Porting Games To Nintendo Switch with KaniPro Games, Unicorn Overlord

[00:00:00] Welcome to Tokyo Game Life, a Tokyo-based video game podcast focusing on Nintendo and gaming

[00:00:14] culture in Japan's capital.

[00:00:15] Your host Mono here to bring you a slice of gaming life from Tokyo.

[00:00:19] Today, I'm joined by returning guest and indie developer right here in Japan, Chris

[00:00:23] from Connie Pro Games, and we chat about porting games to the Switch.

[00:00:28] We talk about the unexpected journey to get his game, Violet with Staria, from Steam

[00:00:33] to the Switch and other platforms.

[00:00:35] In the game section, I take a look at VanillaWare's strategy RPG Unicorn Overlord, plus

[00:00:40] a bit of news including the long-awaited Return to Callos.

[00:00:44] Let's jump right into the feature on porting games to the Switch with Chris from Connie

[00:00:48] Pro Games.

[00:00:55] Today's feature is about something very specific, porting games to the Switch.

[00:01:00] When a dev makes a game and releases it on Steam, how does it find its way to the Nintendo

[00:01:04] Switch?

[00:01:05] Well we're going to find out and also revisit a game that's been discussed many times

[00:01:09] on the podcast Violet with Staria.

[00:01:11] Joining me is a special guest so guest please introduce yourself.

[00:01:15] Hi everyone, I'm Chris, I'm the person behind Connie Pro Games, the developer of Violet

[00:01:21] with Staria and back for I think maybe the third time on the Tokyo Game Life podcast,

[00:01:26] so thank you for having me.

[00:01:28] Thank you.

[00:01:29] This is actually your fifth time, believe it or not, we did.

[00:01:31] That's true.

[00:01:32] Yes, long-time listeners definitely know you.

[00:01:34] We've done the digital games expo, the Tokyo Game Music Show, indie game development in

[00:01:38] Japan, and Violet with Staria, so we're back again talking not just about Violet

[00:01:42] with Staria but also about the porting process of getting it from Steam to the Switch.

[00:01:48] Long-time listeners have definitely seen the entire process of this game so it's really

[00:01:52] exciting and I might as well start with a vague and broad question.

[00:01:56] What does it feel like to have your game hit its first anniversary?

[00:02:00] I'm not sure, I didn't really feel anything special, I'm out and I guess, I mean one

[00:02:05] year has passed, the game made a small mark, a few people really got deeply into it but

[00:02:11] it did not become a hot seller or anything like that, so for me I'm really happy that

[00:02:15] it's out there and that it's done, but I'm really looking forward to getting on consoles

[00:02:19] and getting our next game further along also.

[00:02:22] Right now the game's reception is sitting at positive on Steam, did people react to

[00:02:26] the game the way you imagined?

[00:02:27] Yeah, absolutely.

[00:02:29] I think it's a game that's going to be very, the reactions are going to be on the extreme

[00:02:35] side.

[00:02:36] You're really going to either like it or you're probably not just going to be annoyed

[00:02:40] or disgusted with it, I think.

[00:02:43] That seems to be what it's like.

[00:02:44] I mean, I think people even who are not good at it can generally appreciate the creativity

[00:02:50] of the game mechanics.

[00:02:51] So I would say yes.

[00:02:53] Yeah, for maybe if there are some first time listeners, give us a pitch on Violet

[00:02:57] with Stereo.

[00:02:58] What is Violet with Stereo?

[00:03:00] Violet with Stereo is meant to be a 2D platformer straight out of 1991.

[00:03:04] It is old school, not just in its visuals but in its blueprint, finite number of lives,

[00:03:09] finite number of continues.

[00:03:11] You run out of those and you go back to the beginning.

[00:03:13] Eugenicist, TurboGraphic 16.

[00:03:16] But the gameplay itself implements a unique system.

[00:03:19] The easiest way to explain it is that you're like playing rock scissors paper but with colors

[00:03:25] instead of symbols so the character can attack and she has three types of sword attacks

[00:03:30] that have color elements on them and then enemies appear randomly as those colors.

[00:03:36] So then it's a cycle of which one has to be used on which other color.

[00:03:39] I remember you told me that you did plan to release this game on consoles eventually

[00:03:43] and now we are only a few days away from it hitting them to no switch along with PlayStation

[00:03:47] and Xbox consoles.

[00:03:49] Walk us through this journey.

[00:03:50] What was the first step you took to get Violet with Stereo on consoles?

[00:03:53] I started looking for publishers that handle indie games.

[00:03:58] I don't know, maybe found three or four or five and sent out a few emails saying I've

[00:04:04] made a game.

[00:04:05] It's totally complete.

[00:04:06] It's on Steam.

[00:04:07] Is this something that you would be interested in helping bring to home consoles?

[00:04:12] And East Asia Soft basically gave me the first positive response.

[00:04:17] Initially they liked it but they wanted the control scheme to be on the buttons as

[00:04:21] opposed to using the D-pad with a single attack button which is actually already there.

[00:04:26] A lot of people in this, that control scheme is available in the options so I explained

[00:04:32] that to them and they're like okay we'll do it.

[00:04:34] So that was basically how I found the publisher so that's step one.

[00:04:38] There are some other steps though.

[00:04:40] Do you have a publisher that's interested in it but what are some things you didn't expect?

