Live A Live was originally released in 1994 as a Japan-exclusive Super Famicom game. At the time, it was an overlooked offering from developer Square Enix during the golden age of console JRPGS. Recently, Live A Live had another chance at life when it was remade from the ground up and fully localized for a global audience. Originally a Switch-exclusive, the remake was ported to Steam and PlayStation earlier this year.

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---The Presentation---

The game’s premise is that it’s a collection of 8 mini-RPGs, each set in a different era from throughout history. Chapters include the Wild West, where you play as a lonesome cowboy, the Middle Ages, where you play as a troubled knight, the Distant Future, where you play as a cutesy robot, Prehistory, where you play as a young caveboy, and everything in-between. Each of these settings are rendered in gorgeous ‘HD-2D’ graphics, which evoke the 16-bit sprites of the 90s while using modern graphical improvements to make the backgrounds more realistic. The orchestrated soundtrack is also incredible, with legendary composer Yoko Shimomura returning to direct the arrangements.

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The most impressive part of Live A Live’s presentation, though, is the overarching story which transcends the self-contained chapters. Not much can be discussed without giving away the ending, but just when you think the game is about to be over, you realize that you’re only halfway through. Just when you think the game is going to be filled with the most generic, retread tropes, it pulls the rug out from under your feet and delivers a staggering finale that still shocks and awes even in this modern era of more sophisticated storytelling in games.

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---The Gameplay---

The time-bending elevator pitch alone is enough to turn heads, but Live A Live goes above and beyond in other areas, too. Combat is a mix between a strategy RPG (like Fire Emblem) and a traditional, turn-based RPG (like Dragon Quest). Battles take place on a small grid, and the playable characters have access to a variety of attacks that affect a certain pattern of squares around them. Skilled players will be able to manipulate the position of enemies so that they can hit multiple foes with a single attack. This system, while unique, does not always live up to its full potential. Many of your moves become next-to-useless as you encounter stronger enemies, and most battles are too simple to justfy the novelty and complexity of the gridded battlefield. Even at its worst, though, the combat is at least on par with other RPGs of its era.

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In addition to the core gameplay, most of the individual chapters have their own extra twists that keep them from becoming typical RPG fare. One chapter has the player complete tasks under a real-life time limit, one chapter is a stealth-based horror space opera with almost no combat, one chapter gives the player the option to take a pacifistic approach as they single-handedly storm a castle. There are so many little subversions that keep each part of the game feeling fresh and distinct.

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The only notable issue with the pacing is that the penultimate moments of the game are something of a slog, gameplay-wise. Right before the player encounters the final boss, they will have to fight a large amount of repetitive battles in order to level up, which temporarily brings the story to a halt right as it’s about to reach its climax. It is here where the weaknesses of the combat system are at their most egregious, which makes for a less-than-enjoyable grind.

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---The Verdict---

More than anything, Live A Live innovates. The original game was so far ahead of its time when it first released in the 90s that it still manages to surprise the player in the present day. New ideas are constantly being thrown out, and although not all of them stick, enough do that it can still be considered a distinct success. Live A Live is definitely a worthwhile purchase for anyone who values storytelling in games, anyone who is intrigued by the historical premise, or anyone who has any interest in RPGs.