A new character in Enix and Tri-Ace's upcoming sequel Star Ocean: Till the End of Time has been revealed. Nel Zelpher, a 23-year-old spy, will join Fate and friends as part of her job. Sent to keep tabs on the team, she quickly becomes caught up in its quest, and before long, she starts to ignore her orders entirely. Nel comes equipped with short swords, and Enix has also revealed two of her special moves. Nel has the abilities Wind Blade and Flashing Slash, which are both wind-based attacks. Wind Blade sends enemies flying into the air, and Flashing Slash sends a projectile attack out from her sword.

Other characters' special moves have also been unveiled. Fate will use Ice-Cool Edge and Lightning Bind. Ice-Cool Edge is described simply as a "sword-based attack", while Lightning Bind wreaks havoc on mechanical monsters and contraptions. Sophia's special skill is Fire Explosion, which comes pretty much as advertised; using this ability causes enemies to be seared by powerful flames. Cliff, meanwhile, will have two abilities at his disposal: the Burst Tackle and Mind Discharge. The former sends Cliff into a frenzy of attacks with his flaming fist, while the latter scorches enemies with beams of light, which have potential to hit them more than 30 times.

SO: Till the End of Time is on track for a release in Japan later this year. The game will be out in North America sometime in 2003.