The world of videogames, as we know, is not immune from mode. It is undeniable, for example, how the last decade can be remembered as "the era of first-person shooters", and who knows what the next phenomena that will land on our gaming platforms will be. There was a time when the so-called Japanese RPGs JRPG, were the most requested titles on the market. We need to go back in time over 20 years, but many of the video games that we find in that era have managed to survive the passage of time. Square Enix, needless to say, was one of the publishers who, more than all the others, churned out titles of that genre, often of the highest quality. And it is precisely one of these titles that we find ourselves talking about in this review. We are talking about Romancing SaGa 2.
Romancing SaGa 2 belongs to the SaGa series by Square Enix, which began in 1989 with a Game Boy game: Makai Toushi SaGa. The game would later become known in the West as The Final Fantasy Legend. Square Enix has managed to publish, over time, several JRPGs that have made history, among which stand out Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger e Dragon Quest. However, Romancing SaGa 2 represents a Definitely atypical JRPG, especially when compared to his illustrious colleagues, and you will soon understand why.
Romancing SaGa 2: a battle lasting generations
But let's go in order. We are in the kingdom of Avalon, who is threatened by those who were seven heroes, returned from a long battle in the form of hideous and bloodthirsty demons. The player will take on the role ofEmperor Leon first, and his son Gerard then, whose task will be to counter, over the years, the advance of the demonic army. However, the resulting conflict will be decidedly long, too long for a single life. For this very reason, more emperors will succeed over the years, dedicating their lives to the salvation of Avalon.
Romancing SaGa 2: an atypical JRPG
As we said earlier, the game we are talking about is an atypical example of the genre it belongs to and is supposed to represent. In Romancing SaGa 2 there is no linear development of the plot, just as there is no real characterization of the characters, except for the various emperors. However, the game offers a level of innovation almost unknown for the time. The title, in fact, boasted completely explorable stages and a progression system very different from what has been seen elsewhere.
Let's start with what is the main pivot around which the entire gaming experience revolves: the alternation of generations. If the protagonist, or one of his fellow adventurers, were to lose his life in a fight, his Life Points would drop by one unit. If it comes to zero, the hero would definitely die. If an allied character was to lose his life, the problem is easy to solve: just recruit another one, and the city of Avalon offers many solutions in that sense. But if the protagonist were to lose his life, there would be a real one succession to the throne, and we will choose who will be the next Emperor who inherits the powers and burden of his predecessor.
Furthermore, even if our hero were to survive the many battles he will face, the inexorable passage of time will force him, sooner or later, to abdicate in favor of a successor.
A very different progression system than usual
As we anticipated, the progression system Romancing SaGa 2 is very different from just leveling up. Defeating the various monsters that will hinder our path will guarantee us bonuses of various kinds, as well as an increase in mastery with weapons. We will have various weapons available for each of the various characters, and the frequency of use will allow the hero in question to "specialize" with a sword or another, and to obtain certain special techniques. If your weapon of choice is foil, switching to the bastard sword won't be immediate. As regards the special techniquesthen, their learning is completely random. For this very reason, you'll want to mow down as many monsters as possible.
even the combat system Romancing SaGa 2 is downright intriguing. For the reasons listed above, the player will practically be forced to spend a few hours in farming, in order to forge his team. Once landed in the various dungeon (which, unfortunately, will never be very large or too different from each other) will be able to decide whether to face the various monsters or not. The choice will not be trivial. For each match won, the following matches will take place with higher level opponents. It goes without saying that, in this case, the final boss would be very difficult to beat. If we opted instead for the escape, our team would not accumulate experience, and would not get any special techniques.
To all this must be added one management component. From the throne room, we will be able to decide how to manage the resources of our kingdom, deciding which structures to build and at what cost, thus benefiting us in the fight against the seven demons.
The years make their weight felt
Now is the time to understand whether or not this port did justice to what Romancing SaGa 2 was. This PS4 version is practically identical to what has been seen for mobile devices. Precisely for this reason, what we are faced with is a game with a 'interface designed for mobile phones and tablets. Where instead the game shows the effects of the passage of time is on the side of commands: woody as never before and battered by a input lag definitely annoying. It could happen, especially in the moments when you have to escape the monsters, to get stuck among the rocks, thus not being able to escape promptly.
He music they are not unforgettable (which is rare for a JRPG), another flaw of this port is its own HD remastering. The backgrounds have been "enlarged" for the new generation screens, but the same cannot be said for the sprites of the characters, of which it is almost possible to count the pixels directly from the armchair at home. Needless to say, this contrast can be downright annoying.
Final judgement
We came to the big question: Is Romancing SaGa 2 worth the money? Has it managed to withstand the passage of time? Certain details could undoubtedly be better cared for, especially from a graphic point of view. The very non-linear structure of the game itself could be confusing for the average player. Romancing SaGa 2 was and is an atypical JPRG and perhaps too far ahead of its time, but which still knows how to give great emotions, especially in the closing bars. We would like to recommend the game to the most diehard fans of the genre, but even a “layman” player of the JRPG could appreciate the title, as long as you have a good dose of patience.
