On the cusp of Astral Chain’s launch, here’s a high level play session with the director

File [level] 06

Astral Chain, the next game from Platinum, is almost ready to be unleashed. For many it’s an easy sell, but given how different each Platinum joint is, it makes sense that a lot of people aren’t ready to pull the trigger yet. This comprehensive video from Gamescom, complete with an appearance by the director himself, Takahisa Taura (who also worked on Revengeance as a designer), should help your decision.

The over 30-minute video involves a small round table and a ton of gameplay, taking place on File 06, which is “roughly halfway into the game.” At this point the team has access to multiple Legions (minions), including the Sword, Arrow, Arm, and Beast types. Legions operate as companions of sorts, with combination attacks and special abilities: cycling through them will grant you access to different playstyles, and the Legion itself can even be taken over by a co-op partner. You’ll also see a lot of investigative work in the video, which includes scent tracking from the Beast Legion (kind of like Mega Man’s Rush from the SNES iterations!).

Just a word of warning if you’re already planning on getting Astral Chain: don’t watch the video, or at least all of it. They nearly go through the entire mission, including story beats and boss fights. If you want the skip the latter, jump in at roughly 11:00 in, then stop the video at 26:00, just to be safe.

For everyone else on the fence, feel free to watch at the above times (11:00-26:00), and expect our review close to launch!