Indie studio Lince Works recently debuted a video developer diary series covering its work on the ninja stealth action games Aragami and Aragami 2. Dev Diary #1 - Creating a Franchise is the first entry in the video series, and can be seen on Lince Works’ YouTube channel.
Barcelona, Spain-based Lince Works established itself in 2014, and released its first video game Aragami in 2016. Aragami is a Tenchu-style ninja stealth action game inspired by ancient Japanese mythology and culture that helped to revitalize the classic ninja video game genre. Along with its Tenchu influence, Aragami was strongly inspired by Dishonored, Journey, Metal Gear Solid, Mark of the Ninja, and the game that established and defined the stealth genre, Thief. Since launch, Aragami has sold over 600,000 copies, a feat made all the more impressive considering it was self-developed and self-published by such a small (seven-person) indie studio.
Aragami 2 was announced on August 27, 2020, and is currently scheduled to be released sometime in early 2021 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and PC. Aragami 2’s story is set 100 years after the events of the original Aragami, and according to the official press release, will present players with “a fresh new action stealth experience with more agile stealth mechanics, new combat features, and gripping narrative.” The game will also feature up-to-3-person online multiplayer, so you can experience the adventure solo, or have friends join in at any time to take the Aragami 2 journey with you.
Dev Diary #1 - Creating a Franchise kicks off the Lince Works story by revealing how the indie studio was founded, including the main idea that sparked a group of students to come together and form a game development studio. Along with Lince Works’ origin story, the devs relate their tales on the creation and evolution of Aragami. The team tells some rather interesting anecdotes regarding “what it was like to turn that project into a commercial title, the challenges and setbacks during the development and the lessons learned from the experience.”
The first entry eventually leads to the developers’ conception of Aragami 2, including its initial development, and the ambitions and expectations the team has for the game during its development. In many ways, the devs say that Aragami 2 will be very much like the original, but with a number of unique qualities, most notably expanding upon the lore of what it means to be Aragami.
Watch the Dev Diary #1 - Creating a Franchise video for the full details, and follow Lince Works’ Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram channels for live updates. Aragami, the Aragami: Nightfall DLC, and Aragami 2 are available on Steam.
