Siliconera met up with BlazBlue producer Toshimichi Mori to talk about the fighting game series. The next installment, BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma, comes out in North America on March 25 for PlayStation 3 and will also be on Vita this summer.

Mori clarified why BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma will not be released on Xbox 360 like other installments, "If the Xbox 360 could increase its storage space by double then we could bring it there. Chrono Phantasma doesn’t fit on the disc. Basically, if you were to fit it on a disc you would have to compress it and the quality will go down and I was concerned that it would be an inferior version."



BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma for PlayStation Vita

Since Vita cartridges have less storage space than a DVD, I asked Mori how they brought BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma to Sony’s portable system. "If you looked at the Vita version, you can see that the graphics have been compressed," Mori explained. With a chuckle he continued, "We’re busting our butts to make it look good. The quality for Vita is acceptable for portable systems. But if you had a Vita quality game on a home console, personally I’d be upset. We’re trying to make it to the best of our ability for a portable system."

BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma for PlayStation Vita has a new joke storyline that takes place on the beach. "It’s not everyone in the gag story wearing swimsuits. It’s just Noel, Celica, Kagura, and Ranga. Mainly Celica and Noel. I put this in because I thought it would be fun," Mori laughed. "If you look at the four characters I guess you can envision the story, but in general the gag scenes are crazy so it’s probably better if players experience it for themselves."





Since Guilty Gear Xrd is in development for PlayStation 4, we asked Mori if he thought about bringing the BlazBlue series to PlayStation 4 or perhaps Xbox One.

"As we announced earlier, Guilty Gear Xrd was announced for PS4. Considering that, I feel the BlazBlue series should move on to PlayStation 4 as well, but once you upgrade to PS4 there is so much you can do. I’m thinking we would implement more modes. There’s a lot I want to do. We don’t have any information on the Xbox One hardware. I’m curious if Xbox One will even come out in Japan. I’ve been asking people about it and not one person has given me a definitive answer," Mori replied.

With BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma complete, we asked Mori if he has been working on the next game in the BlazBlue series.

"To be frank, not at all. Honest," Mori laughed. "It’s really hard to make three fighting game lines at Arc System Works. Currently, Arc System Works has their hands full with Xrd. Juggling these three games is tough. After those games (Xrd, Persona 4 Arena Ultimax) are finished I’ll start thinking about the next BlazBlue. If you count backwards from the announcement of those titles you can imagine how swamped they are. This year, I want to collect my thoughts and start plotting."