There’s a new Yo-kai Watch game in development, according to Level 5’s CEO.
Yo-kai Watch has always been living in the shadow of Pokémon. Whereas Pokémon has garnered international success, Yo-kai Watch has remained more of a Japan-only sort of deal. That’s mainly due to the media franchise’s folklore roots--us North Americans just never quite got it.
That said, Yo-kai Watch has achieved enough success to spawn a multi-media franchise, so we can’t be too hard on it. And there's even a new Yo-kai Watch currently in development.
Level 5 CEO Akihiro Hino announced on Twitter than the latest installment of the Yo-kai Watch franchise is currently being made. It will be based on the Yo-kai Watch Jam: Yo-kai Academy Y – Encounter with N anime, which might just be the longest name for a television show I've ever heard.
It'll also feature "a different system" than traditional Yo-kai Watch games, although Mr. Akihiro declined to elaborate further.
Yo-kai Watch has traditionally been an RPG collecting game along the same likes as Pokémon: you play as a small boy or girl going around town acquiring cute little spirits called yokai. Normally, yokai are invisible, but you acquire a magic watch that allows you to see these spirits. You then battle, befriend, or just clean up after a yokai as a sort of spiritual ambassador.
They even started pulling the same two-version thing that Pokémon does starting with Yo-kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits & Fleshy Souls, but later abandoned it.
What this "different system" might mean is anybody's guess, but it might turn out to be a more traditional RPG than current Yo-kai Watch games.
There’s no release date or even a rough timeline on when to expect this game, so don’t hold your breath. We’ll be sure to report if Level 5 or Mr. Akihiro say anything else.
Source: Twitter via Nintendo Life