Legendary RPG Franchise Returns with New Entry After 14 Years

After more than a decade of silence, the legendary .hack franchise is finally making its long-awaited return. To commemorate its 30th anniversary, CyberConnect2 has officially unveiled .hack//Z.E.R.O., a new project currently referred to as “Project Dusk.” This upcoming action RPG, developed exclusively for home consoles, comes from the veteran studio renowned for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot and highly successful adaptations of Naruto and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. While a specific release date has yet to be announced, the reveal marks a significant milestone for fans of the dormant series.

A recently released teaser provides a glimpse into the game’s dual-layered reality, contrasting a near-future “real world”—populated by delivery drones and defined by modern social media—with the fantastical digital realm of “The World,” the iconic MMORPG where the franchise’s stories unfold. The project’s credits reveal a team of series veterans, including executive producer Hiroshi Matsuyama, a central figure in the history of .hack, and acclaimed character designer Seiichiro Hosokawa.

In a recent conversation with Famitsu, as highlighted by RPG Site, Matsuyama explained that the “real world” segments of .hack//Z.E.R.O. will be just as pivotal to the experience as the digital odyssey. Furthermore, while the game maintains ties to its predecessors, the developers have ensured it remains accessible. Newcomers can dive into this entry without feeling overwhelmed by prior lore, while veteran fans will still find meaningful connections to the wider universe.

During the early 2000s, the .hack franchise was a pioneer of multimedia storytelling, popularizing the concept of narratives set within virtual gaming worlds long before it became a mainstream trope. Comprising a massive web of anime, light novels, and games, the series has not seen a completely original title since the release of .hack//Versus in 2012. Interestingly, this new chapter represents a major shift in the series’ business model; while Bandai Namco historically served as the publisher, CyberConnect2 announced that they have been granted full autonomy to oversee the project entirely, from the initial concept and development through to its global release.

Source: Polygon