[00:04:44] The issue with Violet was that there's very, very specific control system due to the

[00:04:51] game mechanic and the tutorial section tells you okay press right and press this button

[00:04:57] or press the shoulder button and do this.

[00:05:00] Each platform holder Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have very specific set words that you can

[00:05:07] use to describe buttons on their controllers.

[00:05:09] Oh interesting.

[00:05:10] Yeah and it absolutely must match or they'll get rejected already having the game completely

[00:05:15] in place three control types and five languages I had to go in and redo all of this to make

[00:05:22] sure that it switched the button naming depending on which OS it's detected because it'll

[00:05:29] detect which consoles being played on so that took a long time.

[00:05:34] It seems like a small thing but it was just an absolute headache.

[00:05:37] Can you give an example of some of the terminology maybe for the Nintendo Switch?

[00:05:41] Probably can't say D-pad, I can't remember exactly what it was but there's very specific

[00:05:47] things like the D-pad has a specific word on every console.

[00:05:53] You can't say press or something like this.

[00:05:57] It's incredibly specific.

[00:05:59] Oh interesting.

[00:06:00] Yeah it's mad and it's like well I kind of realize now.

[00:06:04] While a lot of games don't really have very clear instructions in the options or what

[00:06:10] they tend to do now is they'll show within the tutorial text, they'll show you a picture

[00:06:17] of the button instead of saying a button name and then you can just flip out the images

[00:06:22] depending on the OS which is a lot easier.

[00:06:25] You self published Violet with Terry on Steam were you a bit hesitant of getting a publisher

[00:06:29] for the console releases or did you think in order to get it on consoles I definitely need

[00:06:33] a publisher.

[00:06:34] Yeah there's no way I can do that by myself, Nintendo and the Switch I think are the

[00:06:38] most open.

[00:06:39] I think the bar to entry is the lowest for becoming a registered developer.

[00:06:44] You need to be registered with them in order to publish games on their platform and that's

[00:06:51] also part of the porting process generally these game development softwares have things

[00:06:58] called codex that allow you to export the game program into format that that console reads

[00:07:05] but you need to basically sign in or have some kind of ID number to export to those consoles.

[00:07:12] So if I really wanted to go wild I could probably figure out a way to become a Switch developer

[00:07:18] but the others you have to have an LLC, you do have to have a company I think for

[00:07:23] the PlayStation.

[00:07:24] So to get it on all consoles I would definitely need a publisher.

[00:07:29] Since you're based in Japan, were there any advantages or disadvantages to that?

[00:07:33] For example, is it easier to find a publisher if you're over here in Japan?

[00:07:36] I don't know if being physically present in Japan made any issue of it.

[00:07:41] You know what I mean?

[00:07:42] I can communicate in writing in both English and Japanese so that does help.

[00:07:46] I didn't try contacting at least one Japanese publisher.

[00:07:49] It didn't work out but I'm not sure.

[00:07:52] I personally don't think so because the issue is how you're going to get the word out.

[00:07:56] And I guess we live in a world where it shouldn't drastically affect your ability to do that

[00:08:01] depending on which country you live in unless you live in countries where internet is limited

[00:08:06] when there are some of those out there.

[00:08:07] How involved is the developer with the porting process?

[00:08:10] Do you just give them an exe file and say here you go or what other steps were you involved

[00:08:15] in?

[00:08:16] The biggest main thing was making the tutorial language match the requirements.

[00:08:21] That was far and away the biggest thing that I had to do.

[00:08:24] I just gave them the project files.

[00:08:27] The only other thing we really had to discuss was adjusting the difficulty.

[00:08:32] It's a very challenging game.

[00:08:33] I'm sure you realize they have their internal play testers and they contacted me and said

[00:08:39] none of our play testers can get past stage two so can we make it easier?

[00:08:44] We added some health and lives depending on the difficulty that you've chosen.

[00:08:50] You made it almost easy on practice mode because I may have said this on previous episodes

[00:08:58] of this podcast.

[00:08:59] But practice mode on this game sort of works like certain games of the past where if you

[00:09:03] choose easy mode, it's quite easy but then the game will stop after a certain stage.

[00:09:09] You can't play the whole thing.

[00:09:10] It'll end and you'll get a screen prompting.

[00:09:12] You'll try the other difficulties.

[00:09:14] Is that present in the console versions as well?

[00:09:16] Oh yeah, absolutely.

[00:09:18] Did you feel like your vision was kind of being compromised with these changes or did

[00:09:21] you think it was for the best?

[00:09:23] I didn't think of it that way.

[00:09:24] I think it's perfectly fine playing on normal mode, adding one piece of health from one

[00:09:28] to two lives is not drastically going to affect the experience of the game.

[00:09:33] You still can't try again and again indefinitely from a checkpoint like you can with most modern

[00:09:38] platformers.

[00:09:39] You still have finite lives.

[00:09:40] If the lives are run out, you still have to at least go back to the beginning of

[00:09:42] the stage.

[00:09:44] So no, not at all.

[00:09:45] I think it's still perfectly in line with what I hope for.

[00:09:49] I mean, the game is a lot more difficult than what I expected, frankly.

[00:09:53] Did you have a sense of pride when you heard that oh, the devs can't even get past level

[00:09:58] two?

[00:09:59] Did you think, oh yes, this is exactly what I intended to do.

[00:10:03] No, no, we've just been spoiled.

