Hello everyone. Happy belated New Year! This is Sakari P: producer and director of Phantom Breaker: Omnia.

Did you enjoy the last Dev Diary episode authored by G-Panda? The old logo designs took me back.

Did you notice that all of the designs include a heptagon behind the title? This symbol is actually related to the story setting, so it has been there since the beginning stages of the design.

However, it’s not all that important, so please don’t mind it too much (now I’m starting to wonder why I wrote it in the first place lol).

Let’s switch gears and talk about an interview I recently did with a Japanese media outlet called Denfaminicogamer. The article is scheduled to be published on their website: https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/

During the interview I talked in detail about all the different things that go through my head at work, including things I have never mentioned in my diaries. Since it is only available in Japanese, it might be difficult to read for our international fans, but I would love for you to read it if possible (If only Rocket Panda Games could have permission to translate and redistribute the article…).

The contents of the article mentioned above may seem like common sense to our international fans. But Japan–on top of being an island nation–is a country that was able to modernize and progress by its own unique culture. Thus, Japanese cultural values can differ greatly from those of other countries, making it harder for them to align with common sense notions of surrounding countries.

We often hear stories about Japanese people’s tendency to hyperfocus on domestic issues while everyone else is screaming about globalization.

It even feels embarrassing to go out of my way to mention “globalization,” at this point.

Of course, I don’t believe that everything we make should cater to the global market. How many Japanese games out there saw success as a result of trying to appeal to the rest of the world? None. 

This is a consequence of a common misconception that was prevalent some time ago. Mimicking foreign games never brought success for Japanese game devs. I think the key to global success for a Japanese game is for it to be made from a Japanese perspective with a clear, Japanese identity, and an effective strategy to market it globally.

This is part of the reason why I feel very fortunate to have partnered with Rocket Panda Games to release Omnia. It would be great if we can work together on projects outside of the Phantom Breaker series in the future too (I know I sound like the whole project is over, but we haven’t even released the game yet…)

Onto yet another topic! As I’ve mentioned in previous diaries, Omnia’s new characters (to be announced soon!) never appeared in the story mode of previous installments, so it feels like they’re appearing out of nowhere, like the additional character announcements for Smash Bros.

To get everyone up to speed, I would like to release a web comic that illustrates how the new characters encounter Mikoto and her friends for the first time, free of charge!

Chronologically, the story picks up where we left off–the final chapter of Extra’s Story Mode–when Mikoto meets Sophia, and after a series of twists and turns, confronts Phantom. The comic is entitled “Phantom Breaker: Omnia -First Contact-”

The illustrator working on this comic is neither Suzuhira-san–the original character designer for the Phantom Breaker series–nor the in-game illustrator, but a new, up-and-coming artist! His style makes each page look like you are watching a speedy action film, which makes everything look stunning!

Though, I am still responsible for authoring the comic, so you can rest assured about the authenticity of the story.

And since I seem to be incapable of waiting for the official announcement, here is a little sneak peek.

We are still working out exactly where the announcement will take place, but we will let you know as soon as it is finalized. Please look forward to it!

That’s all for today, folks. By the release of the next episode, we will have announced the new characters, so I hope to talk a little about them in my next diary.

Take care!