Metaphor: ReFantazio, the new original fantasy role playing game from Atlus, is quickly approaching. Releasing on October 10, 2024, Atlus has been doing a lot of press for the game, seeking to get people excited about the new world, story, and combat of Metaphor: ReFantazio. The ‘World Tour’ Showcase is the latest of Atlus’s deep dives to show off everything the game has to offer.
The World Tour video focuses less on the in-game lore of the world and more on showing off what players can do at some of the locations in the world, and how they travel from place to place. Beginning with a short compilation of in game cutscenes, the showcase highlights one of the early towns visited in the game Port Brilehaven, which will be covered more in depth later, shows off the gauntlet runner, the means of transportation between cities, and the different things that players might enjoy in different locales such as bungee jumping off cliffs.
A quick recap of the story premise to help facilitate understanding: our protagonist is on a quest to save the Prince of the United Kingdom of Euchronia from a curse orchestrated by military elite Louis, who also orchestrated the king’s assasination. However, upon the king’s death a special magic was evoked that would have the people be the determining factor of the next king. The protagonist is emboldened to enter the tournament to seek justice against Louis. This prompts the protagonist to travel across the kingdom in an attempt to gain support.
The first stop on the World Tour is Martira, an old castle town. Like the Persona games, new areas open up to the player slowly over time with the main story and side quests propelling exploration. Martira, the location of the aforementioned bungee jumping, is a smaller location, meant to serve as a more introductory based gameplay. Here the video also shows off the protagonist’s stats, which can be increased through odd jobs, and bounties, which have the protagonist pursue specific enemies for different rewards.
Travel between towns is done by gauntlet runner, which is basically a walking ship, and takes time out of the in-game calendar much like activities in towns. On these travel days players can spend time with allies to increase social ranks, or work on their personal stats. As players travel they need to make sure to keep an eye out on the deadline of the mainline quest and how much time it might take to travel where players need to go. As the map becomes more complex, different routes become available to different places, meaning choosing which route to travel on becomes a strategic decision that players have to make.
While on the road, towns might not be the only location players need to stop in. Quest dungeons offer the dungeon crawling aspect to contrast more slice of life simulator parts of the game, an Atlus staple. Quest dungeons can be present in both side quest and main questlines, with the video showing one mainline quest dungeon in the belly of a worm.
Port Brilehaven, one of the first main stops on the journey, serves as a major sight in the trailer, showcasing its amenities and colosseum. Virga Island was also introduced for the first time along with Eupha, a new companion for the player that hadn’t been revealed previously.
Overall, Metaphor: ReFantazio is shaping up to be a very large world to explore, as players attempt to plan their day to day activities and keep track of the needs of the main questline. Metaphor: ReFantazio will be out on October 10, 2024 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4 and 5, Windows, and Steam.