Sakura Wars 5 finally coming to America!!!!

[Nobiyuki77]

http://nisamerica.com/pressevent/2009/p ... upport.pdf

They're dropping the 5 from the title and just going with the subtitle (which I think is a smart move), and it looks like it's being published for both PS2 and Wii! o_O

I can't wait!!

[cj iwakura]

Victor Ireland made a post at NeoGAF about how 'massive internal politics' between Sega of America and Sega of Japan stopped this from coming to the states. He said it was a complete mess, and still is.

That said, better late than never. Can't wait.

[Nobiyuki77]

Me either. And I honestly think N1 is doing this the best way by starting with 5 (I wrote a long explanation on GAF about it as well).

[Werefrog]

Will I be able to enjoy it without having played the first four games?

[Nobiyuki77]

Yes, the protagonist, location, and characters are completely new (with a couple of cameos that are only in the first 15 minutes).

The rest of the game makes very little/no reference to the previous entries.

[Werefrog]

Will definitely buy. Always looking for games for my Wii.

[Nobiyuki77]

In May 2009, Nippon Ichi America announced they will be bringing Sega’s Sakura Wars to the United States for the first time on the PlayStation 2 and Wii. A long and celebrated series that began in 1996, this is a pretty big deal for the few of us that have played and enjoyed them for several years.

But most people in the west (understandably) have absolutely no idea what all of the hulla baloo is about. “Why should I care? Isn’t this just another random JRPG?” At a glance, that’s probably what it appears to be, but it’s so much more.

In this post, I’m going to explain why you should be interested, and why you would be well served to pick up this great title when Nippon Ichi releases it this fall.


What is Sakura Wars?

Sakura Wars (also referred to as Sakura Taisen) is a series of Strategy RPGs developed by Red Entertainment (Tengai Makyo, Thousand Arms), Overworks/Sega WOW (Skies of Arcadia, Valkyria Chronicles), and published by Sega (You know, Sega!). The series features character designs by renowned manga artist Kosuke Fujishima (Tales of Phantasia, Symphonia, the Abyss, and Vesperia), music by Kohei Tanaka (Alundra, Bionic Commando), and story by Ohji Hiroi (Moeyo Ken).

The concept is simple at first glance: Sakura Wars is a strategy RPG with an unusual twist for building your stats. In the game, you play as the captain of a specially created unit of female solders with high levels of spiritual energy to fight the forces of evil in large, steam powered robots. Sounds pretty cookie cutter so far? Good, ‘cause that’s as many cookies as we’re gonna cut!


What makes Sakura Wars so special then?

Lots of things, but for now let’s stick with gameplay. Unlike most RPGS where characters improve by gaining levels through experience earned in battle, in Sakura Wars your squad members improve in strength and mobility the more they like/trust you. A typical “episode” in a Sakura Wars game consists of two modes:

1) Adventure Mode: Walk through the theater/town, talking to the various characters in the story
2) Battle Mode: Get into them mechs and take down the bad guys.

The Adventure Mode is where the stat building occurs. As you walk through the theatre (your base) and the town itself, you’ll encounter the various members of your squad doing whatever it is the story feels like having them do at that particular moment. As you talk with them, you’ll come across questions or situations where you have to choose how to respond. Respond correctly, and the girl’s trust increases. Respond poorly, and you lose trust.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “That sounds like one of them dating sim hentai games!” Let’s get this out of the way: Yes, there are dating sim elements. No there is no hentai. But even THIS aspect of Sakura Wars is hardly standard fare; like everything else in this series, there’s a twist involved.

In most adventure games/dating sims/Elder Scrolls, when the window of choices pops up, you have more than enough time to read each response, think it through, and select the best choice accordingly. But that hardly seems interesting/realistic right? I mean seriously, what girl’s gonna wait there for hours and hours for someone to respond to a simple question?

Sakura Wars utilizes a system called LIPS for your options, and these responses are timed. Usually, you’re given no more than 3-5 seconds to respond. That’s 3-5 seconds to read each response, decide on the best one, and then select it. So you gotta be on your toes. Let’s take a look at the following screen:



See that bar around the text window? That’s the timer, and it’s going to fill up fast so you better respond quickly or your character will say/do nothing instead. BUT this also brings up another interesting choice; sometimes the best course of action is to say/do nothing.

