As we enter the back half of 2024, we at Reef Entertainment thought that it would be a good time to reflect on the amazing year so far, specifically on our work in getting the recent release of the highly anticipated entry in the long-running Legend of Heroes  series, Trails through Daybreak , to audiences throughout Europe. The story follows the spriggan Van Arkride, an underground professional that accepts work from any client and acts as a detective, negotiator or bounty hunter with no allegiance. However, when he takes on a strange case that threatens an entire nation, the course of his life changes forever. The game was developed by Nihon Falcom , a developer specialising in JRPGs that boasts an extremely enthusiastic fanbase worldwide. In partnership with NIS America , our team has distributed many Nihon Falcom titles to a variety of regions across Europe, working together with them on numerous games from the ever-popular Trails  series.   The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak released to widespread acclaim from critics and fans, with some even calling the title one of the best of the year! Keep scrolling to see what some of the reviews had to say. “A dark, more mature story, a great new cast of characters, and much improved turn-based action make Trails through Daybreak a fine addition to the franchise that’s accessible to fans and newcomers alike.” 9/10 - GameGrin   “Trails through Daybreak is easily the best looking Trails game to date and whether you are a returning fan or not you’d be doing yourself a massive disservice to pass up Trails through Daybreak.” 90% - GameHype   “Trails Through Daybreak takes the series to new heights of drama without losing any of the series’ strengths or structure, and features a fun double battle system that somehow doesn’t get in the way of itself. It’s also a viable jumping-in point that hasn’t come along in a while for those looking to dip their toe into this long-running series and finding it daunting. The dawn of a new era.” 8/10 – Finger Gun s   “This is one of the best put-together Trails games in a long time, complete with some solid cutscene choreography and a near-seamless feeling of play in between combat and cutscenes.” 8/10 – NookGaming   In addition to titles from The Legend of Heroes series, Reef have also worked together with NIS America on a variety of entries from Nihon Falcom’s incredibly popular Ys  series. The latest entry in the series, Ys X: Nordics , is set to release in the West on the 25th of October this year, being distributed to a variety of regions throughout Europe by Reef Entertainment in partnership with NIS America.   IGN  recently got their hands on Ys X: Nordics to preview the game, and their early impressions have been positive, praising the “more focused experience” and describing the combat as “smooth, quick and even a little challenging” . Check out what they had to say below!   Additionally, GameSpot  recently sat down with Toshihiro Kondo , the president of Nihon Falcom and one of the key developers behind the Ys series, who gave some insights on not only the series’ future, but the future of Nihon Falcom as well:   “We constantly want to keep an open mind and add new things to our games. We want to ask, ‘How can we make it better? What trends and what things are popular?’ These are things we always ask. And right now Ys X is the best example of that, but going forward, it's going to be an even bigger part of how we approach game development.”   Read GameSpot’s full interview with Toshihiro Kondo   here: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/whats-next-after-a-20-year-old-rpg-series-ends-ys-and-trails-director-toshihiro-kondo-talks-falcoms-future/1100-6524780/    Reef Entertainment are extremely proud to see the warm reception that titles from the long-running The Legend of Heroes and Ys  series continue to receive. We are honoured to have played such a large part in getting these titles to fans in Europe throughout the years, and are excited to see the JRPG genre continue to grow more in the future.

Working with a high profile, global partner like Amazon has become increasingly important, and a successful way to get our games out to a wider audience within Europe. With the release of Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei, we were able to get the product to market, via Amazon, to an incredible amount of EU territories: UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands and Sweden. On top of the already fantastic work our partners at Creative Distribution do to get our products into as many territories as possible, Amazon have enabled us to take direct control of the territories that consumers can purchase our titles within Europe. The release of Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei proved more than ever that the customers in these regions want these unique game titles, and are able to get them into their hands with the great tools that Amazon give to us as a business.

