Review | Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Remake

A review

Romancing SaGa 2 is a 1993 Japanese role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Famicom. It is the fifth entry in the SaGa series. I wasn’t among the lucky ones to play the original, but I’m here for the remake!

A 3D remake, titled Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, was released on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows on October 24, 2024. This version and this sequel is considered one of the more accessible entries in the series, featuring a light story and more fleshed-out characters—something not typically emphasized in SaGa games (though it’s not exactly a highlight here).

There’s not much else to add, except that this was the fastest-selling title in the SaGa series. Both the remaster and remake versions have received generally positive reviews, suggesting the developers did a good job recreating the original. One note, though—the Switch version suffers from lower resolution and longer loading times. Meanwhile, the game looks and runs flawlessly on the PS5 and PS5 Pro, which is my current platform of choice.

But who are you? It doesn't really matter, you are the king and you need to get rid of the seven evil warriors of the past. Yep, sounds like an JRPG alright!

Story and the characters

The game's story is set in the kingdom of Avalon, where the player takes the role of a dynasty of rulers tasked with fighting the Seven Heroes—once saviors of the world, now corrupted into demons. The Seven Heroes were legendary warriors who saved the world from monstrous invasions but vanished soon after. A millennium later, they have returned, twisted by dark powers, and are wreaking havoc across the continent.

You begin the story as the current king and the prince, embarking on a journey to eradicate the Seven Heroes and their evil across the kingdom. You command a castle, recruit allies (from various character classes), and must forge alliances with other nations to gain the support needed to save the world. The land is constantly plagued by monsters, with routes teeming with dangers. The way you progress is by clearing regions and completing quests, witnessing different events and developments across the continent.

A unique feature of the game is its generational system. After completing a few quests or events, time advances, and control passes to a new king. You choose the next king from a random pool of class-based characters, influenced by which quests you’ve completed. Each new king introduces a fresh class, but all skills, equipment, and progress are carried over.

Additionally, the outcome of certain quests impacts other areas of the game. For example, if you prevent a volcano from erupting, it alters future events in that region—sometimes blocking access to specific classes or items. This dynamic and engaging system keeps the gameplay fresh, though it can also be quite punishing.

While I enjoy the game's main premise, the characters and overall story are weak. There are a few compelling plot points, but most characters feel like placeholders, especially the final rulers in each generation, who often feel as impersonal as random NPCs. That said, the last few hours of the game stand out as the strongest in terms of storytelling and character development.

Overall, the game is more about the atmosphere, music, combat, and the progression of quests and events than it is about deep narrative or character-driven moments.

You can jump. You can run. But you cannot hide! Don't run from combat, you need the experience and the points to evolve your arsenal and allies that comes with certain class. It's a very complicated, but fun combat system. 

Game design, exploration

As mentioned earlier, you control a lineage of kings and progress through the continent over several hundred years. Your base of operations is the castle, which houses various points of interest such as the Smithy, skill transfer, formations, the incantations lab, and the roster management system. Some of these features need to be constructed first, while others unlock as you take on quests in towns or talk to NPCs. These interactions often reveal additional dungeons on the map.

One of the game's standout features is the sheer number of dungeons and locations to explore. This variety adds a lot to the sense of adventure, and the unique designs of the locations enhance the thrill of exploration. Secrets, treasure chests, and useful items are scattered throughout, making exploration rewarding. The anime-styled visuals are vibrant and appealing, adding to the charm. Additionally, there’s a wide array of monsters to fight and challenges to overcome, ensuring that both exploration and combat remain engaging.

One important aspect to note is the game’s dynamic difficulty system. As you raise your weapon skill levels and participate in battles, the game’s difficulty increases. To keep up, you must constantly evolve and adapt, or risk being outpaced and unable to progress. This system may not appeal to everyone, especially since even participating in combat raises your stats, skill points, and health.

However, this system is also what makes the game so addictive. There’s a diverse roster of weapon skills to unlock, adding depth to the gameplay. Fortunately, it’s not overly punishing—you can maintain steady progress by fighting regularly, learning new skills, and leveling up specific weapon or magic types as you go.

The music kicks deep! It's so much fun to explore beautiful gardens and caves when such wonderful music is playing. They've really did a good job remaking all of the assets from the original game.

Combat

Combat is easily my favorite aspect of the game. It’s one of the most addictive and enjoyable turn-based combat systems I’ve experienced in a long time. Each battle involves a party of up to five characters, which you can organize into formations. These formations come with specific advantages and disadvantages. The characters themselves belong to various classes—24 in total—many of which are unlocked through quest progression. Each class typically specializes in one or more weapon types and excels in a particular magic element.

While it’s technically possible to equip any weapon type on any character, it’s not recommended. Weapon skills, known as “techs,” are unlocked when specific conditions are met, so sticking to a class’s recommended equipment usually yields the best results. As you level up a weapon type, there’s a chance of unlocking new weapon attack skills, which are almost always beneficial. The system is complex and might take some time—or even multiple playthroughs—to fully understand. On top of that, you can learn general skills and master passive evasive abilities, adding another layer of depth to the combat system.

One unique feature of SaGa games, including this one, is the LP (Life Points) system. When a character’s health is depleted in battle, they lose 1 LP. If their LP drops to 0, that class can no longer be used, and if the king’s LP reaches 0... well, you can imagine the consequences. While this might sound daunting, it’s not too overwhelming—on Normal difficulty, I never ran out of LP for any character. Additionally, LP can be restored with rare items or over time as the generations progress.

I don’t want to spoil too much, but the combat is incredibly rewarding, especially during boss fights where you must use all the strategies and skills at your disposal (except for the final boss—that one was insanely tough!). The system’s emphasis on exploiting weaknesses reminds me of the Octopath Traveler games, which likely drew inspiration from the SaGa series. It’s a mechanic I absolutely love!

The old-school class system with great weapon visuals and a lot of different skills is something every RPG needs to have. It makes your journey fun and constantly wanting for more.

Side Content

When it comes to side content, the entire game feels like side content to me. This impression largely stems from the fact that you don’t spend much time with the current king before time advances, and all your allies are essentially hired mercenaries from the guild, with little to no personality or backstory.

The side content revolves around how you approach progress during different time periods of the game. Some locations become inaccessible once you complete certain questlines, which adds replayability if you’re eager to explore alternate paths in New Game Plus (NG+). This approach offers significant replay value, especially for players interested in experimenting with different builds and classes.

Additionally, as I mentioned earlier, the game’s challenges and exploration are rewarding enough to encourage you to tackle as much as possible. It’s highly recommended to engage with everything you can, particularly when it comes to learning skills quickly, as they will greatly benefit you throughout the game.

Mr. S (the yellow, one-eyed creature) can be found 50 times and the perks he gives are a must! Everything you find and do matters.

Conclusion

Although this is one of the few SaGa titles (and probably the least “SaGa-like” of them all) that includes some semblance of a story, it’s still not enough to satisfy those looking for strong character development or compelling personalities. If that’s what you’re after, this game may not be for you.

That said, the combat is absolutely brilliant, and the game as a whole is fantastic. Don’t miss out on it—but be sure to manage your expectations. This isn’t a traditional RPG; it’s a gameplay-focused experience where the challenge takes center stage.

I’d still recommend this game to fans of Octopath Traveler or anyone who loves engaging turn-based combat and well-designed class systems. While SaGa games aren’t for everyone (and initially weren’t for me), this one is exceptional (in categories in which this one is). It has even inspired me to explore more titles in the series!