Wolong: Fallen Dynasty The low key was one of the biggest surprises at Sunday’s Xbox and Bethesda Showcase. Wo Long is a new game from Nioh developer Team Ninja. Not only did the news get Nioh fans excited, but it was also unusual to see the studio’s new game on the Xbox stage.
Of course, it was later confirmed that Wolong would also be coming to the PlayStation console, but that’s the extent of the official word.
Until this new IGN interview with producer Fumihiko Yasuda (Nioh) and development producer Masaaki Yamagiwa (Bloodborne). The first thing the interview confirmed is that this does resemble Nioh in some ways, while pushing the genre into new territory in others.
For starters, it’s still an action game with the same demands, but it’s faster-paced than Nioh. There’s less emphasis on stamina this time around, but Team Ninja didn’t specify what that means.
Importantly, there is now a jump button!
“We wanted fluid combat that would allow you to switch seamlessly between offense and defense,” Yasuda said.
“The moves are faster than Nioh, can jump on enemies and fly past them. That being said, we really wanted to keep that feeling of controlling a real human, so it wouldn’t be” “Not too many flashy jumps or tightrope moves. . In that sense, I guess you could say it’s more grounded. “
Yasuda estimates the combat speed to be somewhere between Nioh on the low end and Ninja Gaiden on the high end.
“This seamless transition between attack and defense is what we consider a signature characteristic of Chinese martial arts. There are moments of all-out effort, but also a softer, gentler side. We wanted to showcase this by creating a more natural flow. Between offense and defense,” Yamaki added.
Speaking of combat, Wolong relies heavily on martial arts. You can still use melee weapons, but the ninja team uses martial arts as a core fighting style.
Another big change for Nioh is that weapon and gear upgrades won’t be as plentiful, and loot won’t be as plentiful. Both of these Nioh games rely on a steady stream of loot drops, which adds to the Diablo-like aspect that some feel is unnecessary.
“Three Kingdoms fans will want certain weapons from different warlords, and that’s definitely something we want to deliver. But compared to Nioh, you don’t have to constantly upgrade your weapons or armor, and it’s not like every enemy drops An item,” Yasuda explained.
“That’s not the main focus of Wolong’s game design, as we want the player to be able to focus more easily on the action. That being said, we still have a ton of weapons to choose from.”
Likewise, the structure of the game has one foot stuck on Nioh and the other one taking a step forward. Wo Long will bring back the level-based design that Nioh players should be very familiar with, but each level itself will be significantly larger compared to the Sengoku-era game.
“We do have more freedom in stage design, though,” Yasuda added.
“Now that the player character can jump now, there is a lot more verticality and exploration space overall. That being said, Wolong is at its core the same linear structure game as Nioh. With the increasing popularity of Souls games, this This design gives Team Ninja the opportunity to showcase what we do best.”
Finally, Yasuda said the studio wanted to incorporate player feedback into the process, just like Nioh did. While he didn’t directly confirm the demo/beta, he did say the team is working on making a publicly playable version as soon as possible.
The full interview, linked at the top, is well worth a read. Among other things, it involves “a system around warrior morale”.
Wolong: Fallen Reigns will release on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in early 2023. It’s also the first day of Game Pass’s launch.
