Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy Preview — Deep, Dark Dungeons

Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy is a dungeon-crawling RPG due out on the PlayStation Vita in North America on June 9, 2015.

Originally released in 2008 on the PC, Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy is a remake of the first two games of the Xth trilogy, Generation Xth — Code Hazard  and Generation XTH — Code Breaker.

Upon starting the game, players have the option to choose between basic mode and classic mode. Basic mode allows you to pick from a selection of pre-set characters, while classic mode gives you more options for your characters including a huge amount of aesthetic options. There are so many options available that its easily possible for no two players to have the same characters.

Once into the game you find out that you're a student in an academy — but not just any old academy, this one houses a secret underground base of the Xth. The Xth are a secret organization that works with the police in order to investigate and quell the invasion of mysterious creatures called variants. These variants can only be destroyed by those with blood code powers, which is why the police aren't handling things on their own.

The gameplay is fairly typical for the genre but really hits the spot for those that are into this genre. For those that are new to dungeon-crawling, essentially you have a team of 6 different characters that must progress through first-person dungeons and complete quests ala the Wizardry series. These quests can range from fighting a certain monster to exploring a certain area.

Dungeons can be punishing but haven't felt grueling so far. The ability to gain items to save in dungeons and to escape from them really help keep everything from feeling overly cruel. The crawling is done on a 5x5 map but the developers have put a lot into what seems to be limited space. The maps are absolutely massive, even early on in the game. There's definitely the potential for there to be some incredibly huge maps down the line with multiple floors and branching paths.

One thing that may be off-putting is the way the menus are handled at the base. Items are crafted and altered but it can be difficult to navigate through everything at first. It's highly recommended that new players read the handbook that is given to them in the beginning of the game. While difficult to grasp at first, the depth of the item system is impressive and offers a huge range of customization.

If you liked games like Wizardry, Etrian Odyssey or Class of Heroes, Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy is definitely one to keep an eye out for.

Make sure to watch out for the full review coming soon!