The first SaGa Frontier was a fantastic cult classic for anyone who played it. It had a strange motley of characters, multiple scenarios to play through at your own pace, and a frenetic battle system where the party could learn moves on the fly. The quirky humor and genre mixing gave it a lot of variety and personality that you didn’t forget.
The SaGa franchise has always been one to experiment and go against the grain. You could always count on some things to be constant, but nobody expected Frontier‘s sequel to get even stranger. The first one had a kitchen sink approach to its stories, but the next one would tell a more straightforward fantasy-historical drama, with unpredictable gameplay and nonlinear structure.
When it first came out, SaGa Frontier 2 flew under the radar. It wasn’t like anything else in the genre or its franchise, but stood out thanks to its unbelievably beautiful art! How does this re-release improve upon the original? Does it hold up? Find out in our SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered review!
SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered
Developer: Squaresoft, Square Enix
Publisher: Square Enix
Platforms: Windows PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch (reviewed)
Release Date: March 27, 2025
Price: $29.99
In SaGa Frontier 2, Gustave XIII, once a prince of Sandail, bears the weight of his excommunication, cast out as a child for his inability to channel anima—a vital life force that permeates all living things in this world, enabling the use of magic. His curse drags his loving mother with him, guaranteeing his guilt and desire for conquest for the rest of his life.
Unlike his peers, Gustave lacks this innate connection, rendering him an outsider in a society where anima defines power and potential. Yet, through sheer intellect, determination, and mastery of steel, Gustave forges a path of extraordinary achievement through attrition and ruthlessness. In many ways, he is like a Germanic Oda Nobunaga.
Elsewhere on the continent is the working-class hero, Wil Knights. Wil’s quest is a life-long epic that spans his entire life, involving his children and grandchildren, and at the center of it is the “egg”, a covetous, cursed artifact that’s not unlike “the one ring” from Lord of the Rings.
SaGa Frontier 2 spans multiple decades with a non-linear timeline, diverging from the traditional SaGa series format. Unlike the open-ended structure and diverse playable casts typical of the franchise, this title focuses on two protagonists, Gustave XIII and Wil, with limited additional playable characters at certain historical moments.
Initially, the game emphasizes narrative over gameplay, resembling a visual novel interspersed with battles. However, as players progress, SaGa Frontier 2 reveals itself as a complex and ambitious role-playing game. The timeline originates at Gustave XIII’s birth, branching into Gustave’s life and Wil’s journey.
Event progression unlocks further scenarios, with some requiring specific conditions to access. You can go through the entire game with some events not opening until new game plus, fostering replay value and new revelations.
SaGa Frontier Remastered introduces an enhanced user interface, streamlining event tracking to ensure players can navigate the intricate timeline effectively. Players are given more information to better guide them in making informed decisions and strategies.
Combat in SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered comprises three distinct systems. Standard party battles adhere to conventional JRPG mechanics, familiar to genre veterans. War battles introduce a semi-tactical layer, blending strategic planning with standard combat using generic soldiers.
One-on-one duels, characterized by large sprites and multi-command inputs, offer a challenging experience and provide a faster method to unlock new abilities compared to party battles. This variety in combat systems maintains dynamic and engaging gameplay throughout.
The glimmer system returns, which allows characters to spontaneously learn new skills, abilities, or techniques by observing or reacting to actions in battle. Rather than relying on a traditional skill tree or predetermined progression, abilities “glimmer” based on a combination of factors, including the character’s stats, equipped weapons or magic, the actions of allies and enemies, and a bit of a dice roll.
Techniques are tied to weapon or magic types, and the generational growth mechanic allows these glimmered abilities to be transferred to other party members across the timeline. Multi-character combo attacks are tricky to pull off, but when the stars align, it’s always a joy to experience.
SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered introduces a generational growth mechanic allowing seamless transfer of progress, abilities, equipment, and stat enhancements across party members when navigating the non-linear timeline. This new feature significantly balances gameplay by eliminating the need to restart with under-equipped characters. This is a fair compromise over having a consequence-free difficulty mode that undermines the challenge.
The original game had a habit of blindsiding players with new party members and having familiar ones die off. By addressing these design shortcomings, the remaster markedly enhances the overall experience. You no longer feel bad about all that time buffing your favorite character because the progress lives on in new characters.
In addition to gameplay refinements, there are new scenarios, including a formidable final boss that surpasses all other encounters in difficulty. The remaster also resolves previously ambiguous or incomplete plot threads, providing clarity and closure that long-time fans will value. These embellishments establish the remastered version as a comprehensive and superior iteration of the original title.
SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered represents a significant advancement over its original PlayStation release, excelling in nearly every aspect. Its sole shortcoming lies in the suboptimal AI filtering applied to the previously acclaimed watercolor backgrounds, which detracts from their original aesthetic and garbles some details that were too low resolution for the AI.
SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered introduces an array of new features, restored narrative content, and refined gameplay mechanics, fully realizing the potential of this classic RPG.
Infused with a medieval German ambiance, political intrigue, and fantasy elements. For players who found the original release lacking, the substantial gameplay improvements offer a renewed opportunity to appreciate this revitalized title.
SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered was reviewed on Nintendo Switch using a code purchased by Niche Gamer. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered is now available for PC (via Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
