Grezzo and Nintendo released a new overview trailer today for their upcoming 3DS title Ever Oasis, which blends action adventure RPG and town management gameplay. Koichi Ishii, who is known being the Director of Secret of Mana and is also leading development on Ever Oasis, shared some insight to the game's characters in a Nintendo UK article called "The world of Ever Oasis - part 1"

For those who don't know, in Ever Oasis players partner with Esna the Water Spirit to build an oasis in the harsh desert. NPCs will visit the Oasis, and if the player helps them, NPC's can choose to set up shops known as Bloom Booths, which generate income for the Oasis over time. Players can also go out into the desert with NPC allies in order to gather resources, fight enemies tainted by Chaos and explore puzzle-filled dungeons throughout the world.

The game's characters were designed by Yoshinori Shizuma, a Japanese anime and manga artist. The player controlled character is from a tribe called the Seedlings, who are based on plants; when designing the player character, they tried to make the hero look like a "personified seed". Players posses the Green Gale, a special power that generates a strong wind. While this is a strong attack, there are enemies that are resistant to this attack, so it is wise to bring allies with you that can cover your weaknesses.

As the player levels up, they will also gain access to support skills that bolster your allies’ strengths. In most of the game's advertising, the player character has been a darker-skinned male, but Ever Oasis does actually have character customization options, allowing player to change their characters gender, skin color, and eye color.

The developers decided to make Esna a Water Spirit because water is a precious resource in the desert world of Vistrahda where Ever Oasis takes place. Koichi Ishii described her as a "second protagonist". Throughout the game, Esna helps the player build up the oasis and provides them with praise and encouragement.

While many NPC's can settle in the player's Oasis, Noots never do. Noots' designs are a cross between a penguin and owl; their purpose is to come to Bloom Booths to buy various goods that the player is selling there. When several Noots come together, they move and behave as a group, which makes them impulsive shoppers.

You can look at some sketches of Ever Oasis' characters and watch the overview trailer below. Ever Oasis launches exclusively on Nintendo 3DS June 23.