Written by. Nick Mosier based on the original Japanese article (original article’s publication date: 2022-04-14 15:00 JST)

Nippon Ichi Software has announced GrimGrimoire OnceMore for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. The game is scheduled to release in Japan on July 28 for 5,478 yen (roughly $44) and is a remaster of the PlayStation 2 title GrimGrimoire which released in 2007.

GrimGrimoire OnceMore is a magical fantasy RTS being developed by Vanillaware. The game is set at a magic school that only accepts students with magic abilities. The game’s protagonist is Lillet Blan, a girl that has only just arrived at the school. After laying hands on a Grimoire for the first time, her journey to become a witch begins. But just 5 days after coming to the school, a calamity unfolds that takes the lives of everyone else there. For some reason, Lillet alone is sent back in time, repeating the 5-day period while trying to fight off the incoming disaster.

Life at the school is filled with incidents. When pulled into battles, you will borrow the power of Grimoires to summon Familiars to fight on your behalf. Gameplay during combat can be boiled down to real-time strategy with a magical fantasy twist. Summoning Familiars requires managing a resource called Mana, with the goal being to defeat your opponent’s Familiars and destroy their runes.

There are many distinct Familiars in the game such as cute fairies, dragons summoned as eggs, and spirits that excel against physical attacks. Between these battles are voiced scenes that progress the story and show Lillet scrambling to prevent the ruin that awaits at the end of the 5-day period.

The first change this remaster brings with it is higher resolution graphics. In the move to HD, the game’s beautiful visuals have become even more vivid. The game now being in widescreen also makes it easier to grasp what’s happening on the battlefield.

Speaking of voices, GrimGrimoire OnceMore has been updated with recordings from a new voicecast. Voices have also been added to battles, which will help show a new side of Lillet and her friends.

As far as changes to combat goes, powerful spells and a skill tree have been added to the game. While the number of times these new powerful spells can be used is limited, they pack a big enough punch to change the tide of battle. Attacks like Mana Burst spread fire damage over a wide area and Resurrection can be used to heal allies. It looks like these spells are also accompanied by anime cut-ins of Lillet.

With the skill tree, players can exchange coins to do things like strengthening their Familiars or the runes used to summon them. In the remaster, stages have different win conditions, and optional missions were added as well. Clearing missions will earn you coins that can then be used to unlock more from the skill tree.

In addition, a fast-forward function is being added for both cutscenes and battles, as well as the ability to save during battle. There’s also a gallery that will contain over 90 illustrations from both the original and the remaster.