A long time ago, Capcom released a fighting game titled Rival Schools: United by Fate, followed by its sequel, Project Justice. At least one developer has not forgotten and would like to bring the series back.
Back in 2018, at the height of the promotion for Devil's May Cry 5, I interviewed Hideaki Itsuno, who was serving as the director of the game.
I asked him if there was any other Capcom series he'd like to continue, and he mentioned Rival Schools, known in Japanese as Shiritsu Justice Gakuen.
This certainly pleased me, as the game and its sequel (known in Japanese as Moero! Justice Gakuen) are my favorite fighting games of all time.
A few days ago at Tokyo Game Show, I interviewed Itsuno-san, this time in his role as director of Dragon's Dogma 2, so I had to ask him if he still feels the same about bringing back Rival Schools five years later.
Apparently, Itsuno-san still has a special place in his heart for the series, albeit things may not be as easy as just getting it greenlit.
Thourghout all this this time I've been thinking about it constantly. I even have a story in mind. That hasn't changed. I still feel like I would like to make Rival Schools.
But to be completely honest, I'm at a point where, since I'm making so many things, if someone approached me tomorrow and said "all right. We're ready to go, make it!" I'm not quite sure I could actually pull it off. It has been 25 years.
A significant amount of time passed so yes, I still want to make it. That hasn't changed at all, but in terms of really getting into it, I would have to rethink it.
Itsuno-san worked as a designer in the original Rival Schools: United by Fate and directed its sequel, so it's not surprising that he has a soft spot in his heart for the series.
The series' setting portrays an anime-style conflict between high schools, and when I first interviewed him, Itsuno-san mentioned that the third year was still missing, meaning that a third game could end with graduation.
At that time, almost five years before its announcement, he also mentioned Dragon's Dogma 2 as a game he'd like to make. That one came true, so I'm not losing hope just yet.
Of course, you should stay tuned on TechRaptor for the full Dragon's Dogma 2 interview, and in the meanwhile, you can read my hands-on preview and watch some awesome gameplay.
