GAMES
6 Things You Need to Know About The DioField Chronicle
Summary
- Command the Blue Fox mercenary group in real-time tactical battles.
- Play through a story full of action and intrigue.
- Experience diorama-style visuals and stunning music by Ramin Djawadi and Brandon Campbell (“Game of Thrones”)
An epic new strategy RPG has arrived — The DioField Chronicle is available now for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S! Set in a world of intrigue and turmoil, the game features deeply strategic real-time battles, diorama-style visuals, and stunning music. Whether you’re an experienced SRPG veteran or brand new to the genre, you’ll find a lot to enjoy here. Read on and I’ll tell you six key things you need to know about it.
It tells an epic, sweeping tale of war and honor
If you like games with sweeping, hard-hitting stories, you’ll love The DioField Chronicle. The game is set in a unique world that fuses fantasy, medieval and modern-day influences. This land is not a peaceful one – the entire continent has been ravaged by a devastating war between the Empire and the Alliance. Despite this turmoil, one nation has remained unaffected – the Kingdom of Alletain on DioField Island.
Alletain is rich in Jade – a precious material that’s prized for its use as a base ingredient in sorcery. Something so valuable will inevitably draw attention, and as the conflict between Empire and Alliance escalates, both turn their gaze towards the island. War is coming to DioField… with the Kingdom of Alletain caught in the middle.
Amid the flames and chaos, an elite band of mercenaries emerges that call themselves Blue Fox. This small group of warriors will come to shape the fate of DioField… and the world itself. It’s an expansive tale that’s full of drama and epic moments… but it also remembers that it’s the characters that really matter. Speaking of which…
It’s full of memorable characters
You take control of the Blue Fox mercenaries and follow these fascinating, flawed heroes through their many battles. Allow us to introduce the four heads of the team:
Andrias Rhondarson
Andrias is calm, cool, and a highly resourceful leader. He has studied strategy and tactics, and is well-versed in the Ancient Sorcery that has been passed down on DioField through the generations.
When he was young, he caught the eye of a nobleman who recognized something special within him. He trained as a soldier, ultimately becoming the chamberlain and bodyguard of Prince Levantia Shaytham.
But when disaster strikes and Levantia is attacked by assassins, Andrias’ life is thrown into turmoil – and a new path presents itself.
Fredret Lester
Fredret is so big, buff, and burly that you might assume he’d serve as an infantryman. Instead, however, he opts to leverage his superb riding skills and freely gallops around the battlefield on horseback.
He’s known Andrias since childhood, and the two have gone through many life-threatening situations together. As a result, they share a near-unbreakable bond of brotherhood.
Fredret is kind-hearted, honest, and direct – something people admire him for. However, he’s also a little naïve, perhaps due to his upbringing in the countryside. He also tends to become obsessed with the things he’s passionate about.
Iscarion Colchester
Iscarion Colchester is a prodigiously talented archer – something that serves him well as a mercenary.
Of course, he wasn’t always a Blue Fox. The son of a minor noble, Iscarion followed the Colchester tradition of joining the local order of knights. However, due to a personal tragedy, he left and instead became a knight-errant, travelling alone across the kingdom.
He may seem aloof, but he will never ignore those in need. Because of this, he’s greatly respected by those he commands.
Waltaquin Redditch
Waltaquin became interested in magic at an early age and immersed herself in the wide-ranging study of Ancient Sorcery. Now, she’s a magicker beyond compare.
As the daughter of one of Suffield’s most prominent noblemen, she’s been spoiled her entire life – and has the attitude to match. She can be selfish and arrogant, but her grace and intelligence are undeniable.
You’ll become intimately acquainted with all these characters – and many more – over the course of this epic story. Their struggles become your struggles, and by the end they’ll feel like family.
