Last month, publisher Dear Villager and developer Artisan Studios announced their JRPG Astria Ascending. This hand-drawn 2D RPG is getting the Final Fantasy treatment with the involvement of composer Hitoshi Sakimoto (Final Fantasy XII) and writer Kazushige Nojima (Final Fantasy VII Remake).
A Gorgeous Hand-Drawn World
Astria Ascending is a 2D RPG that looks absolutely stunning. The art style is one of the first things you notice in the announcement trailer. According to Artisan Studios, the game will offer a “fully animated 2D landscape with five cities and a dynamic weather system.”
Throughout the announcement trailer, it shows off each race in the game, many different weather effects, and different locations as well. It also gives us a general idea of the plot, but not too much information.
Astria Ascending looks fresh and unique, but retains classic JRPG elements like turn-based combat. The story, though still pretty vague right now, was written by Kazushige Nojima, who has worked on many Final Fantasy titles.
The game will be accompanied by a score from Hitoshi Sakimoto who also has a long history with the Final Fantasy franchise. It’s also worth mentioning that this game is a revival of the IOS exclusive, Zodiac: Orcanon Odyssey.
A Second Chance At Life
The mobile JRPG Zodiac: Orcanon Odyssey had a pretty rough launch. Astria Ascending will be able to breathe new life into the game and retain some of the same original team, including the Final Fantasy developers.
One of the main problems with the original launch was that it was not backed by any big publishers. This time around though, Astria Ascending is certainly getting more attention. It is definitely exciting to see that because both Zodiac: Orcanon Odyssey and Astra Ascending look like wonderful games.
What’s also going to help Astria Ascending reach more people is its availability on all platforms. Many problems with IOS exclusive releases is that their aren’t enough mobile players to sustain them. Release the game on more platforms though, and you have a better chance of survival.
Release Date And What To Expect
As of right now, we just know that this game will be coming sometime in 2021. It will be released on all platforms and be included as part of Xbox Game Pass. For now you can add it to your wishlist on Steam and keep a look out for any news on the title.
The game will put players in control of eight different members of the “Demigods.” Their main objective is to protect their home world of Orcanon from evil forces called the Noises.
According to developers, the game will take about 30 hours to complete but closer to 50 if you want to get 100% completion. That is certainly a good amount of time to spend on a game, and I for one am excited to hear more about this title.
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