Vagrant Story creator shares hypothetical ideas for a survival RPG that would revisit unused ideas from the original game and put players in “trolley problem” situations

Yasumi Matsuno, creator of Square Enix’s Vagrant Story, celebrated his 61st birthday on October 24. In an update on X, he told fans that he is practically retired now when it comes to making games, and politely asked them to “watch over him warmly” without setting their expectations too high. SaGa series creator Akitoshi Kawazu responded by asking Matsuno what kind of Vagrant Story game he would make if he had the chance, prompting Matsuno to discuss his ideas for a hybrid RPG title.

The Vagrant Story game Matsuno has in mind combines third-person action with command-based gameplay, with core gameplay revolving around survival and rescuing survivors. Instead of following in the footsteps of existing “outstanding” RPGs like Elden Ring or The Legend of Zelda, it would build upon what those games do well while incorporating Matsuno’s own originality.

As something he would like to revisit, Matsuno also mentioned an idea for Vagrant Story that was scrapped due to the technical limitations of the PlayStation. It involved having companions that would travel and aid protagonist Ashley Riot. While the idea was later realized somewhat through Final Fantasy XII’s party members in 2006 (Matsuno served as the game’s director before stepping down due to illness), his original vision for Vagrant Story’s companions was not to make them into strong allies, but rather common people who could even be a burden to the player.

Vagrant Story was originally going to have you rescue civilians trapped inside a sealed-off city. People on the outskirts would be easier to rescue than those deep inside the city. Some of those survivors could end up becoming party members that would join your party, while others wouldn’t be of much help.

Matsuno builds upon the idea, suggesting that (in a hypothetical new game), players could encounter “trolley problems,” i.e., dilemmas where saving one person means sacrificing another. Depending on each survivor’s abilities, you would have to carefully choose which ones to save and how to best utilize them. He adds that he would like to create a game where the secrets of the story are gradually revealed through conversations and interactions with these seemingly common NPCs.

In response to Matsuno’s ideas, Akitoshi Kawazu replied that his concept could make for a “tense, nerve-wracking game with a real sense of danger and immersion.” He added that some people who read his X post might feed the idea into AI tools to make a similar game, but stated that no one other than Matsuno would be able to capture the particular flavor of a Vagrant Story game.

While there is no confirmation as to whether Matsuno is working on a new game (or a new Vagrant Story title, for that matter), his ideas for a series he helped create are quite interesting.

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