Free League Announces Anime-Inspired Twilight Sword RPG

Free League Publishing has announced Twilight Sword, a new collaboration with Italian games studio Two Little Mice. The new game is a fantasy RPG inspired by video games like The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, and Ni No Kuni. Players explore the world of Radia in the game, exploring Landmarks and collecting Hope by defeating bosses. A 16-page preview of the game revealed five Kin that players can choose from, including the Huma, the cat-like Kedi, and the penguin-like Pengu. The preview did not reveal any details about the game system, but there appears to be a focus on exploration and defeating monsters.

One interesting part of this announcement is the collaboration with Two Little Mice. The Italian publisher was purchased by CMON back in 2021 to bolster that company's line of RPGs. However, CMON has had struggles this year, in part due to tariff uncertainty. CMON has sold off several IPs to other studios and has paused new game development to focus on current fulfillment, with many questioning about the publisher's future. Free League also partnered with Two Little Mice to publish Outgunned, so it's unclear whether Two Little Mice has gone independent once again or if this is an arrangement with CMON.

 

[TheAlkaizer]

Sometimes you just want to play the IP with the serial numbers filed off. Heroes of Cerulea is much the same.

I understand that. I'm not saying it's objectively undesirable.

But it doesn't jam with me. If I'm offered something that's very obviously Warhammer 40k, but not Warhammer 40k in name... then it feels like the worst of both worlds. As I said, gunning for a vibe, an aesthetic or some themes is fine. But when you're copying the name, the font, the logo, the attire and everything. That's creatively bankrupt to me.

 

[Aldarc]

As I said, gunning for a vibe, an aesthetic or some themes is fine. But when you're copying the name, the font, the logo, the attire and everything. That's creatively bankrupt to me.

Two of the kin are at least new. Don't know about the Toluna or Strix yet. It's not like Hyrule is just Link, Zelda, and Hylians. But the art gives me very clear vibes of what they are going for, and I'm okay with that. How they are going about it with the game being about bringing hope to areas also strikes me as creative. It's not far off from what I was thinking about doing for a Cortex Prime hack I did about five years ago that was inspired by Dark Crystal, Zelda, and Pirates of Dark Water.

Also, FWIW, I don't think that this either the same font or logo as the Zelda games.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

This is a problem with the Outgunned games and supplements too - everything is just ____ IP with the serial numbers (very lightly) filed off.

Problem or best thing about? Especially as they're very intentionally baselines for your creativity rather than ends in themselves. Which is a bit different to this, it seems.

 

[DarkCrisis]

Obviously not Zelda. Wow.

BTW if you want a very old school TLoZ style RPG (zelda with the serial # filed off) check out Heroes of Cerulea.

Edit: I see it's been mentioned already. Bravo.

 

[agrayday]

is Break!! considered Zelda or Ghibli ?

There is also the community created "Reclaim the Wild" which is a Zelda TTRPG.

The indie Itch.io games "Forgotten Ballad" & "The Door Locks Behind You"

 

[Ruin Explorer]

is Break!! considered Zelda or Ghibli ?

Neither.

It's basically anime/manga fantasy of a more JRPG-ish (i.e. actual party-based JRPG like Final Fantasy, Secret of Mana or Dragon Quest) kind, with quite complex rules. Ghibli and Zelda are both listed as inspirations, but so are Berserk and NieR (which like, the opposite of Ghibli/Zelda).

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The indie Itch.io games "Forgotten Ballad" & "The Door Locks Behind You"

I believe Forgotten Ballad also got a physical release, via Kickstarter.

 

[ColinChapman]

Geeks: I would love a Zelda RPG!
Designer: Here's a "Zelda" RPG. :nudge, nudge, wink, wink:
Also Geeks: Oh my god! This is too much like Zelda! How unoriginal!

Could you imagine the responses if they'd made it LESS like Zelda?

You literally cannot win.

 

[overgeeked]

Break!! was good, but was a big, dense, intimidating tome. Fabula Ultima was good, but was very game-y as it was really only focused on combat elements, and didn't have a ready-to-use setting or bestiary.

They're going to Kickstarter soon to do hardcovers and a bestiary. Still no setting though. The clocks/downtime system seemed to cover any and all non-combat stuff. Between the 30-some pages of monsters and the monster design rules included I never had a problem with making monsters.

 

[ColinChapman]

They're going to Kickstarter soon to do hardcovers and a bestiary. Still no setting though. The clocks/downtime system seemed to cover any and all non-combat stuff. Between the 30-some pages of monsters and the monster design rules included I never had a problem with making monsters.

I can make monsters too. For pretty much any game. And have done, including for publication. But time is increasingly a luxury, so I personally appreciate having a diverse array ready to run.

I was considering backing the new FU KS when it goes live, but I am currently waiting to find out more about Twilight Sword first.

I just realized that those two acronyms in close proximity may make folks do a double take...