SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered - Interview

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Noisy Pixel interviewed director Naofumi Ueno and producer Hiroyuki Miura about SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered:

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Exclusive: "Satisfying Our Core Fans First Is Our Highest Priority" SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered Director Explain Their No-Compromise Approach

SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered is now available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam, and mobile devices via iOS and Android, reviving the 1999 cult favorite with a careful mix of modern updates and respect for its original design.

According to director Naofumi Ueno, features like high-resolution sprites, newly written character skits, and quality-of-life options were only added if they didn't interfere with the game's tough balance or nonlinear structure. The goal was to keep the core experience intact while giving new players a few more tools to engage with its demanding systems. Check out our review for a closer look.

Azario Lopez: SaGa Frontier 2 has long been a fan-favorite title within the series, noted especially for its unique watercolor art style and dual narrative structure. When revisiting this classic for the remaster, what were some of the key elements you prioritized enhancing or preserving to ensure it resonates with both returning players and newcomers?

Hiroyuki Miura, Producer: So that this game is accessible for newcomers, we were very mindful of making this game more intuitive to play. As for the level of difficulty, we've implemented features like the Parameter Inheritance system, redesigned the UI, and increased the tempo of battles in an effort to encourage new players to try out the game, while keeping the difficulty almost the same as it was in the original. I think the watercolor style graphics still feel fresh looking at it now, so I would love for newcomers to give this game a try.

Naofumi Ueno, Director: While SaGa Frontier 2 originally released 26 years ago in Japan and 25 years ago in North America and Europe, I was confident that the beauty of the watercolor art style and the pixel art characters would still be considered exceptional by modern day standards. As such, I felt if we could update those elements in high-resolution while keeping the original flavor, then new players would accept them as well. In other words, my priority was to deliberately keep the original elements as they were at the time. In addition, I was mindful of ensuring the additional scenario was incorporated in a natural way so that new players would think, "I don't know what parts are newly added." I also did my best so that the catharsis players would experience after the final conclusion of the two stories would be even deeper.

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