Panzer Dragoon Saga is a game at some point dabbling in anything Sega or old console related you will have heard of.
The legendary game that never got the proper release it deserved. Suffered from an extremely limited release as Sega was burying the Saturn. Is and was the elusive, the rare game for most, that was out of their reach til emulation became more refined. And for some til the capability of a modded Saturn to play such burned games.
And for me, of course it was this game. If there was ever a game I had wanted to play in middle school, it was this game. I hadn't put my focus into it at the time so outside of playing a bit of a Japanese version, I never had made the push to properly play the game. And of course there's when my own eyes got to see a copy for sale at 800+ at a convention.
So years later, I finally get a Saturn once again and knew it got to be modded and even before getting it modded there was already two games I had burned and the first I ever burned was indeed Panzer Dragoon Saga. (the other was the 4 discs of Shining Force III) That was the game I wanted to finally play and beat. And finally check out the game that is inaccessible to so many.
After beating Panzer Dragoon I, II, and then Mini and it was finally time. Time to finally beat the eluded masterpiece that had never been rereleased. And I must say.. it does live up to the hype.
Without saying much about the story beyond that it makes the previous games look like kiddie fodder in comparison is that despite it being very untraditional as an RPG, it in turns lends for a more fun and lively time playing the game. And a battle system based on speed too. Encouraging more beating the enemy quick, and in return alot of exp. Perhaps it could be too easy but honestly I'd rather be spamming and blasting than in agony waiting for shit to get over with like in FF7 or even Burning Rangers lol.
And I haven't even started discussing the presentation. As a response to FF7, it utterly makes some good as hell use of the fact it spans 4 discs. Compared to FF7 where that game opted to have most of itself on the first disc then the last two mainly be the remaining bits. Panzer Dragoon Saga rather smartly has it spanned evenly so you not only have in game cutscenes that utilize lively motion capture but also FMVS that draw you in, and complete voice acting for every single piece of dialogue ever spoken outside of the main character's thoughts.
All of that and the game runs silky smooth 95% of the time with the only time being it chugs a little tiny bit but that's it. And absolutely smashes in the park the idea the Saturn is incapable of any good 3D. The haters have not seen this one yet.
In general, it's a game that to be honest out of the mostly 90's three rpgs for me (FF7, Mother 3 and this) yeah, Saga wins. It's a shame it didn't get the success it deserved at the time as if you ask me, while the devs argue it was from them not caring to make something mainstream, I'd say it had more to do with the Saturn being a console not as many people owned compared to a PlayStation where having your game on there would atleast get more attention. Saga could have used the rereleases in recent time but alas did not happen. Saga is a classic. Delicate. And I am glad and happy to have finally played such an enduring game.
The legendary game that never got the proper release it deserved. Suffered from an extremely limited release as Sega was burying the Saturn. Is and was the elusive, the rare game for most, that was out of their reach til emulation became more refined. And for some til the capability of a modded Saturn to play such burned games.
And for me, of course it was this game. If there was ever a game I had wanted to play in middle school, it was this game. I hadn't put my focus into it at the time so outside of playing a bit of a Japanese version, I never had made the push to properly play the game. And of course there's when my own eyes got to see a copy for sale at 800+ at a convention.
So years later, I finally get a Saturn once again and knew it got to be modded and even before getting it modded there was already two games I had burned and the first I ever burned was indeed Panzer Dragoon Saga. (the other was the 4 discs of Shining Force III) That was the game I wanted to finally play and beat. And finally check out the game that is inaccessible to so many.
After beating Panzer Dragoon I, II, and then Mini and it was finally time. Time to finally beat the eluded masterpiece that had never been rereleased. And I must say.. it does live up to the hype.
Without saying much about the story beyond that it makes the previous games look like kiddie fodder in comparison is that despite it being very untraditional as an RPG, it in turns lends for a more fun and lively time playing the game. And a battle system based on speed too. Encouraging more beating the enemy quick, and in return alot of exp. Perhaps it could be too easy but honestly I'd rather be spamming and blasting than in agony waiting for shit to get over with like in FF7 or even Burning Rangers lol.
And I haven't even started discussing the presentation. As a response to FF7, it utterly makes some good as hell use of the fact it spans 4 discs. Compared to FF7 where that game opted to have most of itself on the first disc then the last two mainly be the remaining bits. Panzer Dragoon Saga rather smartly has it spanned evenly so you not only have in game cutscenes that utilize lively motion capture but also FMVS that draw you in, and complete voice acting for every single piece of dialogue ever spoken outside of the main character's thoughts.
All of that and the game runs silky smooth 95% of the time with the only time being it chugs a little tiny bit but that's it. And absolutely smashes in the park the idea the Saturn is incapable of any good 3D. The haters have not seen this one yet.
In general, it's a game that to be honest out of the mostly 90's three rpgs for me (FF7, Mother 3 and this) yeah, Saga wins. It's a shame it didn't get the success it deserved at the time as if you ask me, while the devs argue it was from them not caring to make something mainstream, I'd say it had more to do with the Saturn being a console not as many people owned compared to a PlayStation where having your game on there would atleast get more attention. Saga could have used the rereleases in recent time but alas did not happen. Saga is a classic. Delicate. And I am glad and happy to have finally played such an enduring game.