Ever Oasis: 5th blog post from Koichi Ishii (oasis, part 2) + overview trailer + My Nintendo discount (EU)

Today, Koichi Ishii posted the 5th blog post for Ever Oasis over at Nintendo’s Topics website in Japan. As announced two weeks ago, this one is once again about the oasis itself, but this time focusing on the various elements to be found in there (such as the Bloom Booths we talked about in previous post… such as this one!).

Missed a previous blog post? Check out the following posts:

• Message from Koichi Ishii
• Blog post #1 – Introduction
• Blog post #2 – Characters
• Blog post #3 – World
• Blog post #4 – Oasis

Ever Oasis – Bloom Booths

First, let’s start with the Hanamise, or Bloom Booths in English. Those are shops opened by Seedling travelers who decide to come and live in your oasis. The shop themselves are pretty plant-like, and the items on sale there all depend on what the shopkeeper likes.

To buy items at Bloom Booths, you need to use a currency known as Dewadems, which is also used by the other characters shopping. Those Dewadems are then used to build other Bloom Booths, selling even more different types of items, which then attracts even more people to your oasis. For example, you could build a shop selling a wooden sword, that could be used to defend the people of the oasis from Chaos.

Here’s some examples of Bloom Booths:

In Ever Oasis, the protagonist is the head of the Oasis, and its symbol is the Great Tree protecting the water. Koichi Ishii had this image in his head, with colourful flowers blooming around the tree: those are the Seedlings.

He explains how the concept of Bloom Booths came to him. Travelers from the desert are attracted by the Great Tree (which is definitely big enough to be seen from far away), they enter the oasis, and then are “healed” by the colourful flowers, which puts a smile on their face. He likens the bustle of the main street, lined up with Seedlings’ Bloom Booths, as the manifestation of everyone thinking “For the Oasis!”.

The appearance of each Bloom Booth is based on the personality of the Seedling who tends it. They all have their use, and they all have something someone is interested in. The more Bloom Booths you have, the more varied the selection of items available, which then attracts more travelers. As a result: more smiles on people’s faces, and… more Dewadems for your oasis!

And of course, this leads even more Seedlings to settle in your oasis, open their own Bloom Booth, etc.

There’s more than 30 different types of Bloom Booths to be found in the game, and each one can be upgraded two times (so the max. level is 3). Naturally, when you level up a Bloom Booth, its appearance change (quite dramatically in some cases!). To do so, you need to deliver the right materials to the shopkeeper, and also complete their special request.

Those special requests are basically subquests given to you by the Seedling tending the store, that also allows you to see a hidden side of them you cannot see when simply following the main story.

Here’s two examples:

• Kagurigumaya, a Bloom Booth tended by Pami. He sells toy windmills, that can be used to get some fresh hair in the hot desert. Its shopkeeper, Pami, is pretty shy and doesn’t have much confidence, but he’s determined to put a smile on people’s faces, which is why he goes and seek help from the protagonist. Will you be able to make a put a genuine smile on his face?

• Juice Shop, a Bloom Booth tended by Evio. Using the pulp of the cactus growing in the desert, she can make the most delicious of drinks. She’s pretty nervous, especially when speaking to someone she’s meeting for the very first time. One day, she saw a warrior from the Uah tribe, undergoing training at the Kidung Mountain. She wants to go talk to them (presumably to offer them a drink), but since she avoid people who are on their own (something she’s concerned about and wants to change), she asks the protagonist to accompany her.

There’s as many different Seedlings that become shopkeeper as Bloom Booth types, and naturally, each one get their own sub stories. Which one will be your favorite?

Ever Oasis – Cinnamono

Next, we have something called Cinnamono in Japanese. Those are items sold at the Bloom Booths, that only travelers can buy. They artists came up with plenty of designs of items to be sold in those Bloom Booths, such as some delicious-looking crêpes. Just take a look at that one, with the little cherry on top…  aren’t you salivating by now? And that little bird face is just the cutest.

Naturally, customers have their own preferences. For example, at the beginning, you will see a certain Noot frequently visiting a Fruit Shop. Also, when you open a pretty popular Bloom Booth, the travelers will be happy. Once you’ve played enough of the game and gotten used to it, you will be able to easily spot the favorite Bloom Booth of the various travelers.

You will be able to say things such as “Oh, so that’s the kind of Bloom Booth this character likes!”

And just like Bloom Booths can level up, the items sold there also level up (at the same time as the shop, obviously). The higher the rank, the more expensive the items sold. Of course, their design also change, becoming more and more elaborate (as seen in the picture above). When the number of residents in your oasis increases, try to also pay attention to the Bloom Booths and the items they sell!

Ever Oasis – Decorative plants

Next, we have something called Deco Kusa in Japan (lit.: Decorative Grass… though Decorative Plants would be a more accurate translation in that case).

