Enjoyed my time with this game. The fact that it's core systems are carried over from an SNES game is wild to me. This game was truly ahead of it's time. It's not perfect, but if you're in the mood for a mechanically good RPG with a good job system, pick this one up. The story/characters/dialogue leave something to be desired in my mind, but still a fun game.

>Picks hard mode when first time playing
>Bosses actually wipe out my party in 2 rounds

How unexpected

Addicting.
Always want to find out the the next glimmered technique is, or what the next formation you unlock will be, or the rare gear drop you get, and even the voice lines of new party members.

I put over a thousand hours into the switch port of the original; it has a ton of replay potential, and is a really solid JRPG. Any JRPG fan will have a great time with this one. If you despise that genre, this game will do absolutely NOTHING to convince you otherwise; it is designed for veterans of the genre first and foremost. The new difficulty options means it won't turn away newcomers, but it does nothing to try and salvage the genre for those who cannot stand turn-based RPGs. The Overwhelming Positive is because it is VERY clear if the game will not appeal to you, and anyone even mildly interested in the genre will find an absolute gem of a title.

The name of the game is opportunity cost. The world is completely free roam outside the tutorial, and the greatest cost is time. The only penalty is "getting this objective done later", and the rewards are typically either money or unlocking a new class. You'll almost always have anything you missed by the end of the game, or get to a point where the missed prized is completely outclassed by more recent gains. There's a lot to discover, and even failure typically just unlocks a different path.

2024 goty jrpg
better than ff7rb, metaphor, dq3re

This has quickly become one of my favorite turn based JRPGs. So many mechanics that all work well together and make playing the game feel more fun and rewarding than a lot of them end up feeling after 20-30+ hours or so. The demo and game starts off with you playing as Leon and fighting your way to the first of the 7 Heroes that are your overarching goal of the game and introduces you to the inheritance mechanic that lets subsequent emperors inherit the skills of the previous ones. Before I ever even got there, I had already decided to get and play the full game due to the glimmer mechanic that would allow you to learn new skills in combat. If there's a light bulb icon next to the skill, you have a chance of it triggering a new skill and unlocking that skill for use in future battles. Similarly, they can learn new evasion skills during combat and doing so guarantees a free evasion of whatever attack triggered them learning it. Just that alone encourages trying out different skills to hopefully learn new ones and is added to by the fact that only skills used during combat level up after winning an encounter. So if you're not using a specific school/type of magic or a certain weapon type, you're not going to get better with it. Alternatively, if you want to grind and level up a bunch of different weapon or magic types, you can do so. Especially after the game starts opening up when you get to play as Gerard and working towards defeating the first of the 7 Heroes.

By then, the game starts letting you further develop your town with things like a smithy and incantations lab that let you start researching and unlocking new weapons and armor and spells. Speaking of, you can equip 2 weapons for each character at a time and up to 10 skills for your weapons, 4 evasion skills, and 10 spells from the various spell schools-but if you have fire spells equipped on a character, they can't also have water spells and similarly with wind spells preventing them from equipping earth spells. Unlocking a spell or skill with any character unlocks it for all characters. It really encourages trying out new things to further develop your different character classes to pass those skills and levels down to future generations and make them stronger overall. The emperor isn't the only one who inherits all the skills and level of the previous generation-every character class you unlock does so as well. On top of that, you can learn special passive abilities for some by winning a certain number of encounters-for example, I picked a Freelance Mage class to replace Gerard when given my first option to pick a new emperor after a time skip caused by progressing the story enough. It has an ability I unlocked that restores a percentage of the BP required to use more powerful skills during combat when I land a basic attack on an enemy with them. Another has the ability to ignore the weight of armor and it's effect on their speed in battle.

That brings up another mechanic I forgot to mention before-armor often has weight and equipping more armor pieces often further slows down characters in addition to providing their extra defense to that character. There are a lot of elements working together to impact the way each character in your party is built and approaches battle. There are even different formations to unlock and use that can provide various effects on top of changing how your party members are grouped and targeted in battle. Leveling up the skills for all the different weapons and spell types in the game also increase your imperial standing and the rewards received for completing encounters alongside slowly increasing the strength of the enemies fought in those encounters to help them keep pace with your growing power.

I'm really impressed at how much there is in this remake of a 30 year old game and how open it is in letting players approach completing it at the pace and in the order they so desire. After beating the first hero with Gerard, it really opens up and lets you start tackling the quests in any order you want in a way most other JRPGs never let you. They often use the overworld map to sort of funnel players along a linear path and hit the same story beats in the same order no matter how many times they would consider replaying the game and this one instead offers the freedom to choose the order you approach completing the game and how you go about defeating the 7 Heroes that is the main story of the game it seems.

