SaGa Emerald Beyond

Final Fantasy's weird, younger sibling is weirder and wilder than ever.

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"SaGa Emerald Beyond" is a single-player Fantasy Turn Based Strategy game, offering around 100 hours of playtime. It features a highly strategic command battle system and a diverse cast of races, including monsters, mechs, and vampires. Players can travel to 17 unique worlds, each with their own cultures and landscapes, creating their own unique story through choices and actions. The demo allows players to transfer save data to the full version of the game.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

81%

Audience ScoreBased on 104 reviews

story14 positive mentions

grinding8 negative mentions

The combat system is highly strategic and engaging, often described as one of the best in the RPG genre, allowing for deep tactical planning and rewarding gameplay.
The game features a diverse cast of protagonists, each with unique storylines and mechanics, enhancing replayability and offering varied experiences across multiple playthroughs.
The writing and localization are praised for their quality, contributing to a rich narrative experience that blends eastern and western RPG sensibilities.

The game suffers from a lack of exploration and world-building, with many players feeling that the environments are too simplistic and the story is often weak or disjointed.
There are significant quality of life issues, including slow menu navigation, lack of voice acting, and no option to skip or speed up text, which can detract from the overall experience.
The game is perceived as having a low budget feel, with outdated graphics and a presentation that may not meet the expectations of players used to more polished modern RPGs.

