A recent Polygon article revealed some information on the project Futatsugi is working on. In particular, it seems he’s looking into licensing old IP from SEGA. He doesn’t, however, want to simply port the old Panzer Dragoon games, but do “something new” with it. Given that he’s working with low budgets, it’d be logical to assume he’d make a Panzer Dragoon VR game if he had the chance. He does clarify that there’s nothing currently being done with the Panzer Dragoon IP.
Beyond that, Futatsugi said Grounding has other ideas it would like to pursue in conjunction with Sega, along the lines of Space Channel 5, noting that he feels like his former company is a bit more responsive to external companies licensing its old IP these days. And he said he’s been thinking more and more about VR projects Grounding can pursue.
Asked about Panzer Dragoon — the series he’s best known for — in VR, Futatsugi said if the opportunity came up he would love to work on it, though he wouldn’t want to port the old games over in a straightforward way. He would want to do something new. He clarified, though, that at the moment “there’s no specific movement happening on the Panzer Dragoon front.”
“But,” he said, "Sega really has a lot of great, old IPs and so we’re always thinking about ways we might be able to make use of those.”
Thank you for sharing this !
I wonder if Futatsugi is already experimenting something with the guy from The gunner of Dragoon. He uses the same font, the music…
I guess it makes sense to try something in VR, it’s probably going to be more & more used in gaming. But VR is also a lot of work to get something clean. And I’m not sure they have the ressource for that at the moment ?
Personally, I’m not really into that.
I’d much prefer a non VR but well polished game. And he could do something new too. But it’s his decision. We’ll see.
I will continue the campaign. And if it’s not Futatsugi, it could be someone else.
Sega knows they have valuable IPs, we’ll see if ShenMue 1 & 2 HD materialize or if they were lies.
It would be good to share this news on the main site @Draikin. It does sound like it a Panzer Dragoon VR game is a possibility. Futatsugi previously said that all the things he had done with Panzer Dragoon he had done already, but that was before this new resurgence of VR, and given his interest in VR it’s reasonable to assume that may have changed.
Can you review the news article? If it’s okay, it can be published.
While he didn’t outright say so, I think it’s logical to assume that Futatsugi is seriously looking at creating a Panzer Dragoon VR game. And the thing is that it could really work, if they don’t wait too long. VR is still a niche and there aren’t that many big games. Panzer Dragoon would really stand out.
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Thanks so much for letting us know about this, Draikin. It’s great to hear that there’s interest on both sides - regardless of which IP they go with first, I think any collaboration would be a step in the right direction toward an eventual Panzer Dragoon.
I share your sentiments on this. VR is interesting in that there’s a swath of passionate gamers who have yet to take interest in it. I feel that a familiar, tried-and-true title like Panzer Dragoon would have the potential to reach this audience, in addition to those who have already adopted the technology.
I guess it can only be good for the series if we have something new, may it be a VR Panzer Dragoon.
Personally, I am not very hyped by this technology at the moment.
If they do that, I hope they add a little depth to the game, but it would probably be a VR arcade type ie something close to a rail shooter but in VR.
I miss quests, exploration that’s why I am not too hyped about that neither.
But still, good stuff if we have a new Panzer.
Woohoo!!! There’s gonna be a Futatsugi new PD in the relatively near future! Yay!!! I can feel it!!
I’m so happy!!! 
The more I think about this, the more it scares me that it could turn into a Crimson Dragon2 disaster…
But the positive note for me would be SEGA re opening the series.
Why do you think that? The situation seems quite different to me - one was designed for Kinect and then adapted to work with a traditional gamepad, the other would be designed for VR from the ground up. Rez Infinite apparently worked well with a VR headset (I haven’t tried it personally) and both the PS4 and PC versions have a 89% average on Metacritic.
Probably my lack of knowledge about VR makes me think this is a technology not fully mastered at the moment. And it would be taking a risk, a bit like the risk they took on Crimson Dragon when developing it.
I didn’t know Rez worked well in VR. But was Rez playable with classic gameplay ? What was received well: the classic pad control or the VR version ? It would be interesting to know about that.
What also worries me is using a new technology as the “wow” factor, because there is the risk of making a game without a soul once you get used to the VR.
I’m not exaggerating when I say that Rez Infinite makes it seem like Rez had always been designed to be used with a VR headset. It makes the game easier because you’re aiming simply by looking at things, and also a lot more immersive. For Panzer Dragoon, that kind of mechanic would even make sense from a story perspective (bond between rider and dragon). As far as I’m concerned VR is exactly what the railshooter genre needed.
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If it is responsive & works as instantly as you describe it, I guess that’s a good point indeed.
Still not too hyped if they simply do a rail shooter like an Orta 2 with VR alone. I hope that re opening the series could lead to another RPG.
