Nearly 30 years after its original release, an English version of Princess Maker 2 was recently released on Steam. Entitled Princess Maker 2 Refine, the game features brand new HD graphics and Japanese voice overs for a 21st century audience. While exciting, very little news has been announced about the Princess Maker series since. But according to Siliconera, a Princess Maker virtual reality title has been demoed on the HTC Vive and is on its way for a 2017 release.
Showcased at the Korea VR Festival 2016, MGame’s Princess Maker VR is essentially “an upcoming rebuild of Princess Maker 2 on PC.” Like the original Princess Maker 2, the player acts as the princess’s father, and can do such things as choose outfits and hairstyles for their daughter to wear. Also, headpatting will feature in the game, which is sure to delight VR manga and anime fans.
Although the title was demoed on an HTC Vive, Princess Maker VR won’t just be a PC exclusive. According to 4Gamer, the game will be coming out on consoles, too. If the title’s official marketing photo is any indicator, that probably means PlayStation VR, seeing how the girl on the cover is using a PlayStation VR headset.
What’s most interesting to note about the Princess Maker VR release, though, is its potential for manga and anime fans. Virtual reality has traditionally appealed to fans because of its reliance on immersion, but Princess Maker VR seems to emphasize the ways in which one-on-one character interaction can be an appealing and entertaining VR mechanic. If so, the ability to realistically interact with programmed anime girls and boys could become a major selling point as virtual reality hardware moves onto its newest iterations.
No word yet on whether Princess Maker VR will release in North America. With a prospective 2017 release, there’s sure to be more news over the next few months, so stay tuned in the meantime.
