Banpresto unsheathing Summon Night: Craft Sword Monogatari 2

TOKYO--According to the latest edition of VJump magazine, Banpresto is readying Summon Night: Craft Sword Monogatari 2. The Game Boy Advance title is scheduled for a Japanese release this summer.

Like its predecessor, Summon Night: Craft Sword Monogatari 2 follows an apprentice blacksmith who goes off on a journey in the world of Linbalm. This time, you'll play as a 15-year-old youth named either Edge Colthearts or Air Clothearts, depending on whether you chose to play the game as a boy or a girl. Aside from being a blacksmith trainee, you're also the descendent of the Colthearts clan, who have guarded an imprisoned demon for generations. When the seal breaks off the demon's prison, players must rally the Colthearts and save the world.

Like Craft Sword Monogatari, Craft Sword Monogatari 2's gameplay consists of three parts: the field map, where you walk around towns to meet people and explore dungeons; battles, where you fight by using your weapons in real-time action sequences; and blacksmith, where you forge new weapons or customize your existing weapons.

The first Summon Night was released on the PlayStation in 2000 and has spawned three sequels--one for the PlayStation, one for the PlayStation 2, and one for the Game Boy Advance. While the main characters are different, all of the games in the Summon Night series take place in the world of Linbalm. Full of mana and nature, Limbalm has four adjoining dimensions, and people with special powers--called "summoners"--who can call beings out from other dimensions. Japanese-speakers can read more about the series on Banpresto's official Summon Night Web site.