Loved Sword & Sworcery? Fall in love again with music retro RPG Arranger

There are retro RPGs, and there are retro-retro RPGs, and then there’s Arranger.

Created by composer and new developer Arman Bohn (his band mates went on to form Death Cab for Cutie), the highly quirky game seeks to recapture the halcyon days of Atari-style graphics while emphasising a story based on music, adventure, and… saxophones.

Labeled an adventure RPG and launching in the summer of 2012 for iOS and Android, Arranger is Bohn’s first foray into commercial mobile gaming.

It will offer more in the way of mini-games than traditional RPG classes and turn-based combat: think Chocobo Tales rather than Secret of Mana.

Arranger's plot is one that will appeal to frustrated musicians and jaded RPG fans alike - you play as a freewheeling musical arranger who travels the land of Musica to collect legendary musical instruments.

Rather than wield a legendary sword to vanquish dragons, your arranger will seek out instruments like the Haunting Clarinet and a saxophone in order to save the world.

Once more with passion

Along the way, you will complete mini-games (25 in total) that recall the greatest moments of formative, retro gaming.

Instead of grinding out levels against goblins, the player will guide the arranger - represented by an amorphous yellow brick with fast-moving legs - through nine different game world regions to compete in mini-games like a bugger-flinging food fest and an obstacle-laden racecourse.

Of course, the simplistic world of Arranger may not appeal to everyone, but the focus on storytelling and familiar mini-game elements lends itself perfectly to short, sporadic bursts of playtime - ideal for the mobile gamer on the go.

And the quirky graphics and indie ethos should also appeal to the Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery crowd, as you can see in the video below.

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