Princess Crown

Princess Crown is an action role-playing game developed by Atlus and published by Sega. Originally released in 1997 for the Sega Saturn, it was ported to the PlayStation Portable in 2005. Using a two-dimensional side-scrolling perspective, the gameplay focuses on a beat em up-style fighting system while incorporating role-playing elements, similar to Guardian Heroes.

Synopsis
Set in the fantasy kingdom of Valendia, the player controls the new queen Gradriel De Valendia, as her wish to aid the people in person leads into a quest to prevent the resurrection of the demon lord Lalva. Additional character scenarios are unlocked by completing Gradriel's quest, with completion of all story routes leading to the true ending.

Development
The game began development in 1995 at an unnamed company. After the company went bankrupt the following year, the team was absorbed into Atlus' Osaka studio to complete development. Initially planned as a life simulation game similar to Princess Maker 2, it was redesigned as an action RPG to compete with similar titles on the PlayStation. While a commercial failure, it was positively reviewed, and later lauded for its art design. Princess Crown continued to influence Kamitani's career, leading to the founding of his company Vanillaware and the development of the spiritual successor Odin Sphere. A planned Dreamcast sequel was cancelled, but later revived by Vanillaware as Dragon's Crown.