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Media.Vision, developer of games like Wild Arms, Shining Resonance and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory, is looking for help on an RPG.

The job listing is for a PlayStation 4 RPG already in development. Media.Vision is looking for an artist who can provide character illustrations and designs. You don’t have to have a lot of experience, but RPG and console experience would be a bonus.

What could the new game be? Wild Arms did turn 20 a few years ago, so we are long overdue for a new entry, though a mobile game has been announced for Japan. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

SOURCE

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The Shining series is not one I have a huge amount of experience with, which is to say I haven’t played any of the previous games and have mostly heard of it in passing. However, that’s not saying much, considering the last game in the series to be released in North America was Shining Force EXA on PS2 in 2007, aside from fighting game spin-off Blade Arcus from Shining, released on PS4 and PS3 in North America in 2015, and on Steam in 2016. Shining Resonance is the newest game in the series, originally released on PS3 in Japan in 2014. Today’s subject, Shining Resonance Refrain, is a remaster of the game released on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Steam earlier this year in Japan. Now, for the first time in the series in 11 years, the remaster is coming West.

Shining Resonance Refrain follows Yuma Ilvern, the vessel for the almighty Shining Dragon, as he defends his home of Astoria from the invading Lombardian Empire, and tries to put an end to a war that’s raged on for 10 years prior to the beginning of the story. He is joined by a group of Dragoneers, warriors who wield musical weapons known as Armonics to resonate with dragons and strengthen each other. Some of Yuma’s companions include Astorian crown princess Sonia Blanche, the priestess-Diva Kirika Towa Alma, her mischievous attendant Rinna Mayfield, and the pyromancer, chef and hobbyist cartographer with a heart of gold Agnum Bulletheart, to name a few.

The characters are really the strongest part of Shining Resonance Refrain. The game gives plenty of opportunities to see the characters interact with each other, between building your relationships with your party members and random events that you can see when you return to the main home city of Marga. The characters all have a surprising amount of depth to them, and I found them pleasantly growing on me even if they may not have made the best first impressions (I’m looking at you, Yuma). Controlling Yuma, you can invite your party members to talk with you at night to build your relationships, and even bring them on dates in the city to get to know them better. Fully building a character’s affection gives them new Traits, which can be used to affect the Bonds between your teammates. Bonds have different effects in combat, by randomly triggering Resonance events in combat to boost your teammates, through healing or buffs.

If it seems like I’m not explaining Traits, Bonds and Resonance that well, it’s because I don’t understand them that well myself. Shining Resonance Refrain does not do a good job of explaining them, and no specific description of a given Bond’s effects is ever given in-game. It’s possible to extrapolate effects of some during combat, but it’s never made explicitly clear. It’s unfortunate, because Resonance is one of the few things that could make the game’s combat system interesting and engaging, but is poorly-explained and completely out of the player’s hands with random activations. Otherwise the combat is the standard action-RPG fare of pressing the circle button (or whatever it is on your platform of choice) until everything is dead. That isn’t to say there are no other unique mechanics, namely Dragonshift and B.A.N.D. sessions, but they don’t do enough to mix things up. Dragonshift just turns you into the Shining Dragon so you can resume pressing circle, and B.A.N.D. (where your Dragoneers play music to give specific buffs depending on the song chosen and the character you set as the center) is just choosing a song to perform and then resuming as usual. You can do other things, such as Break attacks to try and break your enemy’s defenses, the usual dash and guard, and Force spells. However, for most regular encounters you won’t need more than regular attacks, at least while playing as Yuma, which I did for most of my playthrough.

Follow the Shining Dragon to the next page ->

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Sega has announced that Shining Resonance Refrain will release on July 10 for North America and Europe. The game is set to release for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PC via Steam. The game will have a launch edition with a collectible metal slip case featuring artwork of Excella, Sonia and Kirika. The launch edition is available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

Sega also streamed a trailer featuring the heroes of the game. You can check that out below.