As the name implies, they’re decorative plants you can put in your oasis to brighten it up. Depending on where you place them, they can also increase the sales of the Bloom Booths: there’s various types of plants, after all.

Here’s some examples, so you can see why the type of plant matters:

• Oishi Kusa (lit. Delicious Plant): increases the sales of Bloom Booths selling food, when placed next to one. You have to admit the plant itself looks rather delicious! If you place one between a shop selling groceriess and a fruit shop, you can expect a major bonus;
• Kukkuru Kusa: allows you to sell items at a higher price when placed next to a Bloom Booth. Try to place one near a store selling rare items!
• Sistram Kusa: a decorative plant that looks like an Egyptian cat. But what kind of effect does it have on nearby stores? You will have to play the game to find out by yourself!

There’s actually three types of Bloom Booths, selling different types of items:

• Gourmet Bloom Booths
• Fashion Bloom Booths
• Goods Bloom Booth

Regarding items sold in stores, if the required materials are easy to find, their price will generally be pretty low. On the other hands, if the required materials are tough to find, their price will generally be much higher.

There’s over 20 different types of decorative plants, that you can buy from peddlers or get as rewards for completing requests.

Ever Oasis – Asobibana

Next, Koici Ichi details something called Asobibana in Japanese: asobi (to play in Japanese) + hana (flower in Japanese). They’re a different kind of plant that you place in the streets of your oasis, just like the Bloom Booths and the Decorative plants. When the protagonist interacts with them, something happens. For example, you have a trampoline that the protagonist can use to jump.

They’re pretty valuable elements, and much harder to get than decorative plants.

Those Asobibana were added because Koichi Ishii wanted to give the oasis a shopping mall-like atmosphere. They’re basically the Ever Oasis equivalent of the playground equipment you often find in big cities and shopping malls, for children to play with.

Koichi Ishii was also thinking of people who would be watching someone else play when he came up with those “games”, not just the players themselves.

One of the games is called the Hammer Gammer. The player climbs on some sort of platform, and then the hammer starts moving up and down. If you press the A button with the right timing, you swing down the hammer, which sends you flying. If your timing is good, you can hit the very top, which makes a giant flower bloom.

And if you’re wondering whether the Asobibana also increase sales of nearby Bloom Booths, the answer is… yes!

Ever Oasis – Garden / Home

The Garden is a place where you can grow up various things. Fruit trees, vegetables, and more… there’s a lot you can grow, which may seem surprising given we’re in the middle of a desert. That just goes to show how fertile and rich the soil of the oasis can be.

In this garden, you can plant various plants, seeds, etc.. This allows you to get the necessary materials for crafting, selling in Bloom Booth, and more. Whatever you end up doing with this garden is up to you: you’re the head of the oasis, after all!

Once you’ve planted something, you have to wait about 2 days (in-game time, obviously) before you can harvest it. It’s a cycle:

• you plant the seeds
• you go on your adventure while you wait for the seeds to grow
• you harvest whatever you planted
• you deliver the materials to the Bloom Booths
• etc…

Next, we have the protagonist’s home. It’s located at the far end of the oasis, at the foot of the Great Tree (itself located at the center of the lake/foutain). If you have nothing to do at night, you can go there and sleep on the hammock, in order to move forward to the following morning. If you’re looking to craft items, head over to the second floor of your home!

As you progress through the story, you can plant synthesis trees on the second floor of your home, in order to collect materials, and then creating items with them.

If you’re not to good when it comes to combat and have trouble defeating enemies even after leveling up, then you can try crafting recovery items, or powerful weapons. For Koichi Nishii, there’s nothing like the feeling of joy and accomplishment when you finally manage to defeat a stong enemy.

Speaking of materials, there’s various ways to get them: defeating enemies is one, but you can also get them from mining ore found in dungeons, digging holes, and more.

After two posts entirely dedicated to the oasis, can you finally picture what it’s supposed to be like? The thing is, Koichi Ishii isn’t quite done yet: he hasn’t talked about the Foutain of the Great Tree, where both the Great Tree and the Shrine of the Spirit Water can be found. This place is the source of the power of the rainbow that protects the oasis.

That power is also related to the battle system, and that’s what the 6th blog post will be about!

Finally, here’s the overview trailer uploaded today by Nintendo of Europe:

If you live in Europe, and plan to get the digital version of the game, make sure to keep an eye out on My Nintendo (or this website!). A pre-launch rewards will soon be available (from June 15th to June 30th), allowing you to save 10% on the digital version of Ever Oasis. You will then need to use the discount from June 23rd to July 7th. The discount will cost 30 Gold Coins.

As an extra, here’s the preview and the first episode of the Play Nintendo video series about the game:

Ever Oasis (3DS) comes out on June 23rd in Europe and North America, and July 13th in Japan.

Source: Nintendo