EGX 2022 Blog Post Reef Entertainment were lucky enough to attend EGX 2022, courtesy of Reedpop. Thursday 22nd Sept 2022, Me and my fantastic colleague Don arrived at the event a good bit of time before official opening at 10am. Coffees in tow, and excitement for the show was palpable. Lines, at this time larger for the “StarCoffee” chain than the show were essential for all attendees before heading on in. There we met a couple who were excited for some Sonic! – is this the year for the blue blur once again!?! (Our Frontiers demo later in the day…says maybe!) Seeing the crowds and fans back at gaming events, along with the industry vets…great to see, and that isn’t even mentioning the great outfits (cosplay) on display, adding greatly to the mise en scene. The weather held up really well (after a long, hot summer, the surprises keep coming to the UK, given how we’ve been steam rolled into winter now!!), so we already had a spring in our step, and that continued throughout the day. Just before heading in we bumped into a ReedPop staff member, who we had the pleasure of talking with later in the day, looking to join work together at another point, which will be great! Entering the Excel Centre, there was the buzz and excitement that is always felt at gaming events, with all eyes on the new, and revisiting classics via tournaments, merchandise or in the example of Nintendo a plethora of plenty of set ups with their most recent titles on display. The event was very well organised, with staff being incredibly kind, and attentive to everyone there. Great stands full of indie titles, triple AAA publishers coming out (such as Capcom and Sega), along with many merchandise stands for fans of all things gaming, anime and the like! It wouldn’t be a gaming convention without the obligatory free hand outs of energy drink (plenty of interesting flavours to fuel the day)…and the queues being comparable to some of the bigger titles! We talked to a variety of independent developers, some only just out of university! Was great talking with them, and seeing a variety of upcoming talent. Our team is committed to bringing more interesting and unique titles into the hands of people everywhere, so this was a really good opportunity to see the talented individuals making great projects all over the UK. With our focus as a team on Japanese titles as well, both with distribution and publishing here in the UK, it was really good to see that there were plenty of Japanese companies showing their wares at the event (Capcom, Sega and our good friends at Koei Tecmo too). Wo Long, and Street Fighter 6 had consistent queues, showing the fervour for games from Japanese companies – as well as showing long running franchises, in the case of Street Fighter 6, still appealing to a very wide fan base. Our team attended “A SPEEDRUN THROUGH INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS” talk which was hosted incredibly well, with industry veterans really helping the wider game development community, along with gamers, to understand the importance of copyright. Merchandise, which really ran the gauntlet of everything from gaming, anime, films and beyond - was on display. There was lots of people clamouring for items based on their favourite properties en-mass! Reef specialises in a lot of fantastic Limited Edition’s, along with merchandise that goes alongside our partners titles, that we feel would work fantastically well in this environment. Bringing something to the show in future would be fantastic for fans and our business alike. We feel our products would complement this already fantastic show. One of the biggest takeaways from the show was the diversity of titles on display, a dedicated retro area, also showing that people are excited to delve into the past to face new adversaries (friends and new friends alike). ReedPop really put on a fantastic show with incredibly well thought out layout choices, to give everyone, from every gaming walk of life something to talk about and be excited for. Whether it was new, old, or leaning into new technologies like VR there was something there for everyone. Game Highlights Indie Titles: Uso AAA: Street Fighter 6 Retro Area shout outs: Wave Race (Gamecube), Joust and Mario 64. Closing thoughts Our team was incredibly grateful to come down and experience the event, courtesy of the kind people at ReedPop. Both the public, press and industry had plenty of smiles on their faces, and everyone at the show made the whole experience inclusive, and an incredibly fun and welcoming place to be. Thank you everyone involved for making a very impressive and interesting show. There was lots to do and watch for everyone who attended, and to that we say it was a giant success.

A few of our team at Reef Entertainment went along to the PlayStation Partners event in Windsor. Excitement to get back to in person events was great, and the plethora of friendly faces, and great information to absorb was a prospect that the team were keen to engage with. It was a really great event, with our gracious PlayStation staffers all kindly getting us onboarded at the start of the day. The presentations were full of incredibly useful information that we as a team will be able to take back and utilise. The fantastic host Paul led the charge, and all team PlayStation presented the information with flair, and real depth. It was incredibly nice for us to all be together in person, and great to see faces new and old. The event was really insightful, was hosted and organised fantastically, and our team had some great takeaways. It’s great to see where the tools we use regularly are going to continue to improve. Our relationship with PlayStation continues to flourish. Thanks again to PlayStation for holding such a superb event for everyone in attendance.

We are excited to announce that the Reef Creative Group recently acquired a 70% stake in the development studio Bitmap Bureau. Reef Entertainment will work as an operative team providing support for future Bitmap Bureau titles. Based in Southampton, Bitmap Bureau was founded in 2016 by industry veterans Matthew Cope and Mike Tucker. Over the years, Bitmap Bureau have been on a mission to deliver high-quality titles capable of running natively on retro consoles and modern consoles alike, with popular releases such as Xeno Crisis, Battle Axe and Final Vendetta. Their talented team of designers, programmers, artists and musicians are dedicated to preserving and continuing the fine art of retro game development, with a commitment to authenticity that spans from the painstaking coding process all the way to the physical packaging. “Working as part of the Reef Creative Group gives us access to the funding, administration and publishing support we need to expand, study and concentrate on making the best retro titles out there for gamers everywhere. Our combined knowledge and expertise will allow us to make higher-quality games and retro physical collections than ever before. Stay tuned for the exciting projects we’re working on…we’ll be back with more news soon!” - Matt Cope, Technical Director, Bitmap Bureau Reef Entertainment and Bitmap Bureau have developed an amazing chemistry working together for almost 2 years and have recognised that their range of skills will complement each other in a more formal partnership within the Reef Creative Group. Bitmap Bureau are already developing two new titles with Reef Entertainment to be announced soon. “Reef are currently deep into development on some unannounced projects with Bitmap Bureau and through working on these together, we’ve developed a wonderful partnership founded on shared values. We are delighted to have them as part of our group and look forward to this collaboration continuing to flourish in the near future.” - Gareth Dain, Group Managing Director, Reef Creative Group

Sympathy Kiss, developed by our partner Idea Factory International, recently launched on Nintendo Switch™! A special Necklace Edition is available for fans to purchase on our direct-to-consumer website and select retailers throughout Europe, bundling the game with several merch items, including a beautiful Tulip Necklace, designed by Reef Entertainment’s wonderful designer, Menglin! Sympathy Kiss is a slice-of-life otome that follows Akari, an employee of the mobile app maker Estario, as she tries to find the perfect balance between the stress of work and blooming office romance. The elegant tulip that adorns the necklace is a recurring motif in the game’s logo and marketing, a symbol of perfect and deep love. The Tulip Necklace is Reef Entertainment’s second experience creating commercial merchandise, and we couldn’t be happier with how they turned out. Through our partnership with Idea Factory International, we have distributed many otome games to fans in Europe and are so proud to be able to provide the ever-growing otome fanbase with bespoke merchandise for their favourite games. To all the otome fans out there: we hope this necklace adds some dazzle to your days at the office and keeps you shining every shift!

