The announcement trailer for Dungeon Encounters may remind players of both old and new Final Fantasy titles with its combination of beautiful art, solid character models, and almost completely blank maps. Instead of rich settings and vibrant environments, Dungeon Encounters presents players with layer upon layer of winding, board game-like labyrinth to explore.

RELATED: Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin Will Include Multiplayer

Squares that the player has already walked on are colored white, while untouched squares are transparent. Judging by the trailer, the game itself will be as much a puzzle as it is a dungeon crawler, especially since the player will be rewarded for completely exploring each level. This isn’t the only upcoming Square Enix RPG to attract attention for interesting design choices, but Dungeon Encounters’ choice of stark, minimalist aesthetic and intricate puzzle mechanics may put it in a separate category from other titles Final Fantasy veterans have worked on.

Ito isn’t the only Final Fantasy name involved with Dungeon Encounters. Hiroaki Kato, who was the producer of Final Fantasy 12: The Zodiac Age and worked on Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together and two Final Fantasy Tactics games, will also be working on the new title. They will be joined by musical director Nobuo Uematsu, who is reportedly overseeing the soundtrack, and designer Ryoma Ito, who is contributing character art. All of these franchise giants working together on a new Final Fantasy-inspired game may be a dream come true for some fans.

The game appears to contain a number of playable characters, many of whom fill existing Final Fantasy character archetypes. However, several individuals – for example, the large, round cat dubbed Sir Cat and Jufren, a dachshund that wields a sword in its mouth similar to Sif from Dark Souls – appear to be more experimental. The trailer doesn’t go into a lot of detail on the different mechanics each character will use, but it does appear that some will have unique move sets. Square Enix has stated that the game will offer 100 levels of thought-provoking challenges, which may imply that the title will be more puzzle game than anything else.

MORE: PSA: Don’t Sleep on (Project) Triangle Strategy

Source: Polygon