Yoko Taro plays new Atlus RPG Metaphor ReFantazio “It’s so stylish, I almost wet myself”
On Friday August 30, Atlus’s official YouTube channel dropped a hilarious video interview in which NieR series creator Yoko Taro was invited to play Atlus’s upcoming RPG Metaphor: ReFantazio. The masked game creator gave his impressions on the game to voice actress Tomomi Isomura, who plays Lina in the game.
From the outset, Yoko Taro explains that he “has no connection to Atlus at all” and was called in by Atlus’s advertising department to do the video. “Oh, I didn’t get any money for this! I’m just a middle-aged dude who showed up.” He suddenly quips mid-interview, taking opportunities to advertise NieR-related releases.
Giving his impressions of Metaphor ReFantazio’s demo, Yoko Taro began by praising the games cool-looking UI – “It’s so stylish I almost wet myself.” he states emphatically. “As for everything else, I get the feeling that it has been polished” Yoko Taro enthused, “It’s a Command battle RPG but the amount of action has been increased a lot – I really feel like I had the opportunity to play a next-generation game. While I was playing, I kept thinking this must have cost serious money!”
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Although Metaphor ReFantazio seems to have a classic fantasy story at first glance (with its ‘kingdom in chaos’ scenario), Atlus’s DNA can be felt strongly in its aesthetics. In particular, Yoko Taro enthused about the macabre and gross designs of Metaphor: ReFantazio’s bosses. “I can’t be good friends with the person who designed this!” he joked. Yoko Taro goes on to re-emphasize that while playing, he felt Metaphor: ReFantazio is very different to NieR and has a strong, distinct Atlus flavor to it. He also praises Metaphor’s director Katsura Hashino as someone who does a really good job- passionately bringing to life the game’s world. “I’m looking forward to playing the full version.” Yoko Taro concluded.
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Perhaps inevitably, the whole video is full of friendly rivalry and unexpected gags, but this is nothing new. Seven years ago, Yoko Taro made an amusing presentation video on RPGs, begging Atlus not to release the then unnamed Metaphor: ReFantazio, as it would kill off his NieR series (specifically 2017’s NieR: Automata). Asked about what he thinks about that today, Yoko Taro surprisingly replies that now that years have passed since his game’s release, “It doesn’t really hurt to think about NieR: Automata dying.” Rather, Yoko Taro revealed that he would appreciate it if Atlus didn’t release a game that clashed with his again. About his next project, he jokingly stated that, “My next game is Metaphor: ReFantazio 2! I’ll be the director and scenario writer!” It looks like everyone involved in the video had a blast making it.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is scheduled to be released for PC (Steam/Microsoft store), PS4/PS5 and XBox Series X|S on October 11. More information about the game can be found on the official website.