2023 has proven to be an excellent year for gaming, and Reef Entertainment are very proud of the amazing titles we have worked on this year with our valued partners. In particular, we are very pleased to see the incredible critical reception to the following titles: Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails, Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles, Jack Jeanne, Radiant Tale, and Virche Evermore -ErroR: Salvation-. Check out what the critics had to say about these games below! Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless is the latest entry in the beloved Disgaea series, developed by NIS America and distributed throughout the UK and a variety of regions in Europe by Reef Entertainment. This SRPG tells the story of unlikely allies Fuji and Pirilika as they embark on a perilous journey to gather seven powerful weapons of legend. We are thrilled to see that critics have loved Disgaea 7, with many praising the game for not only taking the series back to its roots, but also for its new innovations and features, particularly Jumbification! "An incredibly compelling new entry, and we can’t recommend it enough to any strategy RPG fans out there." - Nintendo Life Score: 9/10 "The effort made to refine elements from previous titles, and the new mechanical additions like the evil-gacha and jumbification, creates a fresh and fun experience." - NookGaming Score: 9/10 The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails Originally released on the PSP in 2012 for Japan only, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails is a spin-off of the iconic The Legend of Heroes series. In partnership with NIS America, Reef Entertainment distributed a high-definition remaster of the title to the UK and a variety of regions across Europe this year. The remaster of The Legend of Nayuta garnered an extremely positive reception from fans and critics alike, with praise given for its action-oriented combat and charming characters. “The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails is a masterful spinoff boasting its own distinct identity…” - Noisy Pixel Score: 9.5/10 “The writing is sharp, the characters are interesting, the action is hot, and the boss battles are excellent.” - SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles is a collection of two classic JRPGs, Rhapsody II & III, brought to the West for the first time by NIS America. These delightful titles mix classic JRPG gameplay with catchy musical numbers and beautiful fairytale visuals. In partnership with NIS America, the game was distributed by our team to the UK and a variety of regions across Europe. We are delighted to see the critical response towards Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles, with many critics pointing to the incredible music and storybook charm as particular standouts. “From adorable characters to lovely musical numbers and rewarding combat to oodles of side-splitting jokes; there's certainly a lot to love here.” - Video Chums Score: 8.6/10 “Rhapsody: The Marl Kingdom Chronicles is a must-buy for anyone seeking an RPG experience that makes it easy to see the beauty in the world around you.” - Hardcore Gamer Score: 4/5 Jack Jeanne Jack Jeanne is a visual novel and rhythm game created by famed manga artist Sui Ishida (Tokyo Ghoul), published by our partner Aksys Games and distributed by Reef Entertainment to a variety of regions across Europe. The game focuses on Kisa Tachibana, new recruit of the Univeil Drama School, as she tries to achieve her dream of being an actor, all while keeping her identity a secret. Jack Jeanne has been highly acclaimed by critics, even appearing on Metacritic as the 6th best reviewed Nintendo Switch™ game of the year! Critics particularly appreciated the game’s gorgeous artwork and addictive rhythm minigames. “Jack Jeanne is the pinnacle, and evolution of the genre beyond simple dialogue trees. It’s a turning point for romance games, and we are unlikely to see a change so drastic for a long time.” - GLHF on Sports Illustrated Score: 10/10 “Jack Jeanne is honestly one of the best visual novels I have played...” - Otome Kitten Score: 10/10 Radiant Tale Radiant Tale is an otome game published by Aksys Games and distributed in Europe by Reef Entertainment. The game tells the story of Tifalia, a local inn worker, whose life is turned upside down when she agrees to manage a dysfunctional circus troupe. The critical reception to Radiant Tale has been incredible, with particular praise given to the game’s vibrant art style and its unique cast of fleshed out characters. “Radiant Tale is another excellent otome release from Aksys Games…” - SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 “Radiant Tale is another top-quality otome title on the Nintendo Switch, sure to put a smile on the faces of genre enthusiasts.” - RPGFan Score: 89/100 Virche Evermore -ErroR: Salvation- Virche Evermore -ErroR: Salvation- is a newly released dark fantasy otome game published by Aksys Games and distributed in Europe by Reef Entertainment. The game is set in Arpéchéle, a small country in western Europe whose inhabitants are born with a “death curse” that leads to death by age 23. Here, a girl known as “Death” is approached by a mysterious man who helps her discover the truth behind the mysteries that haunt the land. Virche Evermore -ErroR: Salvation- has seen a very positive reception, with critics praising its well-written characters and atmospheric storytelling. “The cast of characters fit together perfectly and that makes the moments between them more fun.” - NaviGames.es Score: 9/10 “Virche Evermore ~ErroЯ:Salvation skillfully blends a tragic story with unconventional romance.” - Noisy Pixel Score: 8/10 As we approach the end of the year, it’s a good time to look back and reflect on the amazing 2023 we’ve had. Reef Entertainment are extremely proud that the games we’ve worked on with our wonderful partners have been received so incredibly by critics and fans alike. We thank our partners NIS America and Aksys Games for our ongoing collaboration, and we look forward to working with them on what’s sure to be another spectacular line-up in 2024!

