New interview with Fallen Legion series creator, Spencer Yip!

Want to get an inside look into the creative mind behind the Fallen Legion series?

Check out this awesome interview with Fallen Legion creator, Spencer Yip, to get his thoughts and insights on the series!

Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory / Fallen Legion Revenants is coming to Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PS5™ on August 26, 2022!

The PC version will launch on August 23, 2022.

Heya I’m Spencer, the director, designer, and programmer on the Fallen Legion series. I founded YummyYummyTummy to cook up new kinds of games set in imaginative worlds. 

How did the Fallen Legion series start?

I wanted to combine what I loved about JRPGs with the thrill of nailing a counterattack in a fighting game to make a new type of RPG battle system and to put players in control of a story where their choices mattered.

The fight against the Volcanic Dragon in Sins of an Empire, Cecille’s story, was where the battle system started to shine. One second, you’re commanding Longinus to lunge forward with her spear and the next you’re reflecting a fireball back at the beast with a perfect block to knock it to the ground.

Can you tell us about the story in Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory?

Princess Cecille, the only heir to Fenumia’s crumbling empire, reluctantly agrees to succeed her father. She travels with a sassy, talking Grimoire who has been the secret to Fenumia’s power for generations. Meanwhile, the Legate, a general whose society was engulfed by the ever-growing Fenumian empire, leads a rebellion. His journey brings him to Fenumia’s borders in search of allies who will help him seize the throne. You’ll see this war unfold through two conflicting perspectives where either protagonist could be viewed as a hero or villain.

How did you give players control of the story?

I wanted players to have the feeling that they are a leader in charge of this sprawling empire with Cecille or the Legate by requiring them to be decisive. Between battles against wyverns and armoured knights, you’ll get questions from advisors asking how you'll restock your army, or if you will side with a sorceress who is dabbling with forbidden magic. Each choice changes the story and also grants buffs to your party in battle. Weighing long-term outcomes that affect the world compared to short-term bonuses that give you an edge to survive in battle makes every choice a tough call.

What are some of your favourite story branches?

In Flames of Rebellion, you can make decisions that sink morale so low that the entire empire is terrified of the Legate’s army. This opens a chance for the Legate to make a deal with a devil, or I should say deal with a demon, and recruit a Succubus to join his party. 

In Sins of an Empire, you may hear rumours about a plague spreading in a faraway town. Later in Cecille’s journey you’ll arrive at that town and what happens there depends on the choices you made earlier in the game. This branch was actually one of the ideas that led to the story in Fallen Legion Revenants.

What’s the story in Fallen Legion Revenants?

It’s wild to say this now, but we started developing Fallen Legion Revenants in 2018 as a JRPG take on the 1918 pandemic. There’s a miasma that turns people into monsters and some of the last humans survived by isolating themselves in Welkin, a floating castle ruled by a tyrant named Ivor. You play as both Rowena, a ghost fighting to come back to life to raise her son, and Lucien, a charismatic politician planning a coup to usurp Ivor.

Does Fallen Legion Revenants connect to Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory?

Fallen Legion Revenants takes place thousands of years after Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory. Lucien knows of the Fenumian Empire and thinks of it similar to how we know about Roman history. Through his research he discovers the power of the Exemplars and needs Rowena’s help to control the sentient weapon spirits. While both stories are standalone, there are some nods you’ll see from playing both games.

How did the gameplay change from Rise to Glory to Revenants?

I wanted the soul of a Fallen Legion game—choices and combat—to be deeper and to give players more freedom in how they play. Battles have a new tactical grid inspired by strategy RPGs that both Rowena and her enemies can move on. The grid lets you move to dodge attacks and aim at your enemies. You can also create powerful combos that unite the Exemplars with Rowena. Like pushing an enemy with Rowena’s ghastly magic into a different place on the grid right where an Exemplar can crush them with a barrage of lightning bolts.

The game shifts between controlling Rowena cutting through maleficent ghosts and monsters to Lucien who is inside Welkin with his own gameplay style. Being a politician, Lucien can talk to council members to convince them to join his side and search the castle for information about Ivor. You’ll also control Lucien as he sneaks past guards in stealth gameplay, solve puzzles, and make potions to help Rowena in battle. The actions Lucien and Rowena make change the story and may even lead to a different ending.

How many endings are there?

More than twenty! Making endings was one of the most fun parts during development.

What’s new in the Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory / Fallen Legion Revenants collection?

Both games are getting new playable characters! You’ll find Aleister and Jacquine who made their debut in Fallen Legion Revenants in Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory. While Winchester and the wyvern Osmund from Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory are coming to Fallen Legion Revenants. 

I wanted to take some of the improvements we had in Revenants and bring those into Rise to Glory. I programmed in monster voices, did combat speed adjustments, and we added new cutscene illustrations you’ll see throughout the game. 

Fallen Legion Revenants got a major update last year with the Crimson Rose patch. This added new mana chain combos, new deathblows for all of the Exemplars, an Archeus Fusion system for more character customisation options, Japanese voice acting, and an overhaul in game balance. We also added requested quality of life updates like selectable difficulty levels. All of these improvements plus new Exemplar backstories will be in Fallen Legion Revenants.

What’s next for the Fallen Legion series?

The series holds a special place in my heart, and I’d love to keep making more Fallen Legion games! Each game takes inspiration from a different time period in our history, and I think it would be really cool to look at the Space Race as a JRPG.

Watch the latest trailer and visit the official website for more information on Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory / Fallen Legion Revenants.

Be sure to pre-order the Deluxe Edition which includes the "Fallen Legion Compendium" Softcover Art Book and the Digital Deluxe Soundtrack from the NIS EU Online Store.

All pre-orders from the NIS EU Online Store will be shipped with two exclusive Fallen Legion art cards!