SaGa Series Discussion

[Yuber]

SaGa Frontier 2 and The Last Remnant are one of my favorites RPGs but this game?
NO DUNGEONS and VISUEL NOVEL DIALOGUE fuk off and start improving upon SCARLET!
how lazy can u be.

 

[Damned Registrations]

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.

I'm like, 90% sure that's not true. I've never heard of equipment affecting battle rank (which is what scales encounters in the game) and I'm fairly certain exploiting it for speedruns would be a thing if it were. The scaling is basically entirely based on the number of encounters you've been in, and it has floors and ceilings depending on where you are.

Exploring to find powerful items and overwhelm enemies at your current rank instead of just grinding for stats and techs is a big part of the learning curve, not that the game is generally very difficult, but there's plenty of optional challenges that can thrash you if you're not ready for them, and a few of the bosses are big difficulty spikes.

 

[Jinn]

The SaGa series employs the only form of level-scaling in any RPG that I've not only found acceptable, but also have greatly enjoyed. I absolutely despise level scaling in pretty much any form, but SaGa does it right in that progression is still extremely satisfying, and there are very noticeable leaps in your party's power vs the enemy's at various stages throughout a campaign.

On that note, having played Emerald Beyond for around 10 hours now, the game really feels like a mixture of SaGa Frontier and Scarlet Grace at its core - tonally and mechanically - which I love.

 

[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.

I'm like, 90% sure that's not true. I've never heard of equipment affecting battle rank (which is what scales encounters in the game) and I'm fairly certain exploiting it for speedruns would be a thing if it were. The scaling is basically entirely based on the number of encounters you've been in, and it has floors and ceilings depending on where you are.

My conclusion based on tests with the savegames I have and the beginning of the game would be that you're right.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

NO DUNGEONS and VISUEL NOVEL DIALOGUE fuk off and start improving upon SCARLET!

Tell me you've never played Scarlet Grace without telling me that you've never played Scarlet Grace.

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.

I'm like, 90% sure that's not true. I've never heard of equipment affecting battle rank (which is what scales encounters in the game) and I'm fairly certain exploiting it for speedruns would be a thing if it were. The scaling is basically entirely based on the number of encounters you've been in, and it has floors and ceilings depending on where you are.

My conclusion based on tests with the savegames I have and the beginning of the game would be that you're right.

Yes, it can get confusing, since the tactic of mindless overleveling that works in most JRPGs doesn't work here most of the time. Most games in the series spawn new monster types based on the number of battles or hidden score (battle rank). Bosses tend to be fixed or have a predetermined variation or two.

 

[wolfbane]

I’m no SaGa veteran, and I’ve not finished any of them yet ( I do really like the gameplay) but this one has really caught my interest for now. I’m playing as Mido for the first playthrough, and yeah like everyone else said, it’s Scarlet Grace combat, which I was very pleasantly surprised to learn! I love Scarlet Grace’s combat so much.

I also think the writing is pretty funny, at least in Mido’s path. Gotta love a character that’s “too cool” to care, lol. Too funny

 

[Jinn]

The writing is super goofy and gets a chuckle out of me regularly.

 

[Yuber]

NO DUNGEONS and VISUEL NOVEL DIALOGUE fuk off and start improving upon SCARLET!

Tell me you've never played Scarlet Grace without telling me that you've never played Scarlet Grace.

I did play it, finished one character, story was garbage, characters was garbage, world building was garbage.
Only good thing was the battle system which you did 99% of the game. Yeah it was fun, but then I started the second character and it was exactly the same gameplay I quit after few hours.

Instead of improving on this game, adding good interesting story, actual characters with personality, real towns and dungeons, nope just shit out another Scarlet Copy.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

NO DUNGEONS and VISUEL NOVEL DIALOGUE fuk off and start improving upon SCARLET!

Tell me you've never played Scarlet Grace without telling me that you've never played Scarlet Grace.

I did play it, finished one character, story was garbage, characters was garbage, world building was garbage.
Only good thing was the battle system which you did 99% of the game. Yeah it was fun, but then I started the second character and it was exactly the same gameplay I quit after few hours.

Instead of improving on this game, adding good interesting story, actual characters with personality, real towns and dungeons, nope just shit out another Scarlet Copy.

In other words, you didn't see:

1. Improved combat that brings back combos and adds new cool features like Showstoppers / Chain attacks / Pursuits?
2. Meaningful choices that affect the way your campaign will unfold?
3. Events changing in existing worlds and during new playthroughs depending on the protagonist and previous choices?
4. Expanded weapon and item variety, as well as character races?

Guess this one is not for you, then. For me, it's a massive improvement (sans free-roaming).

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

They removed Denuvo from SaGa Emerald Beyond or was I dreaming? Also Star Ocean the Second Story R.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Beat Diva's scenario. The final boss is not fucking around. If you were ignoring the trials and trading, you better start using them as early as possible to have more options later.

I've spent the entire day optimizing my party and analyzing battle tactics and had quite a few runs where I was one attack away from destroying him.

Gonna move on to Siugnas, then Bonnie/Formina, and then try replaying one of the previous characters -- I've heard that the game opens up quite a bit on repeated playthroughs and story bits change along the way.