Recently, we have been celebrating the trailers that our amazing video team have been producing for both Terminator: Resistance Complete Edition and Idea Factory International titles; however, this is but one side of the story when it comes to the marketing activities that the team conducts here at Reef Entertainment. With daily Twitch livestreams and several YouTube productions a week on the Reef Games Live channels, our video team has been providing ongoing support for 28 titles and counting over the last year! These livestreaming and video production activities have supported past titles in our publishing catalogue, as well as early gameplay previews of titles yet to be released to worldwide audiences. Over the course of the past year, the livestream and video production setup has evolved and changed along with the types of streams and video content produced. From gameplay previews to limited edition unboxings and more, a variety of different content has been published to establish and grow a community that we are proud of, a community that engages genuinely with our titles, products and video team hosts. Today, we are excited to share with you a behind the scenes insight at the workspace we have established to facilitate these activities! Situated within our Croydon office, we have a dedicated stream room workspace. Doing the heavy lifting of the streaming process itself, we have a high-spec gaming PC. For crisp and clear audio, a Scarlett 2i2 3rd Gen USB audio interface is used with two SHURE SM7B microphones. A 4k-capable Panasonic G7 is utilised for the high-resolution capture of our video team hosts during livestream/recording sessions, with a 4m x 2m greenscreen backdrop allowing for presenters to be seamlessly integrated into the stream layout. Finally, an Elgato HD60 S capture card provides a video game console interface with the OBS stream/video capture program, the space within which a stream scene is visualised and captured. The creative flair of video team member Nicole is on show in our stream intro screen where caricatures of the streamer is presented alongside trailers for upcoming titles in our publishing and distribution catalogue. Last but not least, a stream room would of be nothing without its hosts, the members of the stream team. Toby, Jordan, Kaitlyn and Nicole have all worked hard to passionately promote the titles that we at Reef Entertainment publish and distribute. We hope that you have enjoyed this peek behind the scenes, and we look forward to sharing our future video and livestream productions with you on the following channels! Reef Games Live Twitch: twitch.tv/reefgameslive Reef Games Live YouTube: youtube.com/@ReefGamesLive

Our Video Team sat down with Nick Odmark, Media Relations Coordinator at NIS America, to discuss the exciting NIS titles releasing this year, including the hotly anticipated Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless! See the full interview above, and keep scrolling to read the entire transcript! Kaitlyn: Good morning, evening, afternoon, wherever you are in this great, wide world. I’m Kaitlyn, this is ReefGamesLive, and this is a special report from the NIS America Summer Showcase Event. We are joined by Nick Odmark, the Media Relations Coordinator at NIS America, hi! Nick: Hi, thanks for having me! Kaitlyn: Hope you’re having a wonderful time here in Britain. You’ve come over from California, haven’t you? Nick: Yeah, we’re doing our press tour, Summer Showcase event. We did a couple of things over in the US and now we’re here in the UK. It’s been a really good time so far! Kaitlyn: Awesome! We’re showing off a load of wonderful stuff. We’re showing off Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless, CRYMACHINA, Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten. So we’ve got quite a lot of big hits coming out, haven’t we? Nick: Yeah, five this year, with Disgaea 7 being the flagship one obviously. Kaitlyn: Speaking of Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless, it being a return to form for the series, with an expansive class system, 45 classes if I remember correctly, and exciting gameplay mechanics, can you tell us more about some of the new elements, including the larger-than-life mechanic of Jumbification? Nick: Disgaea 7 is definitely a return to form or a return to our roots, as we’re calling it. There are some new features to this game, along with some returning features that have changed a little bit, that are all meant to capture that feeling. Speaking of the new features, Jumbification is the big one, no pun intended! Essentially, this is the ability to increase the size of your characters to Kaiju-level size. They stand on the edge of the stage and essentially, because of their large height, they can deal damage anywhere on the stage. So, this feature also affects movement in combat. Not only can they damage units on the stage by dealing these big AOE attacks, they can also damage other Jumbified enemy units. These are called gigasaster attacks, so essentially, it’s like these two giant Kaijus fighting each other. It’s been a really, really fun mechanic. Also, when a character is Jumbified, they have different abilities called Jumbilities. These not only affect the Jumbified character, but they also affect all units on the stage as well. So, there’s an additional layer of strategy to choosing which unit to Jumbify outside of the fact that you’ve made them big and they’re more powerful now. Another new feature to Disgaea 7 is Hell Mode. Essentially, there are a handful of characters in the game that have the ability to use Hell Mode and there’s a Hell Gauge that they have under their character portrait in combat. Each character’s Hell Gauge charges up faster in different ways. For example, Fuji, if you attack enemies from behind, his Hell Gauge will charge up faster. Once this happens, you can activate Hell Mode. For Fuji specifically, it opens up a special move called Divine Kanzan, which is very, very powerful. It’s just kind of a fun, very over-the-top additional method of