For PlatinumGames, a studio with an impressive resume of expertly crafted action games like Bayonetta and Vanquish, Scalebound, isn’t just a step out of its comfort zone as game makers. The studio’s first action-RPG is also where the creators plan to take larger strides as storytellers.

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Alienation is a core theme of Scalebound and a feeling shared between protagonists Drew and his dragon companion Thuban. Platinum made it clear to us that this isn’t the story between a master and a pet. It’s one where the characters start out in a similar situation and both grow and learn from their relationship. Creative producer Jean Pierre Kellams describes the eventual relationship between the two as one of mutual respect, like the kind of camaraderie you’d expect between Han Solo and Chewbacca in Star Wars.

For Thuban, the feeling of isolation is quite literal: He is the last surviving dragon in the mythical land of Draconis. Scalebound director Hideki Kamiya describes Thuban as noble, fearsome, and strong, but being bonded to Drew is something that Thuban is not prepared to handle at first.

“There may be some instances where they butt heads; [Thuban will] maybe play some tricks on [Drew],” he said. We briefly saw evidence of this during Scalebound’s Gamescom 2015 demo, when Thuban tossed Drew to the ground after a quick flight; and then smiles and even chuckles when Drew voices his disapproval.

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“There is a side to his personality where he's not always the noble dragon you'd expect him to be,” Kamiya said. “But, slowly, there is this mutual understanding that they have for each other. And that's when the bond is strengthened, and they come to understand each other in that way.”

Drew shares some of the same isolation as Thuban, but is described much differently. “Drew to me as a character, is how...a lot of people feel in their early '20s,” Kellams explained. “[He’s] invincible, but vulnerable. Drew's in that place in his life, and he's had a lot of things that have happened to him that have alienated him from the world and the situations around him.”

When you’re both thrown in this relationship, Kamiya explains, he almost wants the player to feel like an odd couple. You have this dragon character that you can't quite communicate with, but you learn that he's going to be your sole partner though the story.

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Players will only have direct control over Drew in combat, but as they invest in the relationship with Thuban, they’ll start to see other benefits to having such a big, powerful buddy on the battlefield. “In terms of how that relationship will play out in game, for example; you will eventually be able to ride Thuban,” Kamiya said.

“The stronger the bond develops and the more the understanding between the two characters are strengthened, they'll be able to interact in a way that they understand each other,” he explained. “And so, throughout that sort of progression, you'll be able to definitely see how the characters play off of each other, and how things that you weren’t necessarily able to do earlier on might be something that you can do later on in the game.”

Drew’s scaly right arm works as the simplest visual cue of this connection, and just a small sign of how much investment a player has put into their Thuban. “The more that you invest in that dragon and in the relationship with that dragon, the more that dragon becomes yours,” Kellams explains. Players can alter aesthetic properties, like color and tone of Thuban’s scaly skin. And Kellams admits it’s a very personal choice, similar to the watch you wear or the type of clothes you put on everyday in real life. Some investment choices will affect the way Thuban attacks or the amount of damage he can take.

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And just because you’ve outfitted Thuban with a killer set of gear doesn’t mean Drew can selfishly take cover and watch the battle from afar. It’s true that Thuban is massive, but he can fall in battle. And that means he will only have a short period to revive him and keep pushing through the battle.

During our interview, Kamiya hinted that Drew’s interactions with Thuban wouldn’t be limited to combat. He really wants players to feel a genuine relationship with their majestic companion over the course of the game. “The most important thing that I want players to feel,” he said, “is that even though your character Drew and Thuban is in your screen, and you can't put your arm into your TV monitor and reach out and shake hands and give him a pat on the back, I want players to feel as if he is right there with you.”

Jose Otero is an Editor at IGN and host of Nintendo Voice Chat . You can follow him on Twitter