In another life
The 90s were the golden era of RPGs. The Super Nintendo was pumping them out like mad and it is still widely considered the best console for the genre of all time. So much in fact that the game I am discussing today launched during that era to critical acclaim in Japan and yet never made its way stateside until this year. It likely doesn’t help that Live A Live was released in between Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy 6, talk about bad timing, in Japan. Now almost 30 years later Square’s forgotten RPG is finally available in the US and with a brand new HD-2D coat of paint.
Live A Live is similar in structure to games like Saga Frontier and even more recently Octopath Traveler. Instead of one mainline narrative, players are instead presented with seven unique paths right from the start. Each one is only a few hours long and once all are completed an eighth chapter opens up. Completing this one then unlocks the final chapter which somehow manages to tie them altogether. This is a neat concept. What makes Live A Live even more unique is that from the start these seven paths are basically nothing alike.
MSRP: $49.99
Platforms: Switch
Price I’d Pay: $39.99
Each path has its own theme and time period. For example there is a prehistoric one involving cavemen while another one is set in the wild west. Each unique path has some differences in how the game play is handled, but the combat system all revolves around grid-based tactics. Still having bite-sized RPG game play is enticing for players without hundreds of hours to spare. I was able to knock out an entire path in a day or two, and there is something to be said about that.
On the other hand it can also be a curse. Not having tons of hours to put into these characters made them feel shallow. Why bother with leveling up and collecting items that are not carrying over to the next adventure? I didn’t feel invested in some of the stories, while others were so good that even their brevity didn’t drag them down. It is an interesting game that really feels different from anything else I have ever played.
At its core Live A Live is a 16-bit game with a bit of a glow-up. There are some new quality of life features in addition to the makeover. For starters there is now a radar system that points players where to go next. It is fairly similar to the new Resident Evil remakes. Places on the map are color-coded to let players know which rooms have been explored and which have not. This makes moving through these brisk areas even faster. Purists will likely want to turn this off as it ruins some of the exploration of the original game. There is also a new tutorial system which brings players up to speed on how the mechanics work. I like seeing both of these things added, as well as the option to turn them off.
While each chapter of the game is relatively short, one thing that really turned me off was the difficulty spike. While each one is only a few hours long they start out extremely simple and ramp up ridiculously fast. One second I am one-shotting foes while the next they are doing it to me. This can be frustrating since grinding is not really an option in such a bite-sized experience. Instead I had to trial and error several fights or simply get lucky, which is not ideal. It is also worth noting that not all chapters are equally enjoyable. Some I found impossible to stop playing while others took me days to slog through. The up and down of Live A Live is real.
Finally we come to the art style. This is a SNES game so the art direction still holds up. Square was really great at creating games back in the 90s. The HD-2D makeover is nice, but also starting to wear on me. They are starting to blend together and lose some of the appeal. Still the game looks nice and it is easy to discern objects and characters in the game. The music is definitely of that era and it sounds like a SNES game, which to me is never a bad thing.
Live A Live is an interesting game that will most likely excite some players while losing others. The unique stories are great for short bursts but the lack of investment may turn off some. Still I love that we live in an era when lost games can once again make a return. Live A Live is certainly not for everyone, but for those that it does hit it is sure to please. Maybe it would have been wise though to release this game a little further away from Nintendo’s biggest RPG franchise to give it some room to breathe.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
