u/Responsible-Bell-528

I really like this game, but it’s so forgotten nowadays 😭
Phantasy Star Zero is a prequel to the original Phantasy Star Online, and it was released on the Nintendo DS back in 2008. The story is set on the planet that Pioneer 1 and 2 left behind before heading to Ragol in PSO. The gameplay is pretty similar to PSO, but with a few elements borrowed from Phantasy Star Universe.

I’m not gonna lie, the gameplay feels a little dated now. Since the Nintendo DS didn’t have analog sticks, the movement is pretty stiff (characters can only move in 8 directions) and the camera controls are a bit clunky. But despite all of that, I still love this game and always find myself coming back to it.
I love basically everything about it: the art style, the character designs, the soundtrack, and the story. Honestly, the story is where PSZ really shines compared to the original PSO.

Don't get me wrong, I love PSO, but as a fan of the original Phantasy Star series, I was always a bit disappointed by its weaker story presentation since the game focuses so much on gameplay. PSZ, on the other hand, puts a lot more emphasis on the narrative. We get way more character interactions, anime cutscenes, and each of the three playable races actually experiences the story a bit differently.

This game is just so charming 😭

The first chapter of every Sakura Wars game is always slow and kinda boring, but I think this one went too far. Not only you spend a lot of time doing chores, but everyone treats you like sh*t. Everyone is insufferable, except Gemini that is the only character that is nice to you in this beginning.

I don’t think any of that is a problem, necessarily, because I understand the artistic intention behind it. The game clearly wants you to feel powerless, insecure and that you are in a hostile environment, and later on your relationship with the crew will get better.

But I think that first chapter might be one of the reasons the game didn’t sell well in the West.

If you have already played other Sakura Wars games, you know the structure, you know what the whole thing is about, but it you are a newcomer western player that Sakura Wars 5 was your first game, you had to be patient enough to undergo more than 1 hour of visual novel gameplay with almost every character treating you like that and no clue what the game is actually about.

My husband purchased Sakura Wars 5 for Wii when the game came out, but he dropped the game in the very first chapter before the first battle and never went back. Recently, I started playing the game, and he was surprised that the game is actually good.

He said “at that time I didn’t know what the game was all about, this visual novel part continue going on without becoming interesting and that I just gave up”.

Japanese players are used to visual novels, since the genre is mainstream there, and likely they don’t have any problems with Sakura Wars 5 beginning, but western players aren’t. I feel like a lot of people don’t like the genre just because it’s too different compared to what they are used to, and not because they will never be able to enjoy, but this beginning is really hard to go through in this context. People have so many options of things to play, with the game is not able to click with them in less than a hour, they will simply give up on it.

This Game Gear ad saying “Game Gear separates the men from the boys” makes me cringe. Imagine a 12-years-old boy thinking they are the biggest macho of all because they own a Sega system. It’s really funny. How can a console dictates how “macho” you are?

There is also another Game Gear ad that is extremely ableist, it says “if you are color blind and have an IQ less than 12, then you wouldn’t care which portable do you have”.

https://youtube.com/shorts/3mr0uOYmMOQ?si=UGyKXqpFOTbNDwWH

If you imagine an ad campaign like that would only be consider problematic today, you would be surprised to find out it had some controversy at that time. Nintendo said Sega was shaming disabled people.

It’s a huge contrast between the Sega’s Japanese commercials that had none of that.

I know it’s anachronistic to judge 30+ year old commercial with modern day values, but my intention here is not to cancel Sega over those things. It’s the past, it doesn’t reflect who they are now. I just saw this promotional flyer that used to came in the box of some Genesis games and I thought to myself “wow, the 90s were a crazy period”

I believe that the emulation of old Sega games is actually beneficial for the company. Think about it. Segagaga for the Sega Dreamcast, for instance, was released exclusively in Japan with a limited print run and an extremely low marketing budget. The only reason this game became a cult classic is because people experienced it through emulation or other unofficial means.

Now, Sega is referencing Segagaga in their Sega Universe project. Even if this project only consists of merchandise, would they really be able to sell products for an obscure, nearly 30-year-old game if people hadn’t discovered it through emulation and unofficial channels?

