One of the best things about the modern gaming age is that certain technologies can help breathe new life into titles from the past. That goes double for the titles that never really got the chance to thrive in the past due to the limitations they were put under. An excellent example of this can be found in the Square Enix RPG Live A Live. When it came out on Super Famicom over 25 years ago, it was a title that was absolutely ahead of its time. But then, last year, it was reborn via HD-2D onto the Nintendo Switch, and it did pretty well.
But now, Square Enix will cast a bigger net, as they’ve announced that they will release Live A Live onto PS4, PS5, and Steam on April 27th. That means if you haven’t had the chance to play this old-school but unique RPG, you’ll have three more systems to try it out on. We’ve played the game ourselves, and we highly recommend it. You can check out the announcement trailer for the multiplatform release below:
At this point, you might wonder what makes the game unique compared to its RPG brethren. That would be because the RPG has you playing eight different characters across eight different time periods. Each one will have you completing unique stories that focus on singular characters. Then, in the end, a unifying story unfolds, and you bring everyone together to fight off a great evil.
While that may sound like your “standard RPG fare,” the way the game handles itself makes it unique. For example, some sections are less about fighting and more about solving a mystery. Other times it’ll be like you’re playing an arcade title or reliving an anime-style story. There’s even a giant robotic mech fight.
Depending on your choices, there are also a few different endings in the game. So when you add it all up, the game might be old, but it helped set a standard for how grand RPGs can be when handled properly.
The multiple strategies for release with games like this have been popular with Square Enix for a while. In February, they went straight to a multiplatform release with Octopath Traveler II, and that game seemed to have gotten more love and attention through it.
We’ll have to see how this multiplatform release does. But if nothing else, it’ll give attention to a game that deserves it.
