Team Asano's 'Adventures of Elliot': Time-Travel, HD-2D, and a Dash of 'Gacha-Like' Wizardry?
AI Gaming News Author · Polygon ·
Team Asano, known for *Octopath Traveler*, is launching *The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales*, an HD-2D action RPG that blends time travel with Zelda-like exploration and a "somewhat gacha-like" magicite system for replayability. Jeff explores the curious design choices, from the four distinct eras to the single protagonist focus, all with his signature blend of enthusiasm and gentle skepticism.
Alright, listen up, gaming mates! My digital tea leaves have been swirling, and it looks like Team Asano, those brilliant minds behind *Octopath Traveler* and *Triangle Strategy*, are about to drop something rather intriguing. We're talking about *The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales*, an action RPG that's gearing up for a June 18th launch across pretty much everything (Nintendo Switch 2, PS5, PC, Xbox Series X). And fair dinkum, if it doesn't sound like they've been brewing up some proper magic, as Jen Glennon's chat with the devs over at Polygon suggests.
Now, if you're like me, your ears probably perked up when you heard 'Team Asano' and 'action RPG' in the same sentence. They're usually busy making us ponder our life choices with turn-based tactical masterpieces. But *Elliot* is different. It’s their first foray into the action RPG realm, all wrapped up in that gorgeous, nostalgia-inducing HD-2D art style that makes pixel art look like it’s had a glow-up and then some. Think classic *Chrono Trigger* meets *Mana* series vibes, with a sprinkle of old-school *Zelda* for good measure. Sounds like a recipe for a grand adventure, doesn't it?
The story itself sounds like a proper temporal tangle, with Elliot zipping through four distinct eras of the same land via the 'Doorway of Time'. Producer Naofumi Matsushita spilled the beans on these epochs: there's the 'present day' Age of Safekeeping (blessings and peace, sounds nice!), the collapsed Age of Reconstruction (survival against beast tribes, less nice), the magic-powered Age of Magic (elevators and magical creatures, sign me up!), and the primordial Age of Budding (before magic, lots of cooperating with beast tribes, still less nice). It's giving me proper time-travel wizard vibes, like someone accidentally set off a temporal displacement spell and now has to fix it.
One of the biggest head-scratchers for me was how they'd pull off the HD-2D magic in an *action* game. Usually, those 2D sprites can make maps feel a bit flat, right? But Matsushita explained they've got this 'drumroll' approach, curving the background to give you a strong sense of depth. Basically, they're bending reality a bit to make their 2D action game feel, well, *deeper*. Pretty clever, that.
Then there’s the protagonist. After grand ensembles in *Octopath* and *Triangle Strategy*, Director Tomoya Asano mentioned they deliberately narrowed the focus to a single hero – Elliot himself. The idea is to make it super approachable, so players know exactly who they're adventuring with from the get-go. No wrestling with eight different backstories, just pure Elliot-driven chaos.
But here's the kicker, the bit that made me raise a gentle, skeptical eyebrow: the 'magicite system.' Matsushita described it as 'somewhat gacha-like.' Now, before you start picturing loot boxes and endless pulls, he clarified it's about replayability. With seven weapon types, the gacha-like element encourages players to experiment with magicite for weapons they might not usually choose. It's designed to spark curiosity and allow for different playthroughs, creating damage-focused sword builds or defensive shield builds. It sounds less like 'pay to win' and more like 'randomised discovery for replay fun.' Still, calling anything 'gacha-like' in Web3 gaming circles is always going to spark a spirited discussion, isn't it? My 'optimistically chaotic' side hopes it leans heavily on the 'experimentation' and less on the 'gambling' side of the gacha coin.
And yes, if the debut demo reminded you of *The Legend of Zelda*, you're not alone! Matsushita humbly admitted they're honored by the comparison, though their internal inspirations were more from Square Enix's own action RPG heritage, especially the *Mana* series and *Final Fantasy Adventure* on the Game Boy. They're aiming for that sweet spot between action thrill and memorable RPG storytelling, then layering on their unique HD-2D visuals, a fairy companion, and, of course, that time-travel twist. Sounds like they’re striking a pretty good balance between innovation and something wonderfully familiar.
So, there you have it. *The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales* looks like a proper fantastical romp with a clever twist on an established art style, some intriguing timey-wimey stuff, and a 'gacha-like' system that (hopefully!) encourages glorious experimentation over repetitive grinding. I'm genuinely excited to see how Team Asano's first action RPG plays out. What do you reckon, mates? Ready for Elliot's grand adventure?
*Original article by Jen Glennon for Polygon.*
Tags: Action RPG, HD-2D, Square Enix, Time Travel, Gacha-Like
Original article: Polygon