There is something about this game that hooked me from the very first time I played it and never let me go until the ending credits. Ten years after this game first came out, it's STILL my favorite game of all time. Technology has become more polished. Games have become more immersive and more elaborate since then, and I have played many great games both modern and classic, like Beyond Good and Evil or The Legend of Zelda. Yet Panzer Dragoon Saga somehow still remains my number one game. It may very well be the greatest game of all time.
What started out as two exciting and revolutionary shooters had reached a climax and wonderful resolution in a form that best suited the Panzer Dragoon universe, the RPG. The RPG format allowed the devopers to flesh out the story even more and do many things the shooter format of the previous two games couldn't do.
Many players used to today's modern RPGs might look back on Panzer Dragoon Saga and scoff when I say that it's the greatest game of all time. As an RPG, it breaks three fundamental rules. It's too short, too easy, and there are precious few random battles(which might not seem like a bad thing). You'll probably beat the game in 24 hours or less, and this is the only RPG I've played where I've died exactly zero times, each and every time I've played it.
However if story is the core of what defines an RPG's worth, then this game beats them all, even the mighty Knights of the Old Republic. Final Fantasy VII is often remembered as the best RPG ever, yet in my opinion, this game is superior to even that. All the flaws mentioned above just disappear under the glow of this game's beauty and atmosphere. The fast pace of the story and lack of random battles really allowed you to grow attached to the characters and their unfolding drama. Even the easy gameplay doesn't seem such a big thing when you realize you're being challenged "just enough" but not enough to kill you. When the whole experience is this immersive and wonderful, who really cares about how easy a game is?
The Panzer Dragoon series' trademark organic artistry and otherworldly themes are present in this game, as is its brilliant musical score. The Panzer Dragoon games are about awesome and alien sceneries inspired by artist Moebius and themes about survival, wars, ancient secrets, and biotechnological terrors spawned from forbidden experiments. The graphics in Panzer Dragoon Saga really do the Saturn justice. This game is just slightly younger than Final Fantasy VII, yet the character animation and colorful battles of Panzer Dragoon Saga make everything in Final Fantasy VII seem like puppetry. And the realtime dragon morphing system, which also has a useful gameplay element of customization, is truly a wonder that games today have yet to match in both innovation and graphical beauty. This game also goes beyond what Final Fantasy VII revolutionized just a scant few months before by giving you three charge bars instead of one and the ability to fly around the enemies in realtime to four tactical points.
But what separates this game from most other RPGs(and part of the reason why it remains my favorite game of all time) are its characters and story. Unlike many of today's games, Panzer Dragoon Saga's cinema sequences seem to enhance the game, rather than get in the way. There are just enough to get the point across, not so much as to take interaction out of the hands of the player. For those moaning how too many games and RPGs feel too much like movies, this is a godsend. It wasn't such a major issue back during this game's era but is certainly one now. And when there are cinema sequences, they are wonderfully animated, brilliant, breathtaking, to the point, and often worthy of Hollywood. In fact in many places, it's not just the cinemas that feel like this but the in-game action as well. The overall experience is truly widescreen in scope and depth. Why? Again, characters and story. The story is dark enough to be brilliantly dramatic yet not so convoluted as to confuse you like many anime style RPGs. The characters are also deep, brilliantly fleshed out, and often realistic and cliche free. There are quite a few typical maniacal evil villains, but they are still great, fiery characters. But the true heart of this game are the three main characters, Edge, Azel, and Crayman. Edge has his dark side yet is still identifiable as the hero. And what a compelling hero he is, far more complex than Final Fantasy VII's boring Cloud. Edge has his strengths and weaknesses and suffers more emotional anguish and torture than many game characters I can think of. Azel is the game's beautiful and enigmatic antagonist and heroine. She strikes a compelling image astride her dangerous dragon Atolm. She starts off at odds with Edge, but he and the player can she that she's decidedly not evil. From Edge's first encounter with her asleep in her relic to their numerous daring duels, Edge and Azel's growing and complex relationship is unlike any I've ever seen in an RPG. Crayman is the game's villain whom Azel at first looks to like a father figure. He is certainly evil, but the player soon realizes that he has reasons for his ambitions and that his reasons are a bit noble. This blurred line between heroes and villains is a trait Miyazaki knows very well and is something not too many RPGs use. Even rarer among RPGs is Panzer Dragoon Saga's ability to make even the NPC characters seem real. And since it is the dragons and monsters that grow in power and not the humans, that's even another notch in the reality belt.
I've already written a lengthy review. I've done it many times before when I start talking about this game. I can't help myself. There's just nothing I can say that exposes the true brilliance of this game. Music, atmosphere, artistry, characters, and more. It's just something you have to experience for yourself to see how brilliant it is. But don't take my word for it. Panzer Dragoon Saga was released to a limited audience. Too few people got a chance to taste this game's greatness, and on Ebay, it can go for hundreds of dollars. But if you've already experienced it, you already know how wonderful it is. And if you're willing to put in the effort, you can try to score yourself a copy to see for yourself. As for me, I'm not letting go of my memories while they still last and will keep playing it every once in a while until my Saturn dies. Panzer Dragoon Saga is the Lord of the Rings of RPGs. One can only hope that some game developer somewhere and some day will have the foresight to remake this game for today's generation. In all its beauty.
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