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Dreamcaster999 on 14 October 2023
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Absolutely sensational year for gaming! Maybe the best of all time??? Obviously OoT will run away with it, but glad to see other games getting some love too.

As a JRPG guy, I'm sure that Xenogears and Suikoden II are amongst the very best but I've yet to get around to them! :(

WIth that said, however, I do already have a more than deserving winner: Panzer Dragoon Saga :)

This is probably the best game that nobody has ever played and is the clear shining jewel of the Saturn's library. To begin my praise of the game, I want to point out how visually impressive this game is: it's a fully 3D RPG (to my knowledge the first of its kind), while other games like FF7, Grandia, Xenogears, Suikoden had to find some level of balance with 2D elements, PDS shatters that compromise 2 years before Vagrant Story and on the Saturn no less (supposedly the wekest 5th gen console at 3D)

Then the story and characters are sublime. With its short ~15 hour run-time, Sega decided to keep this game's cast small but focused so that every character feels relevant, intriguing, and fully fleshed-out. The story starts as a revenge plot but develops into something far grander and more meta with one of the best endings in gaming. If you're a fan of NieR: Automata, you owe it to yourself to play this.

Meanwhile, the gameplay is also incredible. First of all, you have your own customisable dragon, which is awesome. And then somehow, Sega managed to make and RPG stay true to the series' roots as a rail shooter by using an ATB system in which where you position your dragon in relation to the enemy is king. The fights are fast, tactical, and engaging while the bosses are a grand spectacle even to this day!

To top it all off, the soundtrack is absolutely masterful!

Seriously, I know the game is incredibly inaccessible but if you have even the slightest interest in this masterpiece I assure you that you won't be dissappointed. Imo, this stands proudly alongside the PS1 and N64 greats as the Saturn's proud representative amongst the best of the generation.

Hope I'm not the only one here to adore this gem!