Blue Protocol Interview: Amazon Games Talks Region Differences, Dungeons, and Class Design

Differences Between Regions

ComicBook: So Blue Protocol is going to finally be heading to the West, but it's actually been playable in Japan for about a month by the time this goes. In talking about this upcoming release of the game, though, you've been specifying that this is the "Western version" of Blue Protocol. Can you talk to me about what differences the Western edition might feature compared to the one in Japan?

Mike Zadorojny: Good question. A lot of what we're trying to do is maintain the same vision and the feeling from the Japanese version of the game, which is the core version. But we do want to make it approachable to as many Western players as possible. So anything that we would think about changing is mostly about how do we make it so it feels like it's made for the Western players while still being true to the anime style, the deep narrative, the character customization, and the really cool multiplayer experience.

CB: If you were to remove or alter any aspects of the game for Western territories, what would those conversations look like with the developer?

MZ: A lot of it is just about, how we make things more approachable. What is culturally more acceptable here versus what's culturally acceptable in Japan? And so some of those gray areas is where we dig into the details and go, "Hey, for this, can we talk about changing certain things?" Some of the things that have been out there that the players have dug up is we made some slight changes to some of the outfits for the younger-looking characters so that it feels more appropriate, again, for the Western audience.

Diving Into Dungeons

CB: My favorite element of the demo of Blue Protocol that I played came at the end when I was able to run through one of the game's dungeons with a bunch of other players. Can you reveal how many dungeons are going to be in the game, and beyond that, what sort of other multiplayer elements are there outside of just the dungeons?

MZ: I don't think that we've actually announced yet how many. There are a decent number of them, I'll say that. But the whole thing is that it's not just about the dungeon experience itself. There are also a couple of different tiers. So there are going to be some time attack versions where we're actually starting to push the boundaries on various things. There are some we've shown off in previous examples that are larger-scale raid encounters.

There's also a more natural in the open world. There are named bosses that will show up or unique creatures that will show up that will bring players from all over the map to come to band together to take down. And then there is what they call the Tower, where you're actually going up level by level and having a unique challenge on each floor. It's really forcing the players to use that group dynamic to the maximum potential to go up to the tier.

Developing With Solo Players in Mind

CB: How approachable is Blue Protocol going to be to those who want to play the whole game by themselves? A lot of the footage you've been showing off has featured a number of players doing team-oriented objectives, but what does the game look like for those playing solo?

MZ: Yeah, so the whole story itself is designed to be played alone. You can take it from beginning to end by yourself, and so it is about that natural experience. Now, playing with more players is more fun and the way that Bandai has really approached this has been about trying to make it so that when you are seeing other players, it's making the experience more enjoyable, whether it's in the dungeon or even in the open world.

If you're going to kill a particular group of goblins because you need to do it for a quest or a part of your adventure book, when you have more people there, it changes the combat dynamic a little bit, right? Now, I can play a little bit more support-y and still feel like I'm making an impact, or I can be more offensive and then still lean into that a little bit more and maybe these other people are helping heal or helping pull mobs. The dynamic changes. And so that's really what it leans into.

So the short answer is, you can play it from beginning to end by yourself, but there are moments where they're optionally sprinkling in this idea that you can come together and have more fun with a group.

Creating Your Own Hero

CB: Character customization seems to be a huge pillar of Blue Protocol. Just how extensive are the options that players will have?

MZ: Yeah, it's a cornerstone. A lot of it is making sure that you can feel like you're creating your hero, your avatar for this giant journey. And so there's a ton of different options, from multi-color hair to being able to change different eye colors, having one eye color being different, to skin tones, textures, to hairstyles. We've leaned in to really try and make sure that you can create a diverse array of characters, so players can feel like there's something in there for them.

Standing Out in a Competitive MMO Market

CB: One of the things I'm most curious about is how you're approaching it within the current MMO landscape. Amazon Games itself has a number of MMOs between Blue Protocol, Throne & Liberty, and New World. How are you trying to stand out in what seems like a growing competitive market and offer something different that can pull in players?

MZ: I think Blue Protocol, just from looking at it, you see it stands itself out. The art style, even when you're running around the open world, the vastness of it is very different from traditional MMOs. So I think that's part of it. I think you layer in the way that the dynamic combat is set up, it's very easy to pick up and play. I mean, you were able to go through the dungeon experience with just a quick hands-on demo.

But underneath, you can mix and match your passive abilities, which summons you're bringing in, and which skills you're bringing for your individual classes. And you can actually mix and match based on whether you've leveled up. Maybe you've played the Keen Strider and now you want to play the Blade Warden. There are actually some passives that you unlock while you're playing one that you can then play on some of the others as well. So it's easy to get into, but there's really large depth underneath. So when you go to the score attack stuff, you're really going for some of the more advanced tactics. That level of flexibility allows you to kind of dig into it more.

Designing Unique Classes

CB: You talked a bit about the classes and how varied they are from one another, which I think is one of the most unique aspects of Blue Protocol based on what I've played. What goes into creating those classes and how are you trying to make them different from conventional MMO roles?

MZ: So now I'm speaking for Bandai because as the developer, the thing that they're really focusing on is the player fantasy and really bringing out what are the types of capabilities that players can actually have and how can they make that extensible. And so for them, it's really about not trying to make a particular style. You're not trying to make a DPS class, you're not trying to make a tank, you're trying to make something that has versatility and really go into that. And so the different weapons really allow you to have that kind of flare. You look at it with the Foe Breaker, there's not much else that you can really compare it to. It's not the traditional sword and board or the Blade Warden which is more sword and shield. So really having that flexibility and allowing the designers to have that creative freedom to build that into it.

Parity Between All Versions

CB: Looking at Blue Protocol from a long-term perspective, is it a goal to achieve parity between the Japanese version of the game and the Western version? For now, the iteration that's coming to the West is going to be an older version of what Japan is playing, but will there be a point where the two editions are virtually identical?

MZ: I mean, we are always going to be going towards the game, the version that they're playing. I think there are a number of issues that we're going to be tackling to do that, but the main focus needs to be on the quality of the game and the quality experience first for the players and be able to make sure that we can respond to player feedback. So as long as we're meeting those goals, we're going to be doing our best to make sure that we're getting the experience, the Western version, as good as it can be, as fast as we can so it can match up to the experience that the Japanese players are having.

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Blue Protocol is currently slated to release in 2024 and is in development for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. A closed beta test for the game is slated to transpire at an undetermined time before the end of 2023.