Saga Frontier 1 and 2: 180 degree turn.....Almost...

by KaiPhantom

Since everyone else is writing about Final Fantasy, I thought I'd write about a couple of games that either seemed to get very high praise or utter scorn. Rarely have I found someone who stands in the middle when asked about these games. Why is that? Well, as someone who does "stand in the middle," I thought I give you my opinions on these 2 often overlooked games.

First off, what is so different about these games? When Saga Frontier 1 was released, it was touted as a "non-linear" game. You had complete freedom on where to go and what you wanted to do. You also had a choice of 7 unique characters to play, each one having their own quest. Add to the mix, four completely different types of characters: Humans, Mystics, Mecs, and Monsters. Indeed, it was quite different than the standard linear RPG's that have come to dominate the consoles. If it sounds good in theory, why then has this unque game not attained the level of interest of the Final Fantasy series? Answer: Because it didn't go far enough.

Saga 1's main problem was the fact that the 7 different quests weren't different enough. In each of them I found myself going through the exact same motions. The majority of the secondary characters that joined me were the same. I'd follow the same paths to get the spells, and then spend hours exploring pointless dungeons that didn't have a whole lot useful stuff in them in order fight enemies to learn the extra skills and spells. After 2 or 3 quests, it tends to get a little tedious; especially when your characters start off pretty weak each time. In fact, the majority of the 10-20 hours it takes to beat a quest consisted of trying to get strong enough to beat the boss(es). The little story development that was done, was done pretty poorly. Now, all this aside, the battle system was one of the best I've played. Since each of the four types has different abilities and a different ways of getting stronger, it makes for some interesting party and battle combinations. Abilities can be combined for some cool-looking effects and better damage potential.

Now when I heard they were making Saga 2 I though, "Great! Now they can keep the good stuff (battle and party system) and improve upon the story elements!" Did they? Well, sort of...

The graphics and ability system have been improved, but that's about it. Gone is the non-linearity. The other races were taken out, leaving only the humans. To progress the story, you select different scenarios on a map screen. When a scenario is completed, you usually have a choice between a couple others; some that were there before and others that just opened up. Like above, it sounds good in theory, but the actual execution leaves much to be desired. At least half the scenarios we're just story elements without any input or action from the player. The only decisions I could make, were just what scenario to play, urr, I mean, watch next. The ones where you actually do some controlling just consist of town to dungeon and back to town, leaving you with the question, "What was the point of that?" Although the story does take place over the span of 85 years or so, main characters came and went without me getting to know much about them. Some characters appeared or disappeared without any indication of why.

Despite all this, both are still pretty good games. Granted they have they're flaws (what game doesn't?), but they introduce interesting elements and challenge the conventional RPG norm. Now if only Square could imbue them with the same story and plot magic they put into the Final Fantasys', they'd have another hit series on their hands.

Now you're probably wondering why I put the 180 degree thing in my title. The answer is: because that's what I see the developers doing as they go from Saga 1 to Saga 2. SF1 had very little good story and a lot of nice action. SF2 has a whole lot of story, but not as much action. It almost seems as though they tried to overcompensate from the first one. Now, if they could just achieve the happy medium for SF3... Well, Square, if you're reading this while trying to think of what to do for Saga Frontier 3, send me an e-mail and I'll give ya a hand because I still see a lot of potential for this series.

As for everybody else, I reccomend you try these games, either through renting or buying used. They'll open up your mind to a whole different way of looking at RPG's.