Additionally, there are times where you’re given one choice, but must adjust the volume/intensity with which you state it to the appropriate level using the analogue stick.



There are also times where you’re given one long time frame to go through several timed options.



As you can see, it’s anything but cookie cutter. All of these interactive scenes in Adventure Mode serve two purposes:

1) Determine the stats of the characters in Battle Mode
2) Determine which ending you’ll get at the end (i.e. which girl you “win” with)

Now, you might say to yourself “Well, that’s easy then! I’ll just make every girl trust me and they’ll all kick butt in battle!” Not so fast buddy! It’s not that easy. All of the girls have various and sometimes conflicting personalities. Some girls are easier to please than others. And sometimes, you’ll converse with two “conflicting” girls at once, meaning you’re liable to gain one’s trust while simultaneously losing trust from the other. And you can’t afford too many weak links when you enter Battle Mode, or you can get your posterior handed to you if you’re not careful. So it’s a giant balancing act, one that’s much more addicting and interesting than it seems at first glance!

And this is just the Adventure Mode. Now let’s talk about the Battle Mode! Here’s a screenshot of a typical battle scene in Sakura Wars:



For those who’ve played Valkyria Chronicles, you might notice a couple of similarities. This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise; this is the game Overworks developed immediately prior to Valkyria Chronicles. Unlike the grid-based competitors like Final Fantasy Tactics, Disgaea (or the first two Sakura Wars games I might add…), this Sakura Wars title features a free roaming battle field, with the Action Bar at the bottom of the screen determining how far you can move.

The major difference is that in Sakura Wars, the bar isn’t just for movement. It’s also used for actions like attacking (all mapped to a specific button, as shown). Each bar is split up into a set of partitions. Move a certain distance, and one partition will be drained. Thankfully, if you haven’t carried out any actions, you can also return to your starting position to refill your gauge. As you can see, this system requires careful management of the Action Bar. Maximize it to make battle easier. However unlike Valkyria Chronicles there are no real-time elements to the battle system; it’s a strictly turn-based affair.

There are some other notable similarities between Sakura Wars and Valkyria Chronicles (though there are arguably, just as many differences if not more)

- Both are set in an alternate version of the early 1900s (SW modeled after the 1920s, VC after the 1930s)
- Both feature similar gameplay flow of story sequences, followed by battle sequences (and a similar menu in-between these scenes for saving and reviewing your characters).
- Both feature one very highly powered technology that runs just about everything (SW uses steam, VC has “ragnite”)
- In both games you play as the captain of a squad, and in both games if this captain is killed in battle, the game ends (also like VC, the story characters don’t “die”, they retreat. Unlike VC, there are no non-story based characters in battle though).
- Both games are told in “Episodes” (or “Chapters” in VC)

A quick FAQ:

I’ve heard the game Nippon Ichi is bringing to America is actually the 5th game in the series. Am I going to be completely confused?

With the exception of a couple of cameos in the first 15 minutes, this is a pretty self-contained game. There’s no need to worry.

I’ve heard some people say this entry isn’t the best the series has to offer. So is this a bad game then?

To me, this argument is akin to saying Super Mario Bros. 2 is a pile of trash because 3 is better. It may be different, and maybe not as good depending on who you talk to, but it’s still a really good game and definitely worth picking up!

So this is coming to the PS2 and Wii?

The game was released for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. According to Nippon Ichi America’s Press Release, it’s coming to the US on both the PS2 and Wii, so you can pick whichever system you prefer.

What date is this coming out?

Fall 2009. When they announce the official date, I’ll put it here. Here’s hoping we’ll get a date at E3!

What kind of review scores did it get in Japan?

Famitsu: 10, 10, 9, 8 (37/40)
Deigeki: 90, 85, 85, 85

Why oh why did you take the time to write all of this up? Do you work for Nippon Ichi?

I wish. I wrote all of this because I believe there are many people who will really enjoy this game if they simply know what it is before jumping in. Just doing my part to spread the word.

What are these “extras” that Nippon Ichi mentioned in their press release?

The game features an option called “The Long Day in New York,” where you can walk around the town and talk to various characters to view images and cinemas you’ve viewed, music you’ve heard etc.

Can I please see what the game looks like in motion?

Here’s a trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEv-wDLgWL0&fmt=18