Mega Man Legends launched back in 1997 as a 3D, open-world adaptation of the Mega Man series. Now, designer and producer Keiji Inafune has announced a spiritual successor to Legends, titled Red Ash: The Indelible Legend.

The game, an open-world RPG, is being funded via Kickstarter, and Inafune is asking for at least $800,000. At the time of this writing, it sits at a little over $250,000 with 28 days left.

Inafune is currently finishing up his last project, another Kickstarter game called Mighty No. 9, which is inspired by the 2D, sidescrolling entries in the Mega Man series. With Red Ash, he appears to be going in a different direction. On its Kickstarter page, he explains, "Red Ash is a very different project from a retro action game like Mighty No. 9, in terms of both scale and concept. The primary goal with Red Ash is to tell a story on a grand scale; all of the primary concepts are clearly visualized in the minds of the creative team, from the overall plot to historical background. Even the final ending scene is planned out!"

To achieve his goals, Inafune has brought together several members from the original Mega Man Legends team. Five of the ten members worked with Inafune on Legends.

If Red Ash reaches its $800,000 goal, the studio will make a prologue to a larger story, consisting of three episodes. At $1.3 million, the developer will be able to make an additional three episodes beyond the prologue. Inafune promises, however, that even the prologue will be a full game: "Of course, this is not to say that reaching the minimum goal will be an incomplete game. It won't be the full story we want to tell, but we promise it will still be a game you will never forget!"

Red Ash is planned for release on PC, with ports to other consoles coming if the studio receives enough money through Kickstarter.

Inafune has simultaneously launched a Kickstarter for a companion anime film, called Red Ash: Magicicada. The movie is in production at Studio 4°C, known for its work on Genius Party and two episodes of Halo: Legends.

Inafune is also collaborating on an Xbox One-exclusive title called Recore. It was announced at E3 last month.

Mighty No. 9, meanwhile, is due out on September 15 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Vita, Wii U, 3DS, and PC.