Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom

Overview

Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, the sequel to Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, is a role-playing game developed by Level-5. Unlike the first game, Studio Ghibli was not involved in the development of the sequel.

Setting

Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is set hundreds of years after the events of Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. The game begins in Ding Dong Dell's kingdom, which features the cat-like Grimalkin and mouse-like Mousekin races, which have a history of animosity. The kingdom is ruled by the House of Tildrum, with its current heir, Evan, preparing himself to assume the throne after his father's untimely death.

Aside from Ding Dong Dell, the world is divided among three other major realms: Goldpaw, focused on gambling and tourism, ruled by the Dogfolk; Hydropolis, a secluded marine nation of merfolk and humans; and Broadleaf, an industrious, highly advanced nation formed by a corporation that grew large enough to establish its independence. Each country's ruler has a bond with a powerful being known as a Kingmaker. This bond is known as a Kingsbond, and it not only acts as a proof of authority but also to protect the country and its population from harm. The bond between a ruler and its Kingmaker can only be broken when the ruler dies or is forcefully stolen, which is only possible when their subjects' support falters.

The two main protagonists are Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, a child and rightful heir of Ding Dong Dell, and Roland Crane, a president from an unnamed nation of Earth who is transmigrated to the world of Ni no Kuni in a younger form of himself and becomes Evan's friend and loyal companion. The party also includes Tani, a girl of Evan's age; her father Batu, from a tribe of sky pirates; Leander, a young man who is the advisor for Queen Nerea of the island kingdom of Hydropolis; and Bracken Meadows, a young woman who is the top engineer and one of the founders of the industrious country of Broadleaf.

Story

The game begins with Roland witnessing a missile exploding over a city. In the aftermath, he vanishes and reappears in front of Evan in Ding Dong Dell, with his youth suddenly regained, just as Mausinger, the advisor to Evan's late father, stages a coup. As they escape, they learn that Mausinger poisoned the previous king and intends to have Evan killed to assume control of the kingdom. Assisted by Evan's governess Aranella, who sacrifices herself for their safety, Evan and Roland escape safely from Ding Dong Dell, with Evan promising to her that he will establish a new kingdom in which everyone can be happy and free. Since then, he is occasionally approached in his dreams by a mysterious boy around his age, who becomes his confidant.

Given this, Evan and Roland travel to Cloudcoil Canyon to reach the Kings' Cradle to seek out a Kingmaker for themselves. They are joined by a group of sky-pirates, their boss Batu, and his daughter Tani who help them reach the shrine in which Evan undergoes a trial to make a bond with a new Kingmaker. Upon success, Evan is joined by the tiny Lofty, his new Kingmaker. After settling in an unclaimed plain area, Roland instructs Evan to contact a neighboring kingdom: Goldpaw, where they learn that Goldpaw's ruler, Master Pugnacius, is making use of rigged gambling to exploit the population. Once Pugnacius is exposed by the party, his Kingsbond is taken by a mysterious man called Doloran. The party later learns that Doloran was once a king from a long lost Kingdom that disappeared in a single day. Despite his errors, Pugnacius retains his people's support, as Doloran was manipulating him to do his bidding.

Back to their settlement, the party, along with the pirates and immigrants from other nations, establish Evermore's nation. To plan their next step, Evan and the others seek knowledge at Goldpaw's library, where they learn of Ferdinand, an ancient king. He once united the whole world's kingdoms through a "Declaration of Interdependence," inspiring Evan to do the same. After convincing Pugnacius to sign the declaration, Evan and the others set to Hydropolis, where they fail to prevent Doloran from stealing Queen Nerea's Kingsbond but convince her to sign the declaration. Nerea's loyal advisor and true love, Leander, agrees to join the party to stop Doloran's schemes. A similar situation occurs in Broadleaf, where Doloran steals the Kingsbond from President Zip Vector, who agrees to sign the declaration afterward, and Bracken joins the party.

After returning to Evermore, Roland leaves temporarily. He sets to Ding Dong Dell, where he feigns allegiance with Mausinger to retrieve the Mark of Kings, an important artifact belonging to the royal family. After Roland returns to the party, they hold an audience with Mausinger to exchange the Mark of Kings for his cooperation, but he attacks them instead. During the occasion, Doloran takes advantage of the conflict to steal Mausinger's Kingsbond and reveals that he corrupted Mausinger's advisor, Vermine, instructing him to turn Mausinger against Evan's father. Instead of rewarding Vermine for his services, Doloran steals his soul and flees. Realizing his errors, Mausinger reforms and agrees to treat all citizens in Ding Dong Dell equally and sign the declaration.

With four Kingsbonds in his possession, Doloran begins the ritual to retrieve his own Kingsmaker, "The Horned One," stealing the souls of people around the world in the process. In response, the party returns to Goldpaw's library, where they find clues about the "Mornstar," a legendary sword capable of destroying the Horned One. After the Mornstar is recreated and entrusted to Evan, the five nations' armies launch an attack on the Horned One to allow the party to reach and confront Doloran. Facing the party himself, Doloran reveals that Roland is his soulmate from Earth, and should one of them die, the other will perish as well. He also reveals that his true intention is to revive his lost kingdom and restore his former Kingsmaker and lover, Alisandra, who was turned into the Horned One because she defied the gods by loving him. Doloran then asks Roland, whose nation on Earth was destroyed by war, to join his side, but he refuses, and the party defeats Doloran in battle.

Soon after, the Horned One manifests itself and is slain by the party. Alisandra's spirit appears before Doloran and reveals that she tried to relinquish her powers to live beside him. However, by doing so, these powers converted her into the Horned One and departed to the afterlife. Evan then convinces Doloran to start anew and rebuild his kingdom. Back to Evermore, Evan and the kings of the other major nations celebrate their victory with their subjects, and Roland is sent back home, having one last encounter with Evan before departing. In another encounter with the mysterious boy, Evan discovers that he has been talking with Ferdinand in his dreams, who was not a king from the past, but his son and successor instead, who provided advice to the party through Goldpaw's librarian, Boddly, who in reality is a soothsayer. Many years later, Ferdinand assumes his father's throne and accomplishes Evan's dream of uniting all countries in the world. In the post-credits, Roland, back to his original age, pushes forward in his mission to unite all countries of Earth as well, inspired by his journeys with Evan.