is the sixth title in the SaGa role-playing video game

Role-playing video game

Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...

 series developed and published by Square

Square (company)

was a Japanese video game company founded in September 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto. It merged with Enix in 2003 and became part of Square Enix...

 (now Square Enix

Square Enix

is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...

) and released exclusively for the Super Famicom

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...

 system in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. It was also the third and final SaGa title to be released for the Super Famicom. It has also been available on the Wii

Wii

The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...

 Virtual Console

Virtual console

A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...

in Japan since September 21, 2010.

Gameplay

The gameplay is similar to other console RPGs of the era, but with several notable differences. For example, instead of 'level ups', character stats increase individually depending on their participation in a battle. Also, a character has a certain amount of 'LP', which decreases when the character's HP is reduced below zero or when they are hit while their HP remains at zero. If the LP of a character is zero, they are removed from the party, but they can be recruited again with the exception of the main character of the current game, once the main character reaches zero LP, it results in an automatic game over.

During battle, characters can learn ("spark") new techniques which often turn the battle in their favor; the same goes for gaining the ability to evade certain enemy attacks. There is also a Commander mode, which requires at least one character more than the lead character, with the lead character on the back lines, out of the battle. If the player has less than a full party of 6 he or she may use one person smaller formations (i.e. using a four-person formation with a party of five so the main character can direct in Commander mode.) During Commander mode, techniques that involve multiple characters can be learned, depending on the formation.

When choosing to play as Mikhail, the player will start with a mini-war campaign, which continues as the game progresses. Some of these war campaigns must be won or the player loses the game. In these battles, the player controls a band of soldiers instead of individual characters. The player issues commands (forward, quick forward, rush, defend, retreat, morale up, etc.). The point of the battle is to advance to the other side of the map (the player starts on the right and must advance to the left).

Characters

When the game begins the player chooses from eight characters to be the lead.

• Julian, a bright, green haired swordsman.
• Thomas, a merchant who will soon inherit his father's wealth.
• Mikhail, the arrogant but skilled and loyal marquis of Loanne.
• Harid, a dark mercenary, and a swordsman without parallel. His weapon of choice is a scimitar known as "Kamsheen."
• Sarah, a quiet, shy archer. Ellen's sister. She is also one of the two destined children.
• Ellen, an aggressive, powerful axe wielder.
• Monica, Mikhail's sister, a regal and dedicated princess.
• Katrina, Monica's bodyguard, who feels obliged to hunt and return the Masquerade, a relic of the Holy King.

Characters that can be found and recruit in throughout the game:

• Tatyana, a runaway girl who loiters around various towns; goes under various food names, such as Candy or Bavara
• Sharl, a former knight who has lost the use of one of his hands
• Muse, a young woman who is the daughter of the late Claudius
• Nora, a woman who runs a workshop in Pidona, where some of the Holy King's weaponry were forged
• Fullbright, a business man from Wilmington
• Poet, a man who strives to make new music and stories from the events that occurred
• Tiberius, leader of the Divine Church
• Undine, a water mage
• Boston, a Lobster from Limit Island
• Fairy, one of the faeries from the jungle
• Leonid, the vampire earl from Podol
• Elephant, a human that was transformed by the Devil King's curse, he watches over his brother who has fallen asleep after a tragedy occurred.
• Bai Mei Ling, an elderly mage from Xuan City
• Robin, a self-proclaimed hero from Yamas
• Fat Robin, the same as Robin (impostor)
• Paul, an adventurer turned thief
• Young boy, the second destined child
• Snowman, a walking, talking snowman
• Ward, man from the north
• Yan Fan, a general from the far east kingdom
• Herman, an elderly pirate
• Black, a young pirate, transformed from Herman after battling Forneus
• Zhi Ling, a Mung girl who lives on the plains

Supporting cast include:

• Professor: A woman with intellect and beauty (or so she claims). She invents many things and lives in the forest near Zweig.
• Duke Zweig: Ruler of Zweig
• Nina: Paul's girlfriend
• Johannes the astronomer: An astronomer studying the stars and their connection to the Abyss
• Anna: Johannes's sister
• Fatima: Princess of Naj Kingdom
• Captain: Mayor of Vanguard.
• Gwayne: Child of Dora; dragon that helped the Holy King battle Byunei.
• Ken: Helps Nora run the workshop in Pidona
• Volcano: Fire mage that lives in the same town as Undine; quarrels with her over something hidden in the town's well.

The major villains of the game are the Devil Lords. In truth, the Abyss gates are far too small to allow them entry into the world, so they send clones to capture the destined child to open the gate fully. Each of the Devil Lords governs an element.

• Arakes: Earth Devil Lord
• Byunei: Wind Devil Lord
• Aunas: Fire Devil Lord
• Forneus: Water Devil Lord

Minor villains include:

• Godwin: Former servant of Mikhail that plans a coup d'état to overthrow Mikhail and dominate Loanne.
• Maximus: Leader of the Pidona division of the Divine Church, plans to use the Holy King's relics to dominate the world.
• Dophore: Leader of a major trading organization, handles many illegal goods
• Great Thief: Leader of the Highwaymen blocking trade routes