Back in September, we brought you the first details on Bandai Namco’s upcoming God Eater Online, which looked like a seriously impressive attempt at bringing the Monster Hunter-esque behemoth beast slaying action to mobile. While details are scarce, especially for a launch outside of Japan, the most recent PC effort God Eater 2 Rage Burst received critical acclaim on its 2016 Steam release, as its strong emphasis on plot intertwined with its hectic JRPG gameplay made it both an accessible and endlessly deep title for anime and action gaming fans. For anyone won over by the dramatic first preview trailer, today God Eater Online has opened up for pre-registration on mobile in Japan, which suggests the title is close to a release in Asia, with hopefully a prompt Western launch soon after.

I wasn’t particularly familiar with the God Eater series beyond the initial glimpse of the new mobile iteration last year, but what I’ve seen since has seriously impressed me. The scale of some of the battles – coupled with the wide variety of oversized weapons that can be equipped – looks like a lot of fun, and if Bandai Namco can transition the series down to the smaller screen effectively, it could be a serious rival to the excellent Monster Hunter Freedom Unite ($14.99). Despite being a free-to-play game, God Eater Online promises MMO action with one hundred people on a single field, which sounds incredibly ambitious and I cannot wait to try it out when it releases later this year. If you’re in Japan, be sure to pre-register for God Eater Online now, and if you’re unfortunately outside of the region, head down to our forum thread for more discussion, as well as news on the game’s Western release.

[via Dr. Serkan Toto]