White Knight Chronicles

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White Knight Chronicles

Developer(s) Level-5
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Platform(s) PlayStation 3
Release date JP TBA 2008
NA TBA 2008
EU TBA 2008
Genre(s) RPG
Mode(s) Single Player
Rating(s) CERO: TBD
ESRB: TBD
PEGI: TBD
Media 1 × BD-ROM

White Knight Chronicles (白騎士物語 Shirokishi Monogatari?) is a video game RPG developed by Level-5 and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3. It is Level-5's first project for the system, and is currently slated to release in Japan sometime in early to mid 2008, with a worldwide localization to follow shortly thereafter.

While little is known about the title, Level-5 has revealed they are placing an emphasis on scale within the game world. As per the playable demo at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show, some enemies are extremely large in size, resulting in battle situations similar in style to Sony Computer Entertainment's PlayStation 2 title, Shadow of the Colossus. In one piece of concept artwork, a massive turtle-like creature is depicted carrying an entire city on its back.[1]

Contents

[edit] Gameplay

Lenard transforming into the White Knight.
Lenard transforming into the White Knight.

White Knight Chronicles, like most other console RPGs, is presented in third person perspective. The player can freely choose which character to control. Like any other RPG, the characters gain experience points and level up, becoming stronger over the course of the game. Level-5 plans to make White Knight Chronicles a 50-60 hour game, a length Akihiro Hino considers to be a full length RPG, going against the pressure to make White Knight Chronicles a launch title and cutting the story short.[2]

[edit] World

The Tokyo Game Show trailer shows that, similar to The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, one can select locations on a world map, presumably ones the player has already visited, to instantly go to, along with a preview of that area. Each area also has a quest list that shows quests the player has yet to complete. The player can choose a quest to do before going to the desired area.

[edit] Battle system

Battling on the Blaster Plains.
Battling on the Blaster Plains.

The battle system used in White Knight Chronicles uses a real-time combat system, where the battle mode is initiated automatically when enemies are present. Before a battle, the player optionally goes into the "Battle Preparation" menu (accessible at any time) and chooses a set of seven commands for each character in the party. This set of seven commands is called a "Function Palette", and several of these palettes can be saved, suggesting that tactical palette preparing and switching will be essential to the game. The commands can also link in some way, presumably to create combos. These can then be used in battle, where the player controls one of the characters, while the others are controlled by the AI, as seen in the Tokyo Game Show trailer. Players, though, can freely change the character they're controlling. The main character can transform into the White Knight when a gauge is filled, using normal attacks on minor enemies. Characters can also perform combo attacks with other characters, such as one character holding an enemy while another attacks it. Boss battles also take place in a similar fashion except that they may include cutscenes for in-battle events.

[edit] Characters

  • Lenard

The main character who can transform into the White Knight.

  • Yulie

A girl who comes from the same village as Lenard.

  • Erudoa

A middle aged warrior.

  • White Knight

A seven meter tall warrior from a time when such creatures nearly destroyed all of mankind.

  • Black Knight

A warrior identical to the White Knight in both powers and abilities.

  • The Player

A character that the player of the game can customize and have accompany the main cast throughout the game.

[edit] Story

Not much is known about the story, though in a recent interview with Famitsu, Level-5 president Akihiro Hino revealed that the game's story will center around the relationship between the protagonist and the princess that was seen in the promotional trailer. Early in the game, the protagonist comes to the princess' rescue and from there on, they begin to develop a close relationship with one another.[3] One scene depicted in the promotional trailer shows the couple dancing together in a forest.

[edit] Audio

White Knight Chronicles will feature full voice-overs, as well as an orchestrated soundtrack by Level-5 composer Tomohito Nishiura.

[edit] References

  1. ^ IGN Staff (2006-09-20). TGS 2006: Level-5 Working on PS3. IGN PS3. IGN. Retrieved on 2006-09-21.
  2. ^ IGN Staff (2006-10-06). Akihiro Hino Talks White Knight. IGN PS3. IGN. Retrieved on 2006-10-07.
  3. ^ RPGFan (2007-07-28). Level 5 Talks White Knight Story. RPGFan. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.

[edit] External links