So, it looks like it’s bad news for fans of Ni no Kuni, not to mention JRPG fans in general as it was revealed today that Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom will be postponed until 19th January 2018. While I’m sure this will disappoint some fans, they can take comfort in the fact that, according to Akihiro Hino (CEO and President of LEVEL-5 Inc), more development time is required in order to deliver the best game possible.
“We have decided that more development time is required in order to deliver the full Ni no Kuni II experience to our fans. I deeply apologise to those who have been looking forward to the game’s release. Please rest assured, however, that we will continue to strive to provide a deep and satisfying single player experience that our fans can look forward to enjoying.” – Akihiro Hino.
Now, this could all be bollocks and there could be a different reason entirely for the delay, but given the quality of their past games and from what I know of them as a company, I’m willing to believe them on this one. For me, this puts LEVEL-5 INC in the “one of the good guys” camp, it shows they’re willing to put quality and consumer experience before everything else. If more video game executives were this honest I think the industry would be a better place, sure it’s disappointing we’ll have to wait a bit longer, but I’d rather wait for steak than be fed cow shit!