Gamespot asked the developers of Astria Ascending what they are trying to achieve with the game.
More information.Storytelling From The Perspective Of Kazushige Nojima
When asked about what makes Astria Ascending stand out, Nojima told me, "I would say it's the age of our heroes. They may be older than the typical party of heroes." That can be a tricky thing to reflect in a story, so I asked him about how he designed characters well into adulthood. "Regardless of the in-game world's design, if a character's age is close to your own, you must be careful so that they don't reflect your personal habits and behaviors; it will diminish the feeling of stepping into a fantasy world and your players will notice that," Nojima stated. He continued, "So, this time I paid special attention to creating a fantasy world with a strong consciousness [of that]."
Characters are, of course, always key to telling a meaningful story, and their backgrounds seem to be important to understanding the stakes of Astria Ascending. "We establish the elements required for each character and the game world--their individual techniques, how to obtain them, where they are needed, then [their place in the world] itself). Then we mixed them into the settings and scenarios to make that world real," Nojima explained. Although we've yet to see how these ideas manifest in the actual game, the expectation is that we'll see cohesion between narrative and gameplay.
Nojima explained that this story--said to be a grand tale of sorts--is contained within a few weeks' time in that world, but several complementary and heavy plot threads could lead your imagination in filling out the world. "Players will have some room to interpret and think about those details and elements. Allowing players to contemplate and consider these details is part of the game's spirit," Nojima said.
Although quite vague in specifics, he attributes this as "part of the reason why Astria Ascending can be thought of as a mature experience."
[...]
