The SaGa series is near and dear to my heart, with SaGa Frontier 1 & 2 being two of my favorite games on the PlayStation 1. The series has a notorious reputation for being hard to get into with not a ton of entries in the series being what one would call a good entry point. The series has gotten more and more complex with its mechanics for the most part so I am happy to say that Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is the most fun I’ve had with a new entry in this series since SaGa Frontier II in the year 2000. Not only does it have that accolade but I finally have another excellent place to direct people who want to get into this series.
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven
Developer: Xeen Inc, Square Enix
Price: $49.99
Platform: PS4, PS5, PC (reviewed), Xbox Series & Nintendo Switch
MonsterVine was supplied with a Steam code for review
This is a full on remake of the 1992 Super Famicom game Romancing SaGa 2 and it’s actually done by the same team that did the also-excellent Trials of Mana remake. I have a theory that this isn’t the last we will see of them handling an older, lesser known Square game getting a remake because it seems they have done it again. Romancing SaGa 2 has been fully brought into the new age featuring some gorgeous art direction, fully realized gameplay systems and enough quality of life features that the rough edges of the game feel so much smoother and I mean that in the best way possible.
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven tells a generational story that takes place over hundreds of years, slowly discovering what happened in the past to lead the “Seven Heroes” to turn to evil, and the main antagonists of this game. To combat their legendary power, Emperor Leon invokes an ancient magic that allows him to pass his power down through generations starting with your initial player character Gerard. It’s a very ambitious game, and it’s impressive to see this born from a Super Famicom game. There are building aspects and questlines that take place over the years, and you even leave your family to just go live with a mermaid forever.
The new arrangements of the iconic SaGa music are really enjoyable to hear play out with many stand out songs that will give you absolute earworms for a bit, so it’s good to see there was not a downgrade in that department. I think when it comes to SaGa in 3D, there have been some mistakes when it comes to translating the artist’s designs to the 3D space but I am proud to say that many of these characters have never looked better. From Gerard’s iconic ornate golden armor to the beastmen tribes of the world it is set in, everything looks fantastic and it feels like no expense was spared to breathe life into this classic RPG game.
Combat has that serotonin feeding gameplay that I’ve always loved, but with a little bit less going on behind the scenes. Romancing SaGa 2 does a fantastic job of communicating to the player how these systems work and what you can do to influence them. They have added the timeline battle gauge that has been seen in newer SaGa entries so you can further strategize against enemies while you find the perfect party composition with the perfect formation so you can have the most lethal party possible. The feeling of learning a new, powerful skill during a hard battle is something that attracted me to the SaGa series long ago, and this time it is even more detailed than before. You can see if there are still more attacks to learn, which is very helpful when it comes to deciding what skills to keep on your characters and which ones to seal.
The Final Word
I am so genuinely happy to see the SaGa series get a well deserved new starting point for new fans, and doubly so for the fact that series vets will love this as well. If you have ever had a vested interest in the SaGa franchise, there probably won’t be a better time than now, with Romancing SaGa2: Revenge of the Seven. I am thoroughly impressed and have a new top 3 SaGa game.
– MonsterVine Rating: 5 out of 5 – Excellent
