After a week or so of rumours about the prospect of a sequel to the beautiful PS2/Wii action adventure game, Okami, Capcom have gone ahead and confirmed that a sequel is indeed in the works for Nintendo’s diminutive DS.

The original game starred the exploits of wolf-goddess Amaterasu, as she battled with demons in an effort to set things right in the game’s stylised, watercolour world of feudal Japan, using a unique ‘painting’ ability which enabled players to change the landscape of the game with a few flicks of the PS2 controller’s sticks (or the WiiMote in the Wii version), as well as using this ability as a weapon, stopping time to paint a few slashes through the screen to damage enemies.

This new Okami game, entitled Okamiden: Chiisaki Taiyo (which roughly translates to Okami Legends: Little Sun), is set months after the original title, and stars wolf-god-puppy Chibiterasu who is tasked with once again returning the lands to peace after the demons from the first game return to wreak havoc.

The Okamiden project is headed up by veteran Capcom developers such as Ace Attorney’s Motohide Eshiro (who acts as producer) and Dino Crisis’ Kuniomi Matsushita (who acts as director). A translated interview with Japanese games magazine Famitsu shed some light on the details of the game. Eshiro said of the project’s origins:

“Around December last year, Matsushita came up to me and talked about making a new Okami that could be enjoyed in portable format.

“He’s very passionate about the game, and he already had a test version created by that time that was extremely high quality, fully capturing Okami’s unique visuals. Seeing that, I thought we were safe to make it an official project.”

Matsushita also explained the reasons behind creating a new Okami game: “As you know, Okami’s visuals and game system are extremely unique. The original idea was to take what makes this game special and expose it to more people.

“That was why we chose the Nintendo DS—being on a portable system will allow people to easily pick up and play it, and you can also use the touch pen as a brush.”

Okamiden’s protagonist, Chibiterasu, may well be the offspring of the original game’s Amaterasu, but the developers are keeping that detail under wraps for now, as Eshiro explains:

“That will remain a secret for now, but it’s true that he’s a young form of existence, not fully grown. He can use the brush and attack with the imperial regalia, but he doesn’t have Amaterasu’s raw power, which will be reflected both in the story and gameplay.”

New to series is the ability to use partners to help you overcome obstacles throughout the adventure, as well as helping out during battles. Eshiro continues:

“The basic theme of returning life and nature to the world is the same as in Okami. What’s different is that the relationship with your partners will be given just as much weight storywise. The themes are the same, but the nuances are different.”

Okamiden: Chiisaki Taiyo will be in playable demo form at the Tokyo Game Show later this month, and is set to release some time next year in Japan.

Source: 1Up