SaGa Series Discussion

[mediocrepoet]

Yeah but it's like, going to your fridge and choosing a ham sandwich over peanut butter, that doesn't cause the peanut butter to cease to exist.

No, it's more like you chose to spend your time speaking to someone or taking on a task and the rest of the world moved on while you were busy. Opportunities were gained and opportunities were lost as a result of the passage of time.

While you were faffing about with your ham sandwich, rats infested the peanut butter and your bread went moldy.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Yeah but it's like, going to your fridge and choosing a ham sandwich over peanut butter, that doesn't cause the peanut butter to cease to exist.

No, it's more like you chose to spend your time speaking to someone or taking on a task and the rest of the world moved on while you were busy. Opportunities were gained and opportunities were lost as a result of the passage of time.

While you were faffing about with your ham sandwich, rats infested the peanut butter and your bread went moldy.

TBQH it's nothing new for the series -- choices in Scarlet Grace would close certain events and open others, and time would advance in Minstrel Song depending on the number of battles fought.

Emerald Beyond makes that way more obvious.

 

[n0wh3r3]

How should I know where to go first in Minstrel Song and Romancing SaGa 3 without using a guide?

 

[Abu Antar]

How should I know where to go first in Minstrel Song and Romancing SaGa 3 without using a guide?

Just do your thing. Figuring stuff out is half the fun.

 

[Yuber]

Have they added towns and real dungeons and better character interaction in this game?
Or is it still only overworld running around and 90% combat simulator like Scarlet?

 

[grimace]

The fate of SaGa in the west relies on SaGa Franchise Localization Director, Neil Broadley.
@SaGa_NeilB on X Twitter

https://twitter.com/SaGa_NeilB

@SaGaSeriesOfficial on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/@SaGaSeriesOfficial


https://youtu.be/zmULxIRrrEA?si=JMBV0om9apaJRM56






https://twitter.com/SaGaGame/status/1778091575853322544




https://twitter.com/SaGaGame/status/1777728734759706651

 

[n0wh3r3]

I am buying SaGa 2 3 and Minstrel Song for my Switch too. Feels like a smart move.

 

[Jinn]

One week! Can't wait to dig in proper. Will probably either do the Siugnas (the vampire lord) or the Bonnie and Formina campaign for a first playthrough. Anyone know what their thinking of choosing for their first go?

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

One week! Can't wait to dig in proper. Will probably either do the Siugnas (the vampire lord) or the Bonnie and Formina campaign for a first playthrough. Anyone know what their thinking of choosing for their first go?

I'll probably go with Ameya Aisling to convince a few witch-lovers I know to hop onto the SaGa train.

 

[n0wh3r3]

One week! Can't wait to dig in proper. Will probably either do the Siugnas (the vampire lord) or the Bonnie and Formina campaign for a first playthrough. Anyone know what their thinking of choosing for their first go?

The vampire

 

[Jinn]

Great review from a true fan of the series.

I could talk about how the game's artstyle is greatly improved from Scarlet Grace, especially during battles with character models that don't betray the game's roots on a much more restrained platform. I could talk about Kenji Ito's incredible music for the game, as always. I could gush for days about the unique vocal tracks tied to specific boss fights, and in some cases specific characters. At the end of the day, however, those aren't the core of what makes Emerald Beyond a triumph. Where SaGa: Scarlet Grace was a series of puzzle boxes, Emerald Beyond embraces the idea of totally disparate worlds, even if the gravity of the player's actions don't immediately make themselves clear - and, if players likely won't get the bigger picture until multiple playthroughs deep.

I feel that's a tough ask for the average RPG fan; and it makes recommending Emerald Beyond to those unversed in Kawazu's picture of the RPG a difficult proposition. For anyone that's already a fan of SaGa, however, it was never really a question if Emerald Beyond would be for you. This is a SaGa for SaGa fans, and in truth I couldn't be happier any other way.

9/10

I'm honestly a little disappointed in the SaGa fans around here for showing so little interest in this release. This could very well be the last game we see in the series. Or at least the last Kawazu directed SaGa (the man is getting old). Where's the excitement, guys?

I've got the game purchased and ready to rock. Can't wait for tomorrow.

 

[Abu Antar]

I'm swamped with games, but I will probably pick it up during the summer, and no life it during my vacation.

 

[Damned Registrations]

I'm honestly a little disappointed in the SaGa fans around here for showing so little interest in this release

I'm swamped with games, but I will probably pick it up during the summer, and no life it during my vacation.

I'm in this boat too, except I won't even have time for it until after the summer. I'm also just not sold on the artstyle. It's just got this uncanny valley 3D effect where I feel like I'm looking at abstract art instead of an actual representation of anything.

You don't need any context to tell what kind of places those are. The art alone has such a vibe to it. Even heavily stylized and lacking a consistent style, you could still get a feel for their history, the kind of people there, the mood, etc.

These seem like weird VR cyberspace realms or something. Like someone making a collage with a bunch of magazine cuttings or stock images. The style does nothing except aggressively remind me I'm playing a video game. I don't know whether to expect wizards, cops or digimon.

Edit: It reminds me very much of how I felt about FF9: A game trying to pose as a loveletter to an older style, without any awareness of what that original style was or how it was used.

