With vibrant graphics, a potentially fascinating storyline and full online mode to complement a traditional single-player RPG, White Knight Chronicles managed to capture everybody's attention at TGS, even though it was not playable. Level-5's unmistakable touch can be detected in the attention to the smallest detail and in the high degree of customization that has become more and more a trademark of the popular development house. We had a chance to interview Akihiro Hino, President and CEO of the company, about those elements of White Knight Chronicles that were not explored in detail during the short presentation we attended earlier in the show.



GameSpy: Will you keep getting your inspiration from European themes, which seem to be present in several Level-5 games? Akihiro
Akihiro Hino, President and CEO: Admittedly, many gamers have told us that our games have a European flavor. We agree, but at the same time we think they have very distinctive Japanese elements in them, which seems to be well-accepted by gamers in Europe. We like the fact that people always seem to find something familiar in our games, whether they are European or Japanese, and we will keep promoting this feature in our future titles.
GameSpy: The presentation of White Knight Chronicles mentioned a "transforming hero". What does it mean exactly?
Hino: When we started working on the storyline of the game we simply wanted to have a hero in a fantasy setting. We thought about what a hero should be like and we came up with the idea of a knight who could protect the weak. Then we filled the game world with enormous monsters and this lead us to decide that our knight shouldn't have been a normal one, but a supersized one as well. We thought that no superhero would be more appropriate than a giant knight in a fantasy world setting.
GameSpy: Did you get inspiration for your knights from past Level-5 games such as Jeanne d'Arc?
Hino: Both Jeanne d'Arc and White Knight Chronicles were developed centering on an idea I had, so their development times were almost in parallel. In both games I wanted to include some elements of a transforming hero, but in Jeanne d'Arc this only represents part of the game, while in White Knight Chronicles it becomes the central theme. As for their gameplay, though, they are completely different.

GameSpy: Could you reveal more about the different types of knights included in White Knight Chronicles?
Hino: The white knight represents of course the right, therefore he is the main character in our story. The black knight represents opposite values: He is a symbol of evil and the battle between him and the white knight will be one of the main elements in the game. There will also be a third knight, the dragon knight that was shown earlier in the game presentation. His presence will affect the outcome of the battle between the hero and his nemesis in a way that we will disclose later on. Other than the three knights we showed, there will be several others. The only thing I can say right now is that their way of transforming will be quite different from each other.
GameSpy: In other Level-5 games such as Dragon Quest VIII and Rogue Galaxy we saw characters wearing several different outfits. Is there going to be anything similar in White Knight Chronicles, other than the knight armors?
Hino: Yes, there will be even more than that. Players will be able to choose almost every single element of their characters, including clothes and physical aspects, and this will happen both in online and offline modes. The selected costumes will also be reflected in the graphics of the game, so players who decide to wear a particularly strange outfit will have to go through special events in the storyline dressed like that.
GameSpy: Will players be able to share items in the online mode?
Hino: It will be possible, but there will be certain limitations. The game is designed in a way that allows players to trade items, but at the same time prevents them from totally disrupting the natural balance of gameplay.
GameSpy: Is there going to be any use of magic in battle and if so, how will it work?
Hino: It will be a way to attack from a distance, which will be particularly useful when fighting against enormous enemies. Magic will not be that different from other attacks such as bow and arrows, but when wizards take part in a battle the strategy is definitely different, because it involves a different positioning on the battlefield.
GameSpy: In one of the White Knight Chronicles movies we saw there were flying ships. Could you tell us more about the vehicles included in the game and about the way characters will move from one point to another on the world map?
Hino: Unfortunately, I'll have to refrain from answering your question regarding vehicles, as details have not been revealed yet. As for the way characters move from one point to another, it hasn't changed since the demo build that was released a year ago. By selecting a destination on the map, character icons will automatically move to that point. As White Knight Chronicles takes place in an enormous world, we thought that this would be the most appropriate solution.