One of the JRPG genre’s greatest writers is finally getting back in the business

You’ll have to excuse me while I fanboy out for a second, but this is a day I never thought I’d see again. The recently announced Nintendo 3DS JRPG The Alliance Alive has just scored a name that has resonated with me and many other JRPG fans for the last twenty years.

Yoshitaka Murayama.

He isn’t as well known as Final Fantasy’s Hironobu Sakaguchi or Dragon Quest’s Yuji Horii, but he took up responsibilities as the creator and scenario writer for the widely beloved Suikoden franchise back when he worked at Konami. He fully penned the brilliant stories of Suikoden and Suikoden II before leaving the company close to the end of Suikoden III’s development.

He did not participate in Suikoden IV or V and has been absent from the world of video games since 2005. It was then that he penned a forgettable Japanese shooter called 10,000 Bullets for Taito.

FuRyu resurrects all of the best talent.

The Alliance Alive developer FuRyu has become famous in recent years for reviving the careers of many older developers from the JRPG genre. Its last game, The Legend of Legacy, was helmed by many staff members from Square Enix’s classic SaGa series.

Murayama, who has not written a memorable RPG since 2002, continues in the company’s pattern of recognizing Japan’s best talent and giving them a second chance. My interest in The Alliance Alive has just jumped ten-fold, and I’m now hoping Atlus takes a gamble on it and localizes it like it did for The Last Legacy.

FuRyu also detailed all nine of the protagonists in an interview with Famitsu.

Garil: A young man who belongs to the “Night Crow” resistance group. He has a gentle personality, but is passionate with a strong core.

Ursula: A blonde-haired girl who is part of Night Crow. She has a fresh personality but doesn’t talk much about her intensions. You’ll catch her ordering around Garil.

Barbarosa: A magic soldier of the Night Crows. Her life was once saved by Ursula’s father, to whom she swore loyalty.

Vivan: A daughter of a noble magic family. She has a calm personality and is a historian with an interest in the human world.

Ignus: Serves Vivian as a the magic family’s butler. He respects rule and rank, with a personality that sort of suits demons.

Rachel: A mercenary hired by a guild of mages. Rachel is a warmhearted girl who acts the moment something comes to mind.

Renzo: A young man of the Night Crow. He’s a good source of information, has an optimistic personality, and is able to judge things calmly.

Jean: A mage of the anti-demon guild of magic. He’s observant, and doesn’t act on impulse.

Diggy: A girl who researches the Black Flow. She invents all kinds of things, and claims to be a professor.