Release Date: 12/15/2017 for non-mobile, out now for mobile
Developer: Square/ArtePiazza/Akitoshi Kawazu (<3)
Publisher: SquareEnix
Genre: JRPG
Platform(s): Switch, PS4, PSV, XB1, W10, Steam, iOS, Android
Price(s): $19.99/£15.99/€19.99/¥2,550 ($24.99/£19.99/€24.99/¥3200 after January 8th) on consoles, $17.99 on mobile
Official Website
NA eShop/UK eShop/EU eShop/JP eShop
PSN PS4/PSN Vita
XBOX One/Windows 10
Steam
Google Play
iOS
Of all the songs of triumph I have to sing,
none are as melodious as that of Avalon.
The land gave rise to the Seven Heroes.
Though their valorous deeds had fallen into legend,
all clung to the hope that they would return when needed most.
Yet some legends are best confined to memory.
What Is This:
Romancing SaGa 2 is the fifth game in SquareEnix's long running SaGa series, which itself was a spiritual successor to Final Fantasy II and all it's self flagilating glory. It was originally released on the Super Famicom in 1993 and was released on a variety of platforms in the years since. Romancing SaGa 2 never got released in the west in any form until very recently on mobile phones. This marks its first home console and portable release in the west, which is a big deal for one of Square's last big games to be left untranslated.
The game itself is an open ended RPG set in the land of Avalon and is based around an Imperial family line and its centuries long fight against a group of legendary heroes who have returned to the world as demons set on conquering it. Rather than centering around one single character and their party, RS2's story plays out as a series of scenarios wherein your current emperor/empress will select an heir who will continue on as your new player character with their own retinue of followers. Likewise, any emperor/empress who falls in combat will immediately pass the reign on to their next heir, who will continue the fight from where their parent left off. All is not lost, however, in each generational shift, the new emperor and their followers will receive the skills built up by their forbearers, strengthening your forces with every passing generation. Likewise, subsequent generations will gain from the experience and deeds of past generations, as your kingdom will continue to advance and develop over history, opening up new equipment, spells, and techniques as they are discovered or invented over the years.
What To Expect:
-A Generational Story: Romancing SaGa 2's story is told over the course of the history of the imperial family's fight against the Seven Heroes. As one emperor dies, a new one will rise to take their place in history and continue the fight.
-A Branching Story: Romancing SaGa 2 very much has the same open ended gameplay the series eventually became known for, giving you many different ways to approach your fight against the Seven Heroes and giving you many ways for the history that unfolds for your Empire to play out differently than another player's.
-Classic SaGa mechanics: the SaGa games (SaGa/FF Legends 3 aside) drop the traditional level based gameplay of the genre and instead base your development on the actions you take in combat. Equip and use a sword? Get better at swordfighting and get a little more buff while you are at it! Learn to chuck a fireball and go crazy doing that? You become the best fireball wizard to grace Avalon and probably learn a thing or two in the process.
-The Glimmering Spark of Hope: Improving your skills with weapons/martial arts/spells won't just improve your ability to use those items. Characters who improve a skill will find themselves learning new techniques in battles with the spark of inspiration being represented as a flashing lightbulb before their new attack goes off.
-Formation Based Combat: While RS2 mostly has traditional turn based combat, an additional level of strategy can be found in formations, which change how your party is positioned in combat while also altering their statistics. You can find more formation possibilities through your adventure.
-Life Points: Running out of HP isn't the death of your character! On top of your hitpoints, all characters have Life Points, which represent their overall life force. Losing all your HP will cause a character to lose LP, and subsequent hits to an unconscious character will cause your LP to also run out. As long as you still have LP, your heroes will recover all their health at the end of every combat. Run out of LP, and your character will die forever. If your current emperor runs out of LP, then it's lights out for that generation and a new emperor or empress will rise to take over for their fallen parent.
-Class Warfare: While levels are gone, RS2 still has a class system to help determine the starting stats and abilities of your characters.
-Kingdom Management: As the years go on, your empire can grow as your deeds expand your borders to new lands. New lands means more taxes, which subsequently gives you more funding to research new gear and spells.
What's New:
Most immediately, this game features revamped visuals, with HD backgrounds, a new UI paired, touched up versions of the original sprites, and animated boss sprites. In addition, the game also features four new dungeons, a new scenario, a new mechanic, two classes, and a New Game+ mode to carry all your stuff over to a new game.
Why Should I Care:
If you are coming into this already hating SaGa games, this game won't likely change your minds, but I hope you still give it a shot regardless. Though the mobile phone versions have been out in the west for a year, this game receiving a widescale release on everything else under the sun, making it easier than ever for people to give this gem a shot. Furthermore, until recently, RS2 was one of Square's last really big SNES-era RPGs to not be localized in any form, with the game having been tragically passed up in its own time and fan translations never coming to fruition for it. It's thus mildly important from a historical standpoint for genre fans. Likewise, it was generally a well regarded game in its own time, so it's nice for the west to get a chance to experience the game in all its Kawazu-y glory.
(do it for him)
FAQs (more to be added)
Q: Do I need to have played the other SaGa games/the other Romancing SaGas?
A: No. Each SaGa game is effectively its own contained story, often in their own self contained setting. That said, the Romancing SaGas are all tied together by the continued presence of the mysterious Bard.
Q: SaGa games can sometimes get pretty different from game to game. Which ones does this mostly resemble?
A: Most immediately, it has the same freeform adventuring elements that were seen in Romancing SaGa 1 and 3, as well as SaGa Frontier 1. That said, the way it handles a rotating cast over the course of a dynastic history that also involves a bit of kingdom management brings it slightly in line with SaGa Frontier 2. Mechanically speaking, it resembles all those games.
Q: Is there crossbuy?
A: Xbox One and Windows 10 does. PS4 and Vita have cross save, but not crossbuy.
Q: Do I need to beat myself up to get stronger in this one?
A: No. Stop asking. That wasn't even a good strategy in FF2.
Q: Is Akitoshi Kawazu really the best?
A: Yes
Screenshots and Video:
Community Advice:
SaGa games can often be dense for newcomers and veterans alike, so this is where we the community will be coming together to help each other explore and discover the world of Avalon. As this is also an older game that others may have played in its original form on the Super Famicom, on later ports, or in last year's release on mobile phones, advice from older players to help newcomers will be greatly appreciated.
Steam Control/Full Screen Settings
Managing the Encounter System
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