NetEase's Project Mugen development team recently discussed the game's map scale and operational strategy in an interview with foreign media outlet automaton at Gamescom. The team stated that each city will offer approximately 100 hours of exploration content; the game will not use the common character gacha mechanism, allowing players to obtain characters for free as they progress through the story.
This title is an urban-themed open-world RPG. Two cities, "Chongxiao" and "Xinqi," have been revealed so far. While independent from each other, they are closely linked in the storyline. Chongxiao is the protagonist's hometown, and the protagonist will travel between the two cities, experiencing new stories upon returning to Chongxiao.
The team stated that the game features both story and exploration modes, with enough exploration content in a single city to support approximately 100 hours of gameplay. The Gamescom demo opened up the Chongxiao map, which draws inspiration from real-world cities like Shanghai and Hangzhou; Xinqi, previously showcased at Tokyo Game Show, features an East Asian city theme.
Players can engage in combat, complete stealth missions, take walks, drive cars, or experience other vehicles within the city. Characters cannot fly on their own, but they can ride helicopters or use wingsuits; vehicles capable of aerial travel were also shown in the Chongxiao showcase. The combat system is integrated into the urban environment, allowing players to use surrounding objects as weapons during chases and battles.
Based on the currently revealed story and maps, Project Mugen focuses primarily on single-player content. However, the team confirmed that multiplayer modes are also in development, with specific gameplay details to be announced at an appropriate time. The full release will also provide basic customization features such as character appearances and body parameters, and all characters featured in the previous two demo versions will appear.
In terms of operations, Project Mugen will adopt a free-to-play model, with no charge for downloading or playing the base game. The team stated that specific characters will not be tied to paid gacha pulls; players can obtain characters for free by progressing through the story. The main paid content will consist of cosmetic items such as outfits and new costumes.Project Mugen is developed by Naked Rain studio under NetEase LeiHuo and is scheduled to launch on PC, PS5, iOS, and Android platforms on January 15, 2027.