I never really knew about this series and when I first heard of it, the weird name of "Romancing Saga" originally turned me off of it cause I thought it was some sort of romance RPG or something and I regret not checking it out sooner cause I really like it. I think this is one of the best and most fun JRPGs I've played and I see why the series has such a passionate fanbase. It's phenomenal. I highly recommend it.

Legitimately one of the best games I've ever played, I don't usually even review games but this is something magical and special that you can't really find in RPGs/ games nowadays. What an absolute masterpiece.

It's worth all the praise.

Romancing SaGa 2 is a game that makes no apologies for what it is. SaGa is a series renowned for its challenge. As such, it's obvious from the beginning that gameplay and strategy take center stage, much more so than the vast majority of modern JRPG's tend to focus on cinematic storytelling. RS2 in particular rewards smart use of resources and party formation, and punishes mindless grinding via a system of Enemy Levels that ramp up with the number of battles fought. And on the Classic difficulty, which reflects the challenge of the original Super Famicom release, you will find some of the most satisfying combat of any JRPG ever released.

Despite taking a backseat to the mechanics of combat, there is a compelling story involving the Seven Heroes mentioned in the title. The way it's presented is reminiscent of the modern Dark Souls games; new lore and events come by way of exploration rather than setting the player on a linear path. And some of them are pretty well hidden, or only occur with a specific character type as your Emperor. I will say, though, that the storyline is very much a product of the game's time and rather predictable. Still, it's a small complaint compared to literally everything else RS2 has to offer.

One final piece of advice: play on the Classic (Hard) difficulty so that you can experience the way it was meant to be played.

Buckle up, fellow adventurers, because Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is about to take you on a wild, laughter-filled ride through a world where strategy meets charm—and occasionally, a well-timed joke saves the day!

📚 A Story So Good, It Might Just Make You Cry... with Laughter From the get-go, Revenge of the Seven hooks you with a storyline that’s as intricate as it is entertaining. Imagine a plot where every character has more layers than your favorite onion (but way less likely to make you cry). The game masterfully intertwines personal vendettas with grand, world-altering quests, ensuring that every decision feels like choosing between saving the kingdom or adopting a talking squirrel. Spoiler alert: the squirrel is adorable and totally worth it.

⚔️ Combat That’s Seriously Strategic... and Occasionally Silly The turn-based combat system is a love letter to SaGa veterans, polished to perfection with new mechanics that make each battle a delightful puzzle. Whether you’re strategizing with precision or embracing the chaos of a well-timed fart spell (yes, that’s a thing), every encounter offers fresh opportunities for creativity. It’s like chess, but with dragons and way more explosive humor.

🎨 Art That Paints a Thousand Laughs Visually, Romancing SaGa 2 is a feast for the eyes. The environments are so beautifully crafted that you might find yourself pausing just to admire a particularly majestic tree or a city bustling with quirky NPCs who have more personality than most sitcom characters. The character designs are vibrant and full of life, each one bringing their own unique flair and a sprinkle of humor that keeps things lively.

🎶 A Soundtrack That Hits All the Right (and Funny) Notes The music in Revenge of the Seven is nothing short of magical. Each track perfectly matches the mood, whether you’re sneaking through a shadowy dungeon or celebrating a hard-fought victory with your team. And let’s not forget the voice acting—every character’s lines are delivered with such passion and comedic timing that you might find yourself chuckling during even the most intense moments.

👥 Characters with Hearts of Gold and Jokes to Match The real stars of the show are the characters. Each party member has a rich backstory and a personality that shines through with delightful quirks and humorous banter. Building relationships with these characters feels genuine, like hanging out with friends who are always ready with a witty remark or a heartfelt moment. Their interactions add layers of depth and laughter, making every triumph feel even sweeter and every setback a reason to crack a smile.

🔧 PC Optimization That Runs Smoother Than a Bard’s Best Tune On the technical side, Romancing SaGa 2 runs like a dream on PC. The performance is optimized to minimize load times, ensuring you spend more time adventuring and less time waiting for your character to breathe. Customizable settings let you tweak everything to your liking, from graphics quality to keybindings—because who doesn’t want their spell to be cast with a perfectly placed shortcut?

🌍 Exploration That’s Rewardingly Fun (and Occasionally Funny) The game world is vast and teeming with secrets, side quests, and Easter eggs that reward your curiosity. Whether you’re uncovering hidden treasures or stumbling upon a quest where you help a forlorn bard find his lost kazoo, exploration in Revenge of the Seven is always a joy. Each discovery adds depth to the universe, ensuring that every corner you explore is packed with something new and entertaining.

💯 Final Verdict: A Must-Play RPG with Heart, Humor, and Heroism! Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is a standout title that brilliantly balances heartfelt storytelling, strategic gameplay, and delightful humor. It’s a game that respects its roots while injecting fresh energy and laughs into every aspect. Whether you’re a die-hard SaGa fan or a newcomer seeking a rich, immersive RPG experience, this game is guaranteed to charm you, challenge you, and maybe even tickle your funny bone.