[00:10:06] I mean, it's been 30 years really since this type of game blueprint has been normal.

[00:10:12] So it's not really surprising.

[00:10:15] Are there any plans for more languages in the future?

[00:10:18] Not from me personally, I think to be completely honest with you, I will have to see what

[00:10:25] the sales are like.

[00:10:27] I'm assuming that the publisher will be able to show me what the sales have been like

[00:10:30] in each country because I don't know as I'm totally independent, literally just.

[00:10:36] So spending whatever it is, $150, $200 on a translation, if it's not going to sell,

[00:10:42] it's just not really worth it for me personally.

[00:10:45] But and really you find that many, many gamers in non-English speaking countries can read

[00:10:51] English in video games, I think.

[00:10:54] And also I don't necessarily know that my future games are going to be as heavy on story.

[00:10:59] I know it's been a year from the original release to the upcoming console release, but

[00:11:02] around how long did it take to port the PC version of Violet with Stereo from Steam

[00:11:07] to the Switch in PlayStation and Xbox once the actual process began?

[00:11:12] It probably took me two months, I think, to switch out all of that language regarding

[00:11:20] controller naming.

[00:11:21] But once that was done, it really did not take them very long.

[00:11:25] They probably had the ports done not much more than a month.

[00:11:29] Oh, that's interesting.

[00:11:30] And that's because of Game Maker Studio.

[00:11:33] It's just called Game Maker now, but it's incredibly friendly, yeah, with console porting.

[00:11:37] Did you get to test the console versions during the porting process?

[00:11:40] I have never played any of the consoles.

[00:11:42] Oh, really interesting.

[00:11:44] Yeah, I am very curious as to what's going to happen.

[00:11:48] I think the footage in the East Asia Softest trailer, I believe that is from one of the console

[00:11:55] versions, mostly.

[00:11:56] Okay.

[00:11:57] So I don't think there's any bizarre performance issues or anything like that.

[00:12:01] I mean, it's a game that does not push on the limits of modern technical technology at

[00:12:08] all.

[00:12:09] Yeah, but no, I have not actually played the ports myself.

[00:12:12] Which console port do you plan on playing first when you get your hands on it?

[00:12:16] I only own a Switch, so it's going to have to be the Nintendo Switch.

[00:12:20] Oh, okay.

[00:12:21] Are you excited to play in handheld mode?

[00:12:23] I've never played my Switch in handheld mode now.

[00:12:25] Oh, really?

[00:12:26] Play games on the go.

[00:12:27] Maybe when I got my Switch, maybe I actually did play very briefly because I was still

[00:12:33] waiting to get a new TV, but yeah, no really.

[00:12:36] Yeah, we talked about it last year that, oh, Violet was stereo.

[00:12:39] You can play it on the steam deck.

[00:12:40] So ironically, it is a portable game, even though it was not your intention at all when

[00:12:45] you were making it.

[00:12:46] But now there are two portable devices that can play Violet was stereo technically speaking.

[00:12:52] Do you know if the game can be played with one Joy-Con?

[00:12:54] Is that a challenge, Redden?

[00:12:55] You'd like to see.

[00:12:56] I think one Joy-Con technically has all the same buttons, doesn't it?

[00:13:00] Doesn't have to do with those triggers?

[00:13:02] It doesn't have two.

[00:13:04] I'm pretty sure it just doesn't have the, it has left and right buttons.

[00:13:08] I think they're called SL and SR but only one.

[00:13:10] Well, then it wouldn't technically because you can use the L and R, the front ones to

[00:13:15] specify which attacker you're using and then R2 or whatever it is now ZR is a Switch Magic.

[00:13:23] Oh, okay.

[00:13:24] Looking back, would you have preferred to release Violet with stereo last year on all platforms

[00:13:28] at the same time or do you think having it on steam first then consoles later is more

[00:13:33] beneficial?

[00:13:34] Particularly as a first-time developer, I think this is really the only way to go about

[00:13:39] it.

[00:13:40] If you're going to pitch to a publisher, they need to know that there's the potential

[00:13:44] to make money from this.

[00:13:46] The first thing they need to know is that you can make a game complete.

[00:13:50] There's a trillion people out there making games but to make a game that is complete from

[00:13:56] start to finish and is commercially viable, there's a lot less people who do that or anything

[00:14:01] like that before not even any experience in the industry.

[00:14:04] I think that it was the best idea to release on PC first and show that there is a complete

[00:14:09] game here that have the ability to take something to the end.

[00:14:13] Even if it doesn't sell a whole lot of copies, I think that you've got a calling card

[00:14:19] or something to show for yourself now.

[00:14:20] If I'm established in the future, it would be wonderful to release simultaneously.

[00:14:25] I think that is ideal in a perfect world.

[00:14:27] I will definitely attempt to do that the next time but yeah, I was just going in with

[00:14:34] nothing.

[00:14:35] This whole project was done on a prayer.

[00:14:37] Follow us to area now has store pages on all the major platforms that I'm looking at

[00:14:40] the eShot page on intendo.com right now.

[00:14:44] Was it exciting to see these store pages pop up or did you use all your excitement when

[00:14:47] the steam page launched last year?

[00:14:49] It's pretty unbelievable.

[00:14:50] Yeah, to see your game on these major platforms.

[00:14:53] Yeah, it's really something.

