Ar no Surge first details and screenshots

Gust's first RPG set in the world of Surge Concerto.

Gust has shared the first official details and screenshots for its newly announced PlayStation 3 title Ar no Surge.

An RPG entry in the developer’s PS Vita communication game series Surge Concerto, Ar no Surge is headed by Akira Tsuchiya, who also directed the previous games. It is set in a world where “songs are the power of magic” and “the power of thoughts become bonds.”

Here’s the story synopsis:

On a planet called La Ciela, humans and “Genomes,” a life-form who possess a spirit exceeding that of humans, once co-existed. But from the loss of this beautiful green land, the people spread. Seeking a new planet, the people who flew on the space ship were known as the Shield of the Gods, who now live in front of the impassible “Felion Wall.” In a geofront called Orei, they live their quiet lives. The seasons never change in this inorganic space. Before they could notice, this became a world for humankind. But even so, they lived strongly. From the weathered rubble they built small houses, and from the metal ground that grew no shrubs or trees they made fields for fruits and vegetables using the skills that had been lost and dreaming once again. However, their lives were not peaceful. The mysterious life-forms known as Sharl suddenly appeared. They kidnapped the people of Orei. Humanity had no technology to stand up to the Sharl with their wondrous power of “song magic.” Then one day, after thousands of years, without even a gust of wind, the Felion Wall opened. From the inside of the wall emerged a people referred to as the “Ancient Ones,” possessing the same song magic as the Sharl and the knowledge to use lost abilities. With this, people assembled within the wall and began to quest for the truth behind the outbreak of the mysterious Sharl.

And a bit about Felion:

The astronomically centered control tower attached to a residential area. The princess of the sky governs the streets of people. The complicated Geofront is a very high-tech town, and groups of skyscrapers towering 40 stories above the ground are connected with passageways. The Neons that color the exteriors and building walls are in scientific wear, and inside the city cast an oriental light. Inside the ancient ones and two kinds of ‘modern people’ who have lived for thousands of years awake from the cold sleep of the planet era. But their common enemy the Sharl, as well as the modern peoples’ respect for and fear of the ancients’ song magic, make their relationship amicable. But although this city that is exposed to the wickedness of the Sharl is closed in by the great wall known as the Shield of the Gods, there are still many modern people who live around its exterior.

The main scenario consists of town, field, and battle parts. The story progresses as you switch between main characters Delta and Arshes.

In town, players can synthesize items at the mixing shop, or power up characters using Genometrics, which lets them enter their hearts to resolve past issues and wounds.

In battle, players will protect the heroine, who has the ability to use powerful song magic, by fighting ahead of her in the front lines. Battles will include some sort of action element, which will be detailed in a follow-up report.

Finally, a bit about the characters.

Delta Lantanoir is our hero. He is a young man who came out from inside the Felion Wall when it opened. He was protecting the city from the Sharl as one of the original members of the elite organization “Plasma.” Within Plasma, he was a member of the special strategy team “Genometh,” but was discharged after an incident. He now runs a restaurant called “Cook de Delta” in Felion.

Arshes, a mysterious humanoid robot, is our second character. His manufacturer, manufacture location, equipped functionality, and specs, etc. are all unknown. However, considering he carries weaponry, it highly probable that he was built for combat.

Ar no Surge is due out for PlayStation 3 in Japan on January 30, 2014. View the first screenshots at the gallery.