Most gamers are familiar with Panzer Dragoon in some form, especially with the recent release of Orta. The original Panzer Dragoon was developed for the Sega Saturn, and later ported to both the PC and Xbox (as a bonus within Orta). Not only was it a fantastic demonstration of the Saturn’s power, it was also an incredible rail-shooter with a surprisingly interesting storyline. A bit over a year later, Saturn gamers were treated to Panzer Dragoon 2: Zwei. This sequel improved on the original, featuring even better visuals, a solid plot, and screen-clearing Berserk attacks. Finally, in the Saturn’s last days, the third Panzer Dragoon game was released: Panzer Dragoon Saga. Unlike the first two titles, Panzer Dragoon Saga is an RPG. Given the rich plot of the first two games, it really seems only natural that an RPG based in the same universe would be developed.
Panzer Dragoon Saga puts players in the shoes of a young man named Edge, who works for the Empire at an excavation site in the mountains. After some time, Edge and his team uncover a woman encased in stone. Just as soon as she’s out of the ground, the Empire arrives and shoots the place up. Edge, too, is shot and ends up falling down one of the mineshafts as the Empire takes the girl and leaves. Some time later, he regains consciousness, surprised to find himself alive. Before long, he encounters a swarm of terrible monsters. All seems lost until a flurry of lasers spurt from the darkness, destroying his enemies. Edge has met his dragon. After taking a few moments to ensure the dragon’s friendliness, Edge and his new pal return to the surface and head off on a typical revenge quest.
Thankfully, things get interesting quickly. Despite the clichéd beginnings, Panzer Dragoon Saga’s plot has enough twists and turns to make for fantastic story telling. Over the course of the adventure, Edge and his dragon will make all sorts of friends and enemies, meet the girl encased in stone, discover the Empire’s true intentions and, of course, save the world. It wouldn’t be an RPG unless the hero saved the world, would it?
While the story is excellent, it is the battle system that makes Saga so engaging. Almost like Grandia’s
battle system, Saga features real-time combat driven by menus. Once Edge and his dragon have engaged the enemy, a meter begins to charge. Standard attacks, either the dragon’s lasers or Edge’s gun, consume 1/3 of the meter, as does using an item. The items are generally standard RPG stuff, such as health and magic potions. Magic, called Berserk attacks, use 2/3 of the meter. The Berserk attacks are surprisingly varied, ranging from devastating attacks to shields and healing. At any time, Edge and the dragon can circle the enemy, in order to get in better position. Positioning is fairly important, as most enemies can only unleash their best attacks from a certain position. A radar system allows the player to determine which are the safest and most dangerous spots.
The experience system, too, is unique. Experience points are awarded depending on how well the battle went. Take a bunch of hits or simply act slowly and the rewards will be significantly reduced. Players that can eliminate their foes quickly and effectively will find themselves leveling much faster, which naturally boosts the dragon’s stats and grants access to more powerful Berserk attacks.
Like Orta’s dragon, Edge’s can also change forms on the fly. The dragon has four stats, all of which can modified at any time to create the ideal dragon for the situation. Attack controls how much damage the dragon’s standard lasers deal. Defense should be self-explanatory. Agility affects the speed of the battle
meter. A higher agility allows the dragon to act more quickly in battle. Finally, Spirit determines Berserk attack strength. There are rules regarding what types of dragons can be created, however. A dragon cannot have a high agility and a high defense; they cancel each other out. With all that added armor for extra defense, the dragon’s movements are hindered. The same goes for Spirit and Attack; a dragon with incredibly powerful lasers will have reduced Berserk attacks.
While it’s certainly a fantastic game, it is not without a few problems. Firstly, the game is pathetically easy. Players familiar with the RPG genre should almost never have to worry about death. This does little to diminish the fantastic storyline, but the enjoyable battle system is made less so when one feels no real threat from the enemy. There is also one decidedly unenjoyable segment of the game, in which Edge must find his way through a gigantic maze where all the tunnels look the same. Not only that, the game clocks in at around 15 hours.
Panzer Dragoon Saga was released in small numbers on a “failed” system in the last few months of the console’s life. That said, it isn’t hard to see why we consider this to be a Game Nobody Played. It’s a fantastic game marred only by its lack of challenge and length. Determined gamers can snag this classic on Ebay, but be prepared to pay over $100 for it. Is it worth it? That’s up to you.
