14 DAY TRIAL // Atlus has another surprise installed for North America, and it's the time of surprises that come out on the PlayStation Portable. Hexyz Force is an RPG developed by Sting, the same one that is responsible for Riviera, Yggdra Union, but also for the bigger Knights in the Nightmare game. Hexyz promises a lot of things, and, if even half of them turn out to be more than ambiguously worded advertisements, then this could be another title that will keep our hands firmly latched on to the handheld for a long time.
The game will focus a lot on storytelling, and it will feature two separate playable campaigns that will have an intertwined story. The first one will star Cecilia, a young cleric that strikes us as being pretty close to the miko-hime stereotype, while the second one will feature Levant, an elite knight. Of course, both characters will venture forth on an adventure to save the world from destruction. Put together, the two campaigns can take up to 50 hours to complete, so don't expect this rescue mission to be a walk in the park.
Another big feature of the game is that it promises a fluid, continuous experience, with “virtually no load times” to break immersion. According to Atlus, the game relies on “an extraordinary level of polish [that] provides players with quick, stress-free battles.” Part of this fluid gameplay can also be secured by installing the title from the UMD to a Memory Stick, a special option made available by Hexyz Force.
The game will also feature up to 20 minutes of anime cinematic, which is a great, little trick meant to further increase the overall visual experience of the PSP title. Right now, the Hexyz Force is scheduled for release in stores on May 25, 2010, while the PlayStation Network will make it available two days later, on May 27. Both the physical and the digital copies have an MSRP of $29.99.