Idea Factory International announced they’re bringing Date A Live: Rio Reincarnation to the west. The game will release for PlayStation 4 and Steam in “Summer 2019”.
If you don’t know the Date A Live franchise, its initial story pitch is a really interesting mix between Evangelion and a romantic comedy. The world lives in fear of “Spirits” appearing on earth, girls from another dimension who end up causing a gigantic-scale explosion if left alone. The only way to stop them is to have our protagonist Shido date them and make them fall in love with him.
Date A Live is originally a light novel written by Koushi Tachibana, and it already got multiple anime adaptations. I think the franchise is rightfully popular, as it’s among the best when it comes to nowadays Japanese works mixing romance, comedy, tragedy, and action elements.
Date A Live Rio: Rio Reincarnation is the third game adaption the franchise got, following Date A Live: Rinne Utopia and Date A Live: Ars Install. The Date A Live games are all visual novels and feature their own unique original stories, not from the anime or light novel. All of the games are also written by the novel’s author.
Rio Reincarnation’s story takes place after the second game and features Rio Sonogami, a new girl voiced by Ayane Sakura. Moreover, it contains remakes of the first two games, with new elements. So even if you don’t know the anime or the series itself, you can grab Rio Reincarnation and start with it just fine. You’d be basically getting three games for one. Date A Live is quite popular in the west so it’s great to see the games are finally getting localized.
Here are the game’s story and key features as written in the press release:
Story:
A brand new character named Rio appears, who calls Shido “Papa” and is searching for the “most important thing.”After having escaped nearly being trapped in a virtual reality, Shido is afflicted by a strange feeling.
A disturbance in the world in which he lives. Someone is out there… He cannot shake the helpless, uncomfortable feeling. This strange feeling persists… A new paradise. A girl who has the same last name as Rinne──Rio Sonogami. The girl, along with Marina… for the sake of everyone’s happiness, they wander in search of “the most important thing.”
Key Features :
Multiple Dates, Multiple Outcomes – With 11 characters to choose from and over 150 dating events, who you choose is up to you!Find Your Route to Love – The choices you make with each girl can affect your overall destiny. Clear all of your date’s conditions to reveal the heroine’s true ending!
Motion Portrait Animation Comes To Life – All standing portraits that players interact with will breathe, blink, and react to your conversations! The heroines feel more realistic than ever!
There’s More Where That Came From – Two previous entries in the DATE A LIVE series that were only available on the PlayStation®3, Rinne Utopia and Arusu Install, will be included in Rio Reincarnation!
Re-experience the ending of your date’s route in Rinne Utopia and Arusa Install, and experience new date endings and Event CGs in Rio Reincarnation!
Check out the first screenshots from the game below. Date A Live: Rio Reincarnation launches on PC and PS4 on Summer 2019.