combat in the game. As far as some returning features, Auto Battle is back, but it is quite different in order to appeal to both new fans and veteran players, and to give players freedom of choice and to try and balance the difficulty a little bit. We’ve made it so that you have to manually clear a stage first before you can use Auto Battle on that stage, and then we’ve also associated a cost with it as well called Poltergas, so you have to accumulate enough of that in order to use Auto Battle. Also, the more turns that you spend in a combat scenario in Auto Battle, the more Poltergas it uses. So, there’s more balance to that feature now. The last new feature I’d like to touch on is Item Reincarnation. You can now reincarnate items, similar to how you can reincarnate characters in the Disgaea series. Essentially, you can take an item and change it into something completely different, although it still retains all of its stats and its upgrade path from the item it used to be, while also unlocking a whole new upgrade path. So, essentially, you can change a piece of armour to a weapon and that weapon now has armour stats tacked onto it as well. Kaitlyn: Or like a lightning rod to a pair of slippers? That kind of thing. Nick: Yeah, exactly! In typical Disgaea fashion, we try to get goofy and fun with it while also making sure it’s a crucial mechanic in the game. We’re really excited about the changes that have been made, the new features, the changes to existing features, all in order to make this title feel like a return to our roots. Kaitlyn: It definitely feels like that, especially leaning into Disgaea’s nature of being light-hearted, humourous, over-the-top, larger than life, to use the Jumbification pun that you used there! Of course, with the colourful cast of characters that Disgaea is known for, what can you tell us about Pirilika and Fuji? And also the Prinnies, are they still up to their mischief? Are they still doing their thing? Nick: So, Fuji and Pirilika, this is the first Disgaea game where we have two true protagonists instead of two main characters consisting of a protagonist and a partner. Fuji and Pirilika are treated as narrative equals, and the entire story revolves around them. At the start of the story, Fuji is your classic demon’s demon. He is massively in debt because he’s that kind of guy. He comes across Pirilika, and she ends up hiring him in order to pay off his debts. She also gives him one of the Seven Founding Weapons, this demonic sword which ends up choosing Fuji and bonding with him. That’s what Pirilika’s whole goal is, to track down the Seven Founding Weapons, and she hires Fuji to help her do so. Pirilika is a big fan of bushido, which is the code that all of the demons in the Netherworlds of Hinomoto used to follow. It’s a very honourable code that has since been thrown out the window for the Hinomoto Code of Destruction, which Fuji is much more aligned with. So, there’s a great balance between these two characters. They’re very different from one another, so they’re good foils for one another and it’s going to be a matter of seeing how they affect one another, how they help each other grow…or not (laughs). And of course, Prinnies are absolutely still around! I was playing the demo that we were showing people today, and yeah, there’s a Prinny in the party that you can pick up and chuck into the fray, just like usual. Kaitlyn: (laughs) Poor Prinny! They go through so much in the Disgaea series. It really is a lot for the little guys. But for some of the other titles that we are showcasing today as well, CRYMACHINA is among them. So, CRYMACHINA, of course having “CRY” in the name and being by Furyu, is bringing a lot of attention via CRYSTAR. How does it differ in terms of style and theming and what throughline is there to CRYMACHINA from CRYSTAR? Nick: So CRYMACHINA, it’s not a direct sequel or in the same kind of story as CRYSTAR. It’s more of a spiritual successor if you will. There’s a lot of similarities in terms of the tone, the atmosphere, the aesthetic, you know, very dark, very stylistic, deep colours. Additionally, there was a different illustrator from CRYSTAR, with CRYMACHINA emphasising more of a sci-fi aesthetic. So, it’s mostly on the surface level as far as comparisons go, but what it does do differently, it’s a post-apocalyptic story. Essentially, the Cliffnotes version is your character, Leben, she awakens many years after the fall of humanity and she is now a machine. And this character who revives you, Enoa, is a machine as well, and she essentially tells you that humanity shot a rocket off into space called Eden and now the machines on board of Eden are taking it upon themselves to revive humanity. What’s interesting is that your character, Leben, does not particularly care for humans, for mankind. She does not have a positive opinion about them, so it’s this interesting balance of playing as a character who’s helping with this mission, but doesn’t particularly agree with it, and how she might change over the course of the story. Action is a heavy emphasis in this game too. Leben is one of 3 different playable characters along with Ami and Mikoto, and each of them have different combat styles and weapons. It’s really flashy, really twitchy, responsive. A lot of fun, and from the get-go, there’s a lot of different moves and stuff available to you. So, it’s one that we’re very, very excited about. It just seeps with this very unique atmosphere that the aesthetics and the music and the voice acting all help play into. It meshes all very well. Kaitlyn: All of the trailers and art that we’ve seen; it is gorgeous. It is unlike really anything else that I’ve seen before from NIS, so it is something that I myself am really excited for. Nick: Me too. I’m very, very excited to be able to actually play through the full game when it releases this Fall. Kaitlyn: Speaking of some other titles that are coming out very soon, Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles is a collection of two titles never before seen in the West. What