"Maintaining what Culdcept is, as a series, is extremely important to us" - we talk with Neos Corporation about reviving the card RPG series
In what is rapidly becoming a yearly tradition at BitSummit, my weekend starts at the Rohm Theatre Starbucks, just across the street from the Miyako Messe building. Dark Mocha Chocolate frappuccino in hand, notepad at the ready, I await the arrival of James Wragg of Embracer Freemode. He previously interpreted for my Stray Children interview with Kimura-san, and as always, is a fantastic help in navigating professional Japanese to English intricacies.
Shortly after finding a table that hadn’t been rained on, he arrived along with a cadre of representatives from Neos Corp, developer of the upcoming Culdcept Begins: Harukiba Masamichi (Director), Katafuchi Ayaka (Sales & Promotion), and Duke Chang (President of niconeli co.) After introductions were made, we got underway to discuss the development of Culdcept BEGINS.
RPG Site: Culdcept as a series has, historically, been developed and published by OmiyaSoft in collaboration with various publishers, but Neos Corp is involved with Culdcept BEGINS — how did Culdcept end up at Neos, and what drove the series to get a revitalization (both in BEGINS and Culdcept: The First Saturn Tribute)?
Harukiba-san: Culdcept is a pretty old series, with 2027 heralding the 30th anniversary. It’s been around for a while, and it has a lot of fans, owing to its card/board game hybrid gameplay. The fans are very passionate, and especially with Japanese fans, there have been a lot of questions regarding a new entry in the series — the last game in the series was almost 10 years ago. Nagashima-san (Culdcept BEGINS Lead Producer) and myself, we both love Culdcept very much. It’s been supported extremely heavily by fans in Japan, and it’s the same with our team at Neos.
We didn’t want the series to vanish, so we reached out to Jamsworks, the production company that worked with Omiyasoft on Culdcept since the first game. They introduced us to Omiyasoft, and from there, we were able to connect and bring a revival of sorts for the series. It had already been decided between OmiyaSoft and City Connection that a remastered version of the original title, The First, would be released as part of the Saturn Tribute series. Given that BEGINS serves as a prequel to the original, we aimed to further build excitement around the Culdcept series as a whole. As part of this effort, we (Neos) released the Nintendo Switch version of The First and planned a bundled edition* of BEGINS that includes The First.
[Editor's Note: As of the time of publication, the bundled edition is only available in Japan as a limited edition, although it supports English text]
Harukiba-san: Culdcept is a pretty old series, with 2027 heralding the 30th anniversary. It’s been around for a while, and it has a lot of fans, owing to its card/board game hybrid gameplay. The fans are very passionate, and especially with Japanese fans, there have been a lot of questions regarding a new entry in the series — the last game in the series was almost 10 years ago. Nagashima-san (Culdcept BEGINS Lead Producer) and myself, we both love Culdcept very much. It’s been supported extremely heavily by fans in Japan, and it’s the same with our team at Neos.
We didn’t want the series to vanish, so we reached out to Jamsworks, the production company that worked with Omiyasoft on Culdcept since the first game. They introduced us to Omiyasoft, and from there, we were able to connect and bring a revival of sorts for the series. It had already been decided between OmiyaSoft and City Connection that a remastered version of the original title, The First, would be released as part of the Saturn Tribute series. Given that BEGINS serves as a prequel to the original, we aimed to further build excitement around the Culdcept series as a whole. As part of this effort, we (Neos) released the Nintendo Switch version of The First and planned a bundled edition* of BEGINS that includes The First.
[Editor's Note: As of the time of publication, the bundled edition is only available in Japan as a limited edition, although it supports English text]
RPG Site: A common thing that popped up during my research of the older games is that Culdcept is deceptively challenging and has a relatively high learning curve — were there any specific things you wanted to address in BEGINS to ease players into the game without removing some of the depth?
Harukiba-san: We did want to lower the barrier to entry slightly for Culdcept BEGINS — as you have mentioned, the difficulty can ramp up fairly quickly. The game is sometimes described by overseas fans as “Monopoly meets Magic: The Gathering,” but precisely because it combines multiple appealing elements, it can also feel quite complex.
However, the luck element of a dice roll, and the balance between that and the strategic placement of territories and magic cards, is a core, fundamental part of the franchise. Having a degree of difficulty within the game is as much a part of Culdcept as the story or characters. Making the game too easy would not be keeping in the tradition of Culdcept, so we wanted to maintain that depth.
