SaGa Frontier Remastered

I feel like I can go on and on about SaGa Frontier Remastered that would extend far outside the scope of this review, but if I could sum it all up, I’d say this is the best non-linear JRPG of our time. This does come with a load of nuanced challenges that will push your patience and understanding of the genre. However, after a few hours, you’ll feel the same way. The remastered version only makes the series more approachable with updated visuals, autosave capabilities, a new protagonist, and additional scenarios. I couldn’t have asked for a better version of this game to return to.

SaGa Frontier is a frivolous and irreverent little JRPG that eschews grand narratives and philosophies to instead focus on a charming sequence of absurd juxtapositions, genuine humour, and playfulness. It's a well-made game, and the effective, challenging and entertaining combat system stands as proof of that. It's just that it's also nothing like most other Square Enix JRPGs, because the developers clearly wanted to deliver something that defied the expectations of the JRPG genre. SaGa Frontier was such a resounding success at that that it has become a "cult classic" and while this will never appeal to the mainstream, hopefully it will find itself a new audience through this remaster.

It would have been easy to take this remaster too far, to polish it too much in search of broader appeal. But its messiness, its scrappy nature, and the surreal atmosphere that stems from that are precisely what make SaGa Frontier as memorable and beloved as it is among its cult of fans. Restored content, revamped visuals, and new conveniences are great to have, but SaGa Frontier Remastered‘s greatest achievement is how it keeps the maverick soul of the original alive for a new generation to enjoy.

The price tag for this remaster may seem a little high, but considering the amount of effort required to overhaul this flawed classic into an enjoyable play experience amongst other games in the instant-gratification era, SaGa Frontier Remastered is appropriately priced at $24.99 USD on all platforms at the time of release. Any hesitation I had about recommending this game to JRPG fans in general, as well as SaGa fans, was washed away after spending time with it. Do not miss out: give this one a chance, take in the vast and strange world that is SaGa Frontier.

When you take the time to explore, you’ll find a surreal, beautiful game waiting for you. But, again, SaGa Frontier does an absolutely terrible job of making this clear. Fortunately, SaGa Frontier Remastered takes much of the frustration out of this. You can save anywhere, and there’s an autosave, you can speed up movement in the overworld and battles too. This is the best way to experience an often overlooked masterpiece, and I hope that SaGa Frontier 2 gets a similar treatment in the future.

SaGa Frontier Remastered shows the two-decades-old JRPG such great reverence by restoring lost content along with modern conveniences. With a high learning curve and an explorer's mindset necessary to truly enjoy, SaGa Frontier does require more experimentation and desire for less-traditional storytelling to get the most out of it.

The result of all of this is a strictly superior version of an underappreciated game, one that strips away many potential stumbling blocks for players while keeping the original experience intact. SaGa Frontier Remastered offers anyone, fan or critic of the original, plenty of reasons to revisit this sprawling, undercelebrated, unorthodox adventure.

Still marching to the beat of its own drum, SaGa Frontier Remastered is an example of a remaster done right. The oddity and creativity of the original has been excellently preserved, while the new additions and improved visuals round out the package.

Quotation forthcoming.

With enough patience and investment, you will discover a jewel of the JRPG.

SaGa Frontier Remastered is a good slice of JRPG nostalgia that will please fans of the original classic.

A game reserved for experienced players who are looking for an original experience coming out of the linear codes of the J-RPG and who are not allergic to the logic of the games of the PS1 era.

Saga Frontier Remastered is back in HD and with lots of new content: it's time to relive the legend.

SaGa Frontier Remastered is a 25 years old role-playing game that was never released in Europe. While this remastered doesn’t do much in terms of graphics, it adds a fair amount of content that will certainly make it intriguing for returning players. Novices, on the other hand, might have a harder time adapting to some of its more dated mechanics.

SaGa Frontier is one of the most unconventional RPGs you'll ever play and this Remastered version refines it without taking away from the original's charm at all. If you're up for something truly unique then you won't regret giving it a go.

Saga Frontier Remastered is a good re-proposition of a game that isn’t scared to be divisive, today as at the end of the Nineties.

Even if this isn’t the best RPG from the 90s, having it available for the first time in some markets with original content restored is great news, and we’re sure fans of the genre will enjoy it.

Saga Frontier Remastered is a great remaster for those who already enjoyed the original. The unique take on exploration and non-linear storytelling may throw some people off expecting a traditional RPG but those who stick with it may find the charm that so many found back in when it originally released. Simple but fun combat and a great skills system make it a joy to play and the improvements in the remaster may help bring in new fans while invigorating older fans with the inclusion of originally cut content.

While Square's effort to bring to modern console its old goodies is commendable, SaGa Frontier Remastered is just an average RPG with a few highs and just as many lows.

SaGa Frontier Remastered has great upgrades that positively add to the original gameplay experience, especially if you loved this title back in the late 90s. If you have never played this, it might seem like an overwhelmingly difficult game with a mess of great ideas that had not been completely sorted out. It was certainly ahead of its time and groundbreaking in some areas of gameplay.

SaGa Frontier Remastered is a must-play for die-hard fans of the original. Though I found myself having some fun with the characters and gameplay, the game’s lack of explanation it gives to players about literally everything makes it hard to recommend to new players.