Nippon Ichi Software announces Labyrinth of Galleria: Coven of Dusk for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita

Nippon Ichi Software has announced Labyrinth of Galleria: Coven of Dusk*, a follow up to Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk which saw its English release just last year. This dungeon crawler received generally positive critical reception both in Japan and overseas, including our own review, and now seems to be the publisher's newest continuing franchise. 

[*presumed English title]

Nippon Ichi has opened Labyrinth of Galleria's official website, but for now it simply links to Dengeki's preview article for the game. It is set to release on July 25 for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in Japan. While Dengeki originally indicated that there would also be a Nintendo Switch version, they have since backtracked that statement, clarifying that the game is currently only set for the PlayStation platforms.

Staff from the first title are back for the follow-up, which is described as a successor rather than a direct sequel, so that those who haven't played Labyrinth of Refrain will still be able to enjoy this game from the get-go. Director Tatsuya Izumi noted that while Galleria shares the rough world setting, terminology, and gameplay systems with the previous game, the team has been applying feedback received from users who played Refrain. The game's vocal theme will once again be performed by Emi Evans.

In Labyrinth of Galleria, the player assumes the soul of the "Necrolamp", an item in the possession of Madam Malta [might be romanized as Martha] that can explore dangerous labyrinths similar to the 'Tractatus de Monstrum' in the previous game. Also like the previous game, you control a party of dolls called the Witch's Brigade, which can take on a variety of classes and confront enemies in a first-person combat style. The article also briefly introduces Malta's assistant named Eureka.

Labyrinth of Galleria will add two new Facet (class) types in Wonder Corsair, all-around attackers that can use all kinds of weapons, and Shinomashira, a group of Eastern warriors that wield hammers and are great at group battles and raiding the frontlines. It also newly adds Miramachinas, autonomous puppets that can be summoned to act as shields in front of the party while launching attacks on their own accord.

Labyrinth of Refrain was a great surprise for us last year, even sneaking its way into our Top 5 RPGs for 2018. We are of course excited to see what's next for NIS' latest series.