In just one day, Nihon Falcom will introduce the exciting new action RPG Kyoto Xanadu to Japan and Asia, with the eagerly awaited worldwide launch of Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter scheduled to follow three months later. Although Nihon Falcom has historically aimed for “two new titles a year” as an objective it aspires to, president and CEO Toshihiro Kondo recently discussed if the dual release in 2026 signifies that the studio has now achieved this target, and why he views this as vital for the studio’s upcoming years.
In a conversation with South Korean gaming outlet ThisIsGame, Kondo indicates he is more inclined to credit Nihon Falcom’s increased output in 2026 to favorable timing (keep in mind that this piece depends on automated translation, so precise meaning should be considered with some caution). From his perspective, the studio has not yet established a framework capable of consistently producing two new titles yearly, and he cannot definitively state that they’ll be able to replicate this success next year.
Instead, the release of Kyoto Xanadu was made possible because an autonomous team, whose members do not overlap with the primary Trails and Ys development teams, had been working on it “behind the scenes,” and the project happened to be finished at the opportune moment.
Nonetheless, releasing two new titles yearly remains Kondo’s ambition. A hurdle Nihon Falcom encounters is that its strong emphasis on developing well-known IPs like Trails results in too few projects where its younger staff can develop and test their skills. Kondo believes that if younger developers aren’t given chances to experiment and advance, there will be no successors capable of guiding Nihon Falcom into the future.
It’s worth noting, he points out that the company has progressively been boosting its workforce (69 individuals as of the end of March 2025), while also increasing the count of producers on staff qualified to manage projects. In the end Kondo’s aim is to establish a framework under which Falcom can regularly release one flagship IP entry (such as Trails and Ys games) and one original project annually.
The forthcoming Kyoto Xanadu, despite being a successor to the established Tokyo Xanadu, serves as an example of the latter, as it was directed by Nihon Falcom’s young newcomers alongside more seasoned (but recently employed) mid-career veterans. Consequently, the game carries a “freshness” that distinguishes it from existing Falcom titles, and Kondo hopes to see more of such projects in the future.
Related: Nihon Falcom reports 1227% year-on-year operating profit growth thanks to strong overseas sales