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Level 5 is on fire recently, almost single handidly saving the Japanese game industry in face of near collapse at the hands of the western markets. They have proven to be one of the proud few developers who can create an entirely new IP in this day and age and turn it into a million plus selling franchise. They first got their start with Sony published titles "Dark Cloud", and "Dark Cloud 2". Later they hooked up with Square Enix to create "Dragon Quest 8 and 9". While they still have close ties with Sony publishing "Rogue Galaxy" and "White Knight Chronicles", they have branched out on their own, especially on the Nintendo DS. For Nintendo fans they are most well known for their "Professor Layton" series, which is published by Nintendo themselves in America. To celebrate their ten years of continued growth, Level 5 managed to do what no other company in history as ever done, collaborate with Studio Ghibli. Studio Ghibli is the most respected animation studio in the world. Their films transcend the American born notion of relgating a medium into a genre typically associated with childrens entertainment. Their films cover a broad spectrum of themes and places. Titles in their resume include "Grave of the Fireflies", "Princess Mononoke", "My Neighbor Totoro", and the Academy Award winning "Spirited Away". The most famous director at Studio Ghibli is Hayao Miyazaki, who has said he dislikes video games. When Level 5 contacted Studio Ghibli, it was at the right time, as the studio had just finished "Ponyo" and the next film had not been planned yet. The owner of Studio Ghibli was not about to let his staff to go on not working, so the deal was struck and Ninokuni was born.
Ninokuni begins in an ordinary suburb with the main character Oliver living with his mother. As fate would have it, his mother becomes ill with a sickness and dies, leaving Oliver alone with his stuffed toy from his mother. It turns out that his stuffed toy is actually a fairy named Shizuku who wants to return to Ninokuni, the other world. It turns out Ninokuni is like a parrellel dimension to our world, where places and people have dramatically altered versions of themselves. Oliver decides that if he travels to Ninokuni, he might find his mother still alive in that world. The final retail version of the game comes with a giant hardcover spellbook. The current build of the title uses the top screen to substitute for the book for now, but don't expect this feature in the final game. The demo starts with Oliver and Shizuku on the streets at night with the spellbook and wand in hand. The first task the player is given is to create the "gate" spell that will open a portal to Ninokuni. The spell must be done in two strokes, and it seems most if not all spells will be done this way. Following your input the game plays out the result in a glorius hand drawn cutscene. Where it seems only Oliver, Shizuku, and animales can see the results of a massive Pantheon that is created in fron of them. Upon entering Ninokuni Oliver discovers that unlike the city he came from, this part of the world is a forest dotted with the skeletal remains of giant beasts and inhabited by all manner of otherworldly creatures.
When the cutscene ends you are finally in direct control of Oliver as he and Shizuku make their way through the forest. Control is done by either the D-pad or the stylus in a similar manner to "Phantom Hourglass". The Y button brings up the Spell menu, the X button brings up the main menu, while A is used to interact with objects. It is typical RPG fare at this point as you wander across streams and falled logs to find a tree with a face. After an exchange between the tree and Shizuku you are treated to your first battle. Remember, Level 5 has made the last two "Dragon Quest" games. The enemies are displayed on the top screen while your characters are displayed on the bottom screen. The demo features basic commands such as attack, magic, item, and auto button. This is likely to be used for user created strategy attack patterns in the final game. After the first battle, you are given a new spell to cast which creates an imagine character. Oliver creates a cute little goblin soldier complete with sword and shield, this is displayed by another beautiful cutscene. With your party now at three you encounter a new foe and then continue on your way through the forest. It is here that you discover that the title uses random battle encounters. A small dissapointment that is quickly tempered by the fact that the encounter rate is pretty generous and does not impede every step. As you make your way to the end of the forest, your way is blocked by some sort of forest golem. This of course turns out to be your first boss battle. Very quickly into the battle you are introduced to the first big innovation within the battle system. When it is your turn to choose a command, you can press the Y button and use the stylus to rearrange the pattern of your three man party. The boss of the forest frequently uses a shockwave attack that hits all players in the party. However, your little soldier has a shield that protects him against the shockwave, therefore if you line up Olver and Shizuku behind the soldier in a straight line, no on will get hit. It isn't the most mind blowing innovation to the traditional turn based RPG, but it really helps the game stand out over a straight copy cat of "Dragon Quest". The boss is no slouch, and it will take a bit of time to end his reign of terror, but with persistence you can fell the beast on move out of the forest.
