New Competition Begins in Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines

Hello PlayStation Vita fans. On behalf of the Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines team, I am excited to announce the in-game competition we are calling Wailer’s Way.

Starting today, May 28th, and running until June 10th, there will be a newly named labyrinth called Wailer’s Way which is a special area with the goal to kill as many Oni as possible, and to reach a minimum specified score. Winners will receive a bundle of in-game prizes, so join in! All of the eligibility details for Wailer’s Way can be found on this forum post.

Not to be outdone by the in-game competition, beginning on May 28th and running until June 3rd, we are holding a sweepstakes for a chance to win one of these awesome signed Oreshika art books. The books are signed by the creator of Oreshika, Shoji Masuda and the character designer, Makoto Sajima. For all the details on this sweepstakes please go to this forum post.

Our team in Europe caught up with the game designer, Shoji Masuda, to find out six things you might not know about Oreshika. We hope you enjoy the little bit of fun facts.

1. How did Kōchin get her name?

Shoji Masuda: First, it comes from the English word “coach,” because she’s the character who coaches and guides players in the game. It also comes from the Chinese word for North Star. It’s fitting because the North Star doesn’t move and shines down on you, watching over you — much like how Kōchin watches over your clan as you go through multiple generations struggling against the curse placed upon them.

2. Do you have a favorite “last words” from within the game?

Shoji Masuda: For Oreshika, over 800 departing words were created for the game and my favorite one is “our numbers rise, our numbers fall, it is nothing more than the way of the world.” Those words perfectly represent what I felt the first time I held my firstborn in my arms.

3. What were some of the deciding factors in bringing the game to PS Vita?

Shoji Masuda: Oreshika is the type of game that you can pick up and play in a casual fashion — perfect for a handheld platform. Nowadays, people have an internet connection pretty much everywhere which allowed the dev team to add the function of players connecting their clans with other players’ clans and interacting with them wherever they happen to be.

4. Any tips for mating with the gods of Oreshika?

Shoji Masuda: If you’re a hardcore player who is focused on maximizing your stats, you can choose gods strategically. You could also pick them based on visual appearance. If you like the way a certain god looks, you’ll want to integrate their features into your clan.

By picking gods based on visual characteristics, it might take you a bit longer to clear the game because you’re not hyper-focused on status parameters, but it wouldn’t stop you from having a good time!

5. Kōchin moves a lot when sitting still. What brought about all of her animations?

Shoji Masuda: If it were a male character, we wouldn’t have been able to make as many actions as we did. The game character creator for Kōchin, basically fell in love with her as he was creating her. He just kept making more and more actions for her — he didn’t want her to be left alone.

6. Being able to see the loot prior to battle is unique. What inspired you to include that game mechanic?

Shoji Masuda: As you play this game, you have to think about future generations. In the game, your heredity — your character’s stats are passed on to the next generation. In the real world, a parent’s physical possessions and status in society are all passed down to children as well.

With that in mind, we wanted players to see, for example, that there may be an item that they won’t get in this generation, but maybe in the next, or maybe there’s a special item that is bequeathed to you by your parent, who also got it passed down from their parent. We wanted players to develop an affection and treasure the items that they have.

We’re excited to leave you with one more exciting announcement before we sign off… We’ve been listening to our fans and we are pleased to launch an Oreshika theme for PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV, which will be available on the PlayStation Store on June 2nd!

And if you still haven’t downloaded Oreshika yet, the game is currently on sale on PlayStation Store for PS Plus members at $14.99 until June 1st.