While Game Freak is best known for its work on the Pokémon games (the series is so large that it’s hard to see how it wouldn’t be), it does develop other games from time to time. That said, Beast of Reincarnation, the studio’s upcoming post-apocalyptic action role-playing game, is a big swing even by the studio’s standards. After seeing the game in action during today’s Xbox Developer Direct, we got a much clearer vision of what to expect when it launches this summer.
Set in Japan in the year 4026, Game Freak describes the game as a “one-person one-dog action RPG.” The person and dog in question are named Emma and Koo, respectively, and they live in a time where the human population has been decimated by a parasitic plant called “blight.” Somehow, Emma is able to seal that blight within her body, so she’s known as a Sealer. Unfortunately, this is an ability people fear, causing her to live in isolation from the remains of society.
After forming a bond with Koo, a magical white dog with a tail made of vines and branches, Emma is told (by the a hologram of perhaps the most cyberpunk-looking guy of all time) to defeat the titular beast of reincarnation to save the Capital. To do so, she’ll have to defeat “malefacts,” corrupt fusions of animals and blight. I assume “malefact” is pronounced less like “male fact” more like “artifact,” but given that the word was only provided in the Japanese speakers’ subtitles, this is just a guess. Extremely powerful malefacts, known as Nushi, are the bosses of this world. They can create blighted forests full of enemies and obstacles players will have to overcome before facing off against the deadly beasts.
Emma is particularly suited to this task thanks to her ability to absorb and dispel blight, but also because of her trusty sword, magic abilities, and vinelike hair. Her sword is her main weapon in combat, and can be upgraded with spirit stones to get special effects when she parries. She and Koo can also use Blooming Arts, powerful magic moves that slow time and allow them to harm or hinder foes. Each character also has a skill tree, and the abilities from one character impacts the other’s; the developers also hint that the two will unlock more powers as their bond deepens. Finally, Emma’s hair can be used in various ways for platforming, like as a bridge that extends forward over gaps or as a long stilt-like extension of Emma’s leg.
The duo will also have to face golems – robots with corrupted human souls – and meet other human characters, like Brad, Kagura, and the mysterious swordswoman Kunai. The dystopian elements are a bit on the nose, but game looks beautiful, especially for a studio that’s been criticized for the poor technical performance of recent Pokémon games. It helps that this game, at the time of writing, is not coming to Switch or Switch 2, and is instead launching on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. We’re excited to check it out when it hits shelves this summer.