Perhaps 2015 will be known as the “Year of Promising JRPGs.” Recently we saw the incredible success of Edge of Eternity and now another (although completely different sort of JRPG) launched on Kickstarter. It’s called Melancholy Republic and cites its inspirations from some of the most well-known and well-loved of the genre: Final Fantasy VII and Chrono Trigger. In keeping with its more classic references the game also has a more retro flair. Take a look at the screenshots and you’ll definitely it feels like a game pulled from the 16-bit era.
This political and tragic tale takes place in Lorna and focuses on the characters Claire and Marianne. Without spoiling anything themselves, the developers have specified that the stories to be uncovered are “heartbreaking.” Melancholy Republic spans chapters and each and every chapter contains its own self-contained narratives among an overarching one. Players will be able to make choices which affect the story’s trajectory as well. Despite the JRPG stylization, it’s not yet apparent if there will even be random battles. They’re certainly not mentioned in the Kickstarter page. If the focus is purely on narrative and exploration that’s a pretty intelligent utilization of the JRPG genre’s strengths.
So far Melancholy Republic is only promised for a PC (presumably Windows) release sometime in 2016. You can help this happen by pledging toward the goal of £15,000 (about $22,500). If that’s not possible you can instead help developer Cloud Runner Studios out by giving their Steam Greenlight campaign one additional upvote.
Track the progress of the Melancholy Republic Kickstarter in our Campaign Calendar.