 

[Jinn]

I'm also just not sold on the artstyle. It's just got this uncanny valley 3D effect where I feel like I'm looking at abstract art instead of an actual representation of anything.

I'd obviously prefer something more in line with the PSX titles aesthetically - or even the beautiful spritework of the SNES era - but the art style in Emerald Beyond really isn't that bad, and also looks much better in motion. Those two exploration screenshots you posted are also a couple of the worst instances in the game. The only part of the art style that really bothers me is the backgrounds used during dialogue. Those were truly a strange decision.

Either way, gameplay is king, and it is wonderful in Emerald Beyond.

 

[Lincolnberry]

I'm honestly a little disappointed in the SaGa fans around here for showing so little interest in this release. This could very well be the last game we see in the series. Or at least the last Kawazu directed SaGa (the man is getting old). Where's the excitement, guys?

I've got the game purchased and ready to rock. Can't wait for tomorrow.

Reporting for duty.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

You can already play it on Switch and PS4 in certain regions, but Steam users must wait until 10 AM PDT.

 

[Jinn]

Happy Emerald Beyond release day! Hope the few around here playing it are having a great time. The game is total incline. Deserves way more attention than it's getting. It's a miracle the series is even still going, especially in the west. Just got a couple more hours at work before I can head home and dig in myself.

 

[Grampy_Bone]

It's too restrictive, I like the SaGa games with more freedom.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Finished Ameya Aisling's scenario. It was fairly short and on the easy side, but it makes me wonder if choices change the worlds available after Grelon or change the duration of the campaign.

Judging by my experience with the demo, she feels like a beginner character, since player reports suggest Mido's scenario is much longer.

It reminds me of Unlimited Saga in terms of how different worlds are handled -- you're here on a standalone adventure, but details and events tend to change based on the character you're playing.

As an experiment, I finished the Delta base as Ameya Aisling in about 5 minutes by finding the cat and ignoring all other events but Mido and Diva usually spend more time there.

It will be interesting to hear what other players discovered.

 

[Jinn]

Finished Ameya Aisling's scenario. It was fairly short and on the easy side, but it makes me wonder if choices change the worlds available after Grelon or change the duration of the campaign.

Judging by my experience with the demo, she feels like a beginner character, since player reports suggest Mido's scenario is much longer.

It reminds me of Unlimited Saga in terms of how different worlds are handled -- you're here on a standalone adventure, but details and events tend to change based on the character you're playing.

As an experiment, I finished the Delta base as Ameya Aisling in about 5 minutes by finding the cat and ignoring all other events but Mido and Diva usually spend more time there.

It will be interesting to hear what other players discovered.

5 hours into Siugnas' campaign and still in the first world I picked. The way things are going I would be very surprised if I'm anywhere near the end. Ameya's campaign has been cited by a number reviews as being surprisingly short, so maybe that's just her thing? Based on what I played of Diva's campaign in the demo - which was around 4 hours - it seems like hers is a pretty lengthy one too. Maybe Ameya's campaign is just a strangely short one with a lot of "cliffhangers" and fail states?

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Maybe Ameya's campaign is just a strangely short one with a lot of "cliffhangers" and fail states?

Judging by my understanding of comments from Kawazu, apparently the short route is only one of the possible routes, and a lot of things depend on player choices, and in hindsight, it makes sense. I'll give it another go later -- for now, I'm playing as Mido and taking my time.

 

[Yuber]

How can it be that SaGa games looked better 20 years ago?

That must be one of the ugliest games I have ever seen. I don't believe this is the same developer team who made the older SaGa games.

 

[Jinn]

Siugnas' campaign is excellent for starting out with a full party of humans that you can shape to your liking. Really glad I went with him for my first playthrough. Combat has of course been the highlight of the experience so far, with it taking Scarlet Grace's system - which is maybe one of the best turn-based JRPG systems ever made - and pushing it even further. Funny enough, this is clearly where the majority of the presentation budget was spent, with great animations, wonderful series-appropriate weapon, tech, and spell effects, and excellent party and enemy design.

While I too generally prefer a more open exploration style in the SaGa series, I appreciate what's being done here in terms of choice and consequence and the immense replayability that's possible because of it. Might end up being the SaGa with the most unique subsequent playthroughs possible.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

OK, this is interesting.

I'm playing as Mido now and went through the witch world the same way I did in the demo, but decided to go for a Brutal battle instead of the hard one.

This seemingly minor choice changed the selection of worlds I could visit after leaving the witch world and now I'm exploring a fantasy kingdom world that I never encountered in the demo.

Yes, exploration is not as open as other SaGa games, but I think the focus here is different -- more like a web of choices that can lead you anywhere, from early cliffhanger endings to something interesting.

Overall, I like it, and unlike Scarlet Grace, the brutal battles here can stomp your ass, but I noticed that low BR playthroughs of certain worlds are also viable.

 

[CryptRat]

Playing SaGa Frontier killed my interest in exploring the series further. This game has the worst scaling to your stats I've seen in a game, even what you've currently got equipped is taken into account, that's insane, I can equip or unequip my robot and what I get to fight are some of the strongest enemies or some of the weakest enemies in the game. From what I gathered afterwards it's a staple of the series and fans are fond of that but I hate it.