AX 2015: Bandai Namco JRPG panel

Bandai Namco Entertainment returned to Anime Expo in full force with a handful of games to play at their booth including the recently released J-Stars Victory VS+, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, Tales of Zesteria and Sword Art Online.

The panel started off with a bang with a new video shown for Project X Zone 2. While no new characters were yet announced the trailer showed off all the currently announced characters from the massive crossover game which is due in 2016. The panelists did announce that there are many more characters joining the cast and will be announced at a later time.

Next a trailer for Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment was shown. Originally released last year for the PlayStation Vita, the game is coming to the PlayStation 4 on July 28th digitally and includes all the content originally found in Hollow Fragment, new English localization, and more. If you already have Hollow Fragment on the PS Vita, you can also transfer over your saves to the PS4 version.

Up next was Sword Art Online -Lost Song- which is also coming to the PlayStation 4 digitally. Set in the world of ALfheim Online (ALO), players will be able to fight on the ground and fly through the air to fight and reach areas faster. Bandai Namco announced that pre-purchasing SAO -Lost Song- will include a free download for Hollow Fragment.

There was a special announcement fans at Anime Expo where the first to hear, as a special trailer that revealed that Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth is coming to North America next year for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita.

Up next was more information on Tales of Zestiria which will be released for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and Steam on October 20th. Both the PS3 and PS4 versions will include a special pre-order bonus DLC which includes classic Tales of costumes and weapon attachments for the characters along with a set of classic Tales of Mystic arts.

The PS4 version of Tales of Zestiria will offer a limited edition, and will include a lot of goodies including 4 chibi kyun chara figure, a special selections music CD, steelbook, hardcover art book, collector’s edition DLC pack, 8-bit retro keychains, and a copy of the Tales of Zestiria Dawn of the Shepard anime Blu-ray.

While Bandai Namco kept quiet about the Alisha’s Conviction DLC for sometime, they finally announced that the $9.99 DLC will be free for all players for a limited time at launch.

Another surprise announcement was that Tales of Symphonia is coming to Steam later this year. If you haven’t played a Tales of game yet, this is a great game to start at and includes all the content that was found in the PS3 remastered version of the game.

Finally, Namco Bandai released some information about the Steam version of Tales of Zestiria. The more pre-orders Zestiria receives, the more rewards fans get. It includes classic costumes for both the male and female characters, and a free copy of Tales of Symphonia for Steam.

Currently Tales of Zestiria is in tier 2. Fans will receive the both classic outfits when the game releases and is close for the final tier.