At Summer Game Fest Play Days 2025, the press got to go hands-on with Bandai Namco’s new roguelite Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree. A 2D roguelite that features hand-drawn illustrations, Towa is developed by Brownies Inc., and it features action, adventure, and a good amount of Japanese mythology.
In Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree, you play as the titular character, Towa. She is a young priestess of Shinju Village who stands united with eight companions, each visually different and with unique personalities. The nine have teamed up to protect the tranquil Shinju Village from the evil Magatsu and their quest for domination. To play, each player chooses two Guardians to venture on each quest.
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One guardian wields the power of the sacred sword called Tsurugi, and the other is the bearer of the magical staff Kagura. Effectively, these act as a support and a DPS and aren’t locked to any characters. On top of that, each guardian has unique skillsets that can be unlocked and upgraded both inside the dungeons and through a meta-progression in the hub world of Shinju Village.
Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree offers unique tandem play with two characters.
After a short presentation introducing us to Towa and the game’s structure, we had 15 minutes to play through a dungeon. One run is tied to time and not progression. The increased focus on the time available to play the demo was interesting and allowed the game’s mechanics to shine. I wasn’t going to waste time; I would complete the run. Except I didn’t. But, more on that later.
Designed to play co-op with a friend (locally or online) or solo, Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree takes place in a colorful world where you control two characters if you play alone. You move the duo as a part, moving them through each area. While they are tethered together, it is possible to detach them by pushing in the left stick.
These unique movement mechanics force you to understand the support and attack functions well enough. Additionally, each Guardian has different abilities that they bring to their use of the staff or sword. This allows you to explore different combinations. In my instance, my sword character’s use of two different swords allowed me to move from large AOE slashes to singular slash attacks.
While we only had 15 minutes with Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree, the combat and the game’s visual beauty made it a standout during Summer Game Fest Play Days. The characters are beautifully designed with personalities that range from adorable to strong, but they all stick with you. Especially the muscle-man coy koi? fish who can’t swim, which I must believe is because he’s so buff.
Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree have their own unique visual language, and it asks you to meet it here. There is joy in every frame of the game. With a painterly background and delicately illustrated foreground, every bit of the game sings. Every character and every animation effect that their has is curated in tandem.
In addition to the roguelite aspects of the title, players will also be able to develop unique bonds with residents and learn more about their customs and stories woven into the village’s inner workings. By doing so, players are expected to build deeper connections and invest in Shinju beyond what it can give them directly.
This Bandai Namco roguelite is as fulfilling as it is beautiful
What we got to see but now not? play was that players can find various crafting materials to forge and upgrade their swords, making each combat style and Guardian pair even more unique. Additionally, Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree isn’t an entirely linear game. Each Guardian goes on quests across different timelines and helps Shinju Village evolve over the years.
While I didn’t complete the boss run, stopping at just a quarter of health left, my time with the game didn’t feel incomplete. What struck me was how often I kept thinking back to my time with Towa and debating whether or not I could go back to the Bandai Namco area and request to play again. I just wanted to beat the boss. But that’s the hook of a roguelite, right? One more run. One more try. I can do it.
In 15 minutes, Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree gave me just that. Additionally, while the style is gorgeously adorable, this is a roguelite with a challenge, which, while easily understood, takes time to clear. And that is set to make Towa something to write home about.
