Lufia III resumes development

[02.02.99] » Natsume officially confirms that the game's Japanese developer, Never-Land Company, has resumed work on the project.

Lufia III's logo

   Fans of the popular Lufia RPG series were devastated to learn last year that the possibility of a third installment was getting dimmer and dimmer with each passing day. Lufia III was originally announced for the Sony PlayStation at the Tokyo Game Show in March 1998. Never-Land Company would be behind the game's development once again, while a company known as Nihon Flex would publish the game as "Estpolis III" to the Japanese market instead of Taito. Natsume, as it had done with Lufia II on the Super NES, would then release the game as Lufia III in North America.

   Things turned awry, though, when Nihon Flex announced it was filing for bankruptcy in July, fueled by instabilities in the Japanese economy. Left without a publisher, it was learned in September that development on the project had been completely halted over at Never-Land Company, and that the rights to the game were reportedly up in the air. Fans were taunted by the news, already eager for the game after an intriguing storyline and other details had already been revealed. (This writer even heard one fan jokingly threaten suicide. But then again, he hasn't been heard from since.)

   Despite the bad news, Natsume still maintained a release date on their homepage, and responded optimistically (while revealing no details) when inquiries were made about the title. Just recently, after several long months, a few rumors began to circulate about the Internet that Never-Land had resumed work on Lufia III. Could it be true?

   Thankfully, yes. We spoke with a spokesperson for Natsume today who was able to officially confirm that Never-Land Company has resumed developmental work on the title. The company also pointed out, however, that the situation is still very shaky, and final details regarding the game's release have not yet been revealed. As far as we can tell, no Japanese publisher has stepped in as of yet to take over Nihon Flex's publishing role.

   The news is still quite welcome for those eagerly anticipating the release of the game -- it seems most of the major problems preventing a release have been ironed out. Also, as mentioned late last year, Estpolis III's musical composer, Yukio Nakajima, has released a demo recording of the game's music exclusively to a Lufia/Estpolis fan site, Forfeit Island. (Click on the "LIII MP3" graphic on the left to download.)

   Natsume still maintains a Q4 '99 release date for the next chapter in the Lufian saga.