has it been like being able to bring these experiences to audiences both new and maybe those that are familiar with them, the older audiences as well? Nick: It’s been an absolute joy. We released Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure as part of a two-game pack a little while back and people responded very positively to it. There’s been a lot of long-time fans of the series because Rhapsody II and III, these are older games. Rhapsody II originally released in 1999 on the PlayStation and then Rhapsody III was 2000 on the PlayStation 2. The first one’s obviously even older and there are fans of this game in the West that have been waiting to complete the story for some time and so we’re very excited to be able to allow fans to do that, especially with both games together. It’s great going from Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure to Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess because it is a direct follow-up, a direct sequel. You play as Princess Kururu, who is the daughter of Cornet, the protagonist from the first game. She’s kind of setting off in a very similar vein to her mother in the first game, looking for her Prince, her true love. But her story is a little bit different, she’s a different character. She’s accompanied by Crea, who’s the daughter of Etoile from the first game. So, it’s interesting, the character dynamics are definitely different than Cornet’s was with Crea’s mother in the first game. So, it’s fun to have a story that’s familiar and yet plays out very differently. And it has the same exact kind of classic charm and songs and storybook visuals and stuff that the first game had. And then, Rhapsody III is a really unique one, Memories of Marl Kingdom. It is more of a storybook kind of game. It plays out over a series of chapters that all take place in the past, present and future of Marl Kingdom. So, you have a chapter with Cornet with a never before seen story, a chapter with Princess Kururu and then, later on in the game, a chapter with Cherie, who’s actually Cornet’s mother. There’s been a lot of mystery wrapped around this character for some time, so we’re excited to not only give fans the opportunity to complete the story and complete the collection, but also to get answers to some of these questions that they’ve had since the first game. There’s been a lot of positive reception to that, which we’re very happy to see. It makes us feel very good. I’m excited for it as well! I was only just introduced to the series a little while ago. Just me, personally as a fan, I’m excited to be able to get it and actually complete the story. Kaitlyn: It is a very good time for fans. They’re eating well with those two titles coming soon for the PS5™ and Nintendo Switch™. The Legend of Nayuta, another title, it’s a departure from the turn-based combat of The Legend of Heroes series, from which it takes a lot of inspiration. What style of combat is featured and how does it tie to The Legend of Heroes series in a manner in which fans can expect? So what can fans directly see and experience from The Legend of Heroes into The Legend of Nauyta? Nick: The Legend of Nayuta is interesting. It’s a story ARPG. It takes some narrative cues from The Legend of Heroes series. It is not related to it directly. It’s a spiritual successor, but it takes a lot of the gameplay and combat mechanics from another long-running Falcom series, Ys. So, it’s a mixture of things that you know from both of Falcom’s long-running and successful franchises. That being said, it is still unique in its own way. The story is wrapped up in discovery, adventure and wonder. Nayuta, the titular character, lives on Remnant Isle and he’s one of the only people there that wonders aloud: what’s beyond the horizon? Does the sea really end? Is the earth flat? Ruins keep falling from the sky that have Star Fragments in them and those offer glimpses into what looks like another world. What are these? And so, all of that’s kicked off when he and his friend Cygna are exploring one of those large ruins one day and they find a small, fairy-like girl at the top named Noi and she has this item. Someone comes through a portal, steals it, and it kicks off the whole journey from there, and she whisks Nayuta away to this magical world that he’s always been curious about. There’s a bit more of a fantastical element to it that might not be as present in The Legend of Heroes or Ys. That being said, these character-driven stories are something that it definitely takes from The Legend of Heroes series. Combat is very free-flowing, action RPG-based. There are definitely nods to Ys in there. A good mix of physical attacks with Nayuta and magical attacks with Noi and then larger attacks called Gearcrafts that you unlock as you progress through the game that actually can be used outside of combat as well. That’s one we’re excited about just because it is a Falcom title that a lot of fans in the West have not experienced before, and we’re excited to be able to bring it to them. So far, the reception has been very positive. Falcom fans are very passionate about both of the long-running series, as they should be, they’re very good! It’s been fun to see the fans of those two long-running series rally around Nayuta so far. We’re excited to show off more of it in the coming months. Kaitlyn: Speaking of the combat being very free-flowing, from what I have experienced as well, you do very much get that feeling of freedom because you can move so fluidly with the combat, so that is something that I found to be very welcoming, since as you’ve mentioned, it’s got a lot of similarities with Ys and that sort of thing. Nick: Yeah, and it mixes in a little bit of platforming, a little bit of puzzle-solving as well and so it keeps things moving forward really well. It has a good pace to it. This game also features English voice acting! Kaitlyn: And last, but of course not least, we’ve got Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten. That’s bringing the classic JRPG experience to the modern day, but what can