One of the things we wanted to focus on, however, was explaining the rules properly and clearly. Series veterans already know how to play, but newcomers don’t. Therefore, the targets we wanted to hone in on were things like UI explanations and making sure it’s easy to get into a game — “what” is happening and, more importantly, “why” something is happening. The story is of a Cepter growing stronger within the game, progressing and gaining more magic cards for their deck, which is just one example of what we were aiming for.
We wanted to use the story as a vehicle to explore not just the world, but also how the rules of the game work — in essence, a robust tutorial to ease the player into how to play the game. There’s a lot of depth to the game, and so instead of throwing everything at the player and letting them figure it out, we wanted to focus on teaching the basics up-front, particularly how to build up your magic and how to use cards in battle.
Harukiba-san: We did want to lower the barrier to entry slightly for Culdcept BEGINS — as you have mentioned, the difficulty can ramp up fairly quickly. The game is sometimes described by overseas fans as “Monopoly meets Magic: The Gathering,” but precisely because it combines multiple appealing elements, it can also feel quite complex.
However, the luck element of a dice roll, and the balance between that and the strategic placement of territories and magic cards, is a core, fundamental part of the franchise. Having a degree of difficulty within the game is as much a part of Culdcept as the story or characters. Making the game too easy would not be keeping in the tradition of Culdcept, so we wanted to maintain that depth.
One of the things we wanted to focus on, however, was explaining the rules properly and clearly. Series veterans already know how to play, but newcomers don’t. Therefore, the targets we wanted to hone in on were things like UI explanations and making sure it’s easy to get into a game — “what” is happening and, more importantly, “why” something is happening. The story is of a Cepter growing stronger within the game, progressing and gaining more magic cards for their deck, which is just one example of what we were aiming for.
We wanted to use the story as a vehicle to explore not just the world, but also how the rules of the game work — in essence, a robust tutorial to ease the player into how to play the game. There’s a lot of depth to the game, and so instead of throwing everything at the player and letting them figure it out, we wanted to focus on teaching the basics up-front, particularly how to build up your magic and how to use cards in battle.
RPGSite: I think you succeeded, because in the tutorial, the cards you start with are very simple stuff — draw two cards, or this player can only roll a one, that sort of thing. But as you advance, you unlock some of the stronger or more niche cards, like cards that reduce territory levels.
Harukiba-san: One of the other things we focused on was balance adjustment and the pacing of matches. For example, summoning creatures is smoother in BEGINS, because in older games, you could more easily run out of magic to summon. This allows players to breeze through the earlier parts of a match and get to where the action tends to be, the mid and late game.
Harukiba-san: One of the other things we focused on was balance adjustment and the pacing of matches. For example, summoning creatures is smoother in BEGINS, because in older games, you could more easily run out of magic to summon. This allows players to breeze through the earlier parts of a match and get to where the action tends to be, the mid and late game.
RPGSite: Were there any mechanics from previous games that you absolutely had to scrap for BEGINS, and if so, why?
Harukiba-san: One thing we were really conscious of was first-time Cepters. We didn’t want to take anything away, necessarily, as maintaining what Culdcept is, as a series, is extremely important to us. Instead, we wanted to sand some rough edges off and make entry into the series a lot smoother via the UI and game design elements we discussed earlier, adjusting the learning curve a bit. There are some behind-the-scenes economy balance adjustments we made as well, such as land type bonuses and magic generation, to allow the tempo of the game to feel smoother overall as well.
Harukiba-san: One thing we were really conscious of was first-time Cepters. We didn’t want to take anything away, necessarily, as maintaining what Culdcept is, as a series, is extremely important to us. Instead, we wanted to sand some rough edges off and make entry into the series a lot smoother via the UI and game design elements we discussed earlier, adjusting the learning curve a bit. There are some behind-the-scenes economy balance adjustments we made as well, such as land type bonuses and magic generation, to allow the tempo of the game to feel smoother overall as well.
RPGSite: Were there any pieces of lore or story from older games that you needed to "retcon" to continue the story of Culdcept for BEGINS? If not, were there any challenges to writing the story for this new entry?
Nagashima-san: We positioned Culdcept BEGINS as a new beginning of Culdcept. It effectively continues the story, but begins before Culdcept The First. This allows veterans to come in and connect the dots between games, but provides a better starting point for series newcomers as well. Taking this approach, it means that you don’t need any prior knowledge to enjoy the game, but it provides connections and story pieces for veterans returning to the series.
Nagashima-san: We positioned Culdcept BEGINS as a new beginning of Culdcept. It effectively continues the story, but begins before Culdcept The First. This allows veterans to come in and connect the dots between games, but provides a better starting point for series newcomers as well. Taking this approach, it means that you don’t need any prior knowledge to enjoy the game, but it provides connections and story pieces for veterans returning to the series.
