Revision 1

Overview

Colonies are the surviving human settlements in Beast of Reincarnation, scattered across the game's post-apocalyptic Japan in the year 4026. These are the last pockets of human civilization, isolated communities that have endured two millennia of Blight corruption by walling themselves off from the outside world. The journey from one colony to the next forms the backbone of the game's linear progression structure.

Isolation and fear

Each colony operates in relative isolation, with limited contact between settlements due to the dangers of traveling through Blight-corrupted territory. The spaces between colonies are filled with Malefacts and corrupted landscapes, making overland travel extremely hazardous for anyone without the means to fight through or navigate around the threats.

Within these communities, there is a deep-seated fear of the Blight and anything associated with it. This fear explains the treatment of Emma, who grew up feared and shunned within her colony because of her Blight affliction. Her vine-like hair, sprouting flowers, and other physical manifestations of the Blight mark her as something between human and corrupted in the eyes of colonists, leading to her isolation and eventual departure.

Structure and journey

The game's progression follows Emma and Koo's journey from the countryside toward the capital, passing through or between various colonies along the way. Director Kota Furushima has described this structure as evoking the mountainous trek from the Kanto region to Kyoto. While the overall path is linear, each zone between colonies provides room for exploration through normal traversal and Emma's plant abilities.

Colonies likely serve as narrative waypoints where the story develops through interactions with NPCs, including characters like Brad and Kagura. These settlements provide the human context for the game's themes about the relationship between civilization and the natural world that has overtaken it.

Thematic role

Colonies represent what remains of humanity's attempt to control or resist nature's reclamation of the world. After 2,000 years of Blight corruption, the remnants of human society have retreated behind walls, creating small habitable zones while the vast majority of Japan has been consumed by corrupted wilderness. The contrast between the safety of colony walls and the dangerous beauty of the blighted forests outside them is central to the game's visual and thematic identity.