A swathe of interesting new information has come out about Koei Tecmo's Attack on Titan game, according to Gematsu. The information was largely revealed in an interview in Famitsu with the game's director Tomoyuki Kitamuta and the game's producer producer Hisashi Koinuma.
Gaining popularity a year ago for it's intense anime adaptation, the manga Shingeki No Kyojin, or Attack On Titan, impressed fans both east and west with it's gory warfare, disturbing giants, and incredible theme song. Japan still holds a major torch for the series, and have kept the furor going long enough to spawn everything from themed razor blades to a live action film to this game itself. Western audiences may have mostly moved on from the property, but the game is more than capable of standing on it's own merits. For example, fans of Just Cause 3 and Spider-Man games will be enthused with the wire movement system in Attack on Titan, as shown in the gameplay trailer below:
Acrobatic movement using 3-D maneuver gear is a staple feature of the Attack on Titan universe and can be used in the game to freely move around the environment as well as in combat with titans. For ease of control, when you have a titan targeted for combat the hooks will only lock onto the titan to prevent errant grappling of scenery. According to Koei Tecmo there were initially problems with motion sickness because of the speed and turbulence of the movement but have stated that they've since been able to resolve these issues.
Although the Attack on Titan game will be staying faithful to the story of the anime's first season, the developers have made an effort to enable someone who hasn't seen the series to get into the game, and attempted to give that material a clear overview. A variety of free-roam and exploration activities exist in the game such as the "Investigation Outside the Walls" mode. In these sections, you can travel into the titan-haunted countryside to acquire funds, and gather materials for crafting weapons to facilitate a degree of customization for your character's equipment.
The titans themselves will drop materials necessary for crafting weapons or, if they have devoured your fellow soldiers, equipment and supplies for your combat and movement gear. Developers have promised that, as in the series, maintaining a supply of sharpened blades and compressed gas will be a necessary concern. Ten playable characters from the series are available, including the three protagonists and many of their squadmates from the Survey Corps. Which character you are playing as depends on where you are in the story there, however once you complete the story you can replay the portions with any character you want. Further, earlier revelations told us that combat as a certain titan will be included as well.
Koei Tecmo has further claimed that the majority of the buildings in the city can be destroyed. During urban titan attacks, when the player will be zipping around trying to clear an area of threats, a variety of side quests and other events will give you the opportunity to increase your character's abilities as well as improve your gear. Story-wise, some completely original story elements brought into the game with oversight from Hajime Isayama, the author of the original manga.
Attack on Titan will be releasing for Playstation 3, Playstation 4, and PS Vita in Japan on February 18, 2016. The game is expected to get a North American and European release around a year after its release in Japan.
Do you think that Koei Tecmo can do the Attack on Titan IP justice? What other games based on anime do you enjoy? Let us know in the comments below!
