Patent filed by Square Enix, Nomura offers glimpse at new PSP game

A recent patent request by Square Enix, which credits Square luminary Tetsuya Nomura as inventor, may offer a glimpse at the next big thing from the mind behind Kingdom Hearts.

As described in the patent diagrams, the game is an action RPG in which the player can possess different characters.  While controlling a character, the player is able to use that character’s abilities.  After a certain amount of time, the player is snapped back to the main character, but retains some of the temporary character’s abilities.

A deeper look at the documents reveals that this project may be Final Fantasy related.  A graph detailing skill inheritance lists ability names like “Fire,” “Cure,” and “Blizzard,” which tap the Final Fantasy nomenclature.  What’s more, diagrams describing camera movement show an iconic ostrich-like creature that is most likely a chocobo.  The diagrams also describe how this process can influence hit points (HP), though that reference is more generic.

While the documents don’t specifically reference a platform, they describe a “portable gaming apparatus.”  This narrows it down to the DS, PSP, and cellphones, and an included image of a system looking very much like a PSP doesn’t leave much to the imagination.  Nomura’s plate is currently quite loaded, as the man is working on Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, The 3rd Birthday, and multiple unannounced titles, so it may be a while before this game sees the light of day.

[Siliconera via MTV Multiplayer]