[00:14:55] Another unexpected place Violet Wisteria popped up on is Vales' Wikipedia page.

[00:15:00] Do you know the background about how Violet Wisteria got referenced on Vales' the Pentasm

[00:15:05] Soldiers' Wikipedia page?

[00:15:07] I have no idea but I wonder if maybe the person who reviewed it for a website called

[00:15:13] Rice Digital might have been the one to add it.

[00:15:17] That's the only thing that I can think of.

[00:15:19] That website previewed Violet Wisteria quite a while before the PC release.

[00:15:25] So they were one of the first places that really gave it a little bit of attention.

[00:15:30] So then they gave it a full review after it came out, yeah, so it might be them.

[00:15:35] We didn't really talk about it but of course, Vales' area is heavily inspired by Vales.

[00:15:40] It is heavily inspired by Vales' website.

[00:15:43] It was initially going to be Vales 5.

[00:15:46] So to have the official Wikipedia page on Vales, mentioned Violet Wisteria is really awesome.

[00:15:50] Yeah, absolutely.

[00:15:52] What advice would you give to devs who have a game on Steam right now but aren't sure how

[00:15:56] to get it on Switch and other platforms?

[00:15:58] I will say that relatively, the bar to entry is very low now.

[00:16:05] The best thing that you can do is believe in your game and believe that it is worth playing,

[00:16:13] that it is as good as any other game be it independently made or not.

[00:16:18] If you ask around, there are many, many, many opportunities to get your game published

[00:16:23] on home consoles.

[00:16:25] It might only be Switch, but it depends.

[00:16:27] There are probably some different requirements.

[00:16:30] Some publishers may or may not be able to work with certain platforms.

[00:16:33] But polishing your creation, just ensuring that you've got something that has a clear start

[00:16:41] and finish.

[00:16:42] Once you're at that point, there are countless opportunities, I think.

[00:16:46] It's very easy to get your game published on a console as long as you've worked, spent

[00:16:53] time getting the bugs out and that kind of thing.

[00:16:56] What advice would you give to Switch gamers who are picking up Violet Wisteria for the first

[00:17:00] time?

[00:17:01] I would say it's an incredibly unique game and I hope you enjoy it.

[00:17:06] It's not a game made with the modern niceties.

[00:17:11] It does not really hit dopamine receptors.

[00:17:14] It's really old school, it's really about being stoic when an overcoming your failures

[00:17:20] and that kind of thing.

[00:17:22] But the best thing about Violet Wisteria is that it's made in such a way where if you get

[00:17:27] comfortable with the play mechanic, generally you can buy and large handle new situations

[00:17:34] that you've never seen just with reflexes.

[00:17:37] You don't have to memorize things for the most part.

[00:17:40] I think in terms of the gameplay, that's one of the advantages that it has.

[00:17:44] But I would say enjoy, it's incredibly different from anything else out there right now.

[00:17:49] I mean every week hundreds of games get released so it's just they get drowned out.

[00:17:54] It's difficult to tell what the difference is but I can say with 110% confidence that

[00:18:00] is drastically different from anything else being released on consoles right now.

[00:18:04] Are there any plans for perhaps a physical version of Violet Wisteria in the future?

[00:18:09] It would be wonderful, I would love that.

[00:18:11] It would definitely have to prove again that it is commercially viable, that there's enough

[00:18:16] interest that more than 500 people would be interested in buying a physical version which

[00:18:21] is not easy.

[00:18:22] It probably seems easy from one perspective many small games get physical releases from

[00:18:28] limited runner whoever but there are many other games out there.

[00:18:33] It's hard that's one of the offsets about is that the bar is in, bar to entry is relatively

[00:18:39] low now.

[00:18:40] If you've got some dedication, you can get your game out there.

[00:18:43] The flip side to that is there's countless other people who have the same intention.

[00:18:47] I personally think that the best idea would be to wait for our second game to come out

[00:18:52] and release it physically as a double pack.

[00:18:54] That would be more viable in terms of the amount of playability that people expect from

[00:18:58] a physical game.

[00:18:59] Like for example, join masters first two games only Ken and Odalis, they eventually came

[00:19:04] out on a double pack.

[00:19:06] It was actually published by East Asia Softwares.

[00:19:08] Oh yes, yeah I'm aware they do physical editions of games so maybe in the future you never know

[00:19:13] is there serious sales how many thousand copies it can be done by them?

[00:19:18] Frankly, I would probably be setting myself for trouble if I expected them.

[00:19:25] Is there any sort of pack in or a special item you'd like to include?

[00:19:28] In a physical edition of Violent Mysteria?

[00:19:31] Oh man.

[00:19:32] Those things are so boring to me personally.

[00:19:35] I shouldn't say my real opinion on some of these things man because some of the things

[00:19:38] I think are so dissonant in relation to what modern gaming trends are.

[00:19:43] I really am just not particularly interested by all the trinkets that they put into the

[00:19:48] limited editions obviously a soundtrack CD would be good.

[00:19:52] You can always go to the plushie route as well, just put it in there, plushie the main

[00:19:56] character.

[00:19:57] Yeah, not for all people.

[00:19:59] You could.

[00:20:00] I don't know which boss is going to end up being the most popular.

[00:20:04] I was thinking more or almost something like a book, like a backstory, like something

[00:20:10] totally unexpected, like a religious text on the world with a higher realm or something

[00:20:17] like just do something very bizarre.

