GetsuFumaDen: Undying Moon interview and hands-on – Konami strikes back

Konami has finally started making proper video games again, but their new early access title is not quite what you’d expect from them.

For years now, ever since they kicked out Hideo Kojima, fans have been hoping that Konami would see the error of its ways and begin to engage with the traditional video games industry once again. As a company, Konami makes plenty of money through its gambling, casino, and health club businesses and while they have kept a toe in the video games world, it really has only been a pinky.

There have been some stirrings of late though, such as the excellent PC Engine Mini and, very vague, rumours about a new Castlevania, Silent Hill, and Metal Gear. Those are the publisher’s three most important franchises in the modern era but go back a few generations and they have a much wider portfolio, to match any rival. Even so, a reboot of Japanese-only NES game Getsu Fūma Den is a deep cut by anyone’s standards.

‘We started planning this title in 2018, right when smaller, artistic indie projects with great game systems, and larger titles using Japanese themes, were becoming popular’, producer Shin Murato told us in an email interview. ‘We wanted to plan a mid-range game that was both artistic and Japanese-inspired, with a good game system.’

‘Getsu Fūma Den fit this perfectly and had the benefit of having no sequels or global launch’, adds Murato. ‘We also have many fans of Getsu Fūma Den in our team that wanted to work with the title, so, we decided to use this IP for a fun project and started making the concept of GetsuFumaDen: Undying Moon.’

Originally released in Japan in 1987, Getsu Fūma Den (which roughly translates to Legend of Fūma Getsu, the main character) was never released anywhere else in the world, despite featuring English language text and popping up on the Wii Virtual Console in its home country. Why is not clear, other than Konami America perhaps thought it was too Japanese, with a katana wielding protagonist and enemies based on yōkai.

It’s a shame though, as the game was generally very good. Maybe the controls weren’t the best, but the structure was similar to Castlevania 2 – the first entry in the series to have Metroidvania style gameplay. The game had other influences too, with nods to the usually forgotten Zelda 2, including a top-down map view, and an ultra low tech 3D section.

These ancillary aspects don’t make it to the reboot though, as Murato explains: ‘GetsuFumaDen: Undying Moon uses the same world view of the original game, but we have developed it as a completely new game. We kept the 2D action of the original but recreated it as a genre of roguevania.

‘Therefore, we don’t use pseudo-3D style, but use 3D-like direction as the graphics are developed in 3D. It might be interesting if we use 3D elements for expanding game quality in the future. Regarding overworld sections, we did not use them for this game.’

The original NES game will be included as a bonus in the final release but while Undying Moon pays respectful homage to the original, it is very much its own game. The 2D view of the action looks similar but Undying Moon is a roguelike more than anything else, with procedurally generated levels that change every time you die and a rock hard difficulty that only lets you retain a few things after death.

‘We will have various difficulty options, but these will be unlocked as you progress’, says Murato. ‘There is a difficulty level for hardcore gamers, however we have also introduced an option to decrease the difficulty level, as we want as many players as possible to enjoy this game.’

By association, the game is instantly put into competition with indie classics such as Dead Cells and the biggest question Undying Moon has to answer is whether its combat has enough depth and variety to compete.

On that count, Fūma is pretty nimble, even though mantling platforms is needlessly fiddly, and there is a good variety of weapons, from simple swords to umbrellas that act as shields. Each have their own moves and combos, and together with a backwards dodge make combat a lot more technical than it first seems.

‘Games like Dead Cells and Hades are the ones that continue tuning and improving game content, so that players can enjoy playing the game repeatedly’, says Murato, who is clearly aware of the high standards set by indie developers in the genre.

‘This has caused them to become beloved titles for a long time. We also wanted to follow these titles, which partly inspired us to try early access, which is the first trial for Konami’.

Undying Moon also features a range of sub-weapons, similar to Castlevania, that are usually thrown and, while very powerful, take time to recharge. Each type of weapon can be upgraded using collected resources, while special moves and abilities can be learnt and kept even after death.

‘As an early access version, the game is 100% completed. As an official (not early access) version, it is approximately 70-80% completed. However, the content of the official version will be changed depending on users’ feedback during the early access period, so that percentage is not fixed’, says Murato.

‘Also, we plan to add DLC content in the future, so we are looking forward to exploring the possibilities of this game by listening to users’ wishes on new content and/or expanding the way it can be played.’

Undying Moon isn’t terribly original and, like all procedurally generated games, the levels can feel a little bland sometimes, but as an early access title it’s still a lot of fun, not least because the graphics are so beautiful.

It might not be obvious in the screenshots, but the visuals look gorgeous in action, with artwork based on the ukiyo-e style that is most familiar in the West thanks to The Great Wave of Kanagawa. That’s directly referenced in one of the levels, as are other works such as the wonderfully macabre Takiyasha the Witch and the Skeleton Spectre.

The visuals help compensate for the occasionally dull level design but come alive even more so in the boss battles, where the camera starts swinging around in 3D – something it’s a shame doesn’t happen more in normal play.

‘There are the members who worked on the Castlevania series like me’, says Murato, when we ask what else the team has worked on, that they would be able to produce such accomplished visuals.

‘From the beginning, we checked and revised many, many times the designs we created to keep with the concept of the motif of old Japanese art/ukiyo-e art. Also, we tried not to create too fantasy of a world.’

You can play Undying Moon right now in early access but the only confirmed console format so far is a Switch version next year. That should be well worth looking forward to but it’s hard to avoid the thought that, no matter how good the game is, the most exciting thing about it is that it shows Konami is back making proper video games again. Not only that but they’re embracing the whole of their back catalogue and not just the more modern titles.

Getsu Fūma Den is a game hardly anyone in the West will have heard of or played but this modern reboot is something that should be on the radar for any fan of roguelikes, Metroidvanias, or just 2D gaming in general.

Formats: PC (early access) and Nintendo Switch
Price: £19.99
Publisher: Konami
Developer: GuruGuru and Konami
Release Date: 13th May 2021 (Switch 2022)
Age Rating: 16

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