Jean Pierre Kellams has made several comments, via multiple tweets, regarding the upcoming Scalebound. The creative producer of the project first addressed concerns regarding the combat system of the Xbox One exclusive by saying that fans of Platinum should think differently about the mechanics.
He compared Scalebound to a team sport like basketball where the player play the role as a point guard instead of playing one-on-one. Instead of reacting to an enemy’s attack, you have to take into account Thuban, your companion dragon, as well as the surrounding environment. While JP Kellams admits that the game may take some time to get used to for Platinum fans, he promises that they will get hooked once they do. You can check out his comments from Twitter below:
My favorite part of @Scalebound is how unpredictable Thuban can be. I saw like four or five new gameplay moments doing theater demos today.
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
I also see a ton of comments about the combat. One of the things we are stressing is you have to think differently about the mechanics.
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
Scalebound is about the bond. and our combat is a team sport. It is the difference between playing one-on-one and playing point guard. — JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
Scalebound combat is about learning not to react to a small frame window, but how to react to a giant dragon and the world around you. — JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
It takes some time to get your head around it, but when you do, you’re hooked. We had ppl coming back multiple times to see the game today.
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
Jean Pierre Kellams also provided an example in which Thuban flies up in the air. In this scenario, the player can either move closer to the enemy (putting the main character, Drew, at risk) or keep a distance (putting the dragon more at risk):
Quick example – If Thuban is in the air, he is very powerful, but you are now vulnerable. So do you move in to take advantage of his power?
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
Or do you take a step back and rely on your range to support Thuban, putting him at risk, and maybe less damage/less reward?
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
When fighting huge creatures – how do you create space to fight safely (they can kill you) but still make sure you do enough damage to win?
— JP Kellams (@PG_jp) August 5, 2015
Scalebound is coming out in the holiday season of 2016. The first gameplay was recently shown off at Gamescom 2015. Instead of being a straight action game, the Xbox One exclusive is an action RPG. If you are interested, you can preorder the upcoming Platinum-developed game with this link on Amazon.
