A new roguelike action game caught the eyes of attendees at BitSummit, the global indie game festival held in Kyoto, Japan. The title in question is 'CRYMELIGHT,' developed by FURYU Corporation and published in Asia by Clouded Leopard Entertainment.

'CRYMELIGHT' is the third and latest installment in the 'Cry' series, known for its 'dark pretty girl action' and a gloomy, dreamlike world where girls fight through their tears. It is set for a simultaneous global release on November 5, 2026, for Steam, Switch 2, and PS5. While it follows previous titles 'Crystar' and 'Crymachina,' the story is independent, allowing new players to enjoy it fully without having played the predecessors.

The story begins with the protagonist, a girl named 'Alice,' waking up in 'Wonderland,' a prison in the afterlife, with no memory. To return to her original world, she joins a brutal death game where she must cooperate with unique participants, such as the mysterious girl 'Mary,' and defeat the 'Queen of Hearts' according to the rules. In this process, Alice faces the sorrowful 'sins' her companions committed while alive, leading to profound personal growth.

INVEN met with producer Takumi Isobe, who is leading the project, at the BitSummit venue to discuss 'CRYMELIGHT.'

Q. Could you give us a brief introduction to 'CRYMELIGHT'.

"'CRYMELIGHT' is the latest entry in our 'Cry' series, which FURYU has presented so far, depicting stories of "cute girls fighting while shedding tears." As it is an independent title with no narrative or world-building connection to previous works, those new to the series can enjoy it naturally, just like the first game.

The protagonist, 'Alice,' awakens in an afterlife known as 'Wonderland,' where she faces the harsh trial of having to defeat the 'Queen of Hearts' who rules the realm to earn her freedom. Throughout her journey, she encounters various girls and uncovers the different sins they committed in their past lives, allowing players to experience a narrative centered on how these characters reconcile with their sins and move toward the future.

Q. Unlike your previous titles, you have adopted a top-down 'roguelike' format for this game.

"Yes, that's correct. This title is a top-down roguelike action game where you have to start over from the beginning if you die during gameplay. However, this system of 'having to repeat and overcome challenges over and over' actually serves as a crucial piece of foreshadowing within the story. Once you play through to the end, you'll have an 'aha!' moment and realize exactly why we chose the roguelike genre.

While most roguelike games take about five hours to clear, we expect the main scenario alone in this title to take around 20 hours. Since our 'Cry' series is a title particularly well-regarded for its scenarios, we couldn't cut back on the deep storytelling, so we significantly increased the overall volume.

Q. The 2D-based visual art and dreamlike design are very striking.

"We unified all in-game elements, including backgrounds, maps, and characters, in 2D. We strove to maintain a high-quality screen composition that is both fantastical and reminiscent of a piece of fine art. The character design was handled by illustrator YOGISYA, and I am very happy that so many people have praised the designs as beautiful.

Q. What unique combat system stands out in the action department?

"To bring out the charm of the roguelike genre, we introduced a unique 'Poker System' exclusive to this work. While you usually just pick one of the randomly presented skills, in this title, the skills you acquire are likened to playing cards. If you complete a poker 'hand' with the 5 cards you have collected, the structure is such that the higher the difficulty of achieving that combination, the more dramatically powerful the skill effect becomes.

Additionally, when you defeat an enemy during combat, a purple 'Wonder Dimension' space unfolds at your feet; the larger this space becomes, the more exhilarating combat you can experience as the character's speed and stats increase.

For reference, the only playable character is the protagonist, Alice. However, since we designed it so you can switch between 3 types of weapons to suit the situation, you will be able to enjoy changing your combat style to match your personal preferences.

Q. The atmosphere at the BitSummit booth is very heated. What are the reactions and feedback from users who participated in the demo?

"I am very grateful that the demo tickets were fully distributed in just one hour, showing great popularity. I saw users who, upon being defeated by a boss during the demo, were genuinely frustrated and engrossed, saying, "Ah! Let me try just one more time!" I am glad that the core cycle of our game, which makes players immerse themselves, seems to have been conveyed well.

We currently operate an official Discord channel and have set up a 'suggestion box' to receive user opinions. The valuable feedback received on-site and online is immediately shared with the development team and positively integrated into the system, serving as a great driving force for refining the title into something more perfect.

Q. Korean users have received the welcome news of 'Korean language support.' Was there a reason for including Korean from the launch date?

"As we have developed various games, we have deeply felt that Asian users, and especially Korean users, play our games quite a lot. We decided to introduce Korean from the early planning stages of the project because we wanted Korean gamers to be able to immerse themselves in the story and enjoy it from the very first day of release.

Q. Could you introduce the development period, scale, and specific future release schedule.

"It has been about two and a half years since I took on the role of producer and broke ground on the planning for this project. The core team leading the development consists of about 20 people. It is scheduled for simultaneous worldwide release on November 5 of this year via Steam, Switch 2, and PS5 platforms. We are currently focusing on finishing touches to boost the completeness of the main game in time for the release date.

Q. Lastly, please share a word for the Korean gamers who are looking forward to 'CRYMELIGHT.'

"On top of the structural framework of a thoroughly planned roguelike, we have packed in the 'deep and sad stories' that FURYU does best, along with charming characters and original systems. As it will be fully supported in Korean, I hope you will play it yourself and watch until the end to see what kind of conclusion the sins and tears carried by Alice and her companions reach. We ask for the continued interest and support of our Korean fans.