It introduces the thrilling Real-Time Tactical Battle system
But enough about story – how does the game actually play? The DioField Chronicle introduces a dynamic battle system that fuses command-based tactics with real-time tactics. It’s called the Real-Time Tactical Battle system and it makes for fast-paced, richly strategic battles that require you to be attentive and adaptable to prevail.
Although you can pause the game to give out orders and ponder your strategy, everything plays out in real-time. Unlike many other strategy RPGs, enemies don’t sit around twiddling their thumbs while your troops execute your commands – they’ll move as you do.
The battlefield is also full of ‘gimmicks’ – from turrets, to barricades, to exploding kegs, that both you and the enemy can take advantage of. All this makes for wildly unpredictable combat, where the flow of battle is ever changing.
Like all good tactics games, good planning and a smart strategy is key to success, but you need to be adaptable too. A plan that was working at the start of a fight may lose effectiveness if enemies move out of position, for example, so you need to be ready with a new approach.
It’s an audio-visual treat
All the action takes place in richly detailed environments that are portrayed with attractive diorama-style visuals. Not only is it stunning to look at – particularly in 4K on Xbox Series X|S – it gives the game a unique look that’s entirely its own!
The audio side is equally impressive, thanks to be beautifully orchestrated music by world-renowned composers Ramin Djawadi and Brandon Campbell – best known for their work on “Game of Thrones.” It’s a feast for the eyes and the ears. But don’t take my word for it…
You can try before you buy with a massive demo!
If you want to experience the strategic joys of The DioField Chronicle, then here’s some good news: there’s a free demo! This demo comprises the prologue and the first five missions of the game – that’s around three hours of playtime (though you may get more or less than that depending on factors like the difficultly level, your playstyle etc.). It’s a substantial amount of content – and even better, all your progress carries over to the full game!
The full game is available now!
If you like what you play, the full version of The DioField Chronicle is out now for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One! Purchase the game before December 31, 2022, for an early purchase bonus that includes the Weapon: Rhopasto Knife and Accessory: Recruit’s Bangle (*3)
In addition to the standard edition, you can get The DioField Chronicle Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes some awesome extras: Weapon: Knight’s Spear, Accessory: Mystical Ring, The DioField Chronicle Original Soundtrack, and The DioField Chronicle Digital Artbook.
We hope you’re excited for The DioField Chronicle and we can’t wait for you to start discovering the tactical joys it has to offer! To stay up to date with news about this and other Square Enix titles, be sure to follow us at Square Enix Blog, The DioField Chronicle on Twitter, The DioField Chronicle on Instagram, and Square Enix on Facebook.
The DioField Chronicle
SQUARE ENIX
$59.99
A gritty and immersive story brought to life with the latest technology.
Introducing “Real Time Tactical Battle” (RTTB), a new, deeply strategic, real-time battle system.
The beginnings of a new Strategy RPG, crafted by a skilled and experienced development team.
■An all-new Strategy RPG that chronicles an epic tale of war and honour. Featuring a unique and beautiful world that blends fantasy, medieval and modern-day influences, and a deep yet innovative real-time battle system.
■Deep, strategic, real-time tactical battles
The battles in this game are defined by real-time assessment of battlefield conditions and issuing decisive orders that take advantage of your troops strengths and weaknesses to gain advantage over your foe. Make clever use of a variety of skills, classes and equipment to complete your mission.
■Realistic “diorama” style battle scenes
Richly detailed depictions of the environments of the island of DioField combined with unique “diorama” style visuals as you command your forces like a general.
■The DioField Chronicle Standard Edition Early Purchase Bonus Content
・Weapon: Rhopasto Knife (Standard Edition Early Purchase Exclusive Colour)
・Accessory: Recruit’s Bangle
Early Purchase Bonus Claim Period: Until December 31, 2022
※These items cannot be obtained while progressing through the game, but they can be received during Chapter 1 Episode 2.
The DioField Chronicle Digitale Deluxe Edition
SQUARE ENIX
$74.99
A gritty and immersive story brought to life with the latest technology.
