers as not being gamers. There are real games there, and aside for the race to the bottom hurting the breath of scope (a game that's not "free-to-play" will fail, and that's tragic,) the games are only going to get better. And when you consider how commuting is such an intrinsic part of the Japanese lifestyle, it makes even more sense why Japanese developers have put all their creative energy into mobile games despite us clamoring for the next truly AAA HD Final Fantasy or Dark Cloud. Sorry, but unless something drastic changes about the market and the consumer tastes, the JRPG revolution will not be televised.
 

LuuKyK

Member
Some details here: http://www.polygon.com/2013/5/29/4375318/level-5-announces-three-new-smartphone-rpgs-for-2013

The first announced game is Wonder Flick, a title directed by Level-5 head Akihiro Hino and featuring a soundtrack by Nobuo Uematsu. Famitsu and Hino didn't talk gameplay details, instead showing off some concept art that was more than a little reminiscent of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles' art style.

The second game, called Majin Station, is headed up by Jiro Ishii, best known in Japan for producing adventure games like 428 and 2012's Time Travelers. Visuals are being handled by Yusuke Kozaki, who did character designs on Fire Emblem: Awakening.

The final title announced, called Chikyu Kaimetsu teki B-kyu Kanojo, is probably the most traditional "Japan-made smartphone RPG" in style.

Moe at the link.
 
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