Also, I think the PS Blog entry was edited for space. The actual entry I wrote was longer and wasn't so "stop and start." Here's the full original PS Blog post I turned in, before it was shortened. I think it has a little more flavor, but you decide:
As a gamer, it always bothered me that English speaking gamers were denied the goodness of Summon Night. But making the connections required for an English license to happen is not a simple undertaking. I dont know who else, If anyone, was crazy enough to try to tackle Summon Night, but back in 2014, our madness paid off - the planets aligned, years of work paid off, and our karma glowed bright enough that we were able to license Summon Night 5 so we could finally release the first mainline Summon Night game in the US. The only drawback was that it was being released on the PSP, which only had a small but dedicated base left after almost 10 years since its release.
But, our hard work for that dedicated group of RPG fans would pay off in large ways. It turned out Summon Night 5 was only the warmup Summon Night 6: Lost Borders would be the main attraction, and would be our very first multi-platform release, since it is for both PlayStation 4 and PS Vita. BANDAI NAMCO was happy enough with the job we did on Summon Night 5 that we were invited to do the next game in the series, which we discussed in a top-secret meeting in June 2015 at E3. Even about 9 months before the Japanese release, it was clear this was a beautiful, fun strategy RPG that was a Summon Night game, through and through. And it was extra-special because the game was tagged as a special release that celebrated the 15th Anniversary of Summon Night; it would bring together many key characters from the whole series for one grand, guaranteed trope-free romp.
Er...okay, I lied about the trope-free part. There as many JRPG tropes as you would expect throughout Summon Night 6: Lost Borders, maybe more, but theyre as fun and funny and entertaining as you would hope. The game centers on three main characters, living in isolation, except for a cute flying sidekick each one has. Their solitary routines are upended when people literally begin falling from the sky into their world. At first, they struggle to learn who the visitors are and why they dropped in, but as they unravel the mystery along with these visitors, they learn the power of friendship, eventually using that power to help them overcome a dark secret that cuts to the heart of their reality.
The gameplay is classic Summon Night, but both turbocharged and streamlined. The usual strategy grid is displayed when you move, but the characters are free to run anywhere within their movement range without being limited to the squares. The Summon magic is represented here, as expected, as are assists, but theres a new huge Summon Burst type of attack that unleashes crazy devastation on enemies. Terrain is expressed in 3D beautifully, as are the characters. And the ever-popular night conversations are available with more characters than ever to help develop strong ties with allies at the end of every chapter. Cross-save is also making its first appearance, allowing the game to be played on PlayStation 4 and also on PS Vita with the same cloud save, so fans can have Summon Night wherever they are. And, theyll need that edge because the game is a replay beast, with more than a dozen endings to try to see.
There will, of course, be a regular retail release for the game with a case, disc and even a physical manual, but what Im really excited about is the Wonderful Edition Ive put together for fans. I feel like its the best Collectors Edition value in at least the last decade, a throwback to my days at Working Designs where we were setting the bar for Collectors Editions in North America with almost every release. But the Wonderful Edition eclipses anything I put together at Working Designs. Its, well...wonderful. The set includes the PlayStation 4 game with full color disc label and full color physical manual, a 200+ page hardcover art book with a dust jacket, a full 32 track soundtrack in a full CD case, one of three possible adorable 7 plush (randomly inserted) of the sidekicks, four PVC coasters with the main characters and game logo, a huge 21x30 poster, and an awesome, enormous box it all comes in. This special item will only be available from the GAIJINWORKS website via the presale that opens today. The early birds will get a special price, and the presale that reserves copies of this for fans closes forever on October 31st so we have time to get everything manufactured, shipped, and assembled in time for the games release in February.
Whichever version you choose to play, whether PlayStation 4, or PS Vita, regular edition or Wonderful Edition, if youre a jRPG fan, youre in for a rare treat that opens the door to a fantastic universe a little wider.
