Square Enix has revealed the next mainline installment in the long-running SaGa series, SaGa Emerald Beyond. It is coming to PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, PC, and iOS/Android devices in 2024.
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SaGa Emerald Beyond allows players to choose between five routes - the puppetmaster Tsunanori Mido, the schoolgirl-disguised witch Ameya, the crime-fighting duo Bonnie & Formina, the songstress mech Diva No. 5, and the dismal king of darkness Siugnas.
As players play one of those characters, they will journey through 17 interconnected worlds. Different events and paths will unfold depending on the player's choices throughout their playthrough. A new Emerald Vision mechanic is briefly shown that pertains to an investigative gameplay element of some sort.
Turn-based timeline battles from SaGa Scarlet Grace makes a return for SaGa Emerald Beyond's combat system. Players will be utilizing characters' special techniques to manipulate the turn order of battles in their favor.
Today during the Nintendo Direct show, Square Enix revealed SaGa Emerald Beyond, an all-new original adventure in the acclaimed RPG franchise. Featuring music from iconic series composer Kenji Ito and artwork from acclaimed illustrator Satoshi Kuramochi, SaGa Emerald Beyond brings together the core combat and free-form scenario elements of the beloved RPG franchise to deliver the ultimate SaGa experience to fans and newcomers alike. SaGa Emerald Beyond will arrive digitally in 2024 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 consoles, PlayStation 4 consoles, PC via Steam, and iOS and Android devices.
The new trailer showcases SaGa Emerald Beyond’s eclectic cast of heroes from vastly different worlds, with five distinct and dramatic stories to experience. Players will select any of the six protagonists to begin their story with, and guided by mysterious emerald waves, will explore 17 strikingly beautiful worlds where you can meet a diverse cast of races, including monsters, mechs, and vampires, forging their own story. SaGa Emerald Beyond expands on the free-form scenario system the SaGa franchise is renowned for, offering the player the greatest amount of freedom to shape their own story to date, with each tale branching outwards based on their choices and actions. The trailer also showcases the game’s strategic turn-based combat system in motion, offering the best iteration of the SaGa franchise’s combat.
Alongside the trailer, Square Enix also unveiled a debut key art featuring all six protagonists.
Players can choose to begin their story as one of the following protagonists. Each possesses the rare ability to see emerald waves that present choices of their destinies.
Tsunanori Mido – A man who can manipulate kugutsu, or animated puppets, which protect the barrier around his home, Miyako City. When the city is plagued by all kinds of supernatural phenomena, Tsunanori embarks on a journey to other worlds to find four elemental spirits in order to restore order to the spiritual realm.
Ameya – A witch-in-training who visits Miyako City and lives in secret as a schoolgirl as a part of her graduation exam. After Ameya is attacked by an unknown man, she loses practically all of her magical power and must find a way to regain what was lost and pass her final exam.
Siugnas – An immortal vampire who rules over Yomi, a world shrouded in darkness, as the Dismal King. However, after being betrayed and driven from his throne, Siugnas finds himself in Brighthome—the gathering place of dead warriors—and must set out on a journey to recover his powers alongside the other warriors in his squadron.
Diva No.5 – A songstress mech designed to sing and dance from the world of Avalon. After singing a forbidden song, however, Diva’s memory and singing functionality are sealed away, causing her to lose her livelihood and music itself. In her despair, Diva discards her “human” body and, going with the flow, accepts an invitation from a secret society, leaving Avalon behind.
Bonnie and Formina – Two new recruits and partners on the Capitol City police force who are investigating an assassination attempt on the President. With a key person of interest’s claim that the president is a traitor and a mysterious triangle piece as their only clues, they set off on a journey through other worlds to uncover the hidden truth behind the incident.
SaGa Emerald Beyond will be the latest release from the ongoing SaGa Project from Square Enix that has so far included Western releases of Romancing SaGa -Minstrel Song- Remastered, Romancing SaGa 3, SaGa Scarlet Grace: Ambitions, hit mobile game Romancing SaGa Re;univerSe, and SaGa Frontier Remastered. SaGa Emerald Beyond is not yet rated by the ESRB and will arrive digitally in 2024 for Nintendo Switch, PS5, PS4, PC (Steam), iOS and Android.
