In many ways, the announcement of Fairy Tail 2 was an unexpected but welcome surprise. While there’s no denying the popularity of the series by Hiro Mashima, Koei Tecmo and Gust gave no indication that the franchise would continue to bring a close to the original manga’s storyline.
During Gamescom 2024, I had the chance to try out the game before its December release and speak with Producer Hiroshi Kataoka, discussing the setting, characters, battle system, future content, and more. Enjoy!
The interview was conducted via an interpreter and has been edited for clarity.
The original Fairy Tail was almost universally praised for being a very good adaptation of the manga by Hiro Mashima, but many found it difficult to keep up with the story and characters without any prior knowledge. Is there anything in the new game that addresses this issue?
We have a few systems in place to address this issue. For starters, at the beginning of the game, there’s an event that is specifically focused on looking back at the past story. We also implemented a glossary in the main menu, which allows players to check terminology as well as learn more about characters and their past, so it’s easy to learn what happened before the Alvarez Empire Arc. During dialogues, there are also words highlighted in yellow, which can take the player straight to the glossary, even during gameplay. So, to enjoy Fairy Tail 2, it’s not necessary to play the original.
Fairy Tail 2 features an all-new original story called Key to the Unknown, set after the events of the Alvarez Empire Arc and the original story. Is there more original story besides this new epilogue?
There is more original story, but it’s not a lot, and it’s mostly found in sidequests and optional content. Fairy Tail 2 is all about respecting the original IP, and we didn’t want to break the flow of the original narrative. When it comes to the original story we added, including the epilogue, Mashima-sensei checked everything, so players and fans can look forward to it.
One of the biggest changes featured in Fairy Tail 2 over the original is the battle system. Why go from a classic turn-based system to the new real-time one?
There are a few reasons for the change. The first game featured a turn-based battle system to help newcomers to the genre and let them have fun right away, but its slow pace wouldn’t have been suitable for what happens in the second game. The Alvarez Empire arc, which is the last arc of the original manga, features a lot of combat against some very powerful enemies, and I felt that a faster, more action-based combat system was better suited to properly adapt these battles. Being the final battle, it just had to be faster.
Many role-playing game series are moving away from turn-based combat and employing more action-oriented systems. Do you think there’s still a market for classic turn-based games?
I don’t think the market is shifting towards one or the other. It all depends on what kind of battles someone wants to have in their games. You can do interesting things with both turn-based and action-focused combat systems. Personally, I still find turn-based combat fun, but for Fairy Tail 2, I felt that an action-oriented combat system would have been best. It really depends on the game.
Are there multiple difficulty settings?
Fairy Tail 2 features multiple difficulty settings. We have an easy mode for beginners to enjoy the story, but we also have more battle-focused difficulties for those who find the other difficulties too easy. There’s a total of four settings, so it’s not either easy mode or normal mode.
Fairy Tail features a lot of characters. How did you pick the playable characters? Are more coming after release?
The playable characters were picked based on their role in the final battle against the Alvarez Empire. We picked those involved in the battle in the original story. There will be some additional characters coming after launch, but we can’t specifically say who is coming right now.
Speaking about additional content, will there be more story added to the game after release?
We will release additional free and paid content after the release. We’re still deciding what to release specifically, but I can confirm that more content is coming.
Looking ahead, will the Fairy Tail series continue? If so, would a new entry in the series feature an all-original story, or will it adapt the 100 Years Quest story?
There’s definitely the chance of more Fairy Tail in the future, but right now, it’s hard to say if there’s going to be another entry in the series and if it will adapt the new story or feature original content. It all depends on how Fairy Tail 2 is received. If players want more sequels, we will consider developing them and speak with Kodansha, who holds the IP, on how to proceed. So, there’s definitely a possibility.
If you could adapt any other manga series, which would it be?
I like old manga series, and I would love to adapt some works from Leiji Matsumoto. I really like Space Battleship Yamato, and I would love to make a game based on it.
Thank you for your time!
