Romancing Saga 2 (ロマンシング サ・ガ2) is the fifth game in the SaGa series (second in the Romancing SaGa SNES trilogy). Like the previous SaGa trilogy, the only storyline connection between the three is the presence of "The Bard" (AKA: Haolahn, mascot of the entire trilogy).
Game composer Kenji Itō (who is also known for his work on the Mana series) composed the score.
Gellard
An i-mode (exclusive to Japan) version of the game was released on November 1, 2011.
A rerelease (Japan exclusive) was released on the Wii's Virtual Console on March 23, 2010 with items from other SaGa games in addition to two new classes: Ninja and Onmyoji Monk. A new battle formation and a bonus dungeon which can be bought as DLC with four variants was also made available.
A remake for iOS, Android, and PS Vita has been released in Japan on March 24, 2016. It has been revealed that it will be released in North America for iOS and Android only. That was announced on April 7, 2016 on Square Enix's Japanese Twitter via account. On April 28, 2016, Square Enix confirmed that it will be released in North Anerica with a trailer and a website. On May 19, 2016, the release date for the iOS and Android version was revealed, May 26th, 2016, priced at $17.99. The PS Vita English version was announced on Twitter by the series creator Akitoshi Kawazu. This marks the official debut of Romancing SaGa 2 overseas.
In Romancing SaGa 2, the player plays as the Emperor or Empress of Barene, a castle located in the northwest corner of the game's world: Avalon. He or she begins the game as King Leon and later plays as his various heirs down through the years. Leon hands his kingdom over to his son, Gellard. At the end of Gellard's reign and so on, the player is able to choose his or her own successor and pass on Gellard's abilities to them. At the end of each generation, he or she will be given a choice of four heirs. Their identity is based on a combination of chance and anyone whom the player has assisted or allied within in a past generation.
The player has to defeat all Seven Heroes.
Characters
Protagonists
- Leon - King of Avalon. Father to Victor and Gerard.
- Victor - Prince of Avalon. Leon's oldest son and brother to Gerard.
- Gerard - Prince of Avalon. Leon's younger son and brother to Victor.
- The Final Emperor/Empress - Predecessor of Gerard.
Antagonists
- The Seven Heroes - A band of heroes who once saved the world on the brink of its destruction. Vanishing soon after saving the world, they've come back as demons to unleash chaos.
Supporting characters
- Human Classes
- Non-Human Classes
- Fair-Haired heroes (Accessible by Pro Action Replay Codes)
- Orieve
- Bard
- Harold
- Karl
- Toma
- Hiraga
- Coppelia
- Witch
- Mermaid
- Cyfreet
- Hive Queen
- Sekishusei
- Ato
- Sorceror
- Garon
Story
The story begins in a tavern where a bard recites a poem telling the story of the ruler Leon and his sons, Victor and Gerard.
Year 1000
Leon and Gerard dispatch monsters in the sealed cave, effectively eliminating their presence from the cavern itself. The duo arrive back in Avalon and are greeted by Victor, Leon's oldest son and Gerard's brother. As Leon readies himself on his throne, he is approached by a seer. Gerard exits the room and roams about the town until he approaches his father in the throne room. The king talks about the seer's ramblings and tells Victor to look after Avalon as he and Gerard go off to dispatch more monsters.
After conquering the Watchman's Den, the duo come back to a razed Avalon, seeing a dying Victor repeatedly proclaiming that his Flowing Slash failed to work. The king is told of the events surrounding Victor's death, that of Kzinssie eliminating his son with the soulsteal technique. Following the king's return to his throne, he is briefed on the situation and how Kzinssie from Somon was responsible. He commands a soldier to find Orieve the seer and bring her to his throne. As the soldier leaves to get the seer, the king proclaims his vengeance.
Orieve and the king have a mysterious conversation about inheriting power while a sullen Gerard grieves by his bed, still in awe of Victor's defeat. Leon walks into the room and tells Gerard they are to avenge Victor, with the latter proclaiming his agreement.