Introducing “Real Time Tactical Battle” (RTTB), a new, deeply strategic, real-time battle system.
The beginnings of a new Strategy RPG, crafted by a skilled and experienced development team.
■An all-new Strategy RPG that chronicles an epic tale of war and honour. Featuring a unique and beautiful world that blends fantasy, medieval and modern-day influences, and a deep yet innovative real-time battle system.
■Deep, strategic, real-time tactical battles
The battles in this game are defined by real-time assessment of battlefield conditions and issuing decisive orders that take advantage of your troops strengths and weaknesses to gain advantage over your foe. Make clever use of a variety of skills, classes and equipment to complete your mission.
■Realistic “diorama” style battle scenes
Richly detailed depictions of the environments of the island of DioField combined with unique “diorama” style visuals as you command your forces like a general.
■The DioField Chronicle Digital Deluxe Edition Content
・Main game
・Weapon: Knight’s Spear (*1)
・Accessory: Mystical Ring (*1)
・The DioField Chronicle Original Soundtrack (*2)
・The DioField Chronicle Digital Artbook (*2)
■The DioField Chronicle Digital Deluxe Edition Early Purchase Bonus Content
・Weapon: Rhopasto Knife (Digital Deluxe Edition Early Purchase Exclusive Colour) (*3)
・Accessory: Recruit’s Bangle (*3)
・Early Access: Begins at 00:00 on September 20, 2022
Early Purchase Bonus Claim Period: Until December 31, 2022
*1: Please note that these items can be obtained while progressing through the game, but the bonus grants the right to use them from the start of the game.
*2: The Original Soundtrack and Digital Artbook cannot be played/ opened in-game and are accessed through a separate application from the main game. These are identical to the “The DioField Chronicle Original Soundtrack” and “The DioField Chronicle Digital Artbook” sold separately. Please be careful about making duplicate purchases.
*3: These items cannot be obtained while progressing through the game, but they can be received during Chapter 1 Episode 2.
The DioField Chronicle DEMO
SQUARE ENIX
These are the records of a mercenary band that passed into legend.
A gritty and immersive story brought to life with the latest technology.
Introducing “”Real Time Tactical Battle”” (RTTB), a new, deeply strategic, real-time battle system.
The beginnings of a new Strategy RPG, crafted by a skilled and experienced development team.
■An all-new Strategy RPG that chronicles an epic tale of war and honour. Featuring a unique and beautiful world that blends fantasy, medieval and modern-day influences, and a deep yet innovative real-time battle system.
■Deep, strategic, real-time tactical battles
The battles in this game are defined by real-time assessment of battlefield conditions and issuing decisive orders that take advantage of your troops strengths and weaknesses to gain advantage over your foe. Make clever use of a variety of skills, classes and equipment to complete your mission.
■Realistic “”diorama”” style battle scenes
Richly detailed depictions of the environments of the island of DioField combined with unique “”diorama”” style visuals as you command your forces like a general.
Presenting a free demo of “”The DioField Chronicle””, that allows you to carry over your progress to the full game.
In this demo you can play from the game’s opening through to the end of chapter 1.
*This demo consists of a section taken from the full game.
*It is possible to carry over save data from the demo to the full game
*It is possible to carry over game progress and character levels to the full game.
*Content may vary from the full game.
GAMES
This Week’s Deals with Gold and Spotlight Sale
GAMES
The German Empire Marches to Italy in a Free Expansion Today
We have a new expansion for our WW1 Italian Front FPS game Isonzo releasing today! It’s the first part of our Caporetto season of free expansions, and features a whole new faction with the arrival of the German Empire on the Italian Front, and brings a new map for the Offensive game mode. There will be two more releases in the Caporetto season, each one with a new map to ultimately link together into a three map Caporetto Offensive.