story
113 mentions
12 % positive mentions
82 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The story in "Saga Emerald Beyond" is characterized by its non-linear structure and multiple protagonists, each offering distinct narratives that enhance replayability. However, many players find the overall storytelling weak and minimal, often feeling disjointed and lacking depth, with pacing issues and a reliance on text over cutscenes. While some appreciate the quirky and varied storylines that emerge through repeated playthroughs, others criticize the lack of engaging backstory and character development, leading to a casual RPG feel rather than a compelling narrative experience.
- “I love the storytelling of this game; it is fairly unique and really easy to do multiple playthroughs and see new things.”
- “Saga Emerald Beyond offers players the choice of six protagonists, each with a unique storyline, set across multiple worlds.”
- “The plot and world change in fascinating ways, and each protagonist interacts with NG+ in their own interesting and unique ways.”
- “The story was extremely weak; there was no backstory, you didn't know why you were heading out on your quest, you just do.”
- “The story is negligible, the crafting system is clunky and overly reliant on RNG to get materials, and let's not even talk about the environment design or the art.”
- “If you're looking for a traditional JRPG storyline, you may be a bit disappointed, though.”
gameplay
36 mentions
8 % positive mentions
83 % neutral mentions
8 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the series is characterized by a steep learning curve, with complex mechanics that may deter newcomers but offer depth for JRPG veterans seeking innovation. Players can experience diverse character mechanics and a unique turn-based combat system, though the convoluted nature of the mechanics and poor tutorialization can lead to frustration. While the game emphasizes replayability and choice, its story and initial presentation may leave some players wanting more.
- “If you're unsure if the saga series is for you, then I would sum it up as, if you're a JRPG veteran and like JRPGs but find that the traditional gameplay mechanics of the genre start to get stale, then this is the series for you.”
- “Each protagonist (except Bonnie & Formina) has a unique mechanic to them, so even if you're visiting variations of the same worlds, you get something different.”
- “Addictive gameplay, tons of choice and consequence, replayability, and maybe the best JRPG combat system ever made.”
- “Square's commitment over the years to a franchise with constant mechanical experimentation, obfuscated information and systems, and difficult combat is admirable, but also means that they're not games for everyone.”
- “The upgrade mechanics just add to the game's feeling of tedium.”
- “It's light on story and characterization, and the battle mechanics are overly complicated.”
graphics
17 mentions
24 % positive mentions
53 % neutral mentions
24 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the battle visuals while criticizing the overall quality of the maps and certain outdated elements. The art style, which leans towards a visual novel aesthetic, is appreciated by some but may not appeal to everyone, particularly due to its limitations on mobile platforms. Overall, while the graphics are deemed acceptable, they lack the polish and innovation expected from modern titles.
- “The graphics of fights were good, and the maps were poor and awkward; I think they were using 'artsy' to make up for quality, but it was fine.”
- “I don't have a problem with the overall art style and presentation of the game, though some may feel like it's too much like a visual novel or not like the art direction in the story scenes.”
- “+overall aesthetics, with a visual novel style of vignettes for dialogue and story progression and moving around the map to interact with encounters which could be either puzzles, dialogue choices or combat.”
- “Inconsistent visuals: certain graphical elements appear outdated compared to modern standards.”
- “The visuals aren't stellar, there's no real exploration, and the story is extremely non-linear.”
- “The visuals don't wow me (since this game had to be made to accommodate smartphones, which is a devil's bargain), the combat system has a spark of fun but has quirks I just don't enjoy.”
music
14 mentions
50 % positive mentions
29 % neutral mentions
21 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received high praise, with standout tracks like Diva's final battle theme being highlighted for their epic blend of genres. Reviewers note that the soundtrack ranges from good to absolutely wonderful, with many tracks enhancing the overall experience, particularly during boss battles. Kenji Ito's compositions continue to impress, solidifying the game's musical legacy within the Saga series.
- “The music is amazing, Kenji Ito has done almost all the Saga game compositions and this one is equally as fantastic as all the others.”
- “The final boss battle music is also very epic JRPG final boss battle music, and the final boss battle is in segments so once you beat one form you move onto the next phase with a time to be able to adjust formations, gear, level up weapons, etc.”
- “Diva's final battle music is my highlight, blending the rapid-fire techno soul of Saga Frontier's T260G Carnage Heart track with a more traditional vocal folk song to make a fitting thematic and climactic end for her storyline.”
- “As someone who's only played Romancing Saga Minstrel Song Remaster, and having only played about an hour, I'm obviously not fully qualified to speak on the qualities of this game, but man it just put me off that hard.”
- “The music”
replayability
13 mentions
23 % positive mentions
54 % neutral mentions
23 % negative mentions
The game boasts exceptional replayability, featuring six distinct narratives and a dynamic world that changes with each playthrough, even for the same character. Players can engage in multiple short runs, each lasting 4 to 10 hours, while discovering new content and outcomes due to hidden parameters that alter gameplay. The focus on diverse protagonists, branching paths, and a robust combat system further enhances its replay value, making it a standout in the RPG genre.
- “Players can experience six distinct narratives, each offering a unique perspective and enhancing replayability.”
- “This game has great combat and an insane level of replayability with events changing every new game plus.”
- “The amount of replayability is very high, and the fact that the community still has not figured out many details about the game is a testament to that.”
- “Short version is that this game is an RPG with what might be described as a pseudo-roguelike approach. Progression varies wildly through different runs due to a certain set of hidden parameters that shuffle things around. It's a game heavily focused on replay value and designed for short runs, allowing you to finish a run in 4 to 10 hours, play it over and over again, and still find new content. I know I'm still doing that after 100 hours.”
- “It looks like the devs really focused on replay value and a more 'roguelite' style of saga game, where you are meant to pick a scenario main character and run through a handful of worlds, then import your save to play again with that same main character or pick another one.”
grinding
8 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that grinding in the game is a significant aspect, with players spending considerable time accumulating resources and upgrading their characters. While some enjoy the challenge and depth of the combat system, others find the grinding tedious and repetitive, particularly in relation to resource gathering and trading. Overall, the experience of grinding varies, with some players appreciating it as part of the gameplay, while others view it as a frustrating necessity.
- “I got to the end of what I thought was the first chapter, after doing lots and lots of grinding to save up resources before continuing, then it turned out that was the end of the game.”
- “Pared down to its core, Emerald Beyond is a bunch of wildly unbalanced and swingy combat encounters strung together in a dull, repetitive, and grindy loop.”
- “Getting the ingredients for the later upgrades is really annoying too, requires lots of trading and lots of grinding...”
character development
4 mentions
75 % positive mentions
-25 % neutral mentions
50 % negative mentions
Reviews highlight a desire for dynamic and engaging character development rather than static, superficial designs. Players seek deeper storytelling and world-building to foster genuine interest in characters, contrasting with games that rely solely on visual appeal. While some titles offer solid character designs and attribute progression, others fall short in delivering compelling narratives and character arcs.
- “Character development is more like minstrel song and saga frontier in that a character's main attributes increase as they develop, unlike Scarlet Grace and Romancing 2 and 3 where they are fixed.”
- “Solid character designs, decently modeled.”
- “Don't give me static, cardboard characters with text; show me some scenery. You need to make me interested in your worlds.”
- “Character development feels more like a minstrel song or Saga Frontier, where a character's main attributes increase as they progress, unlike in Scarlet Grace and Romancing 2 and 3 where they remain fixed.”
- “The character designs are solid, but the development lacks depth and progression.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is praised for its clever integration of real-life medical jargon into comedic scenarios, with characters and stories that elicit genuine laughter. Players find the absurd situations both entertaining and engaging, prompting them to explore further and reflect on their choices.
- “Some characters are hilarious, and some worlds take on real-life medical jargon and make it funny, while some stories are engaging.”
- “I couldn't believe it when playing the demo, but somehow they managed to pull it off and made me laugh at the ridiculous situations. It was compelling and made me want to explore more or regret options that I didn't take.”
optimization
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is well-optimized for PC, running smoothly without any reported crashes.
- “On PC, the game seems to run smoothly overall, and I haven't had any crashes thus far.”
stability
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Users report significant challenges with stability, often requiring extensive troubleshooting efforts to resolve issues.
- “Yes, I have tried literally every troubleshooting step out there.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
- “I experience constant lag and disconnections, which ruin the experience.”
emotional
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by the player's investment in team dynamics and strategic possibilities, suggesting that a lack of engagement or emotional connection may lead to disappointment and regret over the purchase.
- “If by the end or during the demo, you aren't contemplating the possibilities of your team, formation, gear, roles, and what to learn next, as well as how the outcome of a given world could have been, you'll have saved yourself the purchase, the additional time, and the emotional damage.”