you tell us about the Action Ring and how it impacts the flow of combat? So for those of you that might not be familiar, the Action Ring is something that I’ve never really seen before in a title and it is kind of like an initiative order, but something that’s a little bit more special than that. Nick: Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten is part of the Utawarerumono series, but it strays away from the grid-based tactical-style combat that the series is known for to more traditional turn-based. It’s very much a classic RPG in a lot of ways, but the Action Ring does mix combat up just enough to where it really spices things up. Essentially, when you begin combat, you’ll see in the top-left, there’s these series of rings; there’s a large one and then smaller and smaller as they go inside. Your character icons of all the different characters engaged in combat are placed on the ring at different points. Essentially, when your character is in the right-most corner of the ring, that means it’s that character’s turn. And then when their turn’s over, they rotate clockwise and another character icon rotates up. Where you start out on that ring is dependent on your character’s Speed stat; however, there’s a way to get around the ring faster, and that’s by moving into an inner ring that’s smaller. And the way you can do that, the easiest way, at least at the beginning of the game, is by staggering enemies and then collapsing them. Essentially, that means getting off a couple of attacks in a row on the same enemy. If you get an attack off on an enemy and you see stars and they start getting woozy, they’ve been stunned and then if you attack them again, they collapse. That character who executed that attack, they’ll move into one of the inner-most rings and then the enemy that you attacked may actually move further out if they moved in. So, it gives you an opportunity to move yourself in the ring and then out of the ring, and what that does is it creates a situation in which you can attack again sooner. So, there’s a nice layer of strategy involved in getting attacks off quick in Monochrome Mobius. Like you said, it just adds a layer of something different to the more traditional turn-based combat. Additionally, there’s combat skills that you can use. There are more magic-based attacks; Oshtor, the main character, has some, and Shunya has several, but at some point in the game, she unlocks what’s called the Soul Stone. If you charge your Soul Stone in combat, it unlocks a whole range of additional combat skills for her, as well as higher-level versions of existing combat skills that you can use without charging the Soul Stone. So that additionally adds a unique fold or layer to the traditional combat as well. Using both of those in tandem, because there’s a lot of ways that the Action Ring and Soul Stone can play off of each other, has been really fun to play around with so far, and it’s been fun to see people doing the same. Kaitlyn: As you mentioned, it’s a progression of the Utawarerumono series and it’s essentially a 20th anniversary celebration of that, so again, it’s another great time for fans of the series. All of the titles that are being seen today here are at the NISA Summer Showcase, it is very much a celebration of all of these titles that NIS is helping bring to the Western audience. Nick: Yeah, and a lot of titles are from established developers that have released games that are similar to it or sequels and stuff like that. So it’s a lot of games that people have been really anticipating, Rhapsody, Nayuta, some of these titles are coming to the West for the first time and so it just adds another level of excitement to this and so far, it’s been very, very nice to be able to engage with press again. It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to do that to this level. It’s been an absolute treat, and so, we’re excited to hopefully have more events like this moving forward! Kaitlyn: Well, thank you for coming out, thank you for having us. I’ve been Kaitlyn, this has been ReefGamesLive, and thank you Nick, thanks so much! Nick: Thank you guys, appreciate it!

Reef Entertainment recently announced that Terminator: Resistance - Complete Edition is coming to Xbox Series X|S physically and digitally on October 27, 2023! Terminator: Resistance, developed by TEYON and published by Reef Entertainment, is an officially licensed first-person shooter set in the Terminator universe. The game was originally released in 2019 and has since enjoyed enduring popularity among Terminator fans, praised for its immersive story and faithfulness to the source material. The Complete Edition of the game bundles Terminator: Resistance, enhanced for Xbox Series X|S, with the Annihilation Line Narrative Expansion starring Kyle Reese, and Infiltrator Mode, where players get the chance to take control of the iconic T-800 series Infiltrator unit. To announce this release, our talented Video Team created an Announcement Trailer showcasing the game and everything included in the Complete Edition. This marks the first time that a Terminator: Resistance trailer has been internally produced by Reef Entertainment, and we are extremely proud of our Video Team for their incredible work. Our hardworking PR Team were able to get the Announcement Trailer supported by Xbox, who posted it on their official YouTube channel, racking up almost 100,000 views (and counting!). Reef Entertainment are very proud to have worked with TEYON in releasing a game that has been embraced so fully by fans of the iconic Terminator franchise. The wonderful internal talent we’ve cultivated here has allowed us to support Terminator: Resistance - Complete Edition with an immersive, cinematic trailer and wide-reaching coverage, getting the news of this release to as many people as possible. We absolutely can’t wait for Xbox Series X|S players to join the Resistance soon. Get ready soldiers, it’s almost time to ship out! For more information on Terminator: Resistance - Complete Edition, visit www.terminatorvideogame.com.