The German faction comes with more than ten new weapons, as well as historically accurate uniforms and equipment. This first Caporetto map sees you taking part in the early stages of the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, with German troops assaulting Italian positions on the road to Caporetto. Historically it was a military disaster for Italy which brought down the government – but maybe things can go differently with you on the battlefield?
The update sees new uniforms and equipment from the German Empire for Isonzo’s six classes: Rifleman, Assault, Engineer, Officer, Marksman and Mountaineer. For those who aren’t familiar with the game, each class has different weapon, gear and perk options that allow you to specialize your play style within the overall focus of the class. For instance, Marksmen are always sharpshooters, but a lot depends on your loadout. You could be a long-range sniper and observer identifying and eliminating high value targets with a scoped rifle, or you could equip body armor to take and hold a front line position with deadly accurate mid-range fire. Every class has choices to make in this regard.
In Isonzo’s signature Offensive game mode, one side must attack and break through multiple defensive lines. Thick layers of barbed wire, trenches, and whatever extra defenses the enemy engineers put together will stand in the way of a successful attack. Objectives can be taking and holding key points, or planting dynamite to sabotage enemy supply stashes or heavy artillery guns.
The new Caporetto map – the first of three in the season – is a huge battlefield based on the strategically important Monte Kolovrat. There are five defensive lines, where each line has two objectives for the attackers before they can advance further. While in the historical Battle of Caporetto both German and Austro-Hungarian forces were involved, in Isonzo we’ve chosen to focus on the German contribution, so the map recreates the stunning German advance from the town of Tolmein all the way to Kolovrat Ridge. It’s a damp, overcast day when the attack begins, and the attackers must first cut their way through lines of wire to break into a devastated town – including capturing a church defended by multiple heavy machine gun positions. Fortunately, in Isonzo there are many tactical options available to deal with such strong points: artillery barrages, smokescreens, snipers, rifle grenades, even poison gas. From there, it becomes a literal uphill battle for the German attackers as they begin to climb towards the peak of Kolovrat Ridge. They’ll need to sabotage bunkers and capture command posts while navigating rocky trenches and steep forested slopes. At the penultimate fourth defensive line there is a huge siege mortar to sabotage and a cluster of houses providing cover to the Italian defenders – then it’s one last climb to reach the final objective: Hill 1114. If the Germans can take it, the Italians will finally be the ones fighting uphill as their reinforcements stream in to try and counterattack.
Of course, things are no walk in the park for the defenders either – although it’s easier to maneuver when going downhill, and it’s much simpler for officers to deploy flares to call in support, the extensive trench lines can become a liability once the Germans get a foothold, providing cover as they advance. Some of the Italian defensive positions can be exposed against the sky, making it easy for German marksmen to pick off targets. Italian engineers should make good use of their construction abilities to put down additional sandbags and lay out extra wire to prevent German assault troops sneaking through the trees to flank trenches with their grenades or light machine guns.
As we mentioned before, historically the Battle of Caporetto was a disaster for the Italians. Appalling leadership led to poorly motivated and unprepared troops falling apart in the face of the combined Austro-Hungarian and German armies using cutting edge infiltration tactics. The Italian soldiers were not allowed to retreat until too late, and in the end hundreds of thousands would surrender. After Caporetto the top Italian general was fired and replaced by someone far more competent, who managed to turn the war around for the Italians. In Isonzo, it’s a more fair fight where both sides have an equal chance of winning, if they can use all the tactical options available better than their opponents.
The release will also bring other improvements to the game, including a prestige mode and higher level cap. Additionally, for those who want more options for visual customization of their character, the Royal Units DLC is releasing alongside the free expansion and contains uniforms from the German Kingdoms of Bavaria and Württemberg. Though part of the German Empire, these states had their own distinctive uniforms which we’ve carefully recreated with the same accuracy and attention to detail as with the other uniforms in the game.
The Battle for Caporetto Begins…
Isonzo is available right now on the Microsoft Store for Xbox, and the free Caporetto expansion is out today! Plenty of time to master the art of mountain warfare before the German Empire joins the action on the Italian Front. Follow us to get the latest development news as we add the finishing touches!