Game Overview
Five new SaGas, bringing together the very best of the franchise
The latest standalone entry in the SaGa franchise arrives in 2024, bringing together the very best elements of the beloved series to offer each player their own unique gameplay experience.
Make use of Glimmers and United Attacks in battle; meet a diverse cast of races including monsters, mechs and vampires; and experience your very own story, created through your choices and actions.
What Lies at the End of the Emerald Waves?
Do the emerald waves present potential paths? Or are they showing an unavoidable fate? And thus begin the sagas of our new protagonists…
Heaven, hell, the celestial realm, the underworld, fairyland... people have always sensed the existence of other worlds, giving them many names. Yet these worlds were never separate – they are all connected, part of an infinite whole. Many worlds are unaware of this truth. Rather, people believe in the apparently self-evident truth that their world is the only one.
Heedless of people’s thoughts on the matter, the connected worlds continue to influence one another, forever in flux. And now, the stage is set for new change to arrive on the shores of the connected worlds.
Seventeen Worlds, Connected To The Beyond
There are seventeen worlds connected to a place known as the Beyond. Guided by emerald waves, our protagonists pass into the Beyond before journeying to this plethora of worlds, each with their own history and culture.
Which doors will appear to which worlds? Which door will you choose? And what will you do in that world? It all depends on your choices, creating your own, unique narrative experience.
Emerald Waves - Signposting the Paths of Fate
The six protagonists, in five groups, follow the emerald-colored waves of light and travel to the seventeen worlds connected to the Beyond. In the worlds they visit, they will also find themselves presented by emerald waves with choices that will change their very destinies.
Sometimes the emerald waves will lead to several possible fates – but these choices may not necessarily lead in the direction you expect. Sometimes the waves will show the characters a red light, informing them of danger. As the player, you are free to avoid or intentionally face this dangerous light.
Your Very Own Story, With the Greatest Number of Changes in the Franchise So Far
SaGa Emerald Beyond preserves an element of the SaGa series that players have come to know and love – a narrative that changes depending on player actions and choices.
Furthermore, as you visit different worlds, the worlds themselves will change. Different narrative developments will be waiting for you in the same world when you visit again in another playthrough, regardless of which protagonist you choose. The story of SaGa Emerald Beyond constantly delivers new experiences, with the most narrative changes in the franchise to date.
Select one of the five groups/six protagonists and start the game.
The player’s choices and actions will change the narrative developments and the worlds that they’ll visit.
Which of the 17 worlds you’ll visit depends on your own choices – and sometimes on luck.
Once you’ve cleared a protagonist’s path, you can select one of the five groups/six protagonists again and start a new game.
If you visit worlds you’ve been to before, you’ll uncover new story developments.
Characters
Tsunanori Mido
A man who can manipulate kugutsu, protecting the barrier around his city.
Tsunanori comes from the long lineage of the important Mido family of Miyako City, a world filled with traditional, old-fashioned city streets that sprawl out from the central Gokakudo Temple. He can control kugutsu, or animated puppets, which bear their own will. The last great war destroyed the old societal and spiritual order alive in Miyako City, and ever since, the city has been plagued with all kinds of supernatural phenomena.
Tsunanori is selected for the Cathedral Project to investigate other worlds and restore order to the spiritual realm. With the kugutsu accompanying him, he sets out on a journey to other worlds to find four elemental spirits to accomplish his task.
Ameya Aisling
A witch-in-training, living in secret as a schoolgirl.
Ameya visits Miyako City from the Witchdom Pulchra, a world ruled by witches, as part of her witch-in-training graduation exam. While in Miyako City, she assumes the identity of an 11-year-old schoolgirl named Yumeha Izumi and lives with LoLo, her cat familiar. But after being attacked by an unknown man, she loses practically all of her magical power.
Will Ameya be able to get her magical powers back and pass her final exam?
Siugnas
The Dismal King, driven from his throne.
Siugnas is an immortal vampire who rules over Yomi, a world shrouded in darkness, as the Dismal King. Betrayed and driven from his throne, when he awakens, Siugnas finds himself in Brighthome–the gathering place of dead warriors. Incorporated into the king’s army and sent into battle against the invading forces of disorder, Siugnas can’t help but wonder why he– an immortal being–now finds himself in the land of the dead.
And thus, the Dismal King sets out on a journey to recover his powers, accompanied by the other warriors in his squadron.
