Crystar director Fuyuki Hayashi and writer Naoki Hisaya recently sat down for an interview, where they talked about the concept of crying out of guilt, whether the game has any overseas release planned, and whether there will be a happy ending. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]
On the topic of gathering “Last Grasps” from enemies, and crying from guilt:
Naoki Hisaya, Writer: “It was Hayashi-san who came up with [the concept of Last Grasps.] It’s something that has existed since the beginning of the game’s development, and is seen all throughout the game.”
Fuyuki Hayashi, Director: “I had the concept of “crying” from the very start. The figure of a person crying holds the sadness and troubles the person is carrying with them. Then, when I was thinking about when people cry, one of the answers I came to was ‘when people feel guilty’. The Last Grasps are a visual representation of this that we created.”
On people’s reactions to the game, and if there are plans to release the game overseas:
Hayashi: “Overall, there was a lot of attention on the dark, troubling nature of the game, which was exactly what we were aiming for. There were especially a lot of questions from overseas.”
4Gamer: During the TGS 2018 4Gamer livestream, one overseas player asked about whether the game will be released overseas. Are there any plans to release the game internationally?
Hayashi: “Currently, it’s still undecided.”
On whether Crystar will have a happy ending:
Hayashi: “I won’t say for certain, because the definition of a happy ending varies between people, but it’ll give you the feeling of being refreshed, like after you finish reading a book.”
Hisaya: “It’s not a game that ends on an uncertain note, nor one that will leave you disturbed.”
Crystar releases in Japan on October 18, 2018 for PlayStation 4.