We’ll see you in the trenches!
Isonzo
BlackMill Games
$29.99
World War One expands to the mountains of the Italian Front – beautiful but deadly in equal measure. Inspired by the two year struggle for control of the Isonzo river valley and the Alps during World War One, Isonzo elevates the WW1 Games Series, figuratively and literally.
From the makers of Verdun and Tannenberg…
Take part in historical offensives from the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo to the Strafexpedition. Reflecting the course of the actual battles, as the attackers advance the fighting will shift through vastly different landscapes within a single offensive: from hillside fortresses to mountain trenches and fierce urban combat on city streets. Everything is recreated based on research and field trips, from sound effects and uniforms down to the houses, vineyards and trenches you’ll be fighting over.
The new Offensive game mode puts you right in the middle of key historical offensives on the Italian Front. Lead the charge across stunning Italian landscapes as you choose your path to victory – cut paths through barbed wire, flank your enemies by following mountain trails, or man a mortar to blast a way through. Shape a dynamic battlefield by laying sandbags and wire, placing ammo crates, deploying trench periscopes or sniper shields, and more.
Call in support with a unique historically accurate flare system: flare guns can mark targets for artillery or biplane flybys, or different colored flares can be used to guide your team. Once the big guns have softened up the enemy, finish the job at close quarters with an Arditi dagger or mountaineer’s pickaxe. Man heavy machine guns, mortars and even mountain guns for more direct fire support.
Choose from six classes based on historical combat roles and build your loadout from a selection of weapons, equipment and perks linked to that class, giving flexibility and variety while staying grounded in what real soldiers might have carried. You’ll be operating wire cutters, bandaging yourself and wounded teammates, and blowing the whistle to start an assault. One shot can kill and even lighter injuries can lead to quickly bleeding out.
Being an effective soldier in Isonzo is not just about being a good marksman. Mastering the terrain is also key – the mountain can be a friend or foe. Learn how to navigate well to maintain cover and surprise your enemies or support your allies.
Finally… watch out for the dreaded poison gas. You’ve never experienced WW1 action quite like this!
Isonzo key features include:
• MOUNTAIN WARFARE: Assaulting mountain fortifications, battling through ruined towns, and fording rivers are just a few of the challenges you’ll face as you fight your way through numerous enemy positions
• TACTICAL MULTIPLAYER FPS: Choose your role and loadout carefully to survive this high altitude combat – play a sniper to pick off the enemy engineers before they can cut your wire, use rifle grenades to clear enemy machine guns, and much more
• WORLD WAR ONE GAMEPLAY: Historical Offensive game mode based on real battles and focused on the unique challenges of Alpine warfare. Fight with 30+ WW1 weapons, poisonous gas attacks, and intense artillery barrages
• BUILD FOR VICTORY: Place your own wire, sandbags, trench periscopes, and more! Whether you’re digging in or on the attack, shaping the battlefield to your advantage will be key to victory
• FACES OF WAR: Make every class your own by picking from a variety of historically class-appropriate uniforms, accessories and headgear. As a finishing touch, you can even pick your mustache from several famous period-accurate styles!
• AUTHENTIC WW1 ATMOSPHERE: Accuracy in everything from maps and weaponry to music and the uniforms – fight for the Kingdom of Italy, the German Empire or the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy
MORE GAMES IN THE AUTHENTIC WW1 GAME SERIES
Immerse yourself in more WW1 action with our other standalone titles Tannenberg and Verdun. Experience trench warfare on the Western Front in Verdun, or maneuver for control of key sectors in Tannenberg on the Eastern Front. These authentic WW1 shooters let players choose from a range of squads from across the war, as they fight for control of the ever-changing frontlines.
GAMES
Transport Fever 2: Console Edition is Bringing the Full Transport Tycoon Experience to Xbox
Today, we proudly share a sneak peek into the development of Transport Fever 2: Console Edition, and how we managed to bring the full transport tycoon experience to Xbox.
