XSEED Games has announced a western release for Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin.
The game is the latest release from Astebreed studio Edelweiss, which they first revealed at last year’s Comiket. The title is set for a release next year for both PC and PlayStation 4. Featured above, you can view the announcement trailer for the upcoming shmup / hybrid.
Described as a “genre-defying mixture of side-scrolling action with the complexities of rice cultivation set against the mystical backdrop of Japanese mythology,” the game will be playable in English for the first time at this year’s E3.
Check out the game’s beautiful key art below:
Here’s a rundown on the game, via XSEED Games:
In Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, players take on the role of Sakuna, a proud yet lonely harvest goddess who is banished to a dangerous island with a group of outcast humans. Sakuna tames the island by defeating demons using farm tools as weapons while also making ample use of her “celestial scarf,” a magical item that allows her to grapple distant enemies and platforms. Along the way, she establishes a home in a mountain village, which serves as a base of operations for crafting weapons and cooking food. Additionally, as a harvest goddess, she grows rice by following a detailed process that encompasses everything from planting to harvesting. Through this process, across each of the four seasons, she’s able to improve the harvest and hone her battle skills alike.
The painstakingly researched storyline incorporates Japanese history and legend, with its heroine facing off against numerous types of demons, great and small, as she traverses detailed landscapes rich with the iconography of classic Japanese mythology. A love letter to Japanese culture, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is also an ode to the artistry of cultivating rice, and features an engrossing simulation of the craft behind the agriculture.
Developed by Edelweiss and published in North America by XSEED Games, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is in development for the PS4 system and Windows PC and is scheduled for release in 2018. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB.
In case you missed our review for their previous game, Astebreed, you can find that here (we highly recommend it!).
