If you’re a huge fan of Studio Ghibli or dream of immersing yourself in its worlds while watching movies, check out the upcoming game Aghasba Towers. Earlier this month, Polygon participated in a remote preview where the developers presented a pre-recorded look at the game and talked about their inspirations.
The open-world fantasy survival game is the first title from Dreamlit Games – the developers have worked on everything before Hawken Down Fall of the Titan AND Call of Duty 2not to mention movies like Independence Day AND Ready Player One.
IN Aghasba TowersPlayers take on the role of a junior architect of the fictional Shimu people, who had to flee their homeland after a mysterious force devastated it. Now the player must revive the land, restore its flora and fauna and rebuild the villages. Once this happens, multiplayer will be unlocked – players will be able to explore, trade, hunt and fight with up to three friends.
Original idea for Towers appeared in 2009, drawing inspiration from Minecraft as a sandbox experience where players employ resources to build as well Shadow of the Colossus for visual inspiration. But the biggest impact, CEO and director Dreamlit Khang Le said in a taped announcement, was the Ghibli film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. “I feel like this is a place I want to explore and a place I want to live,” Le said, after noting the film’s gigantic creatures, strange forest and teenage Princess Nausicaä collecting spores.
Le pushed Towers in the background when developing Hawkenwhich was released in 2012. Then when The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was released in 2017, revisited this idea, this time viewing it more as a game of exploration and building, drawing inspiration from Breath of the Wild AND Animal Crossing: New HorizonsNear Live Pinata AND Princess Mononoke due to the aspect of building forests and attracting creatures.
“In terms of visual style, the decision was made to be a little more African and Aztec and ancient cultures like the Jōmon from Japan,” Le said. “I think the tribal fantasy style fits our game mechanics.”
Image: Dreamlit Games
Image: Dreamlit Games
One of the things Le wanted to test Towers used real, hand-painted textures in the game, rather than doing everything digitally. In the process, he became friends with one of Studio Ghibli’s background artists, Yoichi Nishikawawho hand-painted some (but not all). Towerstextures using poster colors.
Textures aren’t the only analog part of the game development process; the map was also handmade, and Le said during the Q&A portion of the preview that it “took a long time” and the team is “still finishing it.” According to Le, the ability to create terrain by hand was part of the fun for the development team, rather than using other conventional tools such as procedural generation.
Even if you’re not a Studio Ghibli fan, it looks like there’s plenty to discover Aghasba Towers following the game’s early access release on PC and PS5 on November 19.
