The SaGa series is far from being the most popular JRPG series ever, but it has managed, over the years, to garner a cult following thanks to its unique features that set it apart from the vast majority of JRPGs, such as unique progression mechanics, and open-ended scenarios closer to traditional role-playing games developed in the West. Despite the lack of widespread recognition and success, the series has continued, and Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven could be the breakthrough the series by Akitoshi Kawazu has been seeking since its inception in 1989, thanks to some choice improvements to the formula.
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is the remake of the second entry in the Romancing subseries series originally released back in 1993 on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Developed by Xeen Inc., the same studio behind Trials of Mana, the game shares a lot of its visual identity with the remake of the third entry in the Mana series, with a distinct anime feel that breathes new life into the game’s world. As such, the game clicked almost instantly with me when I tried it during Gamescom 2024, being a long-time fan of the series who kinda drifted away from it when the franchise started experimenting with different types of visual styles with games such as Unlimited SaGa.
The Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Gamescom demo, while short, definitely rekindled my interest in the franchise. Controlling Prince Gerard, the second in line to the throne of Varennes, I defended the city of Avalon from a monster invasion together with other companions and moved the first step towards an epic confrontation between the Imperial line of Varennes and the Seven Heroes of ancient myth. With the gorgeous 3D recreation of all of the original game’s characters and location and full voice acting for all characters, this epic confrontation will only become even more epic.
The pleasing visuals are not the only reason I feel the release of Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven could be a pivotal moment for the series. At its heart, the game is still a SaGa game featuring its unique progression system that enhances characters depending on what they do in battle, but some of the aspects that made it feel unrewarding, and even a little bit random in past entries in the series have been considerably improved. After each battle, each character’s earned Technique Points for HP, BP, and combat schools are shown in the results screen, providing players with solid information on their characters’ progression. The Glimmer system, another staple of the series, received similar improvements, as now the combat menu shows which skill can be used to learn new ones and how close a character is to learning a new skill.
As if these improvements weren’t enough, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven goes deeper in the combat mechanics, with a huge number of classes with different weapon and elemental aptitudes, a Formations system that provides benefits depending on the party composition, and Unite Attacks which allow multiple characters to attack an enemy in quick succession for increased damage. Those who achieve mastery of all the combat mechanics will also be able to put their skills to the test with the multiple difficulty settings available from the very beginning of the adventure. Combined together, all of these mechanics make for an extremely enjoyable combat experience that doesn’t stray too far from what the series has offered so far but go a long way to improve it considerably.
Unfortunately, the Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Gamescom 2024 demo was too short to delve deeper into the game’s free-form scenario, but if everything I have experienced is of any indication, the game has the chance of becoming one of the best JRPGs released in recent years. Thankfully, it won’t take much longer to see if Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven will be able to deliver a truly compelling experience, as the game launches on October 24th on PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.
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