[00:20:20] Before we wrap up what's the future of Connie Pro Games?

[00:20:22] Can you give us any details on your next game?

[00:20:25] I have been working hard in secret, in a secret laboratory under the Earth's crust on our

[00:20:31] next title below Mount Fuji.

[00:20:36] So the next game is well underway.

[00:20:40] The game program itself is very far along.

[00:20:42] I've been hitting it pretty hard the past few months but I finally found people do graphics

[00:20:45] so we're just starting to get some of that stuff in place.

[00:20:48] Those things take quite a while but I think it's a familiar genre with a major twist on

[00:20:55] it.

[00:20:56] And this time we have a new composer, I'm not going to quite reveal who the composer is

[00:21:00] right now.

[00:21:01] There's going to be a moment when that's appropriate but it is a well-known person who has a bit

[00:21:08] of a cult following they haven't done a soundtrack in a very long time but they did make some

[00:21:13] music recently and that's how I got a hold of them and they're coming back out of retirement

[00:21:18] to do another soundtrack and it's going to be big news when we reveal who they are.

[00:21:22] It's exciting.

[00:21:23] It is very exciting.

[00:21:24] Obviously this is going to be a vertical shooter and I'm sure you realize it's not going

[00:21:27] to be just a dodge and shoot.

[00:21:29] It's going to have to be some major twist to it.

[00:21:33] All right, well that was a very thorough look at getting a game on the Nintendo Switch.

[00:21:38] So Chris from ConyPro Games where can people find you and where can people find Violet

[00:21:42] with Staria?

[00:21:44] ConyPro does technically have its own social media.

[00:21:46] I do have Twitter account and even YouTube channel for ConyPro before I started doing

[00:21:53] games under the name ConyPro.

[00:21:55] I also was sort of a YouTuber.

[00:21:59] I had some videos about old game reviews so you can find me as ultra-healthy video game

[00:22:06] nerd on Twitter and YouTube.

[00:22:10] Violet with Staria is already on PC and it's going to be on all modern consoles.

[00:22:15] So Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series SX and Xbox One.

[00:22:22] So they release worldwide simultaneously March 13th, March 14th in East Asia and Japan.

[00:22:28] And if the rumors that Switch 2 is going to be backwards compatible, it is I guess going

[00:22:32] to be available on Switch 2 maybe we can announce that early, no promises but it is possible

[00:22:38] you never know.

[00:22:40] So awesome and listeners, the links to everything will be in the podcast description so check

[00:22:45] it out.

[00:22:46] Chris from ConyPro Games, once again thanks for joining me.

[00:22:49] Hey thank you very much for having me on, I really appreciate it.

[00:22:58] It's a very crowded game season right now, I'm still playing Side Order, still playing

[00:23:02] Balotro and I'm even trying to clear some expert levels on Mario vs Donkey Kong but yet

[00:23:07] another game has entered the fray and grabbed my attention Unicorn Overlord from Vanilla

[00:23:12] Wear.

[00:23:13] This game was announced in the September Nintendo Direct with the bold proclamation that

[00:23:17] the game is the rebirth of tactical fantasy RPGs.

[00:23:20] I'm still early in the game so I can't definitively say it has completely brought the tactical

[00:23:25] RPG genre to its knees and now we need to bow down to our new king, but Unicorn Overlord

[00:23:30] both wears its many inspirations on its sleeves while also delivering something new and exciting.

[00:23:36] I feel like I should be a huge Vanilla Wear fan because of the detail 2D art but I haven't

[00:23:41] really played a lot of their games.

[00:23:43] I've played Monomasa which rules and now Unicorn Overlord.

[00:23:48] Odin's fear and Dragon's Crown are perpetually on my, I'll get to it someday list.

[00:23:52] Hey by the way Vanilla Wear, if you want to release Monomasa on Switch, I will play it.

[00:23:57] The game was announced only a few months ago and now it's here.

[00:24:00] A far cry from 13 Sentinels which seemed to be announced way before its release date and

[00:24:05] then there was a year gap between the Japanese and US release then a 2 year gap from that

[00:24:10] release to the Switch version.

[00:24:12] It definitely feels like this game came out of nowhere and I do feel that maybe there's

[00:24:15] not a lot of hype surrounding it despite it being a very rare Vanilla Wear release but

[00:24:20] maybe because it didn't have some long drawn out marketing cycle, that it feels like

[00:24:24] I haven't heard people talk about it as much compared to 13 Sentinels.

[00:24:27] I do prefer the hey our game comes out in 6 months marketing plan opposed to the CU

[00:24:32] in 3 years type of announcement.

[00:24:35] Unicorn Overlord is a strategy RPG but just saying that doesn't even scratch the surface

[00:24:39] of the mini systems that the game employs.

[00:24:41] Fire Emblem Plus, Ogre Battle Plus, RTS is a fairly convenient shorthand.

[00:24:46] Like Fire Emblem you move units into each other to initiate battle where you can see the

[00:24:49] expected outcome before the battle even starts like how much damage you're going to do.

[00:24:54] And like Ogre Battle you don't merely have one character but instead you control several

[00:24:57] squads which are made up of characters on a grid.

[00:25:01] While the actual battles are turn based moving your units during the battle on the overworld

[00:25:04] is actually in real time but you can pause the game so don't worry.