Our talented Video Team here at Reef Entertainment has grown so much recently, so we thought it would be a good idea to highlight their efforts in making incredible trailers for our valued partner, Idea Factory International. Check out a selection of some of the trailers our Video Team has produced below, each highlighting how their creativity and attention to detail have allowed them to make engaging, dynamic content to show off what makes each of these games special. Dokapon Kingdom: Connect - The Wacky World of Dokapon Release date: 09/05/23 | Console: Nintendo Switch™ | Genre: RPG board game Dokapon Kingdom: Connect is an RPG boardgame hybrid developed by Idea Factory and Sting featuring a light-hearted, humorous world brimming with unique characters. “The Wacky World of Dokapon” Trailer created by our Video Team brings the wacky world of this game to life with creative editing and an amazing voiceover delivered by our Video Team’s very own Toby, truly a man of many talents! “This project was a ton of fun to work on! I was allowed a lot of creative freedom to play around with wacky concepts that allowed me to create a cheeky trailer that I am very proud of. Also, working with Toby was hilarious; who doesn't love that kingly voice?” – Jordan “While voice acting isn’t a hat I wear often, I quickly fell into the groove when Jordan asked me to take the voice to the extreme and be a complete freak. What that says about me as a person may be better left unexplored.” – Toby Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord - Gameplay Trailer Release date: 25/04/23 | Consoles: Nintendo Switch™, PS4™, PS5™, PC | Genre: Tactical RPG Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a Tactical RPG featuring an engaging battle system which encourages the player to use the terrain, strategic positioning and various musical buffs to achieve victory. Our Video Team was able to go over these systems in an engaging and easy-to-understand way in the Gameplay Trailer they created, helping explain the game’s mechanics to both newcomers and veterans of the genre alike. Through both their own hard work and that of our PR Team, we were able to get this video posted on the official PlayStation YouTube channel, helping the trailer reach an even wider audience: more than 54,000 views! "I adore Tactical RPGs so had no problem with creating a gameplay trailer for the newest instalment in the Fairy Fencer series! I learnt a lot editing-wise, enjoyed trying out the game and can't wait to work on another video game trailer!" – Nicole Little Witch Nobeta - Forgotten Souls Trailer Release date: 07/03/23 | Consoles: Nintendo Switch™, PS4™ | Genre: Third-person Action Shooter Little Witch Nobeta is a soulslike, spellbinding shooter that follows a young witch as she explores a withered castle, seeking answers to the mysteries of her own past. Our Video Team’s Forgotten Souls Trailer brings the haunting atmosphere of the castle to life, all while highlighting the game’s difficult and rewarding combat system. Like the Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord Gameplay Trailer, our team was able to get this video posted on the official PlayStation YouTube channel, receiving more than 33,000 views! “As the first trailer to allow me the ability to roam the game world free of HUD elements and character models, I was able to get creative with my camera angles and bring to life the sense of overbearing isolation that the castle interior drowns the player in. You’ll be amazed at the geometry Nobeta can balance on when trying to get that perfect angle!” – Toby The great work of our Video Team would not be possible without the contributions of our Video Team’s Content Co-ordinator and Streamer, Kaitlyn, who liaises with Idea Factory International. Kaitlyn helps co-ordinate not only these amazing trailers, but a slew of entertaining video content and livestreams (@reefgameslive) as well! “It's always a joy to work with Idea Factory International and it’s an honour to be a representative of their games for the European audience. I look forward to working with them further on many exciting titles to come!” – Kaitlyn Reef Entertainment are incredibly proud of our ongoing collaboration with Idea Factory International in helping their titles reach as many people as possible. We thank our Video Team for the wonderful work they’ve been doing, exciting fans with a wide selection of entertaining video content related to their favourite games. We look forward to seeing everything they come up with for all the amazing titles set to release in the future!

We at Reef Entertainment had the pleasure of hosting the first NIS America Summer Media Showcase at the Gridiron Building, where we welcomed 15 influencers and media over the course of a 2 day game showcase. Many exciting titles were demonstrated, including the hotly anticipated Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless. Wednesday 14th June 2023 An eighth floor corner office overlooking a vibrant and bustling King’s Cross is where we set our stage for the establishment of the game showroom. We welcomed Nick Odmark and Adam Johnson of NIS America and excitedly got to work preparing the office space for attendees. With a 6 PC setup from which to experience the demonstrated titles, we had a full display available of Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 platforms, with the attendees recording their own gameplay footage for use in their published content. With a beautiful day outside and the sun streaming through the windows, we decorated the showroom floor with a display of rollposter standees and an arrangement of custom merchandise (designed by our talented in-house product designer, Menglin) for attendees of the event to take home. Thursday 15th June 2023 A beautiful showroom would be nothing without an audience to showcase our titles to, so on the first official day of the showcase, we welcomed media from across the United Kingdom to experience an exciting selection of upcoming titles first-hand: Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless, Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten, Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles, CRYMACHINA and The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails. Friday 16th June 2023 On the second day, we were excited to host influencers to the NIS America Summer Showcase, a first for Reef Entertainment’s in-person events! With excitement running high, the showroom floor hummed with activity as influencers went about recording gameplay footage of all the amazing titles. For the games that attendees didn’t have time to experience, our Reef Games Live video team had recorded in-game footage of every title earlier that morning! It was an honour to host a NIS America Summer Media Showcase on behalf of NIS America and a joy to welcome influencers and media from across the country.