Frame Gride

Mecha and fantasy mix in a forgotten but vital chapter of FromSoftware’s history

- CAELYN ELLIS

The satisfying clang of sword on shield. The deliberate pace of battle. The unintuitive yet thoughtfully crafted control scheme. Elements familiar to fans of Dark Souls, the game that cemented FromSoftware’s position as a top-flight developer worldwide – and all present, too, in one of the studio’s lesserknown titles, a Japanese Dreamcast exclusive that never had its planned official English translation and North American release.

Those who fancy themselves scholars of videogame history will most likely point to the King’s Field and Armored Core series, some entries in which received worldwide releases, as the standout examples of From’s earlier output. Together, they’re indicative of the two major strands that run through the studio’s back catalogue: fantasy with heavy doses of knights and magic, and mecha. Frame Gride is notable for blending the two. Its world is one of armoured, magic-wielding knights locked in duels across a medieval fantasy mélange. The twist is that these knights are fighting machines with guns and artillery as well as blades and bucklers.