In Root Letter, players are heading to Matsue, a town in Japan’s Shimane Prefecture, to find out what happened to their former penpal, Aya Fumino. She disappeared fifteen years ago, under mysterious circumstances, and you take it upon yourself to investigate the situation and speak to people who knew her in the hopes of learning the truth. While we’ve heard quite a bit about Aya, PQube has released character profiles for the other members of the game’s cast.
Aya Fumino
Born in Tokyo an only child, Fumino Aya is a senior at high school who loves history and mythology. She’s also the lead character’s (that’s you!) pen pal from 15 years ago. Back then, she came across as kind and compassionate – but as you investigate her disappearance, you begin to question everything you thought you knew about her.
Yukari Ishihara
The daughter of an advertising exec and a waitress at a diner – Yukari grew up to be curator at the Shimane Art Museum. Always in the shadow of her older sister who had the privilege of going to a prestigious university, she developed something of an inferiority complex. Now that she’s gown up and her career is going well, she’s a little more optimistic.
Jun Omori
Dedicated to the art of making exquisite pastries and sweets, Omori owns one of the best patisseries in Shimane. He has a kind and gentle demeanour, but does this hide a dark secret? Fun Fact: The Pastry shop in Root Letter is actually based on a real world shop called Patisserie Galette. Thestor’s primary mission is to make French pastries that suit the Japanese palette!
Kousuke Tanaka
Mild mannered and suffering from lack of confidence, Tanaka has a mild speech impediment. As a kid he was always the smartest boy in school and was destined for great things. Then all of a sudden his grades started to crash. What was it that happened 15 years ago that ruined his once-perfect academic record?
Masaya Watanabe
One minute he was high school’s star athlete dreaming of becoming a professional baseball player. The next minute he’s injured and consigned to the side-lines. The tragedy was too much to take and so he fell in with the wrong crowd and was destined for a life of petty crime. Now, as an adult, he’s turned himself around, teaching PE at the local school. What was it that brought him back from the brink?
Misaki Murakami
A television presenter for a local channel, Misaki’s family runs a sake brewery. She is sometimes a little blunt and rude and craves the life of a serious news reporter. She believes that she must be impartial and report the truth – but isn’t that just a little hypocritical given the events of the past?
Shota Nozu
Shota was a spoilt kid who had a life of wealth and privilege. When his father’s company brought shame on itself or being involved in fraud, Shota went from having it all to being on the brink of poverty. He now works as a bartender, which is hardly where thought his future would be. You can’t blame him for being bitter, but why does Shota still blames someone else for his misfortune?
Riko Sasaki
Riko is just an average housewife married to an average guy – which is a long way from where she wanted to be. Pretty and talented, she always wanted to be an actress, so that she could become rich and famous and look after her parents. Still, her daughter looks like she may be following her dreams for her, but… is that a hint of jealousy we detect?
Root Letter will come to European PlayStation 4s and PlayStation Vitas on October 28, 2016. It will arrive in North America on November 10, 2016.
