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The Nintendo DS is getting a dose of unorthodox yet old-school RPG goodness is the form of Nostalgia, a steampunk-themed adventure courtesy of Matrix Software and Red Entertainment. Towards this end they’ve assembled by a veritable Who’s Who of industry veterans, with experience running the gamut from RPGs, anime, and survival horror.

Keisuke Kikuchi (Fatal Frame, Tokobot) and Naoki Morita (Sakura Taisen) produce and direct, respectively. Yoshiteru Tsujino (Far East of Eden), Takuhito Kusanagi (Grandia, Blue Submarine No.6, Samurai 7) and Keita Amemiya (Iria- Zeiram the Animation, Kamen Rider) comprise some of the bigger names on the design team. The developers promise old school gameplay mixed with anime-styled art direction and a unique setting.

Players will take the role of Eddie, a 19th century London native who rounds up a colorful cast of characters to travel the globe in a zeppelin. Familiar-yet-different locales include New York, Cairo, and unspecified regions in Russia and Africa (presumably not Cairo again). Players will engage in traditional turn-based combat, as well as massive airship battles, and both party members and the ship can be upgraded in a variety of ways. The official announcement makes mention of other features, in particular a series of optional quests and an in-game notebook to help keep track of people, creatures, and ships.

Hey, if we can’t have a proper Arcanum sequel…

Nostalgia is currently slated for a North American release in September of this year.

Source: Kotaku