Today, Japanese developer FuRyu announced Varlet, a new high school JRPG coming quite soon worldwide.
Varlet will release for PC, PS5, and Nintendo Switch on August 28, 2025. The Steam page is actually already up for your wishlisting purposes.
The game is set in Kousei Academy, the first school to implement a cross-reality virtual reality network named “Johari”, which the students can use for a variety of purposes like finding information, making purchases, and connecting with others via social networking and messaging.
The network causes students to compete for approval and attention among their peers (like all social networks do, apparently), but an urban legend alleges that users who seek too much attention end up disappearing in “Glitches” where monsters dwell. These monsters would then replace the users in the real world.
Things go downhill when the hero finds out that the urban legend isn’t a legend at all, but it’s actually real, and some students have already been replaced by monsters.
As a member of the SSS (Student Support Services), the player must lead their friends, strengthen bonds, and fight to protect the school. Yet, navigating all these relationships may be a challenge, as getting too close to several people may lead to unexpected issues.
Character progression is governed by the Triad Stats system, which is influenced by the player’s choices and reflects them into stats.
There are three light attributes (morality, sympathy, and altruism) and three dark attributes (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism), and their growth influences dialogue options, passive battle skills, and even the looks of their armor.
You can check out a trailer, screenshots, and artwork below.
If you’re unfamiliar with FuRyu, it’s a Tokyo-based developer and publisher that released plenty of games in similar Persona-style high school or Japanese settings colored by mystery, including the recent Reynatis, Monarch, and The Caligula Effect.
