Balan Wonderworld Director Yuji Naka, of NiGHTS fame, published a new blog post going in-depth on the characters of Balan and some of the critters players can expect to see during their time on the stage.
Leo Craig and Emma Cole are Balan‘s two protagonists. Like all who come to Balan theater, both have a gnawing darkness eating away at the happiness in their hearts.
For Leo, it’s loneliness; he’s been by himself after a big fight with his best friend. Emma deals with anxiety, always putting on a happy front but worrying what people think behind her back.
Then there’s Lance, a dark figure who traps people in their darkness and creates monsters out of negative emotions. Thus was the fate of Balan’s 12 inhabitants, who now act as bosses at the end of the game’s 12 levels.
While Square Enix is still keeping quiet about the particulars of these 12 levels, Naka opened up about a side world Leo and Emma will visit during their journey: The Isle of Tims.
Tims are small floofballs born from people’s happiness and positive emotions, and the protagonists can raise them and interact with them on the Isle.
Tims all have different personalities and can follow Leo and Emma into Balan’s other worlds. There, the fuzzy-wuzzies can consume different drops to take on new elements and abilities to lend a helping Tim-hand, such as attacking enemies or finding items.
Finally, Naka offered a bit more information about Balan Wonderworld‘s multiplayer. When players control Leo and Emma together in local co op, the combined powers of their costumes could open new paths in each stage.
Balan Wonderworld releases March 26 for current and next-gen systems plus PC. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Balan news as it develops.
[Source: Square Enix]