Upon exiting the forest you are treated to the world map. Without a extra mode of transportation, you are regulated to using your own two feet to traverse the sizable map. If you do decide to explore you will find some extra items tucked away in corners and on top of cliffs, as well as in forests. There only appears to be one town that can be visited on the map for now. The town is naturally guarded by a iron gate. After an exchange with the guards, the game prompts you to use two new spells that presumably helps the guards in some way. This is the first introduction to the job system in the game. It appears that throughout the game NPC characters will present you with a variety of different missions you can accomplish at will. You can deny them, but completing them seems to raise reknown points. After completing the spells for the guards you are granted entrance to the city. Afer another cutscene where the children of the town seem to be fascinated by your spellbook and wand, you are free to explore the city. The town appears to be run by a feline king, who was simply your cat in the real world. The architecture of the town seems to be almost entirely inspired by fish. Statues, fountains, buildings, and even the tile of the cobblestones all seem to showcase what is likely the kings favorite dinner. Within the town you are given plenty of side missions to complete, such as cleaning graffiti off walls, and collecting items for an old lady. The guard at the palace doors seems to want your reknown point to be at a certain level before you can continue onward. Once this task is completed the demo ends.
Naturally the game looks gorgeous, not just for the cutscenes and character artwork. The in game character models are very nicely done, and when the game actually is close up on them, you can see that Level 5 really is ahead of the pack when it comes to 3D on the DS. Despite the characters and enemies being 3D against 2D backdrops and hand drawn cutscenes, never once are you pulled out of the experience. There is no jarring snap between real time and cutscene. This is both a triumph of Studio Ghibli and their talent for timeless art, and Level 5 and their brilliant character modelers. This game visually shames efforts by both Square Enix and Nintendo on the DS. Proving that artsyle will always triumph over raw horsepower. The music in the title is entirely composed by Joe Hisaishi. A name that will be familiar to Studio Ghibli fans as he has composed every movie under the studio for Hayao Miyazaki. Because of this, the title will be the largest DS card ever produced, containing as much memory as all of the Wii's internal memory. Playing with headphones is a must, and the effort and expense was well worth the effort. Even from the early build, Ninokuni is a very strong contender for having the best soundtrack in a game ever. All the presentation in the world can't save a bad game though, luckily Ninokuni is anything but. While it is true that for the most part, it is a very traditional menu driven turn based RPG, this has lead it to an advantage. Instead of trying to be experimental and unique, Ninokuni avoids having a battle system that is unbalanced or rough around the edges. What it gains from tradition is an extremely solid and easy to understand structure, even in a foreign language. Sometimes getting the basics right can go a lot farther for a game then trying to hard to be different. Level 5's time with "Dragon Quest" has served them well here. Perhaps the greatest accomplishment of "Ninokuni" so far is that it truly feels like your playing in a Studio Ghibli film. It is a feeling that many fans of both mediums have dreamed of for so long. While it is not based off any exsisting film, the game is better for it. The blending of the best animation studio in the world, with one of the most promising RPG developers has created a experience that is both familiar and unique all at once. Presentation values like this have never been witnessed before, certainly not on the DS. While the gameplay is familiar enough so that you don't spend a good portion of the game trying learn a quirky new battle system. So far, "Ninokuni" seems to striking all the right chords, and with its big and beautful box casing it looks to raise the bar on the DS to unreachable heights. By all indications, this will be a game to cherish forever upon release.
Images copywright Level 5 and Famitsu.
