Nintendo and Japanese developer Cygames are working together on a new action RPG property.
Titled Dragalia Lost, the game will release worldwide for iOS and Android devices. A release is planned in some Eastern Asian territories (Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau) this summer, with the game coming to the US, Europe, and other Western territories sometime after this. It's not yet known whether Dragalia Lost will see a Western release this year.
Details on the game's story and gameplay are rather thin on the ground right now, but a trailer has been released which shows off some of the game's features and its overall aesthetic. This trailer is in Japanese, so you'll need a working grasp of the language to understand it completely, but here it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Cc2ol9m2wg
The trailer depicts at least three playable characters, although exactly how they each differ from one another or how they'll be used is a mystery. There's also a part where the main character seen in the artwork transforms into a dragon, but how this impacts gameplay is - once again - not quite clear yet. We'll have more details on this game as and when we know them, so stay tuned.
Dragalia Lost will be the 5th mobile game which Nintendo has either developed or co-developed (a few Pokémon titles are available for mobile devices, but Nintendo wasn't involved in their development for the most part). This doesn't count Mario Kart Tour, which is in development but probably won't see a Japanese release before Dragalia Lost. Nintendo has acquired a 5% stake in Cygames in order to ensure Western operation. It's also worth noting that DeNA, Nintendo's partner in mobile development, owns a 24% stake in Cygames, so there's a lot of crossover now between the three companies.
Cygames' previous titles include card battler Rage of Bahamut, RPG Granblue Fantasy and DCCG (digital collectible card game) Shadowverse. The company is also currently working with Platinum Games on a console version of Granblue Fantasy, as well as Konami on an enhanced PS4 version of Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner.
Many of Cygames' previous titles have used a gacha-style system in which players receive random loot drops in order to gain abilities and power within the game. It's not yet clear what pricing model Dragalia Lost will adopt, but with Nintendo's previous titles relying on a free-to-play model, some variation of this is very likely, especially given the financial success of Fire Emblem Heroes, and that Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp recently added loot boxes.
Will you be picking up Dragalia Lost? What pricing model would you like to see the game adopt? Let us know in the comments below!