Similarly, would Panzer Dragoon Saga be considered a cult classic today if the only people who played it were those with legitimate, physical Sega Saturn copies?
Most of these classic Sega games are too risky to bring back because the gaming market has changed so much. If people only played them through official means, these titles would have been completely forgotten by now.

Maybe Sega knows this. Perhaps this is why they aren't overly aggressive with copyright protection and don't aggressively target emulators and ROM sites. They might realize that emulation is essentially a free way to keep their legacy alive, allowing them to capitalize on that lingering popularity later with modern releases.
This post isn't meant to justify or promote piracy, but I think it’s an interesting topic for discussion.

I became a Sakura Wars fan thanks to the fan translations. I played Sakura Wars 1 and 2 for the first time on my Sega Saturn thanks to them. Now, If Sega decides to bring the series back, I’m a potential new customer, and I wasn’t before.

This is Terranigma (Tenchi Sōzō in Japan), it’s a game published by Enix for the Super Nintendo only in Japan and Europe, it only became popular among retro enthusiasts because of emulation since it didn’t sell very well. If emulators didn’t exist, the game would simply be forgotten and remained obscure.

Despite all of that, it’s one of the best games I’ve played in my entire life with an incredible soundtrack. So, when people say a game or a console is not good or it’s not worth it because it didn’t sell well, I think this is such a bad take and a limited mindset to have.

There are so many reasons a good game or a good console underperforms and sometimes that doesn’t have anything to do with lack of quality. And thinking only popular games are good makes you miss out on amazing games like Terranigma.

I haven’t played this one yet because of the barrier language, but I know it’s super short because it was developed in only 10 months and reuses assets from Sakura Wars 3.

I’m just curious to know if Sakura Wars 4 is good. How does it compare to the previous games? I read that this game received the highest ratings from Famitsu out of all the classic Sakura Wars mainline series and apparently the game was also well-received by the audience.

Is it like Zelda Majora’s Mask that was developed in less time than Ocarina of Time, reuses assets and because of that, it had to be different and that ended up being an interesting product, or is Sakura Wars 4 underwhelming?

I know this is a subject topic, and I know there are some examples of games that received terrible box art illustrations in the west (such as Phantasy Star 2 that Rolf and Nei look like they are in their 50s), but I’m not talking about the illustrations of each game, specifically, but the layout of the console’s branding in the box.

They were more artistic than modern gaming boxes that are minimalistic and standardized. Also, Sega used to use different layouts through the generations. The Master System, for example, had the black and white checkboard pattern layout, and later a blue gradient with the check board pattern underneath, and also a solid blue layout (here in Brazil, at least).

So, not only we had different graphic design depending on the region, we also had graphic design variations inside the same region depending on the year.

The American Sega Saturn box art often times had an out-of-bounds effect where the character illustrations were in front of the Sega Saturn logo, an effect commonly used in magazines graphic design.

And in the Dreamcast generation, I feel like not only the labeling was cool, but also the box art illustration. Instead of just using 3D renders, many Sega first and second party games had gorgeous hand-drawn illustrations. Sonic Adventure and Jet Set Radio are good examples. Jet Set Radio Japanese box art is probably one of the most gorgeous box arts I’ve ever seen.

I feel like modern gaming boxes labeling and arts are too rigid and clean, and miss that more varied and artistic approach.

Disclaimer: these photos are not mine, I got them from Google Images to have some examples.

I believe Sakura Wars 3 and Sakura Wars 5 could have worked in the West. They have Western settings, and the combat gameplay became more dynamic, exciting, and fast-paced; the presentation also has better production value, and the visual novel portions have more interactivity. I know Sakura Wars 5 was localized, but the game was originally released in 2005 and only came to the West in 2010, when the PlayStation 2 was already a dead platform and the Nintendo Wii was already in its twilight. The fact that the game had limited promotion also didn’t help. So, I don’t think Sakura Wars 5 had a fair chance. And even if it had received decent promotion, I believe the timing would still have been of. Not only because the consoles were no longer strong commercially for this kind of game, but also because, in five years, a game can look outdated and lose its fresh appeal.