[00:25:08] It is very much a gumbo of different games and ideas but it does feel very coherent albeit

[00:25:13] somewhat overwhelming at first.

[00:25:15] Unicorn Overlord definitely nails what makes strategy RPGs fun, you want unit customization

[00:25:19] and you want to be able to use these units in interesting scenarios that suit their

[00:25:23] strengths.

[00:25:24] Each unit does have gear that you can equip but the real strategy element comes from what

[00:25:28] squad they're in and how you arrange them.

[00:25:30] Each squad has 2 rows of 3 squares each and it does matter where you put them.

[00:25:35] You might want to put a tank character guarding your archer or you might want to deliberately

[00:25:38] not put your characters front to back because the enemy can hit both with one attack since

[00:25:43] they're a spearman for example.

[00:25:45] The game does suggest some setups but you're likely learn more by trolling error and seeing

[00:25:48] the battles play out.

[00:25:50] Unlike Fire Emblem where you select your attack before you initiate battle, here all the battles

[00:25:54] are automated so which unit attacks who when they use their healing spells etc is out

[00:25:59] of your hands.

[00:26:00] I'm not 100% convinced that this is for the best just yet though.

[00:26:04] So far the AI does seem to be smart and battles do play out similar to what I would have

[00:26:08] selected but it does feel odd to have all these options in a strategy game but you can't

[00:26:12] actually affect the battles once they begin.

[00:26:15] You can use items before battle starts and units do have special abilities you could initiate

[00:26:19] on the field but once the battle begins it's out of your hands.

[00:26:24] And the game certainly has a lot of systems there's everything I mentioned above plus things

[00:26:27] like valor points that you use to deploy units or use abilities also each unit has stamina

[00:26:32] that drains when you engage in battle so you need to sometimes stop and regain stamina

[00:26:36] and you can also take over forts and talk to characters on the field there's definitely

[00:26:40] a lot going on each battle.

[00:26:42] Early on you can just point your characters at the baddies and watch them mo down enemies

[00:26:46] but after a few easy battles you can get rocked if you aren't paying attention to your

[00:26:49] stamina or your squad build.

[00:26:51] I forgot to put an archer in one of my squads and when I got to some Griffin Knights whoops

[00:26:56] I can't do any damage.

[00:26:57] You can change up your squad during battles at specific areas but ideally you want to

[00:27:01] go in with the squads you want.

[00:27:03] I do like how the battles take place on the overworld you're not warped to a separate

[00:27:06] area to fight for example like in fire emblem.

[00:27:09] There are also optional areas and things to engage with during a fight and doing things

[00:27:12] like liberating a city or garrisoning a bridge does make it feel like an epic battle not

[00:27:17] just a few swords been swinging at each other.

[00:27:18] I do wonder if it's going to get overwhelming when I can control 8 squads and the enemy

[00:27:22] has a dozen squads coming at me from all directions but let's cross that bridge later.

[00:27:27] Your squads do start to feel more powerful once you recruit more characters and increase

[00:27:30] your squad size so I'm really excited to see what kind of super powerful squads I can

[00:27:34] make in the future.

[00:27:35] And speaking of characters, there's a lot you can recruit and the game has dozens of classes.

[00:27:39] You can also make generic characters that do have a surprising amount of flexibility.

[00:27:44] You can pick how their stats grow, their name, their hair color, it's not too dissimilar

[00:27:48] from hiring characters in Final Fantasy Tactics or making them in Dyschia for example.

[00:27:53] You can also create some classes before you encounter a story character of the same class

[00:27:57] and since later on in the game you probably will be controlling dozens of characters in

[00:28:01] a single battle so it doesn't encourage you not to just wait for a story character

[00:28:05] and instead make who you want.

[00:28:06] When you're not battling the other part of the game consists of overworld exploration.

[00:28:10] You're a little sprite on a big map, just like a classic JRPG.

[00:28:14] You can visit towns to buy stuff, upgrade your towns to buy more stuff, talk to NPCs, collect

[00:28:18] mats, do side quests and so forth.

[00:28:21] Strategy RPGs have always struggled with the question what should players do when they are

[00:28:24] not in battle?

[00:28:25] A tough 20-40 to maybe even hour long battle does take a lot out of you so I think

[00:28:31] maybe players aren't super eager to just jump into the next battle.

[00:28:34] They want a little downtime and opportunity to rest and check on their units.

[00:28:38] Fire Emblem entered this quandary by introducing hub bases in between battles but I think

[00:28:41] in the future they will likely introduce something similar to what Unicorn Overlord has.

[00:28:46] You don't have a home base per se, but there are plenty of safe areas to visit while

[00:28:49] also enemies you can spot and engage with on the map at your leisure.

[00:28:53] The player can decide what they want to do and when and the game has a good flow thanks

[00:28:56] to this freedom.

[00:28:58] As for the presentation, it's a vanilla-ware game so the game looks stellar with amazingly

[00:29:01] detailed animations.

[00:29:02] I will say that it is a bit tame in terms of character designs.

[00:29:06] I don't want to say they're generic but they do look kind of like fantasy characters

[00:29:10] you've seen before.

[00:29:11] The main character is a blue-haired guy and night armor.

[00:29:14] His best friend and rival has red hair.

[00:29:16] Your mentor is an old cavalry knight.

[00:29:19] Everyone kind of looks like what you'd expect them to.