SOURCE: Sega

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Sega has released an extended teaser trailer for their forthcoming not-at-all-a-sequel Valkyria: Azure Revolution, and as one might expect, it’s as full of awesome as anything anyone’s ever seen on the internet. Fans of the Valkyria games expect nothing less than perfection from the Valkyria games and it’s consistently delivered time and again. Based on what Sega is showing off in this footage, it looks like they’ll continue to maintain a high standard of excellence for this criminally underappreciated series. Of course, it could be the best selling series of all time and I’d still consider it uderappreciated, so take that for what you will. At any rate, experience this teaser for yourself to see more of the war torn world, the brutal and personal nature of its struggles and the role heroes and generals play in these battles. The trailer is moving and powerful, with music by composer Yasunori Mitsuda and featuring singer Sarah Alainn. Watch this now and just accept that the rest of your weekend won’t be this good.

And Sega released a couple more trailers for us all to enjoy.  Both are short clips about the making of two of the key musical tracks being featured in Valkyria: Azure Revolution, called Aoki Kakumei and Eternal Rest.  These songs are both absolutely heartbreaking in the best way possible.

Valkyria: Azure Revolution is scheduled for a winter 2016 release in Japan on the Sony Playstation 4 entertainment system, published by Sega and developed by Media.Vision, directed by Takeshi Ozawa. No confirmation of a western release yet, but as soon as we know something, so will you.

SOURCE

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Famitsu has posted some screenshots of SEGA’s upcoming Valkyria Chronicies sequel (sort of), called Valkyria: Azure Revolution. The game has themes similar to its predecessor, with a highly industrialized military empire oppressing the land and one small nation deciding to fight back. V: AR will use an art style that is somewhat similar to the original title but with a different character designs and aesthetics, and the game’s director Takeshi Ozawa has described it as being more of a real time RPG than a turn based tactical game like the first one was. This and other information regarding the title was revealed in an interview with Weekly Famitsu (by way of Hachima Kikou).

Of note was that the game would function similar to a RPG in a number of ways, such as tackling military objectives under the same design principle as dungeons in a traditional sense, commanding a squad of 5 but only controlling a single character and giving the rest of the group preset behaviors and that the game’s combat would be more action oriented like modern RPG titles. He also wanted to stress that this game shares the same universe as Valkyria Chronicles but because they are telling a story with a different focus from what we’ve  seen in previous entries, they want the fans to look upon Valkyria: Azure Revolution as an entirely new game and not simply an extension of the series. Finally, he hinted that there would be some additional plot elements concerning Europa’s primary fuel source Ragnite, which also has mystical properties that will play a bigger role this time around.

A few new screenshots were featured in the Famitsu article, one being a dramatic shot of the game’s protagonists Commander Amleth and Priincess Ophelia and two more of them facing off against some of the intimidating high tech weaponry of the powerful Rus Empire. And here they are!

Valkyria: Azure Revolution is coming to Sony PS4 in Japan in time for holiday 2016. It is being developed by Media.Vision (Wild Arms series, Chaos Rings series, Valkyria Chronicles 3) and published by SEGA. Anyone that purchases Valkyria Chronicles Remaster (which you can read about here) will get a demo for Valkyria: Azure Revolution. No word on western release just yet but as soon as we learn more, we will be sure to let you know!

SOURCE

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It’s been recently announced that Media.Vision in cooperation with Felistella, will be spearheading development of Summon Night 6: Lost Borders, the next entry in the Summon Night series published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. Media.Vision may not have the biggest name attached to them, but they also have a special development history. They are the developers behind the Wild Arms series, an RPG series often that often incorporates old Western aesthetics into its designs. Media.Vision is also the force behind Valkyria Chronicles III (which hasn’t been localized) and some of the recent Shining series of games including Shining Resonance (which hasn’t been localized.) Most recently, they worked on Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth, the localization of which was announced this past summer. Suffice it to say, this team has been in the business for a while. Other development talents include Kouhaku Kuroboshi for character design (any Kino’s Journey fans?) and Shuu Mikayozuki on world and scenario planning.

