Ni No Kuni II has a lot to live up to. The first was critical darling that was consistently praised for its brilliant art direction, captivating soundtrack, and deliciously traditional JRPG gameplay. And while Ni No Kuni II will feature a lot of what made Wrath of the White Witch so great, it is definitely taking itself in a different direction in a lot of interesting ways that will hopefully work out for its publisher, Bandai Namco.
We’re definitely getting more of that polished, enchanting, super high-quality animation from a team of Studio Ghibli veterans. Yoshiyuke Momose is returning as Character Director. Longtime Ghibli composer, Joe Hisaishi is coming back for another round as well. And the game’s original director, Akihiro Hino is getting back in on the fun too.
In the game, you’ll take on the role of Evan, a young child-king with what appear to be cat ears and tail who has inherited the Kingdom of Ding Dong Dell after his father’s seemingly abrupt passing. You are soon usurped from power by your royal advisor, Otto Mausinger, who tries to have you killed. Fortunately, you’re able to escape with a little help and embark on your adventure to reclaim your kingdom and defeat Otto.
Along the way, you’ll meet an eclectic cast of characters, including a young female sky pirate and her sky pirate king father. A man named Roland who comes from another world where he’s a politician will help guide you to being a true king. You’ll also get help from an odd group of creatures called, “Higgledies” who is a sort of Pikmin-like species that will help you in combat.
Combat itself is not dramatically different from the free moving, action-RPG style fighting of White Witch only now you can switch freely between party members in combat. The Higgledies will also tag along in clusters to assist you with things like healing, elemental buffs, or ability boosts. Higgledies can also be left to their own machinations and will find ways to make themselves useful without your interaction. Fans of Bandai Namco’s, “Tales of” series should be quite familiar with most elements of the battle system, but the addition of these quirky new creatures is an interesting one as now you’ll have this whole other aspect or organization and tactics thrown into what would’ve been a straight ahead battle.
Higgledies aren’t the only unique aspect of Ni No Kuni II. In, “Kingdom Mode” you will literally build your own kingdom from the ground up. As you play through the game you’ll be able to recruit people to move to your new homeland and some will just join up on their own. You’ll be able to make and customize most aspects of your kingdom as it expands as well. There weren’t many more details about Kingdom mode given out, but we were told it would work in a similar fashion to the familiars in White Witch.
If I’m being totally honest, Ni No Kuni II does not have to do much to succeed. If the gameplay is anywhere as engaging as White Witch it’s going to be a hit. And that’s not even getting into the remarkable art direction of the series, which is on course to surpass everything they’ve done so far. Look for it to hit shelves on November 10th.
