For Producer Masaru Saito, Brigandine Abyss Has Been a Long Time Coming

Brigandine is not a household name, but it certainly has a loyal following of diehard fans always hoping for more. That’s why Brigandine Abyss , only the third game in the series in 28 years, is such a big deal. Due later this year on Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC, it’s a brand new entry that retains the deep turn-based tactical gameplay of earlier installments while going its own way in terms of visuals and narrative. It promises six different story campaigns, and a special Mission Mode in which players control one of 24 different factions, each with its own unique win condition. Last weekend at PAX East in Boston, I was fortunate to sit down with Masaru Saito, the producer of Brigandine Abyss , at the NIS America booth. Via a translator, Saito-san spoke at length about the game’s story, mechanics, and novelties, as well as the dream team of artists, composers, and directors he assembled to make it. VGCHARTZ: Tell me about the setting and story. Is everything completely separate from previous games in the series? SAITO: There are actually no connections to the previous games, so it’s a completely stand-alone story. There was the original PlayStation version that released in 1998. There was also an expanded Grand Edition in Japan. And then there was The Legend of Runersia , which was about 20 years after that. And then this title, but they’re all stand-alone storylines. VGCHARTZ: That’s a perfect segue to my next question. Over 20 years passed between the first and second Brigandine games. But only 6 years have passed between the second and this third game. What led to the decision to make a new sequel? SAITO: To be honest, we had wanted to develop this even sooner than we did. But it ended up taking about five or six years, because we couldn’t get approval from the company at first. It took a little while. I personally wanted to get it out about three or four years after the last title. VGCHARTZ: So you were persistent? SAITO: Yes, that’s right. Actually, at the time of Legend of Runersia , I was an assistant producer. But I ended up leaving Happinet while it was still in the alpha phase. And then I rejoined Happinet after a couple of years. After that, the company decided they wanted to continue the Brigandine series. I was basically told, we want you to work on this. Now, during the time that I was working on Legend of Runersia , I wasn’t doing development; I was doing promotional work. But during that time, I was actually building out a design document for this title. I’m not sure about how it typically works in other companies internationally, but within Japan, it’s not typically something that you would do. But I just had a very strong feeling about this series. So in a way, Abyss is sort of my revenge match — where I wasn’t able to complete the previous one all the way through. VGCHARTZ: It seems like Brigandine is something that means a lot to you. SAITO: In some ways, it was a selfish act on my part. But I just really wanted to make it. VGCHARTZ: Any big changes in terms of grid-based movement and combat in general? SAITO: As far as the hexagonal grid-based system, that’s consistent across all three games. But one of the big changes for this title in particular is that now we have different gradations of terrain levels. The terrain affects your movement ability and attack range. For example, if your character has a stomp attack or some short-range punch or kick, those moves wouldn’t connect if you’re on different elevations. But for long-range magic attacks, it doesn’t matter where you are. Also, there are now destructible elements in the environment. For example, if you enter a Japanese-style stage, you’ll see a lot of big taiko drums. And if you try to attack those drums, the enemies around you will increase their attack power. VGCHARTZ: What about the rally system? Tell me more about that. SAITO: Yes, the rally system is also a new element that I think will be appealing to players. You can take one of your monsters and combine it with your leader as a single unit, which grants additional benefits. And you can move around the field with the two of them combined. So it’s one of those things that you’ll have to be mindful of as you go through each of your turns, because the enemies are also capable of utilizing a rally. VGCHARTZ: Speaking of monsters, how do monsters and humans interact in this game, both in terms of mechanics and storytelling? SAITO: In the previous title, Legend of Runersia , you used the power of mana to create monsters, and they were almost like weapons. But in this title, they’re more like living beings — allies or equals that fight alongside humans. So there are actually a lot of monsters that are named characters that show up in the story. VGCHARTZ: The individuals behind the game have impressive resumes. There are artists, composers, writers, and directors who previously worked on Fire Emblem , Sengoku Basara , Okami , Bayonetta , and Suikoden . How do these previous experiences elevate Abyss ? SAITO: I am fortunate that I had the chance to work with the composer [Rei] Kondoh-san, the main director [Makoto] Yamamoto-san, and the scenario director [Iduru] Matsuno-san. I feel very lucky that we were able to assemble such a talented team. Once we signed on with Adglobe to be our developers, all these other opportunities opened up. Yamamoto-san, who wrote the scenarios for Sengoku Basara over at Capcom, came into Adglobe right around that same time. And then he introduced me to some of these other people like Matsuno-san who had also worked on Sengoku Basara and Kondoh-san who had been composing on Bayonetta and things like that. So it happened all at once. Just as I was thinking about “who do we need to pull in to work on this?”, here they all came. It just happened to work out that way and I feel very blessed for it. VGCHARTZ: When it comes to Abyss , what does success mean to you? Is it the critical consensus? Fan reception? Sales? Some combination of all three? SAITO: So I guess there’s two ways to look at it. I have my own personal take on it, and then there’s the company take on it. For the company, it’s the number of sales. But for me, of course my highest priority is I want users to feel satisfied and think that Abyss was a fun game. And then my second priority is sales. And the reason I say that is because if we don’t have the sales, then I can’t make the next one. So, yes, my biggest goal with this is that I just wanted to make something that people would connect with. And so really the player feedback is the most important thing to me. I’d like to thank Saito-san for his candid, thoughtful answers; Shawn for his invaluable translation services; and the entire NIS America team, including Clever Communications, for arranging the interview. Full Article – https://www.vgchartz.com/article/467403/for-producer-masaru-saito-brigandine-abyss-has-been-a-long-time-coming/