Additionally, Famitsu published an article with some screenshots and basic story details for Summon Night 6. The game takes place in the world of Filuuja, which is enclosed in a barrier and is prone to strange things falling from the sky. One day, an entity from another world breaks through to Filuuja, which sets the plot into motion. The main protagonists, Raj and Am, are swept up in these events. Raj is described as a cheerful young man while Am is aloof.

The game reportedly is 50% complete, and the first promotional video is to be expected in September.

SOURCE 1, SOURCE 2

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The latest Weekly Famitsu Livestream showed some new gameplay footage for Bandai Namco’s forthcoming RPG Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth. The game was developed by Media Vision as part of the 15th anniversary celebration for the series.

In the game, you control either Takumi (male) or Ami (female) Aiba, and it all starts when you wake up one day after investigating curious rumors of new and evolving computer viruses in cyberspace that are being called ‘digital monsters’ by hackers. Upon regaining consciousness, you discover that your brain and body have become altered in such a way that you can now jump between the real world and cyberspace as long as you can find a terminal that grants access to virtual reality. And thus the search to discover why this is all happening and who is responsible begins. Take a look at videos that have been posted so far. The first is a seven minute demonstration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AovMAjc0_bk

The second video is longer and even more revealing at thirteen minutes.

Here’s one that’s over sixteen minutes.

If these videos are any indication, fans of Digimon can expect to see a lot of what they love about the series as well as some new things that they can look forward to trying out. This is a PS Vita title, so people will be able to take their Digimon experiences on the road.

Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth is scheduled for release in Japan on March 12th, 2015. There is no word yet of a western release for this title.

SOURCE

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This week in Famitsu, more details are given about the upcoming PS3 title Shining Resonance. Previously, we have known about the protagonist, the Shining Dragon Irvan. Now, the dragon is able to transform into a human, named Yuuma Irvan. When a battle begins, he can transform back into his dragon state called “Progress Body”.

The voice cast for the currently announced characters has also been released. They are as follows:

Kirika – Saori Hayami

Yuuma Irvan – Nobunaga Shimazaki

Sonia – Asami Seto

Agnam – Mamoru Miyano

Georg – Rikiya Koyama

Rinna – Ai Kayano

Other Roles- Yuichi Nakamura and Miyuki Sawashiro

Shining Resonance will release for the PlayStation 3 in Japan on December 11, 2014.

SOURCE

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Another week is behind us, ladies and gentlemen. And this week’s Retro Wrap-Up is another instance in which commercials exclusively from North America just aren’t going to cut it. This week celebrates Shining Resonance, the latest entry in the Shining series that was just announced a few days back. And just because I can, I’m going to throw in an old commercial for my favorite Wild Arms game—since Media Vision is involved in the project. Do any of you have fond memories of the Shining series? Anyone try to import some of the games that were never localized here in the West? My interest is piqued; please do share your stories.

In the spirit of finding a shining light in the darkness, the oprainfall Retro Commercial Research Team—me—brings you a handful of the Shining games’ greatest TV moments from across the pond, plus a little something extra. I’m sure we have more than a few fans of Wild Arms among us.

Here are the highlights from this past week:

REVIEWS:

• Kirby: Triple Deluxe | Me (Jonathan Higgins)
• Earth Defense Force 2025 | Tyler Lubben
• Cardinal Quest | Dalton McClain
• Mario Golf: World Tour | Jeff Neuenschwander
• Mega Man 8 | Justin Guillou
• (Impressions) Echoes of Eridu | Guy Rainey
• Mega Man: The Power Battle | Nathan Stiles

ORIGINAL CONTENT YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS:

• Building Character: Kudryavka Noumi (Kud)
• READERS’ PICK: Favorite Mega Man Game Poll
• Josh’s Top 10 Most Original Robot Masters
• LAST CALL FOR FUNDING: Hover: Revolt of Gamers, The Universim, and More
• Smashing Saturdays! Week 28: May 12-16, 2014
• Xenoblade Novelisation: Xord
• Pricefall: Finding Deals for Niche Games and More – May 18
• The Downpour Podcast Episode 49
  (Episode 50 is coming next week!)

