With a SaGa-inspired battle system, The Legend of Legacy shares a lot of similarities to that series of RPGs. Director Masataka Matsuura recently said to Inside Games that the game’s mapping system actually came from a project that SaGa designer Kyoji Koizumi has worked on for several years.
The Legend of Legacy has a mapping system known as “Cartegraph”. In addition to being able to use it for mapping, players can sell the maps for money or get more information from other adventurers for their maps. Inside asks how the system came to be.
The above video gives us an idea of how it works.
“This system is from a project called ‘Cartegrapher’ (tentative title) that Koizumi-san has been working on for several years, and we decided to introduce its structure [in this game],” explains Matsuura. “Koizumi-san suggested it, then fleshed it out with adjustments like rendering and such, which became the Cartegraph feature.”
“It was originally something very simple, but after adding the stereoscopic 3D to it, it became what we have today,” continues Matsuura. “When you look at it in 3D, it’s almost like those picture books that pop out, and it’s really fun!”
One of the reasons FuRyu included the mapping system was to bring out a sense of adventure to the game.
“By making maps as you go, I believe that you get a ‘sense of adventure’ while exploring the unknown wild lands. I think there will also be a sense of value to the maps themselves,” says Matsuura, adding that walking around and checking out the map will be fun in its own way.
The Legend of Legacy will release in Japan on January 22, 2015 for Nintendo 3DS
