In a video posted on Bandai-Namco’s official YouTube channel Level-5 CEO, Akihiro Hino, informed fans that Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom will be delayed. Hino apologized to fans saying, “more development time is required to deliver the full Ni no Kuni II experience…”
Originally announced during the 2015 PlayStation Experience keynote and demoed at this year’s E3 event, Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is the highly anticipated sequel to the best-selling PlayStation 3 title Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch.
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, a collaboration with Studio Ghibli, details the story of Oliver- a young boy who embarks on an epic journey to another world in order to save his mother. Though Studio Ghibli is not attached to the sequel, Hino confirmed in a previous interview that former Ghibli character designer Yoshiyuki Momose would be back to bring players the story of Evan- a young king who must go on an epic quest to reclaim his kingdom.
Hino also took time during the announcement to correct a statement he made at E3 in which he mistakenly said Ni no Kuni II would have multiplayer. He says that he had misunderstood the interview question, believing it to be about online content in general, and that he was actually referring to online announcements of in-game events. Yet he assures players that the studio will “continue to strive to provide a deep and satisfying single player experience” which includes improvements to the combat system and the addition of Higgledies- elemental creatures that fight alongside the player.
Ending the announcement, Akihiro Hino thanks fans for all their support and says, “as a team we will continue to work hard to improve the quality of the game”.
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is now set to release on PlayStation 4 and PC this January 19th, 2018.