A new interview with the CEO of Level-5, the studio behind Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom, has some fans wondering if the highly anticipated JRPG is going to miss its launch window. The studio boss stops short of saying as much directly. But it doesn’t sound like Level-5 is making enough developmental progress on Ni No Kuni 2 for the game to debut before the end of 2017.
The latest issue of Famitsu (h/t Siliconera ) is where interested parties will find the conversation with Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino, including the surprising revelation that the studio has only finished an estimated 45 percent of its developmental work on Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom . Hino’s comments were part of a larger discussion that touched on everything from the game’s kingdom building mechanics -- which won’t be nearly as extensive as some might have expected -- to Level-5’s hiring plans for the game’s vocal talent.
Unfortunately, Hino didn’t elaborate on his comments regarding development of NNK2 . The CEO did confirm kingdom building won’t be very elaborate in Revenant Kingdom . From the sounds of things, it’ll probably be node based, not unlike (but probably more complex than) the ultra-simplified kingdom building seen in Super Mario Run. On the plus side, Hino did confirm there’s one other “major system” tied into kingdom building, which Level-5 has yet to show to the public. So there will still be some surprises left to discover whenever Ni No Kuni 2 hits stores.
Update: A representative of Bandai Namco had the following to say on the matter:
"Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is still scheduled to launch in the Americas in 2017. We hope to be able to narrow down the timeframe in the coming months as we move through the year."
Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom is in development for PS4 and PC. The game is currently scheduled for a 2017 debut.
Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes and follow Scott on Twitter for more Ni No Kuni 2 news throughout 2017 and however long Level-5 supports Ni No Kuni 2 after launch.
