Star Ocean: The Divine Force introduces new characters, Item Creation, Private Actions, Es'owa board minigame, and more
Square Enix and Tri-Ace have shared several new trailers for Star Ocean: The Divine Force ahead of its upcoming release. Their latest Mission Report trailer introduces Marielle L. Kenny, who was first unveiled at the Star Ocean program during Tokyo Game Show 2022; the Mission Report also re-introduces series staple Welch Vineyard, Item Creation, and more systems. Dedicated character trailers for Marielle and Malkya were released too.
The Mission Report gives a look at a pair of side characters too - Chloe Kanaris and Antonion Lawrence. Chloe is the pilot of Raymond's Ydas merchant vessel, while Antonio is Raymond's older brother. Star Ocean: The Divine Force will feature Special Events that can occur between main and side characters.
Of course, no Star Ocean is complete without the extravagant Welch Vineyard. Welch is a recurring character throughout the Star Ocean games that usually manages the crafting mechanics in some sort of way, shape, or form. In Star Ocean: The Divine Force, players must complete her requests to unlock Item Creation.
There are several ways people can engage with Item Creation here. Four of the seven ways Item Creation can be done is through Compounding, Crafting, Smithery, and Engineering. Compounding creates consumables, crafting creates accessories/clothing/weapons through ore or cloth, smithery creates weapons/armor through ore alone, and engineering creates an engineered weapon or bomb through parts. Each of the main characters has their own specialty in Item Creation, such as Laeticia with compounding.
Private Actions are conversational events in this Star Ocean installment. The trailer mentions that the game's ending will be affected depending on how players choose to respond in them.
A side activity that people can mess around with in Star Ocean: The Divine Force is the Es'owa board minigame. As players progress through the main game, they will gradually collect character figurines that can be used for it; many of the figures contain characters from past Star Ocean titles or even other Tri-Ace developed games. The Mission Report trailer provides a basic outline of how Es'owa is played and what the player's objective is.
Other basic systems, such as Side Quests and Fast Travel, is also mentioned before concluding the Mission Report.
Small character trailers for Marielle L. Kenny and Malkya Trathen were released shortly after the Mission Report, as well. You can find all those trailers both in English and Japanese down below.
Star Ocean: The Divine Force releases for the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC (Steam) on October 27.