The first game in the list is Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven. It’s a 3D remake of a role-playing SNES game from 1993. You play the role of an emperor or empress trying to protect the kingdom from the Seven, former heroes who have somehow become demons. I have to say, for a game based on the SNES, this game was way ahead of its time, quite impressive. It’s a typical turn-based RPG, but throughout the game, you have to make choices that can affect your kingdom and the other countries. One of the most important choices is choosing a ruler. You are not going to beat the game with the first ruler. In fact, after a few hours, you are suddenly hit with a one-thousand-year-later message and now have to pick the next ruler. The cool thing is that you have the ability to retain all the abilities from past rulers, so it never feels like you are starting from scratch.

Throughout the game, you travel around the country taking on quests to gain money for your treasury or gain new allies, which unlock new classes. Some of these quests force you to make choices that affect the landscape, learning new moves, and the character itself. One choice I had to choose who would be the next king or queen of a neighborhood kingdom, and another where I had to decide to save a town or sacrifice to gain new dark abilities. I love games where you have multiple choices, so this definitely scratches that itch.

Gameplay is pretty unique in itself, where you don’t level up. You battle in a party of five people, and you are able to teach the main character and the party members new abilities as you develop your kingdom. Each member has a set number of life points, and you lose one each time you get knocked out in battle. If you lose them all, you are gone for good. Definitely an interesting concept, adding permadeath and some of the boss battles can be a little challenging. Overall, this was an amazing game, and I’m a little mad at myself that I had this game in my backlog for so long. If you are a fan of turn-based RPGs and want to try something new, check out this game.