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| Jesse Woo |
Boozing with Omega Quintet.
04.18.15 - 5:27 PM
Idea Factory International, the North American publishing arm of Idea Factory, recently held its inaugural press event at a trendy bar in downtown San Francisco. I had the privilege to represent RPGFan there by eating their food, drinking their drink, and playing their games. The event was a relatively intimate affair, as the company consists of only six people. However, guests were generously provided for with hors d'oeurves and highly alcoholic Neptunia-themed punch.
There were three games of note: Omega Quintet on the PlayStation 4, Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 3: V Generation on the Vita, and Amnesia: Memory on Vita and Steam.
Omega Quintet is the first Idea Factory game on the PlayStation 4, and the studio's characteristic flair translated well to the powerful platform. Character models looked crisp and each attack was accompanied by bombastic particle effects. Combat is a fairly straight-forward turn-based affair. The five women who comprise the titular quintet can attack multiple times per turn and target different enemies until they depleted their action meter. They can also cast spells at the cost of SP. The girls can engage "Live Concert" mode when they have accrued enough points — how this is actually done eluded me — to unlock even more powerful skills. Another wrinkle in combat is the Harmonics system that allows multiple characters to attack in succession and perform combination attacks.
The Quintet's manager, a generic looking young man, can also be paired with one of the girls to provide support. Support comes in the form of random additional attacks or blocking damage. Each character also has a relationship meter with the manager, although I didn't see what happens when the relationship reaches a new level.
Unfortunately, the character's levels had been set to 999 for the demo version, which effectively eliminated any challenge from battle. With the balance all out of whack it was hard to evaluate the gameplay because every decision I made as a player was completely inconsequential. Perhaps when Omega Quintet comes out on April 28th I will have a better experience.
Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 3: V Generation was available on the PS Vita, although a Steam release is planned for Fall. The game also featured turn-based combat, although positioning was much more important as characters had to move within a certain range to reach the enemy. I did not delve too deeply into the combat, but the ability to customize each character's combo set seems like it offers near endless possibilities. Outside of battle, the characters could manage their party and questing from a home base. From there they could also view character scenes and short interactions meant to give life to the cast. The scenes were not terribly creative, but I am sure they will be entertaining for those who have come to love that genre.
The PS Vita version of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 3: V Generation comes out this Summer, with the Steam version to follow this Fall. The prior game, Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 2: Sisters Generation, is also coming to Steam on May 19th. Both games will feature updated graphics in 1080p and full English and Japanese voice-overs.
Finally, Idea Factory International announced their very first localized visual novel on the Steam platform, Amnesia: Memories. The otome visual novel follows a young woman who wakes up with amnesia, not know her identity or past. She receives a call from a man claiming to be her lover, but does not know him. With the help of a mysterious young boy named Orion, the girl must recover her identity and find love. The game will feature a branching story based on player decision, with at least four potential love interests and at least 20 different endings.
Amnesia: Memory comes out this August on Steam and PS Vita.
