Type-Moon Studio BB held a special stream for the 10th anniversary ofFate/Extraon July 22, a few hours after thefull remakeFate/Extra Record(tentative title) was announced.The stream was MC’ed by seiyuu (andGundam EXVStop player) Kana Ueda, using the appearance of her Nasuverse character Rin Tohsaka. Type-Moon Studio BB Director Kazuya Niinou was also present, voice only. We learned many details on the remake including how the battle system works, with live gameplay. Here’s a summary of everything we learned on stream.First off, Kana Ueda started reading fan comments on Twitter, with Director Niinou answering and commenting. He most notably confirmed the protagonist, Hakuno Kishinami, male and female versions, will be voiced in the remake. Players who feel like games are more immersive when the protagonist is silent will be able to turn off their voices in the options.Niinou also said he wants to make the remake fully-voiced, but he’s not sure yet if it’ll be possible. The stream as a whole made it clear the remake is far from complete and won’t be launching anytime soon.Niinou can’t comment on the remake’s platforms yet. But he reminded us he’s been saying for a while he wants to bring the game to as many people as possible. So he’s not ruling out a Steam release.Next, we got the results of the Twitter poll that was held for a few hours before the stream started. 57,318 votes were gathered:
48.1% of voters played the original, 17.2% only watched the anime adaptation, 29.7% only know the characters, and 5.0% never heard ofFate/Extra.Director Niinou said fewer people than he expected played the original, but he’s still happy overall. A lot of voters on Twitter mentioned they technically didn’t playFate/Extrabut did play its sequelFate/Extra CCC.
After that, when quickly mentioningFate/Extellaand its sequelFate/Extella Link,Director Niinou said it’s unlikely they’ll add some of the new characters appearing in these two action games, such as Charlemagne, into theFate/Extra Recordremake.
From the 32:40 mark, the stream started focusing specifically onFate/Extra Record.
Kazuya Niinou explainedFate/Extra Recordis based on three concepts, plus a fourth concept. First off, it’s simply to answer the call of fans who wish to play the game again, and of those who didn’t have the chance to play it, only knowing the characters throughFGO,etc.
The second concept: when they first talked about this remake, they had to decide between making a typical mobile game that’d reach a very large base of players, or a “firm & traditional” console game. They decided on the latter. This remake is the answer for those who want a “firm console game” for theFateseries. This remake will also allow them to do what they couldn’t with the original game, without changing the core of the game either.
Aruko Wada also made a brand new key visual for the remake, and it also reflects how it keeps the original’s core: Redsaber has a serious and cool expression on it because she was originally that type of character. Even though Fate material nowadays depicts her through comedy and cuteness. Her seiyuu Sakura Tange also said she’s used to voicing Redsaber in a cute way nowadays, so it feels weird voicing her serious version again.
The third concept behind theFate/Extra Remakeis to have a game that makes it easy for newcomers to get into the franchise. Nowadays theFatefranchise is huge, so this remake will be the perfect place to start for those who don’t know about stuff like Servants, etc. (Personally, I’d simply suggest just watching/playing everything by release order. Most of the time this is the simplest and best answer when it comes to Japanese franchises).
The fourth concept behindFate/Extra Recordis to make Type-Moon Studio BB known to the world. Kazuya Niinou explained he left Square Enix for two reasons. The first one was to make this remake. The second one was to make a brand new game, which they’re also working on. As Studio Director, Niinou wants people to realize Studio BB is working hard, good, and get his team recognized.
Following up next, we got to see some live gameplay from the 39:33 mark till the 48:30 mark:
Kazuya Niinou wanted to show actual gameplay so people know the game exists. The trailer isn’t some rendering they put together. The remake actually exists.
Players will be able to speak with most of the NPCs at school in the final game. We saw the novel parts are still in too. The game has day and night scenes too.
We got to see some of the debug menu and boot menu of the game too, something you’d usually never see. The boot menu allows the devs to boot to any important feature or location in the game basically. You have the title screen, the game over screen, a dungeon, a battle result screen, the church, etc.
When the dungeon part started, Niinou explained how the Servants now walk in front of the Master, protecting them. We got an explanation of the battle system too.
The battle system ofFate/Extra Recordis turn-based and deck of cards based, “like in many popular indie games nowadays” Niinou said. it’s likeSlay The Spire,etc. Each turn, you get a random set of cards: offensive cards, defensive cards, etc. Different servants have different specific cards too, and for example, Redsaber has guaranteed critical hits offensive cards. The game also tells you how much damage enemies will deal when they attack next.