RPGSite: One thing I noticed is that the story takes place in Bavrashka, the “continent of the gods”, which is a bit of a contrast to the other games in the series, which have historically been entirely new worlds created by the strongest Cepter from a previous world.
Chang-san: The first title in the series, Culdcept The First, is set in the world of Bavrashka. Since BEGINS serves as a prequel to 1st, it also takes place in the same world of Bavrashka. From the next game onward, however, the setting shifts to different worlds, as Cepters who have mastered the art of Culdcept become gods and go on to create entirely new worlds.
Nagashima-san created an entirely new language for Bavrashka with the help of a specialist in linguistics to add several layers of immersion to BEGINS. There’s a greater level of care and thought being put into not just the game design, but the environment and world of Culdcept BEGINS that we hope everyone will enjoy.
Chang-san: The first title in the series, Culdcept The First, is set in the world of Bavrashka. Since BEGINS serves as a prequel to 1st, it also takes place in the same world of Bavrashka. From the next game onward, however, the setting shifts to different worlds, as Cepters who have mastered the art of Culdcept become gods and go on to create entirely new worlds.
Nagashima-san created an entirely new language for Bavrashka with the help of a specialist in linguistics to add several layers of immersion to BEGINS. There’s a greater level of care and thought being put into not just the game design, but the environment and world of Culdcept BEGINS that we hope everyone will enjoy.
RPGSite: Neos, on their company page, has assets related to Generative AI (labeled as "AI Solutions"). Were any generative AI assets or tools used in the creation of Culdcept BEGINS?
Harukiba-san: While it is true that Neos has a division within the company that works on Generative AI, it is absolutely and completely divorced from the game development part of Neos. The Steam page reflects this, but to confirm: absolutely zero generative AI was used in the development process of Culdcept BEGINS. We worked with some extremely talented artists and wished above all else to respect their creativity by not utilizing generative AI.
Harukiba-san: While it is true that Neos has a division within the company that works on Generative AI, it is absolutely and completely divorced from the game development part of Neos. The Steam page reflects this, but to confirm: absolutely zero generative AI was used in the development process of Culdcept BEGINS. We worked with some extremely talented artists and wished above all else to respect their creativity by not utilizing generative AI.
RPGSite: Are there any plans for more competitive modes, such as online matchmaking, tournaments, and so on?
Harukiba-san: We do have online! We have quick matches and room matches to allow players to play with friends. We wish to see how Cepters react and engage with the game when it launches, so we can build off of that foundation and adjust to what the community wants or needs post-release.
Harukiba-san: We do have online! We have quick matches and room matches to allow players to play with friends. We wish to see how Cepters react and engage with the game when it launches, so we can build off of that foundation and adjust to what the community wants or needs post-release.
RPGSite: What is your artist's favorite piece of card art from the game and why? Multiple answers are fine! Personally, I'm a fan of Cait Sith.
Nagashima-san: I can’t really choose from the 400 cards in the game, but I am a big fan of the new cards we developed for BEGINS. I hope the players enjoy all of the new cards and illustrations, and I am eager to see which cards end up being player favorites!
Harukiba-san: I’m a pretty big fan of the Cornfolk, actually...
Chang-san: The T-Rex! I love the new design of it.
Nagashima-san: I can’t really choose from the 400 cards in the game, but I am a big fan of the new cards we developed for BEGINS. I hope the players enjoy all of the new cards and illustrations, and I am eager to see which cards end up being player favorites!
Harukiba-san: I’m a pretty big fan of the Cornfolk, actually...
Chang-san: The T-Rex! I love the new design of it.
RPGSite: Finally, a fun question we tend to ask - how do each of you take your coffee (or if you don't drink coffee, what is your drink of choice?)
Harukiba-san: Despite being a sweet tooth, when I drink coffee, I usually take it black with no sugar or cream.
Katafuchi-san: Latte with almond milk, usually!
Chang-san: Black!
Harukiba-san: Despite being a sweet tooth, when I drink coffee, I usually take it black with no sugar or cream.
Katafuchi-san: Latte with almond milk, usually!
Chang-san: Black!
As always, thank you to James Wragg for his masterful interpretation and assistance, and thank you to Harukiba-san, Katafuchi-san, and Chang-san for taking the time to speak with us about Culdcept BEGINS.
Culdcept BEGINS launches digitally on July 16th for Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch. The Steam release will follow later in the year. Physical editions will launch on September 17th due to a production delay. For more information about Culdcept, Neos has produced a roundtable discussion.