THIS WEEK’S BIGGEST NEWS:

• Pokemon Art Academy Coming West Later This Year
• Xbox One Without Kinect Coming in June
• GungHo Bringing Six PSone Imports to North America on PSN
• (Japan) Shining Resonance Announced for PlayStation 3
• (Japan) First Story Details for Shining Resonance

Do you have any awesome ideas for the retro commercials I should try to find next time? Email [email protected] or send a tweet. Of course, you can always let me know in the comments below!

We have another take on this week’s biggest stories. Have you seen Operation Recap via our YouTube channel? Be sure to tune in!

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Famitsu has revealed in their latest issue the next installment of the Shining series, Shining Resonance, which will be developed for the PlayStation 3. In addition, Wild Arms studio Media.Vision will be working on the game with Tony Taka doing character design. Taka also did character designs for other titles in the Shining series, such as Shining Hearts, Shining Blade, and Shining Ark. Flight Unit will be doing character models.

Here is what Famitsu has published about the title:

Character: Kirika Towa Alma

The girl who inherits the ancient song.

“I’m sorry, but I have no interest in humans. I only want to understand the heart of dragons.”

Class: Song Maiden
Weapon: Dragon Wing Bow
Main Magic: Sacred Magic

An elf who inherits the song of magic to manipulate the spirit power of mother nature. She is a better healer than a fighter. While she is not good at communicating with humans, she is a generally kind person.

Other Information

• When you play music, it resonates with the dragon, allowing you to use a powerful technique.
• When playing, you can hear the music.
• Field and battles transition seamlessly.

And also adding character names with the forename censored out:

Main Character: Kouryuu Ilban

The protagonist of the game is said to be an outright dragon and not merely someone who resembles a monster. Human allies can have him attack by way of a weapon that plays a melody known as the Dragonic * Vessel.

Character: *** Blanshe

A black-haired princess who’s also a magic knight, she has a strong-willed temperament even with respect to the protagonist.

Character: **** Bretthart

A red-haired young man who’s something of an older brother to the protagonist.

Character: **** Zalbard

A knight in the empire who goes after dragons, namely the protagonist.

Additional Information

• Dragons will also show up as members of the opposition, with three of them being shown off in the magazine.
• Battle parties consist of four characters.
• Various effects can also occur beyond the previously-described interactions with dragons.
• The music that’s played in battles and their corresponding effects can change depending on the party member designated as the “center character.”
• Development is 5* percent complete.

SOURCE

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The game will be released in Japan both on UMD and via digital distribution at the end of the month for ¥6,279 (about $78 USD), while the downloadable version will cost ¥5,600 ($70 USD). Included in this article are illustrations for some of the main characters playable in-game for perusal.

SOURCE

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Square Enix and Media.Vision’s RPG Chaos Rings, originally released for iOS in 2010, is now available for Android for US/CA$12.99. Chaos Rings tells the story of five couples inexplicably trapped in the Ark Arena, where their captor, known only as The Agent, issues an ultimatum: fight to the death or die. The Agent promises eternal life to the victorious couple. The player can play as four of these couples, each with their own story. Completing all four will reveal the true nature of The Agent and the Ark Arena, leading to the story’s true conclusion.

Chaos Rings is a turn-based RPG with random battles and puzzle elements. Limited to a party size of two, player characters can attack individually or as a pair, the latter allowing for greater damage dealt, but also received. Characters gain new powers by equipping genes collected from fallen enemies. Progress through dungeons also requires solving interspersed puzzle rooms.

Chaos Rings was developed by Media.Vision and published by Square Enix. Square Enix didn’t mention whether the next installments in the series, Chaos Rings Ω and Chaos Rings II, would also be ported to Android. Chaos Rings for Android requires Android v2.3 or higher and 1 GB of storage. It is a 977 MB download.

To learn more, visit the official Chaos Rings website and Google Play listing or watch the original English iOS trailer below:

[Source]

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