Soul Sacrifice is finally available in America today. I hope most of you will get the game and start playing as soon as possible.

For fans who would like to purchase the game via PlayStation Network, we’re pleased to finally confirm that — for a limited time — North American PSN purchasers will also receive the exclusive pre-order offerings that we’ve been promoting for physical reservations of the game:

• Two Unique Costumes with which players can customize their character
• Three Magic Items to aid players in battle:
• Spirits’ Flamepike: Shards of the spear provided by Fire spirits. (Attribites: heat) Enables five combo attacks.
• Spirits’ Blightstone: Explosive stone provided by the spirits. (Attributes: venom)
• Spirits’ Fulgurwood: Root provided by the Thunder spirits. (Attributes: volt) It tracks enemies on the ground and attacks with thunder spell.
• The Japanese voice-over pack. Get it for no added cost during the promotion!

My team has put a lot of spirit and passionate work into this great title, and I’m very proud of it. Once you play the game, you’ll be able to tell that I’ve sacrificed a lot to create this game. Please try and see what it’s like to sacrifice you, your friends and everything to enjoy this game to the fullest. The game has a lot to it, and the more you play the more you’ll see. Please go explore and find all the Offerings and use the magics to fight through. I’m confident Soul Sacrifice will draw you in instantly and I hope you share your experience and the joy of playing this game with as many people as possible.

My own life story has been the inspiration of this game. I was put in a lot of situations where I had to make tough decisions. I learned that things don’t go well just because you want to be famous or rich or a better person. You have to constantly think what you’re willing to give up or sacrifice to make things happen. In the past, in order to make interesting games, I had to give up on my sleep, or time with my family. I had to make these tough choices to create interesting games. I also had to give up my status and position when leaving my previous job in order to run my own company. But sometimes, you have to give up something in order to start something, and I thought bringing this to the game would bring realness to the game and create something that players have never been able to experience.

Games are evolving to more and better reflect our emotions. Before, things seemed to be just digital and two dimensional. It was mostly only about whether you were strong or weak, whether could fight at a higher level or not. I believe it will go beyond that, using emotions and instinct, things that are less about a gamer’s ability. I think this will become more important going forward, and I am proud that Soul Sacrifice is among those games to further explore a profound emotional aspect and moral dilemma in-game.

Happy Holidays to everyone in North America! This is Keiji Inafune. Soul Sacrifice is finally near completion, and we are proud to say with confidence that this game is worth recommending to everyone. It’s been awhile since I’ve created a game that made me feel this enthusiastic. We put a lot of passionate unremitting work into this masterpiece and we are super excited about it.

As promised, the game includes a mind-blowing world and a magnificent story, which will instantly draw you in and I hope people will just indulge themselves on Soul Sacrifice.

Through this game, I hope that everyone will experience the heart and essence of true Japanese game development once again.

As Team Inafune, we would like to proudly present Soul Sacrifice for all of the true gamers in the world to enjoy.

In my last post, I explained that monsters in the world of PS Vita’s Soul Sacrifice are what have become of humans who succumbed to darkness, using magic according to their desire. Today, I’m pleased to reveal a new monster, “Leviathan,” and to share its backstory.

Meet Leviathan

Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away, there were two twin princes. The older twin excelled at everything, and the younger one failed at just as much. The two were so different that it was a wonder that the same blood flowed through their veins. It was like pairing up a giant and a dwarf. The younger brother grew up with a severe inferiority complex and developed an extremely dark personality. He started to enjoy collecting ferocious animals, one in particular being a crocodile from another kingdom. He put the crocodile in a cage, where he tormented it. It was the only time he could ever feel strong.

Years went by, and it was finally time for the heir to take the throne. Of course, the chosen heir was none other than the eldest of the twin brothers. Jealous, the younger prince stormed off to his room. He sat there, staring at his crocodile. “If only I could get the crocodile to kill my brother…” he thought. Just then a strange voice resonated in the room and the prince could feel his body drown in magic…

Live on in Ghost Mode

In addition to revealing this fearsome new monster, I’m excited to share a key new element to the game’s multiplayer experience: Ghost Mode. The co-op multiplayer mode of Soul Sacrifice is not just about playing offense or defense. You will use yourself and allies as a catalyst for magic, and truly battle together.

At times, you’ll use magic to stop time so your allies can attack. Other times, you can choose to help aid your dying friends with your healing power. There are many choices available to you, and your victory depends on your decisions. And it doesn’t end if you fall during a co-op battle. With Ghost Mode, you will become a “ghost” and continue to aid your allies. Players that have become ghosts are able to openly observe the statuses of the enemies and ally members. You can strengthen your team mates or make the enemies vulnerable by touching them on the screen. So even after you die, you can keep aiding your party and continue the co-op battle until the end with your friends.

Hi everyone. I’m excited that those of you who are attending Tokyo Game Show will finally be able to have some hands-on experience with Soul Sacrifice! Once you play the game, I’m sure that you’ll have a better sense of the world I’ve been wanting to create. You’ll be able to face the dilemmas, tough decisions, and the agony of choice that I’ve been wanting to portray in a game. I believe the TGS demo does a great job of conveying this new concept.

In the trailers and interviews released so far, we’ve shown the game’s dark world setting and shared some of the story elements revealed in the single player mode. We’ve also shared a few of the back stories from both the monsters and sorcerers that you’ll encounter during gameplay. During TGS, I’m looking forward to showing you what the multiplayer mode can offer.

“Truly cooperate with allies” — I’ve explained the concept behind the multiplayer mode in the past, but I’m sure you’ll gain a full understanding after playing through this TGS demo. You will experience trusting in your friends, being double-crossed or double crossing, and you will realize the difference between sacrificing strangers and your most precious friends even if you don’t want to.

You will be able to team up and slow down the enemy’s attack, allowing your friends to come in and assist with the defeat, or you could be relying on their assistance to heal you in the midst of battle. These choices may even lead you into being forced to sacrifice your own life, or hoping that a friend would do the same for you.

I ask that you pay close attention on how your emotions change after each decision you make, and how you feel once defeating a monster with the help of your friends. From these experiences, you will see the concept of “reality-blended fantasy” that I wanted to create.