I think Sakura Wars 5 was way more interesting than Sakura Wars 2020…

I own a Japanese Model 1 Saturn, and I recently sent it to a repair shop because it stopped outputting a video signal. It turned out the issue was failing capacitors on the video board. The technician replaced the faulty caps and solved that specific problem, but they did not perform a full "recap" of the entire console.

Now, the console is experiencing a different issue: the optical drive is failing to recognize certain games that used to work perfectly.

It still reads original, factory-pressed discs flawlessly. It also has no trouble with some of my backup copies (I suspect these are burned discs based on the packaging quality, though I can't be certain). While most of my backups still function, two specific games, Panzer Dragoon Saga and Grandia, have stopped working. I actually finished Panzer Dragoon Saga using this exact backup, so I know for a fact the disc was fine before. I even bought new backups from a different seller to test, but none of them worked. At first, I blamed the discs, but since my old reliable copies are now failing too, I suspect the hardware is at fault. All of my backups are relatively new, at most two years old, and are clean and scratch-free.

I recall reading that when capacitors begin to fail, it is recommended to replace all of them. Since they are the same age and have the same expected lifespan, once one goes, the others usually follow shortly after. I didn't explicitly ask the shop to replace every capacitor because I didn't know for sure that the video issue was cap-related at the time. I had a hunch based on my own research, but I lacked the technical expertise to confirm it.

The optical drive isn't making unusual noises and doesn't sound like it is struggling. For most of the games that fail, the disc doesn't even spin. Both Pseudo Saturn Kai and the Saroo (when using the disc reader option) report "disc is not a game disc." Panzer Dragoon and Grandia do spin, but they fail to boot. Meanwhile, the games that do work still run reliably every single time.

Could these symptoms be related to failing capacitors, or is a dying laser a more likely explanation?

The game still has some slowdowns in some areas or boss battles, but this mod is really good. I’m having a blast.

Don’t know if it was intentional, but considering how popular Sakura Wars in Japan, it might have influenced this game. Digimon Survive is an interactive visual level with social link simulation and strategy grid based combat. Well, one key difference is that the tone of the story more horror than drama.

I have a Japanese Model 1 Saturn in excellent condition that I purchased about a year ago, but I do not have space for a CRT in my living room. Consequently, I decided to buy a Saturn HDMI upscaler. I did not want to buy an expensive unit at the time because I only owned the Saturn and was not planning on buying multiple retro consoles. I now also have a Dreamcast, but I digress.

Anyway, I used this upscaler for a few months until my Saturn eventually stopped outputting an image to the TV. The screen went completely black. I initially thought the upscaler had failed, but when I tried using the original composite RCA cables directly to the TV, the screen remained black.

I researched the issue online and discovered this is a common problem with the Sega Saturn. The capacitors eventually reach the end of their lifespan after a few decades, and my Saturn is likely 30 years old at this point. It is the specific model released to celebrate one million units sold in Japan, which came bundled with Virtua Fighter Remix.

I took my console to a specialized retro repair shop in my city. The problem was indeed the capacitors. It was an affordable repair, and everything is working perfectly now.

However, the technician told me that the specific upscaler I was using might have caused the capacitors to fail. He mentioned that they do not sell upscalers dedicated to specific consoles because those plug-and-play dongles can often harm the system. He noted that they frequently receive damaged consoles for repair that were compromised by these cheap adapters. He recommended higher-quality upscalers where you connect the console cables into the device rather than those that plug directly into the console port. It does not need to be an enthusiast-grade device, but it should be a standalone model that functions that way.

I was surprised by this. I am not a technical person and do not have a background in electronics; I just enjoy video games. I cannot personally verify his claims, but this is a reputable shop that specializes in all generations of retro hardware.

Now, I am saving up for a higher-quality upscaler and a SCART cable to take advantage of the RGB signal. In the meantime, I will continue playing using the standard RCA cables.

It might not have been as successful as its competitors, but it has its own identity and a surprisingly large amount of high-quality exclusives and hidden gems. It also features great versions of games that eventually came out on other platforms, such as Lunar and Grandia. It’s a really nice retro system to own because of the Saroo and the officially licensed wireless controllers. I really love it.

I didn’t have a Saturn growing up; I had a Dreamcast.

I still love the Dreamcast, but I confess the Saturn intrigues me more. What do you think about the Saturn in 2026?