Ar nosurge: Ode to an Unborn Star

In the second game of the Surge Concerto series, the people of the destroyed planet Ra Ciela struggle to survive on the Soreil, a massive spaceship constructed by their distant ancestors. Their existence is threatened by mysterious beings called Sharl, which can use the Song Magic that was lost to humans long ago. In response, Soreil’s people have split into two warring factions; the Genomirai Church seeks coexistence between the species, while the city of Felion believe they can only achieve peace by destroying the Sharl. Meanwhile, a group of people known as the Ancients have awakened. Having lived through Ra Ciela’s last days, the Ancients can still make use of Song Magic and may hold the key to resolving Soreil’s conflicts.

The player initially controls a party of two characters named Delta and Casty, and will eventually be able to switch from these two to the other main pair of Ion and Earthes. This switching, referred to as Zapping, can be done freely at save points, though at some points in the story it will be either forced or disabled. Each explorable area has a finite number of enemies that can be encountered; when a battle is initiated, the player has a turn limit to defeat as many waves of enemies as they can. Battles are turn-based, and involve the male party member actively attacking the enemies and shielding the female character as she charges up her magic.

Other game features include Genometrics, a visual novel-like segment in which the player explores the subconscious mind of a chosen character, which can impact how their conscious self later interacts with other characters. During Purification Ceremonies, party members can equip crystals that enhance their fighting abilities, while also conversing with one another and with supporting characters.

The game received an updated Playstation Vita port called Ar nosurge Plus. This release contains a new tutorial mode, new dialogue events, allows three additional supporting characters to participate in Purification Ceremonies, and includes all of the PS3’s DLC costume packs as part of the base game. Three free DLC packs were also made exclusive for the Vita release.