Are you ready for something new, something exciting, something clever and something strong? Batora: Lost Haven has just been confirmed – and it’s coming to Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC.
Coming from the creative minds of Stormind Games – they recently behind the Remothered series of games – Batora: Lost Haven has been created on the back of some super rich action RPG ideas. It tells the story of Avril, your every day regular 16-year old girl without a care in the world, but as she realises she has lost everything around her, goes off on a mission to save Earth from oblivion.
We’ve heard this kind of tale a million times over – planet-saving is most certainly a go-to for game developers – but this one will see us helping Avril take in an interplanetary adventure, one that will see her visit colourful and mysterious planets and meet intriguing characters. Oh, and she will also learn that every choice has a consequence. Oh joy.
Far from running as a standard aRPG game, Batora focuses on the duality between mind and body, introducing a new game mechanic that challenges players to find the perfect balance between the two. You see, losing sight of one could mean that their journey is over, yet Batora doesn’t present the hero’s journey in black or white, good or evil: there are decisions and there are their consequences. This will mean that every single decision Avril makes will turn out to be important, often even life-changing – not just for herself, but for the characters she meets or the places she visits.
“We live our lives in a constant state of flux between our physical and mental well being, often with little thought for how they affect each other.” commented Giacomo Masi, Narrative Designer on Batora: Lost Haven. “The journey which Avril takes in Batora really focuses on the need for a strategic dualism – mastering the balance between the physical and the mental – whilst presenting a multi-branching, narrative full of consequences, rich in plot twists and credible, like-able characters.”
It’s safe to say that Stormind have a reputation for creating intense emotional tale and Batora looks set to follow these. But as well as the duality of the lead character, it also has further unique features with players required to use the “switch mechanic” to alternate between their physical and mental states. Learning the right time to strike or not be struck and in which state to do so will present a considerable challenge to even the most experienced players.
Gaetano Caltabiano, Art Director on the project, added “Bridging the gap between the physical and mental calls for a particular visual representation and we’ve really tried to distinguish between the two with a hand-painted approach inspired by Sci-Fi art of the 1950s versus the photo-realistic approach of many of today’s AAA titles. We’ve really drawn a lot of inspiration from the likes of Alphonse Mucha and the intense Sci-fi environments of Paul Lehr”
“We’re all extremely excited to finally be able to announce this new adventure to the world”, stated Antonio Cannata, CEO and Co-Founder of Stormind Games “This is Stormind Games’ first proprietary IP, and our first next-gen video game – we’re stepping up our game, and both as a man who works in this industry and as a passionate gamer, I can positively state that our team’s professional growth, together with the contribution of stars such as Anne Toole, Borislav Mitkov and Ron Fish, definitely makes Batora: Lost Haven our most ambitious project so far”
We’ll be sure to keep you up-to-date with how Batora: Lost Haven works out ahead of launch on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam. The trailer below will sort you out for now though.
