Today’s issue of Weekly Famitsu included an article on the upcoming New Sakura Taisen, code-named for the west Project Sakura Wars.

We get to see quite a few images, including the returning heroine Sumire Kanzaki and the new characters revealed last week.

We then take a look at the LIPS (Live & Interactive Picture System) dialogue system which also makes a comeback, including its analog version that lets us set the “tone” of our replies with different effects.

More screenshots show exploration of the Imperial Theater in Ginza, and then we move on to the first episode of the game, titled “New Wind.”

We start with hero Seijuro Kamiyama arriving in Ginza. He had been part of the special forces after graduating from the Naval Academy with excellent results. Once arrived, he meets his childhood friend “Sakura-chan” (heroine Sakura Amamiya) who he hadn’t met for ten years.

She greatly admires former heroine Sakura Shinguji, and she enlisted in the Floral Revue following her dreams.

Our hero is immediately named commander of the Floral Revue by the current manager, former top star Sumire Kanzaki. Unfortunately, the Revue is short on budget and human resources.

As he meets other members like Hatsuho Shinonome and Clarice, he realizes that the facilities are riddled with issues, performance is bad, and his own Koubu isn’t available yet. He doubts whether he can really help rebuild the Floral Revue, as the situation seems hopeless.

On top of that, the Imperial Army is threatening to disband the Floral Revue if results aren’t produced. While Seijuro is inclined to give up, Sakura spurs him fiercely.

Suddenly, a crisis happens in the form of a large number of enemies attacking the Imperial Capital. While the Floral Revue manages to intercept them, the area around the Imperial Theater is engulfed in the “magic space” created by someone’s intense spiritual power.

Despite being in a desperate situation, the Floral Revue manages to dispel the magic space. Despite the victory, the sudden return of the enemy demons after ten years was of great concern.

You can check out all the images below.

If you’d like to learn more about Project Sakura Wars, you can enjoy the original reveal, a lot of additional information directly from the developers, and more comments from Sega CEO Haruki Satomi. You can also check out the latest screenshots, the previous screenshots including the first glimpse of gameplay, and the latest extensive gameplay reveal.

The game will release in 2019 in Japan, while western fans will have to wait for 2020 for a localization. At the moment, it has been announced only for PlayStation 4.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Sakura Wars series, you should take a look at my dedicated article explaining what it’s all about.

[Source: Weekly Famitsu]