Last week, Crunchyroll was invited to attended the NIS Spring Press Event showing off the Japanese developer's releases coming into the 2016 year. In addition to a life-size Prinnie photo-op, and an open bar, press were treated to the opportunity to try out some of these new releases firsthand and see what the developer of the infamous Disgaea series was coming out with next. Below is the bevy of announcements and demos provided during the event. It’s looking like 2016 will be a busy year, especially for the PC and PS Vita.

Grand Kingdom is the most unique take on the SRPG genre I have seen since, well, NIS started localizing titles like Phantom Brave and Disgaea. A strange combination of side scroller and turn based strategy, it employs 3 rails upon which your military squad can maneuver. With excellent art, a compelling setting composed of four distinct fantasy kingdoms, and the promise of some unique online multiplayer combat, Grand Kingdom has the potential to be one of the best titles coming out of the spring press event. Oh, the lead on the project is also Tomohiko Deguchi, known for his work with Vanillaware on Muramasa: The Demon Blade and more recent direction of Grand Knights History. I had a chance to sit down with him and ask him some questions about Grand Kingdom which we will be releasing further on. The game is slated for release on June 21st.

Unfortunately, not all titles can be winners. Some truly amazing art assets aren’t enough to carry the upcoming Stranger of Sword City. I have seen some truly impressive titles on the PS Vita, so why an RPG would be released reprising the 2D, first person RPGs of the early ‘90s is completely baffling to me. Simulating a rat navigating a pixelated a cardboard maze between bouts of very typical turn-based fighting is an underwhelming experience no matter how exciting the story or beautiful the artwork. Not even my general nostalgia for these titles was able to overcome the gameplay and I couldn’t shake the feeling that literally any innovative features to bring the old archetype closer to the modern day might have saved it. It’s actually a shame that the game has such amazing art, since I would really like to play enough to see more of it, but, to be frank, it isn’t worth it. Stranger of Sword City will be released on the PS Vita on April 26th in the US.

Disgaea PC. Not much to say here, the same Disgaea: Hour of Darkness we all knew, loved, and obsessed over, now on the PC. Personally, I don’t think I can afford to devote even one more hour of my limited lifespan to Disgaea after all the time I have invested on the original release, but it’s hard to think of a downside to their making it available on Steam. The game looks great and includes Etna Mode from the PSP port, they even threw in achievements, if you are into that sort of thing. Whether you want to play the game again or just add it to your digital collection for posterity, or perhaps in a format that isn’t as likely to rapidly become obsolete, Disgaea PC is just what the doctor ordered. Providing a playable format at the event seemed a little overkill, since an announcement should really be all that’s needed. Disgaea PC was actually released on Steam the day after the event, on February 14th, so check it out if you think you can risk getting that involved in something again.

I’m going to go ahead and contradict that last thing I just said by making a big deal out of the PC port for hToL#NiQ, also known as The Firefly’s Diary. I feel like this game deserves a bit more attention than the ubiquitous Disgaea series. Originally a PS Vita title, The Firefly’s Diary made use of the front touch screen and back touch pads by giving each control of one of two fireflies that aid the antlered protagonist, Mion, in her escape from the dark ruins she finds herself trapped within. The control scheme was very innovative and I honestly still have no idea how they plan to port it onto the PC, but the title definitely deserves the adaptation to a more popular format in the US. It’s one of those games where a unique gameplay design and art direction are developed together into a beautiful a memorable product. The Firefly's Diary will be available on Steam on March 14th.

Another PS Vita title of more dubious reputation that will be making its way to PC in the US is Criminal Girls: Invite Only. The game is known for its somewhat controversial action system, in which the player chooses from a number of actions suggested by each character which are generally appropriate for the current situation in the fight. Some argue it waters down the experience by making it too simplistic while others say it is innovative and doesn’t distract from the challenge. Also your characters gain new abilities when you personally them in a number of very, er, suggestive ways accomplished by executing complex patterns on the back touch pad which honestly just feels dirty in that context. For those interested in that sort of thing, Criminal Girls will be coming out in April 2016. NIS also provided a teaser hinting at the future localization of Criminal Girls 2.

While Touhou has become such a cultural icon it is overwhelmingly likely that anyone reading this article will recognize the name for its cast of little girls and gameplay of highly complicated bullet hells, the Japanese PS3 title Touhou Genso Rondo may have eluded you. TGR brings bullet hell to a 3D 1v1 environment, allowing you to enjoy all the fun of dodging hailstorms of bullets while directing your own torrential rain of colorful ammunition right back at them. You can pick one of 10 girls and even get granular by customizing your own bullet patterns. It’s only two player, since adding anymore might turn the screen into one, giant hitbox, but it allows for online multiplayer mode which looks like a two player Geometry Wars. A strange and innovative direction to take the well-known franchise. NIS is bringing the titled, remastered for the PS4, to the US late 2016.

Of all the titles on display at the end is spring press event none generated quite so much hype as your Yomawari Night Alone. Okay, that's not true. Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness was definitely the most hyped, but YNA’s Tim Burton-esque trailer definitely stood out. Yet another PS Vita title coming stateside thanks to NIS localization. YNA is an isometric puzzle game with a whimsical storybook style that, much like Grimm's fairy tales, can also scare the crap out of you. Mixing childlike imagery with unnerving atmosphere seems to be a uniquely Japanese theme in media. YNA has some definite thematic similarities with The Fairy’s Diary, but coming off the end of Undertale’s peak as a title with a little girl in a scary environment, it definitely seems like the right time. Once again, a hard date hasn’t been set, but it should be coming out late 2016.

Last, but not least, the multi-platform release of Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness was announced for the US with an extended trailer of characters in suits running down alleys whilst holding guns pointed downward in a tactical manner. This game sets itself apart from the other titles in a few ways. First, it’s subject matter is much more mature, based in the Orwellian dystopia of Psycho-Pass, a cerebral, violent anime far removed from the cartoonish art and tongue-in-cheek humor of most NIS localizations. The game itself is a choose-your-own-adventure type style, with the player making decisions on the characters behalf like a police-procedural dating sim. Fellow fans of the anime will likely look forward to any extra plot they can get. Mandatory Happiness will also be hitting the US in late 2016.

That wraps it up for new titles announced in the 2016 NIS Spring Press Event! Be sure to stay tuned for my interview with Tomohiko Deguchi!

Which title are you most hyped about coming to the US? Let us know in the comments below!