[00:29:21] Compared to the more fantastical designs of Monomasa or Dragon's Crown, it does seem way

[00:29:26] more grounded than you'd expect from a vanilla-ware game.

[00:29:29] I think the story could also be criticized the same way.

[00:29:32] Your prince whose kingdom is taken away, so you've got to raise an army to get it back.

[00:29:36] You have a cute girl who is your childhood friend.

[00:29:38] Again, your best friend is a fiery rival with the opposite color hair as you.

[00:29:42] I do wonder if there's some sort of twist or subversion down the line because their previous

[00:29:46] game, 13 Sentinels, was very well regarded for an unorthodox and complex story.

[00:29:51] So to go from that to a more stereotypical, savior-kingdom fantasy tale is a bit surprising.

[00:29:56] I'm not super far into the game though so maybe I could just be completely wrong and

[00:30:00] it actually makes Game of Thrones seem like a fairy tale in terms of emotional richness.

[00:30:05] We'll see.

[00:30:06] I feel like this is the easiest game in the world to at least recommend you try because

[00:30:09] there is a demo and the demo lets you play the full game for about six or seven hours.

[00:30:13] That's a pretty absurd amount of time and you'll definitely know if you gel with the game

[00:30:16] by that point.

[00:30:17] So there's really no reason to rush and buy it.

[00:30:19] Download the demo and play that, and if you want more, get ready to plop down 60 bucks.

[00:30:24] If you like SRPGs, if you're a Fire Emblem fan, the demo is at least worth checking out.

[00:30:29] If it doesn't reinvent tactical RPGs, it at least gives a fresh take on the genre.

[00:30:34] I'll definitely talk about the game again on the podcast once I get some more hours into

[00:30:37] it or when I beat it.

[00:30:40] And vanillaware, please let there be an actual unicorn class in this game.

[00:30:44] Okay, game time is up now for the news.

[00:30:49] Remember Pokemon?

[00:30:53] They're back in this time they're presenting things.

[00:30:56] We had our annual Pokemon Day Pokemon Presents video.

[00:31:00] The big announcement, of course, being a shocking one, a sequel to Pokemon Legends titled

[00:31:04] Pokemon Legends, the A. I think many of us expected another Pokemon Legends game since

[00:31:09] the first one was so highly regarded and did so well, but no one expected the next one

[00:31:13] to be set in Callos.

[00:31:15] So many rumors were flying around about a possible Unova game since Gen 5 is the oldest

[00:31:19] Gen yet to be remade.

[00:31:21] And I even saw some Johto related rumors since that's the region we haven't visited in

[00:31:24] the longest time, but nope, we are returning to Callos to Poker France in the latest Legends

[00:31:29] game.

[00:31:30] The video didn't show any gameplay, but is described as taking place solely in Lumio City

[00:31:35] and will focus on urban redevelopment to make it a better place for Pokemon and people.

[00:31:40] That's a very, very vague explanation, but let me take a shot at what the game is going

[00:31:44] to be about.

[00:31:45] The video shows both rough sketches of the city and also a futuristic 3D rendering.

[00:31:49] And since the title literally goes from Z to A, I think that maybe we will be able to

[00:31:53] bounce back and forth between the present and the past.

[00:31:56] So for example, something we do in the past, like creating a new building, will then be reflected

[00:32:01] in the future.

[00:32:02] At the very end of the trailer, we do get an overhead shot of Lumio City, which looks mostly

[00:32:05] the same as it's a big circle with 5 sections, but it's much more intricate than it was

[00:32:10] in XY.

[00:32:11] So I think some city builder elements will be present.

[00:32:14] Setting an entire Pokemon game in a single city is a really exciting and unexpected concept.

[00:32:19] Most RPGs in general should really just be set in a dense city instead of having a bunch

[00:32:23] of small towns and a big empty overworld.

[00:32:25] Final Fantasy VII Remake went with this concept, and the last section of Baldur's Gate 3 takes

[00:32:30] place in the titular city.

[00:32:31] Now while Act 3 of Baldur's Gate 3 is not a whole game, it's about as long as one.

[00:32:37] The Okai Watch also mostly takes place in a single city in the surrounding area, so it's

[00:32:41] not as limiting as you'd think.

[00:32:43] I'm sure there will be an underground portion as well, and maybe you do get to explore

[00:32:46] the outskirts of the city, but keeping most of the game inside the city really gets

[00:32:49] to be excited about how they're going to pull it off.

[00:32:52] I'm a huge fan of XY, and I even did an episode last year about XY's 10-year anniversary.

[00:32:57] Definitely go listen to that if you want to hear me and a guest gush about how great those

[00:33:01] games are, and we both agree that Gen 6 would have a better reputation if there was a Pokemon

[00:33:05] Z.

[00:33:06] Well, this isn't Pokemon Z, but it's the closest thing we are going to get.

[00:33:11] Will Zygarde finally get justice?

[00:33:13] Will As Return, I mean yes to both, right?

[00:33:16] They can really wrap up any lingering plot threads from XY and build on the lore of Kalos.

[00:33:21] The game comes out early next year, so thankfully it doesn't seem like Game Freak is just completely

[00:33:25] rushing the game to get it out the door this holiday.

[00:33:28] We don't have any notable Pokemon releases on the Switch this year, which is pretty shocking.

[00:33:33] I can't complain though, let them cook.

