Unlimited Saga

"Give it some time"

“I like Saga Frontier will I like Unlimited Saga!”

As the Saga continues on the next generation console it has caused a lot of commotion. The entire game play, graphics, and sound have been completely overhauled, it has left some speechless and other extremely upset. The first Saga Frontier was first brought to us on the playstation by the RPG giant Squaresoft highly acclaimed for it Final Fantasy series. The company decided it was time to test run its Saga series in the US. The game was rather controversial due to the fact it was not and did not have the characteristics of Final Fantasy. Causing a lot of people hate it since it was not turn based, did not have flashy graphics, and the no thought game play that many of the popular games have. Saga Frontier still managed to sell enough copies to keep its predecessors on the way to America.

“What were the two Saga Frontiers like?”

The games were very groundbreaking in the RPG game play department because the battles relied heavily on teamwork and not on individual actions. It featured a combo learning system that allowed players to customize their characters attack according to their taste. Saga Frontier also included a multiscenerio story. There are a total of seven characters and as you played through each character it opens up a new segment to the complete story line. The second Saga Frontier changed pace a little and featured watercolor graphics, a story time line, and the same quick paced combo battle system. While most of the game play was intact from the first Saga Frontier the second installment included wars, which were fought out in the strategy RPG format. Both games have plenty of free movement around the world map and plenty of wonderfully designed cities. Unfortunately the second installment of the Saga series was quickly given the boot by consumers due to it uniqueness and just like the first, it sold just enough to entice Squaresoft to release its 3rd installment of the Saga series, Unlimited Saga to the US.

“All that is good on this DVD disk is the preview of Final Fantasy X-2”

Unlimited Saga is easily the most misunderstood RPG ever. The mechanics and game play at first feel awkward and there seems to be no rhyme or reason to how it works. I sometimes found myself frustrated and pissed off only because I like most gamers wanted to jump right into the action. My advice is to read all the material before inserting this game into your PS2. This will save you time and effort of having to open it later, trust me you will open it later. Unlimited Saga is one of those games that you need to take your time with and for people wondering, no there is no demo of FFX-2 is just a bunch of movie clips.

“What’s this reel battle system I keep hearing about and how does it work?”

The reel system is basically a reel that spins fast kind of like a slot machine when you pull the lever to rake in the big bucks. The only difference between this and a slot machine is that fact you have to stop it with the x button and you don’t win any money. You can acquire new skills at first from stopping the reel on any panel while fighting a “tough” enemy. The more you are able to hit those different color panels against a “tough” enemy you will open up even more powerful moves. As the reel spins round and round there will be several different color panels on the reel depending on how many new skills you have unlocked. This increases the difficulty due to the fact you have to time the stop of the reel if you want to pull off a nice little skill. Fear not as you progress through the game you will open loads of panels thus making it that much easier to hit a high level skill. It may take about an hour or two before you get the hang of the reel system.

“Can I still do those super cool combos like in the previous Saga games?”

Heck yeah! What fun would a Saga game be without those super awesome high damaging flashy combos? No a whole lot of fun. While the combo system is intact the only difference is the way you go about making a combos. First you get to select five attacks, you can select five different people to do the attack or have one-person go buck wild and have five attacks. While the reel is spinning you press O to hold an attack, keep in mind that when you hold an attack it is automatically becomes the initial attack. Sometimes this holds the attack and allows you to hold another attack or if you want you can let loose your combo. Beware that depending on how fast you enemy is they may interrupt your combo forcing you to use the lowest skill of that attack. For instance you choose stardust as your main attack but the higher-level skills in the stardust attack are noggin knocker and dragontail. Once an enemy interrupts you attack it automatically become the main attack in this case it would be stardust. Also when an enemy interrupts your combo the damage percentage increases, which means your attack will do more damage and the enemies attacks will also increase in damage. Keep in mind the combo system can either hurt you or help you depending on the speed of your enemy. So sometimes its better test the water before you jump right in.

“We’re several years into the PS2 lifespan what the heck kind of graphics are these?”

Squaresoft decided that it should use hand painted portraits instead of the usually flashy graphics that we have become so depended upon, especially after Final Fantasy X. The art style is used quite nicely and compliments the overall atmosphere, kind like the cell shading in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. The art style is very similar to cell shading but the graphics have more of an authentic look than a cartoony one. While many who are use to the more flashy graphics will find this games graphics to be very dull and an eyesore. The battles are placed in a beautifully drawn 3D locations ranging from castles to deserts. The beautifully drawn backgrounds have plenty of detail and really shine through to give the player a good all around perception of his location. The characters and monsters in the battle screen are also 3D. Consisting of lots of frames of animations and also very realistic movements. The artwork in action is truly amazing and to me quite a piece of eye candy. The map and the character icon on the other hand is 2D. As you hop from place to place you will see the map in front of you, which draws new sections as you discover it. Another thing while you are hoping around is that you will see a beautiful portrait of what the area looks like that you currently are in. Everything in the art department is done so nicely that it compliments the atmosphere and really brings the characters to life. So if you are use to flashy graphics and mind blowing cut scenes prepare to be letdown, keep in mind that Unlimited Saga is story and game play driven.

“Everyone is complimenting the music, why?”

The music is outstanding in all aspects. Several times I found myself reminiscing about the Chrono Cross soundtrack. There are many pieces of music in this game that when you hear it, it will invoke some kind of personal emotion. Unlimited Sagas soundtrack makes use of the greatest instrument, the violin. The battle music is a little on the slow side as far as tempo goes but it does a wonderful job of incorporating the graphics into the song. It ties all there is to be seen into a wonderful melody that just make you say whoa I can really feel the action. The music while hoping around the map is very up beat and cheery. It’s a nice refreshing tune that keeps the upbeat pace of the game while exploring. Unlimited Saga also features voice-overs. While most of the voice-overs are top notch other just flat out stink. If you are going to pass this game up make sure you at least look into the soundtrack.

“What is the story about?”

There are a total of seven stories, each is played out through a different character. As each character progresses all the story lines intertwine to form a the full story. The way the story line unravels is very similar to that of Saga Frontier. In Unlimited Saga there are seven stories, seven wonders, and one truth. For example Laura is an ex-pirate pirate while Mythe is a ladies man and Ventus is a carrier. As you can see the stories for each character are pretty diverse. As you plow through this game you will see the connection. There is plenty of character development as you hop your way through it. Squaresoft really has the ability to bring out the best in their characters and it allow us(the gamer) to understand exactly what they are feeling.

“What else is there?”

After completing all quests which could total your game time all the way up pass the two hundred plus hour mark. Each characters scenario takes about thirty hours to complete and there are seven character so there is plenty to do in this monster of a game. After finishing the game you will receive an ending but there really is nothing after that. No secret dungeons, no special things unlocked, just a well deserved ending

“Anything else I should know?”

Keep in mind before purchasing or renting that this game is not about graphics. Unlimited Saga as stated before will take you a while to learn how to play, there will be many times it will become frustrating but once you overcome it, it is awesome experience not to be missed!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/17/03, Updated 07/17/03