Throughout Summer season Recreation Fest final week, you’d be forgiven for having neglected Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree. It’s a model new rogue-like that obtained a really, very temporary trailer and little in the best way of different data or fanfare. However its uncommon improvement story might make Towa one of the vital fascinating video games that appeared through the present.
I spoke with Daisuke Nagaoka, producer at Bandai Namco on Towa, and Shuhei Yamashita, sport director at developer Brownies, following the announcement of the sport and a few hands-on playtime, which you’ll be able to learn right here. The 2 began by catching me up on the historical past of Brownies, a studio with a captivating pedigree.
Brownies advanced out of Nintendo-owned Brownie Brown Inc, a Tokyo-based firm based by Mana sequence veterans Shinichi Kameoka and Kouji Tsuda. As Brownie Brown, the developer co-developed a lot of beloved video games corresponding to Sword of Mana, Heroes of Mana, Tremendous Mario 3D Land, and Fantasy Life. However then, in 2012, the corporate introduced that it will formally change into a Nintendo help studio, and alter its identify to 1-Up Studio. When this occurred, Kameoka departed, and with different former Brownie Brown builders fashioned Brownies.
Ever since, Brownies has made a reputation for itself with video games like Fantasy Life Hyperlink!, the Egglia sequence, and co-development on Doraemon Story of Seasons, which Bandai Namco revealed. Nagaoka explains that this present relationship had gone effectively, in order the groups have been ending up Doraemon, Bandai determined it wished to work with Brownies once more. “Their creativity was so great as such, that we wished to create one thing authentic and we determined to work collectively.”
However Bandai Namco didn’t find yourself getting precisely what it ordered. Yamashita explains that Bandai Namco initially got here to Brownies asking for an authentic RPG “with a Japanese aptitude, Japanese style.” It’s a smart request, given Brownies’ previous work. However Yamashita, who was a giant fan of roguelites and roguelites, had a distinct thought. He counter-pitched Bandai Namco on a style of sport the corporate had by no means revealed earlier than.
So why did Bandai Namco say sure?
“There are three issues,” Nagaoka says. “First is that this roguelite style, while you have a look at the worldwide market, there’s a massive buyer base. So from the enterprise perspective, that could be a good route. And secondly, Bandai Namco, we thought that is value a problem, as a result of we have not executed something like this earlier than. So we have been able to tackle this problem.
“And the third level is that RPGs are primarily based on good tales, however there aren’t that many roguelite video games which have a stable storyline. So we wished to create one thing that has a very good storyline with the roguelite, and by doing that, we thought we might differentiate ourselves.”
There was one roguelite, nonetheless, that did have the form of story and components Brownies and Bandai Namco have been searching for: Hades.
“That is a sport that’s actually snug to play,” Yamashita says. “The playability is sweet. In order that was one thing I wished to attain with this sport as effectively.”
Bandai Namco did get its method, nonetheless, in that Towa is actually a sport with a “Japanese aptitude.” It’s impressed closely by Japanese and extra broadly Japanese motifs, says Yamashita, regardless that he provides that there’s no particular piece of folklore or fable that’s instantly retold within the sport. The characters, as an example, all cowl a distinct motif, corresponding to a shiba, a koi, and a samurai. Brownies initially got here up with 24 completely different characters, all with distinctive silhouettes and personalities, and an inner competitors narrowed the sector down to simply eight.
However that is the place Towa differs from Hades and different video games of the style. As a substitute of taking part in one character at a time, gamers management two: one carrying a sword, and one other in a help position carrying a employees. Every character has completely different skills relying on which position they’re taking part in, and each may be managed independently utilizing the left and proper sticks and completely different buttons. It’s a configuration that took some getting used to (as I wrote in my preview), however finally proved to be an fascinating twist on what I used to be used to from video games like Hades.
“There are two advantages to having these two characters,” Yamashita says. “Initially… Nicely, in 3D video games the correct stick is for maneuvering the digital camera. So this kind of sport, while you’re trying down, I assumed that this mechanism would enable with the ability to function or to maneuver having two characters. In order that was our thought.
“After which secondly, having two characters from the story perspective, having the relationships or the connections between these characters and having conversations, that might give extra depth to it. So we thought that there can be a profit to have these two characters.”
Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree is out on September 19, 2025 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Collection consoles, PC by way of Steam, and Nintendo Swap. You’ll be able to atone for our temporary expertise hands-on with the sport right here.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You will discover her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Obtained a narrative tip? Ship it to rvalentine@ign.com.