[00:33:35] They don't need to open the oven door when it's still preheating.

[00:33:38] Summer wandering, oh will this come out on the Switch 2 simultaneously?

[00:33:42] I say don't hold your breath for a native Switch 2 version, but again we still don't

[00:33:46] know anything about the platform and how you will be able to play Switch games on it.

[00:33:50] So maybe there is a possibility there are two different versions at launch, but either

[00:33:54] way I think this is now my new most anticipated game.

[00:33:58] The Kalos hype will rise up.

[00:34:00] Oh, and the other notable announcement is a Pokemon trading card game pocket for mobile,

[00:34:05] which is a sort of truncated version of the TCG game.

[00:34:08] You get two free packs a day and you can even battle with them in a special version of TCG

[00:34:12] battles, more aimed at casuals.

[00:34:14] The current TCG client is pretty unusual since it's not really a game.

[00:34:17] It does feel like a digital companion app for people who played the physical card game.

[00:34:21] It's also US only, which is unusual for a game that comes from Japan.

[00:34:26] But this seems to be an easier entry point for people.

[00:34:28] I kind of wonder if it's going to be like a Pokemon version of Marvel Snap, which

[00:34:33] I would honestly love.

[00:34:34] I really don't think we're going to be building a 60 card deck either way.

[00:34:37] I'll definitely try it out and let's see how addicted I get to it.

[00:34:41] That bit of Pokemon news, the Tsutaya in Shibuya, will open up a Pokemon card lounge on

[00:34:45] the 5th floor starting from April 25th.

[00:34:47] It looks like a trendy adult-oriented cafe where you can play the Pokemon TCG.

[00:34:51] The site even says you can come empty handed and they'll give you decks and other materials

[00:34:55] to play with.

[00:34:56] Plus, it also sells some exclusive merch.

[00:34:59] There isn't an admission fee though so it doesn't seem like you can just wander

[00:35:02] in there.

[00:35:03] I do imagine there will be some sort of reservation system like other card game shops have.

[00:35:07] I do want to visit it though and maybe it's a future podcast feature.

[00:35:11] We're done with Pokemon but let's stick to handhelds, the Wonder Swan turned 25 years

[00:35:15] old last week.

[00:35:16] This is Bandai's Game Boy competitor that was designed by Goomepei Yokoi, the father of

[00:35:20] the Game Boy.

[00:35:21] Though it was only on the market for a few years, it also has many games from franchises

[00:35:25] that the Game Boy wasn't getting like Final Fantasy.

[00:35:28] Bandai is releasing some Wonder Swan merch including keychains and t-shirts for a limited

[00:35:31] time so if you're listening to this podcast, you've got about a week.

[00:35:34] I definitely want to cover the Wonder Swan as a future in the podcast too in the future.

[00:35:39] Don't worry, I will never run out of subjects to talk about.

[00:35:41] Some more news, a Twitter user by the name of 123456789USJ recently tweeted out a map

[00:35:47] of the Donkey Kong Country expansion at Universal Studios Japan.

[00:35:51] It is the same map as the USJ app so it's a cartoony rendition of the park.

[00:35:56] But even then, we still get to see some details like the minigames sections not unlike

[00:35:59] the minigames in Super Nintendo World.

[00:36:02] There's also a stage where you can meet DK, plus Cranky, Dixie and Didi Kong also

[00:36:06] seem to appear in the park somewhere.

[00:36:08] One of the minigames seems to be some sort of bongo drum game with Rambi watching you so

[00:36:12] it will be cool to see a real life Rambi at least.

[00:36:15] I'm totally going to visit it but I imagine year one is going to be insanely crowded.

[00:36:19] I will at least try to cover on the podcast this year though so fingers crossed.

[00:36:23] And last bit of news, some very sad news, Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball fame has passed

[00:36:27] away at the age of 68.

[00:36:29] He's incredibly influential in the gaming sphere as the character designer for Dragon Quest,

[00:36:33] Chrono Trigger, Blue Dragon and the upcoming Sandland.

[00:36:36] It's really impossible to overstate his influence.

[00:36:39] For example, if you look at the early Ken Sogi Mori designs for Pokemon, it looks like

[00:36:44] he is really imitating Akira Toriyama.

[00:36:46] Seriously go back and look at the Gen 1 art and look at Akira Toriyama's art and they're

[00:36:51] very very similar so he has a big footprint on the gaming world even on games he didn't

[00:36:55] even work on.

[00:36:56] It's really hard to overstate his influence on manga, anime, video games.

[00:37:01] I might want to cover him on the podcast in the future to pay tribute so look out for

[00:37:05] that.

[00:37:06] Okay we can wrap it up.

[00:37:07] Thanks as always for listening be sure to like and subscribe to this podcast on your

[00:37:10] favorite app.

[00:37:11] Leave a five star review as well it really helps with visibility.

[00:37:15] This podcast is also available on YouTube so like and subscribe there as well.

[00:37:18] I'm on Twitter, Threads, Blue Sky, Instagram just search for Tokyo Game Life or find

[00:37:23] the links in the podcast description.

[00:37:25] If you liked the podcast be sure to share it with your friends and on social media.

[00:37:27] If there's anything you want me to talk about or cover don't be shy just message me

[00:37:31] on Twitter.

[00:37:32] The next episode will be on March 24th, see you next time, Matane!