 

[Abu Antar]

I should probably complete all of Scarlet Grace before I go on with this.

 

[Brimruk]

What's the best game to get familiar with the series and the mechanics? I bought Scarlet Grace first and got absolutely destroyed; have since been looking at Minstrel Song and Frontier as I've read in various places those two are good jumping in points

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

What's the best game to get familiar with the series and the mechanics? I bought Scarlet Grace first and got absolutely destroyed; have since been looking at Minstrel Song and Frontier as I've read in various places those two are good jumping in points

IMO, Scarlet Grace is one of the more accessible entries.

Frontier is a nice starting point, IMO.

 

[Brimruk]

What's the best game to get familiar with the series and the mechanics? I bought Scarlet Grace first and got absolutely destroyed; have since been looking at Minstrel Song and Frontier as I've read in various places those two are good jumping in points

IMO, Scarlet Grace is one of the more accessible entries.

Frontier is a nice starting point, IMO.

Alright then maybe I need to adjust my mindset before playing one of these then hah!

 

[Abu Antar]

Scarlet Grace will destroy you if you don't know what you are doing.

 

[HoboForEternity]

What's the best entry point that goes to sale often? Minstrel song?

 

[Jinn]

I'd say Romancing SaGa 2 is the best entry point, maybe followed by Minstrel Song and SaGa Frontier. They all tend to go on sale in frequent Square Enix sales. Minstrel Song is a fantastic game, but despite a lot of the QoL and ingame tutorial explanations, I'm not sure if it's quite as beginner friendly as 2.

 

[Nomad_Blizz]

I think RS3 is a great entry point. It plays more like a typical jRPG than other games in the series.

I do think RS2 is the better game though with a better story.

 

[Yuber]

What's the best game to get familiar with the series and the mechanics? I bought Scarlet Grace first and got absolutely destroyed; have since been looking at Minstrel Song and Frontier as I've read in various places those two are good jumping in points

Saga Frontier 2 is the best and also the easiest to understand because it is linear storytelling unlike other Saga games.
I wish they would make more Saga games like this but it's over.

 

[wolfbane]

Romancing SaGa 1 on the Super Famicom is pretty accessible (or at least as accessible as the GB games IMO) as long as you use a translation patch. However, I’ve heard there’s some bugs near the end of the game or something?

I found it quite charming but decided to shelve it at the time in favor of Minstrel Song Remastered which came out right when I was messing around with RS1. I think overall that Minstrel Song is the stronger game, but the positioning in combat in RS1 is something super unique that I don’t think I’ve seen in many other games. It’s a more in-depth version of FF positioning.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Finished Siugnas' scenario in Emerald Beyond. I love how unhinged this scenario is, where you get to play as an evil entity who explores the darkness of his allies.

Time to switch to Bonnie and Formina and see how it goes.

Romancing SaGa 2 is the best entry point

TBH I don't think so -- even as a series 'veteran' this game kicked my ass very hard, and it can punish people to the point of requiring a complete restart.

That's not a bad thing if you want a trial by fire.

 

[Jinn]

TBH I don't think so -- even as a series 'veteran' this game kicked my ass very hard, and it can punish people to the point of requiring a complete restart.

There's only one thing I can see really causing this, and it's not researching in the right kind of healing spells.

It's a hint I'll freely give: get your magic research going as early as possible, and focus on healing magic until you have the best you can get. Besides that, as long as you don't grind battles, there's nothing that should be insurmountable. I know I'm biased as a series veteran, but I made sure to try to view it through the eyes of a new player of the series as much as I could the first time I played it.

But yeah, I'd say Minstrel Song is even worse for a new player at times. There's so much that you can accidentally miss and just end up completely underpowered late game because of it. Maybe Romancing SaGa 3 really would be the best for a total noob, but my vote is still for 2. Saga Frontier seems like a nice way to ease in too, particularly with some of its shorter campaigns.

I guess moral of the story: honestly, just play whichever strikes your interest the most and don't be ashamed to reference a guide if you're feeling uncertain about something. SaGa series is one that is going to seem opaque as fuck until you truly "click" with one of the games. At that point, they're really all open to you.

 

[Abu Antar]

RS3 is always the safest bet.

 

[Jinn]

RS3 is always the safest bet.

It's funny, because I actually found my first RS3 blind playthrough to be a fair amount more challenging than my first RS2, particularly in terms of which direction you should be going sometimes. Just goes to show there's not really a simple answer to this question. Speaks to how robust the series actually is.

Finished Siugnas' scenario in Emerald Beyond. I love how unhinged this scenario is, where you get to play as an evil entity who explores the darkness of his allies.

Time to switch to Bonnie and Formina and see how it goes.

It is truly remarkable how you can blow through multiple campaigns of these games in a row like you do. I get burnt out after a single lengthy one and have to take a long break between playthroughs usually. Emerald Beyond is a little different, but I've got nearly 20 hours into Siugnas' campagin, still have at least 3 main quest worlds to get through, and can't imagine wanting to dive right into another having explored the majority of the 17 worlds in this playthrough. This will be a 25-30 hour playthrough, at least.