Tokyo Game Show 2024 featured lots of game showcases, though one that surprised us was Fate Trigger: The Novita, the new battle royale with an unmistakable anime style.
Fate Trigger: The Novita was announced earlier this month, and in case you missed it, this game is a battle royale that promises to stand out in the crowded genre thanks to its anime aesthetics coupled with its hero-based elements and gun chip customization system.
At this year’s TGS, developer Saroasis Studios let attendees try out the game so players can try out this intriguing new battle royale shooter. Along with hands-on demos, members of the studio also appeared in the game’s booth to talk about their upcoming title.
Yes, the Developers at Saroasis Studios are Big Otakus
During the stage discussion, the developers dived into the game’s key features. Though for us, the highlight was when they mentioned their love of anime – not too surprising given how big the anime influence is in the game’s style.
Yes, pretty much all of the studio’s key members are anime fans, and their goal is to share their love of anime with players. When asked about specific titles though, the developers didn’t mention shows or movies that served as primary inspirations. Instead, the devs said that the game’s “anime” concept is more of a general one.
Even with the game not having some specific anime inspirations, the influence is pretty clear. What’s more, the game will also feature popular anime voice actors. For now, the confirmed ones for the Japanese dub include Miyuki Sawashiro (Daki in Demon Slayer) and Yui Ishikawa (Mikasa in Attack on Titan). The developers also mentioned that other popular VAs are part of the cast, though they did not reveal their names yet. They did say that they’ve worked with the game’s other VAs before.
Meanwhile, the English dub cast should also be familiar. That’s because it features notable actresses like Xanthe Huynh (Haru Okumura in Persona 5) and Kira Buckland (2B in Nier: Automata).
If you think about it, an anime-style battle royale (filled with waifus) is quite an obvious combo. After all, battle royales like Fortnite have already gotten lots of anime crossovers. What’s more, there are plenty of anime-inspired games in the mobile gaming scene, be it the shooter NIKKE or gacha RPGs from HoYoverse. As such, it’s a bit surprising that it’s only now that we’re getting a game like Fate Trigger: The Novita.
Sure, there are other battle royales with anime aesthetics, but Fate Trigger is aiming straight at the big otaku audience with its attractive characters (complete with obvious jiggle physics). Thanks to the game’s style alone, it’s already a game that otakus should have on their radar.
Of course, this isn’t the only reason to play the game though. That’s because it also has potential on the gameplay side.
Promising, not Just Because of its Anime Style
While the discussion was a highlight of our Fate Trigger preview, it wasn’t the only thing that happened. We also got to have a closer look at The Novita thanks to gameplay sessions available at the booth.
If you’ve seen the trailers and gameplay previews, the game should already look familiar if you’ve played a battle royale before. In fact, battle royale fans should feel right at home here as the mechanics and movement are pretty similar to many of the popular titles in the genre.
Given that the demo at TGS is fairly limited, we were only able to determine the feel of the game when it came to movement and shooting mechanics. Even as an alpha build, the game (which runs on Unreal Engine 5) plays smoothly enough.
The staff at the booth and the devs did highlight more interesting gameplay-related elements. To start, the game’s initial alpha build currently has seven characters, though the full version promises to have around 20 or so. In the leadup to the official release, the developers promised that there would be more tests for players who are interested in giving it a try.
Each character also has a unique set of skills. This, coupled with the Gun Chip system which promises tons of weapon customization options, should mean each match could feel wildly different if players are into experimentation.
Given the otaku-focused nature of the game, these first seven characters are all girls, though some teaser visuals revealed that there will be a male wolf character sometime down the line. Plus, the developers also mentioned that they do plan on adding more male playable characters in the future.
Finally, the developers also said that they aim to make the game as fair as possible via a strong anti-cheat system. While they didn’t go into specifics, the devs said that they have an AI-powered anti-cheat system with a big database of cheating patterns. Coupled with the fact that they aim to take decisive action against cheaters, the hope here is that players won’t get matched with more unscrupulous foes.
Fate Trigger: The Novita Early Impressions
We got a good idea regarding what to expect from Fate Trigger: The Novita. While it’s still too early, it should already be a promising game for anime fans/otakus who want something different from the more “typical” gacha RPG.
On the flip side, given that it’s still quite early, it might be hard to convince other battle royale players who aren’t fans of the anime art style, especially as its gameplay doesn’t seem to be that far from other popular titles in the genre. The hope here is that its mechanics and gameplay elements prove to be good enough to encourage more players to give it a try.
For now, there’s no word yet on a release date for Fate Trigger: The Novita, though more tests are planned in the future following the recent alpha.