SEGA has announced that the GDC 2025 talks about Metaphor: ReFantazio and Yakuza: Like a Dragon are now available to watch.
During the 2025 Game Developers Conference, several talks were organized by the team behind Metaphor: ReFantazio and Yakuza: Like a Dragon. The talks are now available to watch for free on the GDC Vault. These are the talks that are now available to watch:
Developing ‘Metaphor: ReFantazio’ and the Potential of RPG Command Battle Systems was hosted by Kenichi Goto, Lead Battle Planner at ATLUS. It looks into the work that has been done to update the command battle systems in RPGs.
From ‘Persona’ to ‘Metaphor: ReFantazio’: Creating a Visual Identity for a New Series was hosted by Koji Ise, Lead Interface Designer at ATLUS. This was a look at the process of realizing the UI style of Metaphor: ReFantazio. Among the topics looked at are the importance of UI design to gameplay and exploring some of the problems encountered during development. It also explains how the team tried to differentiate it from Persona.
The Secret to Narrative-Driven and Short-Term Development in ‘Like a Dragon’ was hosted by Ryosuke Horii, Chief Director and Producer at SEGA, and Eiji Hamatsu, the Design Manager of 1st Business Unit at SEGA. They explain how the Yakuza series has been able to develop narrative-driven games in a short period of time.
The Game Developers Conference is one of the largest gatherings of game developers in the world. The event is hosted at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The 2025 event took place from March 17th until March 21st.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is a fantasy RPG that launched for all major consoles and the PC on October 11th, 2024. It has been highly praised while also having won several awards and Game of the Year honors. To have an idea about the game, check out our review.
8Bit/Digi is an independent media outlet that provides insight into the gamer community of the San Francisco Bay Area.
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Clemence is a French-born Bay Area resident, avid foodie and gamer. When not tormenting her friends in multiplayer games, she’s out enjoying the splendor of the Pacific coast.