We also saw how the game uses 3D animated portraits during dialogues. Nasu in a text message published during the stream, really praised these, saying Redsaber and all the characters are super expressive.
Once the battle ends, you can get new cards. The gameplay sequence ended with this.
A bit later on the livestream, Kazuya Niinou commented the battle system in detail. He stressed how compared to the original game, this new battle system really feels like you are a Master fighting together with your Servant, and that the players are not the Servant themselves. That’s why he definitely didn’t want to change to an action battle system, as it would mean directly controlling the Servant. He explained that the deck-based system feels great, as if you’re giving orders to the Servant, and fits theFateatmosphere.
Next up, we saw the original character designs drawn by Aruko Wada forFate/Extra Record
They explained on stream how Redsaber looks more serious than the usual you’d see today. Rin’s outfit colors were reversed from the usual. Aruko Wada, needless to say, kept the Zettai Ryouiki, but instead of doing it with thigh highs, she did it with needle high heel boots, because she really likes high heels like these. They also gave Rin some cool “hacker-like” glasses.
Next, we have Julius B. Harwey. His design changed a bit compared to the original game. We also have the new designs for the Ball and Golem monsters.
Following that, at the 52:09 mark, we got to see more in-development footage:
Taiga gets in the classroom and then trips horribly. She always trips like that, at that moment. This is a classic scene from the original game, and they’re recreating it. The text narration mentions she made a huge thud sound when falling, and the students got worried, thinking she passed out. The characters in the classroom are all Archers as placeholders.
Kazuya Niinou jokingly explained they showed this scene to show all the iconic Showa era-like scenes from the original game are still there, and they won’t change things to fit Reiwa Era. Indeed, characters tripping is a very old anime trope at this point. Personally, it still makes me laugh if done well.
Following up next was the announcements corner
First off, an artbook tentatively titled Amor Vincit Omnia by Aruko Wada, dedicated to her work on theFateseries so far, will be published in 2021. A message by Aruko Wada was published. She’s ultra happy the game is finally getting a remake, and hopes everyone will enjoy it, especially those who always wanted to try it but couldn’t. She’s super happy to be working on the remake’s new designs too.
Kazuya Niinou mentioned they’re done designing nearly all the characters and are currently working on the facial expressions and key visuals.
Next up, Android and iOS mobile ports ofFate/Extellaand its sequelFate/Extella Linkwere announced in Japan. They’re available now.
Following this, theFate/Extella Celebration Boxwas announced. It contains copies ofFate/Extella, Fate/Extella Link,and an “Ekusuteratchi”: Tamagotchi but with Servants. This is an official collab with Tamagotchi andFate/Extra, with 30 different servants you can raise. Buying this box is the only official way of getting an Ekusuteratchi.
A message fromFate/ExtellaProducer Kenichiro Tsukuda was also shared. He mentioned how he only started working on the series startingFate/Extra CCC. He still remembers back when he joined, how new he was and all, and can’t believe it’s been ten years since the originalFate/Extra. He hopes everyone will keep supporting the series.
Lastly, the gameDigDug BBwas announced.It’s free, but it’ll only be accessible for a limited time on this page. it’s based on the 1982 game released by Namco, except with BB instead of the character from back then. Clearing it nets you a wallpaper. It’s really difficult though.
Finally, when the stream ended, a slightly different version of the remake’s trailer was shown. Kazuya Niinou explained the visuals are identical, but the sound composition is different. Most notably, Archer is saying the Unlimited Blade Works incantation in Japanese in this version.
Fate/Extra RecordFirst Trailer Another Version
As the stream ended, Kazuya Niinou said he was really nervous about the remake reveal and this stream at first, but all the comments and reactions have been really nice and positive, so he’s more eager than ever to complete the game. Kana Ueda also said it was her first time speaking through a character like this so she was pretty nervous herself. Personally, I find it funny that eve an iconic character like Rin is now a VTuber. As that’s what everyone does nowadays, and it looks like Japanese studios all believe it’s the best way to stay relevant with younger audiences in Japan, ever since the boom with Kizuna Ai in late 2016.
As a reminder, Kazuya Niinou already confirmed Type-Moon Studio BB is workingon two other projects. The second one isn’t a remake but a brand new game that could “take ten years”, Niinou jokingly said on stream.