Arriving at Somon, Gerard and Leon dispatch the many obstacles blocking their path to Kzinssie. While fighting Kzinssie in battle, the demon uses Soulsteal on Leon, rendering him unable to battle. On his deathbed, Leon tells Gerard that the seer taught him how to use inheritance magic. Gerard figures out that Leon used himself to figure out a way to counter Soulsteal and that through inheritance magic, Gerard can defeat Kzinssie with that ability. In his final moments, Leon wonders about the legend of the seven heroes and how they must be eradicated if they are as vile as Kzinssie. Leon asks Gerard if he is up to the task of saving the world, with the former stating that he is willing. With his last breath, Leon bestows upon Gerard the ability to counter Soulsteal while Leon's own body vanishes. After being chosen as Leon's heir, Gerard is bathed in a radiant gold light, thus signalling the effect of the inheritance magic.
Gerard exits his father's room and is greeted by his father's soldiers, with the latter stating that goblins have began plundering Avalon. Gerard asks about the current situation while Hector, a former vassal of his father decides to spurn Gerard's request for assistance. Gerard decides to undergo the task of dispatching the goblins alongside those who wish to join him. After defeating the goblin horde that's descended upon Avalon, Gerard sits on the throne, accepting an apology from Hector who regrets assuming nothings about his current lord. Gerard is given the decision to either attack a nearby goblin outpost and secure Avalon's safety or to depart towards Somon and eliminate Kzinssie.
After eliminating the goblin king and routing all the enemies in the goblin outpost, Gerard heads straight for Somon to eliminate Kzinssie. As Gerard and his companions defeat the demon, Kzinssie mentions that he will bide his time and sleep. As Kzinssie perishes, Gerard is able to satisfy his vengeance but he wonders if Kzinssie will someday revive. Eliminating Kzinssie allows Avalon to retake Somon, allowing passage to the North and South Varennes.
Year 1002
One year later, Gerard sits on the throne wearing golden armor and discusses the current situation with an officer.
Year 1250
Two hundred and forty years later, a new heir sits on the throne.
Year 1441
One hundred and eighty five years later, a new heir sits on the throne.
Gameplay
Beginner Tips
Tech System
The technique system in Romancing SaGa 2 was the first of the series to utilize a "spark" system. This system would become one of the cornerstones to how later RS games handle tech learning.
In this game, using a weapon gives you the random chance to spark a new technique in battle. The requirements can be somewhat stringent an counter-intuitive at times. However, not all characters can spark all the techniques. The list of techs available for sparking to a particular character is dependent upon their spark type.
- Tech Sparking
Generation System
Romancing Sa-Ga 2 functions off of a generational system, where after certain events, time moves forward, leading to a new generation of characters. This allows the players the chance to try a new set of characters and explore new story lines.
Formation System
Romancing Saga 2 features a formation system where players can augment their party further through learning new formations. There are 16 total formations in the original SNES version (1 being inaccessible without a gameshark), and 18 in the remake on iOS, Android, Vita. (The original inaccessible one on the SNES was brought back and implemented with 2 additional added)
Equipment
Romancing Saga 2's equipment system allows for each character to equip 4 weapons and 3 pieces of armor. (With a 4th possible one for fixed equipment for certain characters)
- RS2 Weapons Page
Enemies
Romancing Saga 2, unlike other titles produced by Square Enix, does not use a random chance encounter system. All enemy encounters only happen when you run into a visible enemy entity on the map. However, enemy generation within the encounter is impacted by the enemy type you ran into on the map screen and by your total battle count. (In the remake, you can find your battle count in the lower right hand corner on the second floor of the Avalon castle and speak to the minister sitting in the small room)
- Romancing Saga 2 Enemy Data
Damage calculation
Damage calculation in Romancing Saga 2 is an incredibly complex black box process.
Gallery
External Links
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