Back in July, Atlus and Vanillaware announced that they would be releasing a new version of their classic action platformer RPG, Odin Sphere, in the form of Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir. A post on PlayStation’s Japanese blog last week showcased some of the remake’s new gameplay, including the starting story for Velvet, the outcast princess.
Released in 2007 for the PlayStation 2, Odin Sphere was the second game to be released by Vanillaware, which was made up of former Atlus employees who had contributed to the development of Atlus’ 1997 Sega Saturn Action-RPG Princess Crown. Director George Kamitani brought his experience from working at both Square Enix and Capcom to Odin Sphere, which incorporates elements from Square Enix’s RPGs and Capcom’s sidescrolling beat-em-ups into its gameplay. The game’s distinctive hand drawn visuals and delightful re-imagining of 2D brawlers earned Odin Sphere a spot in the hearts of many gamers. Kamitani would later build on the foundations laid by Odin Sphere with Muramasa: The Demon Blade and Dragon’s Crown.
Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir introduces several drastic changes to the original game. More areas, enemies, combat abilities, and music are all present in Leifthrasir. The HP and Weapon Level bars have been condensed into a single Experience bar, which fills when players eat food or defeat enemies. The Phozon resource from the first game are no longer used purely for executing special attacks, but are also used to upgrade your playable characters.
Most notably, playtesters have reported that the original game’s notorious lag issues seem to be absent from Leifthrasir.
Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir is set to release in Japan on January 14, 2016. The American release will likely be June 7th, 2016, and can be pre-ordered for PlayStation 4 here. Those interested in learning more about Leifthrasir can do so by visiting its official website here.