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SEGA and ATLUS have been on a bit of a roll lately with some big hits, and now they're hoping to share some of that knowledge with others by hosting three lectures at the upcoming GDC on March 20th and 21st, 2025.

Metaphor: ReFantazio - RPG Command Battle Systems:

The first lecture will discuss Metaphor: ReFantazio and its RPG battle system. While the battle system in Metaphor is based on a very dated system, they will explain how they've updated the system to be enjoyable in modern titles, and how they used playtests to gather data and improve their game.

Metaphor GDC Kenichi Goto
  • Who: Kenichi Goto (Lead Battle Planner, ATLUS)
  • When: Thursday, March 20th, 9:30 am (60 minutes)
  • Where: Room 3004, West Hall

Creating a Visual Identity for a New Series:

This lecture will be about how ATLUS developed the new UI style for Metaphor: ReFantazio. It has a pretty unique style, and the Lead Interface Designer will cover the problems they faced when designing it, and how they tried to differentiate it from the existing Persona UI design.

image
  • Who: Koji Ise (Lead Interface Designer, ATLUS)
  • When: Thursday, March 20th, 3:30 pm (60 minutes)
  • Where: Room 3004, West Hall

The Secret to Narrative-Driven and Short-Term Development in 'Like a Dragon'

In case you hadn't noticed, SEGA and RGG Studio are releasing a new Like a Dragon game almost yearly at this point, and this lecture will cover just how they can create so many decent games so quickly. I would guess it has something to do with not being overly fussy about re-using assets, but you'll find out more when the lecture happens.

  • Who: Ryosuke Horii (Chief Director and Producer, SEGA), Eiji Hamatsu (Design Manager, 1st Business Unit, SEGA)
  • When: Friday, March 21, 10:00 am (60 minutes)
  • Where: Room 3004, West Hall

This kind of lecture might not appeal to everyone, but if you are an aspiring game developer yourself, it might well be worth a look to get some insights into the considerations some bigger studios have when making a game.

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Oliver Stogden
Oliver began playing video games at an early age, starting with the SNES console and Commodore Amiga computer. Nowadays, his interest is in the future of portable technology, such as handheld gaming systems, portable power stations/banks, and portable monitors. And seeing just how far we can push these devices.
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