Diva No. 5
A songstress mech who has lost her singing voice and her body.
Diva No. 5 is a mech designed to sing and dance from the world of Avalon, where industry developed around the royal capital. She was the perfect entertainer, capturing the hearts of all those who saw her perform, until one day, she sang a forbidden song that she found in the Royal Museum, causing her memory and singing functionality to be sealed away. In one fell swoop, she loses her livelihood and music itself.
In her despair, Diva discards her “human” body and soon receives an invitation to join a secret society. Going with the flow, she joins the group and leaves Avalon behind.
Bonnie Blair & Formina Franklyn
Two new recruits on the police force, investigating an assassination attempt.
Former marine, Bonnie, and renowned sharpshooter Formina are two police officers working together to find the truth behind the assassination attempt on the President of Capitol City, a world studded with skyscrapers.
With a key person of interest in the case claiming the president is a traitor and a mysterious triangle piece as their only clues, they set off on a journey through other worlds to uncover the hidden truth behind the incident.
Evolution of the Combat System
SaGa Emerald Beyond further refines the highly strategic timeline battles introduced with SaGa Scarlet Grace, with series mainstays such as the spontaneous ability acquisition Glimmer system and the retinue-enhancing tactical ally placement known as Formations.
Whilst managing BP, a resourced shared by the party that changes with each turn, players will be able to create their own personal strategies as they adapt to the ever-changing situation.
Will you align ally turns, aiming for a United Attack? Focus on obstructing enemy tactics? Or intentionally isolate yourself from allies and enemies alike?
Highly Strategic Timeline Battles
SaGa Emerald Beyond uses a unique timeline battle system, where the turn order and planned actions of all enemies are displayed before the turn begins.
Selecting certain actions as the player allows you to change this turn order. You can use this to your advantage when planning out your preferred strategy – use the turn order to create United Attacks between party members or interrupt enemy actions to interfere with their plans.
Using abilities or skills costs BP (represented by ★), and the entire party shares a pool of BP that can be used each turn. If one character uses a skill that costs a lot of BP, some party members may not be able to attack.
United Attacks, Where Action Order and Skill Selection are Crucial
The green gauge under each character’s icon on the timeline shows the scope of their chosen skill or spell. If the green areas for the skills of different party members connect or overlap, a United Attack will be triggered. However, your foes can also use United Attacks. You’ll need to pay close attention to the turn order and scope of United Attacks.
In this example, as long as the enemies do not interfere, the four characters whose icons are inside the red box will perform a United Attack, as their green gauges are connected.
Since there are some skills with the ability to forcefully change the target’s position on the timeline, it’s important to break up any potential United Attacks that your enemies might use, while successfully carrying out your own.
Learn New Skills in Battle With Glimmers
Sometimes during battle, characters will awaken to a new skill. This is known as the Glimmer system.
The Glimmered skill can be used from the next turn onwards. A new skill may turn the tide of battle in an instant!
Apply A Wide Range of Effects with Formations
Formations grant all kinds of effects during battle.
There are a wide range of options to be selected depending on your foe and strategy – for example, there are formations that reduce the cost of skills, those that increase the party’s defense, or those that strengthen only some characters.
An Opportunity for Furious Onslaught In Unchallenged Isolation
When there are no enemies or allies within two tiles either side of a character’s icon on the timeline, they will enter a state of unchallenged isolation known as a Showstopper. In this state, characters can create combos by using multiple skills and abilities that they know. As such, they become extremely powerful. However, as with United Attacks, enemies can make use of this mechanic as well – so you’ll need to pay close attention to positioning on the timeline.
Due to the conditions required to trigger this state, it occurs more readily in the later stages of a battle, when there are fewer combatants on both sides. Sometimes, it may even decide the ultimate outcome!
Different Races Add Further Depth to Battles
SaGa Emerald Beyond features a multitude of races alongside its human characters, from monsters to mechs, from kugutsu to the Ephemerals.
The different races vary greatly when it comes to conditions for skill acquisition and character growth. Some races have unique skills available to them, and utilizing the unique characteristics of each race allows for even more advanced strategies.
Product Information
Title: SaGa Emerald Beyond
Release Date: 2024
RRP: TBC
Supported Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Steam, iOS, Android