Transport Fever is a very popular and highly rated transportation tycoon franchise on PC. Its latest entry, Transport Fever 2, delivers a level of size and detail never before seen in the genre. The goal of the game is to build a successful transportation company by constructing railroads, streets, water and air lines. Starting in the 19th century, the player connects towns and industries to transport both passengers and cargo. In addition to a customizable free game mode, there is also a fully-fledged campaign mode with challenging missions set in real-world transportation history.
After the huge success of Transport Fever 2 on PC, it was only logical to bring the experience to consoles as well. Not only that, but no efforts were spared to give the console community the full experience that made the game great on PC. In order to achieve this, the engineers at Urban Games had to pull some rabbits out of their engineers’ hats.
Always providing the freshest layer of paint
One of the most cherished features of Transport Fever 2 are its highly detailed vehicles. The game comes with more than 200 lovingly hand-modeled trains, ships, and airplanes, each sporting multiple 4k textures and normal maps.
On PC, it is easily affordable to have all the models and textures in memory whenever needed, as a typical rig has 16 GB of RAM and a GPU with a dedicated extra memory. Consoles, however, are built differently. They have a unified architecture with an overall smaller amount but ultra-fast memory. The key to make it work on consoles is texture streaming, which allows to clear textures of models that are not in view anymore. Moreover, this technology is used in Transport Fever 2 to constantly load textures at the highest affordable resolution to present the stars of the show, like the classic Class A 3/5 steam locomotive, in their best coat of paint at all times.
Keeping the ground like a console pro
A trademark of Transport Fever 2 are its huge maps. During development of the game, it was always paramount to provide a real sense of scale. The engine should allow for maps where a high-speed train, such as the famous Japanese Shinkansen, can really make use of its superior speed. So, a lot of effort was put into designing a highly effective terrain rendering pipeline that can handle maps of more than 120 sq miles of size with a detail resolution of almost 1 yard. Central to this is a dynamic terrain tessellation algorithm on the CPU that, while costing a bit of extra memory, makes sure the engine can render these maps on a wide variety of PCs.
Now, enter the world of consoles with their incredibly well-designed GPUs and graphic APIs. Here, the hardware can be leveraged very well for terrain rendering by making use of the GPU tessellation feature. This feature generates the render mesh for the terrain fully on the graphics card, saving valuable processing time for the complex economy and city growth simulations. While generating more triangles, the hardware approach still costs less memory overall due to its efficiency. So vast maps can be viewed from a bird’s view high up in the sky and seamlessly zoomed in down to individual rocks on a riverbank.
Inspiring the inner architect
Finally, let’s talk about constructions, a central and defining part of the Transport Fever 2 experience. Constructions are large assemblies that consist of dozens of assets, street segments, ground decals and terrain modifications. Think of structures like airports, train stations, docks, highway crossings, and many more. Anything that is needed to build a vast transportation empire.
For a smooth construction experience, it is key that the player really feels that he has precise control over the building placement. On PC, constructions are typically built using the mouse. As the average PC user is very well adjusted to this method of input, it is sufficiently performant to calculate the entire construction each frame and place it under the cursor. However, on consoles, the best way of building constructions is to have them always kept in the center of the screen and move the camera along the map for placement. And moving the camera needs to be as smooth as silk.
So, for the console release of Transport Fever 2, the construction preview pipeline was overhauled. All dynamic calculations are now performed in the background while a static preview of the structure and its underlying ground plan are shown. Not only are constructions now completely stable in terms of FPS, but they also give feedback to the player on what environment features the construction would tear down when built.
Let’s get tycooning on console
We are very excited to bring the Transport Fever franchise to consoles for the first time ever with the release of Transport Fever 2: Console Edition on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One in February 2023, and we hope